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New Day Saturday
Shooting at LAX; Boston Celebrates World Series Win; Feds Looking into Georgia Teen's Death
Aired November 02, 2013 - 07:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
VICTOR BLACKWELL, CNN ANCHOR: Boston strong. That's the message of today's victory parade. It not only celebrates the Boston Red Sox, but a city's triumphant resilience.
(MUSIC)
ALISON KOSIK, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning. I'm Alison Kosik.
BLACKWELL: I'm Victor Blackwell. We've got it all covered this morning at 7:00 here on the East Coast. This is NEW DAY SATURDAY.
KOSIK: Operations at Los Angeles International Airport are slowly returning to normal this morning.
But one terminal remains closed.
BLACKWELL: Yes, terminal three, where a shooting left one TSA officer is dead, two more injured yesterday.
Here's the latest: the suspect is identified as 23-year-old Paul Ciancia. We learned about texts sent to his family that concerned them so much they contacted police.
Witnesses are sharing their stories as well. There's a video given to us from TMZ gives an idea of how chaotic the shooting was.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP, TMZ)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Everyone on the floor! On the floor now! On the floor!
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Get out!
(INAUDIBLE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Get down on the floor!
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Go!
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Hold on, you guys.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Go, go!
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (EXPLETIVE DELETED) this is crazy, dog.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BLACKWELL: Now, of course, CNN is bringing you coverage of this story like no one else can. We've got crews on ground from Los Angeles, to new details about the accused gunman from his hometown.
We're going to start this morning with the very latest developments from LAX and Dan Simon.
Dan, good morning. Bring us up to date.
DAN SIMON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, good morning, Victor.
At this point, we don't have a precise motive but it seems that the suspect here, Paul Ciancia seemed to have anti-federal government feelings angered towards the TSA, according to some material found on the suspect. CNN has learned that he made reference to, quote/unquote, "the new world order."
What we know is that when he went into terminal 3, he pulled a rifle out of his bag, started opening fire. Two TSA suspects were hit, including 39-year-old Gerardo Hernandez who was killed. He was the first TSA officer to die in the line of duty.
Following that shooting, he then made his way into the airport into the departure area where he was confronted by police. I want you to listen to how one passenger described the mayhem.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I ran out on to the tarmac and away from the terminal where the shooting was happening. And as I was running, the police came toward me, you know, the car is racing towards me. And they jumped out of the cars, pulled their guns, hands up, hands up, get down on the ground.
I mean, from their perspective, I was the first guy running away from this, running across the tarmac which is obviously not normal. So I laid down on the ground, basically, they just came over to me, they said, stay down, stay down. They didn't ask me any questions they put me in handcuffs and they basically said stay there.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SIMON: Well, we know the suspect, Ciancia, was shot several times in the chest. But at this point, we do not have his condition -- Victor.
BLACKWELL: Now, of course, we've learned that this is the first TSA officer to be killed in the line of duty. Two others injured. But it sounds like this could have been much worse, Dan.
SIMON: Definitely could have been. Here you have somebody who is, you know, hell-bent on creating mayhem and shooting people. Obviously, he seemed to have anger towards the TSA. He could have shot other TSA officers had he confronted them.
I want you to listen to how the mayor put it when he described more ammunition clips were found here at the airport.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MAYOR ERIC GARCETTI, LOS ANGELES: There were additional rounds that this gunman had. And the fact that these officers were able to neutralize the threat as they did, they were more than 100 more rounds that could have literally killed everybody in that terminal today. Were it not for their actions, there could have been a lot more damage.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SIMON: As for terminal three, it remains closed. Not clear when it will reopen. The airport apparently making plans, though, to reopen the parking structure. The rest of the airport, meanwhile, is open.
Now, this is important, as for people who left belongings and had luggage in terminal 3. The airport is saying those folks can come to the airport and start checking those belongings beginning at 7:00 a.m. local time -- Victor.
BLACKWELL: All right, Dan Simon, we saw the huge crowds outside yesterday.
KOSIK: Yes.
BLACKWELL: Thank you so much for that from LAX.
KOSIK: There is new video that appears to show the suspect on a gurney being taken away at LAX. It was shot conclusively from the affiliate KCAL KCBS. The wounded man is thought to be Ciancia. But CNN hasn't been able to independently confirm this.
Now, you can see what appear to be his wrists handcuffed to the gurney.
Ciancia was reportedly shot several times in the chest. The FBI says as of last night, doctors were treating at a local hospital.
Paul Ciancia attended an all boys Catholic school, Catholic high school in Wilmington, Delaware. He lived across the Delaware River in Pennsville, New Jersey.
And what's where CNN's Chris Lawrence is this morning.
Chris, what are people in Pennsville telling you about Ciancia?
CHRIS LAWRENCE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Alison, they're basically saying this would make a whole lot more sense if this were a mistake that it turned out to be the wrong guy. I talked to a guy last night he never heard of any radical ideas or affiliations with any radical groups about Paul Ciancia. The family is telling police that they did not know that he owned a rifle. They say they had no indication that he had any mental health issues.
And they say he was just back here for a wedding this summer and it looked like nothing was wrong. The first indication the family got was a text message on Friday morning, where Paul Ciancia texted his family and said some pretty alarming things.
Here's the chief of police.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CHIEF ALLEN CUMMINGS, PENNSVILLE, NEW JERSEY POLICE: Basically, the text message was just a message to the little brother. And the way it was written, they had some concern about it, that's when they brought it to our attention.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LAWRENCE: So the little brother told his dad, look at this text message. Something is wrong here. The dad immediately called the local police here. The local police got on the phone with the LAPD and said please do a well-being check. The LAPD then went to his apartment, found his roommate, but he wasn't home at the time. The roommate said, look, we saw him yesterday, he seemed fine. And all of that taking place, again, Friday morning, Friday, early afternoon Eastern Time, as Paul Ciancia was already at LAX -- Alison.
KOSIK: Chris, how well-known is this family to law enforcement there in New Jersey?
LAWRENCE: Very well known, but in a good way. The dad, Paul Ciancia, is actually an associate member of a Fraternal Order of Police. That's how he knew immediately when he saw this text message, get on the phone, call the local police right away. He owns a local body repair shop.
Look, this isn't the kind of neighborhood that breeds familiarity here. The homes are well apart. It's wooded. They're set well back from the street. So, the neighbors aren't all that close.
But the people who do know the dad say this was a good family. That the son went to a Catholic school just over the bridge in Delaware. People here, very, very shocked by hearing this name associated with this alleged crime, Alison.
KOSIK: OK, Chris Lawrence, thank you.
BLACKWELL: And our teams are reaching out to the sources to try to learn more about his motive possibly and these anti-government sentiments found on documents.
And imagine, though, if you fly off in chaos and confusion when you hear that pop, pop for the first time, and realize they're shooting at the airport. That's how witness described the scene at the rampage on Friday.
KOSIK: Up next, we're going to take you to one of the busiest airports in the world where people are asking, is airport security tight enough?
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I heard a couple of popping noises and just turned to look. It just sounded like somebody was banging on something. There was a stampede of people coming why may. And I realized that something was very wrong.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KOSIK: A live look at LAX this morning. Gosh, things trying to get back to normal there. Terminal 3 still closed.
BLACKWELL: Yes, as investigators continue the work of trying to close down that scene. We know that planes are taking off and landing in other terminals there. But this, of course, is the scene of yesterday's rampage in which authorities say Paul Anthony Ciancia shot three people and shot himself. And he's still in the hospital, and so are two of those people unfortunately, one TSA officer, the first to do so, died while working yesterday. Shooting started about 9:20 a.m.
Now, one man at LAX traveling from Milwaukee said he came face-to-face with the shooter.
KOSIK: This is pretty amazing. Listen to this, Leon Saryan told CNN's Anderson Cooper about all the chaos in terminal three and how the gunman actually approached him with a life or death question.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LEON SARYAN, WAS FACE-TO-FACE WITH LAW GUNMAN (via telephone): Shots were coming from behind me. And the TSA agent that was near knee, urged me to, you know, to grab myself and stuff and go. Saw that I didn't have my shoes on. You know, he grabbed the shoes and the two of us started running down the corridor towards the gate.
Meanwhile, more shots rang out. And this agent got hit. I think it was a grazing wound because he seemed to be OK. He had my shoes. I went and kind of cowered in a corner.
And the shooter just calmly walking down the corridor, he saw me cowering there. He had his gun. He looked at me and he said, "TSA?" I just shook my head. He kept going.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BLACKWELL: And at that time, he had no idea that that was the life or death question. Now, this happened, of course, at Los Angeles International Airport, but it had ripple effects on travelers across the country. More than 1,500 flights were affected as a result of yesterday's deadly shooting.
CNN's Nick Valencia is at the world's busiest airport, Atlanta's Hartsfield-Jackson.
So, tell us, Nick, what effect does yesterday's shooting have on travel this morning?
NICK VALENCIA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Victor.
As you mentioned, what happened yesterday at Los Angeles International Airport certainly had an impact on airports throughout the United States. Here at Atlanta's airport, we hear from airport officials that they've increased the visibility of plane clothes officers. They do believe what they say happened yesterday was an isolated incident.
As far as what's going on inside, it seems to be things are back to normal.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
VALENCIA (voice-over): The stoppage at LAX ripple through flight boards across the nation, with a major impact on people's travel plans.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: My flight was massively delayed coming out of Phoenix. So, they're rerouting me on another flight. I'll get there much later than expected.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Unfortunately, what can you do? Crazy person go shootings.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: To come here and look on the board and see not only is the flight delayed but really things are quite hectic in L.A.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It takes you back to like previous events that have happened over the years. And you just hope everybody's OK when you land.
VALENCIA: For others at airports, some anxious moments as they waited to hear from family members traveling through Los Angeles.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Got a message from my father-in-law who is on the plane at the time saying we're on the plane but we can't go. And they didn't really know what was going on.
VALENCIA: And while canceled or rebooked flights caused headaches for a lost people, some late travelers in San Francisco say they're lucky to have missed their scheduled flights, including this mother who dropped off their kids.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: If they had made their flight to visit their dad in L.A. today they would have been in the midst of what was going on there in terminal 3.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VALENCIA: And there are no major delays, Victor, this morning at Atlanta's airport. It's taken about 10 minutes to get through security lines. TSA officials tell us that's less time than it normally takes -- Victor.
BLACKWELL: All right. We'll see if there's any changes in security there at Atlanta's Hartsfield-Jackson.
Nick Valencia, thank you very much.
Still to come on NEW DAY, here's something good -- Bostonians preparing for a day to remember.
KOSIK: More on the Red Sox victory parade and why it's taking on a mean far deeper than the game of baseball.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KOSIK: It's quiet now. But get ready. It's going to get wild and crazy at Boston's Fenway park. Right now, quiet. Everybody kind of waking up.
In a matter of hours, the stadium and streets of Boston are going to be packed with screaming Red Sox fans celebrating their unforgettable World Series championship.
BLACKWELL: And they should be screaming, and they should be excited because today's parade has taken on a much bigger meaning than the game of baseball itself.
KOSIK: It really has, yes.
BLACKWELL: When we talk about Boston and the city. It's not just about the Red Sox victory but still trying to heal after the marathon bombing.
CNN's Alexandra Field is live in Boston.
BLACKWELL: I mean, this is a big day, Alexandra.
ALEXANDRA FIELD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: -- said it best when he put this way. Sure, Victor. I mean, the mayor said it this way, he said that this team embodies the city's resilience and perseverance.
So, the big celebration you're about to see in the streets this morning, it will be a fitting cap on this city's comeback!
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
(CHANTING)
(CHEERS)
FIELD (voice-over): National champions, the Boston Red Sox, and national treasures, the marathon bombing survivors. After more than six months, they are celebrating victories together.
HEATHER ABBOTT, BOSTON BOMBING SURVIVOR: I felt like, you know, we were a city that had such a tragedy happen. And we were able to kind of be resilient and heal over the course of the baseball season, coincidentally.
FIELD: Back in April, the Sox were coming off a last-place finish that their division last year. And the city of Boston had just taken a devastating hit.
(EXPLOSION)
FIELD: After a pair of explosions near the marathon finish line, Heather Abbott lost part of her leg. She had just left a game at Fenway, a plan to return would help her heal.
ABBOTT: I practiced in physical therapy.
FIELD: While she was still using a wheelchair to get around, Abbott accepted an offer to go back to the ballpark.
ABBOTT: When I threw out the first pitch and I had just left the hospital that was really a big deal for me.
FIELD (on camera): And you can now say you pitched for the World Series champs.
ABBOTT: I guess I did.
FIELD (voice-over): Over and over again the team invited Abbott and other suffer visors home. Most memorably for a tribute alongside James Taylor during a tribute in the second World Series game.
ABBOTT: I felt like they were very supportive of us, you know, at least I felt supportive of them in return.
FIELD: Abbott had come a long way during the baseball season with her new prosthetic leg, she could walk on to the field. As for the Sox, after 93 losses last year, they were now playing for the World Series championship.
ABBOTT: It kind of felt like we were moving along with the Red Sox every step of the way as they were, you know, continuing to improve their season as well. And the whole Boston strong mantra kind of stuck.
FIELD: In six games Boston's team proved it's strength winning the series.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The Boston, the marathon, you know, all that stuff, it's bigger than us.
FIELD: In six months, Abbott showed the world how strong she is.
ABBOTT: To know that six months have gone by I'm pretty much totally independent and have a few different legs that I can use. I started running again. I think for me, that's an important success for celebrate.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ABBOTT: The Red Sox will leave Fenway at 10:00 this morning to start the parade. We are told they will stop at the marathon finish line just down the street for a tribute to the marathon survivors -- Alison and Victor. KOSIK: OK. Alexandra Field in Boston, thank you.
And stay with us throughout the morning. We're covering the parade when it kicks off at 10:00 a.m. Eastern live here on CNN. You can also check out the parade on CNN.com/live.
BLACKWELL: Quiet, maybe even bullied. More details about the suspected gunman and the LAX shooting and a possible connection between him and an anarchist group.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It is probably the worst experience I've ever been in my life. Most terrifying. You always kind of imagine what would you do? You hear about these horrible incidents. You kind of ask yourself, what would I do in a situation like that? And the only thing I could do is just keep my eyes down the hallway and make sure he wasn't coming down and try to keep calm. Everybody was just going crazy. It was probably the most terrifying experience I've ever been through.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KOSIK: Mortgage rates inched up this week. Have a look.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KOSIK: Bottom of the hour now. Welcome back. I'm Alison Kosik.
BLACKWELL: I'm Victor Blackwell. You have made it to the weekend. Congratulations.
Here are five things you need to know for your NEW DAY.
Up first, Los Angeles International Airport plans to have mental health personnel onsite today. Of course, that's after a shooting Friday that left an TSA officer dead. Terminal 3 where the shooting took place remains closed. But passengers will be allowed to pickup luggage left behind in a rush to get away from the gunman.
The shooting impacted 167,000 passengers.
KOSIK: The number two: a suspected U.S. drone strike has killed a Taliban leader in Pakistan. The U.S. believes Hakimullah Mehsud played a role on an attack in Afghanistan in 2009. Three other people were also killed the Pakistani government issued a statement saying it strongly condemns the drone strike.
BLACKWELL: This surveillance video is number 3. It's of a mini-van slamming into a convenience store. Watch. Now, this happened early Friday in Connecticut. Watch it again, CNN affiliate WTIC reports, three were hurt, the driver says the reason this happened is her foot slipped off the brake and on to the gas pedal. Three people hurt but they all survived. Police say she's under arrest. KOSIK: Number 4, an incredible rescue in the Canadian wilderness. Authorities say a hiker was in the middle of a month-long solo trip when a bear ransacked his campsite. The hiker survived the attack but was stranded without food or equipment. Officials are saying he couldn't have survived much longer.
BLACKWELL: Number five, downed power lines and ripped off roofs. That's the scene n central Ohio after severe storms ripped through the area. Tens of thousands of people were left in the dark. At a trailer park in Columbus, about 80 homes were damaged. Several people were hurt by flying debris.
So here's the question, especially for the people who live there, are more storms on the way?
To get the answer, let's bring in meteorologist Alexandra Steele.
So, how about it, more on the way, or are we done?
ALEXANDRA STEELE, AMS METEOROLOGIST: We're done. We are done.
Here are the storm reports that you can see -- the hail, the wind damage, even 19 reports of tornadoes. Again, Thursday night into Friday, it is over now. The storms have all pushed eastward.
But I just want to show you what we're going to see in terms of today, temperature-wise, behind that much colder air. Boston 64 today, 45 tomorrow. Upper Midwest as well, Saturday and into Sunday, much colder temperatures. New York City marathon tomorrow, 45 and very windy. Today, in the 60s. Not so tomorrow.
When you go to back tonight, fall back. Daylight saving time is over and we're going to do it tonight and tomorrow, you'll get an extra hour of sleep -- Alison, Victor.
BLACKWELL: I will take that extra hour of sleep, what I needed.
ALISON KOSIK, CNN ANCHOR: Me, too.
All right. We're getting more details how the shooting at LAX terminal there, terminal number three, how it unfolded.
BLACKWELL: Yes, officials say the suspect was armed with an assault rifle and enough ammo to kill everyone in the terminal.
KOSIK: And we're told the gunman was able to shoot his way through the security checkpoint. Make it all the way down the hallway before he was stopped right there close to a Burger King and the food court.
BLACKWELL: As word spread to the gunman on the loose, people ran for their lives.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP, TMZ)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Everyone on the floor! On the floor now! On the floor! UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Get out!
(INAUDIBLE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Get down on the floor!
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Go!
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Hold on, you guys.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Go, go!
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (EXPLETIVE DELETED) this is crazy, dog.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BLACKWELL: Well, police then chased down the suspect. They shot him several times in the chest. He is alive. He's in police custody.
This video was shot exclusively by CNN affiliate KCAL-KCBS. It shows what appears to be the suspect handcuffed to a gurney arriving at the hospital. The FBI has identified the shooter as 23-year-old Paul Anthony Ciancia. He lives in L.A. But he's from New Jersey. Authorities say they found information on him expressing anti- government sentiments and anger targeted at the TSA. One witness said he could hear the anger in Cianci's voice.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GORDON, WITNESS TO LAX SHOOTING: I stood up still trying to watch, see where it was coming from. See if I could see the shooter. I never did actually see him. I could hear him yelling while he was shooting.
REPORTER: What was he yelling?
GORDON: I couldn't make it out, he was angry. I really couldn't make out what he was saying. But it was English. It was -- you know, just real angry voice.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BLACKWELL: So this is Paul Ciancia's family home. It's in Pennsville, New Jersey. Authorities say that he recently sent texts to his brother and his father. And those texts concerned them so they called police. They're described as angry rambling messages, venting about the government. His life in Los Angeles said general unhappiness.
Despite all of that, people who know Paul Ciancia and his family say yesterday's shooting has surprised them.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOSH PAGAN, NEIGHBOR: I haven't had any personal reactions from him. But what I've seen and heard he was a normal person. Everyday guy. You know, friendly.
You would never -- like, even right now, I'm still trying to process did this really happen? Did they get the wrong guy? Because if at the told me they got the wrong guy it would make a lot more sense to me.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KOSIK: And the confused gunman may have been a conspiracy theorist. Officials said he had materials referencing the new world order.
CNN's Pentagon correspondent Barbara Starr -- she is live in Washington now.
Barbara, let me ask you this, do you know anything at this point what officials are saying about this?
BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Well, some information is emerging. Our justice reporter Evan Perez has spoken to federal law enforcement officials who says materials found on the suspect did include a rant that appeared to reference that new world order. As well as anti-TSA, anti-government claims. It's not clear what really gave rise to these references. Federal investigators have found no known links to any groups or anything in the suspect's background to explain them.
For people perhaps not familiar, new world order is generally accepted to be a conspiracy theory where people believe that there are elites out there forming some sort of special authoritarian government. This is the generally accepted view of what new world order means.
But investigators, Alison, still looking into all of this.
KOSIK: OK. Barbara, so, CNN has learned that earlier this year, armed police officers were actually removed from TSA checkpoints at LAX for the first time since 9/11. What do we know about this decision?
STARR: Well, Dan Simon out in California our journalist has been looking into this and he has been told that indeed those police officers were removed from those TSA checkpoints at LAX earlier this year. It seems the officers had been stationed there following 9/11, but a decision had been made to allow the officers to roam the terminal as long as they were never more than two minutes away from a checkpoint.
So, certainly, investigators are going to be looking at this, also did the system work properly. Certainly, there was a massive law enforcement response very quickly.
KOSIK: OK, Barbara Starr, thank you.
BLACKWELL: Another big story that's developing this week, was it a tragic accident or something more sinister?
KOSIK: The FBI has been called in to search for answers in the mysterious death of a Georgia teenager. But after ten months is there any evidence left to find? We're going to ask a former FBI agent just that.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BLACKWELL: Twenty minutes before the top of the hour now.
Major developments this week for the family of Kendrick Johnson. He's the teenager in Georgia, found dead inside a rolled gym mat at his high school. Now, federal authorities are now investigating the circumstances surrounding his death. That's the big announcement this week.
And CNN has been on top of this story for more than six months. My producer Devon Sayers and I have filed almost two dozen opens records requests and pursued action in court to force the release of all of the surveillance video and the full investigative file and that includes this surveillance video showing Johnson walking down the hall of the school and following another student into that gym. Then inside the gym on the day he died, but it does not show his death.
Here's more background on how we got here.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
VICTOR BLACKWELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): After months of rallies and protests, an announcement that the family of Kendrick Johnson hopes will lead to what they consider to be justice.
MICHAEL MOORE, U.S. ATTORNEY FOR THE MIDDLE DISTRICT OF GEORGIA: At this time, however, I am of the opinion that a base exists for my office to conduct a formal review of the facts and investigation surrounding the death of Kendrick Johnson.
BLACKWELL: U.S. Attorney Michael Moore supported by the FBI will soon head to Valdosta, Georgia to conduct a federal investigation into the death of 17-year-old Kendrick Johnson.
MOORE: I will follow the facts wherever -- wherever they lead. My objective is to discover the truth.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Hallelujah!
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Thank you, Jesus.
BLACKWELL: Kendrick's grandmother watched at announcement on a portable TV on the street corner where the family continues its eight- month sit-in, demanding answers.
BARBARA ENGLISH, KENDRICK JOHNSON'S GRANDMOTHER: I'm so happy and I know we trust in the Lord and we just had been down here rallying for 32 weeks for nothing.
BLACKWELL: The Johnson family never believed the local sheriff's explanation that Kendrick suffocated after squeezing his 19-inch shoulders into the 14.5 inch center of a rolled gym mat to reach for a shoe in the middle of a school day.
BENJAMIN CRUMP, JOHNSON FAMILY ATTORNEY: His parents have always maintained that their son was killed. The only question we want to know so why they are covering up for whoever killed their son.
KENNETH JOHNSON, KENDRICK JOHNSON'S FATHER: I believe, indeed, that he was murdered.
WOLF BLITZER, HOST, CNN'S "THE SITUATION ROOM": Do you have any idea who may have murdered him?
JOHNSON: No, I don't. That's what we wanted to get the truth.
BLACKWELL: CNN has been reporting on this case for months, uncovering details of the sheriff's investigation. Like why these shoes found yards from Kendrick's body were not collected as evidence and how this blood stain got on this wall in the gym and why investigators never found whose blood it was.
BLITZER: And you don't believe there was a thorough investigation by local authorities, Mr. Johnson?
JOHNSON: No, I don't.
BLACKWELL: In a statement to CNN the attorney for the Lawns County Sheriff's Office writes in part, "While Sheriff Prine has every confidence that his officer's investigation was handled with the necessary diligence to assure that all leaders were examined and exhausted, he welcomes the U.S. attorney's further review of the case."
On Wednesday, a judge ordered Lowndes County Sheriff's Office to hand over its full investigative file including never before seen surveillance video from inside the gym where Kendrick died.
ENGLISH: We have to continue to fight on until justice is done for K.J.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BLACKWELL: We know the FBI's going into Valdosta.
So, joining me to talk about this, former FBI special agent Harold Copus.
Let's start with what this investigation will look like. Good to have you on this story. We've been talking about this for months.
When FBI agents go in, what are they doing?
HAROLD COPUS, FORMER FBI SPECIAL AGENT: Well, basically, when they go back, it's like a cold case. They have to go back, reconstruct the case from beginning to end. And that means re-interview, looking at the evidence, brand-new case.
BLACKWELL: So, they're not relying on evidence compiled, they're starting fresh?
COPUS: They're starting fresh. They will review the file but they're starting fresh.
BLACKWELL: OK. Now, we've had conversations about the agents themselves, right? Your concern about is a conflict of interest. Talk about that.
COPUS: Well, what happens when you're in the small office such as Valdosta, the agents have to be close to local law enforcement, so much so, the other side, if they were ever a criminal indictment will say, hey, there's a conflict. You have to eliminate that. And what's going to happen and should happen is that agents will be brought in from some place else, out of FBI headquarters, some place like this to do the investigation.
BLACKWELL: So, out of D.C. or far field office?
COPUS: Correct.
BLACKWELL: Now, there are a lot of people passionate about this story who followed it online through social media, through our reporting. They should expect what, over the next few months? I mean, how long is this going to take?
COPUS: You never know. But I would tell you, practically speaking, six to eight months, before you could say this case will be wrapped up when the bureau gets involved.
BLACKWELL: And the U.S. attorney said that he's not making any more statements. We're clearly not hearing from the FBI. So this is going underground for a while.
COPUS: Totally. And it has to be when you think about it. They don't want anyone to know where they're going, what they're uncovering.
BLACKWELL: Now, they're going into this, you say, as a cold case, right? But there's so much that isn't available anymore -- those orange and black shoes.
What's your concern about the evidence that will be available?
COPUS: That's the biggest compromise now to this case. You and I have talked everything times. We know there's evidence out there that no longer exists. That hampers the case. Almost could derail the case, quite frankly, if you were trying to make a criminal indictment.
BLACKWELL: So, one other thing when we talk about evidence, we've uncovered that Kendrick's organs are missing. There was the initial autopsy from the state. The second autopsy from the family's pathologist.
Should we expect a third autopsy from the FBI lab?
COPUS: If I were leading that case, that's one of the first things I'd have to say. I've got two, one that I questioned. Then, the family one. Let's bring in the FBI. And let's have the lab men do their own work.
BLACKWELL: So, Kendrick could be exhumed for a second time?
COPUS: All right. Harold Copus, we'll continue this conversation, giving us a look inside what this investigation of the death will turn out to be.
Alison, back to you.
KOSIK: Thanks, Victor.
We are learning more about the shooting at Los Angeles International Airport. But a shooting like that could happen at any airport. After the break, a security expert lays out a plan of action for you in case you ever get caught at a shooting in an airport.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BLACKWELL: Eleven minutes until the top of the hour.
A live look at LAX. It's 4:49 on the West Coast.
Terminal 3 there at the airport, still closed down after yesterday's shooting rampage that ended with the death of one TSA officer.
KOSIK: And things slowly getting back to normal there.
You know the shooting at Los Angeles international it's putting a harsh spotlight on airport security. For one thing, police carry guns at airports but TSA officers don't. A law enforcement source tells CNN armed police officers were stationed at TSA checkpoints at LAX earlier in the year, but now they roam the terminals.
So let's talk to Ken Robinson joining us on Skype from Washington. He is terrorism and national security analyst and a former military intelligence officer.
So, let me start with this question, ken. You know, do you think it was a big mistake to move these armed police officers away from these TSA checkpoints, just have them roam?
KEN ROBINSON, TERRORISM AND NATIONAL SECURITY ANALYST: I think it's a mistake not to maintain someone who as a weapon and who is armed at that checkpoint who can always be qualified in that weapon. Otherwise, it's not a checkpoint. It's simply a pass through. It's a speed bump.
You must be someone prepared to deal with this type of an incident on a post standing by.
KOSIK: So what changes do you think would be put into place? I mean, do you think that the change would be put into place to have police officers nearby again? And would that even help? ROBINSON: I think it would. There are so many things wrong with how we do security in the United States. It has to do with the perceptions of how much will the civilian flying public tolerate. And look at it as an inconvenience.
If you look at other countries who do this very well and have no security problems, it's because their population supports them and there's a cultural contract between the government and that population that says things are done for our safety and therefore we support them. We don't really do that here in the U.S.
KOSIK: Are you referring --
ROBINSON: There's no concentric circles of security.
KOSIK: Are you referring to Israel?
ROBINSON: I am referring to Israel and other nations who take a report of zero -- they draw the line at zero in terms of security. They establish concentric circles of security.
It's unimaginable for someone to make it that far in an Israeli airport. I've travelled in the Middle East, and through Israel many times. And it just wouldn't happen and it wouldn't happen because their professionals are organized differently.
They're on alert. They're physically looking at every passenger that's coming to them. There are a lot of words that are used like profiling, and it's been made into a politically unacceptable word in our dialogue. But notice I didn't say the word "racial", I said the word "profiling".
And one of the things that Israelis do is profile human behavior. And they do that by interviewing every passenger. They do that requiring people to show up, up front three hours early.
And they interact with these people. They talk to them. They look at them. And they search their bags, everyone's bag get searched.
KOSIK: OK, I have to ask you, Ken, what if you're caught or someone is caught in a situation like what happened at LAX at a shooting, what do you do when you're inside the airport?
ROBINSON: When you go to the airport, maintain your situational awareness. Don't be shocked. Recognize that this is a new reality in all public venues. So stay alert.
Once the incident occurs, the first thing you want to do is separate yourself from the incident. You want to look for what is the safest route away from wherever the shooting is occurring. Sometimes that safest route could be in a direction that you wouldn't think normally possible. You must be decisive and you must act.
So, you separate yourself from your area and also, you should separate yourself from your luggage. Most people are holding on to their luggage and that slows things down and preventing people from getting through those doors. Your luggage is safe. Trust me, it's now a crime scene.
And the next thing you should do is trust your instincts and they're going to kick in faster than you can think about it. Remember, most people are traveling potentially with children. And so whatever decision you're making has to go for a whole group of people that you have to then corral. You must be decisive and articulate and get everyone around you to move. Many people are freeze in place and that's the kiss of death.
KOSIK: OK. Terrorism --
ROBINSON: You need to look for every exit as possible. Some of these exits are marked --
KOSIK: I'm sorry. We've run out of time. But thank you very much, Ken Robinson.
ROBINSON: You're welcome.
KOSIK: And we're going to be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KOSIK: And here we go. Boston's Fenway Park, what are they getting ready for, Victor? What are they getting ready for?
BLACKWELL: They're getting for the big celebration. There's a parade coming up starting at 10:00 a.m. Eastern to celebrate the Boston Red Sox World Series title.
KOSIK: In just a few hours. The stadium, streets will be packed. Screaming Red Sox fans celebrating their unforgettable World Series championship.
BLACKWELL: Of course, this is about something bigger than just baseball, of course.
KOSIK: It is.
BLACKWELL: This is also a celebration for the city of Boston after the April 15th bombing that ended with several deaths. And we know that this parade today is going to go by the marathon route, the pause for a moment out of respect. Not just Boston fans celebrating today, also the entire country celebrating with boston.
KOSIK: Yes, and our very own Rachel Nichols was able to watch r catch up with Red Sox pitching star Jon Lester.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
RACHEL NICHOLS, HOST, "UNGUARDED": Every year, someone wins the World Series. But this year, it felt like a whole city won it. And that's not just because this is Boston, a place where everyone's thrilled if a baby's first word is sox.
But because in the wake of the horrific Boston marathon bombings that literally rip the city apart, it was the Red Sox who gave something to rally around, gave the place to gather and cheer and hug.
This season, Fenway wasn't just a ballpark. It was a grassy green runway for the wounded to strut, some on their prosthetic legs and show the world that they might have been knocked down, but they weren't knocked out.
I spoke to Red Sox ace Jon Lester, the day after the teen won the World Series, and he explained just how the survivors had become the team's inspiration.
JON LESTER, PITCHER, BOSTON RED SOX: I think it kind of -- it motivates you a little bit as far as the days that you're kind of struggling. I know you have days where you go out and pitch and you feel lethargic or whatever. It's the grind of the season.
And I think when you're walking in from the bullpen and those guys are coming by, it's like, OK, it doesn't matter. I've got to find a way. These guys are in wheelchairs right now. I mean, they've lived half their live walking, and all the sudden in one day, in one second, they're in a wheelchair. And that goes back to the -- it doesn't matter how I feel. I need to go out and compete for these guys.
NICHOLS: You know, the words "Boston Strong" were etched on at the centerfield at Fenway for a reason. It's not just a slogan, it's the heart -- well, the center of how this community chose to define itself in the wake of the bombings. They're not victims, they're survivors. The fans, the players, the city, they all felt like they won the World Series together, and they're celebrating now, big time.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
