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CNN Sunday Morning
Six U.S. Soldiers Killed in Iraq by Roadside Bombs; Five People in Custody in Connection With Deadly Bombings in Madrid
Aired March 14, 2004 - 08:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
HEIDI COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: From the CNN Center in Atlanta, this is CNN SUNDAY MORNING. It's March 14. Good morning, everybody. I'm Heidi Collins.
Coming up for you this hour, we go live to Madrid for the latest on the terror bombing investigation. Plus, details on Spain's general election under way today.
A deadly church fire in Pittsburgh. Two veteran firefighters are dead and a congregation are in mourning.
Then on a much lighter note, you can take it with you. Teeny, tiny technology, it goes wherever you go.
But first, here's what's happening at the top of this hour.
More American casualties in Iraq. Six U.S. soldiers have been killed this weekend by roadside bombs. In the latest incident, about nine and a half hours ago, a blast killed a 1st Infantry Division soldier in Baghdad. Earlier, three from the 1st Armored Division were killed in Baghdad, and two from the 1st Infantry Division died in Tikrit.
Russia's foreign minister warned the former Soviet Republic of Georgia today not to use force against the autonomous Adzharia region. In a statement, said, "In case of a crisis, responsibility will lie with the Georgian leadership."
In Spain now, five people are in custody in connection with Thursday's commuter train attacks in Madrid. The suspects are three Moroccans, two Indians. The bombings killed 200 people, wounded more than 1,500.
Now, more on our top story this hour.
National elections in Spain come on the heels of that horrific commuter train attack in Madrid. This message allegedly from al Qaeda is being investigated. Quote, "We declare our responsibility for what occurred in Madrid just two and a half years after the attacks in New York and Washington."
CNN's Diana Muriel is in Madrid covering the elections and the bombing investigation.
Some chilling words there, Diana. DIANA MURIEL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Heidi. The election, of course, is taking place against the backdrop of this ongoing investigation into the bombings on Thursday. I'm here at a downtown polling station in central Madrid. It's just about a quarter a mile away from the Atocha station, which is where some of those bombs went off on Thursday.
The investigation continuing apace. The government came out with a series of press conferences yesterday. The interior ministry saying that they have recovered a videotape which they were -- after a tip- off was given to a local television station which shows a man speaking. He says his name is name is Abu Dijan al-Sistani (ph). He is speaking in Arabic with a Moroccan accent, and he describes himself as a military spokesperson for al Qaeda in Europe.
He says, amongst other things on the tape, that there will be more -- referring to the bombs -- in shallah, or god willing. This tape is now in -- has now been given to a judge from the national court conducting the investigation. That investigation ongoing.
In the meantime, Spaniards coming out to polling stations all around the country to vote in the national election. A lot of people on the streets, both in Madrid and in other cities around the country last night, protesting against the government, against the government that they have accused of withholding information about the investigation.
They say that the government wants people to believe that it's ETA, which is the Basque separatist terrorist group that's responsible for the bombing, and not (UNINTELLIGIBLE) from al Qaeda. Of course the government says that they are continuing with both those lines of investigation, but the -- in the meantime, people are coming to the polling stations to make -- to use their democratic vote.
People here very, very keen that they should not be prevented from doing so. The terrorist attacks are not going to get in the way of that process -- Heidi.
COLLINS: Diana Muriel, thanks so very much, live from Madrid this morning. Appreciate that.
Closer to home, a loss that hits the hearts of firefighters and a congregation. Pittsburgh has lost a historic church and two firefighters. The two men died, and more than 20 others were injured when the bell tower collapsed on them as they were fighting to gain control of a fire Saturday morning.
On the scene in Pittsburgh for us this morning is CNN's Adaora Udoji.
Adaora, good morning.
ADAORA UDOJI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Heidi.
The Ebenezer Baptist Church, as you mentioned, is the oldest and black church in the city of Pittsburgh. It is still smoldering, which is really testament to the intensity of the fire that ripped through it yesterday.
This morning, we have been watching firefighters arriving. Groups of them coming in, including arson investigators who are going to be taking a look into the cause.
As you said, two veteran firefighters both in their 50s were killed. They were apparently looking for hot spots yesterday inside the church when the bell tower fell. Altogether, 31 firefighters were injured. Seven seriously enough to be hospitalized overnight.
Also today, we're expecting ATF, along with the local arson investigators, as I've mentioned, who have already come, are going to be investigating, looking into what possibly caused this fire. We have heard that there is some suspicion, perhaps, it was caused by electrical problems.
The fire, of course, also devastating to the 2,500 members of the congregation. It's really the cornerstone of the black community here in Pittsburgh. It's pastor of 31 years, who was here yesterday preparing for a Saturday morning breakfast, said it was just pure devastation to watch what happened.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REV. J.V.A. WINSETT, EBENEZER BAPTIST CHURCH: I saw the bell tower as it fell, and it fell on the firefighters. And my heart just sunk. And we stopped, and we had prayer for them. I saw them laying in the street being attended to, and it was a very emotional moment.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
UDOJI: Pastor Winsett said the church has been here 131 years, and tomorrow they will start plans for rebuilding -- Heidi.
COLLINS: Adaora Udoji, live from Pittsburgh this morning. Adaora, thank so much.
And now we want to give you an update on those grizzly killings in Fresno, California. Police have charged Marcus Wesson with nine counts of murder.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CHIEF JERRY DYER, FRESNO POLICE: We have also not been able to confirm the cause of death at this time for each of the victims. However, I will say that based on the physical evidence that we have collected, as well as the observations of the officers at the scene, we have strong suspicions as to how each of those deaths occurred.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COLLINS: Authorities say all of the dead are his children, some apparently by incestuous relationships. Bail for the 57-year-old Wesson is set at $9 million.
To presidential politics now. There probably won't be much mystery at the Democratic National Convention in Boston. Senator John Kerry has sewn up the nomination. This weekend put Kerry over the top in the number of delegates he needs to become the party's official candidate in July.
Senator Kerry has already proposed a series of debates with President Bush. And so far, the Bush-Cheney campaign has declined.
CNN's Kathleen Koch is keeping tabs on the White House for us today. She joins us now with the latest from there.
Good morning, Kathleen.
KATHLEEN KOCH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Heidi.
The back-and-forth sniping between the two campaigns has grown increasingly bitter. Last week, President Bush releasing new critical ads targeting John Kerry. John Kerry then responding with ads of his own, charging the president with misleading the American public. But John Kerry campaigning Saturday in Quincy, Illinois, seemed to offer an olive branch of sorts to Mr. Bush.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. JOHN KERRY (D-MA), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: President Bush and I can do better, and America deserves better. And so here in Quincy, where long ago we saw the best of American politics, I am asking George Bush to agree to a series of monthly debates starting this spring to talk about the real issues in our country.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KOCH: President Bush has already agreed to three debates with his opponent. However, Republicans are still smarting from the offhand comments about Republican operatives that John Kerry made last week when he did not realize that microphones were within earshot.
So the Bush campaign rebuffed Kerry's offer, saying in a statement, "After calling republicans crooks and liars, John Kerry is now calling for a civil debate on the issue. Senator Kerry should finish the debate with himself before he starts trying to explain his positions to the voters."
So, Heidi, it doesn't appear that the two opponents will kiss and make up anytime soon. And political observers are starting to say that if this negative campaigning continues, it could end up backfiring, offending voters and hurting both men.
Back to you.
COLLINS: And such a long way to go. All right. Kathleen Koch, live from Washington. Thanks so much.
In Gaza today, a judge orders the release of four Palestinians. They were detained in a bombing last October that killed three Americans and wounded a fourth.
CNN's Paula Hancock is live in Jerusalem with details of that story.
Good morning to you, Paula.
PAULA HANCOCK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hello, Heidi.
That's right. Four Palestinians linked with that bombing of the U.S. convoy back in October have been ordered to be released. A military court judge has ordered the prosecutors to drop the case, saying that there was insufficient evidence to convict these four.
Now, those security officials are telling us as well that the final decision does rest with the Palestinian Authority president, Yasser Arafat. Friends and relatives of the four are waiting outside the prison in Gaza at the moment, hoping that they will be released within the next couple of hours or so.
To give you a little bit of a context, October the 15th was when this bomb attack was carried out. The U.S. convoy was traveling down a road in Gaza. The convoy was actually going to speak to people in Gaza as regards the Fulbright Scholarship.
Now, three guards were killed and another was injured. Now, this attack came under international condemnation immediately, especially from the Bush administration. The Bush administration was putting tremendous pressure on Yasser Arafat and the Palestinian Authority to come up with names and to discover exactly who was behind these attacks.
A few weeks ago, the Palestinian Authority did arrest these four suspects, and they were charged with manslaughter for planting bombs aimed at Israeli tanks that might actually have also hit this convoy. But Palestinian officials now telling us that they could be released.
And then in a separate development, we have confirmation, as well, coming into CNN from Israeli military officials that three Palestinians have been shot and killed in central Gaza. The Israeli officials saying that they saw figures trying to lay an explosive device on a road in central Gaza. Palestinian officials also confirming three have died, but not giving us any more details at the moment -- Heidi.
COLLINS: All right. Certainly a lot going on where you are. Thanks so much, Paula Hancock, live in Jerusalem this morning.
Well, is wearing a mask a punishable offense? How about taxes on your take-out? Does that sound fair? These are just a couple of laws on the books in the Windy City that may be changing.
And technology doing more and more with less and less. Space, that is. We'll talk about the newest technologies to go.
Also, we'd like to know if your travel plans have been affect bid the attacks in Madrid. You can e-mail us with your comments at wam@cnn.com.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) COLLINS: Look, ma, no hands. Not even any drivers. Real ones, that is.
Well, chalk it up to technical glitches. All 15 self-navigating vehicles -- we told you about these yesterday -- AKA robots, of course, we're knocked out in a 150-mile race across the Mojave Desert.
So the $1 million winner's purse goes begging. The grand challenge is actually a Defense Department research project. The Pentagon spent $13 million tax dollars to mount the challenge.
So despite the cost, some newfangled gadgets don't perform as planned. But let's go ahead and see what is coming down the pike in the "take it with you" technology department.
Joining us from New York, Suzanne Kantra, technology editor for Popular Science Magazine.
Suzanne, thanks so much for being with us. We'll talk about the robot debacle in a minute. But there are some incredibly tiny super- tech to-go items out there on the market that people I'm sure are very interested in.
What is your favorite? And what's the advantage here?
SUZANNE KANTRA, POPULAR SCIENCE MAGAZINE: Well, you're talking about portability, you're talking about ease of use. One of my favorites is the Epson PictureMate, which is a portable printer. And you've seen these types of portable printers before. They spit out 4 x 6 prints in usually less than a minute.
But what makes this unique is the fact that these print also last up to 100 years. Usually they last somewhere between 15 and 25, which means you're going to have to print them out again..
COLLINS: Now, how do they last that long? Is it about the paper? Or what's it about?
KANTRA: Well, it's a combination of the pigment inks and the papers. Usually, the inks are made out of dye, which over time tends to lose its color. And as you know from the cave drawings over in Spain, those pigments last a very long time.
COLLINS: Wow. All right. So I imagine quality is pretty good then when you print it out, even though you are on the go, as you say.
KANTRA: Yes, it's fantastic.
COLLINS: OK. Let's talk about the laptop computer by Sharp. This is about $1,500. What's the headline here on this one?
KANTRA: Well, as you can see, it's incredibly tiny. This is just under two pounds, which makes it, when it's announced tomorrow, the lightest laptop computer available in the U.S. market.
And what is nice about this is you are not going to be sacrificing battery life. Usually, these really tiny little laptops get maybe an hour and a half, two hours. This is going to get up to four hours of battery life. So you are going to be able to use this on a longer plane ride.
COLLINS: Good. So you don't have to type so fast, huh?
KANTRA: Exactly.
COLLINS: All right. What about the Sony Walkman? I mean, I have had many of these along the way, but I have a feeling this one is a little bit better.
KANTRA: This is much better. You may have heard of MiniDisc. And this takes a new form of MiniDisc called Hi-MD.
That means it stores one gigabyte or 45 hours on a $7 disk. And these flash memory players for your digital audiofiles cost a couple of hundred dollars usually when they're one gigabyte. And now you can replace all of that information or add to your collection for just seven more dollars.
COLLINS: All right. Quickly, we are running out of time here, but I want to get to this Bluetooth headset. It works with pretty much everything you have, your cell phone and more.
KANTRA: What is different about this one is you don't have to pair it with both your home phone and your cell phone. It knows when any call comes in for it to be routed directly to the headset. So you don't have to fumble for anything. It's just -- pressing a button will take the call.
COLLINS: All right. Suzanne Kantra, technology editor for Popular Science Magazine. Thanks so much.
And that Motorola two-way radio that recharges by solar power, pretty cool, too. Don't have one of those to look at, though. We'll be keeping our eye out on the market for that.
KANTRA: Absolutely.
COLLINS: Thanks so much, Suzanne.
KANTRA: Thank you.
COLLINS: Well, arrest that reporter for wearing a mask. Of course you won't believe some of the wacky laws on the books in Chicago. Now, some of these rules are getting a second look.
And we'll respond to your e-mail questions about how you feel about traveling after the Madrid bombings.
We're back in a moment.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(WEATHER REPORT) COLLINS: For now, we do want to check our top stories this morning.
The arms standoff with a teenager in Loudoun County, Tennessee, ends in an apparent suicide. Police found the 16-year-old boy dead in a bedroom.
In Fresno, California, 57-year-old Marcus Wesson has been charged with killing nine of his children. Police say Wesson apparently had incestuous relationships with his daughters, making him both father and grandfather to some of the victims.
And the Utah woman charged with murder after one of her twins was stillborn reportedly was once convicted of child endangerment for striking her daughter in the face at a supermarket.
We are going to take a moment to do the e-mails that we have received this morning on that question you see there, "Does the threat of terror make you think twice about travel?"
From Greg in Knoxville, Tennessee, "No. The thought of paying almost $2 per gallon for gas does. Now that is terrifying."
And from Bill in Somerdale, New Jersey: "I would give serious consideration before travel by air. If I need to travel, I shall. If the trip is not essential, I'd probably stay home."
Thanks for writing in, everybody.
And just about every community has them, old-fashioned laws that technically are still in force. Chicago recently began pouring over its statutes and discovered found a mother load of curious laws that are still on the books.
CNN's Keith Oppenheim has our report.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
KEITH OPPENHEIM, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A city with a history has a lot of old rules. So think back to another time. Did you know Chicago once made it illegal to transport dead people on public trains?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No, I didn't. Actually, I brought a body on my way up here.
OPPENHEIM: Or that police were allowed to dump confiscated weapons in Lake Michigan five miles offshore?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That one I really can't explain.
OPPENHEIM: You would be fined for throwing a stone in the road because it interfered with horse-drawn wagons. Babies born with sore eyes had to be reported to the Health Department because the mother was considered to be a carrier of sexually transmitted diseases. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The thinking was, obviously, if she has contracted one of the diseases that she is immoral, that she's a loose woman.
OPPENHEIM: The awareness of outdated books began three years ago, when various groups cried foul over one law.
(on camera): They were challenging a 79-year-old ordinance that made it a crime to wear a mask in public. As that archaic idea got written out of the books, city officials started to realize there were a lot of old laws that just didn't fit with the times.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: If it's on the books, it means it can be enforced. It means tickets can be written.
OPPENHEIM (voice-over): So city officials are preparing to purge some ordinances, including a recent one that put a litter tax on take- out food. That one was considered unconstitutional. But in the end, it appears that if a law isn't hip with the times, it's time runs out.
Keith Oppenheim, CNN, Chicago.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COLLINS: There's a lot more ahead on CNN SUNDAY MORNING. At 8:30 a.m. Eastern, "WEEKEND HOUSE CALL" goes high tech with options for those people having difficulty getting pregnant.
At 9:30 a.m. Eastern, I'll talk to the family members of American civilians killed in Iraq.
And at 9:45 a.m., we've got tips on dealing with something everybody dreads, traffic tickets.
We'll have that for you in a moment. Stick around, everybody.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COLLINS: North Korea blaming the United States today for the impeachment of South Korean President Roh Moo-hyun. The North Koreans did not elaborate, but a spokesman said -- quoting now -- "It was the United States that sparked such a disturbing development. The U.S. had hatched such a plot for impeachment."
A judge in Gaza has ordered the release of four Palestinians. They were detained in a bombing last October that killed three American members of the security detail and wounded a fourth. A U.S. embassy spokesman says the U.S. wasn't told about the suspects' release.
Tensions are high as voters in Spain go to the polls today. Protesters are accusing the ruling popular party of a cover-up. They say the government, for political reasons, blamed the Basque terror group ETA for last week's deadly terror attacks. Now investigators are focusing mainly on al Qaeda.
"WEEKEND HOUSE CALL" with Holly Firfer is coming up next.
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People in Custody in Connection With Deadly Bombings in Madrid>
Aired March 14, 2004 - 08:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
HEIDI COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: From the CNN Center in Atlanta, this is CNN SUNDAY MORNING. It's March 14. Good morning, everybody. I'm Heidi Collins.
Coming up for you this hour, we go live to Madrid for the latest on the terror bombing investigation. Plus, details on Spain's general election under way today.
A deadly church fire in Pittsburgh. Two veteran firefighters are dead and a congregation are in mourning.
Then on a much lighter note, you can take it with you. Teeny, tiny technology, it goes wherever you go.
But first, here's what's happening at the top of this hour.
More American casualties in Iraq. Six U.S. soldiers have been killed this weekend by roadside bombs. In the latest incident, about nine and a half hours ago, a blast killed a 1st Infantry Division soldier in Baghdad. Earlier, three from the 1st Armored Division were killed in Baghdad, and two from the 1st Infantry Division died in Tikrit.
Russia's foreign minister warned the former Soviet Republic of Georgia today not to use force against the autonomous Adzharia region. In a statement, said, "In case of a crisis, responsibility will lie with the Georgian leadership."
In Spain now, five people are in custody in connection with Thursday's commuter train attacks in Madrid. The suspects are three Moroccans, two Indians. The bombings killed 200 people, wounded more than 1,500.
Now, more on our top story this hour.
National elections in Spain come on the heels of that horrific commuter train attack in Madrid. This message allegedly from al Qaeda is being investigated. Quote, "We declare our responsibility for what occurred in Madrid just two and a half years after the attacks in New York and Washington."
CNN's Diana Muriel is in Madrid covering the elections and the bombing investigation.
Some chilling words there, Diana. DIANA MURIEL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Heidi. The election, of course, is taking place against the backdrop of this ongoing investigation into the bombings on Thursday. I'm here at a downtown polling station in central Madrid. It's just about a quarter a mile away from the Atocha station, which is where some of those bombs went off on Thursday.
The investigation continuing apace. The government came out with a series of press conferences yesterday. The interior ministry saying that they have recovered a videotape which they were -- after a tip- off was given to a local television station which shows a man speaking. He says his name is name is Abu Dijan al-Sistani (ph). He is speaking in Arabic with a Moroccan accent, and he describes himself as a military spokesperson for al Qaeda in Europe.
He says, amongst other things on the tape, that there will be more -- referring to the bombs -- in shallah, or god willing. This tape is now in -- has now been given to a judge from the national court conducting the investigation. That investigation ongoing.
In the meantime, Spaniards coming out to polling stations all around the country to vote in the national election. A lot of people on the streets, both in Madrid and in other cities around the country last night, protesting against the government, against the government that they have accused of withholding information about the investigation.
They say that the government wants people to believe that it's ETA, which is the Basque separatist terrorist group that's responsible for the bombing, and not (UNINTELLIGIBLE) from al Qaeda. Of course the government says that they are continuing with both those lines of investigation, but the -- in the meantime, people are coming to the polling stations to make -- to use their democratic vote.
People here very, very keen that they should not be prevented from doing so. The terrorist attacks are not going to get in the way of that process -- Heidi.
COLLINS: Diana Muriel, thanks so very much, live from Madrid this morning. Appreciate that.
Closer to home, a loss that hits the hearts of firefighters and a congregation. Pittsburgh has lost a historic church and two firefighters. The two men died, and more than 20 others were injured when the bell tower collapsed on them as they were fighting to gain control of a fire Saturday morning.
On the scene in Pittsburgh for us this morning is CNN's Adaora Udoji.
Adaora, good morning.
ADAORA UDOJI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Heidi.
The Ebenezer Baptist Church, as you mentioned, is the oldest and black church in the city of Pittsburgh. It is still smoldering, which is really testament to the intensity of the fire that ripped through it yesterday.
This morning, we have been watching firefighters arriving. Groups of them coming in, including arson investigators who are going to be taking a look into the cause.
As you said, two veteran firefighters both in their 50s were killed. They were apparently looking for hot spots yesterday inside the church when the bell tower fell. Altogether, 31 firefighters were injured. Seven seriously enough to be hospitalized overnight.
Also today, we're expecting ATF, along with the local arson investigators, as I've mentioned, who have already come, are going to be investigating, looking into what possibly caused this fire. We have heard that there is some suspicion, perhaps, it was caused by electrical problems.
The fire, of course, also devastating to the 2,500 members of the congregation. It's really the cornerstone of the black community here in Pittsburgh. It's pastor of 31 years, who was here yesterday preparing for a Saturday morning breakfast, said it was just pure devastation to watch what happened.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REV. J.V.A. WINSETT, EBENEZER BAPTIST CHURCH: I saw the bell tower as it fell, and it fell on the firefighters. And my heart just sunk. And we stopped, and we had prayer for them. I saw them laying in the street being attended to, and it was a very emotional moment.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
UDOJI: Pastor Winsett said the church has been here 131 years, and tomorrow they will start plans for rebuilding -- Heidi.
COLLINS: Adaora Udoji, live from Pittsburgh this morning. Adaora, thank so much.
And now we want to give you an update on those grizzly killings in Fresno, California. Police have charged Marcus Wesson with nine counts of murder.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CHIEF JERRY DYER, FRESNO POLICE: We have also not been able to confirm the cause of death at this time for each of the victims. However, I will say that based on the physical evidence that we have collected, as well as the observations of the officers at the scene, we have strong suspicions as to how each of those deaths occurred.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COLLINS: Authorities say all of the dead are his children, some apparently by incestuous relationships. Bail for the 57-year-old Wesson is set at $9 million.
To presidential politics now. There probably won't be much mystery at the Democratic National Convention in Boston. Senator John Kerry has sewn up the nomination. This weekend put Kerry over the top in the number of delegates he needs to become the party's official candidate in July.
Senator Kerry has already proposed a series of debates with President Bush. And so far, the Bush-Cheney campaign has declined.
CNN's Kathleen Koch is keeping tabs on the White House for us today. She joins us now with the latest from there.
Good morning, Kathleen.
KATHLEEN KOCH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Heidi.
The back-and-forth sniping between the two campaigns has grown increasingly bitter. Last week, President Bush releasing new critical ads targeting John Kerry. John Kerry then responding with ads of his own, charging the president with misleading the American public. But John Kerry campaigning Saturday in Quincy, Illinois, seemed to offer an olive branch of sorts to Mr. Bush.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. JOHN KERRY (D-MA), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: President Bush and I can do better, and America deserves better. And so here in Quincy, where long ago we saw the best of American politics, I am asking George Bush to agree to a series of monthly debates starting this spring to talk about the real issues in our country.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KOCH: President Bush has already agreed to three debates with his opponent. However, Republicans are still smarting from the offhand comments about Republican operatives that John Kerry made last week when he did not realize that microphones were within earshot.
So the Bush campaign rebuffed Kerry's offer, saying in a statement, "After calling republicans crooks and liars, John Kerry is now calling for a civil debate on the issue. Senator Kerry should finish the debate with himself before he starts trying to explain his positions to the voters."
So, Heidi, it doesn't appear that the two opponents will kiss and make up anytime soon. And political observers are starting to say that if this negative campaigning continues, it could end up backfiring, offending voters and hurting both men.
Back to you.
COLLINS: And such a long way to go. All right. Kathleen Koch, live from Washington. Thanks so much.
In Gaza today, a judge orders the release of four Palestinians. They were detained in a bombing last October that killed three Americans and wounded a fourth.
CNN's Paula Hancock is live in Jerusalem with details of that story.
Good morning to you, Paula.
PAULA HANCOCK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hello, Heidi.
That's right. Four Palestinians linked with that bombing of the U.S. convoy back in October have been ordered to be released. A military court judge has ordered the prosecutors to drop the case, saying that there was insufficient evidence to convict these four.
Now, those security officials are telling us as well that the final decision does rest with the Palestinian Authority president, Yasser Arafat. Friends and relatives of the four are waiting outside the prison in Gaza at the moment, hoping that they will be released within the next couple of hours or so.
To give you a little bit of a context, October the 15th was when this bomb attack was carried out. The U.S. convoy was traveling down a road in Gaza. The convoy was actually going to speak to people in Gaza as regards the Fulbright Scholarship.
Now, three guards were killed and another was injured. Now, this attack came under international condemnation immediately, especially from the Bush administration. The Bush administration was putting tremendous pressure on Yasser Arafat and the Palestinian Authority to come up with names and to discover exactly who was behind these attacks.
A few weeks ago, the Palestinian Authority did arrest these four suspects, and they were charged with manslaughter for planting bombs aimed at Israeli tanks that might actually have also hit this convoy. But Palestinian officials now telling us that they could be released.
And then in a separate development, we have confirmation, as well, coming into CNN from Israeli military officials that three Palestinians have been shot and killed in central Gaza. The Israeli officials saying that they saw figures trying to lay an explosive device on a road in central Gaza. Palestinian officials also confirming three have died, but not giving us any more details at the moment -- Heidi.
COLLINS: All right. Certainly a lot going on where you are. Thanks so much, Paula Hancock, live in Jerusalem this morning.
Well, is wearing a mask a punishable offense? How about taxes on your take-out? Does that sound fair? These are just a couple of laws on the books in the Windy City that may be changing.
And technology doing more and more with less and less. Space, that is. We'll talk about the newest technologies to go.
Also, we'd like to know if your travel plans have been affect bid the attacks in Madrid. You can e-mail us with your comments at wam@cnn.com.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) COLLINS: Look, ma, no hands. Not even any drivers. Real ones, that is.
Well, chalk it up to technical glitches. All 15 self-navigating vehicles -- we told you about these yesterday -- AKA robots, of course, we're knocked out in a 150-mile race across the Mojave Desert.
So the $1 million winner's purse goes begging. The grand challenge is actually a Defense Department research project. The Pentagon spent $13 million tax dollars to mount the challenge.
So despite the cost, some newfangled gadgets don't perform as planned. But let's go ahead and see what is coming down the pike in the "take it with you" technology department.
Joining us from New York, Suzanne Kantra, technology editor for Popular Science Magazine.
Suzanne, thanks so much for being with us. We'll talk about the robot debacle in a minute. But there are some incredibly tiny super- tech to-go items out there on the market that people I'm sure are very interested in.
What is your favorite? And what's the advantage here?
SUZANNE KANTRA, POPULAR SCIENCE MAGAZINE: Well, you're talking about portability, you're talking about ease of use. One of my favorites is the Epson PictureMate, which is a portable printer. And you've seen these types of portable printers before. They spit out 4 x 6 prints in usually less than a minute.
But what makes this unique is the fact that these print also last up to 100 years. Usually they last somewhere between 15 and 25, which means you're going to have to print them out again..
COLLINS: Now, how do they last that long? Is it about the paper? Or what's it about?
KANTRA: Well, it's a combination of the pigment inks and the papers. Usually, the inks are made out of dye, which over time tends to lose its color. And as you know from the cave drawings over in Spain, those pigments last a very long time.
COLLINS: Wow. All right. So I imagine quality is pretty good then when you print it out, even though you are on the go, as you say.
KANTRA: Yes, it's fantastic.
COLLINS: OK. Let's talk about the laptop computer by Sharp. This is about $1,500. What's the headline here on this one?
KANTRA: Well, as you can see, it's incredibly tiny. This is just under two pounds, which makes it, when it's announced tomorrow, the lightest laptop computer available in the U.S. market.
And what is nice about this is you are not going to be sacrificing battery life. Usually, these really tiny little laptops get maybe an hour and a half, two hours. This is going to get up to four hours of battery life. So you are going to be able to use this on a longer plane ride.
COLLINS: Good. So you don't have to type so fast, huh?
KANTRA: Exactly.
COLLINS: All right. What about the Sony Walkman? I mean, I have had many of these along the way, but I have a feeling this one is a little bit better.
KANTRA: This is much better. You may have heard of MiniDisc. And this takes a new form of MiniDisc called Hi-MD.
That means it stores one gigabyte or 45 hours on a $7 disk. And these flash memory players for your digital audiofiles cost a couple of hundred dollars usually when they're one gigabyte. And now you can replace all of that information or add to your collection for just seven more dollars.
COLLINS: All right. Quickly, we are running out of time here, but I want to get to this Bluetooth headset. It works with pretty much everything you have, your cell phone and more.
KANTRA: What is different about this one is you don't have to pair it with both your home phone and your cell phone. It knows when any call comes in for it to be routed directly to the headset. So you don't have to fumble for anything. It's just -- pressing a button will take the call.
COLLINS: All right. Suzanne Kantra, technology editor for Popular Science Magazine. Thanks so much.
And that Motorola two-way radio that recharges by solar power, pretty cool, too. Don't have one of those to look at, though. We'll be keeping our eye out on the market for that.
KANTRA: Absolutely.
COLLINS: Thanks so much, Suzanne.
KANTRA: Thank you.
COLLINS: Well, arrest that reporter for wearing a mask. Of course you won't believe some of the wacky laws on the books in Chicago. Now, some of these rules are getting a second look.
And we'll respond to your e-mail questions about how you feel about traveling after the Madrid bombings.
We're back in a moment.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(WEATHER REPORT) COLLINS: For now, we do want to check our top stories this morning.
The arms standoff with a teenager in Loudoun County, Tennessee, ends in an apparent suicide. Police found the 16-year-old boy dead in a bedroom.
In Fresno, California, 57-year-old Marcus Wesson has been charged with killing nine of his children. Police say Wesson apparently had incestuous relationships with his daughters, making him both father and grandfather to some of the victims.
And the Utah woman charged with murder after one of her twins was stillborn reportedly was once convicted of child endangerment for striking her daughter in the face at a supermarket.
We are going to take a moment to do the e-mails that we have received this morning on that question you see there, "Does the threat of terror make you think twice about travel?"
From Greg in Knoxville, Tennessee, "No. The thought of paying almost $2 per gallon for gas does. Now that is terrifying."
And from Bill in Somerdale, New Jersey: "I would give serious consideration before travel by air. If I need to travel, I shall. If the trip is not essential, I'd probably stay home."
Thanks for writing in, everybody.
And just about every community has them, old-fashioned laws that technically are still in force. Chicago recently began pouring over its statutes and discovered found a mother load of curious laws that are still on the books.
CNN's Keith Oppenheim has our report.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
KEITH OPPENHEIM, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A city with a history has a lot of old rules. So think back to another time. Did you know Chicago once made it illegal to transport dead people on public trains?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No, I didn't. Actually, I brought a body on my way up here.
OPPENHEIM: Or that police were allowed to dump confiscated weapons in Lake Michigan five miles offshore?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That one I really can't explain.
OPPENHEIM: You would be fined for throwing a stone in the road because it interfered with horse-drawn wagons. Babies born with sore eyes had to be reported to the Health Department because the mother was considered to be a carrier of sexually transmitted diseases. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The thinking was, obviously, if she has contracted one of the diseases that she is immoral, that she's a loose woman.
OPPENHEIM: The awareness of outdated books began three years ago, when various groups cried foul over one law.
(on camera): They were challenging a 79-year-old ordinance that made it a crime to wear a mask in public. As that archaic idea got written out of the books, city officials started to realize there were a lot of old laws that just didn't fit with the times.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: If it's on the books, it means it can be enforced. It means tickets can be written.
OPPENHEIM (voice-over): So city officials are preparing to purge some ordinances, including a recent one that put a litter tax on take- out food. That one was considered unconstitutional. But in the end, it appears that if a law isn't hip with the times, it's time runs out.
Keith Oppenheim, CNN, Chicago.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COLLINS: There's a lot more ahead on CNN SUNDAY MORNING. At 8:30 a.m. Eastern, "WEEKEND HOUSE CALL" goes high tech with options for those people having difficulty getting pregnant.
At 9:30 a.m. Eastern, I'll talk to the family members of American civilians killed in Iraq.
And at 9:45 a.m., we've got tips on dealing with something everybody dreads, traffic tickets.
We'll have that for you in a moment. Stick around, everybody.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COLLINS: North Korea blaming the United States today for the impeachment of South Korean President Roh Moo-hyun. The North Koreans did not elaborate, but a spokesman said -- quoting now -- "It was the United States that sparked such a disturbing development. The U.S. had hatched such a plot for impeachment."
A judge in Gaza has ordered the release of four Palestinians. They were detained in a bombing last October that killed three American members of the security detail and wounded a fourth. A U.S. embassy spokesman says the U.S. wasn't told about the suspects' release.
Tensions are high as voters in Spain go to the polls today. Protesters are accusing the ruling popular party of a cover-up. They say the government, for political reasons, blamed the Basque terror group ETA for last week's deadly terror attacks. Now investigators are focusing mainly on al Qaeda.
"WEEKEND HOUSE CALL" with Holly Firfer is coming up next.
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People in Custody in Connection With Deadly Bombings in Madrid>
