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Rick's List
AZ Rancher Faces Border Issues; Where Is Gulf Oil?; Terror Fears; Brett Favre to Minnesota?; Blagojevich Jury Having Trouble Agreeing on Counts
Aired August 17, 2010 - 15:58 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
RICK SANCHEZ, CNN ANCHOR: Welcome back. I'm Rick Sanchez.
Topping our immigration list on this day, Arizona's controversial new immigration law that you've heard so much about. Just this past weekend Tea Party activists held a rally at the U.S./Mexico border. They were showing their support for tougher immigration laws and demanding more action from the federal government.
Among the speakers Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio, who is known for his very strong stance on illegal immigrants, has said as much here on this show. Also, a rancher who says traffickers and drug cartels are using his property, and he says he has proof.
Here's the story now. Our affiliate is KNXV.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JIM CHILTON, RANCHER: All we cowboys are armed out here. We run into a problem, we're going to be a cowboy and not a wimp.
RUDABEH SHAHBAZI, KNXV REPORTER (voice-over): Jim Chilton spends his day on horseback, tending to his cattle on this 50,000 acre ranch that stretches to the border, and he says he's not the only one navigating this rough terrain.
CHILTON: You can assume that all of these mountains have cartel scouts on them.
SHAHBAZI: This cowboy estimates 20,000 to 30,000 illegal immigrants cross through his ranch every year and he says he fears for his life, suspecting illegal immigrants murdered his friend earlier this year.
CHILTON: We're getting real concerned now because the tables have turned. It used to it was a coyote bringing people through, and now the drug cartels have taken over the people moving business.
SHAHBAZI (on camera): How do you know who is safe and unsafe?
CHILTON: You don't.
SHAHBAZI (voice-over): Chilton is pushing for more border security and says SB1070 is good legislation. He allows Border Patrol on his land and lets them put up surveillance stations, and 1,200 more National Guard troops have been mobilized to assist at the border, but Chilton says that's laughable.
CHILTON: We need 12,000 National Guardsmen, not 1,200, 300 in Arizona.
SHAHBAZI: Both humanitarian aid groups and Border Patrol say migrants are taking more risks on increasingly dangerous territory to avoid getting caught, territory like this.
CHILTON: Both druggers and illegal immigrants come along here.
SHAHBAZI (on camera): It's not an easy route.
CHILTON: Nothing is easy. The whole border is this way. And that's why I think the Border Patrol would rather try to catch people down along the road rather than set up their posts out near the border.
SHAHBAZI (voice-over): You can see the path made by the immigrants who cross through and the garbage they leave behind.
CHILTON: I have learned how to ride in garbage. That's all.
SHAHBAZI: But litter is the least of Chilton's worries. He's always heavily armed because he has no idea who is coming over these mountains.
CHILTON: Guys with big packs on their backs, usually 20 to 40, and a guy out in front with an AK-47 rifle. And the first thing I try to do is try and escape. But if I was caught, I would fall off my horse and go to shooting. I want to get him before he gets me.
SHAHBAZI (on camera): Does that make you uncomfortable that you have to avoid areas on the land that you own?
CHILTON: Absolutely. Doesn't it make you uncomfortable to think a burglar might come into your house? Yes. It's outrageous.
SHAHBAZI: No matter who they are, Chilton says he doesn't want people dying on his ranch. That's why he engineered these drinking fountains throughout the deserts.
CHILTON: With 80 percent of the people are coming across just good people looking for work. It's illegal, but I want to make sure that they can get water, water if they need it. Like this. It's good water.
SHAHBAZI: Thirst isn't the only obstacle. The land is so rough we couldn't even get off our horses to shoot video of the paths the immigrants travel on. Border Patrol say coyotes rarely prepared for the challenges they face.
CHILTON: Look, somebody right out of their tennis shoes. How do you think he felt walking the rest of the way without the sole on his shoe? He paid a horrible price.
SHAHBAZI: Women often take birth control before making the trip expected to be raped by human traffickers.
CHILTON: It looks like a lady's bra. It's unfortunately, but she either was changing her clothes here or somebody ripped it off of her.
SHAHBAZI: From this border rancher's perspective, the immigration solution is for Americans to stop the demand for drugs, to stop hiring illegal immigrants, economic recovery in Mexico, troops and technology to seal off the border, and most of all, reform.
CHILTON: We need a legal system to bring good people into this country.
SHAHBAZI: But whatever direction the political winds blow, he knows one thing is true.
CHILTON: This is my home. I'm here, I'm here to stay, I'm not running. And though we run great risk out here, I am going to survive.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SANCHEZ: It is that time when we welcome the troops who are watching us from all over the world on Armed Forces Network. We're glad you're here.
Here's your national conversation.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SANCHEZ (voice-over): Here's what's making the LIST on this day.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We're adding to the puzzle.
SANCHEZ: Where is the spilled oil in the Gulf? A special report indicating these experts have found it.
After eight-and-a-half years in Gitmo, he is out. What's the back-story?
And waiting to be rescued. There they are on the wing as the plane goes under.
The lists you need to know about. Who's today's most intriguing? Who's landed on the list you don't want to be on? Who's making news on Twitter? It's why I keep a list.
Pioneering tomorrow's cutting-edge news right now.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SANCHEZ: Hey, everybody. I'm Rick Sanchez. Welcome back.
You know that on this newscast, we have been trying to drill down for the better part of a month on what exactly is going on in the Gulf of Mexico. I mean, where is the oil that everyone has been talking about? Oil from the Gulf disaster may have settled, we learned today, further east than we were originally told.
In fact, this is exclusive information that we have dug up. It has turned up at the bottom of the Gulf all the way up near the Florida Panhandle, and the levels that were found toxic to marine life. All of this is the conclusion of researchers at the University of South Florida.
So, Ed Lavandera is our correspondent. He's in Saint Petersburg, Florida. And he's all over the story.
But -- but, before I get to him, there's another story that's developing out in the Gulf. Efforts to permanently try and plug the ruptured well have been delayed again. You remember static kill, right? Well, static kill seemed to work, and then they were going to do the relief well, which would be, what, the bottom kill, Chad?
CHAD MYERS, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Bottom kill.
SANCHEZ: Bottom kill.
Now, apparently, I kind of thought bottom kill would just about be done by now, but it doesn't look like they are going to have this done.
MYERS: It's --
(LAUGHTER)
MYERS: There's so much going on here. What they believe has happened is when they pumped this cement down from the top of the well, from the casing, from the top kill --
SANCHEZ: Right. Right.
MYERS: -- a little too much may have gone in. If a little bit too much went in, now there may be a seal between which would be the -- well, outside of the wellbore and where the casing is.
SANCHEZ: Interesting.
MYERS: If there's a seal there in cement, then when they drill in up here and try to pump mud in, that seal would stop the mud from going where they want it. It would stop cement from going where they want it and make more pressure to try to blow the top of the well off again from the --
SANCHEZ: Well, you know what's interesting.
(CROSSTALK)
MYERS: You know what this word annulus is? Have you heard this word?
(CROSSTALK)
SANCHEZ: I don't. (LAUGHTER)
MYERS: OK.
SANCHEZ: I wish I did.
(LAUGHTER)
MYERS: Can I go over here and draw?
SANCHEZ: Go. Go.
MYERS: OK.
SANCHEZ: All right. Go.
(CROSSTALK)
SANCHEZ: Annulus, right?
MYERS: Right. It is the space between where the wellbore would have been -- let me try to find something I can draw on here. It's the space between where the wellbore drilled down. Let's say it's almost 36 inches.
SANCHEZ: Right.
MYERS: To where the metal casing is in the middle, only eight inches around. So there's gaps on both sides of where the oil would come out. The oil would go this way. This could be filled with anything, seawater, mud, gas, anything.
So, what they believe happened -- let's just go ahead and we will redraw this for you. We will go back and redraw the whole bottom. Here's the pipe that came down. They pumped mud down here. And what they were going to do is drill in from here and make sure that they filled in this with cement as well all the way around it.
Well, what they believe happened is that -- I'm going to make it a different color -- when the cement came down, it not only filled up the pipe like they wanted, but it may have actually filled all the way up to the outside of the pipe as well. Therefore, when they tried to put more mud and cement down into the bottom of the well to kill -- the bottom kill, the bottom kill down here, that the oil would never get down here, the mud would never get down here, and neither would the cement. And they could pump it up into this gap.
Think of gap as the annulus. It's the gap inside a pipe inside a pipe. Well, the outside pipe is just a hole. So, it's the pipe inside the hole. And the outside of the pipe, inside of the hole is where they wanted to put that mud, where they want to put the new cement. And because there may be cement in the way, they think that if they just keep pressurizing this well by putting more mud in, by putting more cement in, that the blowout preventer up on top may be in danger of getting blown out.
So, they have to check it out first before they know what to do next.
SANCHEZ: You draw well.
MYERS: On that thing over there.
(CROSSTALK)
SANCHEZ: I'm going to invite you over to my house.
(LAUGHTER)
SANCHEZ: My daughter would love that, by the way.
MYERS: You know.
SANCHEZ: I'm going to let you hang out at the house drawing like I do on weekends.
MYERS: John Madden e-mails me all the time, wants to use it.
(LAUGHTER)
SANCHEZ: All right. There's another part to this story now.
MYERS: Yes, yes, yes.
SANCHEZ: I want to bring Ed Lavandera into this, because Ed -- and we mentioned this just a little while ago -- Ed has been working with some scientists. And you -- you and I have had this conversation, Chad. Where's the oil?
MYERS: Right.
SANCHEZ: We heard all these reports about all this oil is there and then BP comes out and says, well, we actually collected most of it. We can't find the rest. We have got ships looking for it.
(CROSSTALK)
MYERS: -- not most of it. They said they got 26 percent.
SANCHEZ: No, but they had said that there wasn't a lot of oil up on top.
MYERS: Correct.
(CROSSTALK)
SANCHEZ: And -- and they were actually looking for it.
(CROSSTALK)
SANCHEZ: They had more skimmers than they could use at the time.
Ed, you have talked to scientists who are saying that they have found some of this oil and it's in places where we wouldn't have expected to find it, right? Take us through this.
ED LAVANDERA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, it's not only in places where perhaps would you expect to see it, but it's really in such small droplets and dispersed so much that it is almost invisible to the naked eye.
That's the problem. So, these scientists, University of South Florida, a group of about 14 scientists spent about 10 days out on the Gulf waters. They -- they went through an area that's northeast of where the Deepwater Horizon spill site is. And -- and they -- essentially, if you draw a line diagonally down from about 40 miles south of Panama City, and you kind of cut toward the southwest and then go straight up under -- underneath Mississippi, that kind of gives you a sense of -- of where they have been searching.
Along the way, a -- they found a couple of different things. Number one, in many of the places, widespread, they found microscopic droplets of oil on the floor of the Gulf of Mexico. They had sent these machines down there. They were able to pick up samples of the sentiment down there.
And when they lit it up with U.V. ray, U.V. rays, it just lit up, almost like a consolation of stars in the sediment.
SANCHEZ: Hmm.
LAVANDERA: That says to them that there's oil down there.
The other finding, which is perhaps more disturbing about the long-term impacts of this oil spill, is the toxicity levels. And they say, for the first time, their own scientists have found toxic levels affecting the very, very small, microscopic marine organisms, which are the basis of the food chain. So, they don't have any answers as to exactly how this will play out and what the future impact will be, but they say that this is very troubling, because as so go these organisms, these small organisms, so goes most of the ocean life there in the Gulf of Mexico.
SANCHEZ: But, you know, the -- the -- the obvious question -- and, you know, I don't know if you got a chance to ask these guys about this -- Chad and I, you -- you -- we have had this discussion, and just an -- just an obvious, curious question.
If there's that much oil as they say and if the oil is as toxic as they say, why aren't we seeing massive fish kills? Why aren't we seeing a lot of, you know, dead animals at this point, you know, marine life, obviously, washing up from the shores of Florida all the way up to the Mississippi?
Is it -- is there -- is there any explanation? And I know we're -- we're also looking at the possibility we might see some of this stuff in the future, but why not yet?
LAVANDERA: Well, I think the best way to kind of answer that, Rick -- and we get to that in talking to them. But the way they describe it, for example, where this marine life that's affected, essentially, this is phytoplankton. This is microscopic. This is what small plankton eats.
And it's three or four steps removed from the fish that we like to eat --
SANCHEZ: Huh.
LAVANDERA: -- the shrimp and that sort of thing.
SANCHEZ: The food chain, yes.
LAVANDERA: So, it takes time. They are also going to be studying over the next couple of weeks exactly what kind of damage, DNA damage, genetic damage, is done to this marine -- and this is microscopic marine life.
And the way they say that that might manifest itself down the road is that for example that might create a tumor in a -- in a snapper fish. And then what happens over the course of -- or over the next few years is the snapper population potentially dwindles. We don't know if that's going to happen. They say this is potentially one of the things that they -- that needs to be studied could happen, so that is how we will see itself kind of potentially manifest itself over the next few years.
(CROSSTALK)
LAVANDERA: It's not that all of a sudden millions of fish are going to float to the surface of the water and they're all dead. They say that this will take some time.
MYERS: Right.
SANCHEZ: They will just have to wait and --
MYERS: Sure.
SANCHEZ: -- see what happens.
MYERS: What does dead plankton look like?
SANCHEZ: Green algae or something? I don't know.
MYERS: What does a live plankton look like, Ed?
(CROSSTALK)
(LAUGHTER)
SANCHEZ: I mean, it's so tiny that it's -- you know, we see these pictures of whale sharks, for example, as big as they are.
(CROSSTALK)
LAVANDERA: This phytoplankton that they're talking about.
SANCHEZ: Yes. MYERS: Yes.
SANCHEZ: Go ahead.
LAVANDERA: No, I was going to say, the phytoplankton that they are talking about, I had gone into the interview with this image of kind of like this green algae kind of stuff. This is really even -- this what this -- that stuff feeds on.
So, we're talking very microscopic pieces of -- of -- of marine life. But they say that it -- it is crucial to how -- how it all functions down there in the Gulf waters.
SANCHEZ: Well, we will just have to wait and see and we are surely going to be following it for you. My thanks to you, Ed, and a well you, Chad.
MYERS: Of course.
SANCHEZ: If a detainee leaves Guantanamo Bay, will he become a terrorist? I mean, this is an urgent question, because a judge has just released a guy who has been in Gitmo for almost nine years. So, you figure, if he was there for nine years, he must have done something, right? What did he do? Why is he out? Is he dangerous? What are the circumstances of his release? These are questions we want to ask for you. And we will.
Also, several years ago, somebody found a box of tapes under a desk at the CIA. And now we're learning that the guy on those tapes is one of the confessed masterminds behind the September 11 attacks.
So, what did he do? That's next right here on the LIST. Stay with us. I'm Rick Sanchez.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SANCHEZ: Hey, welcome back. Before we do anything else, I need to bring something to your attention.
We have just been told that there's been movement in the Rod Blagojevich case in Illinois. Apparently, his lawyers have just arrived at the courthouse. Have we got that picture, Rog? See if we can put some of that up. All right, there's his lawyers arriving now. This is the video of Blagojevich earlier in the day.
And let me tell you why this is interesting. You know, it -- it's almost sounded throughout the last couple of days like the jury is somewhat hung up on what they're going to do in this case. Today, they sent two questions to the judge, one of them asking, well, what exactly were we instructed to do, for example, when you said that we solemnly swear that you will and well and try true deliverance make in this case of -- in this trial?
In other words, when we said we had to come up with something, that -- what did that mean is the question. They also just sent back a question say -- saying -- and I will read the question to you -- "If we do not reach a consensus of a specific count, do we leave it blank or do we report the votes split?"
So, this is interesting, what -- they are sending back questions. It sounded like there might be a decision soon, and now we're being told -- and this just -- my producer was telling me just as we were in a commercial that his lawyers have just shown up in the courtroom. Is something about to happen? We think it might be. So, stand by, because, as soon as this happens, we're going to bring it -- OK, these are live pictures now. These are live pictures from the courthouse.
You can see where the folks walk through. If we see any movement there from either the defense or -- or Blagojevich's side here -- Blagojevich would be the defense -- or the state -- pardon me -- we will immediately bring that to you.
Something else we do about this time every day is because we -- is -- we have a list on the air, I bring you my roundup list.
Number one today on the roundup list, the man accused in the 9/11 attacks has been identified as a suspect on interrogation tapes discovered under a desk at the CIA in 2007. A government source tells CNN that Ramzi Binalshibh is seen sitting and answering questions on camera. The tapes do not show any use of enhanced interrogation techniques like water-boarding.
Here's number two. In Baghdad, 48 people are dead and dozens are wounded. Yes, it's happened again. A suicide bomber detonated outside an Iraqi army recruitment center. The new recruits were lined up outside the building when suddenly the explosive went off. The attack comes as U.S. troops draw down ahead of President Obama's August 31 deadline for ending combat operations in Iraq.
Number three, an alleged shooter is dead after a standoff near a college in McKinney, Texas. Officials say that a man drove a pickup truck filled with ammunition to the police department. Somehow, that truck became engulfed in flames, and that's when the man began yelling and opened fire. Officers fired back. The man died. Not known whether the officers shot him or if he killed himself.
Now, take a look at this. Imagine being held for nearly a decade in one of the world's most controversial prisons, and then -- we're talking about Gitmo -- and then being released for a lack of evidence. Now, this just happened to a detainee in Guantanamo. Who is -- who is this guy? And, really, what's the back-story here? How does this happen? I'm going to be asking those questions of a "Miami Herald" correspondent.
That's next right here on the LIST.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SANCHEZ: Hey, welcome back. I'm Rick Sanchez.
He's been held in Gitmo for nearly nine years, and now he's getting out. I'm talking about Adnan Farhan Abd Al Latif. He's a Yemeni who was captured the Afghan/Pakistan border in 2001. So, we're wondering, if he's been there so long, didn't he have to have done something? Who is this guy? Why is he getting out? Is he dangerous? We want to answer those to those questions.
Here to help us figure this out Carol Rosenberg. She is a Gitmo correspondent for "The Miami Herald," the newspaper that I grew up reading up as a kid, the land of, let's see, Carl Hiaasen, Ed Pope (ph), Dave Barry, just to name a few, and now Carol.
Carol, thanks so much for joining us.
What say you about this guy? I mean, if he was there that much, that long, didn't he have to have done something?
CAROL ROSENBERG, GUANTANAMO BAY CORRESPONDENT, "THE MIAMI HERALD": Well, Mr. Adnan Abdul Latif arrived at Guantanamo in January of 2002. And his lawyer describes him as one of the most stricken, despairing, suicide-prone of the Guantanamo detainees.
He's been saying all along that he was in Afghanistan and Pakistan to get Muslim charity medical treatment because as a teenager he had suffered a head wound in a car crash in his native Yemen.
Now, the Pentagon says that he was training with al Qaeda and that he fought with the Taliban. And what happened yesterday is, Judge Henry Kennedy's ruling was released saying, send this man home. The Pentagon has no evidence to back up that claim.
SANCHEZ: You know, one of the problems with these kinds of stories is -- and tell me if I'm wrong, but I have read in the past that, oftentimes, even guys like this, who our government is now telling us may not be a terrorist, because they were in there so long, they worry about that, when they get out, they will be terrorized, they will become terrorist, they will be militarized somehow to do what maybe they even were not before. Is there a fear of that with a fellow like this?
ROSENBERG: Well, I can't speak to this specific fellow. His attorney says he just wants to get out of there. But I can tell you that there is a concern on the part of the American government that we have held innocent people so long -- that if we have held innocent people so long, they may be very angry at us.
And so the concern is there have been some 38 people in Guantanamo who have been ordered released by the judges. They never should have been there in the first place, the federal judges say. And you have a valid question. How angry are they at us?
SANCHEZ: Well, what are the details about his release? Because he's not out yet, but is it a done deal? Is this a slam dunk? Is he going to be getting out?
ROSENBERG: Well, that's not clear at all.
First of all, he's from Yemen. And the U.S. government is still negotiating with the government of Yemen to return detainees that -- the prisoners that the -- that the U.S. government doesn't want at Guantanamo. They would like to send some people home. And they want reassurances from Yemen or assurances from Yemen that they're going to have a rehabilitation project --
SANCHEZ: Hmm.
ROSENBERG: -- and let people -- and keep an eye on these people, and so that the diplomacy hasn't worked so far.
And then the second part of this is, though Judge Kennedy ordered his release on July 21, the Justice Department is still looking at the case and deciding whether to appeal to a higher court and say, this judge got it wrong when he said there was insufficient evidence and that there was no proof in the Pentagon's argument that he was with al Qaeda or the Taliban.
SANCHEZ: What a story --
ROSENBERG: Rick.
SANCHEZ: -- one that -- you know, this -- this is the kind of stuff that so many Americans are curious about as -- as -- as we deal with situations like this.
Carol, good job -- Carol Rosenberg following that story with us there.
She's a correspondent with "The Miami Herald" on the Gitmo beat, as we say in South Florida.
(LAUGHTER)
SANCHEZ: Thank you, Carol.
Do you remember the story that we brought to you yesterday, video of an officer seen beating a guy talking on the phone? Well, guess what? The feds are now involved in this story. You remember the pictures, right? I am going to take you back through that.
Also, don't forget to head to my blog, CNN.com/ricksanchez. Every day, when we get into work, looking a little tired at times, especially doing three shows these days, we create this newscast for you, and we take a camera and we shoot it. And we put it out there for you. It's called "Behind the List."
Here is just a little bit.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SANCHEZ: I mean, this -- this -- you can't imagine that anything could be more horrible than that. So, I want to show -- I want to show you something.
According to the Anthropological Association, about 200 women kill their children in the United States.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SANCHEZ: OK. I'm being told all kinds of interesting stories about something in the sports world that everybody in this country seems to be following. It has to do with quarterback Brett Favre. Stand by for news. We're drilling down on this as we speak. Even Chad Myers just came to me a little while ago and said that he's got some potential scooch here on what's going on with Brett Favre.
There's some reports coming out of Hattiesburg, Mississippi. There's also information on Twitter boards. There's a -- there's a possible blog entry that might be leading somebody --
(LAUGHTER)
SANCHEZ: As you all know -- and I don't need to tell you this -- this Brett Favre story has -- has had more twists and turns than just about any drama that we have ever seen. So, before we jump to any conclusions, let me just say, stand by. We will let our folks in the back room put everything together for you, and then we will -- we will let you know what's going on.
Now, to the Twitter board we do go on some of the reaction that we have been getting so far on the stories that we have brought you today. And a lot of people have been tweeting on this day, people who are important to the news, on what's going on with the mosque or the community center at Ground Zero.
Here's Tim Pawlenty. Tim Pawlenty, as you know, also a frequent guest on this newscast, is the governor of Minnesota. "To improve USA's relations with peaceful Muslims, Obama should tout our relief efforts in Pakistan floods, not defend Ground Zero mosque."
So, the argument continues, as you can see, around the country.
Now, do we have anything on Favre? No, you know what? Let's wait. You -- we can wait a little bit longer. Let's see if we get this nailed down.
Let's do this. Do you sometimes miss June Cleaver?
(LAUGHTER)
SANCHEZ: How about Carol Brady, for example?
(LAUGHTER)
SANCHEZ: Hey, then there's the Monkees.
A mother in Florida is now facing charges after she took a picture of her baby holding a bong -- a bong -- yes, a baby with a bong. I'm calling her out, as I imagine you would expect we would. That's ahead.
And then a pilot is forced to make a second -- a split-second decision after power goes out on his plane. We are going to tell you what he did. Unbelievable pictures, by the way. That's coming up in "Fotos." (COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SANCHEZ: We've got two developing stories with two men with strange last names.
Brett Favre, or as they called him in the movie, "Favre," apparently -- let's just say there's some movement on the story. Chad is following part of the story for us as only he can.
There's also information coming out of Hattiesburg, Mississippi, which, as you know, is the area where Brett Favre resides. And we're going to bring you that in a little bit.
Speaking of the other person with an interesting last name, Rod Blagojevich in the news as well. These are some of the pictures of Governor Blagojevich earlier in the day, where he was showing up for his trial where we expect the jury to come back with some kind of decision.
The question is, we don't know what that decision is because the jury seems to be confused, possibly deadlocked. We don't know. They have been asking -- here's a live picture now of the actual courthouse.
The jury has been asking the judge on several occasions for questions about what it is that they're supposed to do if they still aren't sure on some of the counts or possibly all of the counts. And I know if that sounds vague, that's because it is at this point.
We really are only going to know when the jury comes back or when one of the judges or a court official tells us. And at this point, as you know with jury deliberations, everything is very hush-hush and very respected.
So, we'll just leave it at that, and if there's any movement, we'll let you know.
This I can tell you, and this might be salient to the story. Blago's attorneys, Blagojevich's attorneys -- pardon me -- showed up at the courtroom just a little while ago. We don't know what the significance of that is, but most likely it has something to do with a call from the judge.
Now this -- as Ringo Starr famously said, "I get by with a little help from my friends." Right? Truer words never spoken.
Here's "Fotos."
A convenience store clerk being robbed in Houston, clearly outmanned by the attacker until one of the store's regulars jumps over the counter and comes to his aid. Police arrive soon after and they take the alleged robber into custody.
Now this -- the pilot of a small plane forced to make a water landing in Lake Erie after the plane loses power and hits the water about 100 feet from this ferry that was in the area. The pilot and three passengers were thrown life vests and they're pulled onto the boat just as the plane they were on begins to sink. Imagine that.
Also, new meaning to the phrase "holy roller." This is no doubt the foto of the day.
This Roman Catholic priest in Hungary has become an Internet sensation for his skateboarding skills, but he's not just showing off. The priest says that after showing kids a few tricks, many youngsters who never attended church before have suddenly started showing up for mass.
You go, Padre.
That's "Fotos," which you can also see for yourself on my blog at CNN.com/ricksanchez -- you got to love this guy.
Coming up, a bitter custody battle in New York City. What makes this case interesting, the dad loses custody of the kids -- to Skype? I'm not kidding.
Brooke Baldwin, I see her walking in right now as we speak.
BALDWIN: I'm running.
SANCHEZ: She's making her way on over.
That's an interesting story. Can't wait to hear more about it.
And then there's Brett Favre.
BALDWIN: Brett Favre, I know.
SANCHEZ: Brett Favre back in the news.
BALDWIN: Headed on a plane. What's he going to do?
SANCHEZ: Is he re-unretiring (ph) once again?
BALDWIN: What do we think?
SANCHEZ: We'll find out.
Stay there. We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SANCHEZ: OK. Here we go. It takes the three of us to bring you this story.
Talk about a trender. I mean, this Brett Favre thing is crazy, and it makes some people angry that they keep going back and forth on this.
But regardless of that, we're here to bring you the information as we know it. So let's start with the information that we're getting from one of our affiliates. This is in Hattiesburg, Mississippi.
BALDWIN: Mississippi.
SANCHEZ: Are you all ready for this --
BALDWIN: Go.
SANCHEZ: -- as they say in Mississippi?
This is affiliate WDAM in Hattiesburg. And they're saying that Favre left Hattiesburg, Mississippi, this afternoon, taking off from Pine Belt Regional Airport at 1:15 Tuesday, headed for Minnesota. The trip follows reports that three prominent Viking players were absent from practice Tuesday morning, traveling to Favre's hometown to try to convince him to return home for one more year.
Now, this is also followed now -- you guys ready for this? "The Minneapolis Star Tribune" is now reporting that they have confirmed that kicker and longtime Favre pal Ryan Longwell, all-pro Steven Hutchinson, and Jared Allen -- great football players, by the way -- were all absent from the Vikings practice on Tuesday. So something is going on.
One more thing. We called the Vikings. They say right now, "No comment."
I know you're going to take us through some tweets on this. And I know that they are coming in now.
But before I go to you, can we bring Chad in?
BALDWIN: Sure.
SANCHEZ: Because he's got this really cool thing where he can -- what's his Flight Tracker?
CHAD MYERS, AMS METEOROLOGIST: I have a landing plane. I like to be the guy that just kind of makes everybody go, "Ooh," right?
I have a blocked jet. It says "blocked." It should say the tail number there, but they don't want to know who it is.
It left Hattiesburg. It's landing in Flying Cloud, Minneapolis. It's doing 75 knots so it is landing right now. So they left Hattiesburg. They are landing in Minneapolis.
You think Brett just forgot some stuff?
SANCHEZ: This is interesting. And again, tell our viewers what that is. We don't know that's his plane, right?
MYERS: Oh, OK. We know that he -- we don't know that he's on it. That's all I can't prove.
But the plane left Hattiesburg where he was coming from and where he's been spotted, right all the way down there. And now landing up here, PIB, Hattiesburg, all the way up to Flying Cloud, Minneapolis, out near Eden Prairie. So not Minneapolis Regional Airport, not the big airport out there, but the Eden Prairie Airport where that jet always goes down.
SANCHEZ: This is where they practice, right. It's not far from where they actually practice.
MYERS: There you go.
SANCHEZ: And now --
MYERS: Thought I'd stir the pot a little bit for you.
SANCHEZ: Well, look, all we can do is give you information we have. You make your own decision. We're not saying that he's decided not to retire or that he's decided to come out of retirement. This is what's going on.
BALDWIN: I can't believe people follow this guy like they do.
SANCHEZ: Oh, are you kidding me?
BALDWIN: Forgive me for being the voice of, why are we -- back and forth. Does he retire? Does he not? OK. OK. OK.
Let me go to tweets. I'm told to read the tweets.
This is a tweet from Scott. He says -- just filed exclusively to NFL Network. "Brett Favre is on a jet heading north. More details soon on NFLN."
Do we have another one?
SANCHEZ: Yes, here's another one.
BALDWIN: Brett Favre took off 2:20 p.m. EST. My source says he's going back to Minnesota. Stay with NFLN for more.
SANCHEZ: Now, that's Scott Hanson, right? Well, here's Rich --
(CROSSTALK)
BALDWIN: Oh, we have another one.
SANCHEZ: Yes.
BALDWIN: "Watching on the in-house NFL Network feed: a purpose and white jet just landed in Minnesota. Now taxiing down the runway. Stay tuned."
(LAUGHTER)
SANCHEZ: Remember when they used to call the Minnesota Vikings defense of purple people eaters?
BALDWIN: Sure, I know all about that.
SANCHEZ: Oh, come on. Could you at least play along?
BALDWIN: I'm playing. I'm playing. OK.
Can we do my -- I have stories that I've been spending my day on.
SANCHEZ: Please. Start now.
BALDWIN: OK. So this first story, this is being called -- you're laughing at me. I love this.
SANCHEZ: I'm not.
BALDWIN: It's being called the first reported case of its kind in all of New York. Here's the deal.
This judge has just allowed a divorced woman to move multiple states away from her now ex-husband under one very unique condition. Here it is -- her children are required to Skype with their father.
I know you're hip. I know you know what Skype means. But if you don't, basically it's video chatting, video communication for free.
Well, the ex-wife, I should say, Debra Baker, had asked the court for permission to move from Long Island, New York, down to Florida, to live with her parents, get back on her feet. Apparently, she lost her job and her home was in foreclosure.
Well, her ex-husband who lives in Long Island said, hang on a second, no way. But a judge ruled that Debra could go if she could -- read with me -- " -- make the children available three times per week for not less than one hour per connection to communicate via Skype with their father."
The only problem here, the father's attorney told us that his client had never even heard of Skype before and didn't know what it was. They're still deciding whether they want to appeal this case. But the first scheduled Skype is this Friday morning.
SANCHEZ: That's interesting. Why Skype? I mean, wouldn't you want to see your kid in person?
BALDWIN: That was the obvious question. And according to this judge, neither side really had money.
SANCHEZ: Oh, I see.
BALDWIN: It's a tight economy right now.
SANCHEZ: Yes. No, that makes sense.
BALDWIN: So, since they couldn't exactly fly Florida to New York, it's the next best thing.
SANCHEZ: Isn't that funny how technology suddenly gets involved even in, you know, cases like this?
BALDWIN: It's amazing.
SANCHEZ: Miss Universe body paint photos. What do you have on that?
BALDWIN: OK. I filed this under the --
SANCHEZ: And I asked that with a straight face, by the way.
BALDWIN: I know. I was -- did you notice how I was watching really closely to see if you smirking.
File this one under "No Publicity is Bad Publicity."
The Miss Universe contest is being criticized for now these racy photos of the contestants using --- to promote this upcoming pageant. It's next Monday.
I want you to look at them with me. I want you to be the judge.
These are body-painted ladies. They had the choice, apparently, to wear a bikini top or just be painted.
SANCHEZ: That's painted? You mean she's not wearing anything?
BALDWIN: I believe they call them pasties, Rick Sanchez. Yes. Yes.
SANCHEZ: Oh, sorry.
BALDWIN: Can easily be found on their Web site for your little one to look at.
Miss Universe Organization is defending these pictures, saying the contestants come from more than 82 countries around the world and form cultures that embrace nudity. In fact, here's what they said specifically.
"These photos are a form of artistic expression for each contestant" -- artistic expression -- "and we respect their desire to pose topless or not. We feel the images are fashionable and cutting edge."
Keep in mind, one woman is from the U.S.
Do we embrace nudity?
SANCHEZ: No.
BALDWIN: Miss Universe Pageant is next Monday.
SANCHEZ: I mean, not compared to Europeans.
BALDWIN: I mean, look, you have a little one. I mean, why do women need to take it off to be beautiful?
SANCHEZ: They don't.
BALDWIN: They don't.
SANCHEZ: Exactly.
BALDWIN: Thank you.
SANCHEZ: I'm glad you shared that with us. And I wasn't looking at those pictures --
BALDWIN: You were looking.
SANCHEZ: -- when you were showing them. No, absolutely not. I was interested only in the issue at hand.
BALDWIN: Can I put my shoes back on now?
SANCHEZ: Stop that.
We'll be right back.
Normally moms take pictures of their kids with cute outfits on, perhaps opening birthday gifts. But how about holding a bong?
BALDWIN: What?
SANCHEZ: A bong? No, we're serious. Can you guess what list this mom is on?
We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SANCHEZ: All right. Let me show you the -- Roger, do we have the live pictures from the courthouse now? Thanks, man.
Let's take a look at this once again. We've split the screen for you. One is obviously on the outside, the other one is inside the courthouse, or where people come through. That is the screening area where security is.
This is a very high-profile case we're following right now. There's reason to believe that there might be some kind of ruling or non-ruling, decision or non-decision, verdict or non-verdict in the Rod Blagojevich case. And what's interesting about this is it sounds like the jury has been asking a lot of questions which would lead most court insiders and experts to draw from it the conclusion that there's a possibility they might not be able to come up with a verdict, at least not on all of the counts.
Now, remember, the convictions that he's facing are counts on wire fraud, racketeering, and attempted extortion, that could bring him a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison and a fine up to $250,000.
So -- all right, look, ,we'll stay with it. And as soon as we get some kind of action on this, we will bring it to you.
Meanwhile, when police have to give your baby a drug test -- if police have to give your baby a drug test -- stay with me here -- it's probably time to revisit your skills as a mother.
Here now, "The List U Don't Want 2 Be On."
Meet 19-year-old Rachel Stieringer. She apparently thought that it would be funny to take a picture of her baby holding a bong.
In fact, we have got the picture. Yes, she posted this on Facebook.
So not only does the picture make it seem like the baby is actually smoking pot, but she positioned the baby's hand to make it seem like she's holding a lighter. I mean, wow.
The picture, of course, sparked outrage. Investigators say the baby had no injuries. Drug tests came back negative.
Yes, the baby took a drug test. However, we're told the mother failed her drug test.
Florida police arrested and charged her with possession of drug paraphernalia, which is why on this day she is on "The List U Don't Want 2 Be On."
All right. Let's do this -- we understand that Rod Blagojevich has just arrived, as aforementioned, and let's see. We're looking at these live pictures.
Hey, do me a favor, Roger. Put the shot on the green screen so I can see it here in the studio. There we go.
I think we've got shots of his wife. She's going to be coming through first. All right.
That is Mrs. Blagojevich, correct? That's Mrs. Blagojevich.
And I think we will be seeing him here shortly as well walking in. What is the significance -- these are some of the attorneys. There's Rod Blagojevich now walking in as well with some of his legal counsel. He's being wanded there, as they say now, to make sure he doesn't have any metal on him going through the metal detectors.
Rod Blagojevich, as you probably know, is facing counts on wire fraud, racketeering, attempted extortion. That could bring him a maximum sentence of 20 years, a fine of up to $250,000.
While a conviction on the count of solicitation of bribery would carry a maximum sentence of 10 years and also a fine of $250,000, the maximum penalty for bribery, conspiracy and false statements is five years in prison. So, I mean, the charges, as we know are, all over the place.
All right. Hold on. Now to the Brett Favre story.
We've got an SUV in Minneapolis said to contain Brett Favre. So, for those of you who don't generally follow sports stories, let me bring you a little bit up to date on why this is such an interesting story.
Brett Favre is an all-pro quarterback. On many occasions, he had retired and came out of retirement, and played football for the New York Jets. Announced before that that he was retiring from the Green Bay Packers. Then retired again and returned to the Minnesota Vikings.
And now he has indicated that because his ankle is so terribly hurt from the season last year, that he would most likely retire. So the Vikings have been practicing without him. Instead, they've been using their other quarterback.
Now it appears that Brett Favre is returning to Minnesota. Is it because he's been talked into playing again by these three players we mentioned to you just a little while ago? We showed you the airplane and now we're showing you this SUV.
Take a look at the SUV once again. I don't know if we still have that.
So, we have reports now as well that he's inside that SUV, and that may lead to his announcement of some sort. We don't know if the announcement is, I just want to make it clear I can't return to the NFL because of my ankle injury, as some have suggested, or that he will say, in fact, I am ready now to come back to the NFL and play for the Minnesota Vikings.
It's a mystery. We don't know. It's a very interesting story, followed hugely by people in the sports world. And as we get more information on that, we will bring it to you.
Wolf Blitzer has probably got a little information on this. He's been following it as well, being the football fan that he is. In fact, Wolf is going to join us as soon as we come back.
Stay right there.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SANCHEZ: There are two stories that we're following at the same time, one of them having to do with Brett Favre and the other one with Rod Blagojevich. Both of these expected to happen any moment now. They're either going to happen at the end of my watch here, or as soon as Wolf Blitzer begins "THE SITUATION ROOM."
Wolf is joining us now, by the way. What do you make of these two, Wolf? Two interesting stories, huh?
WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: They're both fascinating characters, Rod Blagojevich and Brett Favre. Very different, obviously. But with Brett Favre showing up in Minnesota right now, I suspect he's going to sign a deal, he's going to be playing quarterback for another year.
He's 40 years old. So, you know what? Brett Favre is Brett Favre. So, he's a Hall of Famer, he's going to do well. I have no doubt about that. We'll see how he does against the Green Bay Packers, his old team. A lot of us will be watching all of those games.
But let's move on and talk about Rod Blagojevich. He's back. We'll see if there's a verdict or a hung jury, or whatever is going on. We're going to be watching that very closely over the next couple of hours as well.
SANCHEZ: Yes. It's not something you want to hurry.
You look at these pictures, and, I mean, it's interesting, especially given the fact, Wolf, that we're getting indications from this jury that they are either confused or -- look, they're going on 14 days. That's a long time for a jury to be -- this reminds you of the movie about the 12 men, right?
"Twelve Angry Men." Is that what it was?
BLITZER: Fourteen days. What are there, 24 counts?
SANCHEZ: Yes.
BLITZER: And then they've got to be unanimous. So, if they're hung, if they can't make up their mind what's going happen, and if they don't reach a verdict, will the prosecutors, the federal prosecutors, try once again, do it again, go through this ordeal one more time?
These are questions we don't know the answers to, but we probably will soon enough.
SANCHEZ: Yes. Yes, the drama will likely unfold right at the very beginning of "THE SITUATION ROOM." That will be a good watch.
My thanks to you, Wolf.
We showed you a video yesterday, by the way, an officer roughing up a guy who was talking on the phone. Do you remember that? The officer was never fired, but now his fate rests in the hands of the FBI.
That's right. The feds have now been called in, and they're dealing with this case.
We'll tell you more about it in just a moment. Stay right there.
This is RICK'S LIST.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SANCHEZ: Here's the update list now. We have to bring this to your attention.
Remember yesterday I showed you this video? Take a look at it again, a young man on a cell phone, right there on the left, when an officer walks over to him. He says, look, I was just talking on the phone, and suddenly this officer slams me twice across the side of the face and then pulls me to the ground. As you look at it again, you see that in fact it did appear that it was the officer who did that. But the officer, in his police report, had said, no, the young man with the phone had struck me first.
So here's what's interesting about this story. We are now being told that federal investigators have been asked to come in to investigate this story.
There's a lot of movement out of Denver on this story since we started following it yesterday. And as we get more information, obviously we're going to be sharing it with you.
That's it for us.
Once again, two developing stories as we leave you. Brett Favre possibly making a comeback, another comeback, to the NFL with the Minnesota Vikings, or at least all signs seem to lead to that. And number two, there's going to be a decision in the Blagojevich trial in Illinois any moment now, and Wolf is going to pick that up for you.
I'm Rick Sanchez. Thanks so much for being with us.
Here now, your "SITUATION ROOM."
