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Wildfires Rage in California; Roberts Confirmed by Wide Margin; Car Bombs North of Baghdad Kill 40; New Orleans Residents Returning by ZIP Codes

Aired September 29, 2005 - 13:00   ET

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

KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: Fires out of control. Homes going up in flames. We're live from the California wildfires.
Cops accused of looting, and now the New Orleans Police Department says it will be held -- all of them will be held accountable. A CNN investigation leads to new developments.

Confirmed Chief Justice John Roberts set to lead the Supreme Court, deciding some of America's trickiest legal issues.

Live from B Control at the CNN Center in Atlanta, I'm Kyra Phillips. CNN's LIVE FROM starts right now.

Fire on the mountain. Wind driven brush-fed, 16,000 acres and growing fast. It's pushing hundreds of firefighters to the limit in California's San Fernando Valley just northwest of L.A. and sending hundreds of homeowners, many of those homes worth millions of dollars each, packing.

The fire broke out only yesterday near the town of Chatsworth and doubled in area overnight. We get the very latest from CNN's Dan Simon in the Ventura County community of Thousand Oaks -- Dan.

DAN SIMON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Kyra, if you're a home owner, this is about as scary as it gets. Everywhere you see there are flames coming toward us, in just about every direction there on mountain. This is quite a dramatic situation, very frightening.

You can see, you have firefighters all up and down this street. They have run their lines in the backyards of these homes. They are doing whatever they can to save them.

You can see the fire, only maybe 200 yards away from approaching some of these homes. We have some home owners with us. You can't even imagine what they're going through. Watch out, watch out, right here. We have John Karimi. Turn around here, John. This is John's house right here. John, I know you packed up a bunch of stuff.

JOHN KARIMI, RESIDENT: Yes.

SIMON: I can't even imagine what you're going through?

KARIMI: Well, just wait and see what's going to happen, you know? We can't do nothing about it. We know these guys, which we know they're going to do a great job. And that's -- we can't do anything else about it. We just have to wait and -- watch and wait and nothing else.

SIMON: You're actually remarkably calm.

KARIMI: Well, we can't do nothing about it, you know. It's just -- I did whatever -- what I could do since 2 a.m. this morning.

SIMON: We see the -- we see the flames coming down. It looks to be only a couple hundred yards away from your house. I know you spent the last hour or so packing up. What did you take?

KARIMI: Well, basically, the photos, the documents, you know, the valuable things. And otherwise, we have to leave everything else behind, because we couldn't pack all of the stuff that we had in the house.

SIMON: You can also see the flames back here that are really kicking up. Just over there -- gosh, maybe half a mile. And you have homes all throughout this subdivision, really nice homes.

And here we have Marilyn. Marilyn's here with her poodle. I know that you're not quite as calm here as John.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Actually, I'm a little nervous, but I'm across the street and his house has to burn before the embers come over to mine, but it is getting pretty hot here. And it's pretty nerve-racking.

SIMON: It's also getting smoky. It's a little bit hard to breathe. I know a lot of people are getting oxygen masks.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And we've been up, you know, all night. We got a call from our neighbor at 12:30 this morning, you know. The fire department said, you know, you'd better get out. It's going to be here in an hour and a half. And then somebody -- then we started packing up. And somebody came at 3 a.m., telling us -- knocking on our doors, telling us, you know, to think about getting out real soon, pack up. But we -- so we've been here all night, just kind of watching it.

SIMON: And I know you packed up your photos, all your important documents, and you're ready to go at any time.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.

SIMON: Kyra, once again, unbelievably frightening, as you see the flames coming down; 16,000 acres so far have been burned. Just I don't know, about an hour ago, we were told it was 7,000. This fire more than doubled overnight.

You see the chopper coming down. It's going to make a water drop. We know that 3,000 firefighters are here on the scene. Many of them here right on the street, doing whatever they can to protect these homes. The winds are starting to kick up a bit. If the winds come in this direction, you're going to see -- gosh, I even hate to see about it, but you're going to see some of these structures going up. Kyra, back to you.

PHILLIPS: Dan, I tell you, it breaks my heart. That's my old neighborhood. But I know that those firefighters are the best trained. They deal with these type of fires on a regular basis.

Dan Simon, we'll stay in touch with you. Thank you so much.

Meanwhile, we've got developing news.

This just in to CNN, coming from Iraq, three suicide car bombs exploding nearly simultaneously in the city just north of Baghdad. We're told 40 people have been killed. A number of other people wounded.

Those attacks, we're being told, occurred about 6:45 Baghdad Time, hitting a bank, vegetable market and another location in downtown Balad. That's a mostly Shiite city.

Once again, a doctor -- actually, a Balad hospital is the one reporting the 40 people dead. And of course, a number of injuries, many of them, according to this doctor, injuries including serious burns and mutilated limbs.

We'll continue to stay on top of the three car bombs exploding in the Iraqi city of Balad, killing 40 people. We'll stay on that story for you.

Now, we are moving on to -- well, you can call him Chief John Roberts now. Former legal fast tracker in the Reagan and Bush 41 administrations and former clerk to the late William Rehnquist, officially Rehnquist's successor as chief justice of the United States. The suspense-free Senate confirmation vote was 78-22.

We get the details now from CNN's Joe Johns on Capitol Hill -- Joe.

JOE JOHNS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Kyra, an overwhelming vote here on Capitol Hill for John Roberts to become next chief justice of the United States. It wasn't even close. As you said, 77 votes in favor. A lot of Democrats coming across to vote with the Republicans to confirm John -- John Roberts as the chief justice of the United States Supreme Court.

Mr. Roberts was down at the White House when that vote came in with the president in the Roosevelt Room. There was a little bit of levity there. Of course, we heard that described a little while ago from the White House press secretary.

It is clear, later today that John Roberts will be at the White House, where he will be sworn in as the 17th chief justice.

The chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, Arlen Specter, talked to Robert reporters not long ago at the capitol, turning their attention, as are many others here on Capitol Hill, to the next nominee expected to come from the white House for the Supreme Court. Here's what Arlen Specter said.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. ARLEN SPECTER (R-PA), CHAIRMAN, JUDICIARY COMMITTEE: It is my hope that the president will now send us a nominee for Justice O'Connor's spot in the mold of Judge Roberts. And we will proceed expeditiously with the next hearing, take the time necessary to do a thorough job.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

JOHNS: So 78 votes now in favor of John Roberts, clearly, the next chief justice of the United States. The focus of this, Kyra, on who goes next to replace, of course, Sandra Day O'Connor, who's leaving the court.

Back to you.

PHILLIPS: Well, we'll talk about those possible nominees coming up in the next hour. Joe Johns on the Hill, thanks.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS (voice-over): Next on LIVE FROM...

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: To me, what happened is like a nightmare.

PHILLIPS: Dedicated doctors caring amid the chaos of a hurricane. CNN's dr. Sanjay Gupta joins us live with his stories from the storm.

Later on LIVE FROM, the scams after the storms.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I paid him $210,000.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And you got...

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Well, you can see what I got. There's nothing done to my house.

PHILLIPS: Ripping off home owners and taking money from people who want to help.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And this is really pretty darn evil.

PHILLIPS: Also ahead...

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You've got to be gentle with him. You've got to take up a lot of time with him.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Show some love.

PHILLIPS: Prisoners and pups. Inmates reach out to displaced hurricane victims.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: We continue to follow that story just in from Baghdad; 40 people killed in a number of roadside bombs in Balad. We can tell you, according to the Associated Press right now, three suicide car bombs exploded nearly simultaneously in that city just north of Baghdad, like I said, in the city of Balad, 40 people dead, possibly more.

Aneesh Raman now coming to us live from Baghdad. Aneesh, do we know if that number has reached -- or has gone higher?

ANEESH RAMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Kyra, as you can imagine, the situation on the ground, incredibly chaotic. We have confirmed now at least 37 people were killed, 50 others wounded.

As you mentioned, three suicide car bombs detonating in the town of Balad, just north of the Iraqi capital. They were about 10 minutes apart. We understand two of the car bombs detonated in one location, a third in another.

It is the largest casualty count we've seen, really, Kyra, since those string of suicide bombings and car bombs in the Iraqi capital back on September 14, when over 100 people were killed. That, Zarqawi's retaliation for the offensive that took place in Tal Afar.

But we're still waiting further information of what exactly took place, where these car bombs detonated. But again, the numbers we have now, at least 37 people killed, 50 wounded, after three suicide car bombs detonated in Balad -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: And just to double-check the location there in Balad, we're told it happened in downtown Balad, is that right, hitting a bank, a vegetable market?

RAMAN: Yes, it's unclear exactly what any potential target would have been. We understand it to be within the city center where you'd find any or all of those infrastructures. But again, these targets are often areas where large numbers of people would have been congregated to maximize the casualties. It seems that's what took place tonight, Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Aneesh Raman, live from Baghdad. We'll continue to check in.

We'll take a quick break. More LIVE FROM after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: And the people of New Orleans are returning to New Orleans a month after hurricane winds and water changed their lives forever. Beginning today, the gates to the city will open for some business owners. It's another few days for most homeowners. And here's how the mayor's office laid it out. Only in certain ZIP codes can residents re-enter their homes from tomorrow on.

The man leading the federal relief project says the process is slow, but moving forward.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

VICE ADMIRAL THAD ALLEN, U.S. COAST GUARD: We made significant progress in and around Orleans Parish and the parishes surrounding New Orleans, as we have statewide. We're up near close to two billion people that have -- excuse me, two million people that have requested assistance. Well over a billion dollars in assistance provided to the public.

The administration has announced a housing transition program. That is being subscribed to. The goal right now is to move people out of evacuation shelters now into transition or temporary housing and get them into permanent homes.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Now it just so happens Susan Roesgen, the 10 p.m. news anchor of our affiliate station WGNO in New Orleans lives in one of those ZIP codes. She joins me now live from New Orleans.

Susan, I guess that was good news when you heard your ZIP code.

SUSAN ROESGEN, NEWS ANCHOR, WGNO: Oh, Kyra, terrific news. If you live in New Orleans and you live in one of those targeted ZIP codes, it's almost like having the winning lottery numbers. So many people have been waiting four weeks to come home to this city. And starting tomorrow, some of them in that first wave of targeted ZIP codes, basically from where I am here, about a block off St. Charles Avenue, to the Mississippi River, uptown New Orleans, can come home.

But I have to tell you, Kyra, even if you don't come home to a house that looks like the one behind me, even if you don't have a lot of damage, these home owners may find a big shock.

Because I'm a member the media, I was able to get to my home in ZIP code 70115 just about a week after the hurricane hit. And the smell as I opened the front door was overwhelming. I went back to the refrigerator, Kyra. Who knew that a carton of milk could expand to three times its normal size? Who knew that the Omaha steaks my mom got me for the Fourth of July would turn into soup? Rotting food. The smell has been overwhelming.

Now I got the food out of there, again, just a few days after the hurricane. But think, Kyra, about all these people who are coming home tomorrow who haven't been home for four weeks. It's going to be quite a shock for a lot of them.

PHILLIPS: Oh, my gosh, what a reality check. I'm just curious, so what do you do now? What do others in your neighborhood do now? I mean, does it look like you'll be able to save your home? Are you going to have to deal with toxic mold, take out floors, carpet?

ROESGEN: Well, the good thing about these targeted ZIP codes, and the mayor planned it this way, these were mostly the dry areas. So mold shouldn't be that much of an issue, unless there was maybe a tree that fell on someone's house and let some rain water in from Rita or Katrina. Mold isn't going to be an issue in these ZIP codes.

But services is going to be a big issue. Where do you go now? I've heard that there's only one gas station in this area. I don't know what the lines are like. I can imagine that they're long.

There's no grocery stores open. Yesterday, I went to a Walgreen's and brought groceries. The first time I've ever done anything like that and bought something besides toiletries in Walgreen's. I bought some groceries. So folks are going to have to, you know, get some adjustment here.

And they're also going to have to think about how they're going to get around. Besides the gas issue, I've had two flat tires in the past four days. There's a lot of debris on the roads. And traffic is an issue because not all the traffic lights are working. And I have been zipping through intersections all over town for the past four weeks. Now I've got to stop and look around, because already the traffic is starting to pick up.

PHILLIPS: Wow. And I remember that traffic issue. It doesn't surprise me, all the debris on the road. I remember that. It's like a racecar on a track trying to avoid these parts of the freeway.

Let me ask you about the water issue, Susan. I remember, too, when I was there they told us, first of all, no showers. Then we were allowed to shower from the neck down. And then they told us that we couldn't shower again.

So what's the deal with the water and are you able to go home and take a shower in your ZIP code now?

ROESGEN: The water is a very big issue, Kyra. The mayor said at first yesterday, "Well, look, folks, what you should do is go in your home, turn on every faucet, let it run for 15 minutes, and then you should be OK."

But the Department of Health and Hospitals, the local health service folks in the state, said no way. They said that water is full bacteria. It isn't safe to bathe in; it certainly isn't safe to drink. The most you can use it for is to flush your toilets.

Now, you know, it's 90 degrees here. What are you going to do? You're working in your back yard; you're trying to fix up your home. Of course you're going to take a shower or you're going to dump a lot of bottled water over your head. I did take a shower. I did not brush my teeth. I used bottled water to brush my teeth. But I think this is something that we're just going to have to see how it plays out.

I hope I don't get sick. I hope folks here don't get sick. But the Department of Health and Hospitals say it's a big issue.

PHILLIPS: Yes, you know, let's talk about the health issues just a little bit more, Susan. We were lucky and you've been lucky. We've got -- we had our shots. We had a doctor on site. But what if some of these folks come back and they're wanting to clean up their home, start rebuilding their home, and they hurt themselves? I mean, are the hospitals ready to take in a number of people and treat them if, indeed, they get injured?

Because I remember Admiral Thad Allen saying that was one of his biggest concerns as of just a couple weeks ago.

ROESGEN: It is a big concern. I understand that today Turrow Hospital (ph), which is about half a mile from where I am, has just opened its emergency room. So that would be very helpful for a lot of folks in this area.

But we have been warned repeatedly by city officials that you shouldn't expect to have hospital services. You shouldn't expect to be able to pick up the phone and call 911 right away. Things are not going to happen that quickly.

There's also a MASH unit that they've set up in the convention center, but that, too, is only for emergencies. So that's something that folks are going to have to be very, very careful when they come back, to try not to hurt themselves and to just go about their business until more of these services kick in.

PHILLIPS: Susan Roesgen with our affiliate WGNO there in New Orleans. Susie, thank you so much for reporting for us today. We look forward to having you many more time in the weeks ahead. Thanks, Susan.

Well, while the city of New Orleans is under water, did some New Orleans' police officers steal from the people they were supposed to protect? Well, a CNN investigation leads to new developments in this story. Just ahead on LIVE FROM.

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

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Live pictures now, as L.A. County firefighters have quite a scene on their hands. You can see just the flames continuing to spread across 17,000 acres, we are told now in southern California. We brought you live pictures from the Thousand Oaks area, where we actually saw homes just up against those blazes.

Now KABC bringing us, in the same area here, of the hills of Thousand Oaks. You can see firefighters working those flames from the air and the ground. We'll continue to follow these firefighters, burning areas from Chatsworth to Thousand Oaks.

Well, we've long known that there were more photographs of alleged inmate abuse at Baghdad's Abu Ghraib prison. And now at least some them may soon be released. A New York judge ruled today that under the Freedom of Information Act, the images in question must be made public. The government is against it, saying it will further damage America's military image. And top Pentagon leaders, military and civilian, appeared before the Senate Armed Services Committee this morning. Live pictures right now. You see General George Casey. It was all about Iraq, the withdrawal of coalition forces and the training of the Iraqi military. The commander of all U.S. troops in Iraq says several upcoming political events will affect any decision to start bringing troops home.

(STOCK REPORT)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: May you live in interesting times. The Republican Party is sure living that proverb these days. Not only have the president's approval ratings taken a hit from a hurricane, but powerful House Majority Leader Tom DeLay currently is sidelined by the scandal.

CNN contributor Bob Barr joins me here in Atlanta, and "Dallas Morning News" writer -- political writer, that is -- Wayne Slater weighs in, as you see here, from Austin, Texas, on the immediate and long-term implications for DeLay and the GOP.

This is actually Bob Barr with me here in Atlanta. There we go, we've got the shot of you.

Let's start with you, Wayne. What's going on between Ronnie Earle, the Travis County D.A., and Tom DeLay? I mean, this is politics, but this seems to be very personal, as well.

WAYNE SLATER, POLITICAL WRITER, "DALLAS MORNING NEWS": Well, it is. I think Ronnie Earle and Tom DeLay have been having a sort of long distance negotiation and conversation over the last three years, while this grand jury has been meeting.

And after the indictment yesterday, DeLay and other Republican allies responded pretty much as we expected, calling Ronnie Earle a partisan fanatic, a partisan zealot, engaged in a miscarriage of justice.

But Earle himself is kind of an odd duck who believes that he's engaged in something larger. At least he talks about it and has for some couple of years. He talks about the need to get rid of big money in political campaigns. It's a war of two fierce competitors over issues that are very big.

PHILLIPS: And of course this is what Tom DeLay had to say about the situation yesterday.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TOM DELAY (R), TEXAS: This act is the product of a coordinated, premeditated campaign of political retribution, the all too- predictable result of a vengeful investigation led by a partisan fanatic. (END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Bob, is he a partisan fanatic?

BARR: Well, I don't know him, but looking at the indictment itself, I think he's got some real problems. As a former prosecutor myself, I looked at that indictment very carefully, and it's pretty thin gruel, an they say. It's just one count of a conspiracy, which means they didn't have enough to get him on a substantive charge. So Ronnie Earle has his work cut out for him, because that's going to be a hard indictment to prove up in court.

Now, on the other hand, I think that some of the charges against Earle that he is a partisan animal are also a little bit off of the mark, because he has indicted and prosecuted a lot of Democrats in his time also.

PHILLIPS: Well, and he also filed a misdemeanor charge against him for DeLay in reporting his campaign finances in the early 1980s, I was reading this, and he paid a $200 fine.

BARR: Well, he's an unusual district attorney, I think we can all agree on that.

PHILLIPS: Well, how scandalous is this, Wayne? I mean, you cover politics in Texas. This is the state. You know, what does this mean for the White House, the RNC, Capitol Hill? Is everybody talking about this?

SLATER: Oh, look, this is -- as you know, in Washington this is all the talk -- it's a real problem for DeLay. He's certainly -- however close he tries to stay in the leadership in the House, to be displaced as the majority leader really is diminution of power, and authority and influence.

The whole matter of this issue, compounded with the Frist problem, questions about taxes, the inquiry into the leaking of the Plame issue in the White House, involving the arrest, most recently, of a White House official, the whole issue of corruption is something that the Democrats, here in Texas, and Democrats in Washington, can take to the bank, or at least they hope they can take to the bank, to gain seats in the 2006 off-year election, and hopefully derail George Bush's agenda.

For DeLay himself, it's really going to be a problem for him in his effort to be re-elected. He's up for re-election next year, and the signs are all bad for him. It's a red district, red state, but he's going to have to campaign a lot just to be re-elected to his seat in Congress.

PHILLIPS: Well, now, Bob, right now Representative Ray Blount replacing DeLay. And we now find out that records on file with the Federal Election Commission show that Blount's political-action committee has paid roughly $88,000 in fees since 2003 to a consultant facing indictment in Texas In the same case as DeLay.

BARR: Well, let's say it's going to be a very interesting season. But I think...

PHILLIPS: What's going on? What's going on?

BARR: I think the Republicans have a lot to be concerned about here. You have the Frist problem. You have Bush's numbers going down. You have the Karl Rove investigation. Now you have a change in the second position in the Republican hierarchy in the House, on top of this. Now, they've moved -- the Republican have moved to minimize the damage, because Blount is very well liked up on the Hill. He's very low-key, very methodical, very effective, isn't a lightning rod like DeLay, so that will help minimize damage inside the beltway.

But the real problem is out there in the hustings, at the grassroots level, and while normally these scandals are Washington fodder and don't really have an effect on election, there have been a couple of times in our history, such as in the 1994 election, when I and the other Republicans were elected to the first majority in 40 years, charges of corruption against former Speaker Jim Wright, the House credit union scandal, all of that, which normally wouldn't be a top-level issue became that, and the Republican danger here is that will, in fact, take hold as a major issue.

PHILLIPS: All right, the Republican danger. Wayne, let me ask you about this. Bob brought up the fact that President Bush, his numbers going down. Now you've got Hurricane Katrina. He's making a lot of promises. You can look at the list here -- to foster homeowners, create jobs, address the nation's legacy of racism, review a destroyed city in the region, of course, one of the poorest regions of Louisiana. So could doing a good job in Louisiana, Mississippi, help sort of a rebound here? Or is this political quagmire far too strong? Will it override whatever he does with regard to Hurricane Katrina?

SLATER: Well, look, the White House had problems early on in these storms and has attempted really vigorously to come back. So you have to think that the efforts by the president and the White House in recent days will pay some dividend, that he's really paying attention in an effort to throw money at this problem, but also to show attention by the White House.

Clearly, the White House has got to move forward with an agenda. And I think what you're going to see in the face of DeLay and the rest of these scandals is that DeLay -- the Republicans in Washington, certainly Bob would know this maybe better than I would, would like to see DeLay out of the lime light a lot. The last thing they want to see is a trial for DeLay, a lot of conversation about DeLay's ethics problem, at a time when all these other things are going on.

The president is battling bad numbers right now, and he's attempting to fight his way back against a strong tide of opposition by the Democrats and the questions about general cronyism and ethics. The president is very disciplined. I know him pretty well, and I know the people around him, at least the political people, Karl Rove and others, and if anybody can do it, they can. But this has got to be a tough row to hoe.

PHILLIPS: Wayne Slater, "Dallas Morning News," Bob Barr, thank you very much. Appreciate it. We'll stay on it, that's for sure.

Tom DeLay, I'm being told, live in "THE SITUATION ROOM" with Wolf Blitzer. You won't want to miss that, 3:00 p.m. Eastern Time.

Now real quickly, I want to show you, as the continuing -- the developing story, rather, in California right now are these wildfires. These Pictures brought to us via our affiliate, KABC. This is bell Canyon. And if you know the area well, of course, it is the Thousand Oaks area, not far from Los Angeles. Los Angeles firefighters battling 17 acres of flames right now from the air and from the ground. We're following those fires and how the firefighters are doing and if indeed it is getting contained. Right now, it's tough. They're moving towards homes, and we're staying on the story.

Well, New Orleans' cop, caught on tape allegedly break the law. Now the investigation. The story and a live interview with a member of the force, next on LIVE FROM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Well, after hearing reports of a few bad cops in New Orleans in the days after Hurricane Katrina, CNN's Drew Griffin started checking it out. Now his exclusive story is sparking both outrage and, apparently, action.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CHARLES FOTI JR., LOUISIANA ATTY. GENERAL: At this time, looking at two incidents. We're actively involved in two separate incidents, which I'm not at liberty to discuss with you right now.

DREW GRIFFIN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Could you tell me the agencies? Is it the New Orleans police?

FOTI: Well, I'm just -- there's two separate incidents that we're looking at that's involving looting by -- potential looting by law enforcement or dereliction of duty.

GRIFFIN: Would you classify that as an investigation -- could I officially say that there is an investigation into ...

FOTI: Yes, there is an investigation.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Now, although the attorney general would not be specific about the targets of his investigation, his announcement came after Drew Griffin broke this story on CNN's "PAULA ZAHN NOW."

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

GRIFFIN (voice-over): Eight New Orleans police officers holed up on the tenth floor of his Canal Street hotel, drinking and eating by day, looting by night.

OSMAN KAHN, HOTEL MANAGER: Oh yes, they probably leave probably at 9:00, 10:00 at night and come back around 4:30 in the morning.

GRIFFIN (on camera): And what did you see them come back with?

KAHN: Oh, everything from Adidas shoes to Rolex watches.

GRIFFIN: Just lots of it?

KAHN: Oh, lots of it.

GRIFFIN (voice-over): After six days, Osman Kahn says the officers left.

KAHN: In their cop cars, they put so much stuff that barely -- the trunk was almost hitting the ground. So when they drove off -- when they drove off you could see like the car hitting the ground. That's how much stuff ...

GRIFFIN: And CNN has now obtained this videotape backing up parts of Khan's story. It is video taken on the Sunday after the storm, when the hotel was surrounded by water and the hotel engineer was telling a reporter about a threatening police officer on the tenth floor.

PERRY EMERY, HOTEL ENGINEER: You know, they have been the biggest problem. They are -- right now, seems like we're being held hostage.

GRIFFIN: The reporter from WAFB TV in Baton Rouge and photographer from WAFF TV in Huntsville, Alabama, decided to confront the officers. They climbed ten stories up the fire escape. This is what happens next.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Excuse me.

EMERY: I'm the engineer of the building.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Excuse me a second.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Are you a New Orleans police officer?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, sir, excuse me.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Do you have a badge ...

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Hey, Keith (ph), Keith.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I asked you one more time to move.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: All right --

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'll ask you one more time to move.

GRIFFIN (on camera): That confrontation took place here on the tenth floor fire escape at this door. Osman Khan says while they were here, an officer armed with a gun stood watch right at this fire escape. (voice-over): Take another look. The man who identifies himself as a New Orleans police officer reaches down, grabs a gun, and then pulls the door shut. Osman Khan is standing by everything he said. He wants justice. And he says the good cops of the New Orleans police are on his side.

KAHN: The police officers that I know, that I'm friends with, they've -- you know, they've told me, you know, Osman, you know, get these guys. These are the guys that just, you know, that deserted them, that, you know, they -- you know, they did the opposite of what they should have been doing.

GRIFFIN: An official with the New Orleans Police Department confirms to CNN that the man seen in the video holding a gun on that tenth floor fire escape is, indeed, a New Orleans police officer, though the official declined to name him.

CNN has no reason to believe the alleged police looting in this city is widespread. Even Mr. Kahn admits most of the police officers he observed during this disaster did the right thing, even more reason to find those, he says, who did not. Drew Griffin, CNN, New Orleans.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: And joining me now from CNN's New Orleans bureau, police captain Marlon Defillo with reaction from inside the force. Marlon, I sure appreciate your time today.

DEPT. MARLON DEFILLO, NEW ORLEANS POLICE: Hi, Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Listening --

DEFILLO: We saw the news reports --

PHILLIPS: Go ahead I wanted to ask you right off the bat, once you saw the second report, as things have steamed up, what is the NOPD doing right now to track down these eight offers?

DEFILLO: Let me just first say, that the more than 2,000 members of the New Orleans Police Department, which includes sworn officers and civilian members are united, and that we certainly don't want these isolated incidents to paint a broad brush in terms of the integrity of those hard-working men and women who have worked very hard and over the last 30 days have endured some very challenging times, and should be commended for their work.

Superintendent Compass -- I'm sorry -- Superintendent Riley (ph), when this was brought to his attention, ordered an immediate investigation using his public integrity division to look into these allegations. And I will say that there is a zero tolerance in this organization for any type of misconduct by any member of the New Orleans Police Department.

We will investigate. There will be a thorough, concise investigation. The findings of that investigation will be turned over to Superintendent Riley for his review and consideration. And I can say that if these officers are in violation of any departmental policy, if these officers violated any state, or federal, laws, there will be swift and decisive action taken against them.

We want our men and women within the police department to represent us in the highest standards of professionalism. And so certainly, when we talk about a small segment of the department, we will address that issue. And certainly, all of those facts and circumstances will be turned over to the superintendent for his review.

PHILLIPS: Now, Marlon, just for full disclosure, you and I go back ten years. We know each other very well, when I was a reporter there in New Orleans. And our first introduction to each other was when some of the New Orleans police officers were busted for protecting drugs in warehouses there and there was immediate reaction.

The New Orleans department -- New Orleans Police Department did clean up its act, and you saw a number of investigations. So I want to ask you, now, ten years later, why are we still seeing this type of criminal activity in a force where there are so many, like you said, upstanding police officer that do an incredible job in a city where there's a lot of crime to be dealt with?

DEFILLO: Well, I think if you look at any police department in America, in corporate America, you're going to find a very small segment of individuals who are not doing the right thing. The most important thing that we can do is, once we identified problem officers or problem situations is to address those situation or those problems.

We've done a great job over the last ten years of bringing this department to the standards of that -- which are acceptable. We're nationally accredited. The hiring standards in this department are probably the toughest in the nation in terms of bringing people on. But, again, there is no absolute. But the most important thing is once we identify that there are problems, is that we aggressively go after those problems or those officers and take the appropriate action.

PHILLIPS: All right. I want to talk about that aggressive approach. I want to look at the videotape of the one New Orleans Police Officer that was captured on videotape, not wanting to talk to reporters. Are you identifying this officer, Marlon? Can you tell me his name?

DEFILLO: Not at this point, because I just left the Public Integrity Bureau. I spoke with the agents involved. They're in the process of not only dealing with this particular officer, determine if he violated any departmental policy or law, but also the other officers who are alleged to have been involved in some sort of misconduct.

So we want to at least have an opportunity to identify all of the officers and to sit down with the bureau chief to determine what's the next course of action.

PHILLIPS: And, once again, you mention 2,000 cops sticking into the fight. We're talking about only eight police officers here. But then again, you know, one allegedly corrupt officer is still too many.

Do you feel confident you know who those eight officers are, that you will be able to talk with them, and be able to hold them accountable if, indeed, they are found guilty. Do you feel confident about that?

DEFILLO: Absolutely. Let me tell you -- I can't stress this enough to you and to the listening audience is that there is a zero tolerance. The New Orleans Police Department, the members of this department, are very proud to be members of this department and will not stand by idly and allow bad officers to taint this good reputation that this department has.

If you look back, for the last 30, 35 days, these officers and civilian members have worked under some very trying conditions. And we're not going to let a few officers disrupt that positive relationship that we've had.

PHILLIPS: And let's talk about those officers for a moment, Marlon. A number of them that, as you know, have remained friends of mine and they stayed in the fight, from Superdome to the evidence room, trying to save DNA as the waters were rising in the department. So many of those officers still homeless, do not have homes, do not have cars but they're showing up to work every day.

How -- I mean, what are the needs? How are you providing for those officers and -- I mean, what do they tell you about staying in the fight? I mean, it's pretty amazing that they even hang in there considering the conditions.

DEFILLO: Well, more than 80 percent of the membership in this department are homeless, meaning they've lost everything, they've lost everything they have and that they've earned over the last many years. Many officers are living on a cruise ship. And it's a nice place to stay in terms of a shelter and food and so forth. But it's not home.

We're working with local state and federal agencies to look at housing assistance for those officers on the long-term approach. We're working very closely with the mayor. Mayor Nagin has done a great job of working with officers to find adequate housing for future. So there's a lot of work to be done. And so certainly, we are going to work very hard to make sure that officers are placed back in this community and have adequate housing.

PHILLIPS: Captain Marlon Defillo, New Orleans Police Department. Marlon, thanks so much for your time today. I hope you'll keep me updated on those eight officers and indeed what happens.

DEFILLO: Absolutely.

PHILLIPS: OK, I'd appreciate it.

DEFILLO: Absolutely.

PHILLIPS: I thank you so much, Marlon.

DEFILLO: Thank you.

PHILLIPS: And regardless of what these investigations turn up, like we said, there are a lot of good cops in New Orleans who stayed on the job and did all they could to help the citizens of that city. Many of them lost their own homes, like we said, and property during that storm and flooding. And if you'd like to help them out, you can go to nopf.org. That's the New Orleans Police Foundation, dot-org, and you can make a donation.

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PHILLIPS: Turns out it's not just politics that make strange bedfellows. So do hurricanes. CNN's Ed Lavandera visits a Louisiana prison where the inmates are pitching in to help some storm victims who had nowhere else to say. Now it's hard to say who's getting the most out of the arrangement.

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ED LAVANDERA, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): There are strange sounds coming from this old prison dairy farm tucked away in the backwoods of southeast Louisiana. That makes warden Jimmy LeBlanc smile.

JIMMY LEBLANC, WARDEN, DIXON CORRECTIONAL INSTITUTE: Of course we have 160 dogs. We have four-legged and two-legged. And then we have our chickens, in this part here, which they all seem to be getting along real well, at the moment. And then the geese. And the geese are doing well, too.

LAVANDERA: The Dixon Correctional Institute is a full-time prison and now a part-time animal shelter. The Humane Society started bringing animals rescued from New Orleans to this prison after area shelters filled up.

RICHARD PALMER, INMATE: There, boy, you want to run everywhere?

LAVANDERA: Inmate Richard Palmer couldn't be happier. It's not often a prisoner gets to feel like a warden.

PALMER: I often reward them when they do good. So I give them like dog treats when they do good. If they be bad, I won't give them a dog treat until later on that evening. Tell him you aren't turning down that.

LAVANDERA: Palmer is 1 of 13 inmates assigned to help care for this stable of orphaned animals. He's just weeks away from finishing a 13-year prison sentence for armed robbery and says this experience is preparing him for life on the outside.

PALMER: And then the Lord was just telling me, say, well look, you know what, this is where you're going to learn your patience at, with these dogs. He said because I can't get you to learn patience nowhere else, but I'm going to get you to learn patience right here, because you've got to be gentle with them. You've got to take up a lot of time with them.

Show some love.

LAVANDERA: Palmer feeds the dogs.

PALMER: You just said you don't want none. You just turned down my cookie. Now you want it now?

LAVANDERA: He walks them.

PALMER: What you want to do, girl?

LAVANDERA: And usually does a whole lot of talking.

PALMER: We haven't given them names. We haven't given them. We just call them out of love. I just give them names as I walk by them. I just call them little love, little feisty, little trouble. I give them a hug.

LAVANDERA: Warden LeBlanc says caring for these animals makes the inmates feel they're helping people recover from the hurricanes.

LEBLANC: There's no way that they can help out, you know, from prison. So this kind of brings it to them a little bit and they're able to contribute back something from the natural disaster, from Katrina down there.

LAVANDERA: All the inmates working in the shelter volunteered for this job. But when the workday ends, some of them can't shake off the sounds of the farm.

JOHN LOYD, INMATE: I hear dogs barking in my sleep. I, really, I do.

PALMER: You going to turn over on your stomach, boy?

LAVANDERA: Richard Palmer can't get enough, though. He plans to volunteer to take care of these animals even after he's released from prison.

PALMER: A lot of guys, you know, they find -- they don't find love nowhere else. You know we have people that's been in prison all their life and they don't know nothing, they don't know nobody, you know. So they find a place of stability when they come around these dogs, you know. It's like they have a friend now.

LAVANDERA: There's a special bond here between these men and these animals. Some say they love and understand each other. Maybe that's because right now they all live behind bars.

Ed Lavandera, CNN, Jackson, Louisiana.

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