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Laura Coates Live

Laura Coates Provides an Update on L.A. Wildfires; Dalyce Curry is Found Dead at Home After Eaton Fire; Republicans Eye Conditions to Wildfire Aid; Students in Crisis After Wildfire Torches School; DOJ to Release Jack Smith's January 6 Report; Prison Inmates Fight L.A. County's Wildfires. Aired 11p-12a ET

Aired January 13, 2025 - 23:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

[23:00:00]

ARTHUR ALDALA, CRIMINAL DEFENSE ATTORNEY: The Senate is not going to get it in this way.

ABBY PHILLIP, CNN ANCHOR AND SENIOR POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: Do you think, Scott, that there's one who might not make it? And if there is, who would it be?

SCOTT JENNINGS, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR, FORMER SPECIAL ASSISTANT TO PRESIDENT TO PRESIDENT GEORGE W. BUSH: I think they all have a good chance to make it. I think there are more than one who will lose more than one Republican vote, but I don't know if they'll lose the four necessary --

(CROSSTALK)

PHILLIP: -- names. Naming some names (ph).

JENNINGS: I mean, you can try me (ph).

(LAUGHTER)

JOHN AVLON, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: McConnell is not loving the (INAUDIBLE).

PHILLIP: All right. We'll check back in with you later in the week, everyone. Thank you very much. And thank you very much for watching "NewsNight." "Laura Coates Live" starts right now.

UNKNOWN (voice-over): This is CNN Breaking News.

LAURA COATES, CNN HOST AND SENIOR LEGAL ANALYST: Well, good evening, everyone, and welcome to "Laura Coates Live." Los Angeles is preparing for what could be another night of devastating wildfires. The National Weather Service is warning strong winds could lead to -- quote -- "explosive fire growth." Gusts could reach up to 70 miles per hour. And to make matters even worse, the warning will likely be in effect until Wednesday evening.

Crews, they are worried about the progress they've made against the Palisades and Eaton fires over the weekend could very well be undone. And to put that into perspective, it has been nearly a week since those two devastating infernos even broke out. Residents can't begin to rebuild with the threat of new blazes still lingering or even when they're safe to return fully. Many, they are waiting to find how much insurance will cover their losses.

But it's not just houses that have been destroyed. So many other places are now gone. I mean, completely disrupting daily life for tens of thousands of people. Places like schools. Here, for example, is Odyssey Charter School in South Altadena before the fires. This is what it looks like now. More than 370 students are enrolled at that school. Nearly a third come from economically-disadvantaged backgrounds.

And do you know that 60% have lost their homes? This was Palisades Charter Elementary, serving more than 400 students, and it's one of several schools in the neighborhood that's now burned to the ground. Now, parents like myself, of course, are wondering what happens to their kids and their schooling in the meantime.

And then there are the hundreds, potentially thousands of businesses that were totally wiped out. Altadena Hardware was part of the local community for more than 80 years. People who worked there will now have to figure out what exactly is supposed to come next. It's the same story for other mom and pop stores. Other restaurants like Cholada Thai in Malibu, that was a fixture there for 25 years. Now, the family-owned restaurant is a heap of rubble.

Now, can you imagine all the employees at that business and all of those businesses that were destroyed? Many of them don't know where their next paycheck is going to come from.

The fires have even left many without their normal place of worship. Here, for example, is Altadena Community Church before the Eaton Fire ripped through. This is it after. A nearby sister church opening its arms to those Altadena congregants this very weekend. And this was the Pacific Palisades Community United Methodist Church. One of my guests shared with me last week that it was founded by his own great- grandfather, and he saw it burn with his own eyes. He says the community will build a new church.

CNN's Julia Vargas Jones is in the Palisades tonight. Julia, the National Weather Service is issuing its most severe fire warning for parts of L.A. as now the winds, we're learning, are picking back up. What can you tell us?

JULIA VARGAS JONES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yeah, Laura, we're starting to feel this wind taking up. Look, today, we heard from -- we heard from authorities saying that we are still under a red flag warning all the way up to Wednesday. They are at a crucial stage of fighting this fire. As you mentioned, almost a week long ongoing, but these next few hours are going to be really important.

We heard from authorities also this afternoon that if the next 36 hours are as good as the past 36 hours, that we will be in really good shape. That doesn't mean out of the woods quite yet. This fire is only at about 14% containment but it has burned more than 23,000 acres. The fire on the east side of town, the Eaton Fire, 33% contained, 14,000 acres. Now, combine all of the fires that we've seen in the L.A. area over the past week or so. More than 60 square miles. Sixty square miles, an area larger than the city of Paris.

[23:05:01]

Just the scale of this destruction, Laura, that's -- it's just almost so difficult to think about what that rebuilding is going to look like. But people have already been saying they want to go in and see the damage of their homes.

At this point, there's so much tension between those residents that are in those areas that had mandatory evacuation orders and authorities. We've witnessed, I've witnessed, so many people trying to go back to check on their homes or to pick up medication or to see if their pets are still around, and authorities are saying, please don't, it is just too dangerous at this time.

COATES: It must be unimaginable to try to process it and wondering what happened, what's left, until you see it for yourself, of course, and then the risk that's involved. The Associated Press, as you know, obtaining tonight a possible first video of the Palisades Fire captured by hikers who were running from smoke and flames -- get this -- last Tuesday morning before all this really began, right? And authorities, they haven't given new details about the investigation into what exactly started these fires. So, what are these hikers now saying happened?

VARGAS JONES: Well, basically, they're saying that they were hiking on the morning of the 7th of January. And in the middle of it, they smelled fire, they saw fire, and they started running. They actually spoke to "The Associated Press," explaining what exactly it is that they saw. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNKNOWN: It was probably only about 50 feet away from us. And we quickly like got our stuff, ran down from the rock. We climbed down from the rock. We had to climb up to get to it. And as we got to the bottom of the rock, we started to hear the fire crackle like right behind us. And the wind started to pick up really fast. And like we got our things and completely (INAUDIBLE).

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VARGAS JONES: And Laura, that is the day that the Palisades Fire started in that same area. Now, a law enforcement source did tell our CNN's Josh Campbell that there is -- quote -- "no leading theory at this time at what it is that caused the Palisades Fire." But they are aware of this video, and that is one of the theories they're investigating. Laura?

COATES: Julia Vargas Jones, thank you so much for that reporting. I want to turn now to L.A. County Fire Chief Anthony Marrone for an update on all of the firefighting efforts that are happening tonight. Chief, first, let me just begin with where we left off with my colleague on this. Many people, of course, want to know why this is ongoing and continuing. But do you have a sense? Are you prioritizing to how it started just yet?

ANTHONY MARRONE, CHIEF, LOS ANGELES COUNTY FIRE DEPARTMENT: Well, actually, right now, Laura, the -- our law enforcement partners along with some federal partners, in addition to the L.A. County Fire Department, Arson Investigation members, are actively engaged in trying to determine the cause not only of the Eaton and the Palisades fires, but all of the other wildland brush fires that we've suffered over the last seven days. So, it's going to take quite a bit of time. Every one of those fires is important. However, I would say that both the Eaton and the Palisades fires are being prioritized because we've lost so many lives.

COATES: It's unbelievable, the devastation and scope. Our colleagues saying the amount of land akin to Paris. Unbelievable to think about that scope and the devastation, as you rightly put out, and the suffering. So, chief, what is the plan of action if, and we're hearing if, if strong winds force you to ground the helicopters that are trying to give some sort of aerial relief as well, like what happened when you and I first met last week?

MARRONE: Yeah, we do have a plan in place. We do have ground resources not only locally but from Northern California, from out of state. We have federal resources on scene. We even have international resources, Canada and Mexico. So, we have a lot of firefighting resources here in L.A. County ready not only to respond to any new starts but also to respond either to the Eaton or the Palisades if it ends up becoming out of control from brands when we have those projected 70 mile-an-hour winds beginning at 4 a.m. this morning, just eight hours away.

COATES: You have the manpower, as you articulated. Do you have the water resources, the retardants available as well to be able to use it, or without rain in sight and the dry conditions, are you fighting a very uphill battle?

[23:10:00]

MARRONE: Well, you know, firefighting is dangerous and dirty work. And my hat is off to the men and women of the L.A. County Fire Department, who've been on the line for seven days now. On the 7th of January, Tuesday, we held over the off-going shift. We doubled our workforce from 900 firefighters to 1,800 firefighters on duty. And on Wednesday, we recalled the third shift. We now have over 2,700 firefighters that have not been home since Wednesday.

COATES: Hmm.

MARRONE: They're tired, but they're ready to go to work if we get a new fire or to come either to the Eaton or the Palisades to augment the resources that are already there.

You know, we're not out of the woods yet. Four a.m. tomorrow to Wednesday afternoon is going to be a very tedious time for all of us, but law enforcement and fire departments in L.A. County are ready to respond.

COATES: Chief, I know you're hoping for 100% contained. There is some room to get there, and we wish you the best of luck and safety for all that are trying to fight it. Thank you so much.

MARRONE: Thank you so much, Laura, for having us on.

COATES: At least -- this death toll has risen. At least 24 people have now died from these horrific fires. And we want to remember one of the many lives that have been lost. Dalyce Curry was a vibrant 95- year-old grandmother. And lovingly, they called her "Mama D." She was known in Hollywood, acting as an extra for decades in classic films like "The Blues Brothers," "The Ten Commandments," and many more. She later became a nurse. Curry's family, they were uncertain of her whereabouts until yesterday. That was when a coroner confirmed Dalyce's remains were discovered inside of her Altadena home.

Here to pay tribute to her dearest grandmother is Dalyce Kelley. Dalyce, I am so sorry to meet you this way. I had to tell you, just looking at her pictures and hearing about her story, it's no wonder even her presence would have brought a smile to your face. I wonder if you can take us back in time. You last saw her late Tuesday night, I understand, after you dropped her off following a hospital visit. Can you tell me what happened then?

DALYCE KELLEY, LOST GRANDMOTHER, DALYCE CURRY, IN LOS ANGELES WILDFIRES: Well, we were kind of notified by our community that there was a potential fire evacuation. But it didn't look like danger. When we came home, it was relatively normal. Lights were out closer to the freeway. But as we got to the hill coming up to the mountains where she's right there at the bottom of the mountain in these homes, the lights, the power was on and it just looked normal, you know, and maybe the fire was very north -- um, north east. We're very west in Altadena. And --

COATES: Hmm.

KELLEY: -- we just had no idea. I mean, she and I both did not feel like she was going to be unsafe. The fire was, um, way afar. And, um, I live with a lot of guilt, and I'm trying to process all of this. I've never experienced this type of devastation in my life.

My grandmother, our grandmother, she meant the world to us. She adored me and I adored her. I just -- I'm lost for words. We had no idea that that fire and the wind would be so powerful that it would wipe out and devastate a whole community, the city of Altadena, that she loved so much. She lived there for over 20 years. And she loved her independence. She loved that little college.

Altadena is a very eclectic neighborhood. They're very, you know, liberal. White people are 40% more, plus predominantly Black and Hispanic. And it's just a great city to live in. And there was so much history there.

COATES: Yeah.

KELLEY: And such a loss.

COATES: And you had -- first of all, sis, you had no idea that she would be in the danger at all. I am so sorry that you're carrying any guilt as you're trying to process it. But you cannot blame yourself. I hope you know that in your core. And at what point did you realize that she was not being heard from, that she had been missing? You'd seen the images of the fires. And you tried to go to try to get her, I understand, right?

KELLEY: I did. So, I received a text message at 5:30 a.m.

[23:15:00]

Her landlord said, did anyone get Dee-Dee (ph)?

COATES: Uh-hmm.

KELLEY: And I said, do I need to tell her to get a bag? Do I need to call her, tell her to get her bag ready? Do we need to evacuate? And they said there was an evacuation notice that went out at 3:30. But at 12:31, because I have an ailing sister, so I have to live back and forth between both homes to take care of them both, I got it -- I mean, I texted the community and said, hey, if we have an evacuation, my grandmother is there.

And one of our neighbors, Juan (ph), he knocked on the door. But he had left and came back. And then that's when, apparently, he knocked on her door. And he left again. He said -- well, maybe he thought she had already evacuated.

But she was exhausted. We were in the hospital the entire day. And we just had no idea that this was going on. There were no signs, there was no warnings, and it just didn't look like dangerous. It was a normal day in Altadena besides some lights were off on the way in.

COATES: Ahh.

KELLEY: And I just -- you know, I -- I just want to say that when I got to -- you know, started getting closer to Altadena, it was day, it was morning, but I'll never forget exiting and how black it was. It was -- it turned night. And it was just devastating. There was so much smoke. There was so much fire.

I got up the way. I grabbed an officer and I said, my grandmother is up there, she's in her house, you have to go get her. He took down her information. He called me so I'd have his number. He told me to head to the Pasadena Civic Center --

COATES: Uh-hmm.

KELLEY: -- to look for her there, and he was going to go to her home. And he called me, unfortunately, 15 minutes later and said that her house was totally burned down, and I panicked.

COATES: Dalyce, I know, at some point, her remains were found at her home. And what you described is -- KELLEY: We were told that yesterday.

COATES: Yeah. I'm just so sorry that happened. And what she has meant and continues to mean to your family. And I know there are no words. But if I could -- just for a moment, could you indulge me? Because I know you've given us something that I found so precious. Her voicemail message that she left to the world when you would call her and try to leave her a message. And from the granddaughters of all the world who would have called their grandmother and gotten something like this, can we just smile for a moment as we listen? Let's play that for everyone.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DALYCE CURRY, FORMER ACTRESS, DIED IN LOS ANGELES WILDFIRE (voice- over): Hi! God loves you so much. No matter what! So, be happy, okay? Leave me your message and always remember blessings upon blessings are sent your way. Until next time, bye-bye.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(LAUGHTER)

COATES: I hear it in your voice, and I can only imagine the joy that she has brought to your life and so many others. We'll leave her words for the world to hear this evening. Dalyce Kelley, thank you for sharing her.

KELLEY: Thank you. Thank you, Laura.

COATES: Unbelievable to think about that. What a sweet woman. I know there are many stories out there as well. To another story that we are facing here in Washington, D.C. and beyond, President-elect Donald Trump is in talks to visit L.A. as early as next week. Well, he will be inaugurated just this coming Monday. This has summoned his own party. They are considering placing conditions on wildfire aid. The mayor of Pasadena is standing by to respond next.

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[23:20:00]

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COATES: Firefighters are now bracing for dangerous winds in the coming hours that could very well threaten the progress that has been made so far. I want to bring in the mayor of Pasadena, Victor Gordo. Mayor, there are some areas of Pasadena that are still under an evacuation warning, I understand. Can you tell us what's your primary concern at this hour and what is your message to the residents?

MAYOR VICTOR GORDO, PASADENA, CALIFORNIA: Well, first and foremost, my thoughts go out to Dalyce Kelley and her family, and her prayers that all Pasadena residents join me. You know, right now, it's important to remember that we're -- this is an evolving situation, we're still in the middle of the emergency, and we want people to abide by the evacuation orders, not put themselves or first responders in harm's way.

We're concerned about the winds. You heard the --

COATES: Uh-hmm.

GORDO: -- L.A. County fire chief talk about the 70 mile-per-hour winds, and we're very concerned about that. While it's in the foothills at the moment, we're concerned that that wind could shift and jeopardize more communities.

COATES: I mean, the Santa Ana winds we're hearing about and just the prevalence and that speed, unbelievable. And, as you can imagine, these fires, they have sparked a lot of insurance anxiety among survivors wondering what they're going to do now. Can you tell us what resources are available right now for the uninsured?

GORDO: Well, we have -- we opened up an evacuation center. And so, people who don't have the resources to find a hotel, we will certainly make room for you at the evacuation center.

[23:24:57]

We were mobilizing an assistance family center that will be open on Wednesday to provide cash and assistance and food resources to individuals who need it. And so, we're mustering all of the resources that we believe are needed. Certainly, we're going to count on our state and federal assistance to help get people. These are real people who are suffering, who are struggling, and we need the assistance.

COATES: And these are families who want to stay together and be in a safe space. And they're probably terrified about what it means to be in a communal situation, not knowing when they're going to leave. I think it's so important people know what resources are out there.

And speaking of the federal response, President-elect Donald Trump is in talks to visit L.A., I understand, to survey the damage. This is the House speaker. Mike Johnson says that there should probably be conditions, his phrase, on wildfire aid, which would be totally unprecedented, mayor. What is your message to Trump and leaders on Capitol Hill about this condition?

GORDO: You know, there ought to be, uh, an immediate response from the federal government right now. You know, the time for tinkering with conditions or ideas on how to do things exactly correct or right are -- you know, we're in an emergency. Let's get the assistance out here right now. We can talk about, uh, planning later. Right now, we need the assistance. I urge the federal government, our current administration, and our future administration to bring that aid immediately.

COATES: Yeah. Are you concerned at all about the relationship between President-elect Trump and your governor, Gavin Newsom, possibly impacting the ability to get what you need?

GORDO: You know, I want to believe that political bickering and political gamesmanship will be set aside by all and that we will respond to the human tragedy that's occurring before our very eyes right now. People are losing everything that they have. They're losing their home. They're losing, in some cases, their health. We need everyone to set all political disputes aside and do the right thing for the right reason.

COATES: Mayor Victor Gordo, thank you so much for joining.

GORDO: Thank you.

COATES: Up next, you know, we have new video of the devastation at an Altadena school. This as parents and, of course, administrators now ask, where will the kids go to learn? I've got the school's principal standing by to join me next.

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[23:30:00]

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COATES: You've seen videos of the homes, of the businesses that have burned down in L.A. County. But why don't you look at your screen now? The damage you see here is what's left of a school. This is the South Campus of Odyssey Charter School in Altadena. Well, what's left of it, anyway. It's a K to 8 school that serves more than 850 students. And 30% come from low-income families. And tonight, the school tells us they estimate -- get this -- more than 60% of their students have also now lost their homes.

Bonnie Brimecombe joins me now. She is the principal of Odyssey Charter School South. Bonnie, unbelievable to think about what is happening in your community and what parents and what, obviously, administrators like you are wondering, about what's going to happen with the children's education, let alone their lives. I understand you had a meeting with the school staff earlier today. Can you describe what that was like?

BONNIE BRIMECOMBE, PRINCIPAL, ODYSSEY CHARTER SCHOOL-SOUTH: Oh, it's going to make me cry all over again.

COATES: Oh, no.

BRIMECOMBE: It's beautiful. It's beautiful to be back together, to be able to hug each other, to be able to be back in community and see that, you know, we can do this, we can do hard things. We just need to keep coming back together. So, it was -- it was just really powerful.

COATES: I tell you, you know how important teachers are to our world, let alone our individual communities. And this is when the philosophies behind why people become teachers become very apparent to people. And you told us that 60 -- I couldn't believe this number -- 60% of the families in your community have lost their homes. What do you even begin to tell parents about the path forward, what their options are? They also want their children to be in school.

BRIMECOMBE: Right. Absolutely. That's kind of the tricky part about this, is that we have families that we still haven't even heard from. They're in a situation where they can't even reach out to communicate what their needs are and what their situation is. So, our number of 60% is still growing right now. Our teachers are calling each family to hear their individual situation and to hear what we need to do to help them.

But we do, we have to open our school again. We can't leave our kids sitting, you know, displaced all over Los Angeles in unfamiliar locations. They need to be back with familiar faces, with teachers that love them. And our teachers are rising to the occasion. Every single teacher met with us today. There's not one person hesitating in this very difficult situation. They are all coming back.

COATES: You know, when parents go through hard -- when families go through hard times, sometimes, they just want their children to have a reprieve from the day to day.

[23:35:02]

And schools can become that safe space, let alone for school lunches, for weekend meals that are available in your backpacks at the end of the week as well. How do you plan to talk to students about what's going on? And is there a place nearby that can give these students, these families, some place to be safe during the day?

BRIMECOMBE: Right. So, we've had amazing organizations and different groups of people step up to support our students. So, right now, this week -- today was actually the first day our students were supposed to return to school, and our partnership with the Boys and Girls Club of Pasadena opened their doors to our students.

COATES: Hmm.

BRIMECOMBE: So, our students are able to come in. Our parents have childcare. They're able to actually already start being in community and already start to have that beginning of the healing process, while we, as the rest of the leadership team and the school team, are fighting to find a new facility that we can quickly turn into a school.

COATES: Look, I was a boys and girls club kid in Worcester, Massachusetts. So, I understand for a long time how important those centers are. Look, there -- this is unprecedented. And there's no playbook for this. So -- I mean, how are you guiding this whole process? Is it just instinct? What's happening?

BRIMECOMBE: Yeah. I mean, the benefit of being a charter school is that our job is to open schools when there's need. So, our school is only seven years old. Our sister school, part of our other -- part of our organization, is 25 years in operation. So, we know how to continually reinvent ourselves. All schools have already closed during COVID and found a way to reopen online.

COATES: Hmm.

BRIMECOMBE: So, we're not unfamiliar with this idea of start again, new idea, fresh start. We're actually very, very good at it. And our students are resilient. And our community is looking at us, ready for us to take that next step and join us and support us.

COATES: You know, during COVID, you had sometimes, you know, obviously, access to the internet, which is probably something not possible right now. Are you preparing for an in-person group learning or is it right now the safe space and community, and then education will come down the road?

BRIMECOMBE: Right, you're exactly right. We are not trying to go online. We've all done that and experienced that. And it's not good for kids. It's not good for social emotional learning. So, we're going to be back in person, and we're going to be ready to help that mental health. We have our counselors ready. We have the planning already, social and emotional read-aloud. It's built into our curriculum every day, but we're ready to start doing it more intensely now that our students have had these experiences.

COATES: Principal Bonnie Brimecombe, thank you, and I wish the best for your students. Thank you so much.

Up next, the other breaking news just in tonight, Jack Smith's January 6th report is now just moments away from being officially released. This after Judge Aileen Cannon rejected Donald Trump's last-minute appeal. All the 11th hour details in "The 11th Hour" at CNN next.

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[23:40:00]

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COATES: This just in tonight, Judge Aileen Cannon just rejected a last-minute bid by President-elect Donald Trump to stop the release of Jack Smith's January 6th report. What that means is the DOJ could very well release that report just moments from now at the stroke of midnight.

With me now, CNN senior justice correspondent Evan Perez and Norm Eisen, attorney, former White House Ethics czar, and co-founder of the new publication, "The Contrarian." Let me begin with you here, Evan. What do you know about the time -- we'll come to you in a second. What do you know about what's happening in terms of, Norm, the procedural aspect of when this report will come out? We know it had to come out. Now what?

NORM EISEN, CNN LEGAL ANALYST, ATTORNEY, FORMER HOUSE JUDICIARY SPECIAL COUNSEL IN TRUMP'S FIRST IMPEACHMENT TRIAL, CO-FOUNDER OF "THE CONTRARIAN": Donald Trump had tried a last bit desperate Hail Mary attempt to stop this in front of Judge Cannon. In the briefing on that, it became clear that DOJ was going to release that report after midnight. So, we are now in the countdown.

Judge Cannon has rejected Donald Trump's effort, and that means we are minutes away from seeing the contents of this Volume 1 report even though, in my view, she's illegitimately holding back Volume 2 on the Mar-a-Lago case. We're going to get the January 6 findings.

COATES: So, Evan, we know that as part of the statute, they have to -- the special counsel has to provide a report at the conclusion of their work. Jack Smith has already resigned.

EVAN PEREZ, CNN SENIOR JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT: Yeah.

COATES: He has -- does not have active cases right now involving the president-elect of the United States. There has been, as Norm indicated, some back and forth as to whether he could release information responding to what happened in the election interference case in Washington, D.C. or the classified documents case in Florida that the judge said was not appropriate because he was not an appropriate special counsel who could get the congressional funding. There are issues with that argument, of course. But we're waiting to get those two volumes.

PEREZ: Right.

COATES: We've seen a lot in the indictments. What are we expecting to see?

PEREZ: Well, we're expecting to see a lot of what Jack Smith said in his last -- in the last update to the indictment. You remember Donald Trump was indicted last summer, in 2023 -- sorry, actually, two summers ago.

COATES: Uh-hmm.

PEREZ: In 2023, summer, in August, he was indicted on those four charges.

[23:44:58]

And then after the Supreme Court granted Trump expansive immunity last summer, the special counsel updated that indictment. So, a lot of what we're going to see is based on what they said in court in those filings, which is basically just the evidence that they presented that Donald Trump not only was trying to overturn the election, but he was also trying to defraud the United States and was trying to interfere with people's right to vote, right? So, those are the things we're going to see more at length, their decision-making for those charges.

Now, the one that I think everybody wants to see is the one related to classified documents case.

COATES: Uh-hmm.

PEREZ: That was always the stronger case that Jack Smith had. And also, we know that they explored a whole lot of set of venues, avenues of investigation. So, that is the one that Donald Trump and his team are most interested in keeping out of public view. They're just fighting this other fight because it's convenient and they're kind of getting a lot of what they want.

I'll read you just a part of what Judge Cannon says, by the way, Laura, and I think you'll find this interesting. You know, basically, she says -- she sorts of intimates that she would be inclined to block this, but she says this only -- she only has authority to enforce its own orders in this proceeding.

The court is, therefore, constrained to deny this present request. In other words, regretfully, I can't do what you're asking for Donald Trump in this case, right? So, we anticipate that this report at 12:01 is going to be transmitted to Congress, and then thereafter, hopefully, we can persuade somebody to let us see it.

COATES: Hmm.

EISEN: You know it must be a weak argument that Donald Trump is making if even Judge Aileen Cannon won't consider it.

But the shock of what's going to be in that report when we get it, it never grows old that you have this evidence and the detail that a president of the United States lost an election, he refused to leave office, he came up with this cockamamie scheme to have the electors for the losing candidate replace the electors for the winning candidate, he tried to pressure his own vice president to do that, he incited a violent mob, and now, he's returning to the Oval Office with the ability to use those powers again.

So, this report is very important and worth waiting up for.

COATES: Well, you know, first of all, this show is always worth waiting up for, and we're going to keep going until we know everything that's in there. But I'll tell you this: He's fighting, as you know, the classified documents case as well. There's a lot left unknown. I mean, when you file an indictment, as you all know, you are meeting your burden of probable cause. You're not necessarily meeting your burden of proof beyond a reasonable doubt. You don't have to in those documents.

PEREZ: Yeah.

COATES: It's notice pleadings, right? You're on notice of what you're actually being charged with. This might give us the color and the decision-making of what they chose not to pursue as well. Right, Evan?

PEREZ: On the -- on the -- this is in the January 6th case, right. I mean, right now, DOJ has already conceded that they cannot release the classified documents report. They know that Walt Nauta and De Oliveira, the other employee --

COATES: Co-defendants.

PEREZ: -- co-defendants, Carlos De Oliveira, their two co-defendants are still, you know, technically going to go on trial at some point, perhaps. DOJ is still pursuing that case. And so, because of that, DOJ is not allowed to prejudice that case. And so, they agreed -- they already agreed that they're not going to release that tonight, right? They're hoping at some point, when that's over, they can do that.

COATES: Why are you champing at the bit on that point, Norm? EISEN: Is there anybody in America who thinks that when Donald Trump gets office, he's already promising these sweeping, expansive pardons, that he's actually going to continue with the prosecution --

PEREZ: No, nobody expects that.

EISEN: -- of his valet, Nauta, and his employee, De Oliveira? No!

COATES: But, to your point --

PEREZ: Right.

COATES: What's your point?

PEREZ: No. I think, to your point, no. We expect that Pam Bondi, the new attorney general, when she gets into office, will move quickly to just dismiss these cases, right? I'll tell you one quick thing, I don't know how much time we have, one quick thing about the battle tonight. Donald Trump's lawyers actually asked the judge to not allow this Volume 1 to be released. But in that, one of the things they argue is that this will interfere with the transfer of power, executive power.

COATES: Yes.

PEREZ: I just thought it was very, very -- it was almost like -- I had to imagine the lawyers were giggling as they were writing that because, obviously, Donald Trump is accused of violating that very thing, right? Which is the peaceful transfer of power in this case. And so, the idea that they're arguing, you shouldn't release this report because it might interfere with the transfer of power, is kind of rich.

[23:49:59]

COATES: Well, by the way -- I mean, not for nothing. He has been very clear that he believes that all these falls under the category of lawfare, that the American people voted him in office in spite of it, and some would say because of it, he argues. And so, if it was not enough to be a disqualifier for elections, you wonder if it's really any veracity to being disqualifying from being able to govern. But, you know, just thinking inside the box.

Evan Perez, Norm Eisen, thank you both so much. We'll have continuing coverage here on CNN as soon as that report is released. But up next, we're going back to the urgency of California. This for a closer look at the inmates who are on the front lines of the race to stop these wildfires. Hundreds being used in what has become to some a controversial practice. So, what is it really like? I've got a former inmate turned professional firefighter who are standing by next.

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[23:55:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ANDERSON COOPER, CNN HOST: Over on this ridge, a large crew of firefighters. Those are actually inmates, who have volunteered to learn firefighting skills. They are working, clearing -- you see the road they're on. That's a road likely created by bulldozers earlier to kind of create a fire line. They are now widening that road, clearing out more underbrush.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COATES: That was CNN's Anderson Cooper out on the front lines with inmates, who were working to contain the fires last Thursday. You know, today, there are more than 900 incarcerated firefighters battling those blazes all across L.A. County, risking their lives to try to protect people's homes. It's actually a longstanding program in California. Prisoners take classes, and they go through field training. Every participant volunteer, then has to be accepted to join.

The Corrections Department sees it as a rehabilitation program. And everyone sees it that way, of course. Prison reform activists have largely opposed the program, noting the poor pay, and the pay is low. Inmates in the program are paid a maximum of $10.24 a day with an additional dollar paid for each hour during emergencies. Now, compare that to the California minimum wage, $16.50 an hour. Now, some participants can also get two days removed from their sentences for every day they have fought fires.

But the work is life threatening. An ACLU report published in 2022 found that a five-year period, more than a thousand incarcerated firefighters were injured on the job. Four were killed.

Here with me now, Anthony Pedro. He's a former inmate turned firefighter who was also the founder of Future Fire Academy, an organization who helps underserved communities to join the fire service.

Anthony, thank you for being here. I have been totally intrigued and fascinated by the role of inmates in helping to be the heroes we need in these communities for firefighting. There has also been a lot of uproar about the low pay for these firefighters. You've got people like Kim Kardashian lobbying the governor to raise the pay. But I wonder from your experience, how do you see their role and the concerns about them serving in those roles?

ANTHONY PEDRO, FORMER INMATE TURNED FIREFIGHTER, FOUNDER OF FUTURE FIRE ACADEMY: Yeah, so, thanks for having me on the show, Laura. Thank you very much.

COATES: Thank you.

PEDRO: So, as far as the pay go, when a -- when I was doing firefighting as an inmate firefighter, I was getting paid about a dollar. So, there is an increase for sure. But as a professional firefighter myself, that's like -- for civilians in the field or incarcerated folks, it's like -- in the fire service, you always have to kind of put in your skin in the game, that free time, a little like that volunteer aspect.

So, like the way me and my peers, well, when we were incarcerated, the way we looked at it was like this is our internship, and the prison being behind the walls, and we can get this career in the process and, you know, that's exactly what I was able to do. So, that answers your question.

COATES: Yeah. That's -- I mean, it's very important to think about. And I'd love to know your personal experience. You were once out there fighting fires as an inmate and an incarcerated person. Can you tell us about what that experience was like in that program?

PEDRO: Well, you know, I loved it. I thrived in it because, you know, we -- it's a great opportunity. It has been around for decades and decades. Even the actor, Danny Trejo, who's doing a film on myself, executive producer, and it's called "Trial by Fire," you know, he was an inmate firefighter himself, you know. And so, it has been around forever.

And for me, it was like being able to be there for someone on their worst day to arise to that occasion, that's an honor, you know. That program offered that to us. We're very fortunate. We're unfortunate to have our fires in our state, but we're very fortunate to have the opportunity for that, you know. So, I loved it.

COATES: Yeah.

PEDRO: My first call -- my first medical call, CPR on a baby. My first fire was a structure bowling alley fire. You know, so like -- those are the kind of things that -- you know, it'll build you up fast.

[23:59:59]

When you come home to do it professionally, you have that experience. You know, you're forced to have that real quick and you excel at it.

COATES: You certainly made a difference then and are making a difference now in the work that you're doing. And we see what's happening in California, the difference, especially with the need for firefighters and those who have raised their hand to volunteer to be a part of the solution.

Anthony Pedro, thank you so much for joining us. I look forward to watching that movie, too. Thank you.

PEDRO: Yeah, "Trial by Fire."

COATES: Thank you all tonight for watching. "Anderson Cooper 360" is next.