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American Morning

Interview with Montgomery County Executive Doug Duncan

Aired October 21, 2003 - 07:09   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: Several of the D.C.-area shootings happened in Montgomery County, Maryland.
A bit earlier today, I talked with the county executive, Doug Duncan. He was in the courtroom yesterday seeing John Muhammad in person for the first time. His thoughts on what that experience was like.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DOUG DUNCAN, MONTGOMERY COUNTY EXECUTIVE: As he went through the day, I just got angrier and angrier at him. His statements really angered me and angered a lot of the family members. I was down there supporting the victims' families and to listen to him.

He said he was there at every shooting. He knows what happened, and he didn't tell us what happened. And then later on he said he had nothing to do directly or indirectly with any of the shootings. So, it didn't make a lot of sense. And I thought the prosecution did a great job.

But it's the first time I've seen him in person, and I just sat there watching and saying, how could you cold-bloodedly kill so many people?

HEMMER: Yes, you have said many times that nothing surprises you anymore. Did it surprise you yesterday when he said I'm going to represent myself?

DUNCAN: He's a very -- just watching him yesterday, he's a very cold, a very calculating, a very deliberate person. And I think he -- my guess is this is sort of a diversion to try to take the prosecution's focus away from the case. They did not do that. They are very focused on their mission of getting a conviction.

On the one hand, I was surprised. I think everybody in the courtroom was surprised when he said he wanted to defend himself, but with this guy, that's what you expect. You expect the unexpected with him.

HEMMER: Do you think this could be -- some have used the word "circus" already -- a mockery maybe of this trial? Is that possible?

DUNCAN: No, I think there was a fear of that yesterday, but the judge has a real handle on the courtroom, and he's going to do a great job, from what I saw. And the prosecution, they don't really care who's representing the defendant. They're just going to present their case, present the facts to the jury. They had a brilliant opening argument yesterday and their witnesses. They're moving right along, laying out the facts of the case in a very straightforward way for the jury. So, I think that's going to work very well.

HEMMER: Doug, what was the dynamic when Lee Boyd Malvo entered the courtroom?

DUNCAN: There was a lot of tension in the air. Everybody just perked up as he came in. He was only in there for a very short period of time. But to see the two of them together was a little bit shocking, and it brought forth a lot of anger, I know, from the Meyers family I was sitting with.

HEMMER: How were they doing yesterday, the victims of the families?

DUNCAN: It was a tough day for them. They are very anxious, very nervous. They felt good with what happened during the day. I think they were shocked that Muhammad was going to defend himself. They were very angry, as they listened to what he had to say. And Larry Meyers, Dean Meyers' brother -- Dean is the victim in this particular case -- he had to get up and testify a little bit. So, that was a tough time for him.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HEMMER: Doug Duncan from earlier.

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 October 21, 2003 - 07:09   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: Several of the D.C.-area shootings happened in Montgomery County, Maryland.
A bit earlier today, I talked with the county executive, Doug Duncan. He was in the courtroom yesterday seeing John Muhammad in person for the first time. His thoughts on what that experience was like.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DOUG DUNCAN, MONTGOMERY COUNTY EXECUTIVE: As he went through the day, I just got angrier and angrier at him. His statements really angered me and angered a lot of the family members. I was down there supporting the victims' families and to listen to him.

He said he was there at every shooting. He knows what happened, and he didn't tell us what happened. And then later on he said he had nothing to do directly or indirectly with any of the shootings. So, it didn't make a lot of sense. And I thought the prosecution did a great job.

But it's the first time I've seen him in person, and I just sat there watching and saying, how could you cold-bloodedly kill so many people?

HEMMER: Yes, you have said many times that nothing surprises you anymore. Did it surprise you yesterday when he said I'm going to represent myself?

DUNCAN: He's a very -- just watching him yesterday, he's a very cold, a very calculating, a very deliberate person. And I think he -- my guess is this is sort of a diversion to try to take the prosecution's focus away from the case. They did not do that. They are very focused on their mission of getting a conviction.

On the one hand, I was surprised. I think everybody in the courtroom was surprised when he said he wanted to defend himself, but with this guy, that's what you expect. You expect the unexpected with him.

HEMMER: Do you think this could be -- some have used the word "circus" already -- a mockery maybe of this trial? Is that possible?

DUNCAN: No, I think there was a fear of that yesterday, but the judge has a real handle on the courtroom, and he's going to do a great job, from what I saw. And the prosecution, they don't really care who's representing the defendant. They're just going to present their case, present the facts to the jury. They had a brilliant opening argument yesterday and their witnesses. They're moving right along, laying out the facts of the case in a very straightforward way for the jury. So, I think that's going to work very well.

HEMMER: Doug, what was the dynamic when Lee Boyd Malvo entered the courtroom?

DUNCAN: There was a lot of tension in the air. Everybody just perked up as he came in. He was only in there for a very short period of time. But to see the two of them together was a little bit shocking, and it brought forth a lot of anger, I know, from the Meyers family I was sitting with.

HEMMER: How were they doing yesterday, the victims of the families?

DUNCAN: It was a tough day for them. They are very anxious, very nervous. They felt good with what happened during the day. I think they were shocked that Muhammad was going to defend himself. They were very angry, as they listened to what he had to say. And Larry Meyers, Dean Meyers' brother -- Dean is the victim in this particular case -- he had to get up and testify a little bit. So, that was a tough time for him.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HEMMER: Doug Duncan from earlier.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com.