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Rick's List
Shooting at Johns Hopkins Hospital; Police Beating in Philadelphia Causes Outrage
Aired September 16, 2010 - 20:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
RICK SANCHEZ, CNN ANCHOR: Two big breaking stories that we're following for you tonight.
First, we're following some tornadoes along the Northeast Corridor. Wait until you see some of the video that is coming in on these.
And you're not going to believe the new information on a story that we feel almost foolish now for reporting to you here first on RICK'S LIST about a woman who said she had acid thrown in her face. You're not going to believe what she is saying tonight through police. You are not going to believe it. Here's what else we got.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SANCHEZ (voice-over): It's prime time. And here's what is making RICK'S LIST.
Why would a man walk into a hospital and shoot his mother's doctor? What did the doctor tell him about his mom that set him off? New developments from Johns Hopkins.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We have a lady who is in our bank right now who says that her husband and children are being held at their house.
SANCHEZ: That's the call that may have saved their lives. But police took 30 minutes to respond. Guess what? It was true, all true. The mom raped, killed, the daughters killed and burned, a story that reads like a scary suspense novel. And we have new pics.
Michelle Obama can't stand being first lady, says her life is hell. So says Carla Bruni in a new book.
A police beating that shocks a crowd when a cop loses it and brandishes his weapon. I want to know more. But I get this instead.
EVAN HUGHES, ATTORNEY FOR ASKIA SABUR: The video speaks for itself.
SANCHEZ: No, the video doesn't speak for itself.
And, if you're going to pull this on us, then you know what? Thank you very much. We will talk to you some other time.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, I lost my temper. You see what that says? Volunteer.
SANCHEZ: A volunteer meter man goes crazy and it is all...
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I have it on video.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I could give a damn less.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SANCHEZ: Got a feeling it's going to be one of those nights.
Just as we're getting ready to bring you this newscast -- hello again, everybody. I'm Rick Sanchez. This is RICK'S LIST. More new information is coming in to us.
Let's start with the tornadoes. You are not going to believe some of the newest tornadoes that have come through parts of the Northeast. We will start in Ohio. Hey, big Dan, if you have got that shot, go ahead and put it up so we can see some of those. There it is.
This is new video that has just now been coming in to us. There you see what it looks like. Obviously, it has torn through parts of Ohio. And here's the part, here's the part that is really surprising. These tornadoes apparently have also affected one of the biggest cities in the world, New York City.
I have been getting tweets that have been coming in to us both from Brooklyn and from Queens, New York, where people have been saying, look at this twister that came through our community just a short time ago. Where is this one from right here? This is Brooklyn. This is tornadoes that apparently went through Brooklyn today.
Well, wait until I tell my pal Larry King about this, who is probably watching right now. How far from there did he grow up? Also, shots coming in from Queens as well. So, some pretty big twisters coming in today.
And we understand that, in New York City, people are still stuck in traffic. Rush hour is delayed because some of the downed trees along some of the roadways from all these commuters that are trying to leave the city and work their way back into parts of Connecticut and New Jersey.
As a matter of fact, here's a tweet that refers to just that. Go to the tweet board, if we possibly can there, Mark. Thank you, sir.
Look at this: "Can't go home. Standing on Grand Central Service Road." Boy, that's in the thick of it. "Trees blocking everything."
And those are some of the pictures that people are sending us. Look what the traffic looks like right now in New York City. And those are some of the culprits, I guess, some of the trees.
Look, folks, as far as we know -- as far as we know right now, we're not talking about major problems in terms of people being hurt. But, apparently, it is having its effect on the city. This is part of a hospital as well in New York. Look what happened there.
This is part of the undercoating of the house. There you see -- there you see some of the damage that has occurred there. Wyckoff Heights, it says there, one of the hospitals in New York. So, again, this is all brand-new information. This is breaking news. It's just coming in to us as we were getting ready to start the newscast.
So, I will tell you what. As we get more pictures, we will bring you back to this story. And when Chad comes in -- we just called him to get back in to tell us about this. He is going to take us through some of these stories as well.
Now this. You're not going to believe this story. Remember when on this newscast I told you of a young woman in Vancouver, Washington? She was giving a statement and she said -- there she is. And there she is. She says that one day, a woman came up and threw acid in her face.
And, of course, she described the woman as an African-American woman with an athletic build and slicked-back hair pulled into a ponytail. Police even went out of their ways to create a sketch of this African-American woman, where everyone in the communicate started looking for this African-American woman.
Well, guess what? There is no African-American woman. It turns out this woman has made the story up. And as a matter of fact, you know what hooked us to this story? When the story came out, we saw her. We saw her in the hospital. And then she gave this eloquent speech, she did.
I'm talking about the so-called victim here. Her name is Bethany Storro. She came out and told people what a horrible experience she had gone through. In fact, we have got that sound. Let's watch it together.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BETHANY STORRO, ALLEGED SHE WAS ATTACK VICTIM: You know, in time I'm going to forgive her, because if I don't, then it's hard to move on with my life. So, that's the biggest -- like my chaplain told me last night, it really is the biggest weapon for me to have, is to forgive her.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SANCHEZ: She was so impressive on that day. We all thought so. You thought so. You tweeted me. You said the fact that she is willing to forgive somebody who would just come out of the blue and throw acid on her face is really something.
Well, it turns out, there is no one to forgive. Tonight police are telling a very different story. In fact, we have that story. Roll it, Dan.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) CLIFFORD COOK, VANCOUVER POLICE CHIEF: During the interview, Ms. Storro admitted that her injuries were self-inflicted. The attack itself did not occur as she had previously reported.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SANCHEZ: Can you believe this? This is what police are now saying. She lied. She lied about the entire story. We're going to have a lot more on this story. It is being called everything from an outrageous hoax and you almost feel like you report something like this. Jane Velez-Mitchell is going to be joining us here in just a little bit to bring us up to date on her reaction on this.
By the way, let me get back to the story we started the newscast with. I don't mean to seem too helter-skelter here, but we have got so many stories that we're working at the same time. And none of the one that we're bringing you now are the stories we had planned to bring you at the beginning of the newscast.
Chad has just walked into the studio.
(WEATHER UPDATE)
SANCHEZ: We have got another big story that we're following tonight. This one is taking place in Connecticut. And I'm told now Jane Velez-Mitchell is going to be joining us when we come back from the break, too.
This story out of Connecticut reads like a -- well, like one of the worst suspense novels you have ever heard. A man is in his home when two guys break in. They take his entire family hostage. They end up raping and killing his wife. They kill his daughters. They make his wife go to the bank to take all their money out of the bank, all this while police are setting up a perimeter around the house, but they don't go in the house. But all this is happening.
What a story. You will see the video. You will hear the 911 calls.
This is RICK'S LIST. We will be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SANCHEZ: Hey, welcome back, everyone. I'm Rick Sanchez. This is RICK'S LIST.
Jane Velez-Mitchell has a hot show on HLN. And she researches and studies stories like this all the time. And I just have a feeling that she is probably as appalled as anyone at this woman, Mrs. Storro, Bethany Storro, who had the entire nation feeling so sorry for her when she came forth and seemed so courageous and forgave this African- American woman who threw acid on her face.
And now police just held a news conference and told us, Jane, that it is a lie. There is no African-American woman . She threw the acid on her own damn face. JANE VELEZ-MITCHELL, HEADLINE NEWS ANCHOR: It's amazing, Rick, what people will do for a little attention, isn't it?
Why on earth would a woman throw acid on her own face, disfigure herself, and then say, oh, my gosh, an African-American woman did this to me, but I will forgive her? It really is so twisted. And some people say, well, I feel sorry for her. But the fact is there were two incidents of real acid throwing in the wake of this that authorities believe may very well have been copycats.
We actually had one of the victims on our show. And her face was hit with acid and she is lucky to be alive. And that woman has got to be furious, thinking, oh, my gosh, somebody actually did throw acid in my face and they were inspired by this nut ball, who did it to herself.
SANCHEZ: Well, let's just be really glad that the police there in Vancouver, Washington, were able to do such diligent work that they were able to uncover this lie, because there are times in our history throughout the world, and, yes, even in this country, where lies like that have led to people being punished who were perfectly innocent.
And I guarantee you right now -- and I feel very confident saying this -- that there are people in America who understand this type of story, and African-Americans who are watching this newscast right now, I guarantee you, are appalled that not only did she make up a fictitious person, but she immediately drew down to a black fictitious person.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Well, it has happened before, the Susan Smith case, where a woman who killed her two sons blamed it on a carjacking. She said she was carjacked by an African-American man, and held a news conference.
There's been numerous instances of something like this happening. It is heinous and horrific in so many ways. And it unraveled because there were two homeless people in the area who were watching her and said, hey, she was by herself when she fell down screaming.
And then the rumblings got even louder when she canceled her appearance on "Oprah." And then we heard that she had said at one time before this had happened to her at another place where she lived. The cops were called in that area. She never reported anything. So, her story quickly unraveled.
SANCHEZ: Why is it that we're reading here that she is being interviewed by detectives and they still haven't seemed to come to a determination whether or not she will be charged? She should be charged, shouldn't she?
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Well, yes, filing a false police report at the very least. And certainly there was a lot of money spent on the investigation into this. So, she should be liable and forced to pay that money back.
On top of that, people were raising money for her. There were people who were going around, saying, oh, let's help this woman. She certainly has to return all of that money as well.
So, there is a ripple effect to this. Nobody lives in a vacuum. And when they do something like this, the repercussions, really, they don't know what the repercussions are going to be. And there are two people who have actually been hit with acid, and she may be the reason why, ultimately.
SANCHEZ: Unbelievable.
I want to bring your attention to another story now. This is one that I know you're aware of now. There's new information tonight on this other story that I must warn you about. Why? Because, really, this is both very chilling and horrific.
Some of the worst details will take your breath away in this story. Tonight I'm going to show you some brand-new pictures showing just how vicious a crime that I'm about to tell you about was. I want to you look at this man. It's Dr. William Petit and his family. That's his wife Jennifer, his two daughters, two beautiful daughters, 11-year-old and a 17-year-old.
He, Dr. Petit, is the only one alive tonight. All right? He is now seeing video of his wife's final moments and coming face to face with one of the men who brutally murdered his entire family in his home.
I want to begin with the very beginning of this story. Let's to go July 23, 2007. Right? It's 3:00 a.m. on a Monday morning. Two men break into the family's home in New Haven, Connecticut. Right? Everyone was inside at the time. The doctor had fallen asleep on the couch. He was reading the Sunday paper.
The next thing he remembers, blood is running down his face. These suspects had broken into his home, and they had tied a pole in the family's basement and put something over his head. And you can see the area right there where they did this in this new picture that has just been released.
He says that he heard one of the men say, if he moves, put two bullets in him. Fast-forward now a few hours. One of the suspects drives his wife, the doctor's wife, to the bank. And he tell her that she has to go in there and take all the money out.
In fact, this is the last image that we have of her. This is her at the bank. She is trying withdraw the money so that these men won't kill her family. That's what they tell her. She shows up at the bank. And the teller -- apparently when she is at the bank, this wife of this doctor says to the teller, there are some people in my house and they have taken my family hostage.
She's trying to not get too much attention, but she tells them that message. Now, listen carefully to what happens. Listen to this call that comes in from the bank to police after that.
(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP) UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We have a lady who is in our bank right now who says that her husband and children are being held at their house. The people are in a car outside the bank. She is getting $15,000 to bring out to them, that, if the police are told, they will kill her children and the husband.
Her name is Jennifer PETIT, P-E-T-I-T. She lives at (ADDRESS DELETE). She says they are being very nice. They have their faces covered. She is petrified.
(END AUDIO CLIP)
SANCHEZ: I would say she's petrified. Minutes later, the wife and the suspect return home for what would be the violent last hour of their lives.
Police officers say that Steven Hayes, that animal there, the man on the left side of your screen, raped and strangled Mrs. Petit when she got home with the money. The other man is Joshua Komisarjevsky. He raped and beat the youngest daughter. Both girls are still alive when the men begin pouring gasoline all over them and in the home.
Yes, that's how this story reads. While this is going on, police, meanwhile, are setting up a barricade around the neighborhood, waiting to respond. The doctor is crawling out of the basement, beaten and bloodied to the driveway of his next-door neighbor's house.
And , finally, it is not until the next door neighbor finds out what's going on that he calls police, dials 911 and says this. Let's hear it, Dan.
(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I got Bill Petit here, who's hurt, my neighbor.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He's at your house?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, he's right here.
(END AUDIO CLIP)
SANCHEZ: Now, by then, the house is in flames. As the heat starts to die down, police finally get their first look at what's going ON inside the house. The mother's body was burned so badly, she was totally unrecognizable.
Look at these pictures. The bodies of both girls found upstairs. Take a look at the picture of the charred bedroom. The youngest daughter, 9 years old, face down tied to a bed. And you can see the rope used to hold her there.
Both girls died of smoke inhalation. Jurors are now hearing these gruesome details during the first week of this murder trial almost everyone in Connecticut has heard of. The doctor who lost his entire family is also there. He is reliving everything and testifying about what happened that morning.
Listen to what it is like in the courtroom. At one point, the judge tell jurors to -- quote -- "prepare yourself as best you can." And one by one, they passed along pictures of this crime scene, the one with the children in it and the mother.
One woman put her head in her hands. One man starts crying. A man starts crying. The testimony and the details get so unbearable, the judge calls a recess and tells the jury to just go home for the day. But while the focus remains on the victims in the crime, many are asking questions about why it took police officers so long to respond there.
So, let me start there with you, Jane.
I just read the account of the police report this afternoon. And I noticed that it took police 33 minutes from when they called, got the call from the bank to when they finally moved in. And that's after they got the call from the neighbor. They said they were following police procedure and setting up a perimeter around the area.
What are your thoughts on that?
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Well, first of all, the criminals are the ones who are responsible for this. Even if the police may have dropped the ball in how they responded, it certainly doesn't exonerate these evil, evil people. I wouldn't compliment them to call them animals. Why insult animals?
These people committed perhaps the worst crime in recent certainly Connecticut history. But the cops did respond in a way that may serve as a cautionary tale to other small town police departments. And essentially, you heard that 911 call. The teller said the woman is in the bank right now.
Now, if they had said, hey, thinking on their feet, keep her there. Let's delay her from leaving, so that we can at least get to the bank and catch this captor as he is driving away with her. They had a description of the car.
And so it's not a very big town. They could have immediately followed that car and perhaps intercepted that car before he got home. But instead, they decided to go by the book and they set up -- they go by the house and they don't see any obvious signs of violence.
So, they decide, hmm, we're going to set up a perimeter. We're going to set up roadblocks. One officer reportedly goes back to the station to get his SWAT outfit. Now, that's where it gets a little crazy, all right? And they also don't call the fire department.
So, when the whole thing go down and Dr. Petit rolls to the neighbor's house and all hell breaks loose and the guys are driving away, they end up fighting the fire with a garden hose, because they had failed to call the fire department.
So, I don't think they had capacity to envision the evil that was actually going down in that house. And I don't necessarily blame them for that. Who could imagine that two people would barge into a house for no reason and brutalize this wonderful family in such a sick and sinister fashion, with torture, with rape, with setting the house on fire? Who could predict that?
(CROSSTALK)
SANCHEZ: I don't think there's too many people out there who would listen to your description and using the word evil several times and disagree with you in any way, shape, or fashion.
Jane Velez-Mitchell, we thank you for joining us tonight and doing a little extra hour's work.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Thank you, Rick.
SANCHEZ: As horrible as those details are coming out in that courtroom, imagine a child hearing all of that, the things that Jane was just describing.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And both have been told, if it is too much, we will leave. If it is too much, we will put our head down.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SANCHEZ: That mother there has decided that she is using this case and all its horrible, evil descriptions that you have heard about how the Petit family was tortured and murdered. She is using it to teach her own kids about the justice system.
That is trending tonight, because some people are saying maybe she should have used a different case to learn the justice system, that it may just be a bit too much for that little girl.
Up next, though, my interview, if you could call it that, with the man who says that he was beaten mercilessly by police in Philadelphia. He showed up for RICK'S LIST, but had so very little to say, I said to him, I don't need you.
We will be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SANCHEZ: Hey, welcome back, everyone. I'm Rick Sanchez. So glad you're here for RICK'S LIST.
Our list of the most controversial stories of the night starts with an update now on that gas pipeline explosion and fire in Bruno, California. Let me give this one a number for you. It's four.
A consumer watchdog group says PG&E, the utility that owns the pipeline that blew up, got $5 million, $5 million worth of rate increases to replace a nearby section of that pipeline, but they never did the work. The Utility Reform Network says that the section of the pipeline was supposed to be replaced by 2009.
Four people were killed and dozens were injured in that blast and fire last week.
Now here, number three. Dallas police want to charge three of their own police officers for beating up a suspect. And this video may make their case. Watch. Police are following a guy on a motorcycle. After he stops, they finally use their vehicle to bump his cycle with a car. Then as soon as he hits the ground, police officers get out. Without even taking a beat, they just start hitting him repeatedly over and over and over again.
Investigators say they want to charge these cops with assault. And police officials that I have spoken with tonight and shown them this video are telling me the video shows that the motorcycle did not resist -- the motorcyclist, that is, did not resist, because there's -- according to them, there simply isn't enough time on the videotape.
As controversial stories go, here now, number two. This video was posted on YouTube showing the arrest of a man -- his name is Askia Sabur -- outside of a takeout restaurant in Philadelphia. Police appear to be repeatedly beating him, at one point even brandish a gun.
So, I had questions. So do you, right? Why did they do this? Was the man really just trying to order food?
I tried to get the answers by having the alleged victim on my show. Askia Sabur and his lawyer showed up. His name is Evan Hughes. They came on. But guess what? They weren't very helpful.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
HUGHES: Rick, Askia can't comment as to the allegations against him or to his injuries, because, as the Philadelphia police said, there's an open and active investigation.
We thought it was important, though, that the American public see Askia and see that he's a human being, and not a monster.
SANCHEZ: Well, police thought that Askia was doing something wrong.
Why did they tell you they did what they? Share that with us, if you would.
HUGHES: Rick, I think the video speaks for itself. He's not resisting.
SANCHEZ: Well, no, no, no, no, no, it doesn't. No, the video doesn't speak for itself.
And, if you're going to pull this on us, then you know what? Thank you very much. We will talk to you some other time.
(END VIDEO CLIP) SANCHEZ: The police didn't want to appear. At least they did tell us something ahead of time. They gave us a statement which we almost wished we've gotten from the lawyer. "And Askia, thank you for your offer to appear on your show. At this time, we will have to decline. Currently the case involving Mr. Sabur is an open and active investigation with our Internal Affairs Division."
The police spokesperson told the "Philadelphia Inquirer" the video doesn't show everything and the Internal Affairs Department is trying to get to the bottom of it.
Now here's number one. What is the most controversial story tonight? You trust someone to look after your elderly mom. But then you see this video, right? And your heart breaks. It's caught on camera. And it's about time.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Heartbreaking it is to see your own mother abused by a person whom you trusted for so many years.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SANCHEZ: It certainly is. Also, wait until you see what an Egyptian newspaper has done to this photo. Sometimes a few mouse clicks makes a world of difference. And in this case, the key word is world. That's ahead. Stay right there.
This is RICK'S LIST. So much news. No bloviating. We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SANCHEZ: Hey, welcome back. Now, the number one most controversial story of the evening.
This video is hard to watch. It's a video camera intended to let family members virtually visit 91-year-old New Jersey lady with Alzheimer's, actually captures instead her abuse. Watch how she's being manhandled or in this case, woman handled. She throws her down on the bed. The video goes on to show the woman's caregiver who police say is Carmen Pereira (ph) slamming her around, slapping her around, and also pulling her hair. Watch this right here as she takes her. She's about to do so. And put her in another chair. Now watch, as she slams her down.
Boom! You see her raise her hand back in the air? Well, the New Jersey police have looked at this. They say Pereira (ph) is charged with aggravated assault and other charges now. There's plenty of video we can show you. Some of it we prefer not to. The woman's daughter said after watching this, she is absolutely heartbroken.
That is incredible, isn't it? Brook Baldwin is joining us now.
Boy, you know, it's the same as --
BROOKE BALDWIN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It's just the bruises, and that's how they knew.
SANCHEZ: It's the same as if you have someone taking care of your children. You know, you hire a babysitter and then you find out that they're doing that to your child. I mean, this is your mother, your father.
All right. You have some interesting trending stories you want to bring us.
BROOKE BALDWIN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes. Good stuff.
SANCHEZ: This is about what happens when you let the state be in charge of the media.
BALDWIN: Let's talk Middle East peace, but not quite what you're thinking. So, we want to take a new look at the Middle East peace talks that happened this month in Washington. Major moment, Middle East leaders convening together. You know, I think Mahmoud Abbas, Netanyahu sitting together for the first time in two years, right?
Bill deal. Time for a photo op, right? Take a look with me. Let's look at the video.
Here the world leaders as they come out in grand entrance along the red carpet. You have Egypt, Israel, Palestine, Jordan and U.S., all walking together. Now, keep in mind you have President Obama in the center. If we can, let's --
SANCHEZ: He's the one in the middle, right?
BALDWIN: He's the one in the middle. And here we go, a couple of Getty images. The snap photos.
SANCHEZ: He's still in the middle, right?
BALDWIN: Still in the middle kind of leading the group. Right? So now I want to show you a different picture. Let's switch it, guys.
This, if we can see it I know you have to squint your eyes, but this is the photo on the Web site of Egypt's state-run newspaper. It's "Al-Ahram."
SANCHEZ: I can't tell what that is.
BALDWIN: I know. Gosh, it's so small but we needed to show it in the context of the newspaper. But basically let me tell you what you're looking at. The guy kind of in the middle, that is the Egyptian president, Mubarak. So if we can, let's go back to the Getty image where you can see President Obama walking ahead in the center. Can we put back. There we go.
So, here's the Getty image on the left. And that's the better. There we go. So on the right, you see Mubarak sort of in the center versus the original picture, which is Obama in the center.
SANCHEZ: So they photoshopped him? BALDWIN: So it appears. And some are saying they absolutely photoshopped it because it appears perhaps like on the right side, more of a symbolic gesture that it's the Egyptian president, perhaps, leading the charge. But just some pictures we thought were interesting.
SANCHEZ: We'll put our guy in the middle.
BALDWIN: Exactly. And a lot of those pictures were all over the Internet tonight.
Also, story number two. You know, we talked a whole lot about the gruesome murder trial happening in Connecticut.
SANCHEZ: Right.
BALDWIN: Talking total brutality, raping, burning.
SANCHEZ: It's a horror picture.
BALDWIN: It's horrifying. Not exactly the details you want your children exposed to. Or would you?
Tonight, we learned about this Connecticut mother who is taking her 6 and 7-year-olds to this trial. The deal is, this woman homeschools her children. She says this is real life, folks. This is a civics lesson. You say, some people say court is no place for kids, especially this trial. Here they are. Here is her response to that. Take a listen.
SANCHEZ: Wow.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JENNIFER GHOSHRAY, BRINGING KIDS TO COURT: I don't know. Where is the place? Is it in front of a video game where you're slaughtering your opponents and no parents around to monitor it? I mean, I'm here. I'm interactive. We took notes. When my children had a couple of questions, I discussed with them.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SANCHEZ: Wow.
BALDWIN: So that's what mom says. She also defended herself by saying, you know, she didn't just wake up one day and decided she wanted to take her kids to court. She said they've been studying this case, apparently at home for months. She felt, you know, if her children said, mom, I don't know if I feel comfortable, a little overwhelmed, she said she would yank them out of the courtroom. But she even allowed her child to be interviewed as to whether or not this little 7-year-old finds this valuable. Here she is.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The reason I came here was to understand this crime and also because I wanted to write about it when I come home.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BALDWIN: Wants to write about it when she comes home because apparently she wants to be a Supreme Court justice one day. So mom says, you know, hey, this is a great place to soak in the legal system. Some people say yikes, that's a lot of gory details for little ones.
SANCHEZ: I don't judge other people's parenting skills because I know how difficult parenting is. But you would think that, you know, maybe a pickpocket trial, they could have learned just as much from.
BALDWIN: Maybe a little lower level? Just thought it was interesting.
SANCHEZ: Wow. It is.
BALDWIN: A little bit of a wow factor tonight.
SANCHEZ: It's a heck of a thing. Thanks.
BALDWIN: Thanks.
SANCHEZ: Thanks for bringing us that. Unbelievable.
Coming up next on the political list, think about this for a moment. Jimmy Carter versus Ted Kennedy. You won't believe what the former president is saying about the lion of the Senate.
And we're getting new images of that extreme storm damage from New York tonight. Chad is going to be joining us in just a little bit. He's going to take us through some of the shots that he's got. Not just the picks but some of the radar, showing how this moved in and what areas it affected.
Stay right there. This is RICK'S LIST. More news in one hour than you'll get on any other show. In fact, most of them combined.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SANCHEZ: Chad's back. We asked him to make a repeat visit because we wanted to understand the meteorological impact of these storms that hit New York tonight.
Everybody in New York is convinced they got hit by tornadoes. But officially?
CHAD MYERS, AMS METEOROLOGIST: No, they didn't.
SANCHEZ: OK.
MYERS: Probably not. I don't see any evidence. I see now at least 100 iReports. All kind of other video coming in and nothing that we know of that was literally a funnel from the sky attached to a thunderstorm. SANCHEZ: Look at that.
MYERS: That hit the ground.
Yes, but this is all wind. This is too widespread.
SANCHEZ: That's a lot of wind.
MYERS: All the way from Brooklyn to Staten Island and down into New Jersey.
SANCHEZ: Wow.
MYERS: So you can't have a tornado that's 80 miles wide. But you can have a bow echo. You can have a squall line.
SANCHEZ: A what?
MYERS: A bow echo.
SANCHEZ: What in the world is that?
MYERS: The things you learn on your show, Rick. It is when a thunderstorm decides to look like an arrow --
SANCHEZ: Really?
MYERS: -- and so the middle of the thunderstorm is fast and it wants to push out. And so that arrow can go fast. And right at that peak of that arrow --
SANCHEZ: Yes.
MYERS: -- is where the winds are the fastest. And that was Williamsburg (ph). And that was Jamaica and that was Queens.
SANCHEZ: You can get gusts of up to 60 miles an hour?
MYERS: Oh, more than that.
SANCHEZ: Really?
MYERS: Seventy, 80. Sure.
SANCHEZ: That's a hurricane.
MYERS: And that's what we have.
SANCHEZ: Yes, it was hurricane winds.
MYERS: No question about it.
SANCHEZ: Wow.
MYERS: And that's what -- we had some great pictures coming in. Please send us your iReports without a question. We also, we think that there was possibly a tornado in Ohio near Wister. We just had some pictures come in there, too.
SANCHEZ: While you go over to show us this thing on the radar, let me read this tweet to folk.
Hey, Mark, hit that right there. Due to downed trees, LIRR service suspended out of Penn station. Amtrak/New Jersey Tunnel running with delays. And visit MTA info for more information. Notify New York City.
So that's the Office of Emergency Management in New York City letting people know, good luck trying to get around New York tonight. You may want to stay in the city for the night.
MYERS: Yes, let me show you. I have traffic.com up as well. There is the weather as it rolled through New York City, down across Long Island and out, obviously, into the water. It's all gone now. But it was that line. It was a squall line that just ripped through the city right on down almost all the way down to Philadelphia.
Now this is navteqtraffic.com (ph). And every red road doing less than 10 miles per hour and many of them doing less than that. Because right out here, the Long Island expressway, that's just about Queens University, closed due to a wreck. Another one if you're coming in, if you're trying to come into the city, the left lane because of power lines is down.
SANCHEZ: Wow.
MYERS: On the Long Island expressway. So all of these red roads are basically at a standstill tonight. Don't try to go anywhere if you don't have to.
SANCHEZ: One of the most important biggest cities in the world, if you can make it there, you'll make it anywhere. But tonight, you can't make it out.
MYERS: You can't make it around.
SANCHEZ: Thanks so much, Chad. We appreciate that.
When we come back, a couple of things we still got to bring you. I know what you look forward to every night. Who is on "The List U Don't Want 2 Be On" and other news as we continue here on RICK'S LIST. Stay right with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SANCHEZ: Here are tonight's five most important political stories. John Boehner throws down the gauntlet on taxes and on Nancy Boehner. This is number five.
The House minority leader says enough with the stalling on extending those Bush tax cuts. Check out this tweet that he sent me today. "GOP is demanding Speaker Pelosi allow a clear up or down vote on stopping the upcoming tax hikes." He addressed it to me once again. It's the second time in the last seven days that Boehner has been sending tweets specifically to RICK'S LIST.
Pelosi wants to extend the tax cuts for the middle class, but she says she doesn't want to borrow $700 million to give tax cuts to the so-called rich. Boehner says everybody should get them while Democrats are trying to turn him into public enemy number one.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REP. JOHN BOEHNER (R-OH), HOUSE MINORITY LEADER: You all know me, that I'm such a scary guy. Listen, I just say it the way it is. I'm the most open, transparent person of this town. You know? I've got good attributes. I've got some that probably people don't like. But I say it the way it is. And it comes with the territory.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SANCHEZ: Did I just morph these two? Did I say Nancy Boehner? Obviously, I meant Nancy Pelosi and John Boehner. Here's number four.
Hillary Clinton has a message for all those Tea Party candidates out there. Just chill. Really. Just chill. The secretary of state tells ABC News the new political recruits will soon realize that campaigning and governing are two very different things.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
HILLARY CLINTON, SECRETARY OF STATE: I've seen a lot of people run for office and say a lot of things and then when they have the burden of holding office and the responsibility that goes with it, I've seen them become very sobered very quickly about the challenges that we face domestically and internationally. You know, nobody said it better than Mario Cuomo when he said, you campaign in poetry and you govern in prose. And sometime the poetry can get kind of hot and a little over the top, but the prose brings you down to earth.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SANCHEZ: All right. Now for some news about a non-Tea Party Republican coming in at number three.
Meg Whitman smashing the records for personal spending in a single campaign. Can you believe this? So far, the former CEO of eBay has spent at least $119 million of her own bread. That's right. $119 million of her own dough. Any other terms I can use? That's more than any other candidate in the history of the United States.
Our CNN/"Time" Opinion Research poll shows Whitman is locked still in a very tight race with former Governor Jerry Brown.
Here is political story number two. Former President Jimmy Carter's grudge against Senator Ted Kennedy appears to be strong even a year after the senator's death. In an interview with "60 Minutes," Carter slams the late senator who tried to unseat him in 1980. You'll recall, Kennedy was a long-time champion of health care reform before he died. But Carter tells CBS, quote, "The fact is we would have had a comprehensive health care reform by now had it not been for Ted Kennedy's deliberately blocking the legislation that I proposed. It was his fault. Ted Kennedy killed the bill."
But wait, there's more. Carter says of Kennedy, "He did not want me to have a major success in that realm of life."
Ouch! That health care showdown happened while Kennedy was planning his campaign to challenge Carter back then for the Democratic presidential nomination.
So what is the number one item on our political list tonight? You think you got it figured out?
Well, it may be no surprise that to do this, we're going to have to take you back to the state of Delaware. And it's definitely not boring. It's a new Senate candidate. Her name, Christine O'Donnell. What is she saying this time? You'll find out in just a moment.
Stay right with us. Oh, by the way, "The List U Don't Want 2 Be On" is also coming your way.
This is RICK'S LIST. More news that's bloviating.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SANCHEZ: We go back to Delaware now for the most important story on our political list today. This is number one.
CHRISTINE O'DONNELL (R), DELAWARE SENATE CANDIDATE: It's no secret that there has been a rather unflattering portrait of me painted these days. And as we go -- as we approach the general election over this next month and a half, it's my goal for you to get to know who I am.
While you may not agree with me on all of the issues, what I want to do is bring a common sense approach, a constitutional approach to Washington, D.C. to get our country back on track.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SANCHEZ: That, of course, is Delaware's Republican candidate, Senate candidate, nominee, I should say, Christine O'Donnell, speaking just minutes ago at a candidates' forum in Wilmington.
We're turning the tape around for you. She is the woman of the week. And on our political list, she's also number one. One guy who's not an O'Donnell fan, the man that she defeated, Tuesday. Congressman Mike Castle is telling CNN he will not endorse her one- time rival. Not even a chance. The spokesperson says tonight it's because of the personal attacks on him and his family during the campaign. O'Donnell's reaction, that's a shame. Last week, O'Donnell called Castle unmanly -- called him unmanly for filing an election law complaint against her, telling the congressman to get his man pants on. Her words exactly. Well, there's a story of corporate greed that will make your head spin. It involves diamond belt buckles, Aerosmith, hookers and the story of a contractor. Yes. A contractor. The guys who make money and are supposed to be helping the guys in Iraq and in Afghanistan. And we're calling him out. Stay right there.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SANCHEZ: Welcome back. An autographed copy of my new book today goes to Andy Mesine (ph). Why? Because Andy is one of those who tweets and helps us tell stories. He's the one who sent us some of the best pictures tonight from the New York City area around Queens and Brooklyn.
Now this. We've heard of stories about contractors out of control and not accountable enough, right? Well, this takes the proverbial cake. Here now, "The List U Don't Want 2 Be On."
This is David Brooks. He used to head up the company that made bullet-proof vests and body armor for American soldiers serving in Iraq and Afghanistan. He's just been convicted on a laundry list of fraud and corruption charges. Prosecutors say he spent millions of dollars of the company's money that was supposed to go to the troops in Iraq and Afghanistan on his own outrageous lifestyle.
Now, I know when you're thinking. You've heard of this corporate greed kind of stuff before. No, not like this. You haven't heard it like this.
Listen to these shocking details. This guy hires 50 Cent, Tom Petty, Aerosmith to perform at his daughter's $10 million bat mitzvah. Invitations alone cost him $40 million. Pardon me, $40,000. He wears an American flag belt buckle made of diamonds and sapphires worth $100,000. You can see it right there. They say that he spent millions on horse racing, on hookers, on shopping sprees, on lavish trips, luxury cars, plastic surgery and a jet.
Yes, there he is being walked. While all this was going on, he told his employees to lie about his company's performance. He ripped off more than $190 million in those scams, pretending to be helping the troops in Afghanistan and Iraq. Another one.
I don't have to tell you that Brooks is one bad guy. Right? But I do want to tell you you should keep in mind the money he stole was from a company that made equipment designed to protect our troops, to keep them alive over there defending us. Because of this, it's not a stretch to assume that this guy compromised the lives of the very people that are defending him. And you and me and his family. David Brooks tonight earns top honors on "The List U Don't Want 2 Be On."
Here's Larry King.
