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Hayden Panettiere Death Investigation; Day Two of Tupac Shakur Trial; Key Primary Elections. Aired 1-1:30p ET

Aired August 18, 2026 - 13:00   ET

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

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ERICA HILL, CNN HOST: At this hour, voters casting ballots in some key primaries today. Can Republicans, though, run away from the new record low approval numbers when it comes to President Trump? We're tracking those polls in key states.

BORIS SANCHEZ, CNN HOST: Plus, what's fact and what's fiction? We're tracking what's happening right now inside a Las Vegas courtroom where the Tupac Shakur murder trial is under way.

And, in California, tech giant Meta is facing its biggest social media addiction trial yet, multiple states claiming its platforms are targeting and harming kids.

We're following these major developing stories and many more all coming in right here to CNN NEWS CENTRAL.

HILL: So, as we noted, we're following primaries in some key states today, including the president's adopted state of Florida, where his policies and his influence are really being put to the test, his approval rating hitting a new low as well. So how could that impact Republicans who have so closely aligned themselves with the president?

Meantime, we're also watching Democrats and a lot of questions about whether Democrats could actually break through the Sunshine State's new GOP-friendly congressional map. The change is really shaking up a number of districts here.

CNN's Randi Kaye is live in Lauderhill, Florida, just West of Fort Lauderdale.

So, when we break this down, Randi, what are the key races that we should be watching today?

RANDI KAYE, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, I think one of them, Erica, is certainly the governor's race here in Florida. You have Byron Donalds, congressman, who is running. He is Trump-backed.

Trump did endorse him. He also, if he wins, would be the first black governor of Florida. And then one of his opponents is Jay Collins. He's Florida's lieutenant governor, and he is backed by the current governor, Ron DeSantis. So there's a little bit of Trump-DeSantis at play here.

And whoever wins that will likely -- very likely face David Jolly, who is on the Democratic side. He's a former Republican congressman, though. But I think the thing to watch here in that race in particular is those Trump poll numbers that you're talking about. How much weight does that Trump endorsement carry?

He elevated Ron DeSantis back in 2018. He went on to win the governor's seat. So we will see just what happens with this race today. But another race to watch, of course, is what's happening here where we are. This is the 20th Congressional District. Debbie Wasserman Schultz is running for a 12th time.

Her District 25 was dismantled by the redistricting that took place here in Florida. So she's now running in this district. Now, the thing about that to watch is the fact that this is a historically black district. A black lawmaker has held this seat for more than 30 years. She is the only white candidate in this primary.

So her opponents have tried to come together and consolidate the vote, but they couldn't decide on who they should back. So now they're all still running. And one of them, at least one of them, has accused her of district-shopping, looking for a safe district to run in.

Just very quickly, her opponents include Luther Campbell. He's the former rapper from 2 Live Crew, also Dale Holness, former Broward County mayor, Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick. She's the former congresswoman who resigned her seat because of this ethics investigation she's facing. She's accused of using millions of dollars and funneling them into her campaign. She's denied any wrongdoing.

And, finally, Elijah Manley, he's 27 years old. He's a self-proclaimed Democratic Socialist. Now, we have talked to a number of voters here, Erica. They are mixed on who they're supporting, but here's some of what they had to tell us.

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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm really not biased. It's whoever has the community's best interests at hand. So whoever's the best person for the job is who I would recommend or cast my vote towards.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: She's there for the people and she shows up. Any difficulties or issues that people have, she always presents herself. She doesn't hide. It doesn't matter whether we're in a black community or Hispanic community. I'm predominantly Hispanic. I mean, so she does show up.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KAYE: And we should note that woman there you just heard from, she did once work for Debbie Wasserman Schultz. But we have seen many people here who say they are supporting her.

Many of them told us that race does not matter. They are choosing the best candidate to get the job done and to face off against a Republican in the general election -- Erica.

HILL: All right. And we will see how it all shakes out later tonight after the polls close.

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Randi, appreciate it. Thank you -- Boris.

SANCHEZ: Let's talk about the races in Florida and in other states with Jaime Harrison. He's a former DNC chair and host of the "At Our Table" podcast.

Jaime, thanks so much for joining us.

I want to start asking about Debbie Wasserman Schultz. She's faced allegations, as you just heard there from Randi Kaye, of district- shopping, of carpetbagging in this primary. As you know, after Florida's map was redrawn, she shifted over to run in this historically black district. Do you see her potential victory over black candidates as a problem?

JAIME HARRISON, FORMER CHAIRMAN, DEMOCRATIC NATIONAL COMMITTEE: Well, listen, I think gerrymandering that took place by Ron DeSantis and the Florida GOP was to create chaotic situations like the one that we see now, where you get Democrats fighting against each other in fewer congressional races.

Debbie's in that race along with a number of other candidates. And there are folks that you can find in the Congressional Black Caucus, but also just across the country, that have all their defined opinions on the situation.

I know a number of the folks in that race. And so, in the end of the day, I hope they have had a civil contest, that they have went out to try to portray who is the best to represent that district. It is a historically black district, and so there are a lot of folks who are saying that it should remain that way.

But, in the end of the day, I hope whomever wins, they will go to Washington, D.C., and fight for those constituents, because lord knows they need the best representation they can get.

SANCHEZ: Nearby, you have incumbent Jared Moskowitz facing a tough challenge from a self-proclaimed proud Democratic Socialist, Oliver Larkin. Moskowitz remains one of the most vocal pro-Israel Democrats on Capitol Hill, but Larkin says that he would support an immediate suspension of U.S. military aid to Israel.

How do you see that issue of support for Israel playing out in this race?

HARRISON: Well, I think in that race, Jared's probably going to win, end up winning, just based off of some of the polling that I have seen and also the constituency that's in that particular district.

Listen, this is a discussion that you're seeing across the party right now about what is -- what should be the appropriate relationship that America has with Israel. There -- I think the vast majority of the folks in the party do believe that, yes, Israel should be able to defend itself.

But this issue between Israel and Gaza is something that is constantly playing out. It played out throughout the 2024 election. And it doesn't seem to have lost much of its salience thus far, because people are still talking about it.

SANCHEZ: I want to ask you about neighboring Georgia, where Jon Ossoff is facing a reelection battle of his own. Over the weekend, he jabbed at President Trump and President Trump responded. He said of the president -- quote -- "He doesn't want to do the job. He wants to build his ballroom and travel with Natalie on their apparently defenseless flying palace gifted by the emir of Qatar."

The president responded, calling him Pee-wee Herman, dismissing these attacks. I'm curious about the way that Ossoff has tried to elevate his profile, especially with these sort of stylized and slickly shot videos. Do you believe him when he says he has zero interest in running for president in 2028?

HARRISON: I do believe him. I believe that his real focus right now is winning his reelection in 2026, because all of the 2028 is purely academic, and he has to win his reelection in 2026.

And the people of Georgia, my mom, my stepdad, my sister, all of my aunts and uncles that live there, they want him to win his reelection. And I think he's well on the path to do -- of doing so. Not only is he giving some great speeches right now, but the amazing thing for Jon Ossoff, he has been really, really good at the top level in terms of constituent services.

Even my mom will tell you the story of her reaching out to his office and them just responding back in real time in terms of addressing an issue that she was dealing with. And that is -- that is where the rubber meets the road. It's about constituent services. And Jon has, I'm told, one of the best operations in the country.

SANCHEZ: Just the way that the political climate is landing right now, paired with the history of an incumbent party in Congress and having the White House as well losing during midterms, it seems like Democrats are poised for big gains, especially in the House of Representatives.

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I'm curious about the future of Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries potentially as speaker. Obviously, he denounced the Democratic Socialists of America agenda. A few DSA-backed nominees have declined to commit to voting for him as speaker if Democrats do win the House.

How do you see that relationship between Jeffries and these progressives playing out after the midterms?

HARRISON: Well, in the end of the day, I have -- I have talked about this a lot over the past year.

This election reminds me a lot of 2006 in many ways. In 2006, we were dealing with the Iraq War. Now we're dealing with Iranian war. There was a culture of corruption in '06 with the Bush administration. And lord knows that this administration is the most corrupt I have ever seen.

But you also saw the Democratic Party rising out of the ashes like a phoenix coming off of a presidential election loss. We lost in '24, and in the 2006 election, we lost in 2004. And then we had a historic vote. We took back the House, we took back the Senate, and a historic speaker of the House was then proclaimed with Nancy Pelosi.

I think very much the same thing is going to happen to Democrats again. We are going to take back the House. We are poised to get a lot of gains in the Senate, and we may take back the Senate. And then we're going to have a historic election for speaker, and we're going to elect the first African-American speaker of the House in Hakeem Jeffries.

He has done an extraordinary job as the minority leader. I have never seen this many discharge petitions, and I know that is wonky for some people, but it's a big deal when the minority party can take control of the floor of the House.

Well, Hakeem has done it about seven times now. That's a big, big deal. He has had a disciplined leadership over this House Dem caucus. And that just says that he's going to make one heck of a speaker of the House.

SANCHEZ: Jaime Harrison, we have to leave the conversation there. Appreciate you sharing your perspective.

HARRISON: Thank you.

SANCHEZ: Of course.

Still to come: Nearly 30 years after his death, the murder trial of Tupac Shakur is bringing new details to light, including some of the rap icon's final words that night in Las Vegas. We're live in the courtroom.

Plus, new dispatch audio from the day of Hayden Panettiere's death captures the moment first responders arrived on the scene. What that audio reveals.

And, later, this certainly isn't going to bring down oil prices. Just one day after he confirmed back-channel negotiations with Tehran, President Trump now denies that the two countries are talking, as he shares a photo declaring the Strait of Hormuz as U.S. territory.

That and much more coming your way on CNN NEWS CENTRAL.

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HILL: Day two now of testimony in the Tupac Shakur murder trial under way, jurors hearing more audio from a 2008 police interview with Duane Davis. He, of course, is the man on trial for orchestrating Shakur's 1996 slaying.

Prosecutors say Davis admitted to his role in the rapper's murder, but Davis has pleaded not guilty. Prosecutors say Davis was the mastermind in a revenge plot against Shakur after a mob beating of Davis' nephew.

The first witness called today, a former crime analyst for the Las Vegas Police Department who was present at Shakur's autopsy, and jurors were then shown graphic photos of that.

Joining me now is Matt Murphy, a former homicide prosecutor from Orange County, California.

Matt, it's good to have you with us.

So it's been so interesting what we're seeing, right, just on the first day and change of this trial. So much of what we heard from the defense team is that the book was a fabrication. The defense team also raising questions about the quality of law enforcement's original investigation, saying the prosecution has, in their words, no facts, and really making it clear their client lies and cannot be believed.

Do you think it's going to be difficult for this jury to distinguish between fact and fiction?

MATT MURPHY, FORMER ORANGE COUNTY, CALIFORNIA, HOMICIDE PROSECUTOR: Well, that's always the challenge for a jury, right?

And that's really a jury's role, is to figure out who's telling the truth and who's not. But there's a great expression in Spanish that translates roughly to a fish always dies by its mouth. And I think this is a good example of that.

The prosecution -- look, the things that aren't lies is, Tupac Shakur really was murdered that night. Suge Knight was also shot. There's -- the prosecution has plenty of evidence. The question, of course, is, who did it?

It's also important to remember that all they have to establish here is that Mr. Davis did anything to facilitate, encourage or promote this. And, according to his own story that he's told, not just in his book, but to a federal task force in 2008 and uncountable media appearances, he handed that .40-caliber Glock handgun to the shooter to avenge basically the beatdown that we all saw on video.

And that's another thing that was real, that casino beatdown. But one of the most interesting things that nobody's talking about is, all of those other people in the video, as well as the other three men in Mr. Davis' car, the gang lifestyle of the mid-'90s -- and we all remember the movies and how popular it was -- all of those guys are dead now. They're either dead or in prison, and almost all of them are dead.

They were killed in unrelated murders. So that's something that really shows it's a road to nowhere, the gang lifestyle. You wind up prison -- in prison or dead.

HILL: Also, I mean, from a -- from the prosecution standpoint, right, tough to talk to any of those people, which is something that you want those people who are around then. They're not available, which as they're building this case, some of the people who have, though, been brought in, some of the original investigators.

Those are some of the original witnesses who we saw yesterday, and they were talking about how difficult it was to get anybody to talk in those initial investigations. What is the strategy there for prosecutors in establishing that?

MURPHY: So that's typical of pretty much every gang case you do. I prosecuted gang cases for years. And that is -- that's a feature of it.

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And one of the things that -- the way the prosecution has countered that is, they have alleged the gang enhancement. They have alleged that he was a gang leader, Mr. Davis was a gang leader.

And what that does is, by adding those substantive counts, by that -- by putting those enhancements into the actual charging document, that allows expert testimony so they can have people come in and explain what the gang culture was like and how there's basically omerta.

Like, if you talk, you're a snitch, and then you're dead. And so they have basically created a vehicle to introduce all that kind of testimony, with the hopes of educating the jury and explaining why nobody was cooperating.

One of the old detectives on that case, I saw a great interview where he said -- they said, hey, this case has been unsolved for 30 years, and he balked at it and said, we solved this case back then. We all knew who did it. It was just a question of getting enough people to cooperate and getting a prosecutor with the backbone to actually file charges and pursue it criminally.

So this is a really interesting one to watch. I also think that the prosecution did a very, very good job in their opening statement. I was impressed with that. The prosecutor was -- he had command of the courtroom. He understood the law. He was looking at every individual juror. He wasn't -- he wasn't relying too heavily on his notes.

Tactically, I think the prosecution has done everything at this point that they -- that they should have done, and it's going to be an interesting case to watch.

HILL: Yes, certainly is.

Matt Murphy, appreciate you joining us today. Thank you. MURPHY: Happy to join any time. Thank you.

HILL: CNN has just obtained a police report that reveals who Hayden Panettiere was with when she died. That's ahead.

Plus, did Meta intentionally design Facebook and Instagram to get young people addicted? The social media giant heading back to court to face what could be its most consequential trial yet.

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SANCHEZ: The death of actress Hayden Panettiere is sending shockwaves through Hollywood and all the way to Ukraine, where her former partner now lives with their daughter.

Panettiere's ex, Wladimir Klitschko, sharing -- quote -- "The announcement of Hayden's tragic death saddens me deeply. She left this world far too soon. She built an incredible career through immense talent, while also facing the darker sides of a very demanding industry. To our daughter, Kaya, I will always speak of her mother with respect and make sure she remembers the person she was."

Officials say the cause and manner of Panettiere's death remains pending, results of toxicology testing. But the coroner says an autopsy found no trauma. And newly obtained dispatch audio references a possible overdose. Listen to this.

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EMERGENCY DISPATCH: Respond in place of Medic 29. Easley Bridge Road. Overdose. CPR's in progress.

(END AUDIO CLIP)

SANCHEZ: Let's bring in CNN entertainment correspondent Elizabeth Wagmeister.

Elizabeth, what are you learning about Panettiere's final days?

ELIZABETH WAGMEISTER, CNN ENTERTAINMENT CORRESPONDENT: This is just such a tragic story, Boris, really, a woman who lived her life in public and was really living all of her trauma right in front of our eyes.

What we are learning now, we have obtained a police report at CNN that shows who she was with at the time of her death, and she was with her on-and-off-again boyfriend. His name is Brian Hickerson. And this is someone who she had written about extensively in her book, in the abusive relationship that she had with him.

I will get to that in a moment, but I want to read first, Boris, directly from the police report. This is what the officer wrote.

It says -- quote -- "I spoke with Zach Hickerson first. He advised that this was his brother's girlfriend. I observed Zach to be very emotional while EMS were working on Hayden. Brian did not become emotional until EMS declared her officially deceased. Brian also showed me the bag of medication Hayden is currently on."

So that is directly from that police report that we have obtained. Now, as we are piecing together, again, this horribly tragic life, really, that Hayden lived, as I mentioned, she wrote a memoir that came out about three months ago.

And in that memoir, she wrote about this abusive relationship that she was in. I want to read you part of what she wrote, but, again, she goes into great detail very extensively in her book. But this is just one part of it, where she describes the physical abuse.

She says -- quote -- "I hear it before I feel it, the unmistakable sound of an open hand slap. Then there's burning on my cheek like I'm on fire. There's ringing in my head. There's silence." She goes on to say: "The slaps become hits. One night, he busts up my face so badly, I don't leave the house for weeks."

She goes on to write: "Despite all he had done for me, I still loved Brian for who I believed he was. In my mind, the Brian who hurt me wasn't the real Brian."

Now, he had been in trouble with the law because of this physical abuse, which, by the way, he admitted to recently in an interview with TMZ, but this is someone who had been arrested numerous times. He had been sentenced to 45 days and four years probation and mandatory domestic violence classes based on two felony counts of injuring a girlfriend.

And I do want to note, Boris, that just days, days before Hayden Panettiere's death, a Los Angeles judge had rejected Brian Hickerson's attempt to reduce and clear two felony domestic violence convictions that involved the actress, so, again, very disturbing details in the final moments of her life.

And I do want to note that Brian Hickerson's Instagram account has also been deactivated -- so, just a horrible, horrible tragedy.