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Fourteen-year-old to be Charged with Murder in Georgia Shooting; Trump's Election Interference Hearing; Jury Selection Begins in Hunter Biden Trial; Emanuel Jones is Interviewed about the Georgia School Shooting. Aired 9-9:30a ET

Aired September 05, 2024 - 09:00   ET

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

[09:00:00]

SEAN LYNGAAS, CNN CYBERSECURITY REPORTER: And Attorney General Merrick Garland, yesterday, was pretty clear about what - how he sees this threat and what he's trying to - the message he's trying to send to the American public.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MERRICK GARLAND, ATTORNEY GENERAL: These websites were designed to appear to American readers as if they were major U.S. news sites, like "The Washington Post" or Fox News. But, in fact, they were fake sites.

The Justice Department's message is clear, we have no tolerance for attempts by authoritarian regimes to exploit our demographic - our democratic system of government.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LYNGAAS: And that's exactly what U.S. officials are looking for and warning about, Sara, as the election approaches.

SARA SIDNER, CNN ANCHOR: All right, Sean Lyngaas, Clare Sebastian, thank you to you both for your reporting.

A new hour of CNN NEWS CENTRAL starts right now.

JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: We are standing by this morning for the 14- year-old suspect in the deadly Georgia school shooting to appear in court. He will be charged as an adult with murder, as law enforcement tries to figure out how he got his hands on the gun.

In just a few minutes, a judge holds her first hearing in Donald Trump's election interference case since the Supreme Court ruled he does have broad presidential immunity.

And the Boeing Starliner will try to begin its journey home from the Space Station tomorrow without its crew, given all the issues it's had, including some strange sounds. Will it be able to make it back to earth?

Kate is out today. I'm John Berman, with Sara Sidner. And this is CNN NEWS CENTRAL.

SIDNER: This morning, new details in the deadly rampage at a Georgia high school. Moments ago a student who was sitting next to the alleged gunman before the shooting started shared more with us about what happened yesterday morning.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LYELA SAYARATH, SAT NEXT TO ALLEGED SHOOTER IN CLAS: He gets up and leaves I presume to go to the bathroom. But he skips usually, so it's - you never know where he's going. But he's in the bathroom and I'm just sitting in classes as normal. And we're working. And my friend goes to the bathroom. And a little bit later an administrator comes in looking for them - well, one of them. And they mistook my friend for him. And they take my friend - like, his bag. And a little bit later he'll - he comes back in with his bag. And I had asked him, like, oh, what happened? And he was like, oh, I don't know. They were looking for the kid that sits next to you, not me.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SIDNER: These poor, traumatized children. This morning that 14-year- old suspect could make his first court appearance, and police are trying to learn how he was able to get his hands on an AR-15 style rifle as officials now say he was questioned about online threats to shoot up a school just last year when he was 13-years-old.

CNN's Nick Valencia is live outside the school, just about an hour outside of Atlanta.

Nick, what are you learning this morning about this suspect and those who were killed and injured?

NICK VALENCIA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Sara, chilling new details about this alleged gunman. A 14-year-old identified as a student at this school and somebody who is familiar to law enforcement. In fact, the FBI Atlanta putting out a joint statement, along with local law enforcement, saying that this individual, when he was 13-years-old in 2023, was questioned by law enforcement because of a series of anonymous tips about school shootings and undisclosed locations. At the time, though, there was no probable cause to take him into custody.

The focus, though, today, not just on, you know, finding out how this gunman got his hands on an AR-15-style rifle he had used in this shooting yesterday, but mostly on the victims, those that were killed in yesterday's tragedy. The four identified here as members of this community, two of them students, two of them teachers, 14-years-old - just 14-years-old, those two students. One of them identified as Mason Schermerhorn, the other, his classmate, Christian Angulo. As for those adults, a math teacher who was 53-years-old, Christina Irimie, and Richard Aspinwall, 39-years-old. He was also a football coach here, defensive coordinator for the Wildcats football team. They were scheduled to have a game on Friday.

It wasn't just those that were killed that were impacted, but also nine people who were injured, eight of them students, one of them an adult. Yesterday we were reporting that an adult was shot in the stomach according to a source with knowledge of the situation. They were in surgery. And, of course, it goes without saying, not just the physical scars, but the emotional ones too.

Listen to a student describe what they went through yesterday during the tragedy.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LAILA FOHRMAN, STUDENT AT APALACHEE HIGH SCHOOL: I was scared I was going to die, to be honest. And when I heard hard lockdown, I knew it wasn't a drill.

I just kept my feet up and I prayed.

[09:05:02]

And I closed my eyes and I tried to stay calm. And - but I was shaking, and I was worried that they would hear me.

KAYLEE ABNER, STUDENT AT APALACHEE HIGH SCHOOL: Then I hear the gunshots. And then everyone ducks behind desks. And teacher, like, flipping tables and stuff and barricading the door. So, I was just scared out of my mind.

NICHOLAS CRISWELL, STUDENT AT APALACHEE HIGH SCHOOL: I did not personally know anybody that was hurt, but we were sitting at the - up at the field up there. One of - one of my cadettes was going through it. And we found out his friend was - was killed, sadly.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VALENCIA: And today we wait for that suspect's first court appearance and answers to the big question, how he got his hands on that AR-15.

Sara.

SIDNER: Lots of questions left unanswered.

Nick Valencia, thank you so much. We will come back to you if you have any new reporting on this case. Appreciate it.

John.

BERMAN: All right, just moments from now, a federal judge will consider what happens next in Donald Trump's election interference case, the federal trial. This morning's hearing is the first since the Supreme Court ruled that Trump has broad presidential immunity, and since special counsel Jack Smith filed a revised indictment.

CNN chief legal affairs correspondent Paula Reid is outside the courthouse in Washington, D.C.

Nice to see you, Paula. Walk us through how this will play out.

PAULA REID, CNN CHIEF LEGAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, John.

Well, today's hearing is all about how to move forward in this case after the Supreme Court really limited what the special counsel can charge former President Trump with and what evidence they can use in this case.

Now, in speaking with sources familiar with the Trump team legal strategy, they believe that a win today is just pushing anything of substance back until after the election. While the special counsel has not agreed to that, but they also have not proposed their own timelines.

So today, during this hearing, there are no cameras in federal court. Former President Trump is not here. He's not required to be. But I'll tell you what's going to happen. Judge Tanya Chutkan, the judge overseeing this case, she is going to come in with a plan. She will have read everything that has been submitted. I've been in court with her in this case before. And she's going to have a roadmap. She's going to ask the prosecutor some questions. She's going to ask the defense some questions. And we will likely get some indication of which way she is leaning. But it's unclear if she's going to give us the schedule today or if they'll have to wait a day or two.

BERMAN: Yes, about that schedule, you talk about this being a hearing about how this will happen, the trial. How about when it will happen, Paula?

REID: Well, when, if at all, John, because, look, if former President Trump is re-elected, the case, along with the Mar-a-Lago documents case, they're both going to be dismissed. He's going to have his attorney general dismiss the cases. But if he's not re-elected, there's still a lot of questions in this case that need to be litigated. We would expect that the Trump team is going to fight some of the evidence that's still in this indictment.

Last week, prosecutors, they filed a revised version of the original charges that took out some evidence, added some new evidence, but the charges are still the same. And the defense attorneys are going to be squarely focused on the fact that the Supreme Court, not only did they talk about you can and cannot be charged with, but they also said that official acts cannot be used as evidence in criminal cases. And that's really going to be the focus for the defense over the next year or so. And if the trial court judge does not agree that certain pieces of evidence that are still in this case should be tossed, they plan to litigate this all the way to the Supreme Court.

We would also expect that if prosecutors lose those arguments, they too will go to the Supreme Court.

So, there's what I can tell you, John. This case is not going to trial without at least one more trip to the Supreme Court. Unclear if the justices would want to take this case up again. But sources close to the case say they believe there's sort of an implicit invitation in the Supreme Court's decision to come back with additional issues.

But at this point, given all the questions that would be outstanding, this case would not go to trial likely until next fall. And that is if the case survives all of the scrutiny throughout this litigation over the next year.

BERMAN: All right, Paula Reid for us in Washington. You'll be outside that court all morning long. Paula, we'll get back to you shortly.

With us now, CNN's senior legal analyst, former assistant U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York, and our Metuchen bureau chief, Elie Honig.

Counselor, heading into this hearing, what do the sides actually agree on and what do they disagree on?

ELIE HONIG, CNN SENIOR LEGAL ANALYST: Well, John, they agree on very little. Essentially the only thing that Jack Smith and Donald Trump's legal team agree on is, now we have to go through this revised shrunken down indictment and decide what's immune and has to come out and what's not immune and what can stay in. But they disagree on everything about how and when to do that.

Now, Jack Smiths' position is, the new revised indictment is good to go as is, and we're prepared to file our briefs with you, Judge Chutkan, to explain why Jack Smith actually does not propose any specific timeframe.

Donald Trump takes a very different view. Donald Trump's teams view is, the new indictment is still invalid, still should be thrown out. We need to brief it, but on a very long, slow schedule where the briefs on that issue won't even come in until 2025. So, they're on very different pages about the how and the when of it.

BERMAN: What options does Judge Chutkan have to resolve all these questions about immunity?

[09:10:04]

HONIG: So, this will be really interesting to watch because Judge Chutkan can do essentially whatever she wants in terms of, how do we go about going through this indictment. But to break it down into two big categories, one is, she can opt to do what judges call on the papers, meaning I'm going to receive extensive briefing from Jack Smith, from Donald Trump, maybe a reply brief, and I will decide, based on the papers, based on the briefs, based on maybe written affidavits.

The second major option that Judge Chutkan has here is, does she decide to hold some sort of evidentiary hearing? Does she say, well, I need to hear from some of these witnesses live. Maybe I need he did hear from Mike Pence. I need to hear from other key people who are named in the indictment to get a sense of what their trial testimony could be.

And so that's the big divide that I'm watching for today. Does Judge Chutkan decide to just do this based on the papers or does she say we're going to have a live hearing with live witnesses?

BERMAN: What are the chances, Elie, that we could see an actual trial date set this morning?

HONIG: Pretty close to zero, John, because as Paula said, when the Supreme Court issued its immunity ruling back in July, they essentially said, OK, Judge Chutkan and parties, first you have to do what you're about to do here today. You have to figure out a way to go through this evidence, decide what's immune and decide what's not.

However, the Supreme Court also specifically said, at the end of that process, Donald Trump gets to appeal that. So, Donald Trump gets to go back to the Court of Appeals in D.C., then he can try to bring it to the Supreme Court. So, there's a lot between where we are now and even the setting of a trial date. We are not going to walk out of there today knowing that trial in this case will start on some set date.

BERMAN: All right, so we're going to be monitoring this minute by minute. But, yes, because there are no cameras in the courtroom, it's going to be by the relay system. We're going to get notes from inside to the outside telling us what's happening.

Elie, what's sort of the first thing you're looking for, or first sign from Judge Chutkan that you might see that this is heading one way or another?

HONIG: That's an interesting question.

So, there's a couple of different motions that are out there. For example, Donald Trump's team has said they want to challenge the legality of the special counsel itself. A motion that they succeeded on in Florida, but have not yet made to Judge Chutkan. I want to see if Judge Chutkan comes out there ready with certain rulings on some of the other issues.

It's possible she takes the bench and says, OK, Donald Trump's team, I see that you want to challenge the special counsel. I'm rejecting that out of hand. She's essentially done that previously in this case.

So, I want to see if Judge Chutkan comes out there in a posture of, all right, I'm taking no guff here. We're moving quickly. I have a plan. Or if she comes out there in the posture of, we've got a long ways to go. How do we sort through this? Help me here, parties. It's going to be one or the other.

BERMAN: Yes, it'll be interesting to see. That gives us something to look for right away.

As always, Elie Honig, thank you very much for that.

HONIG: Thanks, John.

BERMAN: I do want to go right back to Georgia right now to the Apalachee High School. Our Nick Valencia is there.

And, Nick, I do understand that you do have some breaking news. What did you learn?

VALENCIA: That's right. Overnight we understand that the suspect in the shooting, 14-year-old Colt Gray, a student here at the school, was transferred to the Gainesville Youth Detention Facility from where he was being held at Barrow County Jail. I asked that communications director, and he told me that because the suspect is 14-years-old and is a juvenile, he's going to be held in juvenile custody despite being faced - despite facing those charges as an adult.

Meanwhile, we're also learning a little bit more information here - John, I'm going to have to come back to you. I'm so sorry. I'll get more information and we'll come right back to you here. I'm just getting more news here as I'm reporting here.

BERMAN: All right, understand that, Nick. We'll let you get back to your reporting. I do understand all this information is coming in by the minute here. We'll get back to Nick shortly.

In the meantime, just hours from now, jury selection begins in Hunter Biden's federal tax evasion trial.

And a succession battle brewing over the Murdoch media empire, behind closed doors, though. A lot of people are fighting to make this all public.

And NASA preparing to undock, or try to, the Boeing Starliner from the International Space Station and attempt to send it back to earth. The crew will not be on board. Why? Because a lot hasn't gone right here.

Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[09:18:50]

SIDNER: This morning, jury selection began in the Hunter Biden tax evasion trial. It's expected to include detailed testimony about his drug addiction, partying, and spending. He pleaded not guilty to the charges.

CNN's Marshall Cohen is live outside the courthouse for us.

What is Biden's defense in this now? This case has gone back and forth and now here we are at jury selection and the trial is going forward.

MARSHALL COHEN, CNN REPORTER: It's finally here, Sara. His defense is that he was not acting with the willful state of mind or the intention to break the law. But make no mistake, this is a huge day for Hunter Biden. This is his second criminal trial this year. He was convicted just a few months ago in Delaware on three federal gun felonies. And today in California, he will go to trial on nine tax charges, three felonies, six misdemeanors.

As you mentioned, the prosecutors have accused him of failing to pay $1.4 million in taxes. They say that he was spending money on just about everything but his taxes, strippers, escorts, Lamborghinis, fancy hotels in the L.A. area, the works. Now, for his part, Hunter Biden, he's pleaded not guilty.

[09:20:00]

His defense is that he was struggling with drug addiction, crack cocaine addiction, and alcoholism at the time of those alleged offenses. And once he got sober in 2019, he took steps to make the government whole, to pay back everything that was owed. But the judge ruled that that critical piece of information will not be allowed into this trial.

So, we're about two hours away from the start of jury selection. But, as I say, with every major case like this, a plea deal is always possible at any moment. There are no public indications right now that that is actually going to happen. It looks like it's full systems go here in L.A. But it's always possible he did try to plead guilty to some of these charges last year in a deal that famously imploded.

So, two hours and we should find out, Sara.

SIDNER: Yes, usually those deals don't implode the way they imploded in this particular case. And it was a surprise to him, and I think a lot of people.

But as we are watching this with the jury selection, you know - you know President Biden no longer, you know, running, no longer campaigning for 2024. Is there a possibility that he could pardon his son, even though he has said in the past that he will not do that?

COHEN: Sara, the president could end this case with the stroke of a pen right here, right now. He has the power to do that. But, as you just said, he has repeatedly pledged that he will not do that. He also said after the gun conviction two months ago or three months ago, he said he would not reduce any sentence that's handed down against his son.

But here's the rub. He said all of that when he was still running for president.

SIDNER: Right

COHEN: He has not weighed in since he dropped his campaign. His thinking, of course, could change. The experts I spoke to have all said that they are, frankly, expecting a pardon eventually. It has happened before with presidents pardoning their family members in their final days in office, and it very well could happen again.

Sara.

SIDNER: But he also knows that would be used as cannon fodder when it comes to those who are in this election, with Kamala Harris and former President Trump. But he does face a lot of years, almost two decades, potentially, if convicted.

Thank you so much, Marshall Cohen. Appreciate you there, live outside the Los Angelese federal court. All right, more on our breaking news out of Georgia. We are now

learning where the suspect is being held, and when he will make his first court appearance. Our Nick Valencia getting that information for us.

And Boeing's Starliner spacecraft will attempt to return to earth tomorrow, but there will not be any astronauts on board. They are still stuck there till potentially February of 2025. We'll talk about it, coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[09:27:09]

BERMAN: We do have breaking news from the deadly school shooting in Georgia. We just learned the 14-year-old suspect is being held at a juvenile detention facility as he waits to be charged officially as an adult with murder in the deaths of two students and two teachers.

With us now is Georgia State Senator Emanuel Jones. He is the chair of the Safe Firearm Storage Committee, which is scheduled to meet this morning.

Senator, thanks so much for being with us.

On that subject, we did learn overnight that authorities went to this - the suspect's house a year ago, talked to the family because there were concerns about some kind of postings, electronic postings that had been made. And they were told by the parents, yes, there are firearms in this house, but this child does not have access to them. That seems to be right in line with what you're studying. What questions do you have on this?

EMANUEL JONES (D), GEORGIA STATE SENATOR: Well, certainly my question is, what led the FBI to go to this young man's home well over a year ago? It must have been another triggering event. And certainly just a typical response of, yes, he does not have access to these firearms. Certainly we know that statement was not accurate.

BERMAN: So, what issues have you uncovered as your committee has studied this issue of firearm storage?

JONES: Well, there's three major issues that we've uncovered, and these are issues that we intend to work on and draft legislation for our upcoming session in 2025.

First of all, we got to do a better job in our great state for locking laws. We need to work on child access prevention and to hold the parents accountable for children having access to guns, either intentionally or unintentionally, and we need to address the safe storage issues in vehicles because right now our region, this part of the country, is one of the tops in terms of (INAUDIBLE) firearms in vehicles.

BERMAN: Now, I want to be clear, we don't, at this point, know how the suspect got his hands on the AR-15. So, let's stipulate that. But when you talk about holding parents accountable, how? How do you

propose to do that?

JONES: Well, there's several laws on the books with other states, and I have to bring attention to the fact that Georgia is eighth in a nation - or should I say the eighth worst state in the nation in terms of these kind of preventable incidents. But there's other states (INAUDIBLE) who is comparable with us demographically, like Texas, whose numbers are less than half of what our ratios (ph) of at least unintentional or - deaths per 100,000 for kids. And when we look at firearm safety, we got to look at being able to secure those firearms and ensure that these kids do not gain access to them in any way.

[09:30:01]

There's too much technology out there for us not to take advantage of what's available.

BERMAN: Now, I do understand that the Georgia house passed a bill.