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Heat Index Could Reach 105 Degrees In Some Areas Of Texas; How Airbnbs Fail To Protect Guests From Hidden Cameras; 3rd Day Of Closing Arguments In Menendez Corruption Trial. Aired 2:30-3p ET
Aired July 10, 2024 - 14:30 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
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[14:33:02]
JESSICA DEAN, CNN HOST: Hurricane Beryl may have just offered a big glimpse of what's to come. Forecasters now predicting a hyperactive season that could include half a dozen major hurricanes.
Meantime, Texas is still reeling. More than 1.6 million people are without power. That means no air conditioning amid a life-threatening heatwave there.
Let's go now to Ed Lavandera, who is in Dallas.
Ed, what is being done to help people in this awful situation?
ED LAVANDERA, CNN SENIOR NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, state officials say they are pushing the power utility companies, more than 20 of them, to work as quickly as possible to restore power.
But this is a slow process that officials say it will take days if not weeks in some places. So that's creating a sense of frustration and concern.
As you mentioned, that heat continues to tick up. The latest numbers we have is that about 1.6 million customers are still without power along the southeast gulf coast and that also in Texas.
And that also includes about one 1.3 million who used the utility company known as Center Point, which services the area around Houston. The company had said they'd hoped to get that down by a million by the end of the day today. It's not clear if that's going to happen.
So state officials are offer -- continue to say that they're pushing these companies to work faster and offering empathy to millions of people along the southeast Texas coast.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LT. GOV. DAN PATRICK (R-TX): When you don't have power, when it's pitch black at night, when it's hot as Hades during the day, you don't have access to food that you'd normally had, it's a miserable situation.
And you need to know that we care about that. We're working on that. And there is hope to move through this as quickly as we can.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LAVANDERA: And, Jessica, we're also learning details about just how incredibly dangerous and deadly the situation can be without power. A 70-year-old -- 71-year-old woman in Crystal Beach, which is in Galveston County, south of Houston, near the Gulf Coast, on the Gulf Coast here, was found dead in her home.
[14:35:11]
The area had lost power and she was on a breathing machine and was found dead in her home. So those are some of the cases and specifics that we're hearing about some of the victims in this storm here, two days after Hurricane Beryl has made landfall -- Jessica?
DEAN: Just devastating, right?
Ed Lavandera, for us in Dallas, thanks so much for that reporting.
Boris?
BORIS SANCHEZ, CNN HOST: Let's get the latest forecast with Chad Myers in the CNN Weather Center.
Chad, extreme heat and a lack of electricity sounds like a recipe for disaster, right?
CHAD MYERS, AMS METROLOGIST: I know people think about a lack of electricity, lack of an air conditioner, but you don't even have a fan. I mean, that's the issue here.
I mean, the heat index today, 105, and it's not going to change much tonight. Currently, right now, Houston has a heat index of 100 and that's only at the 1:00 advisory. So still more hours of this to go.
It does cool down slightly, possibly, so maybe not 105 tomorrow in Houston but somewhere in the upper 90s.
Back out to the west, significant heat again out there. Significant heat in the northeast, from the eastern part of Beryl and the spin from the old low pressure is now creating the threat of tornadoes and Upstate New York, Pennsylvania, and eventually even into New England later on today.
We have tornado watch in effect until later on tonight. So yes, if you see a storm here, it could be spinning.
And look at all these little pink boxes. Those are all tornado warnings going on right now. So if you're in Corning and places like Bath and Waverly, this is the area that, if you see a storm to your west, it's time to get out of the way, get away from the windows, get inside, maybe the lowest level you have.
The heat does go away after this front goes by, but this could be a very dangerous day for the people of Upstate New York, Pennsylvania. And, of course, even into parts of northern New England -- Boris?
SANCHEZ: Yes, the heat is nasty and it is widespread, too.
Chad Myers, in the Weather Center, thank you so much.
We actually want to show you some images. Just moments ago, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy side-by-side with House Speaker Republican Mike Johnson. Obviously, this comes during the 75th anniversary of NATO and the summit that's happening in the nation's capital.
Notably, Zelenskyy meeting with Johnson, who leads the Republican conference that has been resistant to sending additional aid to Ukraine, largely at the behest of former President Trump, who's more isolationist world view seems to define the party.
We'll, of course, keep you updated with the very latest from the NATO summit as we get it.
You're watching CNN NEWS CENTRAL. We're back in just a few minutes.
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[14:42:04]
DEAN: A CNN investigation into Airbnb has uncovered shocking evidence of hidden cameras that will make you want to reconsider before booking your next reservation.
SANCHEZ: The company apparently has not only failed to protect guests guess from being recorded, but it's also worked to keep their complaints from reaching the public.
CNN senior investigative correspondent, Kyung Lah, reports.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CHLOE LEBRUMENT, FOUND HIDDEN CAMERA IN AIRBNB RENTAL: It was just like holy crap, this is a camera.
KYUNG LAH, CNN SENIOR INVESTIGATIVE CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): But it didn't look like a camera. It was a phone charger. Chloe LeBrument's fiance had grabbed it from the bedroom wall of their Airbnb thinking it was hers.
LEBRUMENT: The Airbnb host had called us on the phone and told us that we had taken a charger that did not belong to us, and that we needed to return it immediately.
LAH (on camera): At what point did you think this isn't really a charger?
LEBRUMENT: He became increasingly paranoid. When am I getting this charger back? I think it was like a light bulb moment that we all just went, oh, my goodness, is this a hidden camera? LAH (voice-over): Across North America, police have seized thousands of images from hidden cameras at Airbnb rentals, including people's most intimate moments.
LAH (on camera): What happened when you realized that there was a camera in that charger?
LEBRUMENT: It's so eerie and so creepy. Then your brain starts thinking, what did they see? What happened while we were in that room?
LAH (voice-over): In a small town in Maine, a couple found a hidden camera at their Airbnb. Listen to what the host told police.
(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED DETECTIVE: So they had sex?
UNIDENTIFIED AIRBNB HOST: Yes.
UNIDENTIFIED DETECTIVE: And you recorded that?
UNIDENTIFIED AIRBNB HOST: I took some screenshots.
(END AUDIO CLIP)
LAH (voice-over): The host admits he set up a camera hidden in this clock next to the bed to record unsuspecting guests.
(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED AIRBNB HOST: So there are -- there's stuff of a couple of couples playing around or getting changed. So --
UNIDENTIFIED DETECTIVE: OK. So there's pictures of people that are in intimate situations?
UNIDENTIFIED AIRBNB HOST: Yes.
UNIDENTIFIED DETECTIVE: OK.
(END AUDIO CLIP)
LAH (voice-over): It's more than just a few reported cases and Airbnb knows it's a problem.
In this deposition reviewed by CNN, an Airbnb rep said 35,000 customer support tickets about security cameras or recording devices had been documented over a decade. Airbnb told CNN a single complaint can involve multiple tickets.
And a CNN investigation found Airbnb not only failed to protect its guests, it works to keep complaints out of the courts and away from the public.
LAH (on camera): Why don't we know about this? BELKIS PLATA, REPRESENTED CLIENTS WITH CLAIMS AGAINST AIRBNB: They are trying to keep it secretive. And if everyone knew what was happening, they would not be using their Web site.
SHANNON SCHOTT, REPRESENTED CLIENTS WITH CLAIMS AGAINST AIRBNB: Airbnb wants to wash their hands clean when they have a host who does something illegal or suspicious. They want to say we are simply a Web site. We are not responsible for this host. We are not responsible for this property.
[14:45:00]
LAH (voice-over): Florida attorneys, Belkis Plata and Shannon Schott, say trying to sue Airbnb if something goes wrong is extremely difficult.
It begins when you sign up on Airbnb's Web site and click "agree" to its terms of service. You're agreeing to assume all risk.
PLATA: The person going to rent the property agrees that if something happens while they are staying at this accommodation, they're actually prohibited from suing Airbnb.
They must go a different route, which is a binding arbitration. It's a way to strongarm someone.
LAH (on camera): Is this about controlling publicity?
SCHOTT: A hundred percent.
PLATA: Absolutely.
LAH (voice-over): Once they've settled a claim, Airbnb has required guests to sign confidentiality agreements, which CNN obtained, that keep some details of legal cases private.
PLATA: For you to get the check, you must sign the piece of paper so that no one will know. This will be swept under the rug.
LAH: That's exactly what happened to this man.
(on camera): How did you feel signing that confidentiality agreement?
UNIDENTIFIED AIRBNB GUEST, WAS SECRETLY RECORDED WHILE STAYING AT AIRBNB RENTAL: Dirty.
LAH (voice-over): This man asked us not to show his face and we've masked his voice. He and his wife were recorded during a romantic getaway.
UNIDENTIFIED AIRBNB GUEST: They had intimate footage of my wife and I. The sexual union between two people is sacred. It felt like an extreme violation of our marriage. It's devastating. It's a travesty.
LAH (voice-over): In this case and others, CNN found that Airbnb does not contact law enforcement once hidden cameras are discovered, even if children are involved. Recording someone without their consent is illegal in every state.
UNIDENTIFIED AIRBNB GUEST: If people are out sharing their stories of how they were victimized through the services of Airbnb, nobody's going to want to trust them.
LAH: This man only found out he and his wife were recorded because police called him months later after another guest found the camera.
UNIDENTIFIED AIRBNB GUEST: And they explained that every single room in the house had cameras.
LAH (on camera): Every room?
UNIDENTIFIED AIRBNB GUEST: The cameras were hidden in smoke detectors.
LAH: Part of the challenge is that the technology has gotten so advanced and these cameras so small that you can't even see them.
In this one bedroom, we have put multiple cameras all around and they're hidden in plain sight.
This one is in the smoke alarm, an alarm clock, and even an outlet. And some of them, like this one, I can control remotely on my phone and even livestream.
What would you like to tell Airbnb?
UNIDENTIFIED AIRBNB GUEST: By not doing their due diligence, they're harming families. And they're selfishly making a lot of money while doing that.
LAH (voice-over): Airbnb declined an interview for this story but told CNN, "Incidents of hidden cameras are exceptionally rare. And when we do receive an allegation, we take appropriate, swift action, which can include removing hosts and listings. Airbnb's trust and safety policies lead the vacation rental industry."
LAH (on camera): After CNN began reporting this story, Airbnb created a new policy that indoor cameras are not allowed inside Airbnb's at all.
But as you just saw, it has long been against Airbnb rules that cameras be allowed inside bedrooms. And as you just saw, that didn't stop some hosts from doing it anyway.
Kyung Lah, CNN, Los Angeles.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
DEAN: Excellent reporting.
Kyung, thank you.
[14:48:39]
Attorneys for Democratic Senator Bob Menendez make their final case to jurors, saying the corruption case against him, quote, "dies today." The latest on closing arguments, next.
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[14:53:58]
DEAN: We are now in day three of closing arguments in the federal corruption trial of Senator Bob Menendez. It is a lengthy, nearly two- month long trial.
With prosecutors trying to make the case the New Jersey Democrat accepted bribes, including hundreds of thousands of dollars, gold bars and a Mercedes Menendez is also accused of acting as a foreign agent for Egypt.
CNN's Kara Scannell is joining us outside the New York City courthouse.
And, Kara, I understand Menendez's attorney just finished making their closing argument. What did they have to say?
KARA SCANNELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes. Jessica, he did. Senator Menendez's attorney, Adam Fee, has just finished his closing arguments. This has been a long trial. But closing arguments have also been long.
He has spent about five hours talking to the jury both today and yesterday. And what he was urging them is to acquit the Senator of these bribery and corruption charges, saying that the prosecution has not proved its case, saying they're trying to criminalize normal acts that the Senator has taken.
He said that meetings that he'd taken with Egyptian military officials. He called those routine. He said that the case is built on inferences and not any direct testimony of saying -- of someone saying, I paid the Senate a bribe.
Even pointing to one of the cooperating witnesses who has pleaded guilty in this case, saying that he's admitted that he never spoke with the Senator about some card payments that he made for Mercedes Benz. That's one of the bribes that the prosecution allege he has taken.
And they also put some of the blame on the Senator's wife, saying that it was her gold bars, her money, cash was in her closet. Things that the Senator, they say, was unaware of at the time.
Of course, prosecutors have told a different story to this jury. They spent about five hours addressing the jury in their closing arguments, saying that this was a classic case of corruption on a massive scale.
Saying that the Senator sold his power in order to receive these gold bars, half-a-million dollars in cash and other favors. They also say he is acting as an agent of the government of Egypt.
And for the suggestion that Menendez was unaware of what his wife was doing, they said it was clear from the evidence at this case that Menendez was in control, that his wife was acting as the go-between and they're urging the jury to convict him.
[14:55:09]
So where we stand right now is that one of the other co-defendants, one of the New Jersey businessmen, accused of giving paying bribes to Menendez and his wife, his lawyer is giving closing arguments.
Then another defendant's lawyers will go. And then we're going to have the prosecution give their rebuttal.
So it's possible that the jury won't actually start deliberating in this case until tomorrow -- Jess?
DEAN: All right, a great update there from Kara Scannell live in New York City. Thank you so much for that.
Another Hollywood heavyweight raising some serious concerns about President Biden's political future. Stay with CNN, NEWS CENTRAL.
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DEAN: Cracks in the dam. More voices in the Democratic Party suggest President Biden may need to reconsider his decision to stay in the race for the White House.
And among them, one of the most influential powerbrokers on Capitol Hill, Nancy Pelosi.
