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Political Leaders Assassinated in Baghdad; Pope Holds Private Ash Wednesday Mass While Convalescing in Hospital; Scalping Suspect in Police Custody

Aired February 09, 2005 - 13:00   ET

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

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


KYRA PHILLIPS, CO-HOST: Plus, the vote count in Iraq.
A solemn holiday with something missing. Catholics observe Ash Wednesday with a notable absence.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Before 1800 more people came to America from Africa than from anywhere else, and most of them came in chains.

PHILLIPS: Slavery in America, a new documentary on the struggle to maintain human dignity and remember the founding fathers you've likely never heard about.

From the CNN center in Atlanta, I'm Kyra Phillips. Miles is on assignment. CNN's LIVE FROM starts right now.

Wrong turn on Haifa Street, a deadly mistake for Kurdish officials making their way through Baghdad today. We get the details now from CNN's Nic Robertson. He's in the Iraqi capital -- Nic.

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Kyra, they turned down a street that is known for high insurgent activity. It is a long street. It is bordered on either side by high apartment buildings, insurgents able to shoot down from -- from the heights. Also known to use that area to fire mortars on the Green Zone.

When officials from the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan, a Kurdish political party, turned down that street, they came under insurgent gunfire. A gunfight broke down. The firefight went on for at least half an hour. There were several loud explosions coming from the area. Three of those Kurdish officials were killed. A plume of black smoke rose up from the area, apparently from their vehicle that was set on fire.

That not only the incident in Baghdad today. Earlier on, an official from the interior ministry, a senior official, was kidnapped. The interior ministry says at this time they do not know where he is and do not know who is holding him.

And earlier in the day, in the southern city of Basra, an Iraqi journalist working for a U.S.-funded Arabic news -- Arabic television service, the Al-Hura station, was killed.

He was just coming out of his house in the morning, getting ready to go to work. His two bodyguards had gone back inside the house. Just as that happened, the gunmen drove up, shot at him, killed him and his 3-year-old son -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Nic, turning the corner now, talking about the election, the count, the re-count. It's starting to sound like the United States. What's the latest with the numbers?

ROBERTSON: It's still going on. Results had been expected this week. What appears to be happening, according to election officials, they are investigating claims of irregularities, claims of irregularities, not only at the polling stations, but also in the counting.

And they say at this time that they're going through, recounting some 300 ballot boxes, checking the balloting papers in those, checking for irregularities.

They are not called -- they are saying that this is not a delay, per se. But right now, they don't expect to release results this week, possibly over the weekend, possibly early next week before those final results come out, Kyra.

PHILLIPS: All right, Nic Robertson, live from Baghdad, thank you.

And a different day, different city, different audience. Similar talking points, though, for Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice today in Brussels. At NATO headquarters, Rice huddled with her ally and E.U. counterpart over plans to step up training of Iraqi security forces both inside and outside the country.

All 26 NATO member states should soon be playing a part, and Rice says that's a turning point.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CONDOLEEZZA RICE, SECRETARY OF STATE: I can say with gratitude to colleagues around the table that there were a number of countries that immediately agreed to contribute and a number of others that said that they would intend to contribute, because everyone understands the importance of training the Iraqi security forces so that the Iraqis are capable of taking on their own security tasks.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Rice also warned, and we quote, "The next steps are in the offing of Iran continues to shy away from U.N. scrutiny of its nuclear research." Those steps, she says, are particular U.N. sanctions, not military action.

Well, it's a nice day in Nice, where NATO defense ministers are holding their first meeting on French soil in four decades. Donald Rumsfeld is there, drumming up support for NATO's Iraq project, to which only 80 of the planned contingent of 300 officers have so far been deployed.

Ahead of that conference, Rumsfeld warned U.S. sailors aboard a destroyer off the French coast that a bumpy road still lies ahead in Iraq's transition to democracy.

Well, you think you can do better? For all the fuss over President Bush's bid to partially privatize Social Security, the bottom line for most of us is simple: can we invest better than the government does?

A CNN/"USA Today"/Gallup poll shows more of us have faith in our own investment skills than those of the government or our neighbors. Forty percent believe they personally would end up with higher benefits if they were in charge of a portion of their Social Security contributions. Twenty-nine percent say benefits would stay the same. Twenty-seven percent say they'd be lower.

Asked about results for most Americans, only 30 percent expect higher benefits. Thirty-seven percent expect lower.

Most Americans believe the president's assertion that Social Security will be bankrupt by 2042 if nothing is done, but most also say the president's proposal is a bad idea. Those numbers haven't budged since the White House lobbying blitz began.

Today, the focus turns to the House Budget Committee, where some of the government's premier moneymen are getting a run for their money. Here's treasury secretary John Snow.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOHN SNOW, TREASURY SECRETARY: There is a trust fund with a surplus in it. That surplus -- that, Mr. Spratt, we will honor the bonds in the trust fund. Of course we will. They carry the full faith and credit of the United States. As with all obligations of the United States, they'll be -- they'll be honored.

But the bonds run out in 2042. And in 2042, with no -- no surplus left in the fund, fund must fall back on its own revenues. And its own revenues are only sufficient to meet about, oh, 72 percent of its obligations.

REP. JOHN SPRATT (D-SC), BUDGET COMMITTEE: I say to you, Mr. Secretary, why not tune up the model we've got? The Social Security system has served America so well for more than 50 years. As opposed to trading it in for a vehicle that's never been around the track and never been proven to work?

SNOW: The longer we wait, the more prejudicial the outcome will be, the less beneficial, the more prejudicial the outcome will be to your children and to future generations. Because by starting it now, by getting it under way, they'll be able to use this power of compounding, over a long lifetime of work. And, thus, build much bigger accounts and a much better retirement.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Politics and policy, two different vastly different priorities of any White House together. Now in the building portfolio of White House mover and shaker Karl Rove, the longtime friend, adviser and all-around political guru to President Bush, has just been named deputy White House chief of staff for policy.

You see him here at a ceremony. He helped to bring about Mr. Bush's second inauguration.

Well, now in his new role, Rove will coordinate the work of the National Economic Council, the Domestic Policy Council, the National Security Council and the Homeland Security Council.

Democrats are appalled, DNC Chief Terry McAuliffe calling Rove an ideological strategist who has a history of bending the truth and using dirty tricks.

Most of the world's Christians know today as Ash Wednesday, the start of 40 days of fasting and penitence preceding Easter. For Pope John Paul II, though, today's another sick day. The first Ash Wednesday of his 26-year papacy that he didn't preside over Vatican observances.

CNN's Alessio Vinci joins me with the pope's absence and slow convalescence in Rome -- Alessio.

ALESSIO VINCI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hello, Kyra.

Well, the pope is said to be feeling much better, and we are expecting a new bulletin from the Vatican to be released sometime tomorrow, midday here, Rome time.

But we are hearing reports inside the Vatican that the pope may return to his palace as early as Friday, perhaps Saturday. And, indeed, the Vatican spokesman tonight is quoted by Italian media saying that he hopes that tomorrow's bulletin will be -- medical bulletin will be the last one on this story.

As you said, the pope did celebrate Ash Wednesday, but in his hospital bedroom at the Gemelli clinic, not too far away from the Vatican. He did receive the ashes, which he had blessed himself earlier in the day. He celebrated also a mass for his personal doctors, as well as people attending him, including some nurses.

As you said, Ash Wednesday marks the beginning of Lent, which is a traditional 40-day period for Christians around the world to fast, pray, and to reflect. And those ashes, in addition of being a reminder of mortality, they also are a symbol of penitence and humility.

The pope did release his Lenten message, as he does every year. And this year, his message was dedicated to the gift of longevity. And the pope, the 84-year-old pontiff, frail and very sick, wrote quote, "People should always remain open and welcoming towards older people, especially those who are weak, sick, or suffering." So a message very much directed at pilgrims around the world who attend elderly people, but a message very much describing his own condition -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Alessio, what's this about an unexpected guest the pope received? VINCI: That's correct. As you know, the pope is in a public hospital here in Rome, and there are a lot of other people who are being treated at the same time. And his bedroom is not too far away from a ward where a lot of kids are being treated for cancer.

And today, the Vatican -- the pope's personal secretary was touring that ward, and one of the kids approached him being saying, "Hey, I've been knocking on that door," pointing towards the door of the pope, "all day and nobody was answering." And so the pope's secretary did bring the kid to the pope.

And when the two met, the little kid said, "Pope, make me well."

And to that, accord to the Vatican statement, pope answered, "Take the pope's blessing to all children who are at this time in your condition."

Back to you, Kyra.

PHILLIPS: That's a great story. Alessio Vinci, live from Rome, thank you.

Well, should details in the Michael Jackson case be kept secret? That's being argued in court today. More on that ahead. Plus, we'll go in depth with the man in the middle of the media circus, the judge in the Jackson case.

One of the most powerful women in the corporate world is forced out. Who are we talking about? We've got the details ahead.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: (speaking foreign language)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: And this question begs -- I should say this video begs the musical question, which came first, the chicken or the chicken dance? Flapping along on LIVE FROM.

ANNOUNCER: You're watching LIVE FROM on CNN, the most trusted name in news.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(WEATHER REPORT)

PHILLIPS: In Idaho, a massive manhunt ended just hours ago for a woman suspected in a gruesome crime. Marianne Dahle is behind bars, accused of scalping a teenage girl.

Adam Atchison from CNN affiliated KTVB has that story, and we warn you that some of these images are disturbing.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SHEILA, VICTIM: I really think it hasn't hit me yet as much as it should have. I still can hardly talk about it.

ADAM ATCHISON, KTVB REPORTER: Sheila now wears hats to cover evidence of a three-week-old nightmare. The teenager, who didn't want us to use her last name, says she went to Kirkham Hot Springs, near Loman (ph), with two friends on January 18 and left missing part of her hair and her scalp.

SHEILA: I just thought it hurt because she was pulling my hair so hard, then started using the knife to cut my hair.

ATCHISON: The top of Sheila's head is slowly getting better, but the original wound, she says, was much larger.

BILL BRADDOCK, BOISE COUNTY CHIEF DEPUTY: Apparently, they've had an ongoing friendship with her for quite some time. And that's why I say, you know, I believe that this is a case where I have a predator who's seeking out young vulnerable girls and trying to control them.

SHEILA: I just thought why, you know, how can they do something like that to me? I thought they were my friends.

ATCHISON: Braddock says Dahle drove Sheila to St. Luke's Hospital after the incident. It was a long and painful trip, Sheila says.

SHEILA: My face was covered in blood. My whole body was covered in blood. I thought I was going to die.

ATCHISON: The 16-year-old spent nearly two weeks in the hospital. Doctors grafted skin from her thigh to her scalp, and she says she still has at least one more surgery to go.

MAUREEN, MOM: I can't comprehend it. I still can't comprehend it. It's -- I'm still in shock.

ATCHISON: Sheila's mom, Maureen, won't let her daughter go anywhere alone now.

MAUREEN: Anyone who will scalp somebody, it's a nightmare.

ATCHISON: And while Sheila travels the road to recovery, she's constantly re-living an unthinkable and traumatic episode. She says the wounds will only begin to heal when justice is served.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: And once again, that was Adam Atchison from our CNN affiliate KTVB.

Well, jury selection in the Michael Jackson trial is on hold until Monday, but there's still court action today. While the jury pool cools its heels, various media outlets, including CNN, are asking a California appeals court in L.A. to relax some of the gag order restrictions on that case. One media lawyer says that the level of secrecy about this case is unprecedented. The big news is, due out shortly, questionnaires answered by potential jurors, well, they're being released this hour. We're going to bring you details as soon as they're available.

But more now on the man presiding over Michael Jackson's molestation trial and media frenzy. Is there a gavel big enough?

CNN senior legal analyst Jeffrey Toobin with a look at Rodney Melville. He's a judge known for his fairness, but he's already proved he's in no mood for a circus, even when there's a pop star on his docket.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JEFFREY TOOBIN, CNN LEGAL ANALYST (voice-over): On Michael Jackson's first day in court, Judge Rodney Melville was not pleased when the defendant was 20 minutes late.

The judge told him, "Mr. Jackson you have started off on the wrong foot with me. I want to advise you that I will not put up with that. It's an insult to the court."

In spite of the scalding, Jackson danced on the roof of his SUV afterwards. But one of his lawyers at the time told CNN that in the future the star would get to Melville's courtroom on time.

BENJAMIN BRAFMAN, JACKSON ATTORNEY: It will never happen again, and there is nothing that Michael Jackson wanted to do to show disrespect. This is a terrific judge. He's a fair man.

TOOBIN: Many of the lawyers who have argued before him describe Judge Melville as a fair judge with a mild mannered-style, but a firm hand.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He controls the courtroom, which is important. Neither side wants the other side to get out of control.

TOOBIN: According to one his of top aides, Melville is brisk but not intimidating.

DARREL PARKER, MELVILLE AIDE: I think he's the way people want their judges to be. I don't think people want him to be Judge Judy, barking from the bench and berating people. I think people want their judges to be people that they can respect and look up to.

TOOBIN: The last judge to preside over a trial of the century was Lance Ito. He had an excellent reputation until the O.J. Simpson case. Going into his trial of the century, Rodney Melville also has a strong reputation and the benefit of lessons learned from Judge Ito of what not to do.

JOE GALLAS, LAWYER: Unfortunately, Judge Ito, for whatever reason, seemed to get run over by everybody. Maybe that would be something that Rod saw and said, "It's not going to happen to me."

TOOBIN: The judge has already fined a Jackson attorney $1,000 when he asked a witness questions that were out of bounds. But after damaging grand jury testimony leaked out two weeks ago, Judge Melville gave Michael Jackson an exception from the gag order he's imposed and let him make a public statement.

MICHAEL JACKSON, ENTERTAINER: The information is disgusting and false.

JUDGE LANCE ITO, PRESIDED OVER O.J. SIMPSON TRIAL: Back on the record in the Simpson matter...

TOOBIN: The Simpson trial was on live television. But Melville is not only keeping cameras out of the courtroom; he is censoring court documents before releasing them.

Jackson's fans hope the judge is sympathetic to a superstar whose personal life has had some rough patches. But they might be surprised to know that Judge Melville is no stranger to human weaknesses. In a candid interview in 2001, he described his fight with alcoholism decades ago.

JUDGE RODNEY MELVILLE, PRESIDING OVER MICHAEL JACKSON TRIAL: The first time I had a drink, I knew right away that I liked -- I liked alcohol. And it was hot, and it was straight, and -- but it did something to me that made me feel more important, a nicer person, more acceptable to the people I was with.

What happened to me was one night in -- having been extremely drunk, I woke up and it just struck me and -- it struck me that I was an alcoholic.

TOOBIN: Judge Melville says it has been 26 years since his last drink. He has worked with local programs to help addicts overcome their problems. But he's also stern with them when they appear before him in court.

It gives him, I think, a richer understanding of some of the difficulties people have. By the same token, it's not something that's going to affect him so that, for example, he would be lenient simply because somebody had those problems.

MELVILLE: A judge, when I said earlier that I direct people to treatment, I also give them a consequence for their acts so that there is something more than just good news. I mean, there's some reason to quit what you're doing.

TOOBIN: The judge would seem to have little in common with his famous defendant. But it turns out, Judge Melville likes to dance, too, if only once a year.

PARKER: At our end of the year employee party, he's singing the Village People's "YMCA" song with an Indian head dress on and doing the -- what is that? Chicken dance.

TOOBIN: Jeffrey Toobin, CNN, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE) (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS (voice-over): Next on LIVE FROM, a soldier falls in love online, marries his bride, and all is well, until her husband and father of her five kids shows up. Oops.

Later on LIVE FROM...

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm not backing up an inch! I owe no one an apology.

PHILLIPS: A professor who compared 9/11 victims to Nazis speaks to a hometown crowd and gets a standing ovation. We've got the story.

Later on LIVE FROM, movement and music. The Alvin Ailey Dance Company will blow you away. We'll talk with the woman behind the moves, Judith Jameson.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Something to crow about in Beijing today, as a group of plucky youngsters helped ring in the year of the rooster. What could be cuter than these little kids?

Well, in Chinese astrology, the year of the rooster means aspects are favorable for a more peaceful stretch than seen during last year's rule of the monkey. But it's not supposed to be a good year to get married. In China, the year of the rooster is also known as the year of the widow. But you know, that could just be a lot of cock and bull.

One of the most powerful women in corporate America is stepping down. Hewlett Packard CEO Carly Fiorina has resigned. We get the details now from Susan Lisovicz at the New York Stock Exchange -- Susan.

(STOCK REPORT)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

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Aired February 9, 2005 - 13:00   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
KYRA PHILLIPS, CO-HOST: Plus, the vote count in Iraq.
A solemn holiday with something missing. Catholics observe Ash Wednesday with a notable absence.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Before 1800 more people came to America from Africa than from anywhere else, and most of them came in chains.

PHILLIPS: Slavery in America, a new documentary on the struggle to maintain human dignity and remember the founding fathers you've likely never heard about.

From the CNN center in Atlanta, I'm Kyra Phillips. Miles is on assignment. CNN's LIVE FROM starts right now.

Wrong turn on Haifa Street, a deadly mistake for Kurdish officials making their way through Baghdad today. We get the details now from CNN's Nic Robertson. He's in the Iraqi capital -- Nic.

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Kyra, they turned down a street that is known for high insurgent activity. It is a long street. It is bordered on either side by high apartment buildings, insurgents able to shoot down from -- from the heights. Also known to use that area to fire mortars on the Green Zone.

When officials from the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan, a Kurdish political party, turned down that street, they came under insurgent gunfire. A gunfight broke down. The firefight went on for at least half an hour. There were several loud explosions coming from the area. Three of those Kurdish officials were killed. A plume of black smoke rose up from the area, apparently from their vehicle that was set on fire.

That not only the incident in Baghdad today. Earlier on, an official from the interior ministry, a senior official, was kidnapped. The interior ministry says at this time they do not know where he is and do not know who is holding him.

And earlier in the day, in the southern city of Basra, an Iraqi journalist working for a U.S.-funded Arabic news -- Arabic television service, the Al-Hura station, was killed.

He was just coming out of his house in the morning, getting ready to go to work. His two bodyguards had gone back inside the house. Just as that happened, the gunmen drove up, shot at him, killed him and his 3-year-old son -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Nic, turning the corner now, talking about the election, the count, the re-count. It's starting to sound like the United States. What's the latest with the numbers?

ROBERTSON: It's still going on. Results had been expected this week. What appears to be happening, according to election officials, they are investigating claims of irregularities, claims of irregularities, not only at the polling stations, but also in the counting.

And they say at this time that they're going through, recounting some 300 ballot boxes, checking the balloting papers in those, checking for irregularities.

They are not called -- they are saying that this is not a delay, per se. But right now, they don't expect to release results this week, possibly over the weekend, possibly early next week before those final results come out, Kyra.

PHILLIPS: All right, Nic Robertson, live from Baghdad, thank you.

And a different day, different city, different audience. Similar talking points, though, for Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice today in Brussels. At NATO headquarters, Rice huddled with her ally and E.U. counterpart over plans to step up training of Iraqi security forces both inside and outside the country.

All 26 NATO member states should soon be playing a part, and Rice says that's a turning point.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CONDOLEEZZA RICE, SECRETARY OF STATE: I can say with gratitude to colleagues around the table that there were a number of countries that immediately agreed to contribute and a number of others that said that they would intend to contribute, because everyone understands the importance of training the Iraqi security forces so that the Iraqis are capable of taking on their own security tasks.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Rice also warned, and we quote, "The next steps are in the offing of Iran continues to shy away from U.N. scrutiny of its nuclear research." Those steps, she says, are particular U.N. sanctions, not military action.

Well, it's a nice day in Nice, where NATO defense ministers are holding their first meeting on French soil in four decades. Donald Rumsfeld is there, drumming up support for NATO's Iraq project, to which only 80 of the planned contingent of 300 officers have so far been deployed.

Ahead of that conference, Rumsfeld warned U.S. sailors aboard a destroyer off the French coast that a bumpy road still lies ahead in Iraq's transition to democracy.

Well, you think you can do better? For all the fuss over President Bush's bid to partially privatize Social Security, the bottom line for most of us is simple: can we invest better than the government does?

A CNN/"USA Today"/Gallup poll shows more of us have faith in our own investment skills than those of the government or our neighbors. Forty percent believe they personally would end up with higher benefits if they were in charge of a portion of their Social Security contributions. Twenty-nine percent say benefits would stay the same. Twenty-seven percent say they'd be lower.

Asked about results for most Americans, only 30 percent expect higher benefits. Thirty-seven percent expect lower.

Most Americans believe the president's assertion that Social Security will be bankrupt by 2042 if nothing is done, but most also say the president's proposal is a bad idea. Those numbers haven't budged since the White House lobbying blitz began.

Today, the focus turns to the House Budget Committee, where some of the government's premier moneymen are getting a run for their money. Here's treasury secretary John Snow.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOHN SNOW, TREASURY SECRETARY: There is a trust fund with a surplus in it. That surplus -- that, Mr. Spratt, we will honor the bonds in the trust fund. Of course we will. They carry the full faith and credit of the United States. As with all obligations of the United States, they'll be -- they'll be honored.

But the bonds run out in 2042. And in 2042, with no -- no surplus left in the fund, fund must fall back on its own revenues. And its own revenues are only sufficient to meet about, oh, 72 percent of its obligations.

REP. JOHN SPRATT (D-SC), BUDGET COMMITTEE: I say to you, Mr. Secretary, why not tune up the model we've got? The Social Security system has served America so well for more than 50 years. As opposed to trading it in for a vehicle that's never been around the track and never been proven to work?

SNOW: The longer we wait, the more prejudicial the outcome will be, the less beneficial, the more prejudicial the outcome will be to your children and to future generations. Because by starting it now, by getting it under way, they'll be able to use this power of compounding, over a long lifetime of work. And, thus, build much bigger accounts and a much better retirement.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Politics and policy, two different vastly different priorities of any White House together. Now in the building portfolio of White House mover and shaker Karl Rove, the longtime friend, adviser and all-around political guru to President Bush, has just been named deputy White House chief of staff for policy.

You see him here at a ceremony. He helped to bring about Mr. Bush's second inauguration.

Well, now in his new role, Rove will coordinate the work of the National Economic Council, the Domestic Policy Council, the National Security Council and the Homeland Security Council.

Democrats are appalled, DNC Chief Terry McAuliffe calling Rove an ideological strategist who has a history of bending the truth and using dirty tricks.

Most of the world's Christians know today as Ash Wednesday, the start of 40 days of fasting and penitence preceding Easter. For Pope John Paul II, though, today's another sick day. The first Ash Wednesday of his 26-year papacy that he didn't preside over Vatican observances.

CNN's Alessio Vinci joins me with the pope's absence and slow convalescence in Rome -- Alessio.

ALESSIO VINCI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hello, Kyra.

Well, the pope is said to be feeling much better, and we are expecting a new bulletin from the Vatican to be released sometime tomorrow, midday here, Rome time.

But we are hearing reports inside the Vatican that the pope may return to his palace as early as Friday, perhaps Saturday. And, indeed, the Vatican spokesman tonight is quoted by Italian media saying that he hopes that tomorrow's bulletin will be -- medical bulletin will be the last one on this story.

As you said, the pope did celebrate Ash Wednesday, but in his hospital bedroom at the Gemelli clinic, not too far away from the Vatican. He did receive the ashes, which he had blessed himself earlier in the day. He celebrated also a mass for his personal doctors, as well as people attending him, including some nurses.

As you said, Ash Wednesday marks the beginning of Lent, which is a traditional 40-day period for Christians around the world to fast, pray, and to reflect. And those ashes, in addition of being a reminder of mortality, they also are a symbol of penitence and humility.

The pope did release his Lenten message, as he does every year. And this year, his message was dedicated to the gift of longevity. And the pope, the 84-year-old pontiff, frail and very sick, wrote quote, "People should always remain open and welcoming towards older people, especially those who are weak, sick, or suffering." So a message very much directed at pilgrims around the world who attend elderly people, but a message very much describing his own condition -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Alessio, what's this about an unexpected guest the pope received? VINCI: That's correct. As you know, the pope is in a public hospital here in Rome, and there are a lot of other people who are being treated at the same time. And his bedroom is not too far away from a ward where a lot of kids are being treated for cancer.

And today, the Vatican -- the pope's personal secretary was touring that ward, and one of the kids approached him being saying, "Hey, I've been knocking on that door," pointing towards the door of the pope, "all day and nobody was answering." And so the pope's secretary did bring the kid to the pope.

And when the two met, the little kid said, "Pope, make me well."

And to that, accord to the Vatican statement, pope answered, "Take the pope's blessing to all children who are at this time in your condition."

Back to you, Kyra.

PHILLIPS: That's a great story. Alessio Vinci, live from Rome, thank you.

Well, should details in the Michael Jackson case be kept secret? That's being argued in court today. More on that ahead. Plus, we'll go in depth with the man in the middle of the media circus, the judge in the Jackson case.

One of the most powerful women in the corporate world is forced out. Who are we talking about? We've got the details ahead.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: (speaking foreign language)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: And this question begs -- I should say this video begs the musical question, which came first, the chicken or the chicken dance? Flapping along on LIVE FROM.

ANNOUNCER: You're watching LIVE FROM on CNN, the most trusted name in news.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(WEATHER REPORT)

PHILLIPS: In Idaho, a massive manhunt ended just hours ago for a woman suspected in a gruesome crime. Marianne Dahle is behind bars, accused of scalping a teenage girl.

Adam Atchison from CNN affiliated KTVB has that story, and we warn you that some of these images are disturbing.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SHEILA, VICTIM: I really think it hasn't hit me yet as much as it should have. I still can hardly talk about it.

ADAM ATCHISON, KTVB REPORTER: Sheila now wears hats to cover evidence of a three-week-old nightmare. The teenager, who didn't want us to use her last name, says she went to Kirkham Hot Springs, near Loman (ph), with two friends on January 18 and left missing part of her hair and her scalp.

SHEILA: I just thought it hurt because she was pulling my hair so hard, then started using the knife to cut my hair.

ATCHISON: The top of Sheila's head is slowly getting better, but the original wound, she says, was much larger.

BILL BRADDOCK, BOISE COUNTY CHIEF DEPUTY: Apparently, they've had an ongoing friendship with her for quite some time. And that's why I say, you know, I believe that this is a case where I have a predator who's seeking out young vulnerable girls and trying to control them.

SHEILA: I just thought why, you know, how can they do something like that to me? I thought they were my friends.

ATCHISON: Braddock says Dahle drove Sheila to St. Luke's Hospital after the incident. It was a long and painful trip, Sheila says.

SHEILA: My face was covered in blood. My whole body was covered in blood. I thought I was going to die.

ATCHISON: The 16-year-old spent nearly two weeks in the hospital. Doctors grafted skin from her thigh to her scalp, and she says she still has at least one more surgery to go.

MAUREEN, MOM: I can't comprehend it. I still can't comprehend it. It's -- I'm still in shock.

ATCHISON: Sheila's mom, Maureen, won't let her daughter go anywhere alone now.

MAUREEN: Anyone who will scalp somebody, it's a nightmare.

ATCHISON: And while Sheila travels the road to recovery, she's constantly re-living an unthinkable and traumatic episode. She says the wounds will only begin to heal when justice is served.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: And once again, that was Adam Atchison from our CNN affiliate KTVB.

Well, jury selection in the Michael Jackson trial is on hold until Monday, but there's still court action today. While the jury pool cools its heels, various media outlets, including CNN, are asking a California appeals court in L.A. to relax some of the gag order restrictions on that case. One media lawyer says that the level of secrecy about this case is unprecedented. The big news is, due out shortly, questionnaires answered by potential jurors, well, they're being released this hour. We're going to bring you details as soon as they're available.

But more now on the man presiding over Michael Jackson's molestation trial and media frenzy. Is there a gavel big enough?

CNN senior legal analyst Jeffrey Toobin with a look at Rodney Melville. He's a judge known for his fairness, but he's already proved he's in no mood for a circus, even when there's a pop star on his docket.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JEFFREY TOOBIN, CNN LEGAL ANALYST (voice-over): On Michael Jackson's first day in court, Judge Rodney Melville was not pleased when the defendant was 20 minutes late.

The judge told him, "Mr. Jackson you have started off on the wrong foot with me. I want to advise you that I will not put up with that. It's an insult to the court."

In spite of the scalding, Jackson danced on the roof of his SUV afterwards. But one of his lawyers at the time told CNN that in the future the star would get to Melville's courtroom on time.

BENJAMIN BRAFMAN, JACKSON ATTORNEY: It will never happen again, and there is nothing that Michael Jackson wanted to do to show disrespect. This is a terrific judge. He's a fair man.

TOOBIN: Many of the lawyers who have argued before him describe Judge Melville as a fair judge with a mild mannered-style, but a firm hand.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He controls the courtroom, which is important. Neither side wants the other side to get out of control.

TOOBIN: According to one his of top aides, Melville is brisk but not intimidating.

DARREL PARKER, MELVILLE AIDE: I think he's the way people want their judges to be. I don't think people want him to be Judge Judy, barking from the bench and berating people. I think people want their judges to be people that they can respect and look up to.

TOOBIN: The last judge to preside over a trial of the century was Lance Ito. He had an excellent reputation until the O.J. Simpson case. Going into his trial of the century, Rodney Melville also has a strong reputation and the benefit of lessons learned from Judge Ito of what not to do.

JOE GALLAS, LAWYER: Unfortunately, Judge Ito, for whatever reason, seemed to get run over by everybody. Maybe that would be something that Rod saw and said, "It's not going to happen to me."

TOOBIN: The judge has already fined a Jackson attorney $1,000 when he asked a witness questions that were out of bounds. But after damaging grand jury testimony leaked out two weeks ago, Judge Melville gave Michael Jackson an exception from the gag order he's imposed and let him make a public statement.

MICHAEL JACKSON, ENTERTAINER: The information is disgusting and false.

JUDGE LANCE ITO, PRESIDED OVER O.J. SIMPSON TRIAL: Back on the record in the Simpson matter...

TOOBIN: The Simpson trial was on live television. But Melville is not only keeping cameras out of the courtroom; he is censoring court documents before releasing them.

Jackson's fans hope the judge is sympathetic to a superstar whose personal life has had some rough patches. But they might be surprised to know that Judge Melville is no stranger to human weaknesses. In a candid interview in 2001, he described his fight with alcoholism decades ago.

JUDGE RODNEY MELVILLE, PRESIDING OVER MICHAEL JACKSON TRIAL: The first time I had a drink, I knew right away that I liked -- I liked alcohol. And it was hot, and it was straight, and -- but it did something to me that made me feel more important, a nicer person, more acceptable to the people I was with.

What happened to me was one night in -- having been extremely drunk, I woke up and it just struck me and -- it struck me that I was an alcoholic.

TOOBIN: Judge Melville says it has been 26 years since his last drink. He has worked with local programs to help addicts overcome their problems. But he's also stern with them when they appear before him in court.

It gives him, I think, a richer understanding of some of the difficulties people have. By the same token, it's not something that's going to affect him so that, for example, he would be lenient simply because somebody had those problems.

MELVILLE: A judge, when I said earlier that I direct people to treatment, I also give them a consequence for their acts so that there is something more than just good news. I mean, there's some reason to quit what you're doing.

TOOBIN: The judge would seem to have little in common with his famous defendant. But it turns out, Judge Melville likes to dance, too, if only once a year.

PARKER: At our end of the year employee party, he's singing the Village People's "YMCA" song with an Indian head dress on and doing the -- what is that? Chicken dance.

TOOBIN: Jeffrey Toobin, CNN, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE) (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS (voice-over): Next on LIVE FROM, a soldier falls in love online, marries his bride, and all is well, until her husband and father of her five kids shows up. Oops.

Later on LIVE FROM...

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm not backing up an inch! I owe no one an apology.

PHILLIPS: A professor who compared 9/11 victims to Nazis speaks to a hometown crowd and gets a standing ovation. We've got the story.

Later on LIVE FROM, movement and music. The Alvin Ailey Dance Company will blow you away. We'll talk with the woman behind the moves, Judith Jameson.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Something to crow about in Beijing today, as a group of plucky youngsters helped ring in the year of the rooster. What could be cuter than these little kids?

Well, in Chinese astrology, the year of the rooster means aspects are favorable for a more peaceful stretch than seen during last year's rule of the monkey. But it's not supposed to be a good year to get married. In China, the year of the rooster is also known as the year of the widow. But you know, that could just be a lot of cock and bull.

One of the most powerful women in corporate America is stepping down. Hewlett Packard CEO Carly Fiorina has resigned. We get the details now from Susan Lisovicz at the New York Stock Exchange -- Susan.

(STOCK REPORT)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

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