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Prosecutors: "Diddy" Trying To Influence Witnesses, Taint Jury Pool; Rep. Tom Suozzi (D-NY) Discusses Some House Democrats Sick Of Pelosi, Trump Confirms Plans To Use Military In Mass Deportation Plan, House Ethics Comm To Weigh Fate Of Gaetz Report; CDC: E. Coli Outbreak In At Least 18 States, 1 Death, Linked To Organic Carrots. Aired 2:30- 3p ET

Aired November 18, 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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[14:33:08]

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN HOST: New allegations against Sean "Diddy" Combs. Prosecutors accusing him of continuing efforts to obstruct the federal investigation into his sex trafficking case and trying to taint the jury pool, even from the Brooklyn jail, where he is detained.

In the latest court filing, prosecutors claim that the music mogul has been trying to evade government monitoring by using the telephone accounts of at least eight other inmates.

They allege that he paid the inmates through intermediaries in violation of the rules. And they argue that Combs should not be entitled to another bail hearing after he sought to contact potential witnesses, including accusers, with the goal of blackmailing them to keep quiet or help his defense.

Joining me now is defense attorney, Misty Marris.

I mean, that is pretty detailed. It really sounds here like prosecutors have some evidence to prove this. And if so, how bad is this, Misty?

MISTY MARRIS, TRIAL ATTORNEY: Absolutely. So the prosecutors laid out all of this information, which is presumably from these jailhouse phone calls, which either came from his account or came from the accounts of other prisoners.

Remember, when somebody is behind bars, all of their communications are monitored. So what the prosecution is laying out are attempts by "Diddy" to do things under the radar to reach out and communicate with witnesses.

So this obviously is to great detriment when it comes to his argument for bail, because a lot of that was based upon the judge's perception that there could be a problem with him communicating with witnesses if he is not behind bars.

So if he's doing this while incarcerated, well, what is he going to do when he's out, even with 24-hour security, as he proposed, he's still going to try and evade that. So from the perspective of bail, incredibly problematic.

KEILAR: So what is the effect right now of what he may have done when its, you know, this idea of if he's been trying to get certain narratives out there, if he's been trying to, as prosecutors allege, essentially blackmail witnesses.

[14:35:15]

What could the effect have been on tainting the jury pool on intimidating witnesses and just obstructing this case?

MARRIS: Yes, absolutely. There's a lot more that could happen. So the -- the -- initially the bail proceeding, that's obviously going to be the most impacted. But it could also add new charges.

There could be a superseding indictment. There could be new counts of witness tampering. There could be counts of obstruction of justice.

And to the extent that he's leaking information that could be evidence at the trial, that would fill in, fall into those legal theories as well that he is taking affirmative action to try and intervene in that legal process in an illegal way. So those could be all new charges.

The other aspect is that there could be evidence presented at trial to say he's trying to contact this -- these witnesses, because he knows what they're going to say is to his detriment.

So it could be presented as an admission of guilt. So it certainly has an impact on him moving forward in several different respects.

KEILAR: And the Combs team is saying that personal notes that prosecutors -- that prosecutors obtained from his jail cell include attorney-client material about defense witnesses about strategy.

Who could authorize that kind of search of his cell? Tell us what kind of -- you know, does this defense hold water?

MARRIS: Yes. This is actually very, very important because the defense clapped back, wrote a letter to the judge, said this is a violation of his Fourth, Fifth and Sixth Amendment rights.

Now important to understand, when you're behind bars, there is no expectation of privacy. It's different. A cell can be searched without probable cause, very different than if a warrant for your home needs to be presented. So those cells can be searched.

And prosecutors had said this was part of a pre-planned nationwide search by the Federal Bureau of Prisons, so not specifically relating to "Diddy."

That being said, even though there's no expectation of privacy and searches can be conducted, there is still a carve out for attorney- client privileged materials. So to the extent that those materials we're taken improperly, and,

again, they go through what's called a filter team, prosecutors sent through a team of people who identify what's privileged before it goes to the U.S. attorney's office.

The defense is saying that improper materials actually got to prosecutors. That could have serious consequences, Brianna. If true, that could mean that some of that evidence could be excluded.

And any -- anything relating to that evidence that comes from it through an investigation could be excluded as well.

So depending on what the defense will present, they've asked for in an evidentiary hearing, how did this happen? What was taken? Why wasn't it filtered out? To the extent prosecutors have privileged material, there could be serious repercussions for the case moving forward to "Diddy's" benefit.

KEILAR: It's really interesting.

Misty Marris, thank you so much.

And next, hear why Democrats are reportedly growing tired of Nancy Pelosi. At least some of them.

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[14:42:43]

SCIUTTO: For more than two decades, Congresswoman Nancy Pelosi has held leadership positions in the Democratic Party and, of course, has had influence for even longer than that.

But a new report out today in Axios says some Democratic colleagues of the former House speaker are growing frustrated with her, especially over comments she made in the wake of Democrats defeat in the latest election.

Here with me now, New York Democratic Congressman Tom Suozzi.

Thanks so much. Always good to talk to you.

REP. TOM SUOZZI (D-NY): Thank you, Jim.

SCIUTTO: You know, it strikes me that the --

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SUOZZI: First, let me say I love Nancy Pelosi.

SCIUTTO: Fair enough. And I'm not going to get you to go after her personally.

Basically, it seems the root of this criticism is Nancy Pelosi. And by the way, she's not alone in this, as you know, identified some mistakes Democrats made during this campaign. And one of which, she says she wishes that Biden had gotten out of the race earlier to allow for perhaps a primary process.

I just wonder, in your view, you know, is she just speaking the truth to her own team, in effect, here?

SUOZZI: I mean, the bottom line is we don't need to look backwards. We need to look forward, Jim. And we need to think of the Democrats as a whole, not any individual person, as a whole, to focus on the issues that Americans are talking about.

And we can't be afraid to speak our minds because we're going to get lambasted by the far left of our party.

And I think that happens in both parties. The Republicans are afraid to talk about guns. They're afraid to criticize President Trump because they're going to get lambasted by the base.

And the Democrats are reluctant to talk about hot-button issues because they're afraid they're going to get lambasted. And that's a problem. We have to be able to have conversations about these tough topics.

SCIUTTO: So who's going to lead that? Do you -- do you see a leader, a new leader or leaders emerging of the Democratic Party as you look forward to the next cycle?

SUOZZI: Well, I think everybody's got to do it. Obviously, the leader of the House is going to be Hakeem Jeffries, who's fantastic, who is a great leader, a great listener, a learned person, somebody who is very, very good at bringing people together.

But we all need to be doing this. We all need to be speaking out and talking about the issues that we care about.

You know, I'm an Italian right?

SCIUTTO: Right.

SUOZZI: I don't like that --

SCIUTTO: All the best people are.

(LAUGHTER)

SUOZZI: I don't like everybody knocking Columbus Day.

SCIUTTO: Yes, I hear you.

SUOZZI: I understand the debate but I'm going to get attacked for that? You know I'm very pro-Israel. I'm going to get attacked for defending Israel?

You know, I have 100 percent rating from the Human Rights Campaign on LGBT issues. But I'm confused and concerned about boys playing in girls' sports. [14:45:03]

SCIUTTO: Right.

SUOZZI: And we need to talk about that. And we need to be able to talk to each other and not be afraid that when we say something, we're going to get beaten up, like you're not really a Democrat because you're daring -- my campaign that I won my special election, I talked about the border.

SCIUTTO: Yes, that's right.

SUOZZI: Nobody was talking about the border in the Democratic party before that. And people we're saying to me, Tom, why are you talking about the border? That's a Republican issue. No, it's an American issue.

SCIUTTO: Your win in that special should have been a message for Democrats coming into this cycle.

Beyond the next election, the -- the period of legislating is going to happen here. And as you know, Democrats control both chambers.

Do you --

(CROSSTALK)

SCIUTTO: Republicans -- Republicans control both chambers. Do Democrats have a plan to push back against some of the more extreme elements of Trump's proposals, perhaps with some moderate Republicans to -- to be kind of a safety valve, a bulwark?

SUOZZI: Yes, a bulwark. I mean, the bottom line is, is that we've got to do two things. We've got to resist when things are crazy and don't make any sense and are going to freak everybody out and be bad for our constituents that violate our policies.

But we also have to be willing to work together when things make sense to solve the problems that the American people face.

You know, we have to work on the border. You know, we've had all this tumult about it. Let's actually do something that's reasonable.

Now, there are a lot of Republicans and a lot of businesspeople and a lot of law enforcement and a lot of religious groups that don't want to see mass deportations and the chaos that that would cause.

Let's figure out how to secure the border, fix the asylum system, and treat people like human beings.

SCIUTTO: We got a signal a of how far Trump might be willing to go. He agreed with a social media post today about declaring a national emergency and using military assets to carry out a mass deportation. Would that be legal and constitutional in your view?

SUOZZI: I don't think it's legal. You know we'd have to get the experts to tell us. But there's a thing called Posse Comitatus, which you can't use the military to do civilian work. And that is not a military function.

So that will be -- that will be challenged if he tries to do that, and it will probably -- his efforts will probably fail. And we shouldn't be doing that.

We can't have people freaking out like that. I mean, it will cause chaos. And that will be bad for local law enforcement to have that type of chaos where people are afraid to go to their local police officers because they're afraid of all -- afraid of the government.

And that's what causes gangs? You know, you go for protection, if you can't get protection from the police, who do you go to for protection? So that's what causes anarchy in society.

SCIUTTO: They might not share information that might be helpful to the police.

But before we go, a question now before the House leadership, Republican leadership is whether to release the Matt Gaetz report or at least supply it to the Senate as they consider his potential nomination. Well, he's been nominated as a potential position as the attorney general.

Should the House release that report?

SUOZZI: I think that they probably should. I mean, it's not like, you know, why would you bury something like that? And the Senate is asking for that report is my understanding.

And so, you know, every -- every candidate for a cabinet position is supposed to be vetted. That's the Constitution. OK? Republicans say the Constitution, the Constitution. That's the Constitution.

SCIUTTO: Yes. Yes.

SUOZZI: The Senate has to vet these candidates. That's what we need to be doing.

So we, as Democrats, have to be using some of the Republican arguments against them. They can't just use it for when it suits their purposes.

Let's support the United States Constitution and have the Senate vet the candidates.

SCIUTTO: Advise and consent. It's written in the document.

Congressman Tom Suozzi, thank you so much --

SUOZZI: Thank you.

SCIUTTO: -- as always.

At least one person has died, dozens more have been sickened in an E. coli outbreak linked now to carrots. Where exactly those veggies were sold. We'll let you know, coming up.

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[14:52:58]

KEILAR: Check your fridge because the CDC is investigating an E. coli outbreak in 18 states linked to organic carrots. At least 39 people have gotten sick, at least one person has died.

These are carrots that we're sold under various brand names in stores like Walmart, Whole Foods, Target, Wegman's as well.

We have CNN's Meg Tirrell joining us on this.

And, Meg, you probably won't find these carrots in stores anymore. But the thing is they could still be in people's homes. So we need to know who should be concerned here.

MEG TIRRELL, CNN MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Brianna, anybody who has shopped for carrots since mid-August need to check their fridges for these brands and these specific expiration dates.

This applies to organic baby carrots and organic whole carrots. And there's a number of brands. This is all on the CDCs Web site.

But things from Cal Organic to Nature's Promise to Trader Joe's and Wegmans. And for the baby carrots, they had sell-by dates of September 11th to November 12th.

For the whole organic carrots they actually don't have sell-by dates on their bags, but they were in stores from August 14th to October 23rd, and so they're not thought to be on shelves anymore. But of course, they could be still in our fridges.

I checked mine last night and we hadn't bought organic this time, so I was like, who is OK, we're all right with these. But those are what people should be checking.

As you said, there's been 39 cases that have been detected. And of course, the CDC is still conducting these investigations. It can take a while sometimes to piece together if somebody got sick and it's related to a certain investigation.

Fifteen hospitalizations and one death across 18 states. And you can see these are really spread out across the entire country. They're not centralized in one location.

So folks should check their fridges for whole organic carrots and organic baby carrots with those brands. And you can go on CDCs Web site to get the specific ones -- Brianna?

KEILAR: I did buy organic so I know what I'll be doing after the show. I always have them in my crisper. So note to self.

Thanksgiving is next week, and I know that a lot of people, they're going to be cooking with carrots, Meg. So do they need to be careful? [14:55:06]

TIRRELL: Only if they've already bought the carrots because it's not expected that these are still on shelves. Of course, you know, check everything on the shelves. Make sure that they're not one of these. But since we're past the sell-by dates, that shouldn't be a concern.

But if people are getting sick, obviously, from food, the things to look out for in terms of E. coli are vomiting, severe stomach cramps, diarrhea. If these things last a long time, or they come with a fever, or are very severe, people should get medical attention.

And typically people get better themselves within five to seven days. But it can be severe. So folks should be looking out for those. Hopefully, not around Thanksgiving -- Brianna?

KEILAR: Yes, hopefully not. I normally don't buy organic carrots. It just so happens, so just remember that.

Meg Tirrell, thank you so much.

And everyone else, check your fridge.

Health officials concerned about President-Elect Trump's pick for HHS secretary. And now Robert F. Kennedy Jr's own family describing his unproven vaccines views as, quote, "dangerous."

Next, we're going to be joined by a former anti-vax Mom-turned-vaccine advocate. What changed her mind and what she wants other parents to know.

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