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CNN Live Today

Stabbing Deaths of Two Girls in Illinois; L.A. Police Shooting; Military Kill Insurgents Near Syria

Aired May 10, 2005 - 10:00   ET

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

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


DARYN KAGAN, CNN CO-ANCHOR: Let's get start with something that's actually just into us here at CNN.
We are following news of a church fire, these pictures coming to us from suburban Philadelphia. We're looking at these live pictures from WPDI. Flames and heavy smoke are rising from the roof. No injuries have been reported. It's a two-alarm fire. We'll have more on that in just a minute.

Right now, let's take a look at what else is happening now in the news. Police say they have no solid leads in the stabbing deaths of two-second graders. The girls' bodies found Monday in a park in Zion, Illinois. Laura Hobbs and Krystal Tobias had been riding their bikes in the heavily wooded park. The latest in a live report from there just ahead.

Atlanta courthouse shooting suspect Brian Nichols goes back to court in about three hours. Prosecutors plan to say they'll seek the death penalty against him. Nichols is charged with four murders, three of them in or outside the courthouse. There are reports Nichols has been reading spiritual literature while in jail.

Three bombings in Baghdad today, seven people were killed, 14 wounded in the most deadly of attacks. Police believe the target was a U.S. military convoy. There are no reports of American casualties. Insurgent attacks have increased since traditional government -- Transitional Government was formed.

And President and Mrs. Bush are on their way home. The president is wrapping up a four-nation European tour with a speech in Tblisi, Georgia. Mr. Bush says the former Soviet republic's transition to democracy is another example to other nations in the region.

Good morning. I'm Daryn Kagan.

We begin with murder in a small town. Illinois police scramble for clues in the deaths of two young girls. Police in Zion, Illinois concede they have no leads in the killings. The bodies of 8-year-old Laura Hobbs and 9-year-old Krystal Tobias were found in a wooded area near a bike path. They had both been stabbed and apparently left to die.

Our Chris Lawrence is covering the story and joins us with more now.

Good morning. CHRIS LAWRENCE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Daryn. Police initially said they had no absolutely no leads. We now believe that they are making some progress in this investigation, as they try to figure out who would kill these little girls and more importantly, why. Krystal Tobias was only 9 years old. Her best friend, Laura Hobbs only 8. The two were best friends in the second grade. And they disappeared Sunday afternoon after playing outside riding their bikes.

A lot of neighbors saw them that afternoon. By that night, they were supposed to be home around 7:00. When they didn't come home both families reported them missing. And they were later discovered the next morning in a park, but not along the bike trail. Their bodies were discovered well off that bike path in a thick, heavily wooded section of the park.

Investigators have been back out on that scene this morning. And they have also questioned several members of both families. And we believe they are making some progress in the investigation.

Now earlier today, a lot of the kids were coming back to school again for the second day. And as you can see, a lot of -- in a lot of cases, the parents were literally walking them right up to the door. We saw yesterday that a lot of parents were coming right up to the door to pick up their kids. This is just terrified this small town. Only about 20,000 people live here. And with no public leads by the police, a lot of parents have just been terrified about their safety of their own kids.

But in terms of helping the kids cope with what's happened, no matter which way the investigation goes, the teacher will be talking with some of these kids today. Remember, they're only 8, 9 years old. These are very young children. A lot of whom have never really had any concept of death or had to deal with it. But fortunately, I guess in the past few weeks or recently, the kids' second grade teacher had them read some books that introduced the concept of loss of death. One of them being "Charlotte's Web."

They hope to build on that today, as they try and help some of these kids work through a lot of their feelings about what's happened -- Daryn.

KAGAN: And Chris, this community, this basically is a community where you let your kids play outside and ride their bikes outside. Basically homicide unheard of around this area.

LAWRENCE: Yes. And I mean, that day, I mean one of the mothers said she heard from her neighbors that the two little girls showed up at her house and were swinging on her hammock, waiting for her daughter to get home. But her daughter was out with her dad. So she never came home. And the neighbors said the two little girls eventually just rode their bikes away.

But they do let them play outside. But we heard from several parents the kids were told to avoid that park. In parts it is very heavily wooded, it can be dark. It can be well out of the path of where people might see you. And a lot of parents had said hey, kids, don't go near the park if you can help it.

KAGAN: Chris Lawrence live from Zion, Illinois. Thank you.

Right now, we want to go ahead and revisit on a story we focused on this time yesterday. The police barrage of bullets on a car and its unarmed driver. As you might remember, the incident was caught on videotape. What exactly prompted sheriff's deputies to unleash nearly 100 bullets on a car involved in a police chase?

CNN's Peter Viles takes a look at that.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

(SIRENS)

PETER VILES, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): It started with reports that shots had been fired and that a white SUV was somehow involved. Police chased this vehicle for 12 minutes, cornered it and then opened fire.

(GUNFIRE)

VILES: Relatives of the driver, Winston Hayes, say the shooting were unprovoked.

KIM VAUGHN, NIECE OF SHOT DRIVER: They didn't give him a chance, that's my impression. They didn't give him a chance to get out. They didn't ask him to stop. They didn't tell him to open the doors or anything. They just point-blank started shooting at him. That's my impression.

TRINA HAYS, WITNESS: I was on the floor crying, saying why do you have to kill him? Don't shoot him. Why they have to do him like that? They didn't have to kill him, because I thought he was dead. It was like set up. And like I told them, it was like gunshot at OK Corral.

VILES (on camera): The sheriff's department now says it was 90 to 95 rounds were fired during this shootout. And that left behind a neighborhood literally riddled with bullet holes. Look here. Two- bullet holes in this kitchen window across the street from the shooting, that left behind. But more importantly, left behind a lot of serious questions for the sheriff.

LEE BACA, SHERIFF, L.A. COUNTY, CALIFORNIA: I have no idea, one way or the other, as to why and what the officers were thinking at the time.

VILES (voice over): Sheriff's deputies initially indicated one of the deputies feared the driver was about to run him down with the SUV. The sheriff now says 10 deputies fired and the entire issue is under investigation.

BACA: Well, what we're going to look at is what was the triggering point for the shooting. That's the key question right now. There's two things that I will be very concerned about: tactics and the intensity of what was going on. Particularly at the time when the shooting occurred and then what preceded it.

VILES: One sheriff's deputy was hit by a stray bullet but only bruised. As for the driver of the SUV, he was shot four times but not seriously wounded. The sheriff says he has a criminal record, was driving erratically, but that he was unarmed when he was shot.

Peter Viles, CNN, Compton, California.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KAGAN: And now for the latest on President Bush. He's headed back to the U.S. this hour after wrapping up a five-day trip to Europe. And he did so in dramatic fashion. Earlier this morning in the former Soviet Republic of Georgia, Mr. Bush addressed tens of thousands of people in Freedom Square; the site of a peaceful resolution that toppled the Kremlin-backed regime.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEORGE BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We're living in historic times when freedom is advancing from the Black Sea to the Caspian, to the Persian Gulf and beyond. As you watch free people gathering in squares like this across the world, waving their nation's flags and demanding their God-given rights, you can take pride in this fact. They have been inspired by your example and they take hope in your success.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KAGAN: Mr. Bush says Georgia still faces essential goals in the next step of democracy, including establishing a free press, an independent judiciary and respect for minority rights.

U.S. forces ratcheted up their offensive and pus through a key landmark in the fight for Iraq. About 1,000 U.S. troops are battling insurgents and foreign fighters along Iraq's border with Syria.

Our Ryan Chilcote is in Baghdad with the latest.

Ryan, hello.

RYAN CHILCOTE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hello, Daryn. Well, they're calling it Operation Matador. They're now in Day 3. It is as you say a massive U.S. operation involving soldiers, Marines and sailors. And just about midday yesterday they made their way across the Euphrates River. They built some pontoon bridges. That was what allowed them to cross north of the Euphrates. And they are now up there basically probing that area, looking for foreign fighters, trying to draw them out using themselves, if you will, as bait.

Now, we know that they are on just on the Iraqi side of the Iraqi/Syrian border. It's an area in what's called the Anbar Province. A massive area in the west of Iraq where it is traditionally been thought of as a sanctuary for foreign fighters. It's also a place where the U.S. military had been long concerned might also serve as a transit point for foreign fighters coming in, particular from Syria.

So far the U.S. military saying that it has been quite a successful operation. They say that in the first 48 hours of this operation, they have already killed, according to their estimates, about 100 insurgents, including many foreign fighters among them. On the U.S. casualty side, they are saying that three Marines have been killed there in the fighting.

Meanwhile, here in the Iraqi capital, no let-up in the violence that we've now seen for about three weeks. Already three bombings today. Two of them car bombings, the first and most lethal of them detonated by a suicide bomber. The Iraqi police tell us the suicide bomber was effectively targeting a U.S. military patrol, pulled out into an intersection, a very busy intersection in the Iraqi capital. That's when he blew himself up.

No word on U.S. casualties. But is as is all too often the case, there is news of casualties among innocent Iraqi bystanders there. Reports from the Iraqi police that at least seven were killed in that attack. About 14 others wounded.

This comes at a time as the U.S. military is saying that car bombs are increasingly the preferred means of causing violence in Iraq by the insurgents. Their ammo, if you will. U.S. military saying that the month of April saw more car bombs than any other month so far in the more than two years of violence here. U.S. military saying that just in April alone, the number of car bombings was double that of what it was in February. In the last 12 days here in Iraq we've seen the result of that. More than 300 Iraqis killed. Many of those, Daryn, because of those car bombs.

KAGAN: Ryan Chilcote live from Baghdad. Thanks for the latest on those elements of the story from there.

Three separate school bus accidents. Several deaths, dozen of injuries. Are America's children safe onboard school buses? A closer look coming up.

And then another traffic story. Traffic jams spread. A news study says more time, more gas, more money are wasted every year. Hear what is not being done to solve the problem.

And police policy on high-speed pursuits. Some say the cops need to back off. Our very own Rick Sanchez gets the ride of his life. Watch it on CNN LIVE TODAY.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAGAN: To Liberty, Missouri now. Investigators will try to determine the cause of a deadly school bus crash. We brought you live coverage as this story unfolded this time yesterday. Two children remain in critical condition this morning. Nearly half of the 53 grade-schoolers on the bus were injured, and two motorists killed when the bus slammed into their stopped cars at an intersection. School officials say the bus driver had an impeccable safety record during her seven years on the job. Near Miami, two people died when a bus slammed into their car. There were no children on the bus at the time and the bus driver wasn't hurt. Police are investigating the cause of that crash.

Stories like these strike fear in the heart of any parent who puts their child on a school bus, trusting their kids will be safe. CNN's Dan Lothian explains some would say that your kids are not as safe as they could be.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DAN LOTHIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): A deadly school bus accident in Liberty, Missouri yesterday.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Today was a very difficult day.

LOTHIAN: And this one just south of Boston, injuring several people...

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's a little frightening. A little disconcerting, naturally.

LOTHIAN: ... is renewing attention on school bus safety.

(on camera): Should parents be concerned? The National Highway Transportation Safety Administration says no. The federal agency tells CNN 24 million school children, who are transported over some 4 1/2 billion miles each year, are nearly eight times safer riding in a school bus than in a car. And they point out there are less than eight fatalities inside a bus recorded each year.

(voice over): But some, who would like a federal law requiring either lap belts or harness system on all school buses, say not enough is being done to protect America's children, despite claims that high- padded seat backs create a kind of safety zone. What happens if there is a rollover? Or the bus is hit from the side? Or runs off the road like this wild ride nine years ago in Indiana? As an on board camera rolls, children fly. Here it is in slow motion. Amazingly, there were no serious injuries.

Only a few states require large school buses to have any kind of restraint. But federal transportation officials say a lap belt, quote, "increases the risk of injury." That makes sense to Dr. David Mooney, trauma director at Children's Hospital in Boston.

DR. DAVID MOONEY, BOSTON CHILDREN'S HOSPITAL: And the lap belts will sometimes ride up higher. And when a child is in a crash, it could injury their intestines. Injure their spine. Kids can be paralyzed from just wearing a lap belt only.

LOTHIAN: And while the government says the benefits of the shoulder belt are minuscule, Dr. Moony believe a system like most cars have today could be helpful if every child buckles up.

MOONEY: It would prevent a lot of the injuries that we see.

LOTHIAN: In Liberty, Missouri, school officials are now being forced to confront the hotly debated issue of seat belts.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: When you talk about the safety of children, I think that all issues are on the table.

LOTHIAN: Even as they try to over come the shock of the crash.

Dan Lothian, CNN, Boston.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KAGAN: And we're going to talk with a consultant, a consultant who works on student transportation issues in the next hour, about what you can do to keep your kids safe when you put them on board a school bus.

There's some surprise weather in the west. It's a little late in the season for snow, but apparently not. Your forecast is just ahead.

And what are the odds? This man made a winning bet on this weekend's Kentucky Derby and then he lost the ticket. Hear how the story turns out in just a few minutes.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAGAN: Check your calendar. It is the second week in May. But there is a wintry feel in one part of Northern California. Look at this. Heavy snow falling Monday in the Sierra and Lake Tahoe region. There were long lines and delays along I-80 for much of the day. More than a foot of snow was expected in the higher elevations.

We're going to talk traffic. If you think traffic in your town is getting worse, guess what? You're probably right. A new study found some startling statistics. Just wait until you hear how much gas and money is wasted each year.

And speaking of transportation, we put Rick Sanchez in the backseat of a police cruiser. No, he didn't do anything wrong. He's getting a lesson on high-speed pursuits.

You're watching CNN LIVE TODAY.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CHRISTY FEIG, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Former President Bill Clinton, Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee, and the American Heart Association have teamed up to tackle childhood obesity. The alliance will focus on slowing the increasing rate of obesity and encouraging healthier lifestyles for young people. Nearly 16 percent of the nation's children and teens are overweight.

And a new study raises questions about the benefits of acupuncture for the treatment of migraine headaches. The German study, published in the "Journal of the American Medical Association," found that acupuncture reduced migraines compared to receiving no treatment. But true acupuncture treatment is no more effective than fake acupuncture in reducing migraine headaches. But other studies have shown acupuncture can be effective in reducing various types of pain.

Christy Feig, CNN.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KAGAN: We're getting pretty close to the half hour. Good morning once again. I'm Daryn Kagan. Let's take a look at what's happening now in the news.

Police in Zion, Illinois say they have questioned several people, but they say they have no solid leads in yesterday's discovery of two murdered schoolgirls. Eight-year-old Laura Hobbs and 9-year-old Krystal Tobias were found stabbed to death in a wooded area near a bike path. They were last seen riding their bicycles on Sunday afternoon.

The man accused of Atlanta's deadly courthouse shootings is back in court in less than three hours from. Prosecutors will formally announce their plans to seek the death penalty against Brian Nichols. He's charged with killing a superior court judge and three other in a March rampage. CNN will have live coverage of the proceedings now scheduled for 1:00 p.m. Eastern.

Michael Jackson's past and present employees are testifying in his defense against child molestation charges. The property manager from the Neverland Ranch is expected to resume his testimony that the accuser's family was never mistreated or held against their will. Jackson is accused of molesting a 13-year-old cancer patient.

In suburban Philadelphia, firefighters are trying to knock down the flames that have already collapsed the roof of this church. The fire broke out about 90 minutes ago. No injuries were reported. There have been no evacuations.

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 May 10, 2005 - 10:00   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
DARYN KAGAN, CNN CO-ANCHOR: Let's get start with something that's actually just into us here at CNN.
We are following news of a church fire, these pictures coming to us from suburban Philadelphia. We're looking at these live pictures from WPDI. Flames and heavy smoke are rising from the roof. No injuries have been reported. It's a two-alarm fire. We'll have more on that in just a minute.

Right now, let's take a look at what else is happening now in the news. Police say they have no solid leads in the stabbing deaths of two-second graders. The girls' bodies found Monday in a park in Zion, Illinois. Laura Hobbs and Krystal Tobias had been riding their bikes in the heavily wooded park. The latest in a live report from there just ahead.

Atlanta courthouse shooting suspect Brian Nichols goes back to court in about three hours. Prosecutors plan to say they'll seek the death penalty against him. Nichols is charged with four murders, three of them in or outside the courthouse. There are reports Nichols has been reading spiritual literature while in jail.

Three bombings in Baghdad today, seven people were killed, 14 wounded in the most deadly of attacks. Police believe the target was a U.S. military convoy. There are no reports of American casualties. Insurgent attacks have increased since traditional government -- Transitional Government was formed.

And President and Mrs. Bush are on their way home. The president is wrapping up a four-nation European tour with a speech in Tblisi, Georgia. Mr. Bush says the former Soviet republic's transition to democracy is another example to other nations in the region.

Good morning. I'm Daryn Kagan.

We begin with murder in a small town. Illinois police scramble for clues in the deaths of two young girls. Police in Zion, Illinois concede they have no leads in the killings. The bodies of 8-year-old Laura Hobbs and 9-year-old Krystal Tobias were found in a wooded area near a bike path. They had both been stabbed and apparently left to die.

Our Chris Lawrence is covering the story and joins us with more now.

Good morning. CHRIS LAWRENCE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Daryn. Police initially said they had no absolutely no leads. We now believe that they are making some progress in this investigation, as they try to figure out who would kill these little girls and more importantly, why. Krystal Tobias was only 9 years old. Her best friend, Laura Hobbs only 8. The two were best friends in the second grade. And they disappeared Sunday afternoon after playing outside riding their bikes.

A lot of neighbors saw them that afternoon. By that night, they were supposed to be home around 7:00. When they didn't come home both families reported them missing. And they were later discovered the next morning in a park, but not along the bike trail. Their bodies were discovered well off that bike path in a thick, heavily wooded section of the park.

Investigators have been back out on that scene this morning. And they have also questioned several members of both families. And we believe they are making some progress in the investigation.

Now earlier today, a lot of the kids were coming back to school again for the second day. And as you can see, a lot of -- in a lot of cases, the parents were literally walking them right up to the door. We saw yesterday that a lot of parents were coming right up to the door to pick up their kids. This is just terrified this small town. Only about 20,000 people live here. And with no public leads by the police, a lot of parents have just been terrified about their safety of their own kids.

But in terms of helping the kids cope with what's happened, no matter which way the investigation goes, the teacher will be talking with some of these kids today. Remember, they're only 8, 9 years old. These are very young children. A lot of whom have never really had any concept of death or had to deal with it. But fortunately, I guess in the past few weeks or recently, the kids' second grade teacher had them read some books that introduced the concept of loss of death. One of them being "Charlotte's Web."

They hope to build on that today, as they try and help some of these kids work through a lot of their feelings about what's happened -- Daryn.

KAGAN: And Chris, this community, this basically is a community where you let your kids play outside and ride their bikes outside. Basically homicide unheard of around this area.

LAWRENCE: Yes. And I mean, that day, I mean one of the mothers said she heard from her neighbors that the two little girls showed up at her house and were swinging on her hammock, waiting for her daughter to get home. But her daughter was out with her dad. So she never came home. And the neighbors said the two little girls eventually just rode their bikes away.

But they do let them play outside. But we heard from several parents the kids were told to avoid that park. In parts it is very heavily wooded, it can be dark. It can be well out of the path of where people might see you. And a lot of parents had said hey, kids, don't go near the park if you can help it.

KAGAN: Chris Lawrence live from Zion, Illinois. Thank you.

Right now, we want to go ahead and revisit on a story we focused on this time yesterday. The police barrage of bullets on a car and its unarmed driver. As you might remember, the incident was caught on videotape. What exactly prompted sheriff's deputies to unleash nearly 100 bullets on a car involved in a police chase?

CNN's Peter Viles takes a look at that.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

(SIRENS)

PETER VILES, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): It started with reports that shots had been fired and that a white SUV was somehow involved. Police chased this vehicle for 12 minutes, cornered it and then opened fire.

(GUNFIRE)

VILES: Relatives of the driver, Winston Hayes, say the shooting were unprovoked.

KIM VAUGHN, NIECE OF SHOT DRIVER: They didn't give him a chance, that's my impression. They didn't give him a chance to get out. They didn't ask him to stop. They didn't tell him to open the doors or anything. They just point-blank started shooting at him. That's my impression.

TRINA HAYS, WITNESS: I was on the floor crying, saying why do you have to kill him? Don't shoot him. Why they have to do him like that? They didn't have to kill him, because I thought he was dead. It was like set up. And like I told them, it was like gunshot at OK Corral.

VILES (on camera): The sheriff's department now says it was 90 to 95 rounds were fired during this shootout. And that left behind a neighborhood literally riddled with bullet holes. Look here. Two- bullet holes in this kitchen window across the street from the shooting, that left behind. But more importantly, left behind a lot of serious questions for the sheriff.

LEE BACA, SHERIFF, L.A. COUNTY, CALIFORNIA: I have no idea, one way or the other, as to why and what the officers were thinking at the time.

VILES (voice over): Sheriff's deputies initially indicated one of the deputies feared the driver was about to run him down with the SUV. The sheriff now says 10 deputies fired and the entire issue is under investigation.

BACA: Well, what we're going to look at is what was the triggering point for the shooting. That's the key question right now. There's two things that I will be very concerned about: tactics and the intensity of what was going on. Particularly at the time when the shooting occurred and then what preceded it.

VILES: One sheriff's deputy was hit by a stray bullet but only bruised. As for the driver of the SUV, he was shot four times but not seriously wounded. The sheriff says he has a criminal record, was driving erratically, but that he was unarmed when he was shot.

Peter Viles, CNN, Compton, California.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KAGAN: And now for the latest on President Bush. He's headed back to the U.S. this hour after wrapping up a five-day trip to Europe. And he did so in dramatic fashion. Earlier this morning in the former Soviet Republic of Georgia, Mr. Bush addressed tens of thousands of people in Freedom Square; the site of a peaceful resolution that toppled the Kremlin-backed regime.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEORGE BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We're living in historic times when freedom is advancing from the Black Sea to the Caspian, to the Persian Gulf and beyond. As you watch free people gathering in squares like this across the world, waving their nation's flags and demanding their God-given rights, you can take pride in this fact. They have been inspired by your example and they take hope in your success.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KAGAN: Mr. Bush says Georgia still faces essential goals in the next step of democracy, including establishing a free press, an independent judiciary and respect for minority rights.

U.S. forces ratcheted up their offensive and pus through a key landmark in the fight for Iraq. About 1,000 U.S. troops are battling insurgents and foreign fighters along Iraq's border with Syria.

Our Ryan Chilcote is in Baghdad with the latest.

Ryan, hello.

RYAN CHILCOTE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hello, Daryn. Well, they're calling it Operation Matador. They're now in Day 3. It is as you say a massive U.S. operation involving soldiers, Marines and sailors. And just about midday yesterday they made their way across the Euphrates River. They built some pontoon bridges. That was what allowed them to cross north of the Euphrates. And they are now up there basically probing that area, looking for foreign fighters, trying to draw them out using themselves, if you will, as bait.

Now, we know that they are on just on the Iraqi side of the Iraqi/Syrian border. It's an area in what's called the Anbar Province. A massive area in the west of Iraq where it is traditionally been thought of as a sanctuary for foreign fighters. It's also a place where the U.S. military had been long concerned might also serve as a transit point for foreign fighters coming in, particular from Syria.

So far the U.S. military saying that it has been quite a successful operation. They say that in the first 48 hours of this operation, they have already killed, according to their estimates, about 100 insurgents, including many foreign fighters among them. On the U.S. casualty side, they are saying that three Marines have been killed there in the fighting.

Meanwhile, here in the Iraqi capital, no let-up in the violence that we've now seen for about three weeks. Already three bombings today. Two of them car bombings, the first and most lethal of them detonated by a suicide bomber. The Iraqi police tell us the suicide bomber was effectively targeting a U.S. military patrol, pulled out into an intersection, a very busy intersection in the Iraqi capital. That's when he blew himself up.

No word on U.S. casualties. But is as is all too often the case, there is news of casualties among innocent Iraqi bystanders there. Reports from the Iraqi police that at least seven were killed in that attack. About 14 others wounded.

This comes at a time as the U.S. military is saying that car bombs are increasingly the preferred means of causing violence in Iraq by the insurgents. Their ammo, if you will. U.S. military saying that the month of April saw more car bombs than any other month so far in the more than two years of violence here. U.S. military saying that just in April alone, the number of car bombings was double that of what it was in February. In the last 12 days here in Iraq we've seen the result of that. More than 300 Iraqis killed. Many of those, Daryn, because of those car bombs.

KAGAN: Ryan Chilcote live from Baghdad. Thanks for the latest on those elements of the story from there.

Three separate school bus accidents. Several deaths, dozen of injuries. Are America's children safe onboard school buses? A closer look coming up.

And then another traffic story. Traffic jams spread. A news study says more time, more gas, more money are wasted every year. Hear what is not being done to solve the problem.

And police policy on high-speed pursuits. Some say the cops need to back off. Our very own Rick Sanchez gets the ride of his life. Watch it on CNN LIVE TODAY.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAGAN: To Liberty, Missouri now. Investigators will try to determine the cause of a deadly school bus crash. We brought you live coverage as this story unfolded this time yesterday. Two children remain in critical condition this morning. Nearly half of the 53 grade-schoolers on the bus were injured, and two motorists killed when the bus slammed into their stopped cars at an intersection. School officials say the bus driver had an impeccable safety record during her seven years on the job. Near Miami, two people died when a bus slammed into their car. There were no children on the bus at the time and the bus driver wasn't hurt. Police are investigating the cause of that crash.

Stories like these strike fear in the heart of any parent who puts their child on a school bus, trusting their kids will be safe. CNN's Dan Lothian explains some would say that your kids are not as safe as they could be.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DAN LOTHIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): A deadly school bus accident in Liberty, Missouri yesterday.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Today was a very difficult day.

LOTHIAN: And this one just south of Boston, injuring several people...

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's a little frightening. A little disconcerting, naturally.

LOTHIAN: ... is renewing attention on school bus safety.

(on camera): Should parents be concerned? The National Highway Transportation Safety Administration says no. The federal agency tells CNN 24 million school children, who are transported over some 4 1/2 billion miles each year, are nearly eight times safer riding in a school bus than in a car. And they point out there are less than eight fatalities inside a bus recorded each year.

(voice over): But some, who would like a federal law requiring either lap belts or harness system on all school buses, say not enough is being done to protect America's children, despite claims that high- padded seat backs create a kind of safety zone. What happens if there is a rollover? Or the bus is hit from the side? Or runs off the road like this wild ride nine years ago in Indiana? As an on board camera rolls, children fly. Here it is in slow motion. Amazingly, there were no serious injuries.

Only a few states require large school buses to have any kind of restraint. But federal transportation officials say a lap belt, quote, "increases the risk of injury." That makes sense to Dr. David Mooney, trauma director at Children's Hospital in Boston.

DR. DAVID MOONEY, BOSTON CHILDREN'S HOSPITAL: And the lap belts will sometimes ride up higher. And when a child is in a crash, it could injury their intestines. Injure their spine. Kids can be paralyzed from just wearing a lap belt only.

LOTHIAN: And while the government says the benefits of the shoulder belt are minuscule, Dr. Moony believe a system like most cars have today could be helpful if every child buckles up.

MOONEY: It would prevent a lot of the injuries that we see.

LOTHIAN: In Liberty, Missouri, school officials are now being forced to confront the hotly debated issue of seat belts.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: When you talk about the safety of children, I think that all issues are on the table.

LOTHIAN: Even as they try to over come the shock of the crash.

Dan Lothian, CNN, Boston.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KAGAN: And we're going to talk with a consultant, a consultant who works on student transportation issues in the next hour, about what you can do to keep your kids safe when you put them on board a school bus.

There's some surprise weather in the west. It's a little late in the season for snow, but apparently not. Your forecast is just ahead.

And what are the odds? This man made a winning bet on this weekend's Kentucky Derby and then he lost the ticket. Hear how the story turns out in just a few minutes.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAGAN: Check your calendar. It is the second week in May. But there is a wintry feel in one part of Northern California. Look at this. Heavy snow falling Monday in the Sierra and Lake Tahoe region. There were long lines and delays along I-80 for much of the day. More than a foot of snow was expected in the higher elevations.

We're going to talk traffic. If you think traffic in your town is getting worse, guess what? You're probably right. A new study found some startling statistics. Just wait until you hear how much gas and money is wasted each year.

And speaking of transportation, we put Rick Sanchez in the backseat of a police cruiser. No, he didn't do anything wrong. He's getting a lesson on high-speed pursuits.

You're watching CNN LIVE TODAY.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CHRISTY FEIG, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Former President Bill Clinton, Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee, and the American Heart Association have teamed up to tackle childhood obesity. The alliance will focus on slowing the increasing rate of obesity and encouraging healthier lifestyles for young people. Nearly 16 percent of the nation's children and teens are overweight.

And a new study raises questions about the benefits of acupuncture for the treatment of migraine headaches. The German study, published in the "Journal of the American Medical Association," found that acupuncture reduced migraines compared to receiving no treatment. But true acupuncture treatment is no more effective than fake acupuncture in reducing migraine headaches. But other studies have shown acupuncture can be effective in reducing various types of pain.

Christy Feig, CNN.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KAGAN: We're getting pretty close to the half hour. Good morning once again. I'm Daryn Kagan. Let's take a look at what's happening now in the news.

Police in Zion, Illinois say they have questioned several people, but they say they have no solid leads in yesterday's discovery of two murdered schoolgirls. Eight-year-old Laura Hobbs and 9-year-old Krystal Tobias were found stabbed to death in a wooded area near a bike path. They were last seen riding their bicycles on Sunday afternoon.

The man accused of Atlanta's deadly courthouse shootings is back in court in less than three hours from. Prosecutors will formally announce their plans to seek the death penalty against Brian Nichols. He's charged with killing a superior court judge and three other in a March rampage. CNN will have live coverage of the proceedings now scheduled for 1:00 p.m. Eastern.

Michael Jackson's past and present employees are testifying in his defense against child molestation charges. The property manager from the Neverland Ranch is expected to resume his testimony that the accuser's family was never mistreated or held against their will. Jackson is accused of molesting a 13-year-old cancer patient.

In suburban Philadelphia, firefighters are trying to knock down the flames that have already collapsed the roof of this church. The fire broke out about 90 minutes ago. No injuries were reported. There have been no evacuations.

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