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CNN Live Today

Tulane University Hospital in New Orleans Reopens; Zacarias Moussaoui Again Removed from Courtroom; Air Marshals Case; Update on 'New You Resolution' Participants

Aired February 14, 2006 - 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: Let's see what's happening right "Now in the News."
Fire crews at the scene of a gas well explosion near Pittsburgh. The Associated Press reports at least two injuries. No word yet on what caused that blast.

Convicted child killer Joseph Smith is back in court in Sarasota, Florida. Live pictures there. Just a few minutes ago, you saw it live here on CNN, Smith asked the judge to spare his life and blamed drug addiction for his crime.

Smith was convicted late last year of kidnapping, raping and killing 11-year-old Carlie Brucia. He's scheduled to be sentenced about a month from now. The jury that convicted Smith recommended the death penalty.

We'll have more of Smith's statement just ahead.

The federal judge in the terror-related sentencing trial of Zacarias Moussaoui has barred the defendant from the courtroom during the rest of jury selection. That decision comes after Moussaoui again defied the judge at a hearing in Alexandria, Virginia. Opening statements are scheduled to begin about three weeks from now.

Saddam Hussein's trial is now adjourned for two weeks. Before the adjournment, more outbursts, arguments and insults in the courtroom. The former Iraqi dictator shouted and told the court that he's been on a hunger strike to protest his treatment.

In Pakistan, new violence breaks out over those controversial cartoons of the Prophet Mohammed. At least two people were killed in protests today in Lahore. A demonstration in Islamabad also turned violent. The protesters attacking Danish and other Western interests.

The cartoons were first published in a Danish newspaper more than four months ago.

Good morning. Happy Valentine's Day once again.

Welcome back to CNN LIVE TODAY. Let's check some of the time around the world.

Just after 6:00 p.m. in Beirut, Lebanon; just after 10:00 a.m. in New Orleans. From CNN Center in Atlanta, I'm Daryn Kagan.

A city left in critical condition by Hurricane Katrina celebrating a sign of recovery today. A ribbon-cutting ceremony this hour marks the reopening of Tulane University Hospital's emergency room in downtown New Orleans.

Live picture there's from New Orleans.

In addition to the ER, the hospital is opening dozens of beds and several operating rooms.

Our Sean Callebs is there with more.

Sean, hello.

SEAN CALLEBS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning to you, Daryn.

Indeed, a very symbolic day here in the city. Tulane hospital -- Tulane University Hospital is one of nine forced to shut down after Katrina rolled through here. And if you ever want to yell "Is there a doctor in the house?" now is the time.

Just to pan over and show you, enough lab coats out here right now to stretch across the city. But very significant. This is the first ER, first emergency room to open that was flooded since Katrina rolled through here.

Now, Tulane University really focussed on the emergency room, saying that critical care really what the city needed first. Right now, the only other emergency room operating downtown is basically a tent that is set up inside the convention center that simply operates as a triage center.

This hospital is opening, but only on an abbreviated basis. Only a fraction of the beds that they had before the hurricane are open now. They had 250 beds before, 63 now. So certainly, in terms of volume, the kind of care the people in the city were used to they're not going to get at this point. But still, a very significant day.

Want to show you some of the still shots of what this area looked like right after the hurricane when a foot and a half of floodwater swamped this area. The basic problem, the generators are on the ground floor here. Now, they weren't actually flooded, but the circuit breakers were, as well as the fuel supply, which is actually below ground.

I've got to tell you, Daryn, those -- the generators are still on the ground floor here. So if they have another kind of disaster, we could be seeing the same kind of thing. So certainly no one obviously wants to see that.

Nine hospitals closed down. This is the first ET to reopen that was flooded. Ninety million dollars worth of damage.

A lot of people on hand here today. The mayor is expected to be out here. You hear some applause, certainly a very celebratory mood out here today.

This emergency room is not going to open for five hours. It will be 3:00 Central Time before it is open, and then the first patients will be able to go inside. A very significant day here -- Daryn.

KAGAN: But Sean, a long way before being able to really provide good health care for people coming back to New Orleans?

CALLEBS: I would say in terms of volume, I think everybody here would argue they're going to have extremely good health care from what they do have. They upgraded the equipment that they did have.

In terms of the renovation work that has been done so far, there are at least four operating rooms open. They hope to continue to open this in a phase. But in terms of some of the other hospitals, it's going to be very difficult to say.

Also, think about the timing. Mardi Gras right around the corner.

Traditionally, Tulane University Hospital has seen a spike in the number of people that it administers during that couple of weeks of celebration. But they tell me here, mostly, those are the kinds of things you'd expect from people out on Bourbon Street all night, bumps, bruises, some chest pains, things of that nature.

What they say the real wildcard, will they still see that kind of spike in terms of patients coming in here? Because Charity Hospital, which is also located downtown, still has not opened. So it's -- Tulane saw a 40 percent increase while Charity was still open. And Charity really the safety net of the city, really served the indigent people in New Orleans.

So clearly, the burden is going to be on Tulane University for the foreseeable future.

KAGAN: All right, Sean. Thank you.

And as he said, that ribbon-cutting coming later today. We'll have more on that and the ribbon-cutting as it happens and more on the reopening of this university hospital later on CNN. Hospital CEO Jim Montgomery will be a guest on "LIVE FROM," and that's coming up at 2:00 p.m. Eastern.

Well, checkout time has come and gone for thousands of hurricane evacuees who are living in hotels. FEMA ended its program of directly paying for hotel rooms yesterday.

About 12,000 evacuees were affected. FEMA says 88 percent of them have received rent assistance checks to pay for other housing, but some said they had nowhere to go except their cars, a relative's home or a shelter.

In Florida today, convicted child killer Joseph Smith is back in court in Sarasota at this hour. Smith was convicted late last year of kidnapping, raping and killing 11-year-old Carlie Brucia -- as we look at a live picture from that Sarasota courtroom.

The abduction was caught on surveillance tape. The jury that convicted Smith recommended the death penalty.

A short time ago, see live here on CNN, Smith asked a judge to spare his life and blamed drug addiction for his life of crime.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOSEPH SMITH, CONVICTED KILLER: I can only hope that I will -- that I will be an example to others of what drugs, depression and regards -- no regards for yourself can lead to, because it is a very dangerous combination.

I want to tell you and Carlie's family and my family and this community how very sorry I am for these terrible crimes. Every day I think about what I did and I beg god for forgiveness. I will continue to think about the pain I caused for the rest of my life.

Judge Owens, I do not ask for mercy for myself. As you have heard, there have been many times that I did not care whether I lived or died. The only reason that I can see to ask you to give me a life sentence is for the sake of my family.

I do not want to see my children hurt any further. I'm hopeful that I can still be a positive influence to them.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KAGAN: Carlie Brucia's family is split on what they want. Her father is asking that he be spared the death penalty for Joseph Smith, but her mother says that she does want Joseph Smith to die for the crime of killing her daughter.

Smith is scheduled to be sentenced about a month from now.

Confessed al Qaeda member Zacarias Moussaoui will not be in court when a jury is picked for his upcoming trial.

For more on that, let's go to our America bureau correspondent Kelli Arena. She is outside the courtroom in Alexandria, Virginia.

Hello.

KELLI ARENA, CNN JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT: Hi there, Daryn.

The security out here, I can tell you, is pretty intense. What we're going through is the jury selection process for Moussaoui. But today, the judge wanted to decide whether or not he could behave himself in the courtroom. And the answer was no.

He went back and forth at the judge until he was finally thrown out and told that he would not be allowed in the courtroom during the entire jury selection process. And then by the time his sentencing hearing comes around, she would reconsider.

Of course, you may remember that Moussaoui did plead guilty, and so now jurors just have to decide what his sentence will be.

Just to give you a little bit of the flavor of what went on in that courtroom, he started by saying that he was defined by the court as a French citizen. He said, "I am not French. I will never be French. I do not stand here with a nation of homosexual crusaders. I stand here as a Muslim only."

He accused the court of trying to organize his death for the past four years. He said, "Today is my death if I cannot make sure that these people can't represent me."

Moussaoui has been complaining about his lawyers for some time. Today, he really made some disparaging remarks, calling one of them a KKK member, calling another who's a Japanese-American a geisha lawyer.

He said that the federal government owned everything, the defense, the judge, the attack. He said, "I am al Qaeda, I am the sworn enemy," to which the judge replied, you know, "Mr. Moussaoui, you are the biggest enemy of yourself." You know, "Can you not sit still in this courtroom and let these lawyers represent you?"

He said, "No, I'm leaving," got up. He left. On his way out the door, he said, "God's curse to America."

So it does give you a little flavor of what went on in there. And he'll be watching those jury proceedings from his cell, Daryn, through a closed-circuit television.

So the courtroom antics will stop, at least for a while, until that -- the whole sentencing phase begins.

KAGAN: Well, that should help things move on a little bit more quickly, perhaps. Wasn't the judge estimating a month just for jury selection?

ARENA: That's right. They started off with a pool of 500, Daryn. And so tomorrow, smaller groups will be coming to get questioned. And they'll end up with a group of 85.

From there, they'll go to their final jury pool. But lots of questions, both from obviously the lawyers and the judge.

This is something, especially in this area. You know, I mean, what are you going to ask? Lots of -- lots of possible conflicts of interest.

Do you know somebody who works at the Pentagon? You know, do you know somebody who is dealing with sensitive information?

A lot of the people are government employees. They may have access to sensitive information. So it is going to be a long process -- Daryn.

KAGAN: Kelli Arena in Virginia.

Thank you. Well, they're supposed to be protecting the skies, but the feds say two air marshals were really breaking the law. They are accused of using their status to us smuggle cocaine on to a flight. The case raises disturbing questions about what really is getting around airport security.

Reporter Jason Whiteley of our affiliate KHOU in Houston has details on the story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JASON WHITELEY, REPORTER, KHOU (voice over): They were cuffed and chained entering court Monday. The first is Shawn Nguyen. This man with his back to us is Burlie Sholar. Last week the two were federal air marshals. This week prosecutors say they are criminals facing serious charges.

DON DEGABRIELLE, FIRST ASST. U.S. ATTORNEY: At least Mr. Nguyen at first was willing to use his badge to help get things beyond the checkpoints at the airports.

WHITELEY: The affidavit paints a notorious picture of air marshal Nguyen. He claims to have been paid to smuggle drugs and money past airport security before. It was apparently easy since air marshals don't have to go through any screening.

This charge, though, came after an informant allegedly arranged to pay Nguyen and Sholar to carry 15 kilograms of cocaine and $15,000 in cash aboard a flight to Las Vegas.

RODERICK BEVERLY, FBI: They were not going to distribute it. Basically, they were going to be told where to deliver it.

WHITELEY: Nguyen is quoted in the affidavit telling the informant, "I ain't being greedy, I've done this (EXPLETIVE DELETED) before." He later said, "I'll kill for you."

And Nguyen allegedly threatened a man to keep quite about the deal. "This is between you and me. If you say anything, I will put you to sleep, I swear to god."

The affidavit says Sholar, a 32-year-old air marshal, was involved in a separate money laundering scam from Hawaii. Investigators tell us they think these are isolated cases. But with law enforcement bypassing airport security, there is really no way of knowing for sure.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KAGAN: Nguyen and Sholar have a bond hearing on Thursday. Nguyen is expected to plead not guilty. The other suspect has not yet hired a lawyer. If they're convicted of all charges, they could face life behind bars.

CNN "Security Watch" keeps you up to date on safety. Stay tuned day and night for the most reliable news about your security. Coming up, the vice president's fowl shot. Dick Cheney's handled a gun before, but it's the way his staff is handling his hunting accident that has some reporters fuming. Hear what some of his closest friends have to say about that criticism.

Plus, pups on parade. Time for the nation's premier dog show. The history of Westminster and who's a favorite to win this year when we come back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(STOCK MARKET REPORT)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAGAN: It is week six of our "New You Resolution." And we have been monitoring the progress of a few brave couples who vowed to do whatever it takes to live healthier lifestyles. Now it's time for the checkup.

Our senior medical correspondent, Dr. Sanjay Gupta, visits with the Rampollas. He wants to see if they staid the course after their exotic vacation.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It's full speed ahead for Denise and Pedro Rampolla's new health plan, with only a few minor hurdles.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: That's good!

GUPTA: Working out with their trainer Mary Holte (ph) has been a cinch. What's been tough, eating the right foods regularly. To overcome that, they found a new motivator: guilt.

DENISE RAMPOLLA, "NEW YOU" PARTICIPANT: Well, if one of us forgets, the other just guilts the other one into it.

PEDRO RAMPOLLA, "NEW YOU" PARTICIPANT: And I know she's caught me a couple times. Hey, you didn't take anything for lunch, so what are you eating?

D. RAMPOLLA: Yes.

P. RAMPOLLA: Having a salad.

GUPTA: On recent trip to Puerto Rico, the guilt resurfaced. The Rampollas avoided fatty foods, but forget their exercise plan at home.

P. RAMPOLLA: Before you know it, the vacation is over and you're going, oh, I didn't do a whole lot.

GUPTA: On the way back to Cheyenne, Pedro ended his week-long streak of avoiding fast food, but...

P. RAMPOLLA: And I kind of felt sick afterwards. I thought that was kind of a good thing.

D. RAMPOLLA: The Rampollas admit they didn't sign up to lose weight, but to fight against a family history of heart disease. That's what drives their new eating habits and their workouts.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm really making sure they do enough cardio, because cardio is going to strengthen the heart muscle.

P. RAMPOLLA: Turns out, even with occasional lapses, the plan is working.

D. RAMPOLLA: Definitely do feel healthier, do feel that my clothes fit better. I think even looking at him, though, I think his uniforms fit him pretty well. He's got a little bit more room in places, and yes.

GUPTA: Dr. Sanjay Gupta, CNN, for the "New You Resolution."

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KAGAN: And Sanjay has a few take-home tips for you. For those of you following the new pairs' "New You Resolution," you can avoid eating fast food on the road. Try taking snacks with you, like nuts or dried fruit. Stay away from what Chef Billy calls the three evils: white flour, white sugar and salt.

And how about a partner? Not just at the gym, but a food buddy, having someone to remind you to eat right so you can stay on your plan.

And we invite you to log on to CNN.com/newyou. You can find health tips and more. You can read about the "New You Resolution" couples as well.

Well, if you don't know the difference between a triple lutz and an axel, not to worry, you're not alone. But you don't have an Olympic expert to enjoy these figure skating events in Torino.

Coming up, we have Tara Lipinski. The gold medalist joining me to talk about the thrills and spills and the developments in figure skating at the Olympics in just a moment.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAGAN: Well, good morning to those of you waking up with us on the West Coast. Bonnie Schneider is looking at your weather, as well as weather all around the country.

Hi, Bonnie.

BONNIE SCHNEIDER, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Hi, Daryn.

(WEATHER REPORT)

KAGAN: All right, Bonnie. Thank you. We're going to talk sports a little bit. The gold medals just keep rolling in for the U.S. Olympic team. It's not all fun and games, though.

All the athletes face a lot of pressure. One young lady knows all about that. Former Olympian and gold medalist Tara Lipinski, who traded the ice for the bright lights of Hollywood, is my guest, coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAGAN: We're coming up on the half-hour. I'm Daryn Kagan.

Let's take a look at what we're just seeing now in to CNN out of Maryland. Kind of a bizarre sight. That's a live picture, so we don't have the best shot right now, but I can tell you, this is a dairy truck.

A box truck lost control, ended up in -- there we go -- in the Susquehanna River. Apparently, this truck was stolen from Cherry Hill, New Jersey, earlier this morning, about 5:30 this morning. And they're not really sure who or what that drove it. There was a truck chase involved, and the truck ended up there in the water.

No condition on the driver or exactly how the truck ended up there, except that we know there was a chase and a stolen vehicle involved.

Also happing in the news at this hour, in Lebanon, a massive rally marks a somber, yet significant, anniversary. Hundreds of thousands took to the streets of Beirut exactly one year after the assassination of former prime minister Rafik Hariri.

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