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American Morning
Rudolph to Be Tried First in Birmingham
Aired June 02, 2003 - 09:30 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.
BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: Want to get to breaking news right now out of D.C. Kelli Arena has been tracking the latest on Eric Robert Rudolph. He do know he is in Asheville, North Carolina, should be in court in about 30 minutes -- Kelli, what news do you have now? Good morning there.
KELLI ARENA, CNN JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Bill. Well, sources tell us that the attorney general has made a decision as to where the trial for Eric Rudolph will be held. We are told that will be Birmingham, Alabama.
As you know, there was some debate over whether it would be held in Birmingham of Atlanta, Georgia. In both situations, explosions killed one person and injured others.
In Birmingham, the bombing involved a health clinic where a police officer was killed, and a nurse was seriously injured. The case will, obviously, be a federal case. States had asked the government several years ago to handle it as a federal prosecution, so it will be held as a federal prosecution out of Birmingham, Alabama, not Atlanta, Georgia -- Bill. Oh, and...
(CROSSTALK)
HEMMER: Kelly -- go ahead. Sorry.
ARENA: I was also going to say that after -- first, it gets tried in Birmingham first, and then, of course, Atlanta, Georgia, can get its shot. But as for the first venue, Birmingham.
HEMMER: And formal charges first came out of Birmingham. Is that right?
ARENA: That is right. But there was also -- there was also some suggestions -- when this was debated several years ago under the Reno Justice Department, there was a decision at that time to go with Birmingham. There was the feeling that because it was a police officer that had been killed, because they had a nurse who was very, very seriously injured, that that may make a better venue for charges to be brought against him.
Of course, though, the symbolic nature of the bombing of the Olympics in Atlanta seemed to carry some weight and some wondered over the passage of time whether that would be the thing that would stick most in people's memories as to the severity of these accusations, but we're told the attorney general, after a weekend of deliberations, came up with Birmingham to go first. HEMMER: All right. Kelli, thanks. Kelli Arena live in D.C., tracking the latest there.
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 2, 2003 - 09:30 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: Want to get to breaking news right now out of D.C. Kelli Arena has been tracking the latest on Eric Robert Rudolph. He do know he is in Asheville, North Carolina, should be in court in about 30 minutes -- Kelli, what news do you have now? Good morning there.
KELLI ARENA, CNN JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Bill. Well, sources tell us that the attorney general has made a decision as to where the trial for Eric Rudolph will be held. We are told that will be Birmingham, Alabama.
As you know, there was some debate over whether it would be held in Birmingham of Atlanta, Georgia. In both situations, explosions killed one person and injured others.
In Birmingham, the bombing involved a health clinic where a police officer was killed, and a nurse was seriously injured. The case will, obviously, be a federal case. States had asked the government several years ago to handle it as a federal prosecution, so it will be held as a federal prosecution out of Birmingham, Alabama, not Atlanta, Georgia -- Bill. Oh, and...
(CROSSTALK)
HEMMER: Kelly -- go ahead. Sorry.
ARENA: I was also going to say that after -- first, it gets tried in Birmingham first, and then, of course, Atlanta, Georgia, can get its shot. But as for the first venue, Birmingham.
HEMMER: And formal charges first came out of Birmingham. Is that right?
ARENA: That is right. But there was also -- there was also some suggestions -- when this was debated several years ago under the Reno Justice Department, there was a decision at that time to go with Birmingham. There was the feeling that because it was a police officer that had been killed, because they had a nurse who was very, very seriously injured, that that may make a better venue for charges to be brought against him.
Of course, though, the symbolic nature of the bombing of the Olympics in Atlanta seemed to carry some weight and some wondered over the passage of time whether that would be the thing that would stick most in people's memories as to the severity of these accusations, but we're told the attorney general, after a weekend of deliberations, came up with Birmingham to go first. HEMMER: All right. Kelli, thanks. Kelli Arena live in D.C., tracking the latest there.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
