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President Bush Spells Out Steps Aimed at Helping U.S. Troops Counter IEDs; Senator Harry Reid Responds to Bush Iraq Speech; Tornado Rips Through Springfield, Illinois

Aired March 13, 2006 - 13:59   ET

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

KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: Combating IEDs, the roadside bombs that are the insurgent's weapons of choice in Iraq. Just moments ago, in a wide-raging speech on Iraq, President Bush spelled out steps aimed at helping U.S. troops counter IEDs.
CNN's Jamie McIntyre watched the president's speech at the Pentagon. He joins us now live.

The president mentioning a Joint Center of Excellence that is tackling the issue of IEDs, trying to develop new technology. What do we know about this -- this center?

JAMIE MCINTYRE, CNN SR. PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Well, this is a very meddlesome problem, the idea of trying to defeat these improvised bombs that have been taking a heavy toll in Iraq. The president outlined, you know, a couple of things.

One was, of course, targeting the people making the bombs, better training for U.S. troops. But the most interesting part of this whole strategy to defeat IEDs is the part the president could speak the least about. It's a gathering of some of the best scientific minds, trying to figure out how to harness technology to do things like detect and to prevent these bombs from going off.

And as the president said, he didn't even want to give a hint of what some of these technologies are, claiming that some of the previous press reporting about some of the things under consideration for trying to defeat these IEDs had, in fact, already gotten into the hands of people in Iraq who are making these bombs and had posted information on the Internet about how to get around it.

Staying a step ahead of these improvised bomb makers is very difficult because they have all the advantages. Iraq is awash in munitions, still. Every single day they find some.

There's another press release today from the coalition forces in Baghdad talking about more hollowed-out shells found in a location. Every time they find them, they destroy them. But the real solution to the IED problem is not more armor, it's not being able to hunt down every single bomb maker. It's really getting that political solution in place so that the insurgency doesn't have the support.

But meanwhile, the U.S. does have a lot of technological prowess and it's trying to use some of these sort of unique technologies to either find the IEDs before they go off or to somehow prevent them from going off. And again, they don't want to talk about the details. But it is interesting to see that they are having some success with that. In fact, they say about half of the IEDs in Iraq are found before they have a chance to go off -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Now, Jamie, what about these reports that some of these sophisticated IEDs are coming from Iran into Iraq? What do we know?

MCINTYRE: Well, it's interesting. First of all, the president said that those are making their ways into Shia militia. And most of the problem of the insurgency is from the Sunni or Sunni-backed militia.

But still, they have found some of these devices containing components that appear to come from Iran, have the earmarks of other terrorist organizations, indicating that some of the bomb makers in Iraq are getting help from across the border in Iran. The United States had been complaining bitterly about Iran's role in all this, both in putting people into Iraq that they say are helping to foment violence, as well as just simply being unsupportive of the United States in its policies in Iraq.

And, of course, the president also threw in Iran's nuclear ambitions, saying that all of these things were helping to isolate Iran and put it outside the mainstream of the international community.

PHILLIPS: Jamie McIntyre.

Thanks so much.

Roadside bombs have killed two more U.S. troops in Iraq. A Marine yesterday, a soldier today.

CNN's Arwa Damon reports on the insurgents' favorite weapon.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

AWA DAMON, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It's the biggest killer in Iraq today, not bullets, bombs, roadside bombs, often cobbled together with old wire and batteries, the kind of stuff you would pull out of your garage, and rusty artillery shells easily stolen from ammo dumps.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Right here.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Right here, around the corner.

DAMON: These men know what to look for.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: OK. Do you see all the -- all the dirt is a different color over there, and how it's freshly dug? It's a perfect sign there there's an IED, that's one has been planted there recently.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It doesn't have power to it right now.

DAMON: They are becoming more sophisticated, more deadly, but still absurdly simple, rubber hosing, bits of metal, a power source, cell phone parts, even a timer from a clothes dryer.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: All they will do is set the desired amount of time on it. And it's about the time your clothes will be dry. It's about the time the explosive would go off.

DAMON: On this day, the Marines arrived in western Iraq expecting resistance. They found no enemy that would confront them face to face. What they did find was that walking these streets is literally like walking through a mine field. Anything can blow at any time.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What's up? Who is hit?

DAMON: This day, a Marine was unlucky. The Marine stepped on it, he was wounded. He could easily have died.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Do me a favor and not key your handset while you're looking.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.

DAMON: Meet "Lucky," Staff Sergeant Pete Karr. He earned his nickname the day he was standing over an IED, preparing to disable it.

STAFF SERGEANT PETE KARR, U.S. MARINE CORPS: I found the device that was supposed to fire the IED. And, as I was going to separate it, the device exploded, and I walked out without a scratch.

DAMON: Lucky is one of many men whose job is diffusing IEDs before they can maim and kill troops, civilians or journalists.

KARR: The best way to explain it is probably take the most stressful thing you have ever done in your life, like the worst moment you have ever had, whatever that may be, have someone start shooting at you, stuff blowing up all around you, and, then, you have something that's going to explode right down the street.

DAMON: That thing down the street is what Lucky and his colleagues stopped from exploding.

The wounding of Bob Woodruff and Doug Vogt has made headlines because of who they are, but the explosions that wounded them are daily events around this country. Hundreds, perhaps more, have died. Thousands have been wounded by such blasts. But the work these men do have saved many others.

Arwa Damon, CNN, Karbala, Iraq.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: And live pictures right now as we wait for Minority Leader Senator Harry Reid to step to the podium and give the Democratic response to the president's speech.

Actually, perfect timing. Stepping up to the podium. Right behind him, Joe Lieberman. Let's listen in.

SEN. HARRY REID (D-NV), MINORITY LEADER: We'll soon be beginning the fourth year of the war in Iraq. The president today started his public relations campaign again about how well the war is going in Iraq.

I would rather that he spend his time focusing on how to form a government in Iraq. That is what is badly needed.

We need a political solution to the problems in Iraq. We don't need people to tell us how well the war is going. It's so important for the president to exercise his leadership in the right direction.

This week on the Senate floor we're going to debate the budget. This week's budget debate is really a test for the majority -- majority party. We'll find out in this debate if they're committed to improving America's security or if they're going to continue to rubberstamp the president's incompetence.

We live in a dangerous world. We face many, many threats. And Democrats will fight for a budget that reflects this reality.

What the president sent us in a form of a budget is a pre-9/11 budget. It would, for example, take cops off the street in Las Vegas and Reno and the rest of the country. It would leave our seaports without proper controls. It would not give additional protection to our trains and our cargo holds. In fact, it would make our country less safe.

America can do better than that.

We know as a result of Katrina how incompetent this administration has been.

I was in Arkansas on Saturday. And it's hard, Joe, to give you a picture of what I saw -- an old abandoned Air Force base, three runways each a mile long, three miles of runways. Two of the runways are stacked up with mobile homes that this administration bought, 11,000 of them, approximately, going more than a mile, more than a mile, stacked, some of them, 10, 15 wide.

They were purchased last October. They're basically non-usable.

Katrina.

That's what I'm talking about, about Iraq. We saw that our infrastructure for these crises were not utilized properly.

The bottom line is, if we weren't prepared then, we must be prepared now.

We're committed to investing in our security. This week you'll see us support tough and smart national security.

It comes back to competence. If Republicans are serious about security, they'll support a budget that makes a real commitment to keeping our communities safe.

I'm happy to be here today as (ph) president with my friend Joe Lieberman, who's a ranking member of the Homeland Security Committee, which has become such an integral part of what we do here.

PHILLIPS: Minority Leader Senator Harry Reid there with the Democratic response to the president's speech today.

The president is coming forward at George Washington University, the first of a number of speeches he's going to make on Iraq, talking about the progress on behalf of Iraq forces. Also talking about the progress with regard to IEDs and figuring out technology that will help save those men and women overseas that have been dying on a regular basis from the threat of IEDs.

Senator Reid saying that the Democrats not happy with this P.R. campaign on behalf of the president. Rather than spend his time on talking about how well the war is going, they would rather see the president talking about how to form a government in Iraq that works. Democrats feel the answer is a political solution, not a progress report.

Also, pointing out the budget debate coming up will definitely, in the eyes of Democrats, test the Bush -- or test the Bush administration. They will truly see if it is, indeed, dedicated to national security as that debate will be kicking off within the next week or so.

Devastation of a top destruction (ph), that's what we're talking about now. After a terrifying night of violent storms, as many as 20 tornadoes tore through the Midwest, with heavy rain, hail and fierce winds. This is what's left of homes in St. Mary's County, Missouri. Nine deaths across the state there being blamed on the violent storms.

Springfield, Illinois, also took a direct hit.

Our Keith Oppenheim is there.

Keith, I understand where you are right now, the house not on solid ground, possibly on the verge of caving in.

KEITH OPPENHEIM, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, definitely it's a possibility of collapse in certain places, Kyra.

First of all, we have been highlight the home of Pat and Dana Kuster all day because the roof got lopped off in the middle of the storm, as the tornado struck around 8:00 last night. And I'm just going to walk quickly to the garage here because a number of really helpful neighbors and friends have been clearing out the garage.

They basically had to rescue the vehicles that were trapped by the front of the garage because, as you were suggesting, it's really on the verge of falling down, and, hopefully, not while we're too near it.

I'm going to find Pat -- Pat Kuster. Hey, Pat. There is your husband, Dana.

Hi.

We've been talking all day with you and with your husband, Dana. You've just -- you've just spoken to an insurance adjustor, I noticed.

What's your -- this morning you were in tears. Now you seem to be more somber and real about the future. What do you think is in it for you?

PAT KUSTER, HOMEOWNER: It's a total loss. It's a total loss. And so we'll just start over. Again.

OPPENHEIM: Very tough to fathom.

KUSTER: Yes. Yes, it is. Just a lot of time and a lot of time ahead of us. But we've got a lot of support. You can see that. We've got a lot of people helping us.

OPPENHEIM: It's been remarkable to watch all the help you've had.

KUSTER: Yes, they're wonderful people, wonderful neighbors, wonderful church friends. And that was my boss and his wife that are here. And just incredible people.

Dana, you know, one of the things that is often said after a crisis like this is that, well, at least nobody was hurt. And that's true pretty much in Springfield, that the injuries were minor. In the case for you two, does that sometimes minimize the loss that you feel when you look at all your possessions and they're mostly damaged?

DANA KUSTER, HOMEOWNER: In some ways it does at first. But then you just realize it just got -- it's what you've got left that's what counts. You know, it's not how -- what happens you to. It's how you handle the situation. And I think that's -- we're going to handle it.

OPPENHEIM: Do you think you two will stay at this site here? Just rebuild?

P. KUSTER: Oh, absolutely. Oh, absolutely.

D. KUSTER: The agent said that he was going to demolish it and come back and build in the same spot. So...

P. KUSTER: Oh, yes. I wouldn't leave these people. I wouldn't leave this neighborhood for anything. No way.

OPPENHEIM: And from what I've seen, I can see why.

Thank you both very much.

P. KUSTER: God bless you.

OPPENHEIM: And we wish you luck. And, you know, you can really see just what an incredible undertaking this is for people who have lost a lot as a result of the tornado that came to Springfield, Illinois.

Back to you.

PHILLIPS: Well, Keith, no doubt, when we see stories like this and you bring attention to families like the Kusters, so many people give back. So people donate, so many people send things. I have no doubt this family will be wrapped in quite a security blanket from people that -- that care about them.

OPPENHEIM: Yes. And it's just really neat for us to watch that, despite the losses that they are suffering today.

PHILLIPS: Keith Oppenheim. We'll definitely stay on the story.

Thank you so much.

Who could face a violent storm today? Well, let's check in with CNN meteorologist Dave Hennen.

Dave, probably a lot more families that will be facing this severe weather.

DAVE HENNEN, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Yes. We hope not as much as yesterday Kyra.

(WEATHER REPORT)

PHILLIPS: All right. Dave Hennen, we'll be talking more. Also, I know you're also following the panhandle that's in peril right now.

Ferocious flames, dense smoke, they're sparking -- it's sparking a lot of fear in north Texas. We're going to feel the heat when LIVE FROM returns.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: In life he was known as the "Butcher of the Balkans." In death, he is still causing intrigue. Questions persist over what killed Slobodan Milosevic and over where and how he'll be buried.

CNN's Paula Newton is at The Hague, where the former Serbian dictator had been on trial for war crimes.

What's the latest, Paula?

PAULA NEWTON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, the latest here, it's all really getting confusing. At this point, the tribunal and the Dutch authorities have released the body of Slobodan Milosevic to his family. We have learned that Marco Milosevic is on his way -- his son -- is on his way from Russia to collect his father remains -- his father's remains. But in tow, he'll have a few Russian doctors who wish to conduct yet another autopsy on Mr. Milosevic's body. Yesterday, it was confirmed that Mr. Milosevic died of a heart attack. And you know, Kyra, you think that at that point all the questions would stop. But even the tribunal is saying, look, just because he died of a heart attack, doesn't mean he died of natural causes. They are waiting on further tests to determine what was in his bloodstream at the time of his death -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Now, Paula, what do we know about the history of where he was being held? Because there has been talk that this isn't the first time, possibly, a mysterious death has taken place.

NEWTON: Well, they have had some incidents; most recently, a suicide. And that was just in the last 10 days they had a suicide in the detention center.

You know, the detention center is inside a Dutch prison. Of course, they follow pretty regular rules that, you know, you would be used to in the United States, a check every half hour to 45 minutes to see how the detainee is doing, you have checks of visitors coming in and out.

I mean, Mr. Milosevic had what would be determined a nicer cell than most people would be used to. And he had access, the tribunal says, to the top medical team.

He was given drugs, prescribed drugs by his medical team for a heart condition. The tribunal claims that several times he refused to take that medication. They also claim that they believe -- the tribunal believes -- that he, at times, took medication that was not prescribed for him -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Paula Newton, we'll continue to follow up. Thanks so much.

Paula Newton there at The Hague.

Want to take you now to a story that's developing out of Phoenix, Arizona. Getting word -- these live pictures coming to us from KPNX, our affiliate there -- that a HazMat team has responded to a second- alarm fire. It's Universal Propulsion Laboratory.

Apparently, there's been some type of explosion. The Phoenix fire chief is evacuating that property. He joins us by phone right now, Mike Sandulak.

Chief, what can you tell us about the cause of the explosion? Do you know?

MIKE SANDULAK, PHOENIX FIRE DEPT.: Yes, ma'am. A little before 11:00 this morning, Arizona time, we got a report of an explosion and a fire at the Universal Propulsion Plant, which is in our northeast valley.

What happened was, they called for help. We got on the scene. We've been out here before.

They do a lot of testing. They have a chemical called ammonium perchlorate, which is an explosive use for detonation.

That (INAUDIBLE) was on fire with this explosion. The roof has collapsed. It's about 100 by 100 feet.

We have 140 people from the plant evacuated. They are all safe. We're taking them to a shelter and going to feed them. There's also about 10 to 15 houses affected to the north of this occupancy, this building that we are going to evacuate as well.

At this time, we have our hazardous materials team, we have about 100 firefighters on the scene, and we are securing the scene right now.

PHILLIPS: So at this point no injuries reported?

SANDULAK: At this point, no injuries, thank goodness. We have all the employees from the company accounted for. We also have the houses to the north accounted for, and all our fire power members in Phoenix and the surrounding agency are safe as well.

PHILLIPS: Chief, are you concerned about toxic air?

SANDULAK: Well, at this time there is a smoke cloud, but there's a lot of area around it. It's going a little bit to the north. We have our hazardous materials teams metering it. And there is no readings that turn to any danger at this time.

PHILLIPS: Can you give me a little more detail about what takes place inside this -- this company?

Yes?

SANDULAK: They do a lot of testing, like I say. They test for, like, ejection seats in aircraft. And I think they might test for, like, air bags and stuff like that. So there is a lot of chemicals and hazardous materials on site here.

PHILLIPS: Got it.

Chief Mike Sandulak with the Phoenix Fire Department.

Thank you so much.

We'll continue to follow these live pictures via KPNX, our affiliate there. So far, no injuries after that explosion at Universal Propulsion Laboratory. As the chief said, testing things like ejection seats and airbags.

We'll follow it and let you know if we get any more information out of there.

Well, hundreds of thousands of acres are still burning in Texas. We're going to check in on that situation coming up.

The news keeps coming. We'll keep bringing it to you.

More LIVE FROM next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Raging wildfires racing across the Texas panhandle right now. So far, at least seven people are dead, more than half a million acres burned. Flames are now less than a dozen miles away from the town of Pampa.

Joining us by phone, Donny Hooper. He's the spokesman for the Gray County Emergency Operations Center.

Donny, what can you tell me about Pampa? And how is Pampa preparing for this?

DONNY HOOPER, EMERGENCY OPERATIONS CENTER: Certainly, Kyra, we're in a lot better shape today than we were yesterday. Yesterday evening was a pretty volatile situation on our hands. Right now we have firefighters, fire crews are out battling a fire north of town.

It's about eight miles to 10 miles from the city at this point in time. That is a fire that flared back up from last night's fires or flared back up early this morning.

It is moving in a southerly direction. Thank goodness we had some assistance from the Texas Forest Service this morning. They brought in a C-130 tanker. Not completely under control but that did help a bunch in knocking down those flames before they could get to the populated areas.

PHILLIPS: Donny, do you have the resources you need?

HOOPER: So far. We have a great amount of resources. It's been amazing to watch the people from the surrounding communities bring fire equipment in, bringing personnel in. It's been a pretty amazing thing in times of disaster to watch how people rise up to the forefront and come to help. As far as personnel and equipment is concerned, I think we've got all the resources we do need.

PHILLIPS: How many people live in Pampa? What about the towns that are close to Pampa? How many people in those areas and do those areas look like they're going to be as much affected as Pampa?

HOOPER: Pampa is probably the most affected, Kyra. Hutchison County to our west they had a few fires and had a couple of fatalities in the fires last night. They had the most structure damage. Here in Pampa, we received just a couple of structures. We're a community of about 18,000 here in the panhandle. A couple of smaller counties to the east that were affected by the fires.

As of now, we don't have any damage estimates. Figures could take several days to sort through. We've kind of working the emergency crews working to protect the people first, property second and grass fires third and assess the damages at a later time.

PHILLIPS: Any evacuations now, Donny? HOOPER: So far there have been eight communities that were evacuated in this fire last night, that was including some portions outside of our city limits here north of town. Five total counties affected by this. Out of those eight, I believe all of them are being allowed back in, except for one community to the east of us, Miama, Texas. They are under mandatory evacuation.

PHILLIPS: The fire that has charred more than half a million acres, is this going to affect business or farmers or just the livelihood of the community, or is it pretty much raw land?

HOOPER: A lot of this was just some range land. On the other hand, there is a lot of livestock. There have been some losses in the livestock industry. I think that's going to have to be something that will be one of the numbers that everyone will be interested to see how that turns out as far as the farmlands. That will be another bridge we're going to have to cross when we get there.

A lot of farmland, agriculture, ranches and, of course, a lot of rough, rugged terrain that's off to our east that's been difficult for firefighters to get through.

PHILLIPS: Donny Hooper, spokesperson for the Gray County Emergency Operations Center there in the panhandle. Thanks for your time.

HOOPER: Kyra, appreciate it.

PHILLIPS: Straight ahead, Andrew Fastow back in the hot seat for a fourth day of testimony. The grilling continued. Susan Lisovicz standing by with the latest details.

SUSAN LISOVICZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Kyra. These are verbal brush fires, if you will. Also in Texas in a Houston courtroom. The defense attorneys really want to discredit the prosecution's star witness in order to win their case. The lead attorney for former Enron CEO Jeffrey Skilling has now wrapped up his questioning of the star witness.

He questioned the authenticity of a document that according to Fastow, proves that Skilling was aware of and approved improved side deals that allowed the company to hide losses. Now that Skilling's lawyers have concluded their examination, lawyers of founder and chairman Ken Lay get their turn.

Fastow previously testified that Lay knew the company faced massive losses when he made rosy comments about his strength in the months before the company before the huge collapse in 2001. It was the biggest bankruptcy at the time.

One of our other headlines concerns the newspaper business itself. Publisher McClatchy has agreed to buy Knight Ridder, the second largest newspaper publisher, for $4.5 billion in cash and stock plus the assumption of $2 billion in debt. This ends several months of uncertainly for Knight Ridder, which had been forced to explore sale by investors frustrated with the company's stock performance in recent years. Knight Ridder owns The Philadelphia Inquirer and the Miami Herald among other papers.

(MARKET BREAK)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Things are getting hotter for the prime suspect in a New York murder case. A grand jury may soon indict Darryl Littlejohn in the murder of Imette St. Guillen, a 24 year old grad student who was raped, strangled and suffocated.

CNN senior correspondent Allan Chernoff joins me now from New York with the latest.

Allan, what do we know?

ALLAN CHERNOFF, CNN SENIOR CORRESPONDENT: Brooklyn's district attorney is pulling together evidence that will be presented to a grand jury this week. The D.A. will be asking that grand jury to hand up an indictment against Darryl Littlejohn. He is the bouncer at the bar where grad student Imette St. Guillen was last seen alive.

Seventeen hours after she left that bar the body was found in an abandoned part of eastern Brooklyn. The body was wrapped in a bed sheet, her face was taped up. Her legs and arms were tied up as well. Investigators found some blood on the plastic ties that bound her wrist, and they did a DNA analysis and determined that blood belongs to Darryl Littlejohn.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RAYMOND KELLY, NYC POLICE COMMISSIONER: Well, this is very significant development. When we talk about DNA we are talking about the certainty of one in a trillion. So it is a very important piece of evidence for us.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHERNOFF: The investigation is continuing. The police, in fact, are doing further DNA analysis. They already have Mr. Littlejohn in custody. He is at Rikers Island Jail for a parole violation. He was not permitted to be working as a bouncer. His curfew had been 9:00 in the evening. He, of course, had been convicted previously of armed robbery. Other charges as well. Most recently armed robbery. That's why he had been on parole after being released from jail.

We put calls into an attorney who represented Mr. Littlejohn last week in a separate case, and we don't know yet for sure weather he would be representing Mr. Littlejohn in this case but we have not heard back from that attorney.

By the way, last week Littlejohn did appear in a lineup involving another rape. But the victim in that case was not able to pick Mr. Littlejohn out of a lineup, Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Allan, do authorities think he has been operating on his own? CHERNOFF: They have not ruled out the possibility that there was another perpetrator here. They are continuing, as I said, to investigate, trying to do further DNA matches. So they haven't ruled anything out just yet.

PHILLIPS: Allan Chernoff, thanks so much.

Well, it's a trial from the script of Scorsese. Two former New York police detectives accused of a string of killings allegedly ordered by the Mob. Louis Eppolito and Stephen Caracappa had retired to Las Vegas when the indictment was handed up last year. It claims that they took part in eight gangland hits, along with racketeering, kidnapping and obstruction of justice, stretching all the way back to 1979. The two have said to have been on the payroll of the famous, or infamous, Luchese crime family.

Well, you've heard plenty about children growing up in a downward spiral of neglect, drugs and crime. Is there any hope? Coming up, we're going to talk with a woman who turned her life around. Wait until you hear her story. That's next on CNN's LIVE FROM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Well, she went from an 11-year-old school girl to abused foster child to prostitute to gang member. It took waking up behind a dumpster half naked and almost dead to figure out that was not her destiny. Redemption saved her. Her intelligence launched her.

And today, Cupcake Brown is a lawyer for one of the nation's biggest law firms and she's written a memoir about her astonishing transformation. It's called "A Piece of Cake," and she's here to serve it up.

Great to see you.

CUPCAKE BROWN, AUTHOR, "A PIECE OF CAKE": Good to see you, too.

PHILLIPS: Is that sort of strange? I mean, even when I read that, when I was writing it, I felt uncomfortable saying all of those things. But, for you, it is a sign that anybody can break the worst possible thing in their life, isn't it?

BROWN: Anybody can, as long as they have the willingness to want to, yes.

PHILLIPS: How do you fight the memories? How do you suppress things, or do you not? Do you just keep talking about it, and are you continually open about it, and is that what works?

BROWN: Actually, it is. I suppressed it for years, and it was actually killing me inside. One reason why I drank and used and I held so many resentments. But talking about it is very cathartic, and it gives me a sense of release and a sense of healing. And, you know, I'm only as sick as my secrets. And so now that the secrets are out, I can't be hurt by it anymore. PHILLIPS: Is it OK to have a few secrets or no?

BROWN: I don't think so. I don't think so. But I think it deepens on what the secrets are. You know, whether we're talking about little girl secrets, children's secrets, or secrets that is can kill us like, rape, molest, child abuse, drug addiction, alcoholism. Those are never good secrets.

PHILLIPS: So you were 11 years old. What happened to your mom?

BROWN: When I was 11 years old, I woke up and I found my mother dead. She had had a seizure and during the seizure, her tongue had dislodged and had suffocated on it.

PHILLIPS: And immediately you were put into the foster care system?

BROWN: Yes. Well, actually, I was given to my biological father, who put -- gave me to a foster mother. And from there I was in the system.

PHILLIPS: Tell me about the system. It's brutal, isn't it?

BROWN: It is brutal, and it still needs work, actually. And unfortunately, we just lost a little girl in New York, Nixi Mary Brown (ph), which is part of the same social services system.

PHILLIPS: We covered the story. I remember it.

BROWN: Exactly, exactly. And that was almost 30 years to the day that I had entered foster care. So the system needs serious overhauling.

PHILLIPS: Why hasn't there been more pressure on the system to get better? You would think decades later we would see tremendous progress.

BROWN: You know, I'm not sure. I think one reason is bureaucratic red tape. It's going to take a collection of things. It's going to take more money, it's going to take more social workers, it's going to take more investigators, it's going to take aggressive judges, aggressive legal system. It's going to take better foster care parents. You know, it's going to take a collection of things.

PHILLIPS: Can you do anything as an attorney now?

BROWN: Well, I try to advocate on behalf of children, but I can't do it by myself. We're going to have to do it as a society.

PHILLIPS: All right, I have to ask you now about your past, and just when you had this spiritual awakening. Because you read the book, and it's, like, my gosh, I don't think it can get any worse. I mean, from drugs to prostitution, to -- it seemed like there was nobody in your life that was loving you and caring for you. Yet there was this amazing brain inside your head and also this incredible sense of strength. What was it? What happened that just made it click? BROWN: Well, you know, I don't think I had the inner strength. I think that came later on after I got sober. The epiphany for me came -- I had been living behind a dumpster for four days and I had been turning tricks to smoke -- to get crack. And I had been there for four days. I hadn't planned to be there for four days.

On the fourth day, I was going to turn another trick to get more crack, and I just happened to pass a plate glass window. And I always say that when the student is ready, the teacher will appear. And why that day I realized what I was -- a drug addict, an alcoholic, a prostitute in need of help -- it happened that day. Why some other day, I do not know. But that day, I truly saw myself.

PHILLIPS: Who was the teacher?

BROWN: For me, it was God. For some people, it's the fact of losing their children. For some people it's just hitting bottom. I was already homeless. I didn't care about a home, I didn't care about food, I didn't care about anything else. But, for me, it was just the awakening that my life was being destroyed the way it was being lived.

PHILLIPS: So then -- from that point on -- I mean, what was the next move? I mean, did you -- did you say, all right, I've just got to get rehab, and then I've got to think about school. How did you end up becoming an attorney?

BROWN: Well, from there I didn't know what to do. But I knew I had to quit my job because in my mind addicts didn't have jobs. And so I was always able to get a job. I just wasn't able to keep one.

And so in my mind as long as I kept a job or had a job, then I couldn't be an addict. So the fact that I was willing to quit my job let me know that I was serious about admitting to myself I was an addict. So I walked to the firms that I worked with at the time and told the department that I worked with that I had a problem.

PHILLIPS: Was this Kenneth?

BROWN: This was Ken Rose.

PHILLIPS: OK. Ken Rose.

BROWN: And as a team, Ken Rose -- because he had no experience with drugs and alcohol. He didn't know what to do. But administrator, whose name was Dorothy, her brother was in recovery, so she knew about 12-step programs and rehab.

And so a team of Kenneth and Dorothy, the administrator and another secretary, named Sheila -- they got together. They put me in rehab. But, again, it was my choice, right? Because you can, you know, lead a horse to water, but you can't make him drink. And recovery isn't for people who need it. It is for people who want it.

And I wanted it. And so I got into rehab, but I didn't stay sober. I relapsed two months later. And this time I decided, OK, I'm on this path no matter what. And so I got into recovery. And I had about a year sober, and I was bored.

And so I asked my sponsor, Vanita (ph), I said, you know, this sobriety thing isn't working for me. And she said what was a dream you had that drugs and alcohol stole from you? And when I was a little girl, I wanted to been a lawyer. My daddy hold told me to be a lawyer.

And, but, you know, drunks and dope feigns and prostitutes and gang bangers, they don't become lawyers. But it was a dream that I had. And so she told to steal the dream back.

PHILLIPS: And you stole the dream back?

BROWN: I stole it back. I started going back to school. And little by little became a lawyer.

PHILLIPS: And what is it like to go into court? What's it like to have just the complete opposite of -- I mean, it is absolutely two totally different worlds.

BROWN: It is.

PHILLIPS: Do you feel comfort in this world? Does it feel right? Do you feel like, OK, it's clicking now?

BROWN: It is very comfortable because I earned my right to be there. You know, I went to law school and I passed the California Barr. And so I earned the right to be there. And so it feels very comfortable. At the same time it is a blessing that I don't take for granted. And I also remember where I come from because I don't ever want to go back.

PHILLIPS: And never forget your roots.

BROWN: Can't forget.

PHILLIPS: Well, it's an amazing read, and I know you've been getting tons of e-mails from young women just saying, OK...

BROWN: I have.

PHILLIPS: ...I have got to watch you, know I can do it. And you make a good point. You have got to want to change...

BROWN: You got to want it.

PHILLIPS: ...before you can do it, and you are a prime example. "A Piece of Cake," your name is really Cupcake?

BROWN: It really is Cupcake.

PHILLIPS: How did mom get that name?

BROWN: She craved cupcakes when she was pregnant with me.

PHILLIPS: I love it. That's great. It was great meeting you. BROWN: It was nice to meet you too. Thank you for having me.

PHILLIPS: All right. It was my pleasure.

We are going to take a quick break. More LIVE FROM right after this.

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PHILLIPS: Well, an icon off the stage and screen passes -- or of the stage screen passes. A soul man "South Park" wants to get a pass. And a penalty deadline looms for Neverland Ranch. Plus, the excitement over the return of bada bing.

Our Sibila Vargas finding all entertainment headlines in Los Angeles.

Hi Sibila.

SIBILA VARGAS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi Kyra.

Well, Oscar Award winning actress Maureen Stapleton has died. The long-time smoker died from chronic pulmonary disease in Massachusetts, where she had been living. Stapleton won an Academy Award in 1981 for her supporting role in the movie, "Reds." She was 80 years old.

And legendary soul man Isaac Hayes wants out. The singer officially requested a release form from his contract with "South Park," the television show and the Comedy Central cable station. Hayes has been a cast member of "South Park" since 1997 as the voice of chef.

Now he says he decided to part ways with "South Park" because of recent episodes and press that have embarked upon what he feels are inappropriate ridicule of religious communities. Hayes is reportedly a scientologist. He says, quote, "there is a place in the world for satire, but there is a time when satire ends and intolerance and bigotry towards religious beliefs of others begins."

And, boy, was it a shocker on last night's "The Sopranos." None other than Tony Soprano himself was shot by his mentally troubled uncle. The character played by James Gandolfini screamed in agony right before losing consciousness in the closing minutes of the episode. And that's leaving viewers of course waiting in suspense to see how serious his injury is in the next episode And of course fans were all ablaze on the Internet today speculating.

Well tonight on "Showbiz Tonight," the real life sopranos. The mob stories in the news right now that makes Tony Soprano look tame by comparison. That's tonight on "Showbiz Tonight" at 7:00 p.m. and 11:00 p.m. on CNN Headline Prime.

Kyra, back to you.

PHILLIPS: I can never see Tony Soprano being somewhat calm and reserved.

Sibila Vargas, thanks.

Well, more on a developing story. A HAZMAT situation in Phoenix. We are going to take you there live in the next hour of LIVE FROM.

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