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CNN Sunday Morning
Teenager Killed at Six Flags; Police Identify Person of Interest in Murder of Pregnant Soldier
Aired June 29, 2008 - 07:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
T.J. HOLMES, CO-HOST: Good morning, everybody. From the CNN Center in Atlanta, Georgia, it's Sunday, June 29th. Hello to you all. I'm T.J. Holmes.
RANDI KAYE, CO-HOST: And I'm Randi Kaye. Betty is on assignment. Thanks for starting your day with us.
HOLMES: And unfortunately we have to start with, really, a horrible story took place, really about 10 miles from where we sit here in downtown Atlanta. A teenager has been decapitated by a rollercoaster at Six Flags Over Georgia, really, just a horrible story. We're going to tell you all the details about what happened there.
KAYE: Also, another story we are all talking about this morning. A mother catches a guy, apparently trying to take cellphone pictures of her six-year-old daughter while the girl was in a dressing room trying on a bathing suit. The alleged Peeping Tom is no match for this very angry mother.
HOLMES: Yes. You've got to stick around to hear that story.
Also, another, you know what? If you don't like the view from your place, you know, you can change the view. We have a rotating skyscraper -- look at that -- to tell you about. Our Josh Levs, Mr. Reality himself, is going to be along in just a bit to explain to us what's happening...
KAYE: Exactly how that works, right? That's pretty bizarre.
HOLMES: That's pretty cool if you can change your view if you don't like it.
KAYE: (INAUDIBLE).
HOLMES: You can switch it around.
But we do have to start with, really, another story we've been keeping an eye on, and certainly, you've been keeping an eye on for the past week or so, is the case of that pregnant soldier who was killed, found dead in a North Carolina motel room. Well, the new development this morning is that police have now identified a person of interest and that person of interest happens to be a fellow soldier. KAYE: That's right. The latest that we know at this point is that a person of interest has been identified -- someone who was actually in training at Fort Bragg, which is the base where she was located.
We know that the police are not calling this person a suspect. There is a difference between a suspect and a person of interest. In fact, they haven't even said that the Specialist Megan Touma who was found last weekend dead in her motel room there in Fayetteville, North Carolina, they haven't actually said she was killed.
So, they're not calling the person a suspect. They don't know how she died. The autopsy hasn't come back yet. But we have had a look at the search warrant and search warrant does say that they did take samples of DNA. They took some samples from the drywall from the hotel room which they think might have some blood on it, they are testing the DNA and they are testing whatever that substance was on the wall.
HOLMES: Do we know anything yet about this person of interest? Who this person could be has there been any talk? And I know right now that they haven't been saying much officially but you were there, you were there on the ground doing this story. So, who could this person possibly be?
KAYE: We tried to ask police if they have any suspects, at that point when we there just a few days ago. And all we know right now is that Megan Touma moved from Germany where she was based for three years to Fayetteville, North Carolina. She had requested, we confirm she requested the transfer to Fort Bragg. We know from her aunt, who told CNN that she had moved there to be with her boyfriend, according to the aunt.
We also spoke with some of Megan Touma's friends who she was serving with in Germany, and they told us that she was very excited about being seven months pregnant, she was moving there to be with her fiance, she was showing off her ring, she was looking forward to getting married. So, we don't know if this person of interest could be the boyfriend. Nobody has been named in this case at all.
HOLMES: And we were making assumptions about who the father could be. We don't know anything official there, at all, right?
KAYE: No. In fact, we asked many people there, and even some of her friends and nobody could tell us, at the end could not confirm that the boyfriend or the fiance was the father of the child.
HOLMES: And so much of a mystery to this story and to add to it, we got, yesterday, word of this letter that comes out that comes to a newspaper there, a letter from somebody claiming to be the killer and claiming to be a serial killer.
KAYE: Right. An anonymous letter sent to the "Fayetteville Observer." We can actually show you the letter. It was dated June 17th. The paper received it on the 25th and it was just made public yesterday. And it's really an interesting letter. We've tried to analyze it here.
It says that -- it claims responsibility for the body that was found on Saturday, June 21st at the Fairfield Inn in Fayetteville, calls the crime a masterpiece. It says, "I confess," says he's killed, he or she, the writer of this letter, has killed many times before in several states. "Now, I will start using my role model signature."
And the signature here on the letter is this circle with a horizontal and vertical lines that are very similar, in fact, identical to what the Zodiac killer used decades ago. And this symbol, what's interesting about it is it's the same symbol on the letter was also written in lipstick on the mirror in the hotel room. So...
HOLMES: Will somebody have known that? Is there any way that was public knowledge beforehand?
KAYE: No.
HOLMES: It was not.
KAYE: We certainly didn't know and police are obviously trying to figure that out. But the writer taunting police calls them incompetent and says he or she sat there while the investigators were on-site. The police are saying that they believe this letter is being used to mislead them. But they are calling it valuable.
HOLMES: OK, a heck of a mystery there. A lot of -- we may get some more information this morning during the course of our show here on CNN SUNDAY MORNING and certainly if we do, we will pass that along. But we're glad to have you here. Somebody has been on the ground with that story to help us through with this morning.
KAYE: Thanks.
And, you know, we did mention that the Zodiac killer, we just want to remind you that he or she is a serial killer believed to have shot or stabbed at least five people to death back in the late '60s and although that killer claims to many other murders before and many other victims, but no suspect was ever positively identified and no arrests ever made of the Zodiac killer, if he or she is still alive and could be out there somewhere.
HOLMES: And we turn now to this story we're following this weekend as well.
Vermont police say they are following more than 150 leads now in the case of a missing 12-year-old girl. So far, nothing really panned out. They have, however -- they have even found items of clothing from that young girl you're seeing there whose name is Brooke Bennett. Police think the disappearance maybe link to contacts she'd made on her MySpace Web page.
She was last seen on Wednesday. Surveillance video shows here with her uncle at a convenience store but they left and went in separate directions. She said she was going to meet a friend. Her disappearance prompted the state to issue it's first AMBER Alert.
KAYE: A terrible accident of an amusement park outside Atlanta. A teenager hit and killed by a rollercoaster.
HOLMES: Yes, he was actually decapitated. Again, this took place at Six Flags Over Georgia which is just, again, 10 miles from the west of where we sit down now in Atlanta. Here now is how one witness described what happened.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP, WSB)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: One of them ducked under the ride and other one got caught in between the ride and picked him up and slammed into the pole and you heard a big pop. And he just laid there.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: This is hard to imagine. A horrible story and apparently several people were actually witnesses to this happening. We get now more on it from Duffy Dixon of our affiliate WXIA.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DUFFY DIXON, WXIA CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): What should have been a fun-filled Saturday here at Six Flags Over Georgia turned tragic for a church group from South Carolina when one of their teenagers was struck and killed by the "Batman ride."
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We were going to batman ride is and we're seeing everybody running. It closed and security guard and everybody blocking it out.
DIXON: Park officials say a 17-year-old and a friend were outside the park when they scaled two fences to get to the ride.
SGT. DANA PIERCE, COBB COUNTY POLICE: It was well-marked within the flags, Six Flags Park Area is saying -- restricted, danger. They crossed by those fences and over them, and as they began to run or pass through the area that this rollercoaster was in, one of the two individuals was struck and killed.
DIXON: The question no one can answer right now is why the boys were there in the first place.
HELA SHETH, PARK SPOKESWOMA: Safety and security is always our top priority at Six Flags Over Georgia. The areas where the individuals entered were clearly marked with signs that stated "restricted area, authorized personnel only."
DIXON: This isn't the first accident at the batman ride. In 2002, a worker was standing underneath when he was struck by a rider's legs. The worker was killed. The rider had serious injuries. As for this latest incident, other park-goers were stunned.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's devastating and I'm sorry for them and their family, too bad. (END VIDEOTAPE)
HOLMES: Police right now are not identifying that teenager. That batman ride will remain closed at least for today. Park officials say they hope to have it up and running, however, by tomorrow.
KAYE: A hard fought battle against the surging Mississippi is lost after more rain and heavy flooding hit the Midwest.
HOLMES: Yes, make-shift emergency barrier failed yesterday in Winfield, Missouri, that's northwest of St. Louis. One official says, "Simply, mother nature won." The sandbag levee's failure triggered widespread flooding, destroying more than 90 homes and damaged three dozen others.
Elsewhere in Missouri, up to five inches of rain fell in two hours in Taney County where a bridge collapsed. Fortunately, officials say, nobody was hurt. But emergency workers did have to evacuate 15 people from a flooded mobile home park.
KAYE: Hannibal, Missouri is one town that has weathered the flood threat. One of our viewers sent in these iReport pictures of the Mississippi River being held back by sandbags. Pam Thurman calls the images, "The Wall of Troy," and says it's miraculous the water have no gotten further than the bags. She's thankful the Army National Guard was there to help.
HOLMES: And thousands of people are still without power and not probably able to watch us this morning because of their power is out in Omaha, Nebraska, after storms on Friday.
KAYE: There is no rain yesterday, leaving plenty of time for cleanup.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP, KPTM/OMAHA, NEBRASKA/SATURDAY)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I was fortunate by house didn't get hit. I feel pretty bad for the people that got their house unfortunately hit.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KAYE: The storm knocked down trees and power lines, ripped off roofs and shattered windows. And at last check, utility officials said 45,000 customers are still without power and it may a week actually before the power there is fully restored. A week without CNN, not good.
HOLMES: That's a tough week, a week without Reynolds. We've had to deal with weeks without Reynolds. Reynolds has been a busy man, covering a lot of the flooding in the Midwest. Good to have you back with us here in studio, kind sir. Hello.
REYNOLDS WOLF, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Hello. You know, a week without Reynolds is dream come true for most people. It really is. Hey, but I'll tell you, a week without rainfall would be also dream come true for parts of the Midwest. That can be in stored today if you'll notice in places like Missouri where they don't need any more rain. It looks like it's going to be a nice day for them, high pressure is building. And much of the rain actually moving a bit farther to the south and moving to the east.
Some of the same rough weather that did move through parts of the northern plains, particularly in Nebraska, is now moving eastward, but also part of it moving to the south in Ardmore, Oklahoma. Back to Dallas, we some scattered showers, possibly more storms later on today at the Dallas/Fort Worth metroplex. And there's something we're going to talk about coming up later today.
The heat continues out west. No surprise for Las Vegas and for Phoenix in to the triple digits. D.C. 90 degrees; and New York 85 degrees is the expected high. That's your quick weather. Let's send it back to you at the news desk.
HOLMES: All right, quick weather. Don't go away, though. We have something else to share with, share with you that I'm sure you have something to say, Reynolds.
KAYE: And there they are, left behind in the floods. Hundreds of pets were abandoned or dropped in shelters as people fled the flood zones.
HOLMES: So, Washington Animal Rescue League, they decided to help out. And, Reynolds, you were out there and you talked about all the animals. I know, some wildlife even.
WOLF: Oh, yes, the wildlife and the animals. They're beautiful thing to see. While we were set up in Winfield, Missouri, they actually had, I think, something set up by the American Humane Society, 82-foot trailer, foot long trailer, it was like a tractor- trailer that was actually a rolling kennel, veterinarian clinic; it was an amazing thing. So, people are definitely watching out for man's best friend, as well as their fellow mates.
HOLMES: In this case, in particular here, again, the Washington Animal Rescue League helping out here, and some of those pets are going to the D.C. area and giving people a chance to adopt them.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think the dog we're looking for is something a little bigger and something that has a good personality.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: A couch potato come to a good home.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The actually shelter in Cedar Rapids is completely destroyed. It doesn't even exist any more and they'd say there are probably about 800 animals in the temporary shelter and we brought back about 30 animals altogether.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You sit. Sit. UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I kind of looked for them after Katrina, also. But I couldn't find the one that I really liked.
GARY WEITZMAN, WASHINGTON ANIMAL RESCUE LEAGUE: There's awareness that animals don't have to be left during a disaster. It just certainly wasn't that three years ago for Katrina.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We heard about the Iowa flood. Dogs had been brought here so we thought it was a good opportunity to come out and see what pets were available.
WEITZMAN: This is really nice dog named "Cedar." He got hit by a car a couple of weeks before the flooding happened. His guardian took him to the vet and got him all fixed up. So, he actually survived getting hit by a car only to lose his home with his owner few weeks later when the floods hit.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: They're just the cutest things and they have - they're defenseless.
WEITZMAN: The entire apartment building was wiped out with the flood and there are about 45 cats in the building.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We found a dog that we think we like a lot, so we're going to keep playing with her and see if she's the right one.
WEITZMAN: The animals are the ones that really suffer when a disaster like this happens and they can't fend for themselves. And you can't forget about them.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: And you can help out, too. Not just the pets but also with the human victims of the flood. We give you resources on our Web site. It's a chance for you to Impact Your World. Just got to CNN.com to see how you can help out.
KAYE: I want every single one of those animals.
HOLMES: No, it gets to people.
KAYE: It does. You want them to find a nice home.
Well, it is the weekend -- which means somebody, somewhere, blowing up a building.
HOLMES: And somebody, somewhere, didn't get it quite right. We'll explain this a little more, coming up.
WOLF: And a beautiful day for an implosion and a warm day in the southwest. Las Vegas and Phoenix for the triple digits, unusual warm up in Seattle and Portland. And of course, we've got a cooler for you in New York, even cooler when the showers move through.
Coming up, we're going to let you know what you can expect for the rest of your workweek and taking a look at your travel weather for so many of you heading out on Monday.
That's coming up right here on CNN SUNDAY.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: All right. Randi, I don't know if you were aware, but yes, this is CNN SUNDAY MORNING but we have a nickname here as well, "implosions are us" here on our weekend show.
KAYE: It is a regular thing, isn't? You hunt them down?
HOLMES: We do. We have a staff dedicated to it.
KAYE: The implosion staff.
HOLMES: We have an implosion to show you out of North Korea, of all places, first. Check this out.
I don't know, scale of one to 10, that was OK.
KAYE: Six maybe.
HOLMES: A six maybe.
KAYE: On the importance scale, maybe a 10.
HOLMES: There you go, politically speaking, it's a 10 probably. That's the empty cooling tower at that nuclear plant in Yongbyon. It sent down (ph) after, really, a breakthrough in nuclear talks with North Korea. They demolished this tower as a gesture of commitment to the disarmament talk.
However, a lot of people say this thing wasn't being used any more in the first place. So, this is just symbolic and not that significant but still it kind of was a big political deal this week.
Clearly, we are just trying to top that. Last one, that is the first-ever implosion in Coral Gables, Florida. But they seem to have hit a snag, haven't they?
HOLMES: Well, it was their first. I guess we should give them a break.
KAYE: Right. So, we'll give them a little break there, you're right.
HOLMES: But, I think people can tell what the snag was.
KAYE: Yes, that one right there.
HOLMES: Something is still left.
KAYE: The tower is still standing, maybe? Is that your first clue?
HOLMES: Yes. That was elevator shaft actually. That was supposed to come down, it did not. They are going to try it again and try to finish the job but, again, it was their first. We should give them a little slack.
KAYE: So, if they're finishing the job, would that make it their second or is it still their first?
HOLMES: Two implosions, one building. So, they get more practice.
We're going to stick with the building's theme. We're not tearing any down this time. Josh Levs has a something for us, a little strange to show. Again, this was not coming down.
KAYE: Right. Actually, building it up, maybe.
JOSH LEVS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, I can't even imagine what would happen if they were to knock this kind of thing down. Have you guys seen this, have you seen it? It's amazing.
HOLMES: Pretty cool stuff.
KAYE: Yes.
LEVS: Yes, I know it's amazing. And this is another sign that people, you don't have to go to YouTube. You can go to CNN.com to see what's the latest top videos are. This is now a viral video in America. And take a look -- we're going to close in right here. This is a new building. Now, let's take it full in the control room. You can see a video of how this works.
This is a design, obviously, that doesn't exist right now. It's a design for a building that's being planned for Dubai in which every single floor can rotate on its own and they are saying that some of these floors will be single apartments. So, if you're really rich, for $3,000 per square foot, you can buy an entire floor and rotate it any direction you want. Other ones you're going to be sharing.
It maybe operating of some kind of pattern, so, I imagine you've got to be careful. I mean, you might go to sleep with an ocean view and wake up in the morning with your bedroom facing somebody else's bedroom and the building next door.
The architect himself says this building is also going to be green. Let's listen to what he says.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DAVID FISHER, ARCHITECT: Wind has a very negative effect on skyscrapers. So, we all know. And I say, "Why do we want to fight the wind? Let's use the wind, you know, for our benefit."
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEVS: All right. So, if you had trouble understanding what he was saying, he was talking about it's going to run on wind power rather than electricity. These wind turbines, in the design for the building, that capture the energy of wind, and anytime you want to move your floor around, you'll be able to do that allegedly. It's planned for 2010 in Dubai.
They're talking about doing one in Moscow and then they're saying, they want to build one in New York. So, maybe one of you guys can buy one.
KAYE: Oh, I like that. What about you? You can buy one, too.
LEVS: Well, yes.
KAYE: We could all maybe get together...
(CROSSTALK)
LEVS: Maybe we can get a big CNN one to share.
HOLMES: $3,000 a square foot?
LEVS: Yes.
(CROSSTALK)
KAYE: I'll take one square foot, please.
HOLMES: Josh, we'll see you again here shortly.
LEVS: Thanks guys.
HOLMES: Well, this other story you were mentioning and it's kind of to be the talk of this morning. This alleged Peeping Tom -- well, he ended up trying to hide from an enraged mother. How did that work out?
KAYE: Not well for him. Let's say when she found him, it was not pretty.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KAYE: Welcome back. There's that botched implosion that we'd just showed you before the break in Coral Gables, Florida. It was their first one, so we were giving them a break because they hit a snag, that elevator shaft apparently was left standing. Oops. But the dynamite, I guess, didn't do the job and we said they were expecting to try and finish the job today and guess what?
HOLMES: They sure enough did. We just got through talking about it and this is what we got. Look.
KAYE: Check it out. There she goes.
HOLMES: There's a reporter there. We were told it was supposed to happen at 7:30. There's a reporter right - as you saw her jump out of the shot. She didn't know it was coming down at the time either. So look at this, look at her.
KAYE: She's waiting.
HOLMES: You can tell that she'd jumped. She didn't know it was ready to come down, either. But hey, if at first you don't succeed, at more dynamite apparently.
KAYE: Her producer is probably in her ears, saying, "Hey, the building is going down behind you. Step out of the way." We know how that works.
HOLMES: Well, there we go. As soon as we get done talking about them, they jumped on it and brought it down. So...
KAYE: They must been watching.
HOLMES: You know we love the implosions. All right.
Well, this next story here -- we got to clean up and a beatdown on aisle six.
KAYE: It's a good way of putting it. It began at a Wal-Mart in Statesville, North Carolina. A man reportedly reaches his cellphone which was so disturbing, into a dressing room and snaps a picture of a six-year-old girl while she is trying on a bathing suit.
HOLMES: Now, a super mom to the rescue. She chases the man down and when she catches him, she literally knocks him out.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP, WSOC)
ASST. CHIEF TOM ANDERSONH, STATESVILLE, N.C. POLICE: She did detain him until we got there. He wasn't seriously injured. She wasn't injured. The children are all right and that's what's important to us.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KAYE: You love that.
HOLMES: Of course.
KAYE: Great that she did that.
HOLMES: It's horrible and disturbing to hear about what he was allegedly doing but to hear the action that the mom took, it's just...
KAYE: Some justice in that, isn't there?
HOLMES: There is some sweet justice. And at last check, the 40- year-old man has been accused to, is being held on a $10,000 bond.
KAYE: If high gas prices have you down, and the chances are they do, it might be time to rethink that need (ph) of yours.
HOLMES: Yes. On this week's Right on Your Money, Ali Velshi has some tips to help save the environment as well as the money.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ALI VELSHI, CNN SR. BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Going green and saving green now go hand in hand with fuel prices rising, mass transit isn't only a way to pinch some pennies; it's also a great way to reduce your carbon footprint.
HOWARD GOULD, ECO-ENTREPRENEUR: I think that the idea of using mass transit is probably the number one thing that most people and commuters need to think about and that could be, you know, taking a train. Trains are actually really not that bad for the environment or now we're actually putting in buses that run on hydro. You know, or think about getting a hybrid car.
VELSHI: Another way to save and stay green this summer, power down.
GOULD: Fact is that power is still running through to appliances when they're still there.
VELSHI: You could save up to $50 on your yearly electric bill just by unplugging appliances like your computer, microwave, and cellphone charger when they're not in use. And that's this week's Right on Your Money.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HOLMES: And, of course, our Allan Chernoff, Ali Velshi, Gerri Willis, are part of the CNN ISSUE NUMBER ONE team. Can we call them the best financial team on television?
KAYE: Why not? Sure.
HOLMES: OK. You can tune in to them weekdays at noon. Again, the newly dubbed, right here, best financial team on television.
KAYE: There you go.
HOLMES: Well, a lot of people are trying to find ways to get on the news. Here is one way to do it.
KAYE: There you go. Show up, where a presidential candidate is speaking and then, make a scene. It always works.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: Welcome back, everyone. I'm T.J. Holmes.
KAYE: And I'm Randi Kaye, in for Betty Nguyen today. And our Josh Levs is in the NEWSROOM with us. What are you working on this hour?
LEVS: All right. Yesterday morning we talked about who might pay more in taxes based on the presidential election. Coming up in just a couple of minutes, I'm going to tell you who might save more money. Randi.
KAYE: All right. We like that.
HOLMES: Yes. We will be listening to you shortly there, Josh.
And on the campaign trail today, John McCain says it's not about politics. Well, he meets today with Franklin Graham, the son of the evangelist Billy Graham.
KAYE: It comes as McCain attempts to reach out to conservatives in his race to the White House. Barack Obama has the day off. He's at home in Chicago.
HOLMES: However, tomorrow both candidates head to battle ground states. McCain campaigns in Pennsylvania. Meanwhile, Obama will be going to Missouri and both candidates are right now courting Latinos, a growing and crucial voting bloc this election year. However, many states are not a monolithic voting bloc, Obama and McCain both spoke at a conference of elected and appointed Latino officials yesterday in Washington. McCain promised to make immigration reform a top priority if elected.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. JOHN MCCAIN (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I come from a border state, my dear friends. I know these issues. I've dealt with them for the last 20 some years and I understand - and I understand that these are god's children and I understand that the reason why they came is the same reason why our forefathers and I know that every single day, because they have - people have come here illegally have none of the protections that individuals have who are citizens, so they are preyed upon and they are mistreated from time to time. And so that is a compelling reason for us to move forward with our border security and then address this issue in a humane and compassionate fashion.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KAYE: McCain got a warm reception from that crowd.
HOLMES: However, his speech was interrupted four times at least by anti-war protesters who were shouted down then by the audience.
We actually watched all of this play out live right here on the air around 11:00 when he was making that speech. McCain continued with that speech. He got a lot of applause after promising as president that his immigration reform policy would go beyond security forces.
KAYE: And Barack Obama appeared in front of that same audience about an hour after McCain. Both Obama and McCain support immigration reform and an eventual pass of citizenship for millions of immigrants but Obama says the way the U.S. allocates its money sends the wrong message.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. BARACK OBAMA (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Our entire foreign aid budget to Latin America is approximately one week's of spending in Iraq. Now think about that. I mean, so what message is that sending? Are we then surprised if somebody like Chavez is making inroads and fanning anti-American sentiment in Latin America if all they are getting from us is rhetoric and they're getting resources from Venezuela?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KAYE: Barack Obama packing his bags and stacking his priorities. The democrat has announced his first international trip as a presidential candidate. He will travel to the Middle East and Europe this summer and, later, he will make a separate trip to Iraq and Afghanistan, he says. Obama is trying to bolster his foreign policy experience which has been targeted by his critics.
HOLMES: Well, this election just like every other we have seen in history will eventually turn to the question of taxes. Will you be paying more?
KAYE: Josh Levs has a reality check for us on how the next president presumably either Barack Obama or John McCain is going to affect our bottom line.
LEVS: Yes, it's getting there. They are starting to talk about taxes more and more. It's really interesting to look at this. We had a hit story yesterday on cnn.com looking at how much more people might pay. Still up there under each administration. Now, what we're going to do is look who could save more money on taxes based on the results of this election. Now, I usually don't elect to use graphics with a ton of numbers on them because I think they just look like the matrix and you don't get much out of it. In this case though, I want to show you this.
Let's go to this full screen here. All you need to do is look at the left side and say OK, where do I fall in these income levels? This is from the Tax Policy Center. And what they've done is an in depth analysis of both candidates' promises and they are now estimating how the average tax bill might change. So, let's look at the middle one. If for example, your income is between 38, and 66,000 a year there. Estimating on McCain's plan, you might save a little more than $300 next year, under the 2009 tax bill. And under Obama's, it would actually be substantially more.
Now let's go to the next full screen to see some higher income levels if that applies to you. Again, this is an estimate on average on how much money you might save. You can see in some cases, Obama, they are saying would save you more and some cases they're saying McCain could save you more. It depends. Obviously, in some cases it would actually go up instead. Now, if you want to understand why all this is going on. If you want to, you can look at this from the Tax Policy Center which is incredibly complicated. This is their long pdf. Good luck with that.
Let me instead encourage you to do this. Cnn.com/taxes, this is the best summary I've seen anywhere on the internet. This tells you the basic idea where Obama stands on taxes. Post extending the Bush tax cuts, supports eliminating the marriage penalty and extending child tax credits. Let's look at McCain over here. Again, this is a very simple summary. Voted against Bush tax cuts laws but later voted in favor of them. He says he opposes what's being called the fair tax by supporters. You can see that and a lot more at cnnmoney.com throughout the day.
That's the idea, guys. It's a good thing to look at both sides here based on what we know and, obviously, all we got is promises. Based on what we know how might your tax bill change? We got the answers for you right here at cnnmoney.com.
KAYE: You do. I mean, there are so many numbers out there. It is really hard to make sense of it. So, that was very helpful.
LEVS: It is. We hear so many promises. It's good to break it down based on what they are saying and how it might actually affect your pocketbook. It's all we try to do here. You know.
KAYE: It's all that really matters, right?
LEVS: Yes. That's all that matters.
HOLMES: Josh, we appreciate you.
LEVS: Thanks, guys.
KAYE: And stay with CNN even when you're online. You can log in to keep up with the best political team on television. The address is cnn.com/politics.
HOLMES: Well, is there a winner in the election in Zimbabwe? At least according to Robert Mugabe and he says the winner is Robert Mugabe. He's the president there and says he has in fact won that runoff election. And he is not wasting any time being sworn in. His inauguration is expected to happen sometime today. The election was just on Friday. Invitations have already gone out to the inauguration. The election itself is drawing harsh criticism from some of Zimbabwe's neighbors as well as the international community. The African Union is expected to take up the issue at its summit this week. Mugabe was the only active candidate on that ballot. The opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai dropped out citing violence against his supporters.
The U.S. has vowed to bring international pressure from the U.N. security council and scheduled to meet tomorrow. That could include more sanctions. Again, we've been hearing the name Robert Mugabe for quite some time now. and you've been hearing about it in the news. So, exactly who is he?
Well, he led an uprising against the Rhodesian government in the late 1970s. That's the former British colony there. He was elected prime minister of the newly named Zimbabwe in 1980. At the time, Prime Minister was the highest office in that country. That title was later changed to president in 1987. Mugabe is now 84 years old and is the only leader Zimbabwe has ever known. And his main opposition comes from the Movement for Democratic Change or MDC which is led by Morgan Tsvangirai as we said who dropped out of the race. He was a union leader in the 1980s and 1990s. Led strike against the government. He helped formed the MDC in 1999 and was later elected as that group's president. We will be keeping an eye on this story and we'll bring you any new developments as we get them. Again, Mugabe has an inauguration scheduled for today, this afternoon.
KAYE: Well, if you've ever had trouble getting a pizza delivered? I'm sure you have. Maybe it's late here and there, you will appreciate this next story. Forget about 30 minutes or less.
HOLMES: Yes. For troops in Iraq that's not an option really. But the fourth of July will taste like a slice of home.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: Look at these scenes out of Seoul, South Korea, where things got a bit out of control. Police say at least a hundred riot police were injured in clashes with protesters. The protest is over the government's decision to lift a ban on American beef imports.
KAYE: So much violence there over that. They are afraid of health dangers, such as mad cow disease. The protestors grew more violent when demonstrators tried to pull police buses out of the way. The buses are protecting the presidential palace there.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KAYE: A homecoming parade in Australia, the country's prime minister joined people on the streets to welcome troops back from Iraq. Australia pulled out all of their combat troops earlier this month.
HOLMES: But they do, however, have some serving in support roles in Iraq, plus they have combat troops in Afghanistan. One Australian soldier was in fact killed serving Iraq.
KAYE: This next story makes me kind of hungry. Pride, patriotism and pizza.
HOLMES: Yes. In Illinois, a retired Air Force sergeant is sending a special fourth of July salute to U.S. troops in Iraq as well as Afghanistan and his precious cargo, you are looking at it. Pizza and a taste of home.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MARK EVANS, PIZZA FOR PATRIOTS: I want a project. Very big project. This is a top one.
KENT EVANS, PIZZA FOR PATRIOTS: I think they will be pretty happy that they got something from home that's good, that they could eat for the fourth of July.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Pizza! Hhmm! Put this one off the bag.
MARK EVANS: We were eating Lou Malnati's Pizza at our dinner table and we heard the Iraq war going on on the TV in the other room. And he said, Dad, do they have pizza there? I said, yes, they have pizza but not like Chicago style pizza. You know, Kent, this - you can't copy. This is the best pizza in the world.
KENT EVANS: They will be happy to receive the pizza when they get it and all of the time and effort will pay off towards that.
MARK EVANS: It's tough out there, too. They need good food and so I called Lou Malnati's and they said we'll back you a hundred percent, whatever you want, which is amazing. They've been awesome!
Those guys are under a lot of stress there. Lots of pressure. I can't imagine what they are going through. And you know, a lot of times you sit there and you think back at home and you're like I hope this thing comes out. So it's about them, a hundred percent. They - they need - they need a slice of home.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KAYE: They're going to get a lot more than a slice it looks like.
HOLMES: That is so wonderful.
KAYE: Isn't that great?
HOLMES: You always hear soldiers out there saying just the little things from home but the little comforts in pizza. Anything more comfortable than that?
KAYE: Nothing wrong with that.
HOLMES: All right. We will turn now to what is a sign of the times in the flooded midwest.
KAYE: Viewers and their images and share their miseries.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KAYE: The past two weeks we have been wading knee-deep through viewer images of the midwest flooding. Your perspective has been jaw- dropping and your stories, heart-wrenching.
HOLMES: And take a look at this. This is out of southeastern Illinois. The photo shot by Ed Brumley during a plane ride. Take a look at that. Bradley Boulch shared an image he snapped Friday night. It's from the tourist area landing in St. Louis, Missouri. A levee break upstream in Winfield pushed the mighty Mississippi out of its banks.
Yes, we've been wading knee-deep in i-reports and some like Reynolds Wolf, and plenty of people there have been wading knee-deep in water over the past week or so. Good morning to you again. WOLF: Hey, good morning, guys. You know what they need in parts of the midwest? They need a break in the action. They need a break from the rain. Today, they're going to get that break. However, what they are going to be losing, a lot of people are going to be gaining in terms of the rainfall. In fact, at the time in parts of Texas, right along the Red river from Dallas-Ft. Worth back to midland Odessa area, we got some scattered showers and some thunderstorms certainly in the mix later on today. As we make our way into Dallas, northward along parts of i-35 and it's been a loud morning for you. Back into parts of, say, Tennessee from Nashville back over to Cookville even into places like Knoxville this morning up by Neeland Stadium, rain is going to come down, maybe some thunderstorms into the afternoon. Those could be severe.
And in the northeast we see some light scattered showers but the way it looks later on today, is we got the components for another possibility of severe weather. It's going to be due to that frontal boundary sweeping along parts of the eastern seaboard and late into the afternoon, I'd say between the hours of 3:00 and 6:00 you have a chance of strong storms, heavy rain, large hail and possibly some isolated tornadoes by late afternoon and early evening. That is a look at your forecast. Let's send it back to you at the NEWSROOM.
HOLMES: All right.
KAYE: Thank you very much.
About 200,000 farms in the United States go out of business each year. For family farmers an injury or maybe a natural disaster like the devastating floods in the midwest certainly can put an end to their livelihood.
HOLMES: The lucky ones will get to meet this week's CNN hero. His names Bill Gross. And he comes to their rescue when tragedy strikes.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: My dad bought this land in 1947. I've been here all my life. It's home. It's where we belong.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's our roots.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: People don't realize how tough it is, until you lose everything.
Anything on the path of a tornado, you name it, it was gone. We didn't have no insurance.
BILL GROSS, CNN HERO: The family farmer is in danger and so when a major injury, illness, or a natural disaster occurs, it's devastating to them. I'm Bill Gross and I help family farmers in crisis. We're ready to go. Farm rescue is operated all by volunteers and we're very proud of that. The volunteers are eager to come in and by the time we leave, we have their crop planted or harvested. I was raised on a family farm in North Dakota and now airline pilot for UPS, however, my heart never left the farming community. I firmly believe that if you're going to help people, you should do something that you know how to do and so I started farm rescue to help the farmers.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: In a situation like we're in, there's no way we would be able to survive on our own.
They see 200 acres of wheat and 530 acres of soybeans. We got a place we can call home again. It's a new beginning.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It sure is.
GROSS: If Farm Rescue didn't come in and plant these farms, then they would be not be able to maintain their livelihood. The families are very, very thankful and become lifelong friends.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: And it was a CNN viewer just like you who told us about that gentleman, Bill Gross. In fact, all of our CNN Heroes are extraordinary people that you have nominated on our website.
KAYE: So why not nominate another one? Just go to cnn.com/heroes. Right now, if you know someone who deserves to be a CNN hero, tell us about them. You never know you might see your hero right here on CNN.
Well, pull up a chair, enjoy a little Sunday brunch and some cool jazz.
HOLMES: You can even bring your dog. What does it sound like to you? Corner Coffee House. No! It's church!
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: Well, the Coffee House Church concept really isn't really anything new but in today's "Faces of Faith," we visited a United Methodist Church in suburban Atlanta that has taken it to a whole another level. Worshipers of this four-month old congregation come from near and far. They are formal, casual, adults, children and dogs.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
HOLMES (voice-over): Yes. Dogs. Even dogs are welcome at Sacred Tapestry. Some even receive a blessing as their owners receive communion. It's an example of the alternative approach to church that is becoming more and more popular across the country. The Reverend Teresa Angle-Young, a product of a traditional Methodist seminary realized her congregation wanted something different and this church delivers. First, there's the gourmet coffee bar run by her Angle- Young's husband, Phil. He is also the official church greeter.
PHIL ANGLE-YOUNG: What would you like? HOLMES: Then there's the catered brunch featuring everything from fresh fruits to light pasta and even cheesecake all to be enjoyed during the service. And the music before and after worship is jazz. There are no pews. Families sit at table. Angle-Young delivers the message while children play quietly in the back. In this nontraditional approach to the church experience, Angle-Young thinks she has found a tool that helps people connect with god and each other.
REV. TERESA ANGLE-YOUNG, FOUNDING MINISTER: The church needs to be a community, not just a place you come on Sunday to be lectured.
HOLMES: While Angle-young follows the Methodist Church weekly schedule for bible readings and combines many historical liturgical elements in her service, she is far from a traditional United Methodist minister. Churchgoer Frenesca Hall drives more than 45 minutes to attend Sacred Tapestry. She says she is drawn by the lack of rigidity and acceptance of all faith.
FRENESCA K. HALL, CONGREGANT: Everybody is god's children. It doesn't matter what god it is necessarily that you believe in. You're welcome here to experience it here. So I mean I just think it's much more inclusive.
HOLMES: Steven Lewis is a Baptist minister who observes dozens of congregations nationally in his travels for an independent religious foundation. He says while he enjoyed the service, his approach to church may alienate some people used to more formality on Sunday mornings.
STEPHEN LEWIS, REGIONAL DIR., CALLING CONGREGATIONS: Your higher church liturgical traditions like Episcopalians or Catholics or Lutherans that may not be as tasteful for them.
HOLMES: So is Angle-Young's approach actually church? Bill Urban and his wife who left a large traditional church three months ago to attend here, certainly think so.
BILL URBAN, CONGREGANT: It's a place where both of us feel comfortable and we both feel inspired, really.
HOLMES: And for Sacred Tapestry, that's a great place to start.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KAYE: OK. Surf's up, dudes. Look at that dog! I had to say it. I had to!
HOLMES: We've seen squirrels do this. We've seen every animal do this but these four-legged surfers on the beach and actually doing this for a good cause.
KAYE: And it's not every day that you see this. A black bear roaming on the beach.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) KAYE: Well you've all heard Hang Ten. This one looks more like a Hang 16. Hit the waves, forget the sunblock and the shaggy hair surfers are putting all of their best feet forward.
HOLMES: Yes. This was in San Diego, a contest yesterday. Dozens of dogs rode the waves to raise thousands of dollars for a charity. And we have been in a mad debate here about the hang 16. We couldn't exactly understand, Reynolds, what that meant.
KAYE: Yes. We had to bring Reynolds in to help us out.
HOLMES: As opposed to the hang 10. We know that.
KAYE: Since they have the four paws and then and then the dew claws.
WOLF: The little guy up here.
KAYE: So would he be hanging 16 or - I think - does that make it five?
WOLF: We bet on the show. I mean last name is Wolf. Doesn't entitle me as being an expert
KAYE: Do you have a dew claw somewhere?
WOLF: Goodness gracious. I know this did feel funny.
KAYE: There it is.
HOLMES: There you go. And we don't have a vet but we have another animal here at the show. This is down in the Florida panhandle. You're used to seeing alligators down here but this is what they saw on the beach. A 375-pound black bear got to the coastline before the wildlife officials had to hit it with a tranquilizer dart.
KAYE: They sure did. The photo, you might be able to see the green dart. It's sticking in the bear's ear. And there's the state biologist. He rescued the bear and tried to swim away. He became a little groggy and wandered into the water. The bear was not hurt. That's the most important here and was actually relocated to a much less populated area.
WOLF: How is that unusual? I mean, you see it plays out every single year at spring break in say, Daytona Beach.
KAYE: With the bear?
WOLF: Similar situation. People getting in - never mind.
HOLMES: We're going to get into the next hour of CNN SUNDAY MORNING.
KAYE: No dew claws involved.
HOLMES: Right now.
And good morning for the next hour of CNN SUNDAY MORNING. From the CNN Center in Atlanta, Georgia, it's June 29th here. I'm T.J. Holmes.
KAYE: And I'm Randi Kaye. Betty is on assignment. Thanks for starting your day with us.
The mystery of a soldier is what we're talking about this morning. Some new information is coming in about the woman who was found dead last weekend, seven months pregnant. Is her killer taunting police? Was she killed? Lots of questions this morning about the person of interest as well.
HOLMES: And there's another murder mystery to tell you about. This one actually is finally solved. A father having his daughter-in- law killed, hired a hitman, went through all of this process. Why? She was black.
We will get into this story that we've been following here at CNN. Stay tuned for that.
KAYE: And we want to start this morning with violent protests in South Korea. Those protesters squaring off with police over American beef.
HOLMES: Yes. This is a beef over beef here. CNN's Sohn Jie-Ae joins us now through the phone from Seoul to tell us about what's happened here.
Sohn Jie-Ae, we have seen a lot of these pictures. We know protests have been going on for sometime. Why now? What prompted them to erupt into violence?
SOHN JIE-AE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (by phone): Well, it is a complicated issue but to put it as simply as possible, I mean, it's been going on for more than a month. It's about 45 days already where thousands of South Koreans had hit the streets initially to protest against the imports of U.S. beef which they think -- some of them think, is tainted with mad cow disease.
But over the 40-somedays that they've been protesting, the issue's moved on not just on -- not just on the beef but they become very political battle. And as the 40 days had passed, the protesters felt that their voices have not been heard and their demands have not been met. And so, they feel the need to up the ante, to make it violent, to make sure that not just the government but also the Korean people, as a whole, know that the protest is still alive and kicking.
At the same time, the Korean government has felt that over 40 days of protests is more than enough and the South Korean police has felt and the government itself that it is time to put the rule of law into place and to make sure that the country doesn't fall into chaos. And so, they have come out going strong against the protesters. This is where we're at now that both sides are reaching that critical point where they must take a stand and this is what we're probably seeing on Seoul streets.
HOLMES: And Sohn Jie-Ae, you mentioned there, this has become more of a political battle and they don't believe their voices are being heard. But what are those other issues specifically that they are, I guess, bringing up and attaching to this whole protest over American beef?
SOHN: That was beef and this beef still is part of their demand. They don't want the imports of U.S. beef. They believe it's still tainted with mad cow disease.
But the -- along with these anti-beef protesters, there's unions now -- you know, they want, you know, better conditions for workers and laborers. They're now anti-government student protests that have fallen in. There are opposition politicians now who are angry at the current government for being very, you know, headstrong in putting together their own policy and not listening to the opposition.
So, it's now become a really big, broad political fight now.
HOLMES: All right. Sohn Jie-Ae is reporting for us today in Seoul, South Korea. Sohn Jie-Ae, we appreciate you.
KAYE: Back in the states, a pregnant soldier found dead in her hotel room. This morning, a new development -- police say they've identified what they're calling a person of interest in the death of Specialist Megan Touma. As reporter Bryan Mims of affiliate WRAL reports, that person of interest is also a fellow soldier.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BRIAN MIMS, WRAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): An official at the John F. Kennedy Special Warfare School at Fort Bragg confirms that one of it's students is being questioned in the death of Specialist Megan Touma. She was 23 years old and 7 months pregnant when she was found dead in a hotel room.
Lieutenant Colonel John Clearwater says, the soldier is a male, but not would not release his name, and we're not sure (ph) whether he's related to Specialist Touma. He says the soldier has not been charged with anything and decline to comment further.
This development came the same day that the "Fayetteville Observer" published the letter claimed to be written by the killer. The person calls the murder a, quote, "masterpiece" and threatens to kill again. At a bottom of the letter is a symbol like the one used by the Zodiac killer, a serial murderer from the 1960s who was never caught.
Dr. Michael Teague, a forensic psychologist and former criminal profiler for the Raleigh Police Department says there's a variety of reasons someone would use that reference.
MICHALE TEAGUE, FORENSIC PSYCHOLOGIST: I'm thinking it's probably more a chance of somebody wanting some publicity or having a very kind of an estranged sense of humor or maybe even the actual perpetrator trying to confuse the police.
MIMS: A Fayetteville police official told the newspaper he believes the letter was written to try to mislead police. Specialist Touma had been staying at this Fairfield Inn by Cross Creek Mall when a hotel employee found her decomposed body in the bathtub last Saturday. Search warrants released Friday night show two sections of dry wall in the hotel room had what appeared to be blood.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HOLMES: All right. A lot of questions there. I mean, this person of interest, that doesn't mean the suspect necessarily...
KAYE: Right.
HOLMES: But any clue who this person could possibly be and what relation he might have to the victim.
KAYE: Police are trying to figure out that but we were there last week, also looking into that, and what we've been able to learn from some family members, the aunt of Megan Touma told us that she had moved from Germany, where she had been serving for three years to Fort Bragg to be with her boyfriend. It was unclear from the aunt if the boyfriend was the father of the child. We certainly don't know if this boyfriend is the person of interest.
Also, another friend told us that she had moved there to be with her fiance, had been showing off her right and was very excited about giving birth and getting married. So, we're not really sure if it was a fiance, a boyfriend, or who this person of interest might be at this point.
HOLMES: A whole lot more to get into in this story. Again, you've been reporting there and we will be hearing more about this story no doubt. And we're going to get into it more next hour as we'll talk about that letter a little bit more as well, Randi.
KAYE: Right.
HOLMES: Well, we'll talk to you now about just a horrible sight at an amusement park. A place where people are supposed to be having fun and what happens? A teenager is decapitated by a rollercoaster. This teenager got hit by the batman ride at Six Flags Over Georgia which is just about 10 miles west of where we are here in downtown Atlanta. Police say the teenager jumped over two six-foot fences into a restricted and dangerous area.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP, WSB)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: One of them ducked under the ride and other one got caught in between the ride and picked him up and slammed into the pole and you heard a big pop. And he just laid there.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: The 17-year-old victim was part of a church group visiting the park from South Carolina. Police are not yet releasing the name. The ride is closed today but Six Flags officials say they actually hope to reopen that ride tomorrow.
KAYE: In California, they are now issuing health warnings because of all the smoke. That smoke is coming from more than 1,000 wildfires burning in California. Most of them are apparently caused by lightning strikes. The biggest fire emergency is around Big Sur. The popular tourist area is in trouble.
President Bush has issued an emergency declaration for seven California counties clearing the way for some federal help.
A hard-fought battle against the surging Mississippi River is lost after rain and flooding hit the Midwest. Sandbag levees failed yesterday in Winfield, Missouri, northwest of St. Louis. Widespread flooding destroyed more than 90 homes.
And in Nebraska, people are cleaning up after Friday's big storm in Omaha. Thousands of people still without power there and they may not get it fully restored for another week. It just doesn't end.
HOLMES: It does not. One extreme or the other, fire or rain, as Reynolds were saying, just yesterday, it's fire; it's rain. Any moderation in the forecast today?
WOLF: Oh, we're going to see a break in a lot of these flood- ravaged areas. They're going to get a good day for plenty of sunshine. Temperatures are a little bit cooler. So, they're going to be able to clean up.
However, a lot of this rain, a lot of this storm is moving to the south, moving to the east, also in places of the northeast, say, New York, they could get some rain later on. But as it stands, the roughest weather in parts of Texas. This is the Red River Valley. It's the border that separates Oklahoma to Texas. It's sweeping across the border and moving southward in places like Lubbock, along parts of, say, I-27, back to the I-20 corridor, will have some scattered showers and a few storms.
Nothing severe yet, but later on today, we do see the chance of getting these rough storms in places like, say, Dallas, maybe as far north as Plano, it could be a rough time. The reason why is because we have that frontal boundary that's going to be drifting from west to east. And as it moves in that direction, you have the daytime heating. The atmosphere is going to become very unstable and that instability could be a chance of strong storms, possibly some heavy rainfall, some large hail and isolated tornadoes.
Up and down (ph) of the good part of the eastern seaboard, including in Washington, D.C. where we have a live image for you this morning -- good morning to the nation's capital. There's the White House. The flags are flapping, may move a little bit more briskly in the winds generated by storms later on today. It's certainly something to watch.
That is a look at your forecast. Let's send it back to you at the news desk.
KAYE: Thank you.
HOLMES: A very nice shot of the White House this morning, Reynolds.
KAYE: It sure was.
HOLMES: Thank you for that.
Well, we talked about this project yesterday, which we were bit skeptical about.
KAYE: We were.
HOLMES: It was awfully ambitious -- to build a playground in a day in an area devastated by hurricane Katrina.
KAYE: We took you there live throughout the morning yesterday and it was pretty interesting to watch. Volunteers, including our Dr. Sanjay Gupta. He got started on the project in Metairie, Louisiana, a very important project. By the end of the day, it did happen. They finished it. They cut the ribbon on the new playground. There's Sanjay doing that.
HOLMES: That was the most work we've seen him do in an entire day.
KAYE: Yes. He was up on that mound of dirt, sort of directing everybody else. We gave him a hard time about that but apparently he did quite a bit of work on it.
It was a joint effort by KaBoom!, that's a nonprofit group that wants a playground within walking distance of every child in America. So, it's really nice to see Sanjay out there coordinating. Look how happy those kids are.
HOLMES: Yes. It was nice. Put it up in a day.
Well, we talk. You listen, hopefully. Well, when you talk, we certainly do listen.
KAYE: Always. And many of you have something to say about our political coverage -- a lot to say about our political coverage. But do you have some pretty spicy e-mails?
(CROSSTALK)
KAYE: I like that.
LEVS: Spicy. How have we never used that word for the viewer e- mails? This is why we need you to come down here once in a while.
KAYE: Oh, see, spice it up a bit.
LEVS: Spice it up a bit, thank you very much. HOLMES: Wow.
LEVS: Yes, she's doing that. But we do miss Betty.
All right. Hey, everybody, here's the deal. Remember Betty. Now I feel bad. Maybe she's not watching right now. I hope she's sleeping. Well, I hope you're not.
All right. Let me do this. We're going to go to a break. (INAUDIBLE) the race is over and Obama gave up public financing. Right now both are asking for your money. You have a chance to weigh in on that.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: All right. Good morning. Hello again, everybody. I'm over here at the international desk where our editor, producers are working several stories, international stories.
Certainly one that's been getting a lot of attention has been, what's been happening in Zimbabwe and the election there. The runoff was on Friday and we have a winner, at least, according to the President Robert Mugabe and he says the winner is Robert Mugabe. His inauguration as well is supposed to happen later today, just a couple of days after that runoff.
The election in this African nation has brought criticism from Zimbabwe's neighbors as well as the international community. President Bush is also talking about new sanctions against the country and the government there. Mugabe was the only active candidate on that ballot for Friday's vote. The opposition leader, Morgan Tsvangirai dropped out of the race, fearing further violence against his supporters.
Now, Robert Mugabe led an uprising himself against the Rhodesian government there back in the 1970s. He was then elected prime minister of the newly-named Zimbabwe, that was in 1980. Now, prime minister was the country's highest office at the time. That title was later changed to president in 1987. Mugabe is now 84 years old and is the only leader of the free Zimbabwe has ever known.
We will turn now to Iraq where we have word that six police officers are among the seven people who have been killed in a blast that happened there. Police say the bomb was detonated by remote control in a town about 45 miles north of Baghdad. The bomb exploded as officers went to check on a truck parked on the side of road. Three other people were hurt in the bombing, as well. That's the word over here from our international desk for now -- Randi.
KAYE: Thanks, T.J.
Police say vandals spray painted dozens of city vehicles in Orlando, Florida. Some were messages against Barack Obama. Investigators say the vandals sprayed notes such as "Obama smokes cracks" and some racial remarks. And get this, they even left business type cards on each vehicle. The cards apparently criticize both Obama and his Republican rival, John McCain, but had messages of support for Hillary Clinton.
On the campaign trail today, John McCain says it's not about politics but he does meet today with Franklin Graham, the son of evangelist Billy Graham. It comes now as McCain attempts to reach out to conservatives in his race for the White House.
Barack Obama has the day off. He is at home in Chicago.
HOLMES: Well, any time you want to comment on a story, we have shown you here, feel free to send us an e-mail at Josh Levs -- no, I'm kidding. I'm kidding.
KAYE: Oh, that's bad.
LEVS: I get enough of those.
KAYE: I bet you do, you get plenty of e-mails.
LEVS: Yes. Audacity, it's the reality check presidential candidates, watch out for the e-mails.
KAYE: What are you hearing from the viewers?
LEVS: OK. So, we post this question yesterday as you guys remember because it's really interesting. A lot of people are calling for $2,300 contributions right now. And not that many people have $2,300 sitting around. You got Clinton who dropped out of the race. There's a push to send her money; Obama who gave up public financing, a push to send him money.
By the way, in case you're wondering, we're not asking the same question about McCain because McCain is taking public financing. So, you weighed in on this for us. Let's take a look at some of your spicy e-mails.
We're going to start up with this from Paul Scheppf: "Current gas, food, medical and other well-founded household expenses take precedence over Hillary's irresponsible spending spree."
Let's go to the next one, from Michael: "What a joke. We are just getting by and Obama has the nerve to ask people for money."
Let's go to the next one now, positive. "I have no problem with calls to replace some of the money Clinton spent. I see it as an investment in ultimately getting Obama elected." That's from Alan Blau.
Next, from Frankford, Delaware. This is Karen Sanders: "I truly understand the need to support the person I wish will become president; however, I do not feel that the person I wish to support should help pay the debt of the one I do not wish to be president." It's an interesting take there.
We've got time for a couple of more here. "Obama was a hypocrite. When it favors him, he's for private fundraising. No principle. I'm fed up and like McCain more and more as a result." And finally, this one from Tim in Vero Beach, Florida: "I don't car if they ask me for $1 million as long as they don't take money from lobbyists."
And guys, as you know, this is something we talked about a lot. Obama and the DNC are now saying they're not taking money from lobbyists. He does take money from firms that do lobbying and from spouses of lobbyists, but that is a big announcement he made not taking that. (INAUDIBLE). Well, that's what the reality check site say.
HOLMES: Yes, you did, you're Mr. Reality.
LEVS: Remember that?
HOLMES: Absolutely do.
LEVS: That's someone (ph) who say that.
KAYE: It's nice to see the viewers not holding back.
LEVS: Oh, are you kidding?
KAYE: They will tell you what they really feel. I like it.
LEVS: They're talking to spice us. And you know, each weekend, we do this. And we certainly look forward to hearing you at all times. And he did announce the right one. Weekends@CNN.com. Feel free to write us.
HOLMES: Or Josh...
LEVS: No, please.
KAYE: All right. Thanks, Josh.
LEVS: Thanks, guys.
KAYE: This morning, it's fight card and enraged mother versus the man accused of peeping into her little girl's dressing room. Only one person was left standing after that Wal-Mart beatdown.
HOLMES: And then paging Dr. Gupta. Here now a preview of today's HOUSE CALL.
DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, this week, we're looking at contaminated food and what the government is doing to insure what you're eating right now is safe. Plus, coffee, energy drinks, sodas; we'll tell you what all that caffeine might be doing to your body.
And if you're traveling this summer, tune in for some tips to avoid a condition that is affecting many on some long airline flights. We've got it all on HOUSE CALL at 8:30.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) HOLMES: Well, we got a story here now about a car, a pistol and what turned out to be a deadly drive-by shooting.
KAYE: The victim, a great grandfather in Cleveland, Ohio. He had just pushed his wheelchair outside his home for some fresh air.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP, WOIO)
MAGNOLIA LEWIS, VICTIM'S WIFE: And I jumped out the car on the corner and I saw my husband's wheelchair. Then I knew something happened to him. And my son ran out and told me, "Mom, dad had been shot." So I ran to them and I knew then he was gone.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: Cleveland police say they have no idea why anyone would have gunned down someone who was loved so much by his neighbors.
We do want to turn to another story about a cold-blooded killing: The man who hired the hit, a racist who disapproved of his son's African-American wife. It's a gruesome tale of love, betrayal and brutality.
CNN's Don Lemon has the details.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DON LEMON, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Chiman Rai did not even flinch at his fate.
UNIDENTIFIED JUDGE: I hereby sentence to life imprisonment without parole for the murder of Sparkle Rai.
LEMON: Not surprising, considering the cold-blooded nature of his crime, hiring a hitman for $10,000 to kill his daughter-in-law, the mother of his granddaughter. Because she was black, the 68-year- old native of India believed it cast shame on his family. Ricky Rai hired Sparkle Reid as a clerk at his family's hotel. They fell in love, had a baby and married in March of 2000.
Sparkle's family welcomed Ricky with open arms but knowing his family wouldn't accept Sparkle as his wife, Ricky tried to keep the marriage secret. Even telling his new wife that his parents were dead but his family found out. And Tim Rai harassed the couple to the point they had to move from Louisville to Atlanta.
RICKY RAI, VICTIM'S HUSBAND: We were brought up that, you know, we should marry, you know, Indian, same race.
LEMON: One month after they married, 22-year-old Sparkle at home alone with her seven-month-old daughter when the hitman using a young girl as a decoy knocked on the couple's front door.
Sparkle's dad and stepmom says she never stood a chance.
DONNA LOWRY REID, VICTIM'S STEPMOTHER: She was tortured. The testimony came out, it's very difficult to hear, that he wrapped a vacuum cleaner cord around her neck and put his foot on her head and pulled and thought she was dead and when she came back to life, and reached toward her child, he got a knife out of the kitchen and stabbed her 13 times.
LEMON: For four years, Sparkle's murder went unsolved until the girl the killer brought with him now all grown up was arrested for another crime and confessed to witnessing the murder.
BENNET REID, VICTIM'S FATHER: The hardest thing about it now is as I speak to her daughter, and trying to relay things that I hope that Sparkle would have said, not having Sparkle here to say it herself.
LEMON: Eight years after their daughter's murder, the truth in its tangled details all rolled out in an Atlanta courtroom. The years of wondering suddenly turned into the ultimate lesson in racism.
B. REID: I think as individuals we should be able to talk to each other and let's work things out. Don't let it get to the point where it makes anger and hatred.
D. REID: I guess we just didn't realize that the extent of the racism within this other culture and it has been shocking to us. That anybody would go to such lengths to get rid of somebody who is considered an embarrassment to their family. It's just mind boggling to imagine that.
LEMON: The Reids have adopted their granddaughter who now has no recollection of her biological father, Ricky. Ricky is now married to an Indian woman.
Don Lemon, CNN, New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HOLMES: Tough story to hear.
KAYE: Certainly is. Gay rights activists taken their message to the streets.
HOLMES: Yes, well, there are marching for gay pride, they met with protests.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: All right. We got to clean up on Aisle six and it needs to be cleaned up because mama just made a mess of a man, didn't she?
KAYE: Yes, it's going to be cleaned up quick. It began at a Wal-Mart in Statesville, North Carolina. A man reportedly reaches his cellphone into a dressing room, snaps a picture of a six-year-old girl trying on a bathing suit, didn't make mom very happy.
HOLMES: Yes. So, mom gets into the picture, and what did she do? She chases the man down and decks him with the single right cross to the face.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP, WSOC)
GUADELUPE JIMINEZ, ENRAGED MOM: He says in the floor, "Help me. Help me." And then one man looking (ph), "No."
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KAYE: Well, at last check, the 40-year-old man is being held on $10,000 bond. Good for that mom.
From San Francisco to New York to New Delhi, supporters of gay rights activists take their message to the streets today.
HOLMES: Yes. Thousands took part in the Mexico City gay pride parade. This was yesterday. Crowds lined the streets to watch this celebration.
Heck of a celebration, it was. Well.
It's certainly not every day that a roofing job turns into a crime scene. But this home we're going to show you now in Tooele, Utah turned into one and harbored a secret that the current owners didn't even know about.
KAYE: Workers this week discovered a human skull hidden under the roof. Police are treating it as an unsolved crime for now. They hope to get some DNA to help identify but say it could be decades hold actually.
HOLMES: And investigators are now tracking down relatives of the previous owners who lived in that house for more than 50 years.
