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CNN Sunday Morning
Arrest Made in Natalee Holloway Case; Interview With Patti LaBelle
Aired April 16, 2006 - 07:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There's a tornado right there. It's going over us.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's going right over us.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BETTY NGUYEN, CNN ANCHOR: In the eye of the storm -- a wild ride for a tornado chaser. When most people run, this guy, well, he heads for the storm. This is a Nebraska farm country area, not far from Nebraska City. Now, a lot of trees are down, houses damaged, and on poultry farms near Beatrice, chicken houses leveled.
TONY HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: St. Peter's Square in Vatican City, possibly the most picturesque of the Easter Sunday services. We will show you how Easter is being celebrated around the world this morning.
And later this hour, Betty, singer Patti LaBelle joins us...
NGUYEN: All right.
HARRIS: ... from the largest service in the United States of America.
NGUYEN: We've got quite a show lined up for you folks. Also a developing story out of Aruba in the Natalee Holloway case. Remember that case? Well, the Associated Press reports an arrest has been made. A spokeswoman for the Aruban prosecutor won't say who has been arrested, or how the arrest is linked to the Alabama teen's disappearance. Holloway was last seen leaving a bar on the island last May. We'll talk to her father, Dave Holloway, in our 9:00 a.m. Easter hour.
HARRIS: Sickening details are coming out in the killing of a 10- year-old Oklahoma girl. Jamie Rose Bolin's body was found in a neighbor's closet. Now police say they believe suspect Kevin Ray Underwood had a plan to torture, mutilate, and the plan also included cannibalism. Underwood's arraignment is set for Monday in Purcell, Oklahoma.
NGUYEN: Goodness. Well, a tragic accident, not foul play. That is what Wisconsin police are saying about the deaths of two Milwaukee boys who disappeared almost a month ago. Bodies of 11 and 12-year- olds were pulled from a pond at a Milwaukee park. Now autopsies show the boys drowned.
From the CNN Center, this is Easter Sunday. Good morning, everybody. Seven a.m. right here in Atlanta, 1:00 p.m. at the Vatican. I'm Betty Nguyen.
HARRIS: Lovely in the Easter...
NGUYEN: The Easter white?
HARRIS: ... white. Lovely. Lovely. Good morning everyone. Happy Easter to you. I'm Tony Harris. Thank you for being with us.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Tornado (inaudible) is going over us.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: (inaudible)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We are in a tornado! We are in a [bleep] tornado! Get down. [bleep].
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: (inaudible)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I know.
(CROSSTALK)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: ... falling everywhere.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Whoo! Look there!
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Look at that debris! [bleep]
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We're in the middle of that tornado
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HARRIS: What do we make of this?
NGUYEN: A lot of bleeps there.
HARRIS: Yes, a lot of bleeps. I mean, I guess that part of it is understandable. What isn't so understandable is why you drive into this. But we'll get to that in a moment. A tornado's fury caught on tape -- amazing pictures from inside a tornado in Beatrice, Nebraska. Severe storms ripped through the area yesterday. One of the guys chasing the storm in this truck, Randy Hicks, captured the video. By the way, don't try this at home.
NGUYEN: No, it's very dangerous. And if you watch closely, and I think we've already passed it on the video there, you can see some of the glass flying. These folks lose some of their windows. I think I hear in the video, too, that they lost a camper as well that was on the back of there.
(END VIDEO CLIP) Reynolds Wolf joins us to talk about the storms that went through that area. Some houses were damaged. I mean, how big of a tornado was this?
REYNOLDS WOLF, CNN METEOROLOGIST: You know, it's so hard to say. I would say just by the looks of that, I would say maybe an F2.
NGUYEN: OK.
WOLF: Maybe an F1. Not exactly a tremendous -- not like Oklahoma City size in terms of what we saw a couple years back. What they are doing in this process -- I've done some storm chasing most recently with Val Caster out of Oklahoma City.
And the process that they're going through, is they go to the thunderstorm. They try to, what is called, punch the cord with it. The rain is heaviest where you have the hail. And then, when you get to the other side of say this cord -- these storms are kind of cellular, if you will, in structure --when you get through the core, you tend to see the tornado. What happened is that process went through pretty rapidly, much more than what they were expecting. And sure enough they came right into the middle of it.
As far as the expletives, you would be stunned the words that will come out of your mouth when you're in a situation like that. Certainly scary times. And they're very fortunate that it was not worse than this. Some of the hail stones, no question, that they dealt with yesterday reported up to nickel, dime, golf ball-sized hail. And that is from the strong updrafts that power these tremendous storms. And they're like giant machines, where they have inflow, they have outflow.
Here is a perfect video that we have. On the right side of the screen you see what we refer to as a wall cloud. To the center of the screen, where you saw moments ago...
HARRIS: Yes.
WOLF: ... that is a funnel cloud. And as soon as that makes contact with the ground, boom, that's when they classify that as a tornado. But that was a widespread event that we saw, again in parts of the Central Plains, and into portions of the Midwest as well.
HARRIS: Hey, Reynolds, we talk about eye walls, and that sort of thing when we talk about these storms. There's a shot coming up here -- and I think we're getting close to it now -- where it looks like you could see out of the driver's side window. Maybe this is it coming up just a second here. It looks like...
NGUYEN: Right there, yes, yes.
HARRIS: Yes. What are we looking at right there?
WOLF: Right there, you're seeing just one side of the tornado itself -- the base as it comes in and makes contact with the ground. Many times... HARRIS: Amazing part there.
WOLF: And you know, the thing is tornadoes will take the color of whatever stuff it has -- and sorry for the lack of proper...
NGUYEN: The debris as -- OK.
WOLF: ... the debris that it picks up. For example, if you happen to see one of these develop in parts of central or southern parts of Georgia, where you have that nice, rich, red clay, your tornadoes will have a reddish color. Here, there is obviously not a great deal -- obviously there's soil out there, but there's not a great deal of loose soil. So it's not picking up a great deal. Also if the storm's a bit stronger, they tend to get a little bit darker. But what you're seeing here is mostly water, some dust, some debris. Moments ago we had some video. Looks like, what was it? Maybe metal from a roof perhaps.
HARRIS: Yes.
NGUYEN: Yes, and some items flying. Let me ask you, though. Does it look like these storm chasers are actually in the middle of this storm? Or are they on the outer edge?
WOLF: I don't think so. It seems they're...
NGUYEN: That's what I was thinking, looking at it.
HARRIS: Yes.
WOLF: Well you hear him -- obviously we can't play the whole thing, because of some of the words he said.
NGUYEN: But you hear him say, we're right in the middle of it.
WOLF: We're in the middle. We're in the middle of the blankety blank.
NGUYEN: Right.
WOLF: Yes. I don't think they were in the middle of the tornado. That's very hard to do. You can get in the middle of, say, a hurricane, because those things can be hundreds of miles wide. Tornadoes aren't quite that big.
HARRIS: Right. Now, just to recap this, this is in Beatrice, Nebraska.
WOLF: Yes.
HARRIS: And Randy Hicks is the photographer who shot this video. And I know Randy's watching. Randy, give us a call, if you would. We would like to talk to you about this experience. And do we have an idea yet? Just a farm area -- this is rural Nebraska, so just sort of ...
NGUYEN: A lot of poultry farms nearby.
HARRIS: OK.
NGUYEN: And we understand that some of those chicken houses got really torn up in all of this.
HARRIS: But no word of any injuries or...
NGUYEN: Not that we've heard yet.
HARRIS: ... people hurt, or anything of that sort? OK.
NGUYEN: Some houses damaged, of course you know with flying debris.
HARRIS: Some property, and that sort of thing.
NGUYEN: The winds. But at this point we haven't heard -- hopefully there won't be any injuries to report. But you would think we would have heard it by now...
HARRIS: Yes.
NGUYEN: ... since this rolled through about what time? Do you know Reynolds?
WOLF: Yesterday afternoon, I'd say, around 4:00 or 5:00.
HARRIS: Yes.
NGUYEN: OK, yes. So we should have heard by now.
WOLF: And hats off to Randy Hicks, too, though. I got to tell you. He did a really good job doing what he was trying to do, and that was capture this storm video on -- obviously get it on tape. But at the same time, even during days where you have widespread severe weather, it is still a very, very difficult task trying to get these things on tape. So you can have a day where you have a 70 percent chance of severe storms and not see a thing. Other days you can have a slight chance, and you can see them drop from the skies.
HARRIS: Well, I have to ask you. We're talking about Randy Hicks here. I mean, what do we think about this? I mean, clearly this is great video. I mean, look, we can show you with great -- look at this shot -- great detail. That looks like a big old wave there.
NGUYEN: It does look like a wave, yes.
HARRIS: It does. I mean, we can show you in great detail what a tornado looks like. But my goodness, you just don't want to encourage...
NGUYEN: The risk.
WOLF: Not at all. I...
HARRIS: So, you know, on one hand, and then on the other hand...
WOLF: Folks, I would say Randy knows exactly what he's doing.
HARRIS: Gotch'a.
WOLF: But I would not -- again, if you're tuning in, this is not a thing you want to do if you're a novice.
HARRIS: Right. Reynolds, we appreciate it.
WOLF: No problem guys.
HARRIS: OK, thanks.
NGUYEN: Thank you, Reynolds. We'll talk to you soon.
Well, Easter morning does signal celebrations all around the world. In Vatican City, a candlelight vigil opens the pageant-filled Easter Sunday service at St. Peter's Square. Many tourists and pilgrims returned to Jerusalem for mass in the old city. This is a change from recent years. Easter celebrations had been shunned by many because of violence.
Now in Baghdad, Iraqi Christians celebrate Easter Sunday amid tight security measures. Attacks are feared. Churches in Iraq came under successive terrorist attacks in 2004 and 2005.
And in the U.S., what is billed as the country's biggest Easter service gets underway in about three hours from now at the Georgia Dome right here in Atlanta. An estimated 40,000 people are expected. I hear they're already about to line up for this event. I mean, it's one of those things you've got to get there early just to get a seat. We'll check in on this Easter celebration throughout the morning.
And singer Patti LaBelle will be performing...
HARRIS: What?
NGUYEN: You're going to be speaking with her, Tony. At the service...
HARRIS: In our program?
NGUYEN: That's right, live, right here on CNN Sunday Morning. She's going to talk to us a little bit later this hour.
HARRIS: Patti LaBelle, are you are kidding me?
NGUYEN: You're doing the interview.
HARRIS: Am I really?
NGUYEN: I hope I'm not kidding you.
HARRIS: I better get to work then. OK.
NGUYEN: No, she's here folks. And Tony's got a lot of work to do in the meantime.
They're bright, all-American guys with ambition to spare, buddies to party with, even girls they may want to marry. But beneath the surface, they are trying to decide whether they're being called in an entirely different direction. It's a real-life series called "God or the Girl" premiering on A&E tonight. CNN's Chris Lawrence has the story, one you may have first seen on "THE SITUATION ROOM."
(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I've decided to abstain from sexual relationships with women.
CHRIS LAWRENCE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It's reality T.V. with a religious twist.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: If I'm fortunate enough, God will make me a priest.
LAWRENCE: A&E's "God or the Girl" follows four young men as they decide whether to enter the priesthood or keep their lives as lay people.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I am falling in love with Aly, and it's making my decision that much harder.
LAWRENCE: Some say the concept alone is outrageous in light of the church abuse scandal.
STEVE SANCHEZ, ABUSE VICTIM: Some victims are going to take it as, you know, a slap in the face.
LAWRENCE: Steve Sanchez says he was sexually assaulted by a priest and claims the show was green lighted, partly because of the Catholic Church crisis.
SANCHEZ: If the scandal had not happened when somebody was pitching the idea of this reality show about four boys becoming priests, they would have said no, move on, give me another idea. But with the current coverage that's happened, you know, it's a hot topic.
LAWRENCE: It may sound like Temptation Island, but the show is actually, "a wonderful insight into what goes into making the decision to study for the priesthood today and helps the viewer realize that God does call healthy, vibrant and energetic young men." Those are quotes from Catholic priests. And the show has a ringing endorsement from the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops. It gets into the minds of all four characters.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The question is -- am I going to have the courage.
LAWRENCE: As some struggle with the choice between devoting their lives to God or marriage.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And when I go to a wedding like this, I think of Ali, and having a family and having kids.
LAWRENCE: A&E realizes the title alone is controversial but says "God or the Girl" gets people interested. "We frankly considered others, but our job is to make sure people see this compelling documentary.
(On camera): The producers say if they were Catholic, some people might say that they went easy on the church. And if they were Evangelical Christians, others might say they are just bashing the Catholic Church. But the producers are Jewish, which they say made them totally unbiased. The first episode airs on Easter Sunday. Chris Lawrence, CNN, Los Angeles.
(END VIDEO TAPE)
NGUYEN: And that would be today. Well, join Wolf Blitzer in "THE SITUATION ROOM" weekdays at 4:00 p.m. Eastern. The live prime time edition is at 7:00 Eastern right here on CNN.
Christians are celebrating Easter Sunday all over the world today -- many going to church. Kids are in Easter plays and having Easter egg hunts. I remember those days. Loved it. So what's your fondest Easter memories? E-mail us at weekends@CNN.com. You got an Easter memory?
HARRIS: A memory?
NGUYEN: Yes.
HARRIS: Yes, yes, yes. It's when I was a kid, Easter sunrise service with my mom and my sister.
NGUYEN: Did you have your new suit on -- your little Easter suit on?
HARRIS: Yes, Betty. Yes. Easter sunrise service at the old memorial stadium in Baltimore, Maryland...
NGUYEN: Really?
HARRIS: .... which is gone now for some "nbt xyz abc" stadium thing. But yes, I remember those. Man, that was great fun.
NGUYEN: Fond memories, right? I remember waking up and then...
HARRIS: Really?
NGUYEN: ... seeing the Easter basket there. But you got to wait. You got to wait until you got back from church...
HARRIS: Right, right, right.
NGUYEN: ... to open it up and eat all the candy and all that good stuff.
HARRIS: Man, that was good. You got me thinking about that now. That's good.
NGUYEN: Yes, all those Easter egg hunts. In fact, we did one with my little sister not too long ago, because she's just barely jumped into her teens.
HARRIS: Right. She's not little anymore Betty. But anyway...
NGUYEN: And there for a couple years, we couldn't find many of the Easter eggs.
HARRIS: Right. Gotch'a.
NGUYEN: So if you're doing hunts today, be sure to at least count them or mark the Easter eggs, so that you don't wind up smelling them somewhere in the house three months later.
HARRIS: Right. So your favorite memory, weekends@CNN.com.
The news across America now: In Colorado, a 7-year-old boy is on the mend this morning. He was attacked by a mountain lion yesterday. He is recovering from puncture wounds and scrapes on his head and legs. Wildlife officials later found the lion and killed it.
A wildfire in Amarillo, Texas destroys at least two homes and forced residents and a hundred others to flee. The flames spread fast across the southwest portion of the city, burning 75 acres. What may have sparked the fire is still being investigated. More than 60,000 acres have burned in the Texas panhandle this month alone.
And say good-bye to the Hotel California -- well, not the Hotel California from the Eagles song, but the Hotel San Diego built in 1914. It was imploded to make room for a new 22-story federal court building.
NGUYEN: Would you runner errands and babysit for your boss? Yes, it's an interesting question. Former employees of a congressman say that happened to them.
HARRIS: And Delta reaches a tentative agreement with pilots. What does this mean for summer travel? Is it safe for you to book your flights? We'll get some answers for you.
NGUYEN: And two special guests join us this morning from the largest Easter service in the country. That's next on our...
HARRIS: You're kidding me.
NGUYEN: "Faces of Faith."
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HARRIS: OK, with apologies to Ray Lewis and the Baltimore Ravens, what time is it? Peep time.
NGUYEN: Peep time.
HARRIS: What time is it? Peep time. Yes. Our favorite Easter candy is back. Indestructible as ever, from the microwave.
NGUYEN: Oh, that's just wrong. You don't give little chicks a peep?
HARRIS: Well, I think it's because you just can't destroy the little -- what are they? -- sugar-coated icons.
(CROSSTALK)
NGUYEN: ... and I've already eaten two this morning.
HARRIS: We will bring you our marshmallow friends this morning, 9:00 Eastern.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Hi, I'm Theresa Erdman, special (inaudible) here at (inaudible). And I want to have a shout to my friends and family back at home. Vic Erdman (ph), my father, Diane Wilson, friend of the family. So Happy Easter, good luck.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Hi, my name is First Lieutenant Luke Haverstick (ph) out of Makwa, Iraq. I'd like to say hi to my wife and my daughter, Ava. And I'm going to Iowa. Happy Easter. And I love you.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
NGUYEN: Well, The strike at Delta Airlines avoided, at least for now. Delta and its pilots' union reached a tentative contract deal. And that raises the question can vacationers rely on Delta for summer travel? Ben Mutzabaugh, airline and travel reporter for "USA Today" joins us from Washington to talk about this. Good morning to you.
BEN MUTZABAUGH, AIRLINE AND TRAVEL REPORTER, USA TODAY: Good morning.
NGUYEN: All right. So let's talk about this. A tentative deal reached on Friday between Delta and its pilots' union. You think it's going to go through?
MUTZABAUGH: Well, that's the million dollar question. Most people seem to think that the pilots are going to vote to ratify their agreement. Because if they don't, the airline says that they will go out of business if there's any strike. And of course, this would all play out over weeks and weeks, if not months and months. But if the pilots don't approve the contract, and it goes back to the beginning, and there will probably be more negotiations and more strike threats.
But I actually think most of that is behind Delta for their pilots. I expect ratification. I think they will be okay. The real question can come in with Comair, which is a Delta subsidiary. It's based out of Cincinnati, where the flight attendants might be striking. NGUYEN: Oh, yes, that could cause lots of problems. All right, so for those who have tickets, who have frequent flyer miles, and they're listening to this, and they're waiting to see if this deal does go through, what should they do? Should they be worried?
MUTZABAUGH: No, there's no real need to worry right now. It looks like everything will be fine with Delta. In the worst-case scenario, the agreement won't be ratified. But I think that's pretty unlikely. So if you're ticketed on Delta this summer, if you have frequent flyer miles, they should be safe. Now again, the one key snafu is flight attendants at Comair, which is -- they operate a lot of flights out of Delta Cincinnati hub and some flights out of Atlanta. If the flight attendants go on strike, there will be some disruption. But Delta will still be able to fly. And they can make some other arrangements for you. So you might get bounced around. But long-term summer plans look okay at this point.
NGUYEN: All right. So calm the fear. You're okay for now. Well let's talk about the airline industry as a whole. Delta's troubles aside, how is the airline industry? Is it bouncing back some at least? Because I know some of the cheaper carriers, those discount carriers, have been doing pretty well.
MUTZABAUGH: Well, we're starting to see some interesting things happen. We are seeing -- for as bad as things have been in the past five years, we are seeing some improvements in the airline industry. This year, for example, American, Continental, and maybe even U.S. Airways, which -- if you would have asked a year ago, they were the airline most likely to go out of business. Those three airlines, of the traditional carriers, could actually turn a profit this year.
NGUYEN: What are they doing right?
MUTZABAUGH: Well, the one thing that's helped everyone -- of course, oil has hurt everyone, because fuel has become so expensive. But the airlines this year, for the first time in several years, they have been very successful in pushing through fare increases. And now, of course, with all of the big airlines, they have cut billions and billions of dollars in expenses.
So if you're an airline, say, like American -- or U.S. Airways is probably a better example, because they used bankruptcy, they shed so many costs on the now-merged America West. And you're seeing fares go up, so that they're getting more money per passenger. And planes are flying at record full levels. And since they're getting more money now for the first time in four or five years from each ticket, it is starting to push them a little closer to the black.
NGUYEN: Well speaking of money, let's talk about the price of gasoline. That is expected to rise this summer as people want to take those vacations. Of course, that's going to affect the price of air fares. Do you think folks need to start planning right and buy those tickets right now, so they don't really get hit in the wallet?
MUTZABAUGH: Absolutely. If there's someplace that you know you're going to need to fly to, start looking right now. And as soon as you find a price that's in price range you expected to pay, buy it now. Because we have seen air fares go up between 10 percent and 20 percent on most routes across the country since the beginning of the year. And most experts think that trend's going to continue. There could be sporadic fare sales. There could be some discounts here and there. But they're going to be offered far less frequently this year than they have been in the years past.
NGUYEN: Oh, OK.
MUTZABAUGH: And so the bottom line is expect air fares to keep going up. So as soon as you find that fare, get it now.
NGUYEN: Book it now. Ben Mutzabaugh with "USA Today." Thank you for that.
MUTZABAUGH: You're welcome.
HARRIS: Well, we know storm chasers get themselves into some pretty dangerous, precarious situations.
NGUYEN: Without a doubt.
HARRIS: But, boy, check this out.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There is a tornado right there. It's going over us.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's going over us. [bleep] (Inaudible).
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We're in a tornado.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HARRIS: These guys actually plant themselves right in the middle, or as close to the middle as you can get obviously, in a tornado. More of this amazing video up next.
NGUYEN: That's really riveting. Oh. Look at that.
And later, would you babysit, house sit or car sit for your boss? Would you really? One woman said she did it for her boss. And you -- you, the taxpayer, paid for it. More on this investigation at the bottom of the hour.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HARRIS: You're supposed to go the opposite direction when you hear that sound.
NGUYEN: Not these guys.
HARRIS: No, no. Not into the heart of the storm. Just a wild ride. If you are just joining us, this is from yesterday. A crazy road trip for some intrepid storm chasers in southeast Nebraska. Take a listen to this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Oh, my God.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There's a tornado right here. It's going over us.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: (inaudible) [bleep]
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We are in a tornado! We are in a [bleep] tornado! Get down. [bleep]
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: (inaudible)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I know.
(CROSSTALK)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: ... falling everywhere.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Whoo! Look there!
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Look at that debris! [bleep]
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We're in the middle of that tornado. We're right -- it's right there in front of us. We're -- right over us.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Oh my God
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Oh yeah, who's your daddy? Hang on, here's comes another one.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NGUYEN: OK. Let me just say this.
HARRIS: I know where you're going. I know exactly where you're going.
NGUYEN: If I was near or in -- Oh, did you see that glass fly right there? If I was in or near a tornado, I would not be saying who's your daddy, okay? I think I would get out of there.
HARRIS: Who's your daddy.
This twister touched down, this is in Beatrice, Nebraska. And, you know, it looks dangerous, it is dangerous. This is not something, I guess, you want to try at home. As Reynolds has been telling us this morning, you have to have some experience in doing this kind of thing. You just don't grab a camera. We had a kid on a couple weeks ago who did just that -- just grabbed a camera and went out and just sort of videotaped it. It's great video for us. We can show you what a tornado looks like. But Reynolds, you just...
WOLF: But the kid that we were talking to a couple weeks ago -- HARRIS: Remember that? Yes.
WOLF: Yes. I mean, remember though, he just stepped outside, and there it happened to be near his home.
NGUYEN: Right. He didn't drive to it.
WOLF: These people are actually seeking these storms out.
HARRIS: Seeking it out. Yes, that's a big difference.
WOLF: So, I mean, hats off to Randy. But, I mean, you've got to be a little cuckoo for Cocoa Puffs to go out and chase these things. I mean, it is scary. And for this, for him to get this kind of video is like, you know, a pinch hitter coming in late in the game hitting a three-run homer.
HARRIS: Right, right. No it is. Not it is.
WOLF: I mean, it's a big deal.
HARRIS: Right. And the definition on this thing is -- look at this. Look at this.
WOLF: Isn't it something?
HARRIS: It looks like the bonsai pipeline here. Look at this thing.
NGUYEN: So is that the outer wall of it? What is that that we're seeing?
WOLF: You know, I think that is the outer part of the funnel, if you will, as it's crossing the roadway. It's not very well-defined. But still, it's much stronger than anything I've dealt with.
NGUYEN: There it is. You can see it a little bit.
WOLF: That's probably the best shot of it right there. You see a little bit of light behind it which shows -- You know folks, that same storm system that we've seen in parts of the northern plains is now making its way -- if you go to the weather computer -- into the Great Lakes area. Some scattered showers now just moving just to the north and west of Chicago at this time. We're going to be seeing much of this activity through Minneapolis through the morning, near Cedar Rapids as well. Some of this moving into the high mountains at higher elevations near Charleston on the other side, back into Ohio -- a little bit more quiet, if you will.
Speaking of something that is not quiet, I would say the high Sierra. You're going to see the possibility of up to 30 inches of snowfall outside Reno. Later today, Salt Lake City, probably not as much but at least a light dusting; Tahoe though a different story with that heavy, heavy snowfall.
Folks, also from someone who's lived in a snowy climate, kids, although it may seem very tempting, do not under any circumstances eat yellow snow. Trust e. It is certainly a bad thing. Let's send it back...
HARRIS: Oh, you didn't.
NGUYEN: That is so nasty, Reynolds.
WOLF: Well, it's true. I mean, personal experience. I've got a little bit of a public service there.
NGUYEN: You have eaten yellow snow? Personal experience, that's what you're telling us on national television?
WOLF: I'm going to go sit down here. Happy Easter.
NGUYEN: I just wanted to clarify that.
WOLF: There you go.
HARRIS: We are still on the air?
WOLF: I think so.
NGUYEN: We are learning way too much about Reynolds today. All right.
(CROSSTALK)
HARRIS: What do you mean, we're still on the air.
NGUYEN: I think we are, unfortunately.
HARRIS: OK.
WOLF: There you go.
HARRIS: Reynolds, thank you.
NGUYEN: We'll talk to you soon Reynolds.
WOLF: You betch'a.
NGUYEN: Oh, man. OK. So what do you do if your boss, Tony, says you know what? I need you to babysit my kids.
HARRIS: Well, what's in it for me?
NGUYEN: Well, coming up. Former employees of one congressman say that's exactly what happened to them.
HARRIS: Was that the wrong answer?
And an Easter service that is attracting a legendary rhythm and blues singer. You know, I'm told we're going to have Patti LaBelle on the show this morning. I won't believe it, until I see it.
NGUYEN: You know she is coming live right here on CNN SUNDAY MORNING. Don't miss it, Tony.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Hurry.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They're in the middle of that tornado (INAUDIBLE)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HARRIS: If you are just joining us, take a look at this, tornado chasers in southeast Nebraska got a bit too close to this system yesterday in Gage County. It was just one of several tornadoes to rake the area late yesterday. Some buildings were damaged, but there were no reports of injuries.
Christians around the world are celebrating Easter this morning. This is the papal mass at the Vatican, the first for Pope Benedict. One of the largest Easter services in the U.S. is here in Atlanta at the Georgia dome. Among the celebrities who will be there is singer Patti LaBelle and she'll be joining us in just a few minutes.
In Aruba, a teen is reportedly in custody in the Natalee Holloway case. The Associated Press says authorities have not released the 19- year-old's identity or given a reason for the arrest. Aruba law allows lengthy detentions without formal charges. Holloway disappeared almost a year ago. We will speak with her father in our 9:00 Eastern hour.
NGUYEN: All right. Here is a very interesting question for you. What do you say if your boss tells you he wants you to baby sit tonight or that he's going away for a couple weeks and you are to take care of his children. That is what former employees of one very powerful man say happened to them. CNN investigative correspondent Drew Griffin has the startling allegations in a story that first aired on CNN's "PAULA ZAHN."
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DREW GRIFFIN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Sydney Rooks says she had no idea when she signed up as legal counsel for her boss she would also be baby-sitting her boss's children, a lawyer required to baby sit.
SYDNEY ROOKS, FORMER LEGAL ADVISER: Several times he brought them into my office and said Rooks, they're your responsibility for right now. I'll be back later.
GRIFFIN: How long was later?
ROOKS: Later could be a few minutes, later could be hours, later could be frantically calling around trying to find him because it was now 8:00, 9:00 or later in the evening and not knowing what to do with the children. GRIFFIN: For Deanna Maher, later turned out to be weeks. She says she was actually told to move into her boss's house, this house in Detroit and be the live-in nanny while he was gone and his wife was away at school.
DEANNA MAHER, FORMER DEPUTY CHIEF OF STAFF: He handed me made the keys to his car and his house and said take care of my child, Carl, and everything, make sure, in other words, I had to stay at the house and take care of him. That was for several weeks.
GRIFFIN: She says he left her, never telling her when he would be back, certainly not that the baby-sitting gig would last six weeks. This was not just you do this for this one time.
ROOKS: No, it was common and it wasn't just me. OK? I was the tutor, primarily, but I wasn't the only person who got stuck with the kids for the day. I wasn't the only person who had to take the boys to the bathroom, change a diaper or anything like that. We would also take them to doctors' appointments other things, too. If they had to go, they had to go. Somebody had to take them. There was no reimbursement for gasoline or anything like that.
GRIFFIN: Did you feel like a servant? Like a house servant?
ROOKS: At many times I frankly did. Yes.
GRIFFIN: Why didn't they just complain to the company, report that their boss was making them do things that they thought were unethical, maybe even illegal? Well, they did complain to the company. Take a look at the company. And who was the boss? This was the boss, 21-term liberal Democratic Congressman John Conyers Junior of Detroit, the second most senior member of Congress and ranking member of the Judiciary Committee, who was in no mood last week to talk with us about ethics, his children and who baby sits them.
Congressman Conyers, Drew Griffin with CNN. I've been trying to meet you for several weeks now to discuss these allegations by your former staff members.
REP. JOHN CONYERS (D) MICHIGAN: Just a minute, sir. I've been told not to discuss them because we haven't examined them and I have an attorney.
GRIFFIN: Can I just ask you --
CONYERS: No.
GRIFFIN: As shocking at the allegations of using his congressional staff as servants is the fact that the allegations have been around for years, that a lot of people on Capitol Hill know all about it. In fact, members of John Conyers staff filed several complaints with the House Ethics Committee. And CNN learned there was even an investigation launched in 2004 into staff complaints but that investigation was abruptly stopped. Melanie Sloan, who once worked for Congressman John Conyers on his Capitol Hill staff thinks she knows why. She now heads the liberal watchdog group Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, a group that mostly criticizes Republicans, but in the case of ethics, she says, neither conservatives nor liberals on Capitol Hill are held accountable.
MELANIE SLOAN, CITIZENS FOR RESPONSIBILITY: That's right. That's because there's an ethics truce. Both parties will deny this, by the way, but there is in fact a truce that has been in existence since 1998 and under the terms of that truce, not -- nobody will file a complaint against a member of the other party.
GRIFFIN: The truce, among Democrats and Republicans, Sloan says, is a gentleman's agreement. I won't report you if you don't report me. Still, according to Sydney Rooks who was John Conyers legal adviser after all, the rules as written are very clear, a congressman can't treat his staff as personal servants nor should tax payers be paying for a congressman's chauffeurs, personal baby sitters and errand runners. When it came to Conyers, staff members said doing errands and baby-sitting were only the half of it. Conyers, they told CNN, regularly used his congressional staff to work on other politicians campaigns. Chief among them, the campaign of his very own wife, Detroit city council woman, Monica Conyers, a charge Monica Conyers spokesman says is just a lie.
SAM RIDDLE, SPOKESMAN FOR MONICA CONYERS: City Council President Pro Tem Monica Conyers certainly denies that any of the congressman's staff helped her with her campaign. It simply didn't happen. These are disgruntled employees who couldn't cut it in the workplace.
GRIFFIN: Rooks said it not only happened. She complained directly to the congressman about it.
ROOKS: I was so opposed to the use of staff time for campaigning I actually wrote the congressman a memo, which I don't have anymore but I also had a conversation with him and told him I thought this was wrong.
GRIFFIN: When you complained, when you brought up these issues, you were told this is part of your job?
ROOKS: Well, I was told that doing whatever he wanted to have done was part of my job.
GRIFFIN: And, she says, she received regular raises, was assigned sensitive projects and like others now filing complaints, was told she was doing a good job for the congressman. After several weeks of phoning, faxing and mailing requests for an interview, including to his attorney and being told by Conyers staff that the congressman wasn't available, we decided to look for him ourselves and found him right outside a Capitol Hill committee room.
GRIFFIN: You have required your staff members baby sit your children?
CONYERS: No. No. May I say I told you I could not discuss it.
GRIFFIN: That's a yes or no question. Have you required your staff to baby sit your children and at one point baby sit your children for six weeks?
CONYERS: Come on.
GRIFFIN: That's what the allegation is in the ethics file, sir.
CONYERS: Can you do me a favor, sir, I thought we were going to --
GRIFFIN: I've been trying to talk you through your staff for two weeks sir.
Though rare, the House Ethics Committee does have the power to vote on starting an ethics investigation against members of Congress. In the case of John Conyers, that has not yet happened. Drew Griffin, CNN, Washington.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
NGUYEN: Now, shortly after this story first aired on CNN, an attorney for Congressman Conyers issued a statement which in part reads -- we have fully responded to all of the questions posed by the committee on standards of official conduct and have fully cooperated in all respects. We have not heard anything from the committee for over two years.
The baby sitting allegations referred to events nearly a decade ago, but have only been publicly raised in the last three months. We should note that several former Conyers staffers have told CNN's Drew Griffin that requests for the staff to perform personal services for the Conyers family continued until very recently. Be sure to join Paula Zahn weeknights at 8:00 Eastern, 5:00 Pacific right here on CNN.
HARRIS: Well, it is Easter Sunday morning, the one Sunday of the year where you may not get a seat at your place of worship if you don't get there early. One venue has more than enough room, for 40,000. Bishop Eddie Long, pastor of New Birth Missionary Baptist Church, is hosting an Easter celebration featuring several celebrity guests. We will talk with one of them and the bishop in our "Faces of Faith" coming up in about five minutes.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HARRIS: Easter Sunday at the Vatican where Pope Benedict opened this morning's mass in St. Peter's Square. He is also reminding believers that today celebrates the resurrection of Jesus after his crucifixion and is revered as the most joyous day on the Catholic Church's calendar. Today is also Pope Benedict's 79th birthday.
In Baghdad, the faithful filed into the Virgin Mary Catholic Church where they prayed, took communion and received a blessing. Here in the states, tens of thousands are starting to gather at the Georgia dome in Atlanta. The event hosted by New Birth Missionary Baptist Church. The theme, arise to new horizons. It's a celebration of the holiest of Christian holidays with the help of a legendary singer. Wow. It's a come one, come all event free to the public. Joining us is the pastor of New Birth Missionary Baptist Church, Bishop Eddie Long and special guest Patti LaBelle. So it's true. Is that really Patti LaBelle?
PATTI LABELLE, SINGER: I'm not sure. I think so.
HARRIS: Let me ask the bishop. Bishop, is that Patti LaBelle standing next to you?
BISHOP EDDIE LONG, PASTOR NEW BIRTH: Live and in person. I ain't going to let her go.
HARRIS: Well, it is great to talk to both of you this morning. Bishop, let me start with you. You have been hosting Easter services at the Georgia dome since 1993. The event has become, so huge. We are talking about 40,000 possibly today. Talk to us about what you're feeling today.
LONG: I'm excited today. I'm excited to have Patti LaBelle with us. I'm excited that this is a city event. This is our community coming out and we're just going to celebrate the most important day in Christiandom and so because it's the largest service in our country, it's just an honor and just an honor to reach out and touch the community and us to come together. It's not just a New Birth event, but it is our whole community.
HARRIS: Yeah. Give us a bit of a preview. We mentioned the theme of today's message a moment ago, arise to new horizons. But give us a bit of a preview of your message later this morning.
LONG: Well, one of the things we want to really discuss is the symbolic meaning of the cross. When Christ asked to us take up our cross and follow him or we're not worthy of it, he carried a cross he didn't deserve. He carried a cross for us (INAUDIBLE) guilty and he was not guilty. And one of the things he was saying to us is that there are many people that we need to carry the cross for them. He saved us and we need to take the load and the sacrifice to save others. So I want to challenge the community and all to make life better for everybody and reach back. It does take a village and we're going to do it. We're going to do it through love.
HARRIS: And bishop, Pope Benedict this morning said let the risen Christ help them transform a world of violence and corruption. For believers, what is there in the resurrection of Jesus that contains the power to transform individual lives and by extension the whole world?
LONG: By the changing of hearts you can legislate, you can do government, you can do a whole lot of things to try to dictate peoples' lifestyles. But the power of Christian and the power of resurrection is that we can change hearts and we can change minds, and our basic and most wonderful message is a message of love. And in that resurrected spirit of love and being able to come through in surmountable obstacles, we're able to come together, love one another, respect one another and move to a higher point (INAUDIBLE) for us. So it is a wonderful day and it shall happen. It is happening.
HARRIS: Bishop, I still don't believe it. Who is that standing next to you? Is that really Patti LaBelle? LABELLE: Patti the frozen LaBelle. It is so cold out here but I am so happy to be invited today. And I'm going to perform. And I'm going to listen to his sermon and just have fun and watch all of the people come in. And nobody has asked to wear black tie. You can come in jeans, you can come in whatever you have. Whatever God has given you. So it's a wonderful thing today.
HARRIS: Patti, I have to ask you, I have to ask you, a new gospel album. Is this really your first gospel album that will be released what, later this year, August?
LABELLE: It's August. My first gospel album, my musical director who died of prostate cancer about five months ago, we started doing this, that I should have done years ago, but I just started. But it's going to come out August on Patti LaBelle, on LaBelle Records, on my label. Thank you. Thank you Lord.
HARRIS: Patti -- Patti, Patti, it's hard to believe -- it's hard to believe that this is your first gospel album. Why has it taken so long?
LABELLE: Because my life was a little crazy with other things that were not more important than this, but it just didn't fall right. It felt right about five months ago that's when God said you're going to do this album right now. And so I'm about eight songs into it. And Mary and Yolanda and Ty Tribett (ph) and just a bunch of wonderful people are on this project with me. And I have been blessed, I've been blessed to have it, you know, finally started and you'll get it. And the proceeds go to cancer research.
HARRIS: Great.
LABELLE: No money for Miss Patti.
HARRIS: I have to ask you one final question. I think this is a question Patti that I wanted to ask you for years. Is it ever a burden? You will walk into the Georgia dome today. You will perform today and you will essentially be the show stopper. Is it ever a burden to know that when you step up to the microphone, everyone is just expecting sheer brilliance and time and time and time again you deliver on that?
LABELLE: It's never a burden. I do expect to give you what God has given me. Today my voice is not so cute, but whatever voice God has given me, that's the voice they're going to get today. And I feel blessed to be someone that people are looking forward to see today. So that's just -- it's an honor, but never am I scared, never scary.
HARRIS: Have a happy Easter to both of you, what a treat for us to have you both on.
LABELLE: There's a movie out "Preaching to the Choir" started Friday. I have a very small part. But I just wanted people to know about "Preaching to the Choir."
HARRIS: And Nona and Nona Hendricks did the -- some of the songs?
LABELLE: Did the music.
HARRIS: With you back in the day in -- as part of the group LaBelle, just wanted to add that.
LABELLE: Yes, we plan to get together again this year. We're going to go back on the road and do our thing.
HARRIS: That's tremendous. That's tremendous. Bishop, good to see you as always. Patti what a real treat. Happy Easter to both of you. Have a great Sunday.
LONG: Same to you.
LABELLE: Happy Easter, everyone. Thank you.
NGUYEN: What a great treat that is. She said her voice isn't so cute today. Give me a break, that's Patti LaBelle, she is going to deliver, no doubt.
HARRIS: (INAUDIBLE)
NGUYEN: That is true. And speaking of treats, peep frenzy is taking hold from movies to video games to karaoke? Why are we so fascinated with these sweet little innocent icons? I chomped on a few of them today, those poor little innocent things. We'll tell you what's feeding the peep mystique ahead.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WOLF: You might want to break in those new pairs of golf shoes, if you are going to do that, head out to Hilton Head. It's going to be beautiful out there today. We're expecting a high of around 89 degrees out along the fairway, winds out of the west at 10 to 15 miles an hour. King of strong at times, but you can't blame it on a bad round, certainly no question about that. Get out there and enjoy yourselves on this Easter. It should be just beautiful out there. Guys, let's send it back to you in the studio.
NGUYEN: Instead of hunting Easter eggs, you're going to hunt golf balls.
WOLF: Why not. They come in different colors.
NGUYEN: That's true, don't get them in the water. All right thank you.
One of our questions today, our e-mail question to you is what is your fondest Easter memory? Rhonda in Decatur, Alabama says my favorite Easter was when it fell on my brother's birthday. He got a basket and lots of gifts. Needless to say I was very upset when my birthday rolled around in December and I didn't get a basket.
HARRIS: And this from Dan who writes my mother took my sister and me to a sunrise service on Daytona Beach. We weren't wealthy, but my mom bought new clothes for us for Easter, however we didn't have jackets or sweaters, so we almost froze to death showing off those new clothes.
NGUYEN: But they were looking good.
HARRIS: Sunrise service on Daytona Beach.
NGUYEN: That's got to be beautiful.
HARRIS: Thank you Dan, appreciate it.
NGUYEN: And keep them coming would you this morning. What is your fondest Easter memory? Send us those thoughts, weekends@cnn.com.
HARRIS: And the next hour of CNN SUNDAY MORNING begins in a moment.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
POPE BENEDICT XVI: In the name of the father and of the son and the Holy Spirit.
Peace be with you.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NGUYEN: And with you. An elaborate ceremony plays out at the Vatican. Pope Benedict delivers a traditional to the city and the world address. It's Benedict's first Easter as pontiff and also his 79th birthday.
The Associated Press reports there's an arrest in Aruba in the Natalee Holloway case. It's a 19-year-old. Authorities aren't giving the name of that person or saying why the person was arrested. Halloway, as you recall, an 18-year-old from Alabama disappeared almost a year ago while vacationing in Aruba. We'll talk live to Natalee Holloway's father in the 9:00 a.m. hour.
Arraignment is tomorrow for the suspect in the killing of Jamie Rose Bolin. Authorities say this man right here, 26-year-old Kevin Ray Underwood will be charged with first-degree murder. They say he plotted, listen to this, to rape, kill, dismember and cannibalize the 10-year-old girl.
HARRIS: A tragic accident, that's what police are saying about the deaths of two boys in Milwaukee. Quadrevion Henning and Purvis Parker were missing for almost a month. Their decomposed bodies were found in a neighborhood pond. Autopsies show the boys drowned. Authorities say there is no evidence of foul play.
Jesse Jackson is coming to the aid of the woman who accused Duke lacrosse's team of rape. Jackson says his rainbow push coalition will pay her college tuition. The 27-year-old woman and divorced mother of two attend North Carolina Central University. Check this out. Look at this video.
NGUYEN: That's a tornado.
HARRIS: That's a tornado, yeah, yeah. And the driver is heading right into it. Listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We're right at the rain man. We're in a bad spot here. Hang on for your life. Hold on.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Oh, my god.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There's the tornado right there. It's going over us! [ bleep ] we're in a tornado. We're in a [ bleep ] tornado.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HARRIS: That's the shot there.
NGUYEN: You see the debris flying?
HARRIS: Yes.
NGUYEN: Into the wall of the tornado. That is an eye-opener for you. If you are not a wake you are now by watching that.
Good morning everybody from the CNN Center, this is CNN SUNDAY MORNING, Easter Sunday, April 16th, 8:00 a.m. at CNN Headquarters right here in Atlanta, and 7:00 a.m. in the heartland. That was shot yesterday. Good morning I'm Betty Nguyen.
HARRIS: I'm Tony Harris. Thank you for being with us this morning.
NGUYEN: Well, most of us would duck and cover. We have a guy who chases down dangerous storms. We'll take a wild ride with him. That is straight ahead. You don't want to miss this video.
And while you and are shelling out up to or over three bucks a gallon for gasoline, a former big oil CEO retires with an astronomical golden parachute. The outrage by the numbers in 20 minutes.
And we have peeps, oh, yeah, lots of peeps, all around the place today. It's the official mascot of Easter, isn't it? Peeps candy even has its own Web site. We'll take a close up peek at the peeps next hour on CNN SUNDAY MORNING.
HARRIS: Hot out here for a peep this time of year.
NGUYEN: It's hot out here for peep. Are you hustling peeps this morning?
HARRIS: And flowing. Right over to Reynolds Wolf upstairs in the CNN Weather Center, and Reynolds I guess the question is the storm system that produced that tornado in Beatrice, Nebraska yesterday, that system has it moved east, and is it no long a problem now?
WOLF: It is moving east right now. What it's going to do is it's going to make for a wet morning in Chicago. For people waking up and enjoying their peeps. Hate peeps, can't stand peeps. But if you like them, more power to you. This area of low pressure is going to bring scattered showers to Chicago, also places like Cincinnati you are going to be dealing with the rain, too. We can see the rain over to parts of the eastern seaboard, mainly places like Washington, D.C., and perhaps Richmond, Virginia, that's where you can see the scattered showers along this boundary.
There is the potential for some storms into the Ohio Valley, but the chances are far less than what we had yesterday in parts of the northern and central Plains. Very warm in Atlanta and very warm in parts of Texas. In fact in Betty's home state of Texas, temperatures today will soar into the 90s in many locations, very warm, a lot of sunshine over in Phoenix. And some snow forming in parts of the high Sierra, folks we're talking about up to 30 inches of snowfall up near Lake Tahoe, and could also see some light snow up into the Cascades. But back over to Denver, a little bit of mix of sunshine and clouds, and the same story for Kansas City.
Lets talk more about these temperatures again, in Phoenix it is going to be up to 86, Dallas 91 degrees expected for today, and down into the big Ben area you could get up to 100. For Houston 88 degrees. But with that on shore flow it is going to get really muggy into the afternoon, 66 in Minneapolis, and 82 in St. Louis and 84 in New Orleans. Along the eastern seaboard mainly some 60s and 70s, 64 in New York.
Guys the deal about peeps, they don't have much of a flavor to them. It's just marshmallow and food coloring.
NGUYEN: Oh, come on! Who doesn't like peeps?
WOLF: I mean, if you got the chocolate bunny or you got peeps, I want the chocolate bunny every time.
NGUYEN: All right, all right. I must agree with you there. Let's take another look at that video Reynolds, the storm-chaser video.
HARRIS: From Beatrice?
NGUYEN: Where we were watching a little bit ago. We're going to wrack it up there. How big of a tornado was this is?
WOLF: It's hard to say right now, I would say probably anywhere from an f-2, maybe f-0 or maybe an f-1. Not a real strong one, but these things are -- even during a severe weather outbreak, it's rally hard to capture these things on film, although we see so much film out there, but very difficult to do, and very, very lucky that they were able to get this footage, but even more lucky that they certainly weren't injured in this event. You can see the large hail, and certainly a scary time, but at the same time, fascinating.
NGUYEN: And some parts of the video, you can actually see the glass flying, so these folks are definitely lucky to have gotten out of there.
WOLF: No question.
NGUYEN: Without any scrapes or bruises. All right Reynolds we'll be talking with you shortly.
WOLF: Talk to you soon.
NGUYEN: Well, Christians around the world celebrate their holiest day of the year. Live pictures from Atlanta, you see people are ready; I mean this service doesn't start till what Tony?
HARRIS: A couple of hours.
NGUYEN: Until 10:00 Eastern.
HARRIS: Right.
NGUYEN: A huge Easter service takes place at the Georgia Dome, it is what you are seeing right there, doors have opened and people are filing in. Organizers expect as many as 40,000 people to attend the service sponsored by New Birth Missionary Baptist Church will include a 500-voice choir and Patti LaBelle.
HARRIS: Patti LaBelle.
A look now at some other Easter celebrations around the world and here in the U.S. services are getting under way at this hour at the National Cathedral in Washington. Another service is set for 11:00 Eastern. Worshipers are gathering today at St. Patrick's Cathedral in New York. Pope Benedict is marking his first Easter as pontiff, and he led mass for tens of thousands at St. Peter's Square. By the way this is also the pope's 79th birthday. Also in Jerusalem, a mass was held at the church on the spot where Jesus was believed to be crucified.
NGUYEN: And speaking of Jerusalem the old city, the site of Jesus' triumphant entry and crucifixion, there you will find one church, three denominations with claims to it and an antique key that unlocks the mystery to it all. CNN's John Vause explains.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JOHN VAUSE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): This is a moment, which goes back centuries. Two Muslim families, who, together, control the giant wooden door to the holiest height in all Christianity, the Church of the Holy Sepulcher. Abed Qader Joudeh's family is the custodian of the oversized steel key.
ABED QADER JOUDEH, KEY KEEPER: It's a job of honor to have the key of the most important church in all over the world.
VAUSE: This family are custodians of the door.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This goes from father to son.
VAUSE: These doormen of Christianity are entrusted with a sacred duty handed down by Saladdin, the Islamic warrior who drove out the Christian crusaders from Jerusalem in the 12th century. To this day, both families are considered neutral parties in a centuries old turf war inside the church.
PROF. DAN BAHAT, ARCHAEOLOGIST FOR JERUSALEM: Jerusalem is a complicated place, and since it was decided already in the end of the 12th century that that family will get it, I think the status quo keeps things quite nicely.
VAUSE: Even so the Greek and the Syrian orthodox churches, Roman Catholics, Armenians and Egyptian Coptics are locked in a tense and, at times, violent struggle over every square inch of this site, where tradition has it Jesus was crucified and three days later rose from the dead.
In fact, over the century, there's been so much fighting and scrabbling that the Turkish Ottoman, who once ruled Jerusalem declared a status quo in 1882, defining which part of the church belongs to which denomination. The status quo arrangement is still in place today and covers every aspect inside the church, lighting, decorations and hours of worship. The doorkeeper is philosophical about his role.
WAJEEH NUSEIBEH, DOOR KEEPER: I think they should be happy that's the Muslims to be here, because we are like a united nation between all the groups.
VAUSE: Each family is paid just a few U.S. dollars a month.
JOUDEH: The key was entrusted to us, and we have to take care of this key. It's an honorable job. It's not matter of money.
VAUSE: By nightfall, the church door is locked shut. The key, safely in the hand of a Muslim family, the way it has been and is likely to be for centuries.
John Vause, CNN, in Jerusalem's old city.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HARRIS: And still ahead, gruesome details surfaced in the killing of a 10-year-old girl in Oklahoma. Did the murder suspect plan the murder in advance? We'll have the latest.
Plus, it also seems to pay off to be a CEO. Literally, that is, when it comes not only to their salaries but also their pensions, or did you ever hear of a pension plan for a CEO being scratched? Pay figures for America's chief executive officers coming up.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): He hustles, has good hands, and a great arm. Unfortunately for Kegan Bailey, who plays baseball for Grayson High School, he also has bad allergies. KEGAN BAILEY, BASEBALL PLAYER: Constant headaches when I was playing. It would be pretty painful at times because, you know, you are trying to play, and at the same time it's hard to think when you got a throbbing pain in your head, you know?
COSTELLO: Keegan is not alone. Some 40 million to 50 million people suffer from springtime allergies, often needlessly, say some doctors.
DR. KATHLEEN SHEERIN, ATLANTA ALLERGY & ASTHMA CLINIC: People don't have to be miserable. Their sports perform anticipates doesn't have to suffer, because there are medicines and there is help out there.
COSTELLO: Dr. Sheerin advises getting on an allergy program before your allergies are out of control. And avoid exercising in the morning when pollen counts tend to be the highest, prescription allergy drugs help keep Kegan's allergies under control. Giving up sports is something he won't even consider.
KEGAN: I don't think my allergies would make me stop. I love baseball too much.
COSTELLO: Carol Costello, CNN.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HARRIS: Take a look at this. You see the little peep there?
NGUYEN: What are they doing on the floor?
HARRIS: Good eating, good for you.
NGUYEN: Not after they've been on the floor.
HARRIS: Ah, the peep, so small, yet so powerful, tasty and indestructible.
NGUYEN: Yeah, try stepping on one of those; it would take you a year to get it off your shoe.
For many, the most favorite Easter candy is the peep. We'll take you beyond the average life of a peep. Did you know what the average lifespan of a peep is? We'll tell you, and you don't want to miss that coming up on CNN SUNDAY MORNING, where hard news starts.
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HARRIS: The D.A. called the crime atrocious, heinous, and cruel. Now we know why, horrific details are emerging about the death of a 10-year-old Oklahoma girl. Authorities say it resulted from a plot involving torture and cannibalism. They plan to file murder charges tomorrow against the suspect, Kevin Ray Underwood. CNN's Carol Lin has details.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) TIM KUYKENDALL, MCCLAIN CO. DISTRICT ATTORNEY: We believe that he purchased items months in advance in preparation of kidnapping, killing someone.
CAROL LIN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Police descriptions of the death of little Jamie Rose Bolin are almost too shocking to believe. The 10- year-old's body was discovered in an apartment in the same complex where her family lives. Police say her remains were found inside the unit of a neighbor, 26-year-old Kevin Ray Underwood. They believe Underwood's goal was to rape, torture, and kill.
Evidence at the scene also leads police to conclude the suspect planned to engage in cannibalism. At a news conference Saturday night, police described some of the items found in Underwood's apartment, including a dagger, a hacksaw, and duct tape.
KUYKENDALL: This appears that this was a well-thought-out, premeditated act involving months of planning and preparation.
LIN: Before the most disturbing details were released family members said they are shocked they were living so close to someone accused of doing something so horrendous.
LINDA CHILES, VICTIM'S AUNT: It just makes you feel dirty to know that you were that close to somebody who could do something like that.
LIN: Police were originally following a number leads after Bolin didn't return home from the library on Wednesday. They say that while she was acquainted with her accused killer, he could have targeted anyone in the area.
CHIEF DAVID TOMPKINS, PURCELL OKLA. POLICE: They were very likely other potential targets or victims. As it could have been a boy or a girl, adult, or a child.
LIN: While police say the attack appears to have been random, they say they think Bolin was the suspect's only victim.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He has no criminal history. He has no -- there's no contact with law enforcement, so we have nothing -- there's no evidence to believe that there's any other victims.
LIN: Kevin Ray Underwood is due in court on Monday. He'll be charged with first-degree murder. It's not clear if he has an attorney. Prosecutors say they'll seek the death penalty.
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NGUYEN: Just so disturbing.
In another story with a totally different subject matter. You may wonder why the company you worked for many years had to slash your pension plan. Maybe it needs the money it saved on you to keep up with its CEO's pension plan. Some impressive CEO pay figures. That is straight ahead. And in just 12 minutes from now, "House Call" with Dr. Sanjay Gupta.
DR. SANJAY GUPTA, HOST, "HOUSE CALL:" Good morning, well, are you feeling a little more tired than usual? Maybe a bit of a spring cold. Well, if you are like millions of Americans, you may be suffering from spring allergies. Tune in for some great tips on stopping the sniffling, itchy eyes and allergies our guest in Dr. Kathleen Sheerin and we will be taking your email questions. That is coming up on "House Call" at 8:30.
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NGUYEN: That's appropriate. See, these folks they don't have a license to print money, not those folks, but the folks I'm about to tell you about. But with the pension packages some executives CEOs are getting, they don't need a license to print money; they got a lot of it. Exxon Mobile's recently retired CEO will get an estimated listen to this $98 million in payout.
HARRIS: You could spend that?
NGUYEN: At the same time, I can spend that. Yes. Companies are slashing pension plans for workers. CNN's Kyung Lah reports now from Washington.
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KYUNG LAH, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): I.B.M. workers were told their expensive pension plan is being axed so I.B.M. can stay competitive. But when CEO Samuel Palmisano retires, he'll walk away with a guaranteed $4 million a year just in pension income. Do the math, that's about $100,000 a week.
JEREMY NORRIS, SON Of THE IBM RETIREE: I didn't ask employees of mine to just give up everything and I'm not willing to sacrifice anything.
LAH: Jeremy Norris' dad is an I.B.M. retiree and lost part of his pension in company cutbacks, hardly fair, he says.
NORRIS: Especially for the workers that started in, knowing that they were going to have a pension and now to have it -- it's like the rug is being snatched from under them. It's just crazy.
LAH: Big business, big pension. Drug giant Pfizer's CEO will get a $6.5 million a year pension. Exxon Mobil's now retired CEO, more than $6 million, and AT&T and United Health Group, $5 million a year, I.B.M. and Home Depot CEOs around $4 million a year. Home Depot offers its employees a 401(k) but has a guaranteed pension for its CEO.
NELL MINOW, THE CORPORATE LIBRARY: These people are so piggy, they are so greedy that they are taking all the marbles away, and how -- you know, how can they claim that they have any kind of leadership when they are behaving in a way that's so hypocritical?
LAH: Every company that responded to CNN insists that CEO retirement pay is tied to performance. The Chamber of Commerce agrees.
DAVID CHAVREN, U.S. CHAMBER OF COMMERCE: They want that -- that leader who is going to bring success in this complicated, extremely competitive, fast-moving global economic environment. And you know what, there aren't a whole lot of those people.
LAH: The Securities and Exchange Commission is considering a proposed rule change for CEO pay disclosure. This would require that companies spell out the dollars and cents in plain English.
DAMON SILVERS, AFL-CIO: The pension plans are hard to figure out, hard to read, hard to parse. All right? And so there's a huge value in letting investors, the public, employees know what they really are.
LAH: Relining on personal savings is the wave of the future, Americans are learning even in retirement, its just business.
Kyung Lah, CNN, Washington.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HARRIS: Betty, it's always business.
NGUYEN: Always business.
HARRIS: All morning long we've been asking for your thoughts on our e-mail question. Here it is, what is your fondest Easter memory? There is the address, WEEKENDS@CNN.com. Send some in. I got it buried, and it's from Lisa, who writes, "My favorite memory was when I was around eight and we traveled to my grandma's house for great food and the famous family Easter egg hunt."
NGUYEN: "It was a stormy Sunday morning," this is from Patricia in Alabama, "we attended church and came home to hunt Easter eggs inside, remember it was raining. We had 24 eggs and only found 22, of course. And a few days after Easter, we located the eggs by following the smell." I remember that, going, what is that? It was though eggs that you forgot to find.
HARRIS: Right, right, right. So the key is, the takeaway is counting the eggs.
NGUYEN: Count the eggs so you know how many you must find.
HARRIS: Very good. Hard to believe this, skiing and speed go, well, OK, there's the question again. What is your fondest Easter memory? WEEKENDS@CNN.com. we'll take more of your responses in the 9:00 hour.
Skiing and speed go hand in hand, right?
NGUYEN: Yes.
HARRIS: No question, skiing, speed, and blind do not. NGUYEN: Oh.
HARRIS: Look at this video; usually a former British soldier actually set a new downhill ski skiing record by a blind person.
NGUYEN: He's blind? Wow.
HARRIS: Making a hash of the story, though. More than 100 miles an hour is what he traveled at. Radio speakers in his helmet.
NGUYEN: OK.
HARRIS: Kevin down the kilometer slope in France.
NGUYEN: That's quite a feat.
HARRIS: You got to get out of it.
NGUYEN: You got to stop some way.
HARRIS: Congratulations. A great achievement.
You wanted to save big bucks on gas and now you're the proud owner of a Prius or another one of those hybrid vehicles.
NGUYEN: More mileage per gallon and a cleaner environment with a hybrid, but what if all those promises are just bogus? What if they are just not true? We're going to talk to a technical expert who says you may want to think twice about those hybrids. That's on CNN SUNDAY MORNING at 9:00 Eastern.
HARRIS: Plus, feeling a bit lethargic, maybe a little sore throat and some coughing? Instead of a cold, you may be dealing with springtime allergies. "House Call" with Dr. Sanjay Gupta and your top stories, straight ahead.
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