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CNN Live Today

Jackson Jurors; Deserter's Return

Aired June 14, 2005 - 10:30   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're right at the half hour. Good morning once again. I'm Daryn Kagan. Here's a look at what's happening now in the news.
First, to Iraq, where two insurgent strikes north of Baghdad today killed at least 24 people and wounded nearly 100. The suicide bomber in Kirkuk targeted a busy marketplace. Many of the casualties were civilians lined up outside of a bank.

Earlier Iraqi troops and police were among the victims in an attack near Baqubah.

And for only the fifth time in nearly a century, Californians will cast votes in a special election. Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger announced a November election so voters can decide on his proposed reform. Critics say the financially strapped state can't afford the $80 million that elections could cost.

At this hour, a U.S. Army deserter is en route to his home of South Carolina. Forty years after he abandoned his unit and crossed over into North Korea Charles Jenkins will land in Washington, then continue on to his home state of North Carolina. His brief return is to visit his ailing 91-year-old mother.

New this morning, government figures show a surprising drop in last month's retail figures. Sales figures show a drop of a half a percentage point in May. That's the largest decline in nearly a year. Economists blame the slide in auto sales and lower gas prices. Wholesale prices for May slid 6/10 of a percent, the biggest drop in more than two years.

The conclusion of the Michael Jackson trial has spawned a new celebrity, the Jackson juror. But those jurors aren't necessarily seeking the spotlight.

CNN's Rusty Dornin had a chance to talk with the Jackson jury.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

RUSTY DORNIN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): For several of the jurors, there was one witness who stood out in their minds, the accuser's mother. Foreman Paul Rodriguez says, "She just wasn't believable."

RODRIGUEZ: We just thought that she was not a credible person.

DORNIN (on camera): To you, was that one of the biggest factors in your mind reasoning reasonable doubt.

RODRIGUEZ: Well, actually, yes it was. Yes, it was. When we listened to her, and the way -- there were just so many things that came up.

DORNIN (voice-over): Rodriguez says the jury also had a hard time believing the boy who accused Michael Jackson of molestation.

RODRIGUEZ: We felt that he was pretty well programmed by his mother. You know, and we thought not completely programmed, but there was a lot of things that he was saying that sound exactly as is mother said.

DORNIN: the defense kept raising the issue of the time line. Why would Michael Jackson molest the accuser when the whole world was pressuring him to answer questions about his relationship with the boy? Jurors wondered as well.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We took notes so well that we could develop the timeline on the boards, and really analyze it. So, it was a question. The time line was a concern.

DORNIN: And while some may seem Michael Jackson is cookie or strange, to the one juror who watched him day in and day out, in court, he seemed very human.

UNIDENTIFIED WOMAN: It's not like he's way up here and everyone else is down there; it's not like that. He'd be some person that you could walk up on the street, and say, "Hey, what's up?" You know, I mean, it made him real.

DORNIN: The trial may be done, but it's not over for many of these jurors who are likely to be chased by media crews anxious for more interviews.

UNIDENTIFIED WOMAN: I'm going to hide in my room, and not answer the door or the telephone.

UNIDENTIFIED WOMAN: And I'm going to go play bridge tonight, and forget all of this.

UNIDENTIFIED WOMAN: And I'll just relax, and be able to just, like, enjoy a glass of wine, and just shut your mind down for a little while.

DORNIN: A wish that may be tough to fulfill, considering the spotlight that continues to shine on this case.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KAGAN: For more Jackson reaction now, we turn to former U.S. attorney Kendall Coffey in Miami with his take on the verdict. He's been visiting with us over the recent weeks as we've been watching the trial unfold.

Kendall, good morning. KENDALL COFFEY, FMR. U.S. ATTY.: Hey, good morning.

KAGAN: So how far down did your jaw drop as you were watching this verdict? Because you, right here on this show, said you thought Michael Jackson was going to prison.

COFFEY: Totally busted. I got to tell you, I may have to go to summer school for talking heads, some remedial courses in jury pools.

KAGAN: Do they have that?

COFFEY: Well, I'll be writing, "you never know with a jury" on the blackboard the 100 times.

I don't think anyone was surprised about the conspiracy count. I think a lot surprise on some of the other counts. But when you look at what this jury did, they were very conscientious. They obeyed the judge's instructions. They didn't focus on past accusations, because there was some pretty compelling evidence there. They focused on this accuser, his family, and you can see why they maybe found some doubts, even some reasonable doubts, about the crimes charged in this particular trial.

KAGAN: Speaking of the accuser's family, it did appear that somebody was found guilty yesterday, and that would be the accuser's mother?

COFFEY: Yes, she was totally put on trial by the defense, and that was the one conviction that was rendered.

And you wonder, of course -- when prosecutors lose, they get plenty of second guessing, but did they really even need to make her an important part of the case? Who needed this conspiracy case? This is something that could have been presented with maybe just half a dozen witnesses focusing on the molestation. Instead, they had all of this exotic, convoluted stuff that made the mother center stage, and that was a huge backfire.

KAGAN: A big mistake, yes.

So do you think they got greedy and tried to make the list too long, hoping something would stick? That 10 years, 10, 12 year of frustration by this prosecutor's office, that had been going after Michael Jackson, didn't want to walk away empty-handed.

COFFEY: Well, of course, if they'd won, they'd be geniuses, but since they lost, I think it's going to be widely viewed that this case was grossly over-tried. We talk before about all the holes in the conspiracy theory, the mom who's supposedly being held hostage, going in a Rolls-Royce, having a full body wax. You know, Daryn...

KAGAN: I told you on that waxing, a girl does what a girl has to do.

COFFEY: And I respect that.

KAGAN: Do not put our spa services on trial, Kendall. Do not do that.

COFFEY: We will never do that, and I'm all for body waxing. But in a case of kidnapping conspiracy, disaster.

So I think looking back at the case, if someone were to do a postmortem -- and by the way, there may be civil lawyers doing that very analysis right now, Daryn, to see if this case could be won as a civil case.

I think one of the first things you look at is, carve it down to the bear essence, get that conspiracy stuff out of the way and try to keep that mom off the stand, if you're ever going to try to bring a civil case forward.

KAGAN: On one hand, you think, well, not a chance. On the other, we found the O.J. Simpson case, there was a not guilty verdict in the criminal trial, and then there was success and a win at the civil level.

COFFEY: And a verdict. In fact, he's now moved to sunny south Florida, because it's considered a debtor's paradise.

And look at the Kobe Bryant case, Daryn. There the prosecution totally collapsed even before the trial. Still a civil lawsuit. And even though it's been held confidential, apparently some settlement.

KAGAN: And then one final comment here, or question for you. Tito Jackson was on air last night saying, see, we knew it all along, my brother is 1,000 percent innocent. That's not what this jury said. The jury didn't say Michael Jackson's innocent; this jury said he's not guilty.

COFFEY: They said there's a reasonable doubt. That's what the system is all about, and this jury honored our law. They honored that principle.

KAGAN: All right, Kendall, we're going to let you come back, even though your prediction wasn't exactly correct.

COFFEY: OK, thanks for another chance.

KAGAN: We still value your opinion. Kendall, thank you.

COFFEY: OK, Daryn.

KAGAN: Well, let's look at some other stories making news coast to coast. The cleanup continues after a plane crashed on a Fort Lauderdale street yesterday. Three people were on the DC-3, and two more on the ground were injured. The copilot said a fuel line broke, and that one of the plane's engines was in flames before the crash. The plane just missed a major intersection.

An American airlines flight from New York to Seattle was diverted to Chicago last night. The detour, taken to check out a suspicious item onboard. Police say the item turned out just to be a radio. After three hours, after the passengers and crew were on the plane, the flight to Seattle resumed.

And also from Washington, a judge says the recall petition against Spokane Mayor James West can go forward. West is at the center of a gay sex scandal. He allegedly offered city jobs to prospective dates. The recall will go to the voters if organizers can collect more than 12,000 signatures in six months.

As we mentioned just a few minutes ago, a U.S. Army deserter is returning home 40 years after he abandoned his unit and crossed over into communist North Korea.

CNN's Atika Shubert has his story and departure from Tokyo.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ATIKA SHUBERT, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Charles Robert Jenkins is going home. U.S. Army deserter and defector to North Korea, Jenkins today boards a plane destined for the United States, and ultimately North Carolina. It will be his first time home in more than 40 years.

It has been a long journey. In 1965, then Sergeant Jenkins deserted his post on the Demilitarized Zone and crossed into North Korea. Little was heard from him until he appeared in this North Korean propaganda film, playing the American villain. That sparked accusations of treason. Jenkins says he had no choice. According to testimony in a U.S. military court, he says he was abused and tortured by North Korean authorities.

But during his time in North Korea, he met his wife, Hitomisoga (ph), a young Japanese nurse, abducted by North Korean spies. Their shared hatred of the North Korean regime bound them together, Jenkins says, leading to marriage and two daughters.

Fearing for his children's future in the Stalinist state, Jenkins finally left North Korea in 2004, turning himself into U.S. military forces in Japan. A U.S. military court found Jenkins guilty of desertion and aiding the enemy, sentencing him to 30 days confinement and a dishonorable discharge. He now lives with his family in his wife's homeland of northern Japan.

CHARLES JENKINS, U.S. ARMY DESERTER: The Japanese people...

SHUBERT: Jenkins says he wants to live in Japan for the rest of his life, but that he also wants to see his family in America again, particularly his 91-year-old mother in North Carolina.

(on camera): In a written statement to the press before leaving, Jenkins asked for privacy 24 in what is bound to be an emotional journey.

Atika Shubert, CNN, Tokyo.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KAGAN: And according to our sources, Charles Jenkins expected to land in North Carolina anytime this hour. We'll keep you updated on that story.

Also, a check of the markets just ahead. Then we're going from Wall Street to your street. Are you looking to save more and spend less? CNN.com gives a little advice. It's Money 101, after the break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAGAN: The work on confirming federal judges continues for the U.S. Senate. This just in to CNN. The Senate has now confirmed one of its own former lawyers, Thomas Griffith, to sit on the U.S. Appeals Court. He would be the sixth judge that the Senate has elevated to the Federal Appellate Court in the last month. The vote, by the way, 73-24.

Griffith will become the newest judge on the U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for D.C. Takes a seat that the Bush administration originally wanted for filibustered Hispanic lawyer Miguel Estrada. Estrada dropped out back in September 2003 after he was blocked by Democrats. President Bush replaced him about a year ago. In fact, exactly a year ago, with Thomas Griffith. So he will go on to the Court of Appeals for the district of Columbia.

More news just ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(STOCK MARKET REPORT)

KAGAN: A little more money news for you now. An old saying about wealth, it's not how much you make, but how much you keep is what's important. With that in mind, CNN's vast online resources can teach you some basics. Here's CNN.com's Veronica De La Cruz with Investing 101, Cyberstyle.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

VERONICA DE LA CRUZ, CNN.COM CORRESPONDENT: If the you're looking for ways to make your money grow, but you aren't sure where to start, you can logon for the basics of investing at CNNmoneycom/101. To get started, here's a list of the top ten things to know.

If you're thinking of long-term investments, stocks have historically outperformed all others. From 1926 to 2004, the stock market returned an average annual 10.4 percent gain. The next best performing asset class, bonds, returned 5.4 percent. If stocks make you nervous, get the lowdown on other types of investments, like bonds, which can be slightly more predictable than stocks or mutual funds, which allow you to diversify your portfolio easily.

Now do you feel you're in the know when it comes to investing? You can test yourself with this online quiz. For example, true or false, if you're looking for a place to invest money you'll need in a year or two, stocks ever the place, because they'll give the best return. To get the answer, logon and find out.

Making sure your money grows at CNNmoney.com/101, from the dot- com newsdesk, I'm Veronica De La Cruz.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KAGAN: Jacqui Jeras has your forecast. That's up next.

Plus, do you think all the Jackson media coverage, a little over the top? Our Jeanne Moos looks into the madness. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(WEATHER REPORT)

KAGAN: Let's check the time. 10:53, almost 10:54 on the East Coast, 7:54 on the West Coast. Straight ahead, the Jackson media madness, maybe it will soon come to an end, but not before our Jeanne Moos has a little fun with the frenzy.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAGAN: The tabloids and other newspapers from London Tell the tale of Michael Jackson's acquittal. The Jackson trial was followed around the world. Even the Arab Network Al Jazeera broke into regular programming for live coverage of the verdict.

The residents of Santa Maria, California can breathe a little bit easier this morning. The global media packing up their bags and heading home.

Here now is CNN's Jeanne Moos on the Jackson trial and the coverage that was around all the craziness.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JEANNE MOOS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): This is how bored cameramen were waiting for a verdict outside Neverland Ranch, as Michael Jackson's music played. But chasing squirrels gave way to chasing Jackson's convoy once news of the verdict started to break.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: All right. We are now being told that a verdict...

MOOS: Aerial shots showed fans linking hands along the roadside. A couple of networks put up a countdown clock to see if Jackson would make it to court in the allotted hour.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They'd have to do about 100 miles an hour to get here in time.

MOOS: But everyone knew this party wouldn't start without Michael Jackson.

NANCY GRACE, CNN HEADLINE NEWS HOST: Guess what? I think we're late.

MOOS: As network after network broke in.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is an NBC News Special Report.

MOOS: Even the crash of a DC-3 in Florida couldn't compete with the Jackson coverage. The frenzy built until Jackson himself appeared.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That is one scared individual right there.

MOOS: Without a camera inside the court, TV reporters resorted to radio-style descriptions.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: ...a report that the jurors' eyes are fixed on Judge Melville and nowhere else.

GRACE: They will not look at the defendant? It's bad news for the defendant. Of course you can all replay this back if there...

MOOS: But this is what will be played back.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Not guilty of conspiracy; not guilty of a lewd act...

MOOS: And then there was the fan who celebrated each not guilty count by releasing a dove.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Not guilty of child molestation. Michael Jackson is not guilty.

TED ROWLANDS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Clearly now it's pandemonium out here.

MOOS: In Times Square, people stopped to watch. Out came the characters.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I think now we'll start to call him the Teflon Molester.

MOOS: But there's one thing that does stick to Michael Jackson. It's the press.

Jeanne Moos, CNN, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KAGAN: We have an emotional journey to share with you. It's coming to an end in San Diego. Navy doctors return from helping the sick and needy in Indonesia after the tsunami. I'll talk to the captain of USNS Mercy.

An ancient artifact on display in Los Angeles. You're going to hear the truth about Tut.

The second hour of CNN LIVE TODAY begins right now.

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 June 14, 2005 - 10:30   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: We're right at the half hour. Good morning once again. I'm Daryn Kagan. Here's a look at what's happening now in the news.
First, to Iraq, where two insurgent strikes north of Baghdad today killed at least 24 people and wounded nearly 100. The suicide bomber in Kirkuk targeted a busy marketplace. Many of the casualties were civilians lined up outside of a bank.

Earlier Iraqi troops and police were among the victims in an attack near Baqubah.

And for only the fifth time in nearly a century, Californians will cast votes in a special election. Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger announced a November election so voters can decide on his proposed reform. Critics say the financially strapped state can't afford the $80 million that elections could cost.

At this hour, a U.S. Army deserter is en route to his home of South Carolina. Forty years after he abandoned his unit and crossed over into North Korea Charles Jenkins will land in Washington, then continue on to his home state of North Carolina. His brief return is to visit his ailing 91-year-old mother.

New this morning, government figures show a surprising drop in last month's retail figures. Sales figures show a drop of a half a percentage point in May. That's the largest decline in nearly a year. Economists blame the slide in auto sales and lower gas prices. Wholesale prices for May slid 6/10 of a percent, the biggest drop in more than two years.

The conclusion of the Michael Jackson trial has spawned a new celebrity, the Jackson juror. But those jurors aren't necessarily seeking the spotlight.

CNN's Rusty Dornin had a chance to talk with the Jackson jury.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

RUSTY DORNIN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): For several of the jurors, there was one witness who stood out in their minds, the accuser's mother. Foreman Paul Rodriguez says, "She just wasn't believable."

RODRIGUEZ: We just thought that she was not a credible person.

DORNIN (on camera): To you, was that one of the biggest factors in your mind reasoning reasonable doubt.

RODRIGUEZ: Well, actually, yes it was. Yes, it was. When we listened to her, and the way -- there were just so many things that came up.

DORNIN (voice-over): Rodriguez says the jury also had a hard time believing the boy who accused Michael Jackson of molestation.

RODRIGUEZ: We felt that he was pretty well programmed by his mother. You know, and we thought not completely programmed, but there was a lot of things that he was saying that sound exactly as is mother said.

DORNIN: the defense kept raising the issue of the time line. Why would Michael Jackson molest the accuser when the whole world was pressuring him to answer questions about his relationship with the boy? Jurors wondered as well.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We took notes so well that we could develop the timeline on the boards, and really analyze it. So, it was a question. The time line was a concern.

DORNIN: And while some may seem Michael Jackson is cookie or strange, to the one juror who watched him day in and day out, in court, he seemed very human.

UNIDENTIFIED WOMAN: It's not like he's way up here and everyone else is down there; it's not like that. He'd be some person that you could walk up on the street, and say, "Hey, what's up?" You know, I mean, it made him real.

DORNIN: The trial may be done, but it's not over for many of these jurors who are likely to be chased by media crews anxious for more interviews.

UNIDENTIFIED WOMAN: I'm going to hide in my room, and not answer the door or the telephone.

UNIDENTIFIED WOMAN: And I'm going to go play bridge tonight, and forget all of this.

UNIDENTIFIED WOMAN: And I'll just relax, and be able to just, like, enjoy a glass of wine, and just shut your mind down for a little while.

DORNIN: A wish that may be tough to fulfill, considering the spotlight that continues to shine on this case.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KAGAN: For more Jackson reaction now, we turn to former U.S. attorney Kendall Coffey in Miami with his take on the verdict. He's been visiting with us over the recent weeks as we've been watching the trial unfold.

Kendall, good morning. KENDALL COFFEY, FMR. U.S. ATTY.: Hey, good morning.

KAGAN: So how far down did your jaw drop as you were watching this verdict? Because you, right here on this show, said you thought Michael Jackson was going to prison.

COFFEY: Totally busted. I got to tell you, I may have to go to summer school for talking heads, some remedial courses in jury pools.

KAGAN: Do they have that?

COFFEY: Well, I'll be writing, "you never know with a jury" on the blackboard the 100 times.

I don't think anyone was surprised about the conspiracy count. I think a lot surprise on some of the other counts. But when you look at what this jury did, they were very conscientious. They obeyed the judge's instructions. They didn't focus on past accusations, because there was some pretty compelling evidence there. They focused on this accuser, his family, and you can see why they maybe found some doubts, even some reasonable doubts, about the crimes charged in this particular trial.

KAGAN: Speaking of the accuser's family, it did appear that somebody was found guilty yesterday, and that would be the accuser's mother?

COFFEY: Yes, she was totally put on trial by the defense, and that was the one conviction that was rendered.

And you wonder, of course -- when prosecutors lose, they get plenty of second guessing, but did they really even need to make her an important part of the case? Who needed this conspiracy case? This is something that could have been presented with maybe just half a dozen witnesses focusing on the molestation. Instead, they had all of this exotic, convoluted stuff that made the mother center stage, and that was a huge backfire.

KAGAN: A big mistake, yes.

So do you think they got greedy and tried to make the list too long, hoping something would stick? That 10 years, 10, 12 year of frustration by this prosecutor's office, that had been going after Michael Jackson, didn't want to walk away empty-handed.

COFFEY: Well, of course, if they'd won, they'd be geniuses, but since they lost, I think it's going to be widely viewed that this case was grossly over-tried. We talk before about all the holes in the conspiracy theory, the mom who's supposedly being held hostage, going in a Rolls-Royce, having a full body wax. You know, Daryn...

KAGAN: I told you on that waxing, a girl does what a girl has to do.

COFFEY: And I respect that.

KAGAN: Do not put our spa services on trial, Kendall. Do not do that.

COFFEY: We will never do that, and I'm all for body waxing. But in a case of kidnapping conspiracy, disaster.

So I think looking back at the case, if someone were to do a postmortem -- and by the way, there may be civil lawyers doing that very analysis right now, Daryn, to see if this case could be won as a civil case.

I think one of the first things you look at is, carve it down to the bear essence, get that conspiracy stuff out of the way and try to keep that mom off the stand, if you're ever going to try to bring a civil case forward.

KAGAN: On one hand, you think, well, not a chance. On the other, we found the O.J. Simpson case, there was a not guilty verdict in the criminal trial, and then there was success and a win at the civil level.

COFFEY: And a verdict. In fact, he's now moved to sunny south Florida, because it's considered a debtor's paradise.

And look at the Kobe Bryant case, Daryn. There the prosecution totally collapsed even before the trial. Still a civil lawsuit. And even though it's been held confidential, apparently some settlement.

KAGAN: And then one final comment here, or question for you. Tito Jackson was on air last night saying, see, we knew it all along, my brother is 1,000 percent innocent. That's not what this jury said. The jury didn't say Michael Jackson's innocent; this jury said he's not guilty.

COFFEY: They said there's a reasonable doubt. That's what the system is all about, and this jury honored our law. They honored that principle.

KAGAN: All right, Kendall, we're going to let you come back, even though your prediction wasn't exactly correct.

COFFEY: OK, thanks for another chance.

KAGAN: We still value your opinion. Kendall, thank you.

COFFEY: OK, Daryn.

KAGAN: Well, let's look at some other stories making news coast to coast. The cleanup continues after a plane crashed on a Fort Lauderdale street yesterday. Three people were on the DC-3, and two more on the ground were injured. The copilot said a fuel line broke, and that one of the plane's engines was in flames before the crash. The plane just missed a major intersection.

An American airlines flight from New York to Seattle was diverted to Chicago last night. The detour, taken to check out a suspicious item onboard. Police say the item turned out just to be a radio. After three hours, after the passengers and crew were on the plane, the flight to Seattle resumed.

And also from Washington, a judge says the recall petition against Spokane Mayor James West can go forward. West is at the center of a gay sex scandal. He allegedly offered city jobs to prospective dates. The recall will go to the voters if organizers can collect more than 12,000 signatures in six months.

As we mentioned just a few minutes ago, a U.S. Army deserter is returning home 40 years after he abandoned his unit and crossed over into communist North Korea.

CNN's Atika Shubert has his story and departure from Tokyo.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ATIKA SHUBERT, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Charles Robert Jenkins is going home. U.S. Army deserter and defector to North Korea, Jenkins today boards a plane destined for the United States, and ultimately North Carolina. It will be his first time home in more than 40 years.

It has been a long journey. In 1965, then Sergeant Jenkins deserted his post on the Demilitarized Zone and crossed into North Korea. Little was heard from him until he appeared in this North Korean propaganda film, playing the American villain. That sparked accusations of treason. Jenkins says he had no choice. According to testimony in a U.S. military court, he says he was abused and tortured by North Korean authorities.

But during his time in North Korea, he met his wife, Hitomisoga (ph), a young Japanese nurse, abducted by North Korean spies. Their shared hatred of the North Korean regime bound them together, Jenkins says, leading to marriage and two daughters.

Fearing for his children's future in the Stalinist state, Jenkins finally left North Korea in 2004, turning himself into U.S. military forces in Japan. A U.S. military court found Jenkins guilty of desertion and aiding the enemy, sentencing him to 30 days confinement and a dishonorable discharge. He now lives with his family in his wife's homeland of northern Japan.

CHARLES JENKINS, U.S. ARMY DESERTER: The Japanese people...

SHUBERT: Jenkins says he wants to live in Japan for the rest of his life, but that he also wants to see his family in America again, particularly his 91-year-old mother in North Carolina.

(on camera): In a written statement to the press before leaving, Jenkins asked for privacy 24 in what is bound to be an emotional journey.

Atika Shubert, CNN, Tokyo.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KAGAN: And according to our sources, Charles Jenkins expected to land in North Carolina anytime this hour. We'll keep you updated on that story.

Also, a check of the markets just ahead. Then we're going from Wall Street to your street. Are you looking to save more and spend less? CNN.com gives a little advice. It's Money 101, after the break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAGAN: The work on confirming federal judges continues for the U.S. Senate. This just in to CNN. The Senate has now confirmed one of its own former lawyers, Thomas Griffith, to sit on the U.S. Appeals Court. He would be the sixth judge that the Senate has elevated to the Federal Appellate Court in the last month. The vote, by the way, 73-24.

Griffith will become the newest judge on the U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for D.C. Takes a seat that the Bush administration originally wanted for filibustered Hispanic lawyer Miguel Estrada. Estrada dropped out back in September 2003 after he was blocked by Democrats. President Bush replaced him about a year ago. In fact, exactly a year ago, with Thomas Griffith. So he will go on to the Court of Appeals for the district of Columbia.

More news just ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(STOCK MARKET REPORT)

KAGAN: A little more money news for you now. An old saying about wealth, it's not how much you make, but how much you keep is what's important. With that in mind, CNN's vast online resources can teach you some basics. Here's CNN.com's Veronica De La Cruz with Investing 101, Cyberstyle.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

VERONICA DE LA CRUZ, CNN.COM CORRESPONDENT: If the you're looking for ways to make your money grow, but you aren't sure where to start, you can logon for the basics of investing at CNNmoneycom/101. To get started, here's a list of the top ten things to know.

If you're thinking of long-term investments, stocks have historically outperformed all others. From 1926 to 2004, the stock market returned an average annual 10.4 percent gain. The next best performing asset class, bonds, returned 5.4 percent. If stocks make you nervous, get the lowdown on other types of investments, like bonds, which can be slightly more predictable than stocks or mutual funds, which allow you to diversify your portfolio easily.

Now do you feel you're in the know when it comes to investing? You can test yourself with this online quiz. For example, true or false, if you're looking for a place to invest money you'll need in a year or two, stocks ever the place, because they'll give the best return. To get the answer, logon and find out.

Making sure your money grows at CNNmoney.com/101, from the dot- com newsdesk, I'm Veronica De La Cruz.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KAGAN: Jacqui Jeras has your forecast. That's up next.

Plus, do you think all the Jackson media coverage, a little over the top? Our Jeanne Moos looks into the madness. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(WEATHER REPORT)

KAGAN: Let's check the time. 10:53, almost 10:54 on the East Coast, 7:54 on the West Coast. Straight ahead, the Jackson media madness, maybe it will soon come to an end, but not before our Jeanne Moos has a little fun with the frenzy.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAGAN: The tabloids and other newspapers from London Tell the tale of Michael Jackson's acquittal. The Jackson trial was followed around the world. Even the Arab Network Al Jazeera broke into regular programming for live coverage of the verdict.

The residents of Santa Maria, California can breathe a little bit easier this morning. The global media packing up their bags and heading home.

Here now is CNN's Jeanne Moos on the Jackson trial and the coverage that was around all the craziness.

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JEANNE MOOS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): This is how bored cameramen were waiting for a verdict outside Neverland Ranch, as Michael Jackson's music played. But chasing squirrels gave way to chasing Jackson's convoy once news of the verdict started to break.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: All right. We are now being told that a verdict...

MOOS: Aerial shots showed fans linking hands along the roadside. A couple of networks put up a countdown clock to see if Jackson would make it to court in the allotted hour.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They'd have to do about 100 miles an hour to get here in time.

MOOS: But everyone knew this party wouldn't start without Michael Jackson.

NANCY GRACE, CNN HEADLINE NEWS HOST: Guess what? I think we're late.

MOOS: As network after network broke in.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is an NBC News Special Report.

MOOS: Even the crash of a DC-3 in Florida couldn't compete with the Jackson coverage. The frenzy built until Jackson himself appeared.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That is one scared individual right there.

MOOS: Without a camera inside the court, TV reporters resorted to radio-style descriptions.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: ...a report that the jurors' eyes are fixed on Judge Melville and nowhere else.

GRACE: They will not look at the defendant? It's bad news for the defendant. Of course you can all replay this back if there...

MOOS: But this is what will be played back.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Not guilty of conspiracy; not guilty of a lewd act...

MOOS: And then there was the fan who celebrated each not guilty count by releasing a dove.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Not guilty of child molestation. Michael Jackson is not guilty.

TED ROWLANDS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Clearly now it's pandemonium out here.

MOOS: In Times Square, people stopped to watch. Out came the characters.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I think now we'll start to call him the Teflon Molester.

MOOS: But there's one thing that does stick to Michael Jackson. It's the press.

Jeanne Moos, CNN, New York.

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KAGAN: We have an emotional journey to share with you. It's coming to an end in San Diego. Navy doctors return from helping the sick and needy in Indonesia after the tsunami. I'll talk to the captain of USNS Mercy.

An ancient artifact on display in Los Angeles. You're going to hear the truth about Tut.

The second hour of CNN LIVE TODAY begins right now.

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