Return to Transcripts main page
CNN Live Today
Terri Schiavo Case; School Shooting; Expert Testimony?
Aired March 22, 2005 - 10:59 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.
DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: We'd like to top the hour with what is happening "Now in the News." The battle over Terri Schiavo tops our news. About two hours ago Schiavo's parents filed an appeal to this morning's ruling. That ruling was by a federal judge refusing to order Schiavo's feeding tube reinserted. We'll have details on what that means and what comes next just ahead in a live report.
First, though, to Red Lake, Minnesota. We should learn more this hour about those wounded in a school-shooting rampage. About 30 minutes from now hospital officials plan to give a news conference about the shootings on a northern Minnesota Indian reservation.
Police say the student gunman killed his grandparents, then went to the high school and killed seven more people before killing himself. A live report on that in about seven minutes.
Authorities in Georgia have issued an Amber Alert for a man they say shot his ex-girlfriend's father, then made off with two children. Terence McDowell (ph) is said to have snatched the couple's 4-year-old daughter and the woman's 5-year-old son, whom he did not father. This happened just south of Atlanta. Police believe McDowell (Ph) is driving a 1998 green Kia with the Georgia license plate ARL 5785.
Overseas, Prince Rainier of Monaco has been placed in intensive care in a hospital. The 81-year-old prince was hospitalized two weeks ago with a chest infection. Now Monaco's royal palace says his condition has taken a turn for the worst after a slight improvement.
It is just a minute past 11:00 a.m. on the East Coast, just past 8:00 a.m. for those of you waking up in the West. From the CNN Center in Atlanta, good morning once again. I'm Daryn Kagan. Rick Sanchez is off today.
We're going to start with the life-or-death drama surrounding Terri Schiavo. Her parents are now asking a federal appeals court here in Atlanta to intervene to save their daughter. Earlier this morning, a lower court in Florida refused to order the brain-damaged woman's feeding tube to be restored. Schiavo has had no food or water since Friday.
Our Miles O'Brien is at the Federal Appeals Court in Atlanta this morning, brings us the latest.
Miles, good morning.
MILES O'BRIEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Daryn. This is a story with tremendous emotional content, and it is literally all over the map, legally and geographically. Everything shifts right now to Atlanta.
The building behind me, this is the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals. You see the reporters camped out there. We're not allowed inside. There will be no hearing on this particular motion, as far as we know.
A three-judge panel here will look at this latest legal document, which goes along with this stack of legal documents. This just goes back to September on this particular case. This one coming in by electronic filing about two hours ago, notice of an appeal, which means that a three-judge panel out of the 12 judges which work here at the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals is now considering whether this particular case has enough possibility of prevailing, whether the plaintiffs could prevail. And that's causing an injunction, an immediate injunction, which would, of course, mean that that feeding tube would be reinserted.
We're not getting a lot of information from the court right now. They are deliberating, discussing this right now behind closed doors. We're on the outside, obviously. We heard from the clerk of the court just a few moments ago.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This was filed about 9:15 this morning, and it's before a three-judge panel. And we'll update you throughout the day as we know information.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
O'BRIEN: All right. Let me read this notice of appeal to you. It's very terse.
"Notice is hereby given that plaintiff Theresa Marie Schiavo, incapacitated, by and through her parents and next (ph) friends, Robert and Mary Schindler, in the above named case hereby appeal to the United States Court of appeals for the 11th Circuit from the order entered denying plaintiff's motion for temporary restraining order in this action on the 21st day of March, 2005."
That's a lot of legalese for saying we're not accepting that verdict down in Florida, we are appealing to this particular court. Now, typically, an appeals process here, the average run of the mill type of appeal can take several months. Obviously that is not what's going to happen here.
Time is of the essence. Quite possible we might get a ruling today or even tomorrow.
Very unlikely there will be additional oral arguments. Remember that stack of legal documents? These judges will determine that everything that can be said legally about this has been said, and they will make a determination if on the merits of this case there's a likelihood that the plaintiffs would succeed. That is to say, the parents of Terri Schiavo, in keeping her alive.
And if there's a strong likelihood they might succeed later in court, they could immediately order that feeding tube to be reinserted. We're watching it very closely here, Daryn. We'll keep you posted as soon as we hear if there's a ruling.
KAGAN: All right, Miles. We will check back with you in downtown Atlanta. Thank you for that.
Meanwhile, we're getting some first reaction out of the White House. Heard this in the last hour.
Well, actually, this is live pictures of President Bush. He's in Albuquerque, New Mexico, today. He's talking about Social Security, but his White House spokesman, Scott McClellan, in the last hour was briefing reporters at the White House, saying the White House was disappointed that -- they would have preferred a different ruling from the judge, the federal judge in Florida.
So President Bush talking about Social Security, a conversation on that subject, meeting with seniors today at the Bear Canyon Center. He will be there for the rest of the day. Then he goes back to his ranch in Crawford, Texas.
Let's get back to the Terri Schiavo story, though. Legal options quickly running out for her family, for those who want her to live. I want to talk now to former U.S. attorney Kendall Coffey, who is in Miami to talk about this.
Kendall, good morning.
KENDALL COFFEY, FMR. U.S. ATTORNEY: Hey, good morning, Daryn.
KAGAN: This 11th Circuit Court of Appeals, what can you tell us about this court?
COFFEY: Well, it's traditionally seen as a pretty conservative court. It certainly is a court that can handle things very, very fast. And I would be very much in agreement with the statement that we could see a ruling by tomorrow, possibly even sometime tonight.
But they do not have a reputation as an activist court that is going to go out of their way to declare laws unconstitutional. So what I think we're likely to see is a well-reasoned ruling and a ruling that is very consistent with existing legal precedent, not anything that jumps into new horizons.
KAGAN: So many different terms and subjects being tested by this. The main point of due process, and the Schindler family and those who want to keep the feeding tube attached to Terri Schiavo, saying that this woman did not have due process. But how do you give due process to a woman who's said to be in a vegetative state?
COFFEY: Well, and that actually has been the big issue in federal court. This federal judge was not asked to revisit the medical issues, is she in a persistent vegetative state or is she minimally conscious and able to get better? Nor did the judge rule on the giant legal issue, which was whether or not the Congress overstepped the line when they passed this bill late Sunday.
Instead, the judge did a pretty traditional legal analysis of issues under the U.S. Constitution, such as due process. And Daryn, you hit the nail on the head. What does it mean to give due process to a woman in the condition of Terri Schiavo? And what the judge seemed to say is, based on everything he can see, the state courts provided enough process, may not like the outcome of the process, but enough process to say that she was fairly treated in the courts of Florida.
KAGAN: As we move forward, the big picture of this and the implications of this particular case will have far more reaching effects than just Terri Schiavo. At what point, and will it ever happen, that this issue of what Congress did over the last couple days in trying to supersede the state courts in Florida, if that was constitutional, where will that be tested?
COFFEY: It's possible that that issue could never be reached. Because based on what the federal district judge did in Tampa, he said, I am assuming that Congress acted constitutionally, and I am accepting the case. But on the merits and the strength of the arguments presented by the attorneys for Terri Schiavo's parents, I reject their claim.
It is entirely possible that the federal 11th Circuit as they're looking at this could reach the same kind of conclusion. They might agree with the parents, they might disagree, but avoid the giant constitutional question which among lawyers and judges around the country has had a lot of heads spinning: does the Congress have the ability to intervene in a specific case based on paramount public interest, based upon life-and-death considerations, even though that case has been pending in our courts literally for years?
KAGAN: Kendall, does this one have to get kicked up to the Supreme Court before it's all over, a court that has rejected looking at it three times?
COFFEY: I think inevitably it's going to go to the Supreme Court. The one thing I would say this time around -- and I'm not making any predictions about a case that is to fight every possible prediction, but there's going to be more of a federal interest this time because these are federal constitutional questions, and a federal court action that is being reviewed.
When it went to the U.S. Supreme Court on the last three times, admittedly they closed the door pretty fast. But that came up in a process of looking at the state courts. It wasn't the traditional kind of federal question coming up from the federal appellate ladder that we have here.
So while if they lose in the federal appeals court in Atlanta, chances are going to be slim. There's still a little more hope here than there might have been the last three go-arounds with the U.S. Supreme Court. KAGAN: All right. Kendall Coffey, live from Miami. Thanks for your insight.
COFFEY: Thank you, Daryn.
KAGAN: Other news coming out of Florida today, the suspect accused in the killing of 9-year-old Jessica Lunsford had an appearance before a judge this morning. John Couey was formally read the charges of murder kidnapping and ordered held without bail.
Police say Couey has confessed to the crime. He'll be asked to enter a plea at his arraignment, which is scheduled for April 11.
On to another story we're following. This one is out of Minnesota. It is being called the worst school shooting since Columbine. Right now police are trying to figure out what happened following a shooting rampage at an Indian reservation in Red Lake.
Let's go live now to our Keith Oppenheim for the latest -- Keith.
KEITH OPPENHEIM, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Daryn.
I'm at the detention center at the reservation, and if you look behind me you'll see that there are all of these tripods and cameras poised for a news conference, which you would think is about to start any minute now. But actually we're still about two hours away from that. And what you're seeing here is just a sign that reporters are quite anxious to hear from the FBI directly, our first opportunity to question them.
But what we know so far from the FBI is that yesterday a teenage gunman went to his grandparents' home on this reservation, he shot and killed both of them. Then he went to his high school and he killed seven people, including a security guard, a teacher and five other students. He also injured 13 others. Then he takes the gun and he shoots himself.
The local media outlets here have named the gunman. And they've identified him as Jeff Weise. Now, you're going to hear now from a student from the high school who spoke about the gunman.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: A couple kids told me that he planned this last year, that he was going to come up here and shoot the school.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
OPPENHEIM: The "St. Paul Pioneer Press," one of the Minnesota papers, has reported some interesting details about the gunman, Jeff Weise, saying that his father committed suicide four years ago, and that his mother is in a nursing home in Minneapolis, having suffered from a car accident. So apparently a tough past for this young man.
The paper also said the gunman was known to have done some writing on the Internet, saying that he was going an admirer of Adolph Hitler, and that on the Internet he used the name in German (UNINTELLIGIBLE), which means angel of death.
Again, Daryn, 13 people injured today. A couple reportedly in critical condition. So one of the things we're waiting for, obviously, is to find out whether those 13 injured are going to be OK or not.
Back to you.
KAGAN: And, in fact, Keith, we understand there's going to be a news conference from the hospital in about 30 minutes. So we should learn more at that time.
OPPENHEIM: That's right.
KAGAN: Keith Oppenheim, thank you for that.
By the way, that news conference from the hospital, CNN will air that live. So we'll get the latest right here.
The rampage in Minnesota is just the latest in a series of high- profile shootings in the past eight years. Certainly among the most tragic were the 1999 Columbine High School shootings in Colorado. Thirteen people were killed, 23 wounded, before two teenage gun men took their own lives.
In 1997, in Paducah, Kentucky, a high school freshman opened fire on classmates as they formed a circle to pray. Three were killed and five wounded in that incident.
An admitted Satanist says demons made him kill two people at Pearl High School in Pearl, Mississippi, in 1997. Seven others hurt in that incident.
And in 1998 in Jonesboro, Arkansas, two heavily-armed boys dressed in camouflage opened fire at Westside Middle School, killing five and wounding 10.
In Springfield, Oregon, a young teen used a semiautomatic rifle to kill two at Thurston High School in 1998. Twenty others were hurt there.
Tonight in prime time, CNN devoting an entire hour to the deadly school shootings in Minnesota. What can we learn from the latest shooting, and what has changed since the others? "NEWSNIGHT WITH AARON BROWN" starts at 10:00 p.m. Eastern, 7:00 Pacific.
Let's go live to live pictures now in Santa Maria, California. It looks like there's actually a reason to have an umbrella up today, a rainy day.
Michael Jackson arriving at the courthouse today. Now, it was just his time yesterday that we thought he was going to be a no-show. He arrived somewhat late, looking not well at all.
His hair wasn't combed. He looked like he was spaced out, perhaps on some type of drugs. He looked like he was in pain. He shuffled into the courthouse, wasn't there long when he left the courtroom, and about 45 minutes later, the court did convene. And they did hold court today.
Today is supposed to be just a half-day court session. It looks like there's Joe Jackson getting out of the car. And he is usually followed by Michael Jackson. We'll have to see what kind of condition he is in today.
Yesterday the judge in the case, Rodney Melville, took no apparent action, but he had, of course, remember threatened the singer back on March 10, when Michael Jackson was a no-show because -- oh, his mother is there as well today. All right. We'll just follow it as they come out of the black SUV.
Yesterday on the witness stand, besides the drama that took place with Michael Jackson not feeling well, there was a child abuse expert who was called by the prosecution. There's Michael Jackson getting out of the car. Let's see what kind of condition he appears to be in today.
Well, moving slowly, doing what he's done every day, turning around to wave to fans. But again, today, he appears to -- well, there's a smile on his face today. We didn't see that yesterday -- as he's making his way into the courthouse in Santa Maria, California.
So yesterday it was just about this time that he got into the courthouse, said he was having severe back pains, asked to be excused from the courtroom. It looked like he was nauseated, and did come back in. And as I was saying, court did -- did convene.
When he left the courthouse at the end of the day, one of his spokesmen said that he had said that he was having severe and sometimes excruciating back pain. The spokeswoman saying, "I asked him how he was doing, and he said his back was killing him."
Apparently that is not enough reason to get you excused from this child molestation case. So he is back in the courthouse today.
As I said, this is expected to be a half-day in court today, beginning with the testimony of Louise Palanker (ph). She is a comedian who tried to help the accuser and the boy's family as he battled cancer.
Let's show you what it looked like yesterday when Michael Jackson showed up at the courthouse. Do we have that ready to go? There it is.
So this is yesterday. You can see moving a lot more slowly than he was today, held up by -- on one side by his brother and by a bodyguard on the other. Still turned to wave to say hello, but as we said, moving very slowly. Showed up in disheveled dress and unkempt hair and -- but court did go on.
Half day today. Our Miguel Marquez is on the scene in Santa Maria. We'll have a report from him about what takes place in today's half-court session a little bit later.
We also are going to be talking more about what the medical community has to say about Terri Schiavo's condition. We're going to have both sides of the debate coming up.
Also, still to come...
(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)
OPERATOR: State police 911?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yeah, on Incinerator Road in Taftville, someone crashed on their street bike.
TROOPER: Where?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Incinerator Road in Taftville.
TROOPER: Yeah, too bad.
(END AUDIO CLIP)
KAGAN: "Yeah, too bad?" Not exactly what you expect to hear when you call 911. We're going to find out what happened to the state trooper who seemed a little bit less than helpful to that 911 caller.
Plus, boost camp for your memory. We're going to tell you what can you do to strengthen your brain.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(STOCK MARKET REPORT)
KAGAN: Find the answers in the Terri Schiavo case, it is tough, no matter where you look. You've heard from family members, from politicians, from the clergy. What about medical experts? Are they shedding any light on the case? You have a chance now to see for yourself.
Here now, CNN senior medical correspondent, Dr. Sanjay Gupta.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN SENIOR MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): In a medical case as high profile as Terri Schiavo, you would think the medical experts would have all the answers. But just by listening to them and reviewing statements they gave to the court, it's easy to see why a final answer is so complicated.
DR. WILLIAM HAMMESFAHR, NEUROLOGIST: I spent about 10 hours across about three months and the woman is very aware of her surroundings. She's very aware. She's alert. She's not in a coma. She's not in PVS.
GUPTA: PVS, persistent vegetative state. Dr. Hammesfahr was chosen by Terri Schiavo's parents to testify in court, his opinion very different from Dr. Ronald Cranford, chosen by Michael Schiavo, Terri's husband.
DR. RONALD CRANFORD, NEUROLOGIST: A vegetative state is a scary diagnosis. Unless you know what you're looking for, it looks like the patient is interacting. But Terri is not interacting.
GUPTA: Both of them are neurologists and their conclusions are based on diagnostic tests that are supposed to be objective. Yet, they tell different tales.
HAMMESFAHR: Her CAT scan has maybe 75 percent of the brain tissue still left.
CRANFORD: I've seen her. There's no doubt in my mind, whatsoever, she's in a permanent vegetative state. Her CAT scan shows extremely severe atrophy to the brain. And her EEG is flat. It doesn't show any electrical activity at all.
GUPTA: And, most importantly, their opinions about a possible recovery?
HAMMESFAHR: With proper therapy, she will have a tremendous improvement. I think, personally, that she'll be able to walk, eventually, and she will be able to use at least one of her arms.
CRANFORD: There's no way. That's totally bogus.
GUPTA: Five doctors gave their medical opinions in an evidentiary hearing ordered by a Florida appellate court, two doctors chosen by each side and one court-appointed neurologist who was chosen by the judge. He declined a CNN interview, but told the court, "The preponderance of the data and my clinical examination reveal no evidence of awareness of self, environment or ability to interact with others. Mrs. Schiavo exhibits no evidence of language comprehension or expression. I would state that her chances of a meaningful neurological recovery to be virtually nonexistent."
His language leaves little room for doubt, unless you ask yet another neurologist. And so a medical choice, normally decided between doctors and a patient's loved ones, is fought out in the courts.
Dr. Sanjay Gupta, CNN, Atlanta.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KAGAN: A check of the nation's stormy forecast coming up next.
Plus, officials take action against a trooper who apparently brushed off a 911 caller's request for help. But is the punishment big enough?
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KAGAN: All is not OK in Oklahoma this morning. They're still cleaning up in the northwestern and east central part of the state.
Tornadoes touched down on Monday. Several buildings were damaged or destroyed, but no reports of injuries. We'll take that for now.
Jacqui Jeras keeping an eye on not just on Oklahoma, but a lot of places could have some intense weather today.
(WEATHER REPORT)
KAGAN: Lawmakers have shared their opinions about the Terri Schiavo case, but what does the public think about the lawmakers? We're going to tell you what the polls are saying about the politicians just ahead.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KAGAN: We go live now to Red Lake, Minnesota, the hospital that's treating the wounding -- the wounded in the school shooting in Minnesota. Let's listen in.
SHERRI BIRKELAND, NORTH COUNTY REGIONAL HOSPITAL: ... patients here after the FBI releases names and we have authorizations from the families to do so. The FBI, I'm told, will be holding a press conference later today in Red Lake.
We had planned to have a family member here for you this morning. She was a little bit overwhelmed and has a lot she's dealing with this morning. So she has declined to speak with you at this time.
I have a brief statement, and then we will open it up for questions. I can share with you the information that was previously reported. We had six victims treated in our emergency room yesterday. They arrived via ground ambulance from Red Lake, which is approximately 40 minutes away. The first patient arrived here at 4:22 p.m. The last patient arrived at 4:50 p.m.
Two of those six patients were air-lifted to hospital in MeritCare Hospital in Fargo, North Dakota. Three patients were admitted to North Country Regional Hospital here, and remain here this morning. The sixth patient was pronounced dead in our emergency department. The six victims brought to the hospital have been identified. The families of the three patients admitted are here with them this morning. Again, we will give you condition reports as we are able.
We would like to think the Bemidji Police Department and the Bemidji Community Patrol who arrived at North Country Hospital shortly after we were informed of the incident in Red Lake and remain at the hospital this morning. Their efforts played a vital role in protecting patient and family privacy during the hours following the shooting.
We would also like to thank or medical staff, ambulance personnel, air ambulances, Life Flight from MeritCare Hospital and Life Link 3 from St. Cloud, North Country Health Services staff, our volunteers, clergy, all who were here at the hospital and assisted during the activities yesterday afternoon and evening. We are very proud of their professionalism and the superb cooperation we witnessed among our area's emergency medical response teams. At this time, I will take questions.
QUESTION: (INAUDIBLE)
QUESTION: Can you kind of describe the scene as all the victims were being brought in, the magnitude of the increase? Obviously not the names. And just kind of -- what the scene was like yesterday when everyone arrived.
DR. JOE CORSER, NORTH COUNTY REGIONAL HOSPITAL: Well, fortunately, we were able to receive some advanced notice, and we were able to partially activate our disaster plan, and that worked very well. We had an excellent response, both from nursing staff, from the physicians in the community. The ambulance personnel from our community as well as surrounding communities did an excellent job responding to the primary scene up in Red Lake.
There was the ambulance from Bemidji, from Black Duck, from Cass Lake (ph). We had some mutual aid from Clearwater County ambulance that came to Bemidji, covering our service area. We had the air ambulance services, both from Fargo MeritCare and from Life Link 3 out of St. Cloud, who responded to the scene. And that was all put into motion before we received any patients in Bemidji. And so we were well-prepared and ready when those patients began arriving.
We were able to handle the six patients that we received, in terms of the volume of patients, without any difficulty. We had three surgeons who were present in the emergency department. We had a number of family physicians, emergency room physicians, and an internist. We were able to do triage as well as evaluate all of those patients. We had plenty of adequate laboratory and x-ray staff, and so I'm very pleased, from our perspective, with both the EMS response, as well as our hospital's response and our ability to care for those patients.
QUESTION: I know as doctor (INAUDIBLE), but some 12, 14 hours later, after you've had a chance to think about it, working on this case, what did you go through personally now after thinking about what happened to these children?
CORSER: Well, you know, I think that everybody here understands what a huge tragedy this is for the Red Lake community. And all of us here work together with the Red Lake community on a regular basis, and many people in our community know a lot of the people from Red Lake. And our social services staff and the administrative staff did a great job of working with people in the waiting room and all of the family members that arrived at the hospital last evening.
Myself, you know, I don't think that I've fully processed all of that information yet. We're still doing a number of things clinically. We have a meeting today where we're going to talk about how things went from our perspective and do kind of a self-critique to look at lessons learned and other ways that we could improve the response that we had here at our hospital. And I understand that there's going to be a critical incident stress debriefing at some point in the future. Whether that's tomorrow, I'm not exactly certain when that's scheduled. But there will be that kind of activity going on, as well.
QUESTION: Any patient in a life-threatening situation now?
CORSER: In terms of the status report we have for patients...
BIRKELAND: None of the patients that are here right now are critical.
QUESTION: Sherri, a little confused about the process here. You said you'd taken your cues from the FBI and talking to families before identifying people and getting out conditions. And then moments later, you said that all three of the victims here have been identified. We all have various names and names are floating about. Can you officially identify who is here?
BIRKELAND: No, I can't at this time. I understand the FBI may be releasing that information later this morning.
QUESTION: I have another question for the doctor.
QUESTION: Can we get the doctor to describe the nature of the wounds?
BIRKELAND: Joe, do you want to come back up? Sounds like a couple. There was one in the back of the room and one up here.
QUESTION: Did you describe the injuries your surgeons encountered and how they saved these lives?
CORSER: There were multiple gunshot wounds, as obviously all of the injuries were gunshot wounds. We had two gunshot wounds to the head, one of which was transferred to Fargo MeritCare, and that person is continuing to receive care there. There was one patient who arrived in our emergency department and died here as a result of a gunshot wound.
QUESTION: To which part of the body?
CORSER: To the head. There was a patient who received a gunshot wound to the face, and that was also transferred to Fargo MeritCare and continues to receive care there. We had a patient who received an injury to the hip, and that patient was admitted to our hospital and is continuing to receive care here. We had two patients who received gunshot wounds to the chest.
QUESTION: Can you -- gunshots -- shotgun or handgun?
CORSER: I don't know the answer to that question.
QUESTION: Did any of the victims have multiple wounds? I think you said one had two (INAUDIBLE)?
CORSER: No, there were no victim that had two gunshot wounds to the head. I did not primarily care for all of these victims, and so in general terms, I think there were a couple of people who had more than one injury. QUESTION: What were you told to prepare for, doctor? I know last night Sherri had told us that the feds and the authorities had said to be prepared for the injured. How many were you prepared for and were you expecting a deluge of victims, so to speak?
CORSER: Well, we did prepare for a deluge of victims. Our first notification was that there was a shooting at the school in Red Lake and that there were multiple victims. And that's as detailed as we received. And so we prepared to be able to receive many patients. And we were prepared to receive more than we did receive, fortunately.
QUESTION: Do you have the time on that, when you received that call?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: About 3:15.
CORSER: Pardon me?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: 3:15?
CORSER: 3:15 is when we first became aware of this incident in Red Lake, and that's when we began putting into place our disaster drill -- not drill, but our disaster plan and began notifying area EMS agencies.
QUESTION: Do you expect the three who are here to survive and if so, is there danger of life-altering, life-changing, injuries?
CORSER: I think that right now we're able to say that I expect them to survive, and I think more information about their conditions will have to wait until we get permission from the families and more permission to discuss those particular cases.
QUESTION: Were any of the kids you saw, just would the wounds indicate they were shot at point-blank range?
CORSER: I don't know that I can answer that question.
QUESTION: How many required surgery?
CORSER: One went to surgery for a wound on an extremity. Another patient had some procedures performed in the emergency department and was admitted to the intensive care unit. And I don't know if there will be any follow-up procedures on any of those patients.
QUESTION: Doctor, the patients who died herein the hospital, did that add to the toll that we've been going with? Still 10?
CORSER: Correct.
BIRKELAND: We believe that's part of the FBI's count.
QUESTION: That's the FBI's count?
BIRKELAND: Uh-huh. QUESTION: Can you comment whether -- did you remove bullets or -- as part of the treatment? Can you talk about that?
CORSER: As far as I'm aware, no bullets were removed, but I'm unaware of exactly what surgical procedure was performed in the operating room last evening.
QUESTION: We're hearing a dozen or so students were injured. Can you say where the others are? Three are here, two are in Fargo. Where are the injured students being treated?
CORSER: I don't know the answer to that question.
BIRKELAND: We don't have information. We are told there's a total 17 of 17 with fatalities and the two went to Fargo and there's three here. I don't know how that factors into the count. I'm sure it's somewhat confusing for you, but you probably have more information on the actual count than we do. We just have a tally on the patients that came here.
QUESTION: So you said 17 with fatalities -- you mean 10 dead and 7 injured?
BIRKELAND: That's what we've been told, but I don't know that's official.
QUESTION: Was this sort of a dramatic event, a surprise, for this (INAUDIBLE)?
BIRKELAND: We've never dealt with anything like this before. As Doctor Corser stated, our disaster planning that we hope we never have to implement, and we had to put some pieces in place last evening, went very well for us. Things went as smoothly as they could from our perspective.
QUESTION: When you say putting some pieces together, what do you mean as far as piece...
BIRKELAND: I mean the plan that Doctor Corser about for staffing up the ER to have enough staff there to receive patients. We secured our entrances to the facility with the help of law enforcement. We asked staff who were here at the time, if their shift ended, to stay until we knew exactly what we were going to be dealing with. So those types of things.
QUESTION: Can you talk about how you decided why everyone didn't come here and who made the decision as to who went where, the victims who -- (INAUDIBLE)? Were you guys making that call?
CORSER: No, we were not. There was...
QUESTION: Who was?
CORSER: I think that there -- they have an emergency room in Red Lake, and physicians there were probably being triage officers. In addition, one of the helicopters from MeritCare Life Flight responded to the scene in Red Lake, and it's my understanding that they assisted in that triage process.
QUESTION: The two victims that were moved to Fargo due to the severity of their condition? Is that why? And explain in detail what that means.
CORSER: One of those patients required neurosurgery, and we don't have that neurosurgery here in Bemidji, and so we referred them over there, and they were prepared to take that patient. The other patient received a severe injury to the face, and they have malofacial (ph) surgery there as well.
QUESTION: How lucky are some of these patients from a medical perspective to be with us today?
CORSER: Well, I think that they're very lucky. I mean, there were some people who died, and obviously those people who survived, survived both because their injuries weren't as severe, but also because of the good and excellent EMS response we were able to provide in Red Lake.
QUESTION: The patient who died, did that patient have any chance of survival earlier on, if he had received treatment earlier?
CORSER: Yeah, I don't have any comment on that.
QUESTION: Can you say that your staff here was equipped to deal with this kind of thing? I think it caught so many people off-guard, and it would be understandable if staff here wasn't prepared for so many gunshot wounds.
CORSER: Well, you're absolutely true. This is the first time we've had this many gunshot wounds in a single day since I've been here at North Country Hospital. But on a regular basis, we prepare for and practice doing disaster drills and doing exactly what we were able to do yesterday. And I think that that whole process worked very well. And I think that we were very prepared to receive those patients and treat them. And I think things went very well. From my perspective, it functioned very well.
QUESTION: What lessons have Health Services taken from this?
CORSER: We're going to be discussing that later today.
QUESTION: Did the injured come in a steady stream, one by one, or was there a big rush?
CORSER: I think the patients that we received came in over a period of an hour or so, 40 minutes.
BIRKELAND: The first patient arrived at 4:22, and the last arrived at 4:50. Tim, I believe they were all in separate ambulances.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes. One per ambulance.
BIRKELAND: Yes. .
QUESTION: Were they all students or were some of them adults?
BIRKELAND: I can confirm all of the patients that we received here were males. They were all under age 18.
QUESTION: Any related?
BIRKELAND: I don't know that. I'm sorry.
QUESTION: Mr. Hall (sp), can we ask you some questions?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Sure.
QUESTION: Could you describe the scene as you saw it as these people were coming in over the course of 20 minutes in time, how it was handled?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well, as Doctor Corser explained, we had the benefit of an hour of warning. We had staff on standby, so as the first patient came in the department by ambulance, they were assigned a room, an administering physician and a surgeon and two nurses. And each -- as each patient came, we had a doctor to assign to them. So we matched up very nicely. Six victims, we had more than six physicians and nursing staff. And so we cleaned them up and had care teams with each patient.
QUESTION: Do you remember the wound on that first patient that came in? I don't know if you can remember that, but was that first patient a gunshot to the head or how severe was that person?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The first two patients we received were probably two of the more critical patients that we did receive. The first two patients came in just a couple of minutes apart. One of those first two patients -- I'm a little mixed up on -- was transferred to Fargo and the other one expired. So both were critical injuries.
QUESTION: And they came because of the triage work at Red Lake? And they were sent first because of the critical nature of the wounds?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, I'd certainly believe that.
QUESTION: Do you know who made the call to you at 3:15?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I did not receive the call. One of my staff nurses in the emergency department got that call, so I cannot name the caller. It was a representative from the Red Lake hospital.
QUESTION: Doctor, can you just describe the scene in that half hour when patients started arriving here with gunshot wounds. I don't know what the flow of information was, but what was that scene like (INAUDIBLE)?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well, as you can imagine, the flow of information was difficult. We did not have a direct line with Red Lake Hospital. We did not have a direct line with the triage activity at the scene. We were monitoring EMS radio, so we were -- we got our information off the EMS radio system.
KAGAN: We've been listening in to a news conference from the hospital in Bemidji, Minnesota, on their firsthand account of how they treated the victims -- some of the shooting victims from yesterday's shooting in Red Lake at the high school there. Terrible, terrible school shooting.
Ten people dead, that included the gunman's grandfather, a woman they believe to be the wife or girlfriend of the shooter, a school security guard, a teacher, five other students, and now they're saying at least seven others were wounded. The six victims brought to this hospital where we've been listening in, the officials there saying all were males under the age of 18. Two had -- actually, three of them actually had to be transferred to a larger hospital in Fargo, North Dakota.
Expecting much more on this investigation coming up. Right now, we're going to fit in a break and more news after this.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KAGAN: We did remember to do this today. It's our "Daily Dose." Looking at a program that claims to fix memory flameouts and bend your brain back into shape. Here now is senior medical correspondent, Dr. Sanjay Gupta.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Thanks, I'll talk to you later. Hi, this is Linda.
SANJAY GUPTA, CNN SR. MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): In her line of work, 53-year-old Linda Jenkins (ph) spends practically all day talking.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You know what, I don't even know who I was talking to.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm lost.
GUPTA: And lately, she's been hitting some blank spots.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: A big...
GUPTA: Causing her a lot of anxiety.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'll be taking along and all of a sudden -- when that happens so often, it calls attention. And it's frustrating. Oh, absolutely. To me, it is.
GUPTA: So Jenkins is trying an unusual program to fix her memory flame-outs. The first boot camp for the brain, run by the Memory Fitness Institute in Fountain Valley, California.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We'd like to remember to come.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I hope so, too!
DR. GARY SMALL, DIRECTOR, UCLA CENTER ON AGING: You can go home today and start protecting your brain.
GUPTA: The brains of the operation is Dr. Gary Small. The program, based on his book, "The Memory Prescription." He has spent his life trying to unravel the memory mystery. While admitting there are other factors, he says simple lifestyle changes can improve your memory in just 14 days.
SMALL: What can we do today to keep our brains healthy and fit? And here it is, the big four. Mental activity. Physical conditioning. Healthy diet. And stress reduction. The key to memory fitness.
GUPTA: Back at boot camp, Jenkins is already busy. First, stocking up on healthy brain foods, rich in antioxidants and with plenty of omega-3 fatty acid, which Small says may keep brain cells from degenerating. Some of his suggestions are blueberries, prunes, salmon and nuts. Another prescription? Cut down on stress. That's a memory-buster.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: That's enough.
GUPTA: Two other key elements of the program, exercise your body and your brain, like zany storytelling methods to remember lists of words.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: So the more fantastic or exaggerated you can make the picture, the easier it is to remember.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I had a lawyer wearing a vest eating an artichoke and a banana.
GUPTA: Mind-benders, or simply writing with your left hand if you're right-handed. All are ways boot campers sharpen their brains during weekly meetings.
Dr. Sanjay Gupta, CNN, Atlanta.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KAGAN: This Sunday night, only on CNN, Sanjay Gupta explores the mystery of memory. What is it? Why does it sometimes fail you? And how can you improve it? "MEMORY" airs at 10:00 p.m. Eastern on Sunday only here on CNN.
We'll take a break. Back right after this.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KAGAN: We've been following the story of Terri Schiavo. It's now at the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals after a federal judge earlier this morning turned town the Schindler family request to have the feeding tube re-inserted to Terri Schiavo. I have with me on the phone right now her brother, Bobby Schindler. Bobby, thanks for calling in.
BOBBY SCHINDLER, TERRI SCHIAVO'S BROTHER: Thank you.
KAGAN: Can you tell us your reaction to the judge's ruling earlier today?
SCHINDLER: Well, just shocked us, is probably the best way I can describe it. You know, we are very encouraged and excited when Congress passed the bill the other night, and were assured that the feeding tube was going to be reinserted. And then when this judge came back with his ruling today, we were just literally shocked.
KAGAN: And it actually seems like it would be a double blow to your family, because not only did Judge Whitmore deny your request to reinsert the feeding tube, he said it based on this, that "the family does not have a substantial likelihood of success with your lawsuit to win this." Because, of course, this ruling was only about a restraining order.
SCHINDLER: Yes, I don't understand how the judge can predetermine our success. That's what we were asking the judge, if we can have a new trial and then rule on the merit of the new trial. So it just -- I'm not an attorney, but it didn't really make sense to me how he ruled today.
KAGAN: And so it automatically will -- well, not automatically, but it has moved up to the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals here in Atlanta. Your family any more hopeful that you'll get a different ruling from this court?
SCHINLDER: Well, our family has always, you know, remained hopeful. And we'll remain hopeful. We'll, you know, stay in prayer in just pray that something happens between -- you know, in the next couple of days to help save my sister's life.
KAGAN: Bobby Schindler. Bobby, thanks for your comments. Quickly developing story on Terri Schiavo. Her husband, Michael Schiavo, has not contacted CNN with any response. If he does, we will pass those on to you as well.
That's going to do it for me, Daryn Kagan. Wolf Blitzer -- actually, I guess I'm not excused from the table quite yet. Quick break, I'm back after this.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KAGAN: Live pictures now. This is in Choteau, Montana. In court right now is the suspect, Kelly Frank. He is the painter who worked on David Letterman's ranch, and he allegedly was getting ready to hatch a plot to kill -- excuse me, to kidnap David Letterman's young son, and the son's nanny for a $5 million ransom.
The suspect's name, and you don't see him quite there, he is Kelley Frank. He's a painter who worked on the ranch in Montana that David Letterman owns. He is being charged with solicitation. Authorities believe he was planning to kidnap the two when Letterman and his family next visited the ranch. And more on that just ahead.
OK, that is going to wrap up things -- it's still not going to wrap up me.
(WEATHER REPORT)
KAGAN: All right, this is the final call, I am done. Tony Harris will be in for Wolf Blitzer at the top of the hour. First, though, a break, and I will see you right back here tomorrow morning. Have a great day.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
Aired March 22, 2005 - 10:59 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: We'd like to top the hour with what is happening "Now in the News." The battle over Terri Schiavo tops our news. About two hours ago Schiavo's parents filed an appeal to this morning's ruling. That ruling was by a federal judge refusing to order Schiavo's feeding tube reinserted. We'll have details on what that means and what comes next just ahead in a live report.
First, though, to Red Lake, Minnesota. We should learn more this hour about those wounded in a school-shooting rampage. About 30 minutes from now hospital officials plan to give a news conference about the shootings on a northern Minnesota Indian reservation.
Police say the student gunman killed his grandparents, then went to the high school and killed seven more people before killing himself. A live report on that in about seven minutes.
Authorities in Georgia have issued an Amber Alert for a man they say shot his ex-girlfriend's father, then made off with two children. Terence McDowell (ph) is said to have snatched the couple's 4-year-old daughter and the woman's 5-year-old son, whom he did not father. This happened just south of Atlanta. Police believe McDowell (Ph) is driving a 1998 green Kia with the Georgia license plate ARL 5785.
Overseas, Prince Rainier of Monaco has been placed in intensive care in a hospital. The 81-year-old prince was hospitalized two weeks ago with a chest infection. Now Monaco's royal palace says his condition has taken a turn for the worst after a slight improvement.
It is just a minute past 11:00 a.m. on the East Coast, just past 8:00 a.m. for those of you waking up in the West. From the CNN Center in Atlanta, good morning once again. I'm Daryn Kagan. Rick Sanchez is off today.
We're going to start with the life-or-death drama surrounding Terri Schiavo. Her parents are now asking a federal appeals court here in Atlanta to intervene to save their daughter. Earlier this morning, a lower court in Florida refused to order the brain-damaged woman's feeding tube to be restored. Schiavo has had no food or water since Friday.
Our Miles O'Brien is at the Federal Appeals Court in Atlanta this morning, brings us the latest.
Miles, good morning.
MILES O'BRIEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Daryn. This is a story with tremendous emotional content, and it is literally all over the map, legally and geographically. Everything shifts right now to Atlanta.
The building behind me, this is the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals. You see the reporters camped out there. We're not allowed inside. There will be no hearing on this particular motion, as far as we know.
A three-judge panel here will look at this latest legal document, which goes along with this stack of legal documents. This just goes back to September on this particular case. This one coming in by electronic filing about two hours ago, notice of an appeal, which means that a three-judge panel out of the 12 judges which work here at the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals is now considering whether this particular case has enough possibility of prevailing, whether the plaintiffs could prevail. And that's causing an injunction, an immediate injunction, which would, of course, mean that that feeding tube would be reinserted.
We're not getting a lot of information from the court right now. They are deliberating, discussing this right now behind closed doors. We're on the outside, obviously. We heard from the clerk of the court just a few moments ago.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This was filed about 9:15 this morning, and it's before a three-judge panel. And we'll update you throughout the day as we know information.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
O'BRIEN: All right. Let me read this notice of appeal to you. It's very terse.
"Notice is hereby given that plaintiff Theresa Marie Schiavo, incapacitated, by and through her parents and next (ph) friends, Robert and Mary Schindler, in the above named case hereby appeal to the United States Court of appeals for the 11th Circuit from the order entered denying plaintiff's motion for temporary restraining order in this action on the 21st day of March, 2005."
That's a lot of legalese for saying we're not accepting that verdict down in Florida, we are appealing to this particular court. Now, typically, an appeals process here, the average run of the mill type of appeal can take several months. Obviously that is not what's going to happen here.
Time is of the essence. Quite possible we might get a ruling today or even tomorrow.
Very unlikely there will be additional oral arguments. Remember that stack of legal documents? These judges will determine that everything that can be said legally about this has been said, and they will make a determination if on the merits of this case there's a likelihood that the plaintiffs would succeed. That is to say, the parents of Terri Schiavo, in keeping her alive.
And if there's a strong likelihood they might succeed later in court, they could immediately order that feeding tube to be reinserted. We're watching it very closely here, Daryn. We'll keep you posted as soon as we hear if there's a ruling.
KAGAN: All right, Miles. We will check back with you in downtown Atlanta. Thank you for that.
Meanwhile, we're getting some first reaction out of the White House. Heard this in the last hour.
Well, actually, this is live pictures of President Bush. He's in Albuquerque, New Mexico, today. He's talking about Social Security, but his White House spokesman, Scott McClellan, in the last hour was briefing reporters at the White House, saying the White House was disappointed that -- they would have preferred a different ruling from the judge, the federal judge in Florida.
So President Bush talking about Social Security, a conversation on that subject, meeting with seniors today at the Bear Canyon Center. He will be there for the rest of the day. Then he goes back to his ranch in Crawford, Texas.
Let's get back to the Terri Schiavo story, though. Legal options quickly running out for her family, for those who want her to live. I want to talk now to former U.S. attorney Kendall Coffey, who is in Miami to talk about this.
Kendall, good morning.
KENDALL COFFEY, FMR. U.S. ATTORNEY: Hey, good morning, Daryn.
KAGAN: This 11th Circuit Court of Appeals, what can you tell us about this court?
COFFEY: Well, it's traditionally seen as a pretty conservative court. It certainly is a court that can handle things very, very fast. And I would be very much in agreement with the statement that we could see a ruling by tomorrow, possibly even sometime tonight.
But they do not have a reputation as an activist court that is going to go out of their way to declare laws unconstitutional. So what I think we're likely to see is a well-reasoned ruling and a ruling that is very consistent with existing legal precedent, not anything that jumps into new horizons.
KAGAN: So many different terms and subjects being tested by this. The main point of due process, and the Schindler family and those who want to keep the feeding tube attached to Terri Schiavo, saying that this woman did not have due process. But how do you give due process to a woman who's said to be in a vegetative state?
COFFEY: Well, and that actually has been the big issue in federal court. This federal judge was not asked to revisit the medical issues, is she in a persistent vegetative state or is she minimally conscious and able to get better? Nor did the judge rule on the giant legal issue, which was whether or not the Congress overstepped the line when they passed this bill late Sunday.
Instead, the judge did a pretty traditional legal analysis of issues under the U.S. Constitution, such as due process. And Daryn, you hit the nail on the head. What does it mean to give due process to a woman in the condition of Terri Schiavo? And what the judge seemed to say is, based on everything he can see, the state courts provided enough process, may not like the outcome of the process, but enough process to say that she was fairly treated in the courts of Florida.
KAGAN: As we move forward, the big picture of this and the implications of this particular case will have far more reaching effects than just Terri Schiavo. At what point, and will it ever happen, that this issue of what Congress did over the last couple days in trying to supersede the state courts in Florida, if that was constitutional, where will that be tested?
COFFEY: It's possible that that issue could never be reached. Because based on what the federal district judge did in Tampa, he said, I am assuming that Congress acted constitutionally, and I am accepting the case. But on the merits and the strength of the arguments presented by the attorneys for Terri Schiavo's parents, I reject their claim.
It is entirely possible that the federal 11th Circuit as they're looking at this could reach the same kind of conclusion. They might agree with the parents, they might disagree, but avoid the giant constitutional question which among lawyers and judges around the country has had a lot of heads spinning: does the Congress have the ability to intervene in a specific case based on paramount public interest, based upon life-and-death considerations, even though that case has been pending in our courts literally for years?
KAGAN: Kendall, does this one have to get kicked up to the Supreme Court before it's all over, a court that has rejected looking at it three times?
COFFEY: I think inevitably it's going to go to the Supreme Court. The one thing I would say this time around -- and I'm not making any predictions about a case that is to fight every possible prediction, but there's going to be more of a federal interest this time because these are federal constitutional questions, and a federal court action that is being reviewed.
When it went to the U.S. Supreme Court on the last three times, admittedly they closed the door pretty fast. But that came up in a process of looking at the state courts. It wasn't the traditional kind of federal question coming up from the federal appellate ladder that we have here.
So while if they lose in the federal appeals court in Atlanta, chances are going to be slim. There's still a little more hope here than there might have been the last three go-arounds with the U.S. Supreme Court. KAGAN: All right. Kendall Coffey, live from Miami. Thanks for your insight.
COFFEY: Thank you, Daryn.
KAGAN: Other news coming out of Florida today, the suspect accused in the killing of 9-year-old Jessica Lunsford had an appearance before a judge this morning. John Couey was formally read the charges of murder kidnapping and ordered held without bail.
Police say Couey has confessed to the crime. He'll be asked to enter a plea at his arraignment, which is scheduled for April 11.
On to another story we're following. This one is out of Minnesota. It is being called the worst school shooting since Columbine. Right now police are trying to figure out what happened following a shooting rampage at an Indian reservation in Red Lake.
Let's go live now to our Keith Oppenheim for the latest -- Keith.
KEITH OPPENHEIM, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Daryn.
I'm at the detention center at the reservation, and if you look behind me you'll see that there are all of these tripods and cameras poised for a news conference, which you would think is about to start any minute now. But actually we're still about two hours away from that. And what you're seeing here is just a sign that reporters are quite anxious to hear from the FBI directly, our first opportunity to question them.
But what we know so far from the FBI is that yesterday a teenage gunman went to his grandparents' home on this reservation, he shot and killed both of them. Then he went to his high school and he killed seven people, including a security guard, a teacher and five other students. He also injured 13 others. Then he takes the gun and he shoots himself.
The local media outlets here have named the gunman. And they've identified him as Jeff Weise. Now, you're going to hear now from a student from the high school who spoke about the gunman.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: A couple kids told me that he planned this last year, that he was going to come up here and shoot the school.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
OPPENHEIM: The "St. Paul Pioneer Press," one of the Minnesota papers, has reported some interesting details about the gunman, Jeff Weise, saying that his father committed suicide four years ago, and that his mother is in a nursing home in Minneapolis, having suffered from a car accident. So apparently a tough past for this young man.
The paper also said the gunman was known to have done some writing on the Internet, saying that he was going an admirer of Adolph Hitler, and that on the Internet he used the name in German (UNINTELLIGIBLE), which means angel of death.
Again, Daryn, 13 people injured today. A couple reportedly in critical condition. So one of the things we're waiting for, obviously, is to find out whether those 13 injured are going to be OK or not.
Back to you.
KAGAN: And, in fact, Keith, we understand there's going to be a news conference from the hospital in about 30 minutes. So we should learn more at that time.
OPPENHEIM: That's right.
KAGAN: Keith Oppenheim, thank you for that.
By the way, that news conference from the hospital, CNN will air that live. So we'll get the latest right here.
The rampage in Minnesota is just the latest in a series of high- profile shootings in the past eight years. Certainly among the most tragic were the 1999 Columbine High School shootings in Colorado. Thirteen people were killed, 23 wounded, before two teenage gun men took their own lives.
In 1997, in Paducah, Kentucky, a high school freshman opened fire on classmates as they formed a circle to pray. Three were killed and five wounded in that incident.
An admitted Satanist says demons made him kill two people at Pearl High School in Pearl, Mississippi, in 1997. Seven others hurt in that incident.
And in 1998 in Jonesboro, Arkansas, two heavily-armed boys dressed in camouflage opened fire at Westside Middle School, killing five and wounding 10.
In Springfield, Oregon, a young teen used a semiautomatic rifle to kill two at Thurston High School in 1998. Twenty others were hurt there.
Tonight in prime time, CNN devoting an entire hour to the deadly school shootings in Minnesota. What can we learn from the latest shooting, and what has changed since the others? "NEWSNIGHT WITH AARON BROWN" starts at 10:00 p.m. Eastern, 7:00 Pacific.
Let's go live to live pictures now in Santa Maria, California. It looks like there's actually a reason to have an umbrella up today, a rainy day.
Michael Jackson arriving at the courthouse today. Now, it was just his time yesterday that we thought he was going to be a no-show. He arrived somewhat late, looking not well at all.
His hair wasn't combed. He looked like he was spaced out, perhaps on some type of drugs. He looked like he was in pain. He shuffled into the courthouse, wasn't there long when he left the courtroom, and about 45 minutes later, the court did convene. And they did hold court today.
Today is supposed to be just a half-day court session. It looks like there's Joe Jackson getting out of the car. And he is usually followed by Michael Jackson. We'll have to see what kind of condition he is in today.
Yesterday the judge in the case, Rodney Melville, took no apparent action, but he had, of course, remember threatened the singer back on March 10, when Michael Jackson was a no-show because -- oh, his mother is there as well today. All right. We'll just follow it as they come out of the black SUV.
Yesterday on the witness stand, besides the drama that took place with Michael Jackson not feeling well, there was a child abuse expert who was called by the prosecution. There's Michael Jackson getting out of the car. Let's see what kind of condition he appears to be in today.
Well, moving slowly, doing what he's done every day, turning around to wave to fans. But again, today, he appears to -- well, there's a smile on his face today. We didn't see that yesterday -- as he's making his way into the courthouse in Santa Maria, California.
So yesterday it was just about this time that he got into the courthouse, said he was having severe back pains, asked to be excused from the courtroom. It looked like he was nauseated, and did come back in. And as I was saying, court did -- did convene.
When he left the courthouse at the end of the day, one of his spokesmen said that he had said that he was having severe and sometimes excruciating back pain. The spokeswoman saying, "I asked him how he was doing, and he said his back was killing him."
Apparently that is not enough reason to get you excused from this child molestation case. So he is back in the courthouse today.
As I said, this is expected to be a half-day in court today, beginning with the testimony of Louise Palanker (ph). She is a comedian who tried to help the accuser and the boy's family as he battled cancer.
Let's show you what it looked like yesterday when Michael Jackson showed up at the courthouse. Do we have that ready to go? There it is.
So this is yesterday. You can see moving a lot more slowly than he was today, held up by -- on one side by his brother and by a bodyguard on the other. Still turned to wave to say hello, but as we said, moving very slowly. Showed up in disheveled dress and unkempt hair and -- but court did go on.
Half day today. Our Miguel Marquez is on the scene in Santa Maria. We'll have a report from him about what takes place in today's half-court session a little bit later.
We also are going to be talking more about what the medical community has to say about Terri Schiavo's condition. We're going to have both sides of the debate coming up.
Also, still to come...
(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)
OPERATOR: State police 911?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yeah, on Incinerator Road in Taftville, someone crashed on their street bike.
TROOPER: Where?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Incinerator Road in Taftville.
TROOPER: Yeah, too bad.
(END AUDIO CLIP)
KAGAN: "Yeah, too bad?" Not exactly what you expect to hear when you call 911. We're going to find out what happened to the state trooper who seemed a little bit less than helpful to that 911 caller.
Plus, boost camp for your memory. We're going to tell you what can you do to strengthen your brain.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(STOCK MARKET REPORT)
KAGAN: Find the answers in the Terri Schiavo case, it is tough, no matter where you look. You've heard from family members, from politicians, from the clergy. What about medical experts? Are they shedding any light on the case? You have a chance now to see for yourself.
Here now, CNN senior medical correspondent, Dr. Sanjay Gupta.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN SENIOR MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): In a medical case as high profile as Terri Schiavo, you would think the medical experts would have all the answers. But just by listening to them and reviewing statements they gave to the court, it's easy to see why a final answer is so complicated.
DR. WILLIAM HAMMESFAHR, NEUROLOGIST: I spent about 10 hours across about three months and the woman is very aware of her surroundings. She's very aware. She's alert. She's not in a coma. She's not in PVS.
GUPTA: PVS, persistent vegetative state. Dr. Hammesfahr was chosen by Terri Schiavo's parents to testify in court, his opinion very different from Dr. Ronald Cranford, chosen by Michael Schiavo, Terri's husband.
DR. RONALD CRANFORD, NEUROLOGIST: A vegetative state is a scary diagnosis. Unless you know what you're looking for, it looks like the patient is interacting. But Terri is not interacting.
GUPTA: Both of them are neurologists and their conclusions are based on diagnostic tests that are supposed to be objective. Yet, they tell different tales.
HAMMESFAHR: Her CAT scan has maybe 75 percent of the brain tissue still left.
CRANFORD: I've seen her. There's no doubt in my mind, whatsoever, she's in a permanent vegetative state. Her CAT scan shows extremely severe atrophy to the brain. And her EEG is flat. It doesn't show any electrical activity at all.
GUPTA: And, most importantly, their opinions about a possible recovery?
HAMMESFAHR: With proper therapy, she will have a tremendous improvement. I think, personally, that she'll be able to walk, eventually, and she will be able to use at least one of her arms.
CRANFORD: There's no way. That's totally bogus.
GUPTA: Five doctors gave their medical opinions in an evidentiary hearing ordered by a Florida appellate court, two doctors chosen by each side and one court-appointed neurologist who was chosen by the judge. He declined a CNN interview, but told the court, "The preponderance of the data and my clinical examination reveal no evidence of awareness of self, environment or ability to interact with others. Mrs. Schiavo exhibits no evidence of language comprehension or expression. I would state that her chances of a meaningful neurological recovery to be virtually nonexistent."
His language leaves little room for doubt, unless you ask yet another neurologist. And so a medical choice, normally decided between doctors and a patient's loved ones, is fought out in the courts.
Dr. Sanjay Gupta, CNN, Atlanta.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KAGAN: A check of the nation's stormy forecast coming up next.
Plus, officials take action against a trooper who apparently brushed off a 911 caller's request for help. But is the punishment big enough?
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KAGAN: All is not OK in Oklahoma this morning. They're still cleaning up in the northwestern and east central part of the state.
Tornadoes touched down on Monday. Several buildings were damaged or destroyed, but no reports of injuries. We'll take that for now.
Jacqui Jeras keeping an eye on not just on Oklahoma, but a lot of places could have some intense weather today.
(WEATHER REPORT)
KAGAN: Lawmakers have shared their opinions about the Terri Schiavo case, but what does the public think about the lawmakers? We're going to tell you what the polls are saying about the politicians just ahead.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KAGAN: We go live now to Red Lake, Minnesota, the hospital that's treating the wounding -- the wounded in the school shooting in Minnesota. Let's listen in.
SHERRI BIRKELAND, NORTH COUNTY REGIONAL HOSPITAL: ... patients here after the FBI releases names and we have authorizations from the families to do so. The FBI, I'm told, will be holding a press conference later today in Red Lake.
We had planned to have a family member here for you this morning. She was a little bit overwhelmed and has a lot she's dealing with this morning. So she has declined to speak with you at this time.
I have a brief statement, and then we will open it up for questions. I can share with you the information that was previously reported. We had six victims treated in our emergency room yesterday. They arrived via ground ambulance from Red Lake, which is approximately 40 minutes away. The first patient arrived here at 4:22 p.m. The last patient arrived at 4:50 p.m.
Two of those six patients were air-lifted to hospital in MeritCare Hospital in Fargo, North Dakota. Three patients were admitted to North Country Regional Hospital here, and remain here this morning. The sixth patient was pronounced dead in our emergency department. The six victims brought to the hospital have been identified. The families of the three patients admitted are here with them this morning. Again, we will give you condition reports as we are able.
We would like to think the Bemidji Police Department and the Bemidji Community Patrol who arrived at North Country Hospital shortly after we were informed of the incident in Red Lake and remain at the hospital this morning. Their efforts played a vital role in protecting patient and family privacy during the hours following the shooting.
We would also like to thank or medical staff, ambulance personnel, air ambulances, Life Flight from MeritCare Hospital and Life Link 3 from St. Cloud, North Country Health Services staff, our volunteers, clergy, all who were here at the hospital and assisted during the activities yesterday afternoon and evening. We are very proud of their professionalism and the superb cooperation we witnessed among our area's emergency medical response teams. At this time, I will take questions.
QUESTION: (INAUDIBLE)
QUESTION: Can you kind of describe the scene as all the victims were being brought in, the magnitude of the increase? Obviously not the names. And just kind of -- what the scene was like yesterday when everyone arrived.
DR. JOE CORSER, NORTH COUNTY REGIONAL HOSPITAL: Well, fortunately, we were able to receive some advanced notice, and we were able to partially activate our disaster plan, and that worked very well. We had an excellent response, both from nursing staff, from the physicians in the community. The ambulance personnel from our community as well as surrounding communities did an excellent job responding to the primary scene up in Red Lake.
There was the ambulance from Bemidji, from Black Duck, from Cass Lake (ph). We had some mutual aid from Clearwater County ambulance that came to Bemidji, covering our service area. We had the air ambulance services, both from Fargo MeritCare and from Life Link 3 out of St. Cloud, who responded to the scene. And that was all put into motion before we received any patients in Bemidji. And so we were well-prepared and ready when those patients began arriving.
We were able to handle the six patients that we received, in terms of the volume of patients, without any difficulty. We had three surgeons who were present in the emergency department. We had a number of family physicians, emergency room physicians, and an internist. We were able to do triage as well as evaluate all of those patients. We had plenty of adequate laboratory and x-ray staff, and so I'm very pleased, from our perspective, with both the EMS response, as well as our hospital's response and our ability to care for those patients.
QUESTION: I know as doctor (INAUDIBLE), but some 12, 14 hours later, after you've had a chance to think about it, working on this case, what did you go through personally now after thinking about what happened to these children?
CORSER: Well, you know, I think that everybody here understands what a huge tragedy this is for the Red Lake community. And all of us here work together with the Red Lake community on a regular basis, and many people in our community know a lot of the people from Red Lake. And our social services staff and the administrative staff did a great job of working with people in the waiting room and all of the family members that arrived at the hospital last evening.
Myself, you know, I don't think that I've fully processed all of that information yet. We're still doing a number of things clinically. We have a meeting today where we're going to talk about how things went from our perspective and do kind of a self-critique to look at lessons learned and other ways that we could improve the response that we had here at our hospital. And I understand that there's going to be a critical incident stress debriefing at some point in the future. Whether that's tomorrow, I'm not exactly certain when that's scheduled. But there will be that kind of activity going on, as well.
QUESTION: Any patient in a life-threatening situation now?
CORSER: In terms of the status report we have for patients...
BIRKELAND: None of the patients that are here right now are critical.
QUESTION: Sherri, a little confused about the process here. You said you'd taken your cues from the FBI and talking to families before identifying people and getting out conditions. And then moments later, you said that all three of the victims here have been identified. We all have various names and names are floating about. Can you officially identify who is here?
BIRKELAND: No, I can't at this time. I understand the FBI may be releasing that information later this morning.
QUESTION: I have another question for the doctor.
QUESTION: Can we get the doctor to describe the nature of the wounds?
BIRKELAND: Joe, do you want to come back up? Sounds like a couple. There was one in the back of the room and one up here.
QUESTION: Did you describe the injuries your surgeons encountered and how they saved these lives?
CORSER: There were multiple gunshot wounds, as obviously all of the injuries were gunshot wounds. We had two gunshot wounds to the head, one of which was transferred to Fargo MeritCare, and that person is continuing to receive care there. There was one patient who arrived in our emergency department and died here as a result of a gunshot wound.
QUESTION: To which part of the body?
CORSER: To the head. There was a patient who received a gunshot wound to the face, and that was also transferred to Fargo MeritCare and continues to receive care there. We had a patient who received an injury to the hip, and that patient was admitted to our hospital and is continuing to receive care here. We had two patients who received gunshot wounds to the chest.
QUESTION: Can you -- gunshots -- shotgun or handgun?
CORSER: I don't know the answer to that question.
QUESTION: Did any of the victims have multiple wounds? I think you said one had two (INAUDIBLE)?
CORSER: No, there were no victim that had two gunshot wounds to the head. I did not primarily care for all of these victims, and so in general terms, I think there were a couple of people who had more than one injury. QUESTION: What were you told to prepare for, doctor? I know last night Sherri had told us that the feds and the authorities had said to be prepared for the injured. How many were you prepared for and were you expecting a deluge of victims, so to speak?
CORSER: Well, we did prepare for a deluge of victims. Our first notification was that there was a shooting at the school in Red Lake and that there were multiple victims. And that's as detailed as we received. And so we prepared to be able to receive many patients. And we were prepared to receive more than we did receive, fortunately.
QUESTION: Do you have the time on that, when you received that call?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: About 3:15.
CORSER: Pardon me?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: 3:15?
CORSER: 3:15 is when we first became aware of this incident in Red Lake, and that's when we began putting into place our disaster drill -- not drill, but our disaster plan and began notifying area EMS agencies.
QUESTION: Do you expect the three who are here to survive and if so, is there danger of life-altering, life-changing, injuries?
CORSER: I think that right now we're able to say that I expect them to survive, and I think more information about their conditions will have to wait until we get permission from the families and more permission to discuss those particular cases.
QUESTION: Were any of the kids you saw, just would the wounds indicate they were shot at point-blank range?
CORSER: I don't know that I can answer that question.
QUESTION: How many required surgery?
CORSER: One went to surgery for a wound on an extremity. Another patient had some procedures performed in the emergency department and was admitted to the intensive care unit. And I don't know if there will be any follow-up procedures on any of those patients.
QUESTION: Doctor, the patients who died herein the hospital, did that add to the toll that we've been going with? Still 10?
CORSER: Correct.
BIRKELAND: We believe that's part of the FBI's count.
QUESTION: That's the FBI's count?
BIRKELAND: Uh-huh. QUESTION: Can you comment whether -- did you remove bullets or -- as part of the treatment? Can you talk about that?
CORSER: As far as I'm aware, no bullets were removed, but I'm unaware of exactly what surgical procedure was performed in the operating room last evening.
QUESTION: We're hearing a dozen or so students were injured. Can you say where the others are? Three are here, two are in Fargo. Where are the injured students being treated?
CORSER: I don't know the answer to that question.
BIRKELAND: We don't have information. We are told there's a total 17 of 17 with fatalities and the two went to Fargo and there's three here. I don't know how that factors into the count. I'm sure it's somewhat confusing for you, but you probably have more information on the actual count than we do. We just have a tally on the patients that came here.
QUESTION: So you said 17 with fatalities -- you mean 10 dead and 7 injured?
BIRKELAND: That's what we've been told, but I don't know that's official.
QUESTION: Was this sort of a dramatic event, a surprise, for this (INAUDIBLE)?
BIRKELAND: We've never dealt with anything like this before. As Doctor Corser stated, our disaster planning that we hope we never have to implement, and we had to put some pieces in place last evening, went very well for us. Things went as smoothly as they could from our perspective.
QUESTION: When you say putting some pieces together, what do you mean as far as piece...
BIRKELAND: I mean the plan that Doctor Corser about for staffing up the ER to have enough staff there to receive patients. We secured our entrances to the facility with the help of law enforcement. We asked staff who were here at the time, if their shift ended, to stay until we knew exactly what we were going to be dealing with. So those types of things.
QUESTION: Can you talk about how you decided why everyone didn't come here and who made the decision as to who went where, the victims who -- (INAUDIBLE)? Were you guys making that call?
CORSER: No, we were not. There was...
QUESTION: Who was?
CORSER: I think that there -- they have an emergency room in Red Lake, and physicians there were probably being triage officers. In addition, one of the helicopters from MeritCare Life Flight responded to the scene in Red Lake, and it's my understanding that they assisted in that triage process.
QUESTION: The two victims that were moved to Fargo due to the severity of their condition? Is that why? And explain in detail what that means.
CORSER: One of those patients required neurosurgery, and we don't have that neurosurgery here in Bemidji, and so we referred them over there, and they were prepared to take that patient. The other patient received a severe injury to the face, and they have malofacial (ph) surgery there as well.
QUESTION: How lucky are some of these patients from a medical perspective to be with us today?
CORSER: Well, I think that they're very lucky. I mean, there were some people who died, and obviously those people who survived, survived both because their injuries weren't as severe, but also because of the good and excellent EMS response we were able to provide in Red Lake.
QUESTION: The patient who died, did that patient have any chance of survival earlier on, if he had received treatment earlier?
CORSER: Yeah, I don't have any comment on that.
QUESTION: Can you say that your staff here was equipped to deal with this kind of thing? I think it caught so many people off-guard, and it would be understandable if staff here wasn't prepared for so many gunshot wounds.
CORSER: Well, you're absolutely true. This is the first time we've had this many gunshot wounds in a single day since I've been here at North Country Hospital. But on a regular basis, we prepare for and practice doing disaster drills and doing exactly what we were able to do yesterday. And I think that that whole process worked very well. And I think that we were very prepared to receive those patients and treat them. And I think things went very well. From my perspective, it functioned very well.
QUESTION: What lessons have Health Services taken from this?
CORSER: We're going to be discussing that later today.
QUESTION: Did the injured come in a steady stream, one by one, or was there a big rush?
CORSER: I think the patients that we received came in over a period of an hour or so, 40 minutes.
BIRKELAND: The first patient arrived at 4:22, and the last arrived at 4:50. Tim, I believe they were all in separate ambulances.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes. One per ambulance.
BIRKELAND: Yes. .
QUESTION: Were they all students or were some of them adults?
BIRKELAND: I can confirm all of the patients that we received here were males. They were all under age 18.
QUESTION: Any related?
BIRKELAND: I don't know that. I'm sorry.
QUESTION: Mr. Hall (sp), can we ask you some questions?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Sure.
QUESTION: Could you describe the scene as you saw it as these people were coming in over the course of 20 minutes in time, how it was handled?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well, as Doctor Corser explained, we had the benefit of an hour of warning. We had staff on standby, so as the first patient came in the department by ambulance, they were assigned a room, an administering physician and a surgeon and two nurses. And each -- as each patient came, we had a doctor to assign to them. So we matched up very nicely. Six victims, we had more than six physicians and nursing staff. And so we cleaned them up and had care teams with each patient.
QUESTION: Do you remember the wound on that first patient that came in? I don't know if you can remember that, but was that first patient a gunshot to the head or how severe was that person?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The first two patients we received were probably two of the more critical patients that we did receive. The first two patients came in just a couple of minutes apart. One of those first two patients -- I'm a little mixed up on -- was transferred to Fargo and the other one expired. So both were critical injuries.
QUESTION: And they came because of the triage work at Red Lake? And they were sent first because of the critical nature of the wounds?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, I'd certainly believe that.
QUESTION: Do you know who made the call to you at 3:15?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I did not receive the call. One of my staff nurses in the emergency department got that call, so I cannot name the caller. It was a representative from the Red Lake hospital.
QUESTION: Doctor, can you just describe the scene in that half hour when patients started arriving here with gunshot wounds. I don't know what the flow of information was, but what was that scene like (INAUDIBLE)?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well, as you can imagine, the flow of information was difficult. We did not have a direct line with Red Lake Hospital. We did not have a direct line with the triage activity at the scene. We were monitoring EMS radio, so we were -- we got our information off the EMS radio system.
KAGAN: We've been listening in to a news conference from the hospital in Bemidji, Minnesota, on their firsthand account of how they treated the victims -- some of the shooting victims from yesterday's shooting in Red Lake at the high school there. Terrible, terrible school shooting.
Ten people dead, that included the gunman's grandfather, a woman they believe to be the wife or girlfriend of the shooter, a school security guard, a teacher, five other students, and now they're saying at least seven others were wounded. The six victims brought to this hospital where we've been listening in, the officials there saying all were males under the age of 18. Two had -- actually, three of them actually had to be transferred to a larger hospital in Fargo, North Dakota.
Expecting much more on this investigation coming up. Right now, we're going to fit in a break and more news after this.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KAGAN: We did remember to do this today. It's our "Daily Dose." Looking at a program that claims to fix memory flameouts and bend your brain back into shape. Here now is senior medical correspondent, Dr. Sanjay Gupta.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Thanks, I'll talk to you later. Hi, this is Linda.
SANJAY GUPTA, CNN SR. MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): In her line of work, 53-year-old Linda Jenkins (ph) spends practically all day talking.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You know what, I don't even know who I was talking to.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm lost.
GUPTA: And lately, she's been hitting some blank spots.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: A big...
GUPTA: Causing her a lot of anxiety.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'll be taking along and all of a sudden -- when that happens so often, it calls attention. And it's frustrating. Oh, absolutely. To me, it is.
GUPTA: So Jenkins is trying an unusual program to fix her memory flame-outs. The first boot camp for the brain, run by the Memory Fitness Institute in Fountain Valley, California.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We'd like to remember to come.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I hope so, too!
DR. GARY SMALL, DIRECTOR, UCLA CENTER ON AGING: You can go home today and start protecting your brain.
GUPTA: The brains of the operation is Dr. Gary Small. The program, based on his book, "The Memory Prescription." He has spent his life trying to unravel the memory mystery. While admitting there are other factors, he says simple lifestyle changes can improve your memory in just 14 days.
SMALL: What can we do today to keep our brains healthy and fit? And here it is, the big four. Mental activity. Physical conditioning. Healthy diet. And stress reduction. The key to memory fitness.
GUPTA: Back at boot camp, Jenkins is already busy. First, stocking up on healthy brain foods, rich in antioxidants and with plenty of omega-3 fatty acid, which Small says may keep brain cells from degenerating. Some of his suggestions are blueberries, prunes, salmon and nuts. Another prescription? Cut down on stress. That's a memory-buster.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: That's enough.
GUPTA: Two other key elements of the program, exercise your body and your brain, like zany storytelling methods to remember lists of words.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: So the more fantastic or exaggerated you can make the picture, the easier it is to remember.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I had a lawyer wearing a vest eating an artichoke and a banana.
GUPTA: Mind-benders, or simply writing with your left hand if you're right-handed. All are ways boot campers sharpen their brains during weekly meetings.
Dr. Sanjay Gupta, CNN, Atlanta.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KAGAN: This Sunday night, only on CNN, Sanjay Gupta explores the mystery of memory. What is it? Why does it sometimes fail you? And how can you improve it? "MEMORY" airs at 10:00 p.m. Eastern on Sunday only here on CNN.
We'll take a break. Back right after this.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KAGAN: We've been following the story of Terri Schiavo. It's now at the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals after a federal judge earlier this morning turned town the Schindler family request to have the feeding tube re-inserted to Terri Schiavo. I have with me on the phone right now her brother, Bobby Schindler. Bobby, thanks for calling in.
BOBBY SCHINDLER, TERRI SCHIAVO'S BROTHER: Thank you.
KAGAN: Can you tell us your reaction to the judge's ruling earlier today?
SCHINDLER: Well, just shocked us, is probably the best way I can describe it. You know, we are very encouraged and excited when Congress passed the bill the other night, and were assured that the feeding tube was going to be reinserted. And then when this judge came back with his ruling today, we were just literally shocked.
KAGAN: And it actually seems like it would be a double blow to your family, because not only did Judge Whitmore deny your request to reinsert the feeding tube, he said it based on this, that "the family does not have a substantial likelihood of success with your lawsuit to win this." Because, of course, this ruling was only about a restraining order.
SCHINDLER: Yes, I don't understand how the judge can predetermine our success. That's what we were asking the judge, if we can have a new trial and then rule on the merit of the new trial. So it just -- I'm not an attorney, but it didn't really make sense to me how he ruled today.
KAGAN: And so it automatically will -- well, not automatically, but it has moved up to the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals here in Atlanta. Your family any more hopeful that you'll get a different ruling from this court?
SCHINLDER: Well, our family has always, you know, remained hopeful. And we'll remain hopeful. We'll, you know, stay in prayer in just pray that something happens between -- you know, in the next couple of days to help save my sister's life.
KAGAN: Bobby Schindler. Bobby, thanks for your comments. Quickly developing story on Terri Schiavo. Her husband, Michael Schiavo, has not contacted CNN with any response. If he does, we will pass those on to you as well.
That's going to do it for me, Daryn Kagan. Wolf Blitzer -- actually, I guess I'm not excused from the table quite yet. Quick break, I'm back after this.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KAGAN: Live pictures now. This is in Choteau, Montana. In court right now is the suspect, Kelly Frank. He is the painter who worked on David Letterman's ranch, and he allegedly was getting ready to hatch a plot to kill -- excuse me, to kidnap David Letterman's young son, and the son's nanny for a $5 million ransom.
The suspect's name, and you don't see him quite there, he is Kelley Frank. He's a painter who worked on the ranch in Montana that David Letterman owns. He is being charged with solicitation. Authorities believe he was planning to kidnap the two when Letterman and his family next visited the ranch. And more on that just ahead.
OK, that is going to wrap up things -- it's still not going to wrap up me.
(WEATHER REPORT)
KAGAN: All right, this is the final call, I am done. Tony Harris will be in for Wolf Blitzer at the top of the hour. First, though, a break, and I will see you right back here tomorrow morning. Have a great day.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
