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CNN Wolf Blitzer Reports

Michael Jackson Late on Day of Accuser's Testimony; Suicide Note Implicates Man in Murders of Judge's Family

Aired March 10, 2005 - 17:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


WOLF BLITZER, HOST: Happening now: out of surgery and into recovery. What's the prognosis for former president, Bill Clinton? His doctors have now spoken. We'll go live outside the hospital and get details from our senior medical correspondent, Dr. Sanjay Gupta.
Stand by for hard news on WOLF BLITZER REPORTS.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER (voice-over): Failure to appear. An angry judge sends an ailing Michael Jackson racing to court in his pajamas to face his accuser.

Double murder mystery. Can a suicide in Wisconsin solve the slayings at a judge's home in Chicago?

Mosul massacre. Dozens of dead in Iraq as a suicide bomber attacks a funeral procession.

Failing grades. An airline pilots' group says gaping holes remain in aviation security. Are things as bad as they claim?

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ANNOUNCER: This is WOLF BLITZER REPORTS for Thursday, March 10, 2005.

BLITZER: Thanks for joining us.

We begin with some dramatic developments happening right now in the Michael Jackson trial. Jackson came within minutes of finding himself jailed and forfeiting his $3 million bail when he failed to show up this morning at his child molestation trial.

Defense attorney Thomas Mesereau told the judge Jackson had gone to the hospital for a severe back problem. The judge was not amused. He issued an arrest warrant and threatened to revoke his bail unless the pop star showed up within an hour. Jackson missed that deadline but showed up minutes later, appearing disheveled, wearing pajama bottoms and walking gingerly.

The judge did not take any action against him, and the trial has resumed. It resumed 90 minutes late, with some very compelling testimony from Jackson's accuser. We have complete coverage for you with -- starting with CNN's Miguel Marquez in Santa Maria. CNN's Mary Snow is standing by in New York. And criminal defense attorney Robert Shapiro is in Los Angeles.

But let's begin with Miguel Marquez. He's live outside the courthouse. Tell us what just happened inside, Miguel.

MIGUEL MARQUEZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, well, just a short time ago, a couple of things that we've heard about, Wolf.

One, Mr. Jackson is in luck today, because the judge in a minute (ph) order just revoked the warrant that he had issued earlier and restored Mr. Jackson's bail. That means he's only getting off with a warning this time. And the jurors were admonished not to attach any importance to the fact that he was ordered to court today.

Also, the accuser on the stand, this 15-year-old boy on the stand, just moments ago started the testimony into some of the more lurid details of this, saying in court, to prosecutor Tom Sneddon, "He touched me twice. I think it may be more than twice," but he knows, this boy says, that Michael Jackson touched him twice.

Jackson is accused of four counts of molestation, two that this boy felt and experienced himself, he says, and two others that his brother says he witnessed on -- on his brother.

Also in court today, this boy said that Mr. Jackson gave him alcohol in many places: at Neverland Ranch many times, at a hotel room in Miami, on the plane on the way back from Miami to Santa Barbara.

He also said that, during the filming of the Martin Bashir documentary, that Mr. Jackson forbade his family from watching that documentary in a Miami hotel room. When that thing aired in the U.S., prosecutors contend Mr. Jackson conspired with others to keep that family from watching that video, that documentary, and they say that that's what kicked off this entire conspiracy.

One thing that's interesting about this is that, because Jackson was so late to court, this now allows the prosecution to keep that witness up on the stand the entire day. The court is not in session tomorrow, not at least for the jurors are not hearing testimony tomorrow. So jurors will have three full days to sit back and thing about everything this boy is saying.

Back to you, Wolf.

BLITZER: Did the judge admonished Jackson for this conduct earlier in the day? What specifically did he say to him?

MARQUEZ: Not in open court. It was behind closed doors in judge's chambers with attorneys from both the district attorney's office and Mr. Jackson's lawyers back there for some time.

The only thing the judge did in open court in front of jurors was to tell the jurors, "Don't attach any importance to this. It doesn't mean whether he's guilty or innocent. I'd do it if you were late -- late to court" -- Wolf.

BLITZER: Miguel Marquez, reporting for us from Santa Maria, right outside the courthouse, thank you, Miguel, very much.

The focus may have been on Jackson, but it was his lawyer, Thomas Mesereau, who was really in the hot seat today. CNN's Mary Snow has that part of the story. She's joining us live from New York -- Mary.

MARY SNOW, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Wolf, with Jackson's accuser taking the stand, some say this was one of the biggest days in Jackson's attorney's career. Instead he faced a new dilemma: trying to keep his client out of jail and trying to hold on to $3 million bail.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SNOW (voice-over): With the threat of his client being arrested, Michael Jackson's attorney, Thomas Mesereau, paced outside the courthouse, his cell phone pressed to his ear. It was his job to explain to the judge why Jackson was not on time for court, explaining that he was suffering from back pain.

BRENDA BERNSTEIN, FORMER PROSECUTOR: It's insane. I mean, if it were you and I, we'd be in a lot of trouble. We would not be out of jail tonight.

SNOW: The question is, can Jackson's behavior also get his attorney in trouble?

JEFFREY TOOBIN, CNN LEGAL ANALYST: The question the judge has to answer is, did Mesereau know and approve of any misconduct that Jackson may have engaged in?

If Mesereau was as surprised as everyone else that Jackson didn't show up, then he can't be penalized by the judge.

SNOW: CNN's legal analyst, Jeffrey Toobin, points out that Mesereau has an excellent reputation as an ethical lawyer. If there is a case where an attorney does cover for a client, there are consequences.

TOOBIN: Sanctions can include reporting to the bar association, even contempt of court, but that is simply not very likely here.

SNOW: Experts expect Jackson and not his attorney to face the consequences here, and what if Jackson continues to be late, can his attorney walk? Experts say it is very difficult to drop a client during a trial, that it would have to be approved by the court.

And the court did step in once before in a case involving Mesereau. He was representing actor Robert Blake when a judge agreed to allow Mesereau to be relieved of his duties, citing irreconcilable differences.

(END VIDEOTAPE) SNOW: And while legal experts point out that it's very difficult for an attorney to drop a client during a trial, they also point out that it's also very difficult for a client to drop an attorney during a trial -- Wolf.

BLITZER: Mary Snow in New York. Mary, thank you very much.

Robert Shapiro knows what it's like to defend high-profile clients, among them Jose Canseco, Darryl Strawberry, perhaps most famously O.J. Simpson. Robert Shapiro is joining us now live from our Los Angeles bureau.

Bob, thanks very much for joining us. All right. Have you ever seen anything as bizarre as the spectacle we saw earlier on live television?

ROBERT SHAPIRO, CRIMINAL DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Just when you think you've seen the most bizarre, Wolf, you're going to be surprised again.

Actually, I have, and I have seen it with Michael Jackson. About a year and a half ago, our law firm had a lawsuit against Michael Jackson, and the same type of activity took place. He came in one day on crutches. He'd come in consistently late to court. The disruptiveness of the court process, I believe, certainly was an irritant to the jury and resulted in a large, large, large victory for our client.

BLITZER: Well, let's talk a little bit about what happened today. The judge in this particular case, threatened a warrant, threatened to put him in jail, revoked the bail. Clearly he has not done that, but he's probably getting very close to doing it if it happens again?

SHAPIRO: This is a very, very strict judge, who has had and maintained total control in the courtroom, and I think that what you said is absolutely right. I don't think there would be any action taken against Mr. Jackson today, but if it does happen again, if he is not coming in in an ambulance, he's going to be in the jail.

BLITZER: Well, how does his lawyer, Thomas Mesereau, a man I assume you know, how does he deal with a client like this? Because he was there. You saw him pacing outside the courthouse, waiting on his cell phone. I'm not sure he knew what was going on.

SHAPIRO: I faced the exact same thing 10 years ago when I had agreed to surrender Mr. Simpson, and that didn't take place.

I do know Tom Mesereau. He's an outstanding lawyer, highly ethical. There is no question that he obviously had nothing to do with this tardiness and was as surprised by the judge was by it.

The only thing he can do is to try -- try to minimize it, and that's going to be difficult, because the jury certainly, in my opinion, and my experience, will draw negative inferences from this.

BLITZER: What would the jury know? Was the jury briefed on what happened in the course of the delay today?

SHAPIRO: I don't know. It appears from what I have heard just a few moments ago that the jury was in the courtroom when the warrant was issued, because the judge said, "I would do the same to any of you if you were late to court."

So I think the jury was aware that he was late to court and have been admonished by the judge not to consider it, and those admonitions historically are nothing more than legal fictions. The more you ask a jury to disregard something, the more inclined they are to consider it.

BLITZER: You heard Mary Snow say, and she's been speaking to a lot of legal experts today, it's very hard for a client to drop an attorney and an attorney to drop a client in the middle of a high- profile case like this.

But at some point, Thomas Mesereau, if this kind of behavior continues, has to worry about his own reputation, his own legal standing.

SHAPIRO: You know, when -- when you get into the high-profile cases like this everything that you do is under a microscope. Thomas Mesereau will not resign from the case. Michael Jackson will not change lawyers.

Tom Mesereau is an outstanding, outstanding advocate, a terrific lawyer, and these are things that happen in these high-profile situations. People that are used to being in total control of everything are suddenly in an atmosphere where somebody else is telling them when and where they have to be and how they have to act.

BLITZER: One final question. On the substance of the accuser's testimony today, you heard Miguel Marquez say the accuser, the young boy, says Michael Jackson inappropriately had him touch him or touch each other inappropriately on two occasions. If you're the defense attorney now, what do you do?

SHAPIRO: I think what Mr. Mesereau is going to do is try to not say that this boy has just fabricated this, but that it was a whole effort by the entire family that was coordinated by the mother, because there really -- other than his brother, there is no independent corroboration and no independent evidence of any type of inappropriate touching or molestation.

However, I think the real problem that Mr. Mesereau is going to face is the issue of giving alcohol to children, and that there is corroboration for. And if the jury in my opinion finds that he, indeed, did give alcohol to minors, the likelihood is they will accept the boy's testimony, and Michael Jackson will be in a lot of trouble.

BLITZER: There's a lot of -- there's also the added issue of pornography, if that was shown to a young boy, as well. I assume that could be a severely complicating matter for Michael Jackson.

SHAPIRO: Yes, but I don't know that there's going to be corroboration for that. I think, from what I understand, that there may be people that have been on airplanes with him that will be testifying that alcohol was put into soda cans and passed around as some type of special juice.

BLITZER: Robert Shapiro, thanks for joining us.

SHAPIRO: My pleasure, Wolf. Always a pleasure to be with you.

BLITZER: Thank you.

When we come back, suicide confession and a possible link to the killings of a federal judge's family members. Police investigate a connection that could solve the case.

Not making the grade. Aviation security measures put to the test. Find out which specific areas failed.

And from golf to surgery, to recovery, a busy 24 hours for former president, Bill Clinton. We'll get as update on his health from our Dr. Sanjay Gupta. He's at the hospital. He's standing by. He'll join us live.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: Welcome back.

There may be a breakthrough in a widely publicized murder investigation. Police say a man who committed suicide near Milwaukee last night may have been responsible for a double homicide in Chicago.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER (voice-over): It started as a routine traffic stop in a Milwaukee suburb, but as the officer walked up to investigate, a gunshot was fired from inside the vehicle.

CHIEF DEAN PUSCHNIG, WEST ALLIS POLICE: A single gunshot was fired from inside the vehicle. The bullet exited the driver's window very close to where the officer was standing. The bullet did not strike anybody outside the vehicle.

BLITZER: Police say the driver of the SUV, identified at Bart Ross of Chicago, had committed suicide. Chicago police were called in to assist with the investigation.

SUPT. PHILIP CLINE, CHICAGO POLICE: In processing the crime scene we came upon a note, written presumably by the victim, where he implicated himself in the murders of Michael Lefkow and Donna Humphrey. In the note, the offender outlined in some details the events of Monday, February 28.

BLITZER: On that date, the husband and mother of federal Judge Joan Humphrey Lefkow were found dead at Judge Lefkow's Chicago home. Police have cordoned off Ross' home on Chicago's north side, and they say the investigation is continuing. CLINE: The note alone is not definitive evidence that we have our offender. While we do characterize last night's developments as significant, we are not prepared at this time to definitely say that any one person is responsible for these homicides. This case is by no means closed.

BLITZER: Earlier speculation about the murders had centered on followers of Matthew Hale, a white supremacist who lost a copyright case in Lefkow's court. Hale has denied involvement. Police say there's no evidence linking Ross and Hale.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: Court cases, of course, produce winners and losers, and they often results in threats from those who think, rightly or wrongly, that they've been treated unfairly. Our Brian Todd is joining us now live. He's been looking into this part of the story -- Brian.

BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Wolf, the Lefkow case has drawn a lot of attention to the dangers faced by federal judges and attorneys, dangers that Lefkow herself had faced before.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

TODD (voice-over): Judge Joan Lefkow might have thought her most serious threat had been removed. The trial of white supremacist leader Matt Hale was over. Hale, convicted of trying to have Lefkow killed, had always denied involvement in any plot, but after he was jailed, Judge Lefkow and U.S. marshals reached an agreement about her round the clock protection.

SHANNON METZGER, U.S. MARSHAL: After the initial protection detail was initiated, it was deemed not viable to protect her outside the courthouse, so the protection detail was terminated at that time.

TODD: That was last year. Between September 2003 and September 2004, the marshal service says, there were 674 threats or so-called inappropriate communications against judicial officials in the U.S. That's about an average year.

The marshals say two federal judges have been assaulted in the past four years, neither of them at a courthouse. Three judges have been killed in the 215 years the marshals have been protecting U.S. attorneys and judges.

It's not clear if the murders of Judge Lefkow's husband and mother could have been prevented, even if the judge had been protected. Ross Anderson, a U.S. district judge in South Carolina, once told CNN living with threats is part of the job.

JUDGE ROSS ANDERSON, U.S. DISTRICT COURT: I knew it when I came in, and there was one simple way to get rid of all the fears. I can submit a letter of resignation.

TODD: Another federal judge who's had law enforcement protection and who requested anonymity tells CNN, quote, "It's a tremendous intrusion on one's privacy and freedom of motion. I don't know any judge who regards it as a plus or a perk."

Protection of judges or family members depends on a specific threat.

METZGER: We always have a significant presence in the courthouse. And if we deem that it's necessary for a judge to have protection outside the courthouse based on a specific threat, we of course, will do so.

TODD: The marshals would not tell us what specific measures they take during round the clock protection or how many officials are getting that protection now, but the marshals do say they conducted about a dozen round the clock protective details in 2003.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

TODD: CNN asked that one federal judge who wanted anonymity if he second-decent guessed his decision not to have a security detail after he learned about the Lefkow family murders. His response, quote, "You cannot try to rationalize the irrational."

Wolf, they live with these fears constantly.

BLITZER: All right. Brian Todd, thanks for that report.

When we come back, sports and steroids. Players are called to testify, but find out why that's one game they don't want to play.

Plus new includes in the hunt for Abu Musab al Zarqawi. Are the hunters closing in on one of the most wanted men in the world?

And later, Spain's 9/11 (sic) survivors remembering that tragedy one year later.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: Major League Baseball is blocking its subpoenas from a congressional committee which has filled out its lineup card with the names of players called to testify about steroid use. Meantime, another panel began hearings today, calling on all top sports leagues to embrace uniform drug testing standards.

Our national correspondent, Bob Franken, has been following this story. He's joining us here live -- Bob

BOB FRANKEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Wolf, baseball players refer to the major leagues as "the show," but right now they're doing their best to avoid a really big show.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

FRANKEN (voice-over): At spring training, no comment from Sammy Sosa, Rafael Palmeiro and other top players, now forced to play hardball with Congress. Charges of steroid use have changed the field of dreams into a bad dream.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Steroids are the tools of the cheater.

FRANKEN: This was just batting practice, just a warm-up for next week's scheduled hearing on baseball and steroids by another committee, the all-star game.

The problem is, many of the stars don't want to play. They've declined invitations to testify. But Washington politicians know how to play in the big leagues too, and they've issued subpoenas, and are considering granted limited legal immunity.

REP. HENRY WAXMAN (D), CALIFORNIA: The American people deserve the truth. And we have a responsibility to help them find it.

FRANKEN: So Sosa, Palmeiro, Mark McGwire, Jason Giambi, Curt Schilling, Frank Thomas and Jose Canseco, superstars past and present, will, absent any agreement, be ordered to be present next Thursday.

Foul is what baseball's lawyer is saying, because the committee could jeopardize upcoming criminal trials.

STAN BRAND, ATTORNEY FOR MLB: To parade witnesses in front of a congressional committee, some of whom will be witnesses in that trial, prior to the time that occurs could irreparably taint the process.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What, and so we should turn a blind eye? I don't think so.

FRANKEN: The use of steroids, of course, starts well before the major leagues.

DAN HOOTEN, PARENT: Twenty short months ago, my youngest son Taylor took his own life.

FRANKEN: This hearing, too, featured compelling testimony.

HOOTEN: I am absolutely convinced that Taylor's use of anabolic steroids played a significant role in causing the depression severe enough to result in suicide.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

FRANKEN: Members of Congress insist that the dangers are significant enough that they need to put a harsh spotlight on the problem to educate the public, but Major League Baseball says the members, Wolf, are playing way out of their league.

BLITZER: All right. We'll be watching next week. Bob, thanks very much. Bob Franken reporting.

To our viewers, here's your chance to weigh in on this story. Our web question of the day is this: "Should Congress force baseball players to testify on steroid abuse?" You can vote right now. Go to CNN.com/Wolf. We'll have the results later in the broadcast.

Disaster on top of grief. A suicide bomber attacks a funeral procession, killing dozens.

Inside the world of Abu Musab al Zarqawi. Many of his high-ranks associates have now been captured. Could the terrorist mastermind be next?

Securing the nation's airlines: pilots give failing grades when certain safety measures are put to the test.

And look at this, man eater, a giant -- yes, a giant crocodile, believed to have killed 80 people, is captured alive.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ANNOUNCER: From our studios in Washington, once again, Wolf Blitzer.

Welcome back.

Closing in on a most-wanted terrorist, why Iraqi officials now say they're close to capturing Abu Musab al-Zarqawi. We'll get to that.

First, though, a quick check of some other stories now in the news.

A Florida judge has ruled that the State Department of Children and Families cannot intervene in the Terri Schiavo case. The agency asked to delay the removal of the brain-damaged woman's feeding tube to investigate allegations of abuse and neglect by her husband. The judge said those allegations have already been disproved.

Lebanon's president has reappointed Omar Karami as the country's prime minister. The pro-Syria Karami stepped down 10 days ago amid protests and international pressure against Syria's continued influence in Lebanon. Karami is calling for a national unity government.

A New York jury has found a Muslim cleric from Yemen guilty of conspiring to aid terrorist groups. Sheik Mohammed Ali Hassan al- Moayad and an aide were videotaped by an FBI informant promising to funnel more than $2 million to al Qaeda and Hamas.

CNN has learned that President Bush will name the current U.S. ambassador to Afghanistan to become the U.S. ambassador to Iraq. Ambassador Zalmay Khalilzad will replace John Negroponte, who was recently nominated to be the first -- the nation's first director of national intelligence.

A funeral became the scene of a massacre today, the latest attack aimed at Iraq's emerging democracy, but the political process managed to take another step forward.

CNN's Aneesh Raman reports from Baghdad. (BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ANEESH RAMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Carnage on the streets of Mosul, a suicide bomber detonating amidst a funeral procession for a Shiite imam outside his mosque, dozens killed, many more wounded. The attack ends a day that began with string of assassinations targeting high-profile Iraqi police officers.

The chief of Central Baghdad's al-Salhiya station and deputy chief of another station gunned down on their way to work. A third police official wounded in a similar incident. All of this part of a sustained effort by insurgents to derail the political process, an attempt mitigated by the announcement of a deal between the two main parties in the Iraqi National Assembly, the Kurdish Alliance and the Shia United Iraqi Alliance.

Few specifics, but general consensus reached that Ibrahim al- Jaafari will be nominated as prime minister and Jalal Talabani as president, the role of Sunnis yet to emerge.

HOSHYAR ZEBARI, IRAQI FOREIGN MINISTER: They will participate in the new government by presenting some ministers or getting some seats. And their involvement is very important, very crucial.

RAMAN: Another key group whose role is not yet know, interim Prime Minister Iyad Allawi's secular Iraqi List.

(on camera): Sidelined in the agreement is the volatile issue of Kirkuk, an oil-rich city the Kurds would very much like under their control, a sign that pushing this government forward amidst growing frustration over the slow speed of negotiations seems to be the most pressing issue for all involved.

Aneesh Raman, CNN, Baghdad.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: He's the most wanted man in Iraq and perhaps the second most wanted man in the world. Iraqi authorities say they have recently come very close to capturing the terror leader Abu Musab al- Zarqawi. And they've named 10 men seized in the past two weeks as key members of his network. One clue that authorities may be closing in, the discovery of some al-Zarqawi photographs.

Our senior international correspondent, Nic Robertson, reports from Baghdad.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN SR. INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): These latest pictures of Abu Musab al-Zarqawi are remarkable, not just because they are new, but because, until now, he has assiduously avoided being photographed.

ZEBARI: Their organization is so secretive, so iron organization, really does not allow any penetration. ROBERTSON: Less than a year ago, the Jordanian-born jihadist wore a mask when he made this tape shortly before beheading U.S. national Nick Berg. Are the pictures evidence he is closer to capture? What other clues are now in the hands of coalition forces?

ZEBARI: The address of a number of his associates or lieutenants has helped actually to track his movements.

ROBERTSON: U.S. and Iraqi troops recently caught his driver and scheduler. But days later, this, the deadliest single bombing of the insurgency, killing 127 Iraqis. Within hours, Zarqawi used the Internet to claim responsibility.

PAUL EEDLE, TERRORISM ANALYST: What we're seeing with Abu Musab al-Zarqawi's group in Iraq is that it has established a very firm media operation, regular communiques, often two or three times a day.

ROBERTSON: And, in the past few weeks, Zarqawi's al Qaeda in Iraq group has even launched a Web site to recruit jihadists.

DR. MARC SAGEMAN, FORMER CIA OPERATIVE: Many of the discussion going on, on the Web site, the chat room, motivates young people more and more, heat them up, so that they are ready to join the jihad.

ROBERTSON: What is really causing concern now is the content of new intelligence intercepts of communications between Zarqawi and Osama bin Laden. Bin Laden is asking Zarqawi for help in his global jihad against the United States.

SAGEMAN: If he tries to redirect those young people who want to come to Iraq to come to the United States and do operation on the enemy's territory, that is on continental United States, that is really creating a lot of concern.

ROBERTSON: Concerns that are heightened by his pre-Iraq war ties to Islamist terror cells in Britain, France and Germany, cells that were broken up before they could launch planned attacks.

(on camera): If and when Zarqawi is captured, the question may well be not what impact it has on the insurgency inside Iraq, but how many young men his months of killing and proselytizing here have been attracted to the global jihad.

Nic Robertson, CNN, Baghdad.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: Let's take a quick look at some other news making headlines around the world.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER (voice-over): It was a scene of massive grief in the central Philippines, as a dozen young children were buried. They were among more than 20 schoolchildren who died after eating an improperly prepared cassava root snack. More than 100 other children went to the hospital.

Striking out. French travelers faced delays and overcrowding, as many transportation workers went on strike. The strike coincided with a visit by Olympic officials, and some observers say it could hurt France's bid to host the 2012 Games.

People eater. A 16-foot crocodile said to have eaten more than 80 people has been captured in Uganda on the shores of Lake Victoria. Weighing about one ton, the reptile was quickly taken to a wildlife sanctuary to protect it from angry villagers.

Somber anniversary. Tokyo marked the 60th anniversary of a 1945 U.S. air raid that left as many as 100,00 Japanese civilians dead. U.S. military officials said at the time that the massive attack was necessary to break Japanese morale and help bring World War II to an end.

And that's our look around the world.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: How secure are the nation's airlines? Pilots give failing grades to some security measures. Find out which areas are not passing the test.

Also, haunting memories. One year after Spain's deadliest terror attack, survivors struggling to move on with their lives.

And later, former President Bill Clinton is out of surgery and recovering. His wife, Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton, has just issued a statement. We'll share it with you right after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: We're just getting some tape, videotape. Michael Jackson, you see him here leaving the courthouse just a few moments ago at Santa Maria, California.

As you know by now, you must know by now, he showed up in his pajamas earlier in the day, pajama bottoms coming from the hospital complaining about a bad back. The judge insisted he show up within an hour. He was a little late, but the judge let him go on with the trial today. His accuser, a young boy, accusing him of touching him inappropriately.

The Jackson family attorney, Brian Oxman, spoke out just a few minutes ago.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BRIAN OXMAN, JACKSON FAMILY ATTORNEY: Mr. Jackson asked me to make a statement here. He tripped this morning and he fell in the early morning hours while he was getting dressed. His back is in terrible pain. He was in terrible discomfort during the entire trial proceedings. He's going to go home, recuperate, rest and relax. And he'll be back on month. And he is looking forward to being here. UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And he went to emergency.

OXMAN: And he went to the emergency room this morning and he was given medications. So, he'll be back on Monday. And we all thank you so very much. You take care.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLITZER: In our CNN "Security Watch," an airline pilots group is handing out grades for aviation security. And there are no honor roll candidates.

Joining us now, our homeland security correspondent Jeanne Meserve.

What's going on, Jeanne?

JEANNE MESERVE, CNN HOMELAND SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: Well, Wolf, these pilots say there are gaping holes in aviation security, but the Transportation Security Administration disputes their conclusions.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MESERVE (voice-over): D, barely passing, the average grade on an air security report card from a pilots group.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And the American public should be very concerned.

MESERVE: But the Transportation Security Administration says it is flawed.

MARK HATFIELD, TSA SPOKESMAN: Their report card shows no methodology, no criteria. It's really an infantile little letter grade publicity stunt that barely deserves a response.

MESERVE: On the report card from the Coalition of Airline Pilots Associations, which represents about a quarter of the nation's pilots, airport employee screening gets an F, because some workers with access to planes don't go through security, like passengers do.

Pilot Jon Safley is appalled.

JON SAFLEY, PRESIDENT, CAPA: It makes no sentence whatsoever. We've just opened the door for terrorists to come in and place bombs or weapons on the airplanes again.

MESERVE: TSA says it has beefed pup background checks of airport workers, but is still investigating how to physically screen ramp workers who routinely handle potential weapons like screwdrivers and hammers.

Cargo screening, another F on the report card. TSA screens only a fraction of the nation's air cargo and relies on a program that certifies shippers as safe.

Safley isn't satisfied.

SAFLEY: We don't care who the shipper is. We want to know what's in the box.

MESERVE: Another F on the report card, missile defense. This tape purporting to show insurgents firing a shoulder-fired missile at a cargo plane in Iraq illustrates the gravity of the threat. The Department of Homeland Security is working to tighten airport perimeter security and curtail the availability of missiles, while testing new anti-missile systems for affordability and effectiveness.

HATFIELD: It's not just a one-shot deal where you can come up with a magic cure or some $10 billion technology that, after you install it on airplanes, may or may not work.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MESERVE: The pilots group says, in the two years it has done the report card, the government has not improved its grades. And it fears, unless it continues to highlight what it believes are significant gaps in aviation security, they will not be addressed -- Wolf.

BLITZER: All right, Jeanne Meserve, thanks very much -- Jeanne Meserve reporting.

And, to our viewers, please stay tuned to CNN day and night for the most reliable news about your security.

Tomorrow marks a grim anniversary in Spain, one year since the commuter train bombing that killed 191 people. For some survivors, time has not healed the wounds they suffered, both physical and emotional.

CNN's Matthew Chance reports from the Spanish capital.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Even now, images of Spain's tragedy are hard to bear, 10 bombs, four trains, hundreds of dead and injured. And memories still haunt the survivors.

A year on, broken families still meet in Madrid's main square to share their torment and tears, mothers like Rita (ph), who moved to Spain from Ecuador to give her son, Jose Luis (ph), just 17, a better life.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): Our hope was that he would become a professional. We thought he would have a better chance here, a better future. But we were wrong. We brought him to his death.

CHANCE: Rita invited us to her home, now a shrine to her dead son. Rooms are filled with favorite toys, pictures and his ashes. She can't bring herself to scatter them yet, she told me.

Jose's bedroom is untouched as well. In the wardrobe, his blood- stained shoes recovered from the bomb site and kept to remember.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): I don't feel angry at the bombers. My son and I had believed that violence and poverty ferment hatred, but I'm angry at those who could have prevented it.

CHANCE (on camera): Just three days after these trains were bombed last year, the Spanish government, at the time closely allied to Washington over its war in Iraq, was voted out of office. The new Spanish administration moved quickly to withdrawal Spanish troops, a stance that may have irked Washington, but for many of these commuters, was the right thing to do.

(voice-over): Even some mutilated by the bombings, like Sahira (ph), now 22, blame Spanish involvement with the Iraq war and Afghanistan for making them a target. She lost her sight in one eye, but she's convinced tighter security is not the answer.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): We have to stop trying to solve problems with war and bombs. We will not be safe until then. There are police everywhere in Madrid now. But that has the opposite effect. They are only here because it could happen again.

CHANCE: And the real fear of more bombs, another outrage like a year ago, is once shared in this city and far beyond.

Matthew Chance, CNN, Madrid.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: Senator Hillary Clinton has just issued a statement on her husband's condition after he underwent surgery earlier today. We'll have that story. That's coming up.

Plus, there's a development involving the House majority leader, Tom DeLay, and his health. We'll tell you what's going on. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: Former President Bill Clinton is resting comfortably after four hours of surgery. Doctors removed scar tissue and fluid that built up around his left lung following last September's heart bypass operation. Senator Hillary Clinton has just issued a statement saying she is happy to report that her husband is -- quote -- "doing very well." She's says he's in good spirits and looking forward to getting up and walking around, saying that could happen as early as tomorrow.

Mrs. Clinton says this was not a life-threatening situation, but she adds -- and I'm quoting now -- "that didn't stop Chelsea and me from worrying together and praying together." She says they're looking forward to having him come home in the coming days.

Our senior medical correspondent, Dr. Sanjay Gupta, is outside New York Presbyterian Hospital in Manhattan.

Did everything go as planned, Sanjay, based on what we know?

DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, pretty much, Wolf.

The operation started at about 7:00 this morning. They said it was going to think about three hours. It took four. It went to about 11:00 in the morning. A couple things to keep in mind here. They actually tried to do this operation using what they called a scope, a thoracoscope, a sort of minimally invasive way of doing the operation.

This were not able to do it that way. That was probably the only hiccup in this entire day. They actually had to go to a little bit more of an open procedure. You can see there, the whole goal of this was to open the chest now, spread the ribs and remove some of the scar from around his lung.

Wolf, probably the best way to describe, this is sort of an orange peel, a very sticky orange peel, though. And they actually have to people it off the lower part of the lung, which they did successfully, drain the fluid. And it sounds like everything went pretty well.

BLITZER: So, basically, he should be able to walk around within a day or so. How long do you think he'll have to stay in the hospital?

GUPTA: Well, you remember, Wolf, last time he was in the hospital, back on Labor Day, he had his operation for the bypass. And, sometimes, people stay in the hospital for that for up to a week. He was out in four days, so he had a speedy recovery last time.

I think it bodes well for this time as well. My guess was this weekend, maybe at an earliest, probably early next week, we'll hear that he is ready to go home.

BLITZER: And I know I speak for Sanjay and all of us at CNN, all of our viewers as well. We hope for a very speedy recovery for the president.

GUPTA: Absolutely.

BLITZER: In other medical news, Texas Republican Congressman Tom DeLay, the House majority leader, was in and out of the hospital today himself.

Let's get details now from our congressional correspondent Ed Henry.

What's going on, on that front, Ed?

ED HENRY, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Wolf, Tom DeLay today went to the National Naval Medical Center in Maryland after experiencing minor fatigue.

He was treated for a common heart condition and released from the hospital after a series of tests. It's important to stress that, for years, Mr. DeLay has a preexisting common arrhythmia. And DeLay's office is saying the majority leader is resting at his home right now in Virginia and will keep his schedule and travel to Florida on Friday, in Georgia on Saturday for some political events.

It's no secret, though, that, in recent days, Mr. DeLay has been facing heavy scrutiny from media outlets probing his political activities. But I just got off the telephone with an aide to the majority leader, who told me Mr. Delay's doctor said this was not -- and I stress not -- stress-related. It was in fact caused by this preexisting condition. They say it had nothing to do with stress, Wolf.

BLITZER: All right. And let's wish Tom DeLay a speedy recovery as well.

Ed Henry, thanks very much for that report.

We'll have the results of our Web question of the day. That's coming next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: We're going to leave you with these pictures.

Take a look at this, a cute little dog running on a major expressway. It's the Major Deegan Expressway in the Bronx in New York City. Look at this. It's going to have a happy ending. Don't want you to get nervous. But what happened, it caused a huge traffic delay throughout New York City, basically, because of what was happening in the Bronx. Eventually, the police came. You'll see a couple police cars, three or four police cars showing up.

They managed to get this cute little dog, save the dog, end the traffic delays, New York City getting back to normal. Look at this, a great day for the dog.

"LOU DOBBS TONIGHT" starts right now.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com


Aired March 10, 2005 - 17:00   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
WOLF BLITZER, HOST: Happening now: out of surgery and into recovery. What's the prognosis for former president, Bill Clinton? His doctors have now spoken. We'll go live outside the hospital and get details from our senior medical correspondent, Dr. Sanjay Gupta.
Stand by for hard news on WOLF BLITZER REPORTS.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER (voice-over): Failure to appear. An angry judge sends an ailing Michael Jackson racing to court in his pajamas to face his accuser.

Double murder mystery. Can a suicide in Wisconsin solve the slayings at a judge's home in Chicago?

Mosul massacre. Dozens of dead in Iraq as a suicide bomber attacks a funeral procession.

Failing grades. An airline pilots' group says gaping holes remain in aviation security. Are things as bad as they claim?

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ANNOUNCER: This is WOLF BLITZER REPORTS for Thursday, March 10, 2005.

BLITZER: Thanks for joining us.

We begin with some dramatic developments happening right now in the Michael Jackson trial. Jackson came within minutes of finding himself jailed and forfeiting his $3 million bail when he failed to show up this morning at his child molestation trial.

Defense attorney Thomas Mesereau told the judge Jackson had gone to the hospital for a severe back problem. The judge was not amused. He issued an arrest warrant and threatened to revoke his bail unless the pop star showed up within an hour. Jackson missed that deadline but showed up minutes later, appearing disheveled, wearing pajama bottoms and walking gingerly.

The judge did not take any action against him, and the trial has resumed. It resumed 90 minutes late, with some very compelling testimony from Jackson's accuser. We have complete coverage for you with -- starting with CNN's Miguel Marquez in Santa Maria. CNN's Mary Snow is standing by in New York. And criminal defense attorney Robert Shapiro is in Los Angeles.

But let's begin with Miguel Marquez. He's live outside the courthouse. Tell us what just happened inside, Miguel.

MIGUEL MARQUEZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, well, just a short time ago, a couple of things that we've heard about, Wolf.

One, Mr. Jackson is in luck today, because the judge in a minute (ph) order just revoked the warrant that he had issued earlier and restored Mr. Jackson's bail. That means he's only getting off with a warning this time. And the jurors were admonished not to attach any importance to the fact that he was ordered to court today.

Also, the accuser on the stand, this 15-year-old boy on the stand, just moments ago started the testimony into some of the more lurid details of this, saying in court, to prosecutor Tom Sneddon, "He touched me twice. I think it may be more than twice," but he knows, this boy says, that Michael Jackson touched him twice.

Jackson is accused of four counts of molestation, two that this boy felt and experienced himself, he says, and two others that his brother says he witnessed on -- on his brother.

Also in court today, this boy said that Mr. Jackson gave him alcohol in many places: at Neverland Ranch many times, at a hotel room in Miami, on the plane on the way back from Miami to Santa Barbara.

He also said that, during the filming of the Martin Bashir documentary, that Mr. Jackson forbade his family from watching that documentary in a Miami hotel room. When that thing aired in the U.S., prosecutors contend Mr. Jackson conspired with others to keep that family from watching that video, that documentary, and they say that that's what kicked off this entire conspiracy.

One thing that's interesting about this is that, because Jackson was so late to court, this now allows the prosecution to keep that witness up on the stand the entire day. The court is not in session tomorrow, not at least for the jurors are not hearing testimony tomorrow. So jurors will have three full days to sit back and thing about everything this boy is saying.

Back to you, Wolf.

BLITZER: Did the judge admonished Jackson for this conduct earlier in the day? What specifically did he say to him?

MARQUEZ: Not in open court. It was behind closed doors in judge's chambers with attorneys from both the district attorney's office and Mr. Jackson's lawyers back there for some time.

The only thing the judge did in open court in front of jurors was to tell the jurors, "Don't attach any importance to this. It doesn't mean whether he's guilty or innocent. I'd do it if you were late -- late to court" -- Wolf.

BLITZER: Miguel Marquez, reporting for us from Santa Maria, right outside the courthouse, thank you, Miguel, very much.

The focus may have been on Jackson, but it was his lawyer, Thomas Mesereau, who was really in the hot seat today. CNN's Mary Snow has that part of the story. She's joining us live from New York -- Mary.

MARY SNOW, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Wolf, with Jackson's accuser taking the stand, some say this was one of the biggest days in Jackson's attorney's career. Instead he faced a new dilemma: trying to keep his client out of jail and trying to hold on to $3 million bail.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SNOW (voice-over): With the threat of his client being arrested, Michael Jackson's attorney, Thomas Mesereau, paced outside the courthouse, his cell phone pressed to his ear. It was his job to explain to the judge why Jackson was not on time for court, explaining that he was suffering from back pain.

BRENDA BERNSTEIN, FORMER PROSECUTOR: It's insane. I mean, if it were you and I, we'd be in a lot of trouble. We would not be out of jail tonight.

SNOW: The question is, can Jackson's behavior also get his attorney in trouble?

JEFFREY TOOBIN, CNN LEGAL ANALYST: The question the judge has to answer is, did Mesereau know and approve of any misconduct that Jackson may have engaged in?

If Mesereau was as surprised as everyone else that Jackson didn't show up, then he can't be penalized by the judge.

SNOW: CNN's legal analyst, Jeffrey Toobin, points out that Mesereau has an excellent reputation as an ethical lawyer. If there is a case where an attorney does cover for a client, there are consequences.

TOOBIN: Sanctions can include reporting to the bar association, even contempt of court, but that is simply not very likely here.

SNOW: Experts expect Jackson and not his attorney to face the consequences here, and what if Jackson continues to be late, can his attorney walk? Experts say it is very difficult to drop a client during a trial, that it would have to be approved by the court.

And the court did step in once before in a case involving Mesereau. He was representing actor Robert Blake when a judge agreed to allow Mesereau to be relieved of his duties, citing irreconcilable differences.

(END VIDEOTAPE) SNOW: And while legal experts point out that it's very difficult for an attorney to drop a client during a trial, they also point out that it's also very difficult for a client to drop an attorney during a trial -- Wolf.

BLITZER: Mary Snow in New York. Mary, thank you very much.

Robert Shapiro knows what it's like to defend high-profile clients, among them Jose Canseco, Darryl Strawberry, perhaps most famously O.J. Simpson. Robert Shapiro is joining us now live from our Los Angeles bureau.

Bob, thanks very much for joining us. All right. Have you ever seen anything as bizarre as the spectacle we saw earlier on live television?

ROBERT SHAPIRO, CRIMINAL DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Just when you think you've seen the most bizarre, Wolf, you're going to be surprised again.

Actually, I have, and I have seen it with Michael Jackson. About a year and a half ago, our law firm had a lawsuit against Michael Jackson, and the same type of activity took place. He came in one day on crutches. He'd come in consistently late to court. The disruptiveness of the court process, I believe, certainly was an irritant to the jury and resulted in a large, large, large victory for our client.

BLITZER: Well, let's talk a little bit about what happened today. The judge in this particular case, threatened a warrant, threatened to put him in jail, revoked the bail. Clearly he has not done that, but he's probably getting very close to doing it if it happens again?

SHAPIRO: This is a very, very strict judge, who has had and maintained total control in the courtroom, and I think that what you said is absolutely right. I don't think there would be any action taken against Mr. Jackson today, but if it does happen again, if he is not coming in in an ambulance, he's going to be in the jail.

BLITZER: Well, how does his lawyer, Thomas Mesereau, a man I assume you know, how does he deal with a client like this? Because he was there. You saw him pacing outside the courthouse, waiting on his cell phone. I'm not sure he knew what was going on.

SHAPIRO: I faced the exact same thing 10 years ago when I had agreed to surrender Mr. Simpson, and that didn't take place.

I do know Tom Mesereau. He's an outstanding lawyer, highly ethical. There is no question that he obviously had nothing to do with this tardiness and was as surprised by the judge was by it.

The only thing he can do is to try -- try to minimize it, and that's going to be difficult, because the jury certainly, in my opinion, and my experience, will draw negative inferences from this.

BLITZER: What would the jury know? Was the jury briefed on what happened in the course of the delay today?

SHAPIRO: I don't know. It appears from what I have heard just a few moments ago that the jury was in the courtroom when the warrant was issued, because the judge said, "I would do the same to any of you if you were late to court."

So I think the jury was aware that he was late to court and have been admonished by the judge not to consider it, and those admonitions historically are nothing more than legal fictions. The more you ask a jury to disregard something, the more inclined they are to consider it.

BLITZER: You heard Mary Snow say, and she's been speaking to a lot of legal experts today, it's very hard for a client to drop an attorney and an attorney to drop a client in the middle of a high- profile case like this.

But at some point, Thomas Mesereau, if this kind of behavior continues, has to worry about his own reputation, his own legal standing.

SHAPIRO: You know, when -- when you get into the high-profile cases like this everything that you do is under a microscope. Thomas Mesereau will not resign from the case. Michael Jackson will not change lawyers.

Tom Mesereau is an outstanding, outstanding advocate, a terrific lawyer, and these are things that happen in these high-profile situations. People that are used to being in total control of everything are suddenly in an atmosphere where somebody else is telling them when and where they have to be and how they have to act.

BLITZER: One final question. On the substance of the accuser's testimony today, you heard Miguel Marquez say the accuser, the young boy, says Michael Jackson inappropriately had him touch him or touch each other inappropriately on two occasions. If you're the defense attorney now, what do you do?

SHAPIRO: I think what Mr. Mesereau is going to do is try to not say that this boy has just fabricated this, but that it was a whole effort by the entire family that was coordinated by the mother, because there really -- other than his brother, there is no independent corroboration and no independent evidence of any type of inappropriate touching or molestation.

However, I think the real problem that Mr. Mesereau is going to face is the issue of giving alcohol to children, and that there is corroboration for. And if the jury in my opinion finds that he, indeed, did give alcohol to minors, the likelihood is they will accept the boy's testimony, and Michael Jackson will be in a lot of trouble.

BLITZER: There's a lot of -- there's also the added issue of pornography, if that was shown to a young boy, as well. I assume that could be a severely complicating matter for Michael Jackson.

SHAPIRO: Yes, but I don't know that there's going to be corroboration for that. I think, from what I understand, that there may be people that have been on airplanes with him that will be testifying that alcohol was put into soda cans and passed around as some type of special juice.

BLITZER: Robert Shapiro, thanks for joining us.

SHAPIRO: My pleasure, Wolf. Always a pleasure to be with you.

BLITZER: Thank you.

When we come back, suicide confession and a possible link to the killings of a federal judge's family members. Police investigate a connection that could solve the case.

Not making the grade. Aviation security measures put to the test. Find out which specific areas failed.

And from golf to surgery, to recovery, a busy 24 hours for former president, Bill Clinton. We'll get as update on his health from our Dr. Sanjay Gupta. He's at the hospital. He's standing by. He'll join us live.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: Welcome back.

There may be a breakthrough in a widely publicized murder investigation. Police say a man who committed suicide near Milwaukee last night may have been responsible for a double homicide in Chicago.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER (voice-over): It started as a routine traffic stop in a Milwaukee suburb, but as the officer walked up to investigate, a gunshot was fired from inside the vehicle.

CHIEF DEAN PUSCHNIG, WEST ALLIS POLICE: A single gunshot was fired from inside the vehicle. The bullet exited the driver's window very close to where the officer was standing. The bullet did not strike anybody outside the vehicle.

BLITZER: Police say the driver of the SUV, identified at Bart Ross of Chicago, had committed suicide. Chicago police were called in to assist with the investigation.

SUPT. PHILIP CLINE, CHICAGO POLICE: In processing the crime scene we came upon a note, written presumably by the victim, where he implicated himself in the murders of Michael Lefkow and Donna Humphrey. In the note, the offender outlined in some details the events of Monday, February 28.

BLITZER: On that date, the husband and mother of federal Judge Joan Humphrey Lefkow were found dead at Judge Lefkow's Chicago home. Police have cordoned off Ross' home on Chicago's north side, and they say the investigation is continuing. CLINE: The note alone is not definitive evidence that we have our offender. While we do characterize last night's developments as significant, we are not prepared at this time to definitely say that any one person is responsible for these homicides. This case is by no means closed.

BLITZER: Earlier speculation about the murders had centered on followers of Matthew Hale, a white supremacist who lost a copyright case in Lefkow's court. Hale has denied involvement. Police say there's no evidence linking Ross and Hale.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: Court cases, of course, produce winners and losers, and they often results in threats from those who think, rightly or wrongly, that they've been treated unfairly. Our Brian Todd is joining us now live. He's been looking into this part of the story -- Brian.

BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Wolf, the Lefkow case has drawn a lot of attention to the dangers faced by federal judges and attorneys, dangers that Lefkow herself had faced before.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

TODD (voice-over): Judge Joan Lefkow might have thought her most serious threat had been removed. The trial of white supremacist leader Matt Hale was over. Hale, convicted of trying to have Lefkow killed, had always denied involvement in any plot, but after he was jailed, Judge Lefkow and U.S. marshals reached an agreement about her round the clock protection.

SHANNON METZGER, U.S. MARSHAL: After the initial protection detail was initiated, it was deemed not viable to protect her outside the courthouse, so the protection detail was terminated at that time.

TODD: That was last year. Between September 2003 and September 2004, the marshal service says, there were 674 threats or so-called inappropriate communications against judicial officials in the U.S. That's about an average year.

The marshals say two federal judges have been assaulted in the past four years, neither of them at a courthouse. Three judges have been killed in the 215 years the marshals have been protecting U.S. attorneys and judges.

It's not clear if the murders of Judge Lefkow's husband and mother could have been prevented, even if the judge had been protected. Ross Anderson, a U.S. district judge in South Carolina, once told CNN living with threats is part of the job.

JUDGE ROSS ANDERSON, U.S. DISTRICT COURT: I knew it when I came in, and there was one simple way to get rid of all the fears. I can submit a letter of resignation.

TODD: Another federal judge who's had law enforcement protection and who requested anonymity tells CNN, quote, "It's a tremendous intrusion on one's privacy and freedom of motion. I don't know any judge who regards it as a plus or a perk."

Protection of judges or family members depends on a specific threat.

METZGER: We always have a significant presence in the courthouse. And if we deem that it's necessary for a judge to have protection outside the courthouse based on a specific threat, we of course, will do so.

TODD: The marshals would not tell us what specific measures they take during round the clock protection or how many officials are getting that protection now, but the marshals do say they conducted about a dozen round the clock protective details in 2003.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

TODD: CNN asked that one federal judge who wanted anonymity if he second-decent guessed his decision not to have a security detail after he learned about the Lefkow family murders. His response, quote, "You cannot try to rationalize the irrational."

Wolf, they live with these fears constantly.

BLITZER: All right. Brian Todd, thanks for that report.

When we come back, sports and steroids. Players are called to testify, but find out why that's one game they don't want to play.

Plus new includes in the hunt for Abu Musab al Zarqawi. Are the hunters closing in on one of the most wanted men in the world?

And later, Spain's 9/11 (sic) survivors remembering that tragedy one year later.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: Major League Baseball is blocking its subpoenas from a congressional committee which has filled out its lineup card with the names of players called to testify about steroid use. Meantime, another panel began hearings today, calling on all top sports leagues to embrace uniform drug testing standards.

Our national correspondent, Bob Franken, has been following this story. He's joining us here live -- Bob

BOB FRANKEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Wolf, baseball players refer to the major leagues as "the show," but right now they're doing their best to avoid a really big show.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

FRANKEN (voice-over): At spring training, no comment from Sammy Sosa, Rafael Palmeiro and other top players, now forced to play hardball with Congress. Charges of steroid use have changed the field of dreams into a bad dream.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Steroids are the tools of the cheater.

FRANKEN: This was just batting practice, just a warm-up for next week's scheduled hearing on baseball and steroids by another committee, the all-star game.

The problem is, many of the stars don't want to play. They've declined invitations to testify. But Washington politicians know how to play in the big leagues too, and they've issued subpoenas, and are considering granted limited legal immunity.

REP. HENRY WAXMAN (D), CALIFORNIA: The American people deserve the truth. And we have a responsibility to help them find it.

FRANKEN: So Sosa, Palmeiro, Mark McGwire, Jason Giambi, Curt Schilling, Frank Thomas and Jose Canseco, superstars past and present, will, absent any agreement, be ordered to be present next Thursday.

Foul is what baseball's lawyer is saying, because the committee could jeopardize upcoming criminal trials.

STAN BRAND, ATTORNEY FOR MLB: To parade witnesses in front of a congressional committee, some of whom will be witnesses in that trial, prior to the time that occurs could irreparably taint the process.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What, and so we should turn a blind eye? I don't think so.

FRANKEN: The use of steroids, of course, starts well before the major leagues.

DAN HOOTEN, PARENT: Twenty short months ago, my youngest son Taylor took his own life.

FRANKEN: This hearing, too, featured compelling testimony.

HOOTEN: I am absolutely convinced that Taylor's use of anabolic steroids played a significant role in causing the depression severe enough to result in suicide.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

FRANKEN: Members of Congress insist that the dangers are significant enough that they need to put a harsh spotlight on the problem to educate the public, but Major League Baseball says the members, Wolf, are playing way out of their league.

BLITZER: All right. We'll be watching next week. Bob, thanks very much. Bob Franken reporting.

To our viewers, here's your chance to weigh in on this story. Our web question of the day is this: "Should Congress force baseball players to testify on steroid abuse?" You can vote right now. Go to CNN.com/Wolf. We'll have the results later in the broadcast.

Disaster on top of grief. A suicide bomber attacks a funeral procession, killing dozens.

Inside the world of Abu Musab al Zarqawi. Many of his high-ranks associates have now been captured. Could the terrorist mastermind be next?

Securing the nation's airlines: pilots give failing grades when certain safety measures are put to the test.

And look at this, man eater, a giant -- yes, a giant crocodile, believed to have killed 80 people, is captured alive.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ANNOUNCER: From our studios in Washington, once again, Wolf Blitzer.

Welcome back.

Closing in on a most-wanted terrorist, why Iraqi officials now say they're close to capturing Abu Musab al-Zarqawi. We'll get to that.

First, though, a quick check of some other stories now in the news.

A Florida judge has ruled that the State Department of Children and Families cannot intervene in the Terri Schiavo case. The agency asked to delay the removal of the brain-damaged woman's feeding tube to investigate allegations of abuse and neglect by her husband. The judge said those allegations have already been disproved.

Lebanon's president has reappointed Omar Karami as the country's prime minister. The pro-Syria Karami stepped down 10 days ago amid protests and international pressure against Syria's continued influence in Lebanon. Karami is calling for a national unity government.

A New York jury has found a Muslim cleric from Yemen guilty of conspiring to aid terrorist groups. Sheik Mohammed Ali Hassan al- Moayad and an aide were videotaped by an FBI informant promising to funnel more than $2 million to al Qaeda and Hamas.

CNN has learned that President Bush will name the current U.S. ambassador to Afghanistan to become the U.S. ambassador to Iraq. Ambassador Zalmay Khalilzad will replace John Negroponte, who was recently nominated to be the first -- the nation's first director of national intelligence.

A funeral became the scene of a massacre today, the latest attack aimed at Iraq's emerging democracy, but the political process managed to take another step forward.

CNN's Aneesh Raman reports from Baghdad. (BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ANEESH RAMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Carnage on the streets of Mosul, a suicide bomber detonating amidst a funeral procession for a Shiite imam outside his mosque, dozens killed, many more wounded. The attack ends a day that began with string of assassinations targeting high-profile Iraqi police officers.

The chief of Central Baghdad's al-Salhiya station and deputy chief of another station gunned down on their way to work. A third police official wounded in a similar incident. All of this part of a sustained effort by insurgents to derail the political process, an attempt mitigated by the announcement of a deal between the two main parties in the Iraqi National Assembly, the Kurdish Alliance and the Shia United Iraqi Alliance.

Few specifics, but general consensus reached that Ibrahim al- Jaafari will be nominated as prime minister and Jalal Talabani as president, the role of Sunnis yet to emerge.

HOSHYAR ZEBARI, IRAQI FOREIGN MINISTER: They will participate in the new government by presenting some ministers or getting some seats. And their involvement is very important, very crucial.

RAMAN: Another key group whose role is not yet know, interim Prime Minister Iyad Allawi's secular Iraqi List.

(on camera): Sidelined in the agreement is the volatile issue of Kirkuk, an oil-rich city the Kurds would very much like under their control, a sign that pushing this government forward amidst growing frustration over the slow speed of negotiations seems to be the most pressing issue for all involved.

Aneesh Raman, CNN, Baghdad.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: He's the most wanted man in Iraq and perhaps the second most wanted man in the world. Iraqi authorities say they have recently come very close to capturing the terror leader Abu Musab al- Zarqawi. And they've named 10 men seized in the past two weeks as key members of his network. One clue that authorities may be closing in, the discovery of some al-Zarqawi photographs.

Our senior international correspondent, Nic Robertson, reports from Baghdad.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN SR. INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): These latest pictures of Abu Musab al-Zarqawi are remarkable, not just because they are new, but because, until now, he has assiduously avoided being photographed.

ZEBARI: Their organization is so secretive, so iron organization, really does not allow any penetration. ROBERTSON: Less than a year ago, the Jordanian-born jihadist wore a mask when he made this tape shortly before beheading U.S. national Nick Berg. Are the pictures evidence he is closer to capture? What other clues are now in the hands of coalition forces?

ZEBARI: The address of a number of his associates or lieutenants has helped actually to track his movements.

ROBERTSON: U.S. and Iraqi troops recently caught his driver and scheduler. But days later, this, the deadliest single bombing of the insurgency, killing 127 Iraqis. Within hours, Zarqawi used the Internet to claim responsibility.

PAUL EEDLE, TERRORISM ANALYST: What we're seeing with Abu Musab al-Zarqawi's group in Iraq is that it has established a very firm media operation, regular communiques, often two or three times a day.

ROBERTSON: And, in the past few weeks, Zarqawi's al Qaeda in Iraq group has even launched a Web site to recruit jihadists.

DR. MARC SAGEMAN, FORMER CIA OPERATIVE: Many of the discussion going on, on the Web site, the chat room, motivates young people more and more, heat them up, so that they are ready to join the jihad.

ROBERTSON: What is really causing concern now is the content of new intelligence intercepts of communications between Zarqawi and Osama bin Laden. Bin Laden is asking Zarqawi for help in his global jihad against the United States.

SAGEMAN: If he tries to redirect those young people who want to come to Iraq to come to the United States and do operation on the enemy's territory, that is on continental United States, that is really creating a lot of concern.

ROBERTSON: Concerns that are heightened by his pre-Iraq war ties to Islamist terror cells in Britain, France and Germany, cells that were broken up before they could launch planned attacks.

(on camera): If and when Zarqawi is captured, the question may well be not what impact it has on the insurgency inside Iraq, but how many young men his months of killing and proselytizing here have been attracted to the global jihad.

Nic Robertson, CNN, Baghdad.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: Let's take a quick look at some other news making headlines around the world.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER (voice-over): It was a scene of massive grief in the central Philippines, as a dozen young children were buried. They were among more than 20 schoolchildren who died after eating an improperly prepared cassava root snack. More than 100 other children went to the hospital.

Striking out. French travelers faced delays and overcrowding, as many transportation workers went on strike. The strike coincided with a visit by Olympic officials, and some observers say it could hurt France's bid to host the 2012 Games.

People eater. A 16-foot crocodile said to have eaten more than 80 people has been captured in Uganda on the shores of Lake Victoria. Weighing about one ton, the reptile was quickly taken to a wildlife sanctuary to protect it from angry villagers.

Somber anniversary. Tokyo marked the 60th anniversary of a 1945 U.S. air raid that left as many as 100,00 Japanese civilians dead. U.S. military officials said at the time that the massive attack was necessary to break Japanese morale and help bring World War II to an end.

And that's our look around the world.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: How secure are the nation's airlines? Pilots give failing grades to some security measures. Find out which areas are not passing the test.

Also, haunting memories. One year after Spain's deadliest terror attack, survivors struggling to move on with their lives.

And later, former President Bill Clinton is out of surgery and recovering. His wife, Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton, has just issued a statement. We'll share it with you right after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: We're just getting some tape, videotape. Michael Jackson, you see him here leaving the courthouse just a few moments ago at Santa Maria, California.

As you know by now, you must know by now, he showed up in his pajamas earlier in the day, pajama bottoms coming from the hospital complaining about a bad back. The judge insisted he show up within an hour. He was a little late, but the judge let him go on with the trial today. His accuser, a young boy, accusing him of touching him inappropriately.

The Jackson family attorney, Brian Oxman, spoke out just a few minutes ago.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BRIAN OXMAN, JACKSON FAMILY ATTORNEY: Mr. Jackson asked me to make a statement here. He tripped this morning and he fell in the early morning hours while he was getting dressed. His back is in terrible pain. He was in terrible discomfort during the entire trial proceedings. He's going to go home, recuperate, rest and relax. And he'll be back on month. And he is looking forward to being here. UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And he went to emergency.

OXMAN: And he went to the emergency room this morning and he was given medications. So, he'll be back on Monday. And we all thank you so very much. You take care.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLITZER: In our CNN "Security Watch," an airline pilots group is handing out grades for aviation security. And there are no honor roll candidates.

Joining us now, our homeland security correspondent Jeanne Meserve.

What's going on, Jeanne?

JEANNE MESERVE, CNN HOMELAND SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: Well, Wolf, these pilots say there are gaping holes in aviation security, but the Transportation Security Administration disputes their conclusions.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MESERVE (voice-over): D, barely passing, the average grade on an air security report card from a pilots group.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And the American public should be very concerned.

MESERVE: But the Transportation Security Administration says it is flawed.

MARK HATFIELD, TSA SPOKESMAN: Their report card shows no methodology, no criteria. It's really an infantile little letter grade publicity stunt that barely deserves a response.

MESERVE: On the report card from the Coalition of Airline Pilots Associations, which represents about a quarter of the nation's pilots, airport employee screening gets an F, because some workers with access to planes don't go through security, like passengers do.

Pilot Jon Safley is appalled.

JON SAFLEY, PRESIDENT, CAPA: It makes no sentence whatsoever. We've just opened the door for terrorists to come in and place bombs or weapons on the airplanes again.

MESERVE: TSA says it has beefed pup background checks of airport workers, but is still investigating how to physically screen ramp workers who routinely handle potential weapons like screwdrivers and hammers.

Cargo screening, another F on the report card. TSA screens only a fraction of the nation's air cargo and relies on a program that certifies shippers as safe.

Safley isn't satisfied.

SAFLEY: We don't care who the shipper is. We want to know what's in the box.

MESERVE: Another F on the report card, missile defense. This tape purporting to show insurgents firing a shoulder-fired missile at a cargo plane in Iraq illustrates the gravity of the threat. The Department of Homeland Security is working to tighten airport perimeter security and curtail the availability of missiles, while testing new anti-missile systems for affordability and effectiveness.

HATFIELD: It's not just a one-shot deal where you can come up with a magic cure or some $10 billion technology that, after you install it on airplanes, may or may not work.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MESERVE: The pilots group says, in the two years it has done the report card, the government has not improved its grades. And it fears, unless it continues to highlight what it believes are significant gaps in aviation security, they will not be addressed -- Wolf.

BLITZER: All right, Jeanne Meserve, thanks very much -- Jeanne Meserve reporting.

And, to our viewers, please stay tuned to CNN day and night for the most reliable news about your security.

Tomorrow marks a grim anniversary in Spain, one year since the commuter train bombing that killed 191 people. For some survivors, time has not healed the wounds they suffered, both physical and emotional.

CNN's Matthew Chance reports from the Spanish capital.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Even now, images of Spain's tragedy are hard to bear, 10 bombs, four trains, hundreds of dead and injured. And memories still haunt the survivors.

A year on, broken families still meet in Madrid's main square to share their torment and tears, mothers like Rita (ph), who moved to Spain from Ecuador to give her son, Jose Luis (ph), just 17, a better life.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): Our hope was that he would become a professional. We thought he would have a better chance here, a better future. But we were wrong. We brought him to his death.

CHANCE: Rita invited us to her home, now a shrine to her dead son. Rooms are filled with favorite toys, pictures and his ashes. She can't bring herself to scatter them yet, she told me.

Jose's bedroom is untouched as well. In the wardrobe, his blood- stained shoes recovered from the bomb site and kept to remember.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): I don't feel angry at the bombers. My son and I had believed that violence and poverty ferment hatred, but I'm angry at those who could have prevented it.

CHANCE (on camera): Just three days after these trains were bombed last year, the Spanish government, at the time closely allied to Washington over its war in Iraq, was voted out of office. The new Spanish administration moved quickly to withdrawal Spanish troops, a stance that may have irked Washington, but for many of these commuters, was the right thing to do.

(voice-over): Even some mutilated by the bombings, like Sahira (ph), now 22, blame Spanish involvement with the Iraq war and Afghanistan for making them a target. She lost her sight in one eye, but she's convinced tighter security is not the answer.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): We have to stop trying to solve problems with war and bombs. We will not be safe until then. There are police everywhere in Madrid now. But that has the opposite effect. They are only here because it could happen again.

CHANCE: And the real fear of more bombs, another outrage like a year ago, is once shared in this city and far beyond.

Matthew Chance, CNN, Madrid.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: Senator Hillary Clinton has just issued a statement on her husband's condition after he underwent surgery earlier today. We'll have that story. That's coming up.

Plus, there's a development involving the House majority leader, Tom DeLay, and his health. We'll tell you what's going on. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: Former President Bill Clinton is resting comfortably after four hours of surgery. Doctors removed scar tissue and fluid that built up around his left lung following last September's heart bypass operation. Senator Hillary Clinton has just issued a statement saying she is happy to report that her husband is -- quote -- "doing very well." She's says he's in good spirits and looking forward to getting up and walking around, saying that could happen as early as tomorrow.

Mrs. Clinton says this was not a life-threatening situation, but she adds -- and I'm quoting now -- "that didn't stop Chelsea and me from worrying together and praying together." She says they're looking forward to having him come home in the coming days.

Our senior medical correspondent, Dr. Sanjay Gupta, is outside New York Presbyterian Hospital in Manhattan.

Did everything go as planned, Sanjay, based on what we know?

DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, pretty much, Wolf.

The operation started at about 7:00 this morning. They said it was going to think about three hours. It took four. It went to about 11:00 in the morning. A couple things to keep in mind here. They actually tried to do this operation using what they called a scope, a thoracoscope, a sort of minimally invasive way of doing the operation.

This were not able to do it that way. That was probably the only hiccup in this entire day. They actually had to go to a little bit more of an open procedure. You can see there, the whole goal of this was to open the chest now, spread the ribs and remove some of the scar from around his lung.

Wolf, probably the best way to describe, this is sort of an orange peel, a very sticky orange peel, though. And they actually have to people it off the lower part of the lung, which they did successfully, drain the fluid. And it sounds like everything went pretty well.

BLITZER: So, basically, he should be able to walk around within a day or so. How long do you think he'll have to stay in the hospital?

GUPTA: Well, you remember, Wolf, last time he was in the hospital, back on Labor Day, he had his operation for the bypass. And, sometimes, people stay in the hospital for that for up to a week. He was out in four days, so he had a speedy recovery last time.

I think it bodes well for this time as well. My guess was this weekend, maybe at an earliest, probably early next week, we'll hear that he is ready to go home.

BLITZER: And I know I speak for Sanjay and all of us at CNN, all of our viewers as well. We hope for a very speedy recovery for the president.

GUPTA: Absolutely.

BLITZER: In other medical news, Texas Republican Congressman Tom DeLay, the House majority leader, was in and out of the hospital today himself.

Let's get details now from our congressional correspondent Ed Henry.

What's going on, on that front, Ed?

ED HENRY, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Wolf, Tom DeLay today went to the National Naval Medical Center in Maryland after experiencing minor fatigue.

He was treated for a common heart condition and released from the hospital after a series of tests. It's important to stress that, for years, Mr. DeLay has a preexisting common arrhythmia. And DeLay's office is saying the majority leader is resting at his home right now in Virginia and will keep his schedule and travel to Florida on Friday, in Georgia on Saturday for some political events.

It's no secret, though, that, in recent days, Mr. DeLay has been facing heavy scrutiny from media outlets probing his political activities. But I just got off the telephone with an aide to the majority leader, who told me Mr. Delay's doctor said this was not -- and I stress not -- stress-related. It was in fact caused by this preexisting condition. They say it had nothing to do with stress, Wolf.

BLITZER: All right. And let's wish Tom DeLay a speedy recovery as well.

Ed Henry, thanks very much for that report.

We'll have the results of our Web question of the day. That's coming next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: We're going to leave you with these pictures.

Take a look at this, a cute little dog running on a major expressway. It's the Major Deegan Expressway in the Bronx in New York City. Look at this. It's going to have a happy ending. Don't want you to get nervous. But what happened, it caused a huge traffic delay throughout New York City, basically, because of what was happening in the Bronx. Eventually, the police came. You'll see a couple police cars, three or four police cars showing up.

They managed to get this cute little dog, save the dog, end the traffic delays, New York City getting back to normal. Look at this, a great day for the dog.

"LOU DOBBS TONIGHT" starts right now.

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