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CNN Saturday Morning News
Wildfires In Colorado; New Egyptian President; U.S. Heat Wave; Courtroom Death After Guilty Verdict; Protecting Tech Gadgets In Storms; Supreme Court Upholds Healthcare Law; Zimmerman Fights to Get Out of Jail; Hundreds of Homes Destroyed; Cyndi Lauper Fired Up
Aired June 30, 2012 - 08:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
RANDI KAYE, CNN ANCHOR: A massive black out leaves millions powerless. As a dangerous heat wave scorches the central and eastern U.S., no air conditioning and no refrigeration could prove deadly.
Plus, Colorado on fire -- 17,000 acres burned, more than 300 homes destroyed and now at least two dead. We're putting the inferno in focus.
And later --
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CYNDI LAUPER, SINGER: You can't throw a generation of kids away.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KAYE: A rock icon speaking out on some alarming statistics. We'll tell you what has the Grammy winner so fired up.
Good morning, everyone. I'm Randi Kaye. It's 8:00 on the east coast, 5:00 a.m. out west. Thanks for waking up with us.
We start in Colorado where firefighters are hoping for a little help from Mother Nature. The Waldo Canyon fire has destroyed nearly 350 homes so far and thousands more are threatened. Firefighters have been working around the clock to protect those homes. We'll have a live report later this hour.
Moving to Egypt now, an historic day for the people there. Last hour Mohamed Morsi was sworn in as the new president. During the inauguration he offered a salute to the people of Egypt and promised to promote unity.
Back here in the U.S., newly released e-mails from Penn State officials show they knew they had a problem with Jerry Sandusky long before he was ever charged with a crime. Concerns date back to an incident in 2001. But officials say they wanted to handle it in a, quote, humane matter. Sandusky was convicted on 45 charges related to the sexual abuse of young boys.
Peter Madoff now faces 10 years in prison for his part in his brother's $20 billion fraud scheme. The younger Madoff pleaded guilty to Federal charges that he helped cover up the scheme. Peter Madoff was chief compliance officer at the company. Bernie Madoff is serving a 150-year sentence for masterminding that fraud.
Parts of the country are just baking this weekend. We've seen record high temperatures from coast-to-coast and that means triple digit temperatures. People are scrambling to find ways to stay cool. Trying to stay cool is a little harder when you don't have electricity and that is the case for more than three million people in these nine states. Take a look, strong thunderstorms and high winds caused the widespread outages.
CNN's Athena Jones is in Rockville, Maryland this morning. Athena, any hope that the power will be on there soon?
ATHENA JONES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, you know, utility companies here say that they are still out assessing the damage and they won't be able to get really good estimates for when all the power will be back on for some time.
Here in Rockville, you can see the debris behind me, evidence of the strong winds that came through knocking out the power around here. In Montgomery County more than 200,000 customers are without power. In some cases it's a block to block sort of situation, some blocks with power, some without.
I want to quickly tell you that we have, CNN has been able to confirm in Virginia two deaths from the storm that came through last night. Both of these fatalities came from trees falling on the people. We're still looking for more information on that. But as you mentioned, the issue going forward here today especially is going to be these power outages as they continue in the midst of this heat wave, Randi.
KAYE: And Athena, the temperatures certainly, I'm not sure what it feels like there right now, but the temperatures are going to be rising there pretty soon. Without power how will people stay cool?
JONES: Well, that's really the question we've been asking some of the people we've seen walking around here. One man told us that even last night after power went out last night he had trouble sleeping because it was hot and that was overnight.
Overnight temperatures got down to maybe the 80s or 70s. It's only 8:00 here. While just an hour ago it was feeling pretty good, it's really beginning to heat up.
We expect the temperatures to top 100 degrees around here once again. DC metro police have put out a listing, an announcement on their website listing cooling centers, extending pool hours, opening emergency centers for seniors and for the homeless to try to help people cool off as we face this heat wave that's affecting a third of the nation's population. So that's the big thing to watch around here today, Randi.
KAYE: Certainly sounds like it's shaping up to be another hot one. Athena Jones, thank you very much.
Meteorologists say heat is impacting close to a hundred million Americans right now as Athena was saying. Heat warnings, watches, advisories, they seem to be just about everywhere.
Meteorologist Karen Maginnis is here with us this morning. Karen, more heat records are expected to be broken today as well?
KAREN MAGINNIS, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Continuing scorcher over the next several days. Randi, doesn't look like that's going to be relieved any time soon. It will knock the temperatures down a bit, but it's not going to be very significant. Take a look at the temperatures that we're expecting for this afternoon for Atlanta 105 yesterday, a record setting high temperature also in the low triple digits, Nashville, 106. I'll show you what Nashville climbed to yesterday afternoon, unbelievable.
But not just across the deep south, into the mid-Atlantic and across the Midwest as well, temperatures soaring to near 100 to the triple digits, Cincinnati 97, St. Louis, 103. Washington, DC, you're going to hover right around the upper 90s for the most part. With so many people from the mid-Atlantic extending into the Ohio River valley, this is where we saw a lot of those power outages, so it's going to become very insufferable. Really have to take care. Watch out for the elderly or those people who are suffering from illnesses or small children. They are going to be most prone to suffer from heat stroke or heat exhaustion.
Take a look at what happens over the next couple of days. For Nashville 109 degrees, it was an all-time record high temperature. We're looking at those readings staying in the triple digits. As we go towards the middle of the work week, take a look at this, four-day forecast, Louisville goes from 103 to 97, Chicago, pretty much stay in the low- to mid-90s. We have some pictures of people trying to cool off in Omaha, Nebraska, and everyone from postal workers to people walking on the streets, they were trying to take it easy as those temperatures soared for the afternoon.
What's causing the heat wave, a ridge of high pressure that's developed across the central U.S. has shifted toward the east. We counted, Randi, 21 states affected by the heat, excessive heat, high humidity. I lived in Tucson, Arizona, the temperature was 100, the humidity might be around 7, 8, 9 percent. Across the deep south those humidities are running 20 and 30 percent, very muggy. It's very oppressive.
KAYE: As I told you, I mentioned to you earlier, my car thermometers said 112 yesterday. I never want to see that again.
MAGINNIS: Exactly.
KAYE: Karen, thank you very much. The heat wasn't especially a big problem at the PGA's tournament in Bethesda, Maryland. Temperatures there were around 110 degrees. As many as 40 people were treated for heat-related problems. The golfers managed to keep cool by drinking lots of liquids. Their caddies were allowed to lose the trademark bibs that they all wear.
More than 17,000 acres burning in Colorado and people are on the run trying to escape this inferno. We'll go live to the front lines. Remember the scene on the school bus where students bullied a 68-year- old bus monitor? Those kids are now going to pay a big price for their behavior.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KAYE: Checking stories across the country for you now. First to Greece, New York, where four middle school students involved in bullying the 68-year-old grandmother will be punished. Remember, the video went viral showing them tormenting Karen Klein. I spoke with her at her home last week. The school has now suspended the boys for one year and they'll also have to complete 50 hours of community service for senior citizens and reportedly have to complete a program in bullying prevention, respect and responsibility.
Now to Michigan where bars are installing talking urinal cakes to remind men don't drink and drive during the fourth of July.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LT. CHRIS MCINTIRE, MICHIGAN STATE POLICE: This is one more angle they're taking to trying to get the attention of those who are the heaviest violator.
BRAD WHITE, BAR OWNER: The people who are seeing it so far come out of the bathroom laughing.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KAYE: It is part of a state highway safety program. Officials say they thought of the idea because 80 percent of alcohol-related accidents were caused by men last year. It also reminds them to wash their hands.
In San Diego, a charity found a diamond studded wedding band among its donations. It may have been a mistake. Perhaps it dropped in there by accident. Volunteers with the Ronald McDonald house were collecting change in big red clown shoes and later found the ring.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GAIL SULLIVAN: It's not a low cost value ring. Someone has nice taste. If someone's lost it, please let us know. We would just need a description of the ring and we're happy to return it to the rightful owner. We would love to do that if it's been lost.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KAYE: Of course the charity also says it could really benefit from a big donation just like that one.
To Colorado now where the Waldo Canyon wildfire has become the most destructive on state record, but there is progress to report. More people are now allowed to return to their homes. The fire is now 25 percent contained. Still, Waldo Canyon has burned down more than 300 homes, killed two people and sent thousands of others in the Colorado Springs area running for their lives. Listen to one of them as she drives out of her neighborhood with flames apparently a field away.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm leaving my house. We'll probably -- oh, my God, the smoke in the air is so bad. Let me see if I can pull through here. It was on fire just a second ago. There's flames over here. Oh, my God. Oh, my God. Oh, my God. Oh, my God. Oh, my God.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KAYE: That is just chilling to listen to. Such emotion and fear in her voice. The driver, Nicole Frye is now safe, but the risk is far from over. Officials have been saying it could take as long as three weeks to get this fire under control. Joining me this morning is the chief of the U.S. Forest Service Tom Tidwell. Chief, good morning to you. What is the latest information on Waldo Canyon? At last word we understood it had spanned 17,000 acres.
TOM TIDWELL, U.S. FOREST SERVICE (BY TELEPHONE): Well, that's correct. It's a little over 17,000 acres now. The crews made good progress on it yesterday. They are at 25 percent of the fires now contained.
KAYE: What kind of help are you getting? How much of the nation's firefighting air fleet is in Colorado right now?
TIDWELL: We have close to almost 1300 people on this fire. We've been using the air fleet that we need, air tankers, helicopters to support the firefighters on the ground. We've also brought in the military planes, C-130s that have been working on this fire for the last few days.
KAYE: Let's talk about some of the firefighting technology. You have talked recently in the news about the need to update air tankers and other firefighting equipment. What exactly is the problem?
TIDWELL: We've bringing on additional air tankers this year. We currently have 25 air tankers available. This also includes eight military planes and also one DC-10 that we also use. In addition to that, we also have 34 large helicopters. Those large helicopters can drop both water or retardant and they carry almost the same payload as our air tankers.
KAYE: The "LA Times" has been reporting that the conditions across the country are prime for what's being called super fires as seen in Colorado Springs. The nation's landscape is apparently more overgrown. Can you explain, is this a super fire and what exactly would make one a super fire?
TIDWELL: Waldo Canyon definitely is a disastrous fire. What creates these large fires is that, what happened in Colorado are record dry fuel. Along with that with record dry hot weather, we do have fuel loads that exist on the landscape today. When you get ignition and then you get the strong wind, that's when you get a fire that will escape our initial attack efforts and then become a very large fire.
KAYE: What is the greatest challenge, would you say, in trying to battle this one?
TIDWELL: The challenge with all of these large fires is to be able to, first of all, protect the community. So many of our fires anymore almost always are about protecting the community. Our first actions are always to do what we can to keep the fire out of the community and then the second thing is to be able to start to work the line so we can start to contain this fire.
KAYE: I understand you were with the president yesterday when he toured the damage in Colorado Sprins. How did that go? Can you tell us about this?
TIDWELL: The president came out and he visited with some of our fire crews that were out on the line for just a few minutes and then he also went and visited with city firefighters and also then made a stop at one of the evacuation centers.
KAYE: Chief Tom Tidwell of the U.S. Forest Service. Chief, thank you very much. I know it's a busy time. We appreciate your time this morning.
TIDWELL: Thank you.
KAYE: Next hour, our focus turns to the often forgotten victims of the devastating fires, the pets and the animals. If you would like to help families left homeless by the Colorado wildfires, please head to CNN.com/impact. We will find ways that you can help out and contribute.
The prosecution of an ex-millionaire for a crime had just ended when he apparently ended his own life right there in the courtroom. I'll tell you what triggered this shocking action.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KAYE: Good morning, Washington. What a lovely shot there of the U.S. Capitol. No doubt folks are sweating it out in Washington, DC this morning just like the rest of us are around the country. Welcome back, everyone, CNN SATURDAY MORNING.
Rodney King will be remembered today in a public funeral in California. Civil rights leaders, family friends and celebrities are expected to attend the service at Forest Lawn cemetery in the Hollywood Hills. The King family has set up a bank fund to help pay for the funeral. Rodney King became the face of police misconduct after his videotape beating by LA police back in 1991. Two weeks ago he was found dead in his swimming pool at age 47.
A high-flying life comes crashing down in a Phoenix courtroom. A man who made millions and climbed the world's tallest mountains, apparently killed himself in court just moments after a jury found him guilty of burning down his mansion because he couldn't afford to pay the mortgage. Christine Harrington of affiliate KDCK has the life and death of a daring adventurer who was facing years in prison.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) CHRISTINE HARRINGTON, KDCK CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Michael Marin, banker, art collector, adventurer and one time multi-millionaire will now also be remembered as an arsonist.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: (INAUDIBLE) we find the defendant Michael James Marin guilty of arson of an occupied structure.
HARRINGTON: This man, who lived life large with original Picasso sketches lining his walls in his multi-million dollar Biltmore mansion, is the same man who in May 2009 Skyped with TV as he scaled Mt. Everest.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We're already gone up to 25,000 feet without oxygen.
HARRINGTON: It was a very dangerous climb to the top that nearly cost him his life.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's a reminder that you're in a very dangerous business and you're profoundly grateful for just the grace that gives you life to breathe.
HARRINGTON: It was just a couple months later that Michael Marin's Biltmore home went up in flames. Again, he was thankful, this time for the grace of his scuba gear.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Actually found some air left in that tank and that's what enabled me to get back to the window and deploy the ladder. If I hadn't had those two things, we wouldn't be talking.
HARRINGTON: But the tank and the ladder made firefighters suspicious.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: My years on the job it's the first time I saw somebody use scuba-diving equipment to get out of a fire.
HARRINGTON: A month later Marin was charged with arson, accused of torching his home because he couldn't pay the mortgage. Three years later, a guilty verdict and a shocking reaction. Deputies say it appears he took something in court, collapsed, and moments later died.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KAYE: Michael Marin could have been sentenced to 16 years in prison on that arson conviction.
Mario Armstrong, HLN's digital lifestyle expert is in Baltimore this morning. We are going to talk to him about Google unveiling its new tablet this week but we're also going to be talking to him about the power outages that are hitting this entire country. 100 million people affected by the heat wave, lots of folks without power including Mario. He'll be joining us though shortly by phone. We'll tell you how you can keep your technology safe when you're without power. Be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) KAYE: There are millions still without power this morning along the eastern seaboard. No electricity and the heat as you well know is rising. It could get even worse. One of those affected is HLN digital lifestyle expert Mario Armstrong. He joins us every week to talk about the latest tech trends and today we wanted to talk about Google's new tablet, which is a pretty big deal but Mario is in Baltimore and he has no power so you can't see his smiling face. Mario good morning.
MARIO ARMSTRONG, DIGITAL LIFESTYLE EXPERT (BY TELEPHONE): And I'm fully dressed. I got dressed and ready for the hit (ph) and everything because we were going to do this over Skype and then I realized my Internet connection.
KAYE: How long have you been without power?
ARMSTRONG: I've been out -- it hit late last night I want to say, around maybe 11:30 right before midnight. It started pummeling. I've been through several storms before but this was probably one of the worst that I experienced. I actually thought that our gazebo in the backyard would going to actually blow away. It was that severe of the sound of the wind that was coming through here. So we had the fluctuations of power going in and out throughout the course of the night. But woke up at 3:00 a.m. to noise again, saw the power was on and thought that we would be just fine. Woke up this morning, power was on but Internet is disconnected.
KAYE: So you don't have air conditioning or anything.
ARMSTRONG: And no cable, no cable, no Internet.
KAYE: You can always watch us on your gadget. You know that. I don't have to tell thank you.
ARMSTRONG: I have been watching on my iPad, which is still charged, which is something that people should think about when they are preparing for a storm or if you know a storm is coming. Pre-charging all of your devices and any back-up power devices that you have like low fee (ph) or Duracell power mat, these are things that you can buy that can give you extra battery life for your devices.
KAYE: So what about protecting your gadgets though, because oftentimes in a power outage we hear a lot about a power surge, things like that. Can that hurt your gadgets? What can you do to protect them?
ARMSTRONG: Absolutely it can. Lightning was incredible last night. You can see a lot of power fluctuations hit your devices. The key to protecting all devices, first thing I did around the house was unplug computers, unplug anything else like you television sets or even just -- anything electronically that you have plugged in, you really should just go ahead and unplug it because you can get a power surge that can come in. If you don't have the right protection to protect that surge, it's going to burn and bake those components and bake those electronics.
KAYE: Then it's toast, right? ARMSTRONG: Then it's toast. That brings up another point. A lot of people I talk to when we start talking about preparations for storms or when they happen more readily in other areas of the country, if often say look, if a device gets burned out, that's one thing. You don't want to lose your data. You always want to make sure that you're consistently having some type of back-up plan of your data, whether that's online you're backing it up to the Internet or the cloud or you have it on an external hard drive that's at someone else's location in case your data becomes corrupted or bothered or damaged.
KAYE: All right, some very good tips. Mario, listen, I hope that you get some power back soon and get things back in order at your home. We're glad you're safe. Try and stay cool today, cooler than you always are.
ARMSTRONG: We'll try and stay cool. I have a little hand crank -- I wish you could hear it. You can't it. I'm trying to crank up my little hand crank radio which everybody should also have too. Eton has these, e-t-o-n. These are great for an emergency situation. Aren't you guys on the radio?
KAYE: Yeah, there's CNN radio. I don't know exactly what the number is. But continue to watch us on your iPad. I love to hear that.
ARMSTRONG: Will do. Take care.
KAYE: You, too.
The high cost of health care but what's your share? We'll break down what exactly is in the law.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KAYE: Welcome back. I'm Randi Kaye. Thanks for starting your morning with us.
Let's talk for a moment about health care and the cost to you. The Supreme Court ruled in favor of the President's health care plan, so it stays. No real changes but do you know what that really means to your bottom line and to your wallet?
Michael Manns is a senior analyst with Bloomberg Industries.
(AUDIO GAP)
Thank you for joining us this morning. Let's get right to it. I'm an average American.
MICHAEL MANNS, BLOOMBERG INDUSTRIES: Sure.
KAYE: A lot of average Americans watching this morning. Are our health care premiums going to go up now?
MANNS: No. Randi, I think that what will end up happening is that premiums are going to end up staying relatively constant, you know. As we take a look towards 2014 when more people, more uninsured will end up gaining coverage, there will be a large pool of people that will end up coming (AUDIO GAP) insurance pool. And that will end up meaning there will be more people to spread risk around so premiums (AUDIO GAP) constant. At least that's my view.
KAYE: So premiums then, they may stay the same. But what can you tell us about this surtax that some people will be facing?
MANNS: Well, you know, a surtax to a certain extent, if you're thinking about the idea we'll end up seeing larger Medicare taxes that will end up going to individuals that are going ahead and earning more than $200,000. You know that is true. Those taxes are going to go up to 2.35 percent of income from 1.45 percent of income. But again, it's on higher earning people. So as far as average Americans are concerned, you really shouldn't end up seeing much of an impact.
KAYE: You've also said that basically there isn't going to be a change for big business but what about the small business owner? I mean could we see them dropping health coverage and even making their employees fend for themselves now that this is in play?
MANNS: Well there is an alternative coming up in 2014. The insurance exchanges that will be set up by states will allow people to go ahead and come in and buy more affordable health insurance.
Now it is likely that many small businesses will choose to go ahead and move their (AUDIO GAP) towards these exchanges. And in doing so, they may have to end up paying a fee. But to be honest with you, Randi, the fee will end up being less in many cases than were they to go ahead and to offer insurance themselves. And for any small businesses under 50 people, well, they don't have to end up worrying about this at all.
KAYE: And then that fee, doesn't that even then go toward trying to pay for the exchanges as well?
MANNS: It does. It does.
KAYE: Yes.
MANNS: In fact, the fee ends up being kind of a counter-balance to some of the incremental costs that go into providing health insurance for the uninsured.
KAYE: Now a big part of this is of course the emphasis on preventative care. Do you see a change coming for people in that area as to where they go to get their care?
MANNS: Yes, I do. I think that we'll end up going and seeing many doctors continue to go ahead and to have their --- their case loads. But one of the provisions of health reform was the idea of trying to bolster community health centers so that they could end up going ahead and providing some more of that preventative care.
So as time goes on, I think there will be a tiered approach, primary care physicians, community health centers and also other almost minute clinics that are very popular here in New York with the Duane Reade centers.
KAYE: I think doctors everywhere are bracing for this -- this storm of new patients. But could we see an extra burden on -- on doctors in rural areas who have limited patient pools?
MANNS: That's likely. More uninsured will end up going ahead and coming in to rural doctors. And I think that's one of the reasons why health reform is trying to go ahead and to push more and more people towards you know physicians (AUDIO GAP) coming doctors, and also incentivizing them to go ahead and to put their practices in rural areas.
So the combination of the two hopefully will be able to provide an offset to some of those incremental people that are coming into rural areas.
KAYE: Michael Manns, thank you very much. Nice to chat with you.
MANNS: Thank you, Randi.
KAYE: George Zimmerman's attorney pushed for a new bond at a hearing Friday. I'll tell you if the suspected murderer is out on bail or still behind bars.
And now to this week's "Travel Insider: the beauty of one Italian city at a budget price -- Tuscany. Here is CNN Jackie Castillo.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JACKIE CASTILLO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: You take a vacation to indulge and enjoy. But that doesn't mean you have to spend a lot of money to have fun. Here are some trips I picked up while traveling through Tuscany.
Number one: don't be afraid to rent a car and drive. Many people say driving in Tuscany is terrifying. But if you rent a compact manual car, you'll find driving is a breeze. Plus a compact car is cheaper than a luxury or an SUV. So brush up on your stick.
Number two: you don't want to drive, take the train. While traveling through Italy, my family and I took the train to Florence. It was fast and we saved money because we didn't have to pay to park.
Number three: rent a villa inside of a hotel. Renting a home will help you save on accommodations and food because if there's a kitchen, you can prepare some of your meals there.
Looking to save more? The more people you can fit in, the cheaper it will be. We stayed at this Villa Il Portile Patrolina (ph). What I loved about staying off the beaten path and away from tourists, getting to explore a neighborhood and really experience Tuscany's culture.
If you stay at a villa or small town make sure to shop at their local markets and try their meats and cheeses, yum. And to save, buy your wine at the grocery store. One suggestion, look for the bottles with the black rooster symbol. This means the wine is of higher quality. I hope these tips help you plan a pleasure-friendly trip. They worked for me on my trip to Tuscany and I'm sure they could work for you no matter where you travel.
I'm Jackie Castillo with this week's travel insider.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KAYE: George Zimmerman, the man accused of shooting Trayvon Martin, an unarmed teen will stay in jail, at least for now while the judge weighs evidence and reconsiders bond. Yesterday, attorneys for the 28- year-old pushed for a new bond. He's been in jail since the judge discovered he misled the court about finances and revoked his initial bail. His attorney says the case is too flimsy for Zimmerman to stay in jail and that he should be home with his wife.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MARK O'MEARA, GEORGE ZIMMERMAN'S ATTORNEY: He wants out. He wants to be able to be with Shelly. He's very worried about his wife right now. And he'll deal with it, no matter what the judge's ruling and so are we.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KAYE: At the time his first bond was set, Zimmerman claimed to be broke but he'd actually raised a couple of hundred thousand dollars online.
CNN contributor and attorney Paul Callan joins me from New York. Good morning Paul.
PAUL CALLAN, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: Good morning Randi.
KAYE: So Zimmerman's defense team came out Friday admitting that their client misled the court about thousands of dollars in donations. An honest move but a smart one do you think?
CALLAN: It was fairly, pretty much the only move Randi I think they could make because the judge was well aware of what had gone on with the Zimmerman defense fund. And the wife really did make a misrepresentation to the court. She lied to the court about the financial resources that the family had available. And George Zimmerman didn't correct that through his attorney.
So the attorney had to say to the judge, you know judge, a misrepresentation was made. But this is why it was made. And he went through an elaborate explanation as to what had happened to the funds using a forensic accountant to show basically that in the end, none of this money was diverted, none of it was misused, and that therefore the court shouldn't hold that against the Zimmermans.
KAYE: But yet the judge didn't make a decision on Friday. I mean how likely do you think it is that he would deny bail to Zimmerman for misleading the court about finances?
CALLAN: Hard to say. I mean this is such a strange, strange case. You never really see a hearing like this, I have to tell you. Because usually, you know, a judge is looking at a drug dealer or a bank robber and the prosecutor comes in and says, judge, the money he's posting for bail, that's -- it's the proceeds of the robbery or it's drug money.
So usually courts are -- that's what they are looking at. They are not looking at a defense fund and saying, well, should he have told me more about the defense fund. This is a very unusual issue.
So if the judge remains angry enough at George Zimmerman saying that he lied in court through his wife and that this is an attack on the integrity of the court decision and he forces Zimmerman to remain in prison until the trial, this is going to go up on appeal. And I think the judge is going to write a lengthy decision probably justifying whatever decision he makes one way or another, letting him out or making him stay in because he anticipates an appeal.
KAYE: What do you make of Zimmerman's new look in court on Friday. A bit of a softer look, there were no shackles. His hair had grown out a bit. He was wearing a nice suit, I mean his lawyers wiping some smooch off his shoulder a little bit. I mean, are they looking to change his public appearance?
CALLAN: I was thinking his attorney Mark O'Meara should hire his stylist. Because you know I was looking at the outfit actually. And I -- and I should say even when I represent clients in murder cases, I do tell them how to dress. I don't hire a stylist usually. But he was very -- it was a very soft look, I mean it was a conservative look. I think it was a great tie, white shirt, conservative suit.
Normally in these hearings, by the way, the defendant comes in an orange jumpsuit from prison usually shackled. And a lot of times the courts don't bother with allowing them to wear civilian garb because usually it's just the judge and the lawyers and it's no big deal. But obviously every moment in this case is covered by the press and it gets back to the potential jury pool.
So I think this was a good move by the defense. Humanize him. Make him look non-threatening. And he certainly, he looked great.
KAYE: Yes.
CALLAN: He looked better than his attorney, I think, so that's good.
KAYE: Let's talk about defense witness number two. He was the first responder at the crime scene. He said that -- that almost half, 45 percent of Zimmerman's face was actually covered in blood. How big of a deal is this? Because this goes against the public perception of Zimmerman not being hurt.
CALLAN: This was a big, big moment for the defense, I think. I mean, we had almost a mini-trial going on here where we got a picture of what the defense will be. This witness, his name was O'Rourke he was an EMT for the fire department. And he said 40 percent of Zimmerman's head was covered with blood. He also said that Zimmerman had a laceration on his nose and that he, the EMT, was of the opinion that the nose looked deformed and broken.
Now this would be entirely consistent with Zimmerman's claim that he was punched in the face and then knocked to the ground and subjected to head injuries by Trayvon Martin there by giving him, Zimmerman, the right to use a gun in self-defense. So this was, I think, the defense putting up a rather strong argument that Zimmerman acted in self- defense.
And why is it relevant to the bail, by the way? One of the things judges consider is what's the likelihood of conviction? If somebody is likely to get out of jail, get acquitted, it's not right to force them to remain in jail.
So the strength of the prosecutor's case is a factor at a bail hearing, which is -- which gave him the excuse of calling this witness.
KAYE: It was -- you're right, a little bit of a mini trial. Paul Callan, thank you for that and thank you for your insight. Nice to see you this morning.
CALLAN: Always nice being with you, Randi. Take care.
KAYE: You, too.
All across America, the country is baking. Anything in the 90s is actually considered cool, believe it or not. Your fans and air conditioners they are getting a workout today if you're one of the lucky ones who actually has power.
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KAYE: Now to Colorado and the deadly wildfire near Colorado Springs. This is the Waldo Canyon fire. A second person has been found inside a burned out home. The fire has destroyed nearly 350 homes but thousands more are still being threatened.
President Obama traveled to Colorado Springs to offer his support for the firefighters and residents. He also promised federal aid to state and local agencies dealing with the fires.
Rob Marciano is in Colorado Springs this morning; he's been there all week for us. Rob, tell us a little bit about the firefighting efforts at this point?
ROB MARCIANO, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Well, they are getting a little bit more containment on this thing. But as it has been from the beginning, the fire really hasn't behaved anything like they thought it would. One thing is that at night that they can count on is it has laid down a little bit cooler mornings. What you see during the afternoon is nothing like you see in the morning.
Behind me, you can see the front range there -- just some smoke billowing out. But you notice how close that smoke is to some communities down there. That subdivision has been protected and saved but some subdivisions just a little bit farther south, not so lucky.
But as the sun comes up as it's doing now, it will heat and activate those smoldering flames and grow them throughout the day and that plume of smoke will be larger. So even though 25 per containment sounds like a small number, we're looking at a much bigger improvement from what we had just a few days ago.
We talked to victims, of course, horrifying stories -- 346 homes lost. The most destructive wildfire in Colorado history; as you can imagine the fire fighters are working tirelessly to get it done both on the ground and in the air.
Yesterday we were based at Air Force Academy airfield. We go to talk with some pilots there of the choppers. Some amazing video that we got in of helicopters -- air cranes that are modified to scoop up water and dump them in the fire, some of that stuff. They are pretty surgical as far as how they are able to dump that water where they are ordered to do so.
I caught up with a pilot yesterday afternoon and he kind of gave me some insight as to what he's up against.
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MARCIANO: What's the most challenging thing about this fire?
HELICOPTER PILOT: Not losing a house. We don't like that. We take that kind of personal. You know what the challenging part is being up 10,000 foot with the winds, you can see the cloud -- or the smoke is standing up today. You get up in there and get the winds swirling over the top. And even though this machine has got a lot horsepower, it takes a lot of horsepower to fly in the wind.
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MARCIANO: So that air support will continue today, in about another hour or so they will get the birds back in the air. The U.S. military unprecedented move in supplying this one fire with their entire fleet of modified C-130s, so all sorts of assets are pouring into this area after a terrifying and horrible day on Tuesday and Tuesday night where tens of thousands of people had to rush from their homes into safety.
They are still evacuated, Randi. There's no really word of any sort of mass population going back to where their homes are, even if they were saved. Tomorrow there will be some tours on buses to show people what's been done as far as fires and the fire damage and which houses have been saved. But they won't be allowed to get out of their buses.
No telling when all the evacuation orders will be lifted. Just to give you an idea of just how potent and active this fire is -- Randi.
KAYE: Yes. Such a difficult time for those people to go back to that neighborhood; it can be very, very emotional I'm sure.
Rob Marciano in Colorado Springs. Thank you for the update.
Today the heat wave continues and is expected to last throughout the weekend. Yesterday temperatures soared past 100 degrees from Kansas to Washington, D.C. And in some areas storms caused power outages knocking out people's air conditioning. Heat indexes reached as high as 115 degrees. And in Jackson County, Missouri, they are investigating three deaths that may be related to the heat.
And humans aren't the only ones suffering in the heat, check out this incredible video. A pup in Chicago decided to cool off with a fire hydrant. That is one smart doggie.
Next, she is a punk rock icon with a new cause.
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CYNDI LAUPER, SINGER: It's time for things to change. America's next generation --
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KAYE: I'll tell you what's got Cyndi Lauper all fired up and share our conversation.
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KAYE: One of my favorite Cyndi Lauper songs for sure. She's a long- time champion for gay rights. But now Grammy award winning singer Cyndi Lauper is really fired up. She's just launched the "40 to None Project". It's a campaign to battle the growing number of homeless gay youths.
The statistics are staggering. Take a look.
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LAUPER: In America up to 1.6 million youths are homeless each year. Up to 40 percent of them identify as gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgender. Most of them have been thrown out of their homes or run away out of fear and rejection.
It's time for things to change. America's next --
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KAYE: I had a chance to sit down with Cyndi and I asked her why she got involved.
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LAUPER: The numbers, you know, of how many kids are homeless and the proportion of homeless kids on the street who identify as gay or transgender that the general population, only three to five percent, but yet up to 40 percent identify as gay or transgender on the street.
That's a little, you know - that was surprising, alarming to me. And also because they are kids and you know, even for a selfish thing, if you want to win in this world and everybody's talking about we've got to do this and we've got to do that and we've got to compete with the other countries.
Well, you can't throw a generation of kids away. That's our future, you know. You don't know who the great idea is going to come out of.
KAYE: Absolutely.
LAUPER: So you've got to have your kids. You need legs, and legs are the people. You can't have an exclusive society and win. You want to win, you need inclusion and you need the strength of everybody to pitch in and make it happen, not half the people.
KAYE: So what's the plan for "40 to None"? Because obviously this can't be fixed overnight; I know you have this five-year plan. But give me an idea of where you want to be in five years.
LAUPER: We want to have no kid on the street who is only on the street because they are gay or transgender. It's like throwing somebody out of your house because their hair is brown.
And that's the education part. The thing is it's education. You have to know scientifically what the truth is, you know. So I want to -- well, not just me, my team, we're going to educate the public and educate people, speak about it. We urge everyone to share your stories, speak, talk to each other.
I'm going to advocate on behalf of the kids. I'm going to -- you know, a lot of these places that Gregory Lewis, who is the fellow who works with us that strong armed this and went on the road for us came back and said a lot of these places they have great programs that actually work. We wanted to see the programs that actually worked, the blueprints that work and then help spread those blueprints, the ones that are working for the kids.
And we found out from these providers that, one, they have no public support. And of course the funding gets cut. But I don't know if a lot of people are aware of the centers, of the places. And they said nobody really talks about it. So I figured, you know, I've got a big mouth. I don't mind.
KAYE: So what is your message to a gay or lesbian teen or youth, who might be watching this morning, might be considering running away or might be dealing with rejection from their parents? What do you want to say to them?
LAUPER: Well, you know, hang in there. And there are people who are working for you. There is a future. Evolution takes time but it will come. It will come step by step. It will come.
And talk to your parents. Tell them you love them. Just explain to them. Go online, show them, show them -- educate them a little bit. You know, nobody ever reached out to them to help them. And if it's a bad situation, go online and maybe there are services, people you could talk to that will help you. Go on 40tonone.org, www.40tonone.org and you'll have a list of places and information that will help you.
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KAYE: To learn more or get involved in Cyndi Lauper's campaign against LGBT homelessness, you can go to my blog at CNN.com/randi and you can follow the link there and you can really support (ph) them.
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