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Starting Point with Soledad O'Brien
Home From Vacation Hell; Newborn Rescued From Sewer Pipe; Oregon School Bomb Plot; You Can Lead A Pony To Liquor; Glass Ceiling Lifting?; Bieber's Need For Speed; Pacers Cool Off Heat; Nike Cuts Ties With Livestrong; Soda Shaq; Boston Strong At Fenway; Wrong Beauty Queen Crowned
Aired May 29, 2013 - 07:30 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
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JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: Welcome back to STARTING POINT, everyone, I'm John Berman.
CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN ANCHOR: And I'm Christine Romans. This morning, investigators are still trying to figure out the cause of that terrifying fire aboard the Royal Caribbean cruise ship, Grandeur of the Seas. More than 2,000 passengers found themselves stranded in the Bahamas Monday, halfway through their vacation. And as Erin McPike reports, many of them are now talking about their harrowing ordeal.
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ERIN MCPIKE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Three days before their vacation was scheduled to end, the first of 2,200 Royal Caribbean cruise ship passengers returned safely to the port of Baltimore Tuesday. The Grandeur of the Seas journey was cut short by a fire on board at 3:00 a.m. Monday morning.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Pretty terrifying at first.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: In the water, you could see the glow of the fire, but we didn't have -- we had no idea how big the fire really was.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I think people were just in shock, and it was early and just wondering what was going on.
MCPIKE: Some passengers said when they saw life boats lowered, they thought the Grandeur of the Seas was sinking.
It was the latest scare in what has been a string of debacles for the cruise industry.
Last year, 32 people died when the Costa Concordia capsized off the coast of Italy. Carnival's Triumph stranded passengers off the Gulf of Mexico in February. And Carnival's Dream left others without power in March.
Executive director of the Global Maritime Center, Richard Burke, says the incidents don't spell out a pattern for the industry.
RICHARD BURKE, MARITIME COLLEGE, STATE UNIV. OF NEW YORK: They're among the safest ships afloat.
MCPIKE: The latest black eye for the industry intensifies the public relations problems they face, but attorney John Hickey says passengers have little recourse in nightmarish vacations.
JOHN HICKEY, HICKEY LAW FIRM: If passengers don't have any physical injuries or the threat of physical injury, they're basically under the terms of the ticket and federal statute not allowed to sue.
MCPIKE: Royal Caribbean is giving full refunds and vouchers for future cruises to Grandeur of the Seas passengers. And some say they will cruise again.
Erin McPike, CNN, Baltimore, Maryland.
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BERMAN: And our thanks to Erin for that story. We're also following new developments in the amazing rescue of a newborn baby in China. The infant was pulled from a narrow sewer pipe beneath a public rest room and now we're learning who the mother is, and how she says her baby went down the toilet.
CNN's David McKenzie is live in Beijing. And David, a lot of people wondering how on earth this could have happened.
DAVID MCKENZIE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, John, that's a very good question. Really extraordinary story, and also, it appears, apparently, that this could have been some kind of awful accident. And I must warn viewers that some of this footage is pretty shocking.
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MCKENZIE (voice-over): It was the amazing video seen around the world, the race against time to save this baby from a sewage pipe in China. Today, we have new pictures of the baby, resting comfortably, drinking formula and recovering in ICU. Doctors say he should be OK. Incredible, when you consider what he went through.
Alarmed neighbors called first responders when they heard crying and saw a tiny foot. Tearing away the pipe, they can't reach the baby wedged inside. Pipe and child rushed to a nearby hospital. Surgeons and firefighters gingerly using pliers to rescue the infant, revealing a newborn boy, afterbirth still attached. On local TV police saying it could have been an awful mistake.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): The woman started to feel a stomach ache and then she rushed to the toilet. After she stayed in the toilet for awhile, she gave birth to a baby. She tried to grab something to help herself because there was too much blood. She couldn't hold the baby anymore and he slid in the sewage through the hole of the toilet. MCKENZIE: Investigations are still ongoing and the boy is recovering in ICU. Police posted these pictures of him online. They say rescuers brought blankets and formula, deeply touched by his ordeal, without a name just patient 59, an innocent boy miraculously surviving a terrible ordeal against incredible odds.
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MCKENZIE: Well, John, quite an incredible story, and we're hearing from police there that the woman who gave birth to this child is in hospital. They're not saying yet whether she will be charged. They believe that it might have been a terrible accident, a lot of soul searching here in China and a lot of amazed viewers around the world, at the story of such incredible survival -- John.
BERMAN: Truly a miracle baby. David McKenzie in Beijing for us. Thanks so much, David.
CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN ANCHOR: I have so many questions about that story. Did she know she was pregnant? Why didn't she call for help? Why did the neighbors call for help? Who is going to take care of the baby, et cetera, et cetera? So we'll keep following that.
Here are your other top stories this morning. Prosecutors revealing details of their case against Grant Acord, the Oregon teenager accused of plotting to bomb his high school. They say the 17-year-old's plan allegedly included napalm bombs, firearms, and then committing suicide before police could get to him. Acord, who is being charged as an adult, did not enter a plea when he appeared in court yesterday on a video feed from jail. Bail is set at $2 million.
BERMAN: So customers inside a liquor store in Rhode Island may have wanted to rethink that drink after seeing a Shetland pony sauntering down the aisles. This is not common even in Rhode Island. Surveillance video shows this 51-year-old William Saviano leading his pony through the store as he shopped for some wine. Things got ugly when the pony made a mess. Apparently he refused to clean it up until police forced him to take care of it. As you might imagine, a sign outside the store now says no dogs, or cats, or horses allowed.
ROMANS: Because if you only clean up the mess then it's OK to bring a pony in to the store, but you have to clean up after the pony. The glass ceiling may be lifting according to data from the U.S. Census. Moms are becoming the bread winners for a record number of American families and more married mothers than ever are out earning their husbands.
Check out the numbers. Women in 40 percent of U.S. households with children are now the primary breadwinner. Back in 1960, no surprise, that figure was a very low 11 percent. Right now in this country, 5.1 million mothers make more money than their husbands. That makes up 37 percent of married households with kids.
BERMAN: So this is the best news of the day. As you may know, my "EARLY START" colleague Zoraida Sambolin, she took a break on Friday, after being diagnosed with breast cancer. Zoraida opted to have a preventive double mastectomy. So on Tuesday, doctors in Chicago performed the procedure. You see her heading into surgery right there.
Here's the great news. They say the surgery went very, very well. So far they saw no signs at all that the cancer spread. We're going to look at more tests later today, but Zoraida is doing great. She is resting well. She is with her family right now. There's her son Nikkoo right now. They all report that they're doing well and great.
That is terrific news and Zoraida promises as soon as she can she's going to come back and share with us more about this journey again, that is the best news of the day. Big news for us here on team "Z."
ROMANS: That's right. A very strong woman surrounded by an awful lot of love and a lot of good wishes.
Ahead on STARTING POINT, Justin Bieber draws the ire of former NFL star Keyshawn Johnson. Seems the pop star, he's not being a very good neighbor. Details behind the story that involved a Ferrari, a Prius and a rant on Twitter.
BERMAN: So it was a dream come true for like a second and then it abruptly came to an end. We're going to speak with the contestants live about the monumental blunder at the Miss Universe Canada pageant. I mean this mix-up was huge. You're watching STARTING POINT.
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ROMANS: Welcome back to STARTING POINT. Not much love for Justin Bieber these days in the gated California community that he calls home. Neighbors say the singer's been speeding around in his white Ferrari, treating local streets like the 101 Freeway. One neighbor, who has a big beef with Bieber, is a former NFL star. Is that right? CNN's Pamela Brown is following this for us this morning. Good morning.
PAMELA BROWN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning. Yes, he's messing with the wrong people now. NFL stars twice his size, by the way, and he is upsetting his neighbors once again. This is actually the second time in a little over two months that he's been accused of speeding through his neighborhood. And now we're hearing that he's refusing to talk to sheriff's deputies.
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BROWN (voice-over): Justin Bieber is known for dazzling fans all over the world, but it's his offstage antics that have the pop sensation's California neighbors upset. For the second time in two months, they accuse the singer of speeding through their Calabasas neighborhood at breakneck speed. The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department is investigating the latest incident.
STEVE WHITMORE, L.A. COUNTY SHERIFF'S DEPARTMENT: We got a couple of calls from two witnesses that said that they saw Justin Bieber driving recklessly in his white Ferrari inside the gated community known as the Oaks. This kind of behavior, if it did happen, cannot be done by anybody, at anytime, anywhere.
BROWN: The Sheriff's Department says Bieber refused to speak with deputies sent to investigate, prompting this plea.
WHITMORE: Please talk to us. Tell us what you believe occurred.
BROWN: TMZ reports Bieber shut the door on someone else who wanted to ring his bell, former NFL star, Keyshawn Johnson. The ex-New York Jets player was sitting in his car with his child in Calabasas when Bieber sped by. He later reportedly confronted the young pop star outside his house.
But Bieber fled inside, possibly showing better judgment than he did while driving his Ferrari. As a potential sparring partner, Johnson measures 6'4", Bieber, maybe 5'7". Johnson weighs in at 212. Bieber about half that. But in the past, the size differential hasn't prevented Bieber from punching above his weight class.
JUSTIN BIEBER, SINGER: What did you say?
BROWN: Or at least trying to. In March, he got into a scuffle with a hefty Brit behind a camera. But in Calabasas, neighbors are mostly concerned about the damage he could do behind the wheel.
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BROWN: And the D.A.'s office in Los Angeles is still investigating that incident back in March where Bieber was accused of spitting on a neighborhood who confronted him for speeding. And now looks like this latest incident will be turned over to the D.A.'s office, as well, and so far, no comment from Bieber's camp.
ROMANS: He's had a whole long line of bad, bad press, hasn't he?
BROWN: Yes, can't stay out of the spot light and for all the wrong reasons.
BERMAN: Now the former NFL players are on the watch.
BROWN: Yes.
BERMAN: Not good for Bieber.
ROMANS: Pamela Brown, nice to see you, Pamela.
BERMAN: All right, so it looks like everyone is going to need to hold off on that Heat/Spurs NBA finals talk because the NBA Pacers are not going anywhere. They're not going down without a fight.
ROMANS: Andy Scholes has more in the morning's "Bleacher Report." Good morning.
ANDY SCHOLES, "BLEACHER REPORT": Good morning, guys. All of the pressure is now back on the Miami Heat after the Pacers beat the Heat last night to even the Eastern Conference finals at two games apiece. Last night's game was another knock down drag out battle from the opening tip.
Indiana used their size and interior strength to control the paint for the entire game. Now Lebron led all scorers with 24 points, but with the Heat down four with 56 seconds to go he fouled out on this moving screen. This is just the second time ever that Lebron has fouled out in a playoff game.
The Heat would fail to score without Lebron the rest of the way as the Pacers went on to win 99-92 to even the series. After the game, Lebron was clearly not happy, but he refused to blame the officials for the loss.
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LEBRON JAMES, FOULED OUT WITH 56 SECONDS LEFT IN GAME: It was a couple, you know, calls that I didn't feel like, you know, were fouls personal fouls on me. But, that's how the game goes.
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SCHOLES: Earlier this year, Nike dropped all of their endorsements of Lance Armstrong in the wake of his admission to using performance enhancing drugs. Now the company is further cutting ties with Armstrong announcing that it will stop manufacturing Livestrong brand shoes and apparel at the end of this year.
Now over the last decade Nike has helped Livestrong raise over $100 million, mostly through the sale of those popular yellow bracelets and while it will not be manufacturing products for Livestrong anymore, Nike says they will continue to contribute to the foundation.
Over the years, Shaquille O'Neal has had his own shoe, his own logo, now Shaq has his own drink. Yesterday, Shaq tweeted out a pick of his new cream soda line called "Soda Shaq." You can get the new drink in four different flavors, strawberry, orange, vanilla and blueberry.
First place Boston Red Sox were back in action last night hosting the Phillies at Fenway and what a great moment before the game, Jeff Baumann who lost both his legs in the Boston marathon bombings was on hand to throw out the first pitch along with the man who came to his rescue that day, Carlos Arredondo.
Baumann was one of the people who helped law enforcement identify the bombing suspects. He and Arredondo both fired in strikes together at the very same time. Guys, what a great moment for these two especially considering all they've been through since that terrible day.
BERMAN: That was a great pitch, Andy, a perfect strike from a sitting position. What a throw, a real hero. All right, thanks, Andy. We appreciate it.
ROMANS: All right, ahead on STARTING POINT, a major mix-up at the Miss Universe Canada pageant. Can you tell which woman is the real winner? Neither could the judges. We're going to tell you what went wrong and hear from both women in just a moment. You're watching STARTING POINT.
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BERMAN: Welcome back to STARTING POINT, everyone. So will the real Miss Canada, please stand up? There has been nothing but confusion and apologies since Saturday night's selection of Canada's Miss Universe. It seems the pageant officials somehow crowned the wrong beauty queen.
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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Miss Universe Canada 2013 is Denise Garrido!
BERMAN (voice-over): Most beauty queens expect their reigns to last for a year.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Congratulations to our new Miss Universe Canada 2013.
BERMAN: But Denise Garrido's run as Miss Universe Canada lasted exactly one day. After stunning the audience during the competition, Garrido thought her childhood dreams had finally come through when she beat out 57 other women for the crown. But less than 24 hours later, the pageant's organizers realized a terrible mistake in the results. They made a typo, which meant the first runner up, Riza Santos had actually won, and Denise Garrido placed fourth.
The pageant stripped Garrido of her title and apologized in a statement saying, we would like to offer our sincere apology to Denise Garrido for this human error discovered while validating the results. We have no doubt she will continue to succeed in her endeavors and we wish her well.
Riza Santos, who has thought she had come so close, only to place second, is now celebrating her new title. Santos won't have this same moment of glory, but will receive her crown in a private ceremony this weekend. Meanwhile, Garrido who is 26 is too old to compete again, but would love to come back next year this time as a judge.
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ROMANS: Wow. Joining us now, Ms. Universe Canada for a day, Denise Garrido, and the newly named Ms. Universe Canada 2013, Riza Santos, the two have thrown into a really, really tough situation. We thank you for being here. I mean, this is the first time really have you had a chance to speak about this since it happened. I'm wondering, Denise, do you have a message or something to say to Riza and vice versa? Denise, you start.
DENISE GARRIDO, THIRD RUNNER-UP, MISS UNIVERSE CANADA 2013: Well, I would like to congratulate Risa on being Miss Universe Canada 2013. On my end, I feel bad that I took that moment away from her, but at the same time, Riza, I'm glad to share this bonding experience. We were both a Ms. Earth Canada. We were both a Ms. World Canada and technically, we have shared in the Ms. Universe Canada experience. And I'm happy to pass it over to you now and I wish you the best year ever, and I want to be there.
RIZA SANTOS, MISS UNIVERSE CANADA 2013: Thank you so much, Denise. That means a lot to me. I know this is the first time that I've had a chance to speak with you directly since the pageant and I've heard through some of the media that I spoken to and through the director that you have been so gracious through the entire process, and I thank you so much for your message right now. I have known you for a couple of years now, and you are a person of integrity and a respectful, positive person, so I -- I thank you so much for your graciousness during this time.
BERMAN: I got to say --
SANTOS: A great person.
BERMAN: I'm in awe of both of your graciousness right now. I don't think it would handle it the same way.
ROMANS: You would be clawing eyes out.
BERMAN: So Denise, you know, you get crowned Ms. Universe Canada for a day. You have the photo shoot. You go to all the celebrations and 24 hours later, you get a call. What was it like to find that out?
GARRIDO: Well, it was definitely shocking. Of course, it's shocking. You go through this complete high and your entire family, your town is all celebrating, wishing you congratulations and 24 hours later, you're told, by the way. And I was like, no! What will I tell everyone?
But things happen for a reason and I really wanted to Ms. Universe Canada, and I won Ms. Universe Canada, may not have ended exactly the as I had hoped for, but 24 hours, I was Ms. Universe Canada, and Riza gets one fantastic year ahead of her.
ROMANS: But Riza, you didn't get the crowning. You didn't get the drama at the moment. You didn't get the 24 hours of press interviews and the high of winning. Do you feel like you missed out?
SANTOS: I don't feel like I missed out. After Denise was crowned, I was -- I was disappointed, because I felt like I did well in the competition, but I know Denise as a person and I was happy for her genuinely because she was just -- she is a great girl. I've known her for a couple of years now.
I don't feel like I missed out because I do have the opportunity to represent Canada on the world stage and during that time, a couple of dates to process, I only found out on Monday afternoon to process what had happened, and it was very humbling for me, and to actually find out I had won and I had this opportunity to represent Canada on the world stage was a huge honor for me and very humbling at the same time.
BERMAN: So Riza, we know -- you get to go and compete in the Ms. Universe pageant. So Denise, what's next for you? GARRIDO: Well, actually for myself, I haven't even thought about that. I'm still dealing with a lot of interviews and a whirlwind of so much happening and with family, with friends and my community. I haven't taken the time to step back and reassess my life. What is truly next for me, probably education, masters, med school, who knows what the future holds for me right now? I haven't taken the time to think about it. Once I have time to rest properly and recollect my thoughts, I'll have a proper assessment of what is next for me.
ROMANS: Denise Garrido, Riza Santon, both of you, Ms. Universe Canada, for one day and one for the rest of the year, nice to meet both of you, thank you.
BERMAN: Both champions of grace and poise in their own way. I'm just really in awe, very impressive.
Ahead on STARTING POINT, dangerous weather tearing across half the country today, a huge part of the country affected from tornadoes to extreme heat. We're going to have the latest at the top of the hour.
ROMANS: Then a mother of seven locked in a Mexican jail cell accused of trying to smuggle drugs. We'll talk to one of her daughters live and we're going to ask her why she says her mother never could have done this.
BERMAN: Not just a white wedding. This bride got a wet wedding. We're going to meet the newlyweds whose entire bridal party splashed into a lake and it happened on camera. Stay with us.
You're watching STARTING POINT.
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