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New White House Press Secretary on Her Way Out?; Safety of Six Flags Rides Under Scrutiny; Oregon Shooter Kills Three Children and One Teacher. Aired 1-1:30p ET

Aired October 16, 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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BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN HOST: Another American community in mourning after a school shooting leaves three children and a teacher dead. What we're learning about the shooter and the bystander who prevented this tragedy from becoming far worse.

And Peach State pitch. The president heading to Georgia to make his case to voters there, but the Senate race may already be out of reach for Republicans. Just 18 days left for voters to cast ballots.

JESSICA DEAN, CNN HOST: And Six Flags reopens after the death of a man on the Goliath roller coaster. The latest on the investigation and what CNN is learning about the theme park's safety record.

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

KEILAR: We're learning some new details now as police are searching for answers after a deadly school shooting in Bend, Oregon. Investigators say a 16-year-old armed with a long gun forced his way into Silver Rail Elementary School on Thursday. In a matter of moments, the gunman killed a teacher and three children who were just 5 years old, 8 years old, and 11 years old.

Police say an armed bystander followed the shooter into the school and killed him before officers could even arrive. A teacher describes the terrifying moments her classroom heard the shots.

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KATHY SHEIL SMITH, SILVER RAIL ELEMENTARY SCHOOL TEACHER: The looks on their faces was really hard to see. I was trying to calm them down, you know? And some kids were praying. Some kids were consoling other kids.

I'm sure that every teacher at the school thought, today is a day that I am going to die saving my kids.

(END VIDEO CLIP) DEAN: A 7-year-old and another teacher were also critically injured in that attack. A short time ago, a senior law enforcement official told CNN the shooter's parents were interviewed. They're cooperating. A news conference is now scheduled for 5:00 p.m. Eastern.

In the meantime, CNN's Nick Watt is live in Bend, Oregon, as that community grapples with what happened and mourns these innocent lives lost.

And, Nick, clearly a lot of unknowns right now, but we do know that police executed a search warrant last night. What more have you found out?

NICK WATT, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, so they executed that warrant. They took away electronics, computers, trying to get some idea of a motive here.

As you mentioned, they also interviewed the parents, who were said to be cooperative. And they, we are told by a source, said, confirmed that their son did indeed once attend this elementary school behind me, scene of this carnage yesterday. Still no clear motive.

One thing that they will be looking into here in Oregon and most places, 16-year-olds cannot legally buy long rifles. So, where did the shooter get the rifle from? We're also told, by the way, the ATF agents in Eugene and Portland they didn't even wait for their bosses to call yesterday.

They got in their vehicles, got straight down here to start investigating, the FBI also involved, and of course, local police. Now, we know that all of this went down in about three minutes, three people dead -- three kids dead -- I'm sorry -- a teacher dead, another kid, and another teacher injured right now fighting for their lives, and then this bystander who followed the gunman into the school and killed that gunman before he could wreak any more havoc.

Take a listen to what one 10-year-old who was in the school told ABC just a few hours ago.

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AIZEN, STUDENT AT SILVER RAIL ELEMENTARY SCHOOL: We didn't really take it in as a gunshot. And then, maybe 10 to 20 seconds later, we heard more gunshots. And this -- and that time, we definitely knew it was a gunshot.

I locked the door and I went back behind our lockers, as all my classmates did the same. All of my classmates and my teacher were safe, but we were definitely scared, and most people were crying. And it was really hard.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

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WATT: You heard that child just say they locked the door. So, in 2022, new locks were put on the classroom doors here, so they

can be locked from the inside. But we have heard that the gunman shot his way through locks to get into the door -- into the school. We don't yet know quite how far he got. There was also a vestibule put in at the entrance to the school, so you come in one door, then you have got to wait until you're buzzed in.

Again, we don't know how far the shooter got. Speaking to neighbors around here, they just talk about the silence. They talk about sirens replacing children playing. They talk about yesterday in the afternoon no kids playing, this morning no kids and parents walking to school, as they usually would in this little neighborhood in the middle of Bend, Oregon -- back to you.

KEILAR: Yes, that sweet little voice, I mean, why is he talking about this kind of thing, having this experience?

Nick, thank you so much for that report from Bend.

These tragedies have become a risk of going to school in America. A CNN analysis says this was the 36th shooting at a K-12 school just this year alone.

We're joined now by someone who unfortunately knows the pain that these parents of this 5- and 8- and 11-year-old are feeling. Manny Oliver's son Joaquin, Guac, as he was and is still known, was killed in the Parkland, Florida, school shooting back in 2018.

And after that tragedy, Manny co-founded ChangeTheRef.org with his wife, Patricia, with the goal of turning talk into action after so many of these mass shootings.

I mean, Manny, here we are again. What's on your mind today as we're learning about what happened here in Bend?

MANUEL OLIVER, FOUNDER, CHANGE THE REF: Well, thank you for having me.

A lot of frustration, you know? Like, I just came back from New York after been fighting not only this past month, but since the last eight years. And it seems that either people are not listening or we're not doing enough.

I think that, on the political side, we're definitely not doing enough, but yes, frustration. I mean, for someone like me that spends all my time, all my time, with Patricia also, making sure that this won't happen again, this is -- number one feeling, frustration and sadness for these families.

KEILAR: Yes.

You spend all your time, your creativity. You perform a play, a one- man show about losing Guac, about what it was like to watch him walk into his high school with flowers for his girlfriend on Valentine's Day. I was thinking of you when we heard that, at Silver Rail Elementary School, it was picture day, and that the morning for these parents would have been putting on the outfit and combing the hair.

What are these families dealing with right now? How do they get through this?

OLIVER: Well, one of the things they're dealing with is the fact that the whole story is turning into, there was a hero that saved it from becoming worse.

And if you put yourself into the minds of those families, what do you think they can think about our system? What do you think that, honestly, honestly, to everybody that is that it's actually on that direction of, oh, thank God there was another guy with a gun, a good guy with a gun that made it less more than what it could be.

What do you think these families think after losing a 5-year-old, 7- year-old? So I'm afraid that's a wrong statement. I'm afraid that's the wrong narrative. And I'm so afraid that we can fall into that. And I can see it happening already.

KEILAR: Yes, I mean, I don't -- listen, I don't want to -- I don't want to diminish how important it was that someone was there, Manny, because I think we know how much worse this could have been, but your point is just so important here that, when we're talking about someone who actually was able to intervene, they were just able to mitigate the damage, right?

They can't prevent this from happening. So, I mean, knowing that, knowing that, even in the case of there being someone who just happened to be there at the right time, it's a matter of just there being this incredible damage still.

What needs to happen? You're talking about more needing to be done. Where does this need to go?

OLIVER: Yes, and also the fact that, while some people are thinking that it could have been worse, well, what if we think that it could have been better?

What -- which is also one of the scenarios here, that that person had access to a gun. That gun was unlocked. It was not in a safe place. And there's a whole investigation. You know what? I'm sick of these big investigations everywhere, spend days, and now the FBI is coming, and the -- and everyone is there just trying to find out what happened.

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You know what happened? That a 16-year-old had access to a gun. That is exactly what happened. You can add mental health layer. You can add whatever you want, video games, whatever you want. But, at the end of the day, it's the same thing.

And it happens every day. And it will happen while I'm talking to you. And I will never forget the day that we had an interview with you, and it was interrupted because there was another mass shooting happening. So, that's where we live. And as long as we don't understand that is the problem, that is the

real investigation, and we have done thousands of those, and we need to limit the access of guns then, we will not solve the problem.

KEILAR: So how does this community move forward, Manny? I mean, what is that like for them as they -- you have obviously a lot of survivors here, and then you have these families who are part of a -- it's a relatively small community, and certainly a small school community where they are just beginning their lives forever changed in this unimaginable grief.

OLIVER: It will.

And we -- what we're good at is the aftermath of communities and how there's a whole copy-paste setup. These communities will have a lot of people, consolation and visiting them and being with them. They now have some settlements at some point and trials. And they're going to have answers from the authorities.

And they're going to have a memorial at some point. And then now they're going to be called strong, just like Parkland became strong, just like Sandy Hook became strong. So this is the other side of the story. And that -- and it won't be on the headlines next week, but it will be on their lives forever.

And we're used to that, and frustration, Brianna, frustration. And shame on us, all of us, for not solving this problem eight, 20, 30 years ago.

KEILAR: Manny, thank you for joining us. We always talk under these difficult circumstances. I think your voice is so important, though, as we're going through this and trying to figure out a way. Thanks for being with us.

OLIVER: Thank you, Brianna. Have a great day.

KEILAR: Still to come: Six Flags preparing to reopen for its Fright Fest just days after a guest was killed falling off -- falling off of a coaster.

Plus, the president heads to Georgia, but is Marjorie Taylor Greene's Greene's former district as MAGA-friendly as it once was? We are about to find out.

And then, later, new reporting about the source of the order to limit Ukraine's access to a critical military satellite network.

We have that and much more coming up on CNN NEWS CENTRAL.

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DEAN: In the next hour, police will update the investigation of a man who fell to his death from a roller coaster four days ago; 42-year-old educator Hassan Kariem was visiting Six Flags Over Georgia with his fiance's family.

He was on a hypercoaster called Goliath, when somehow he was ejected from that ride and died as a result. Kariem was seated next to his fiancee's niece, and the child told her father what she saw.

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JOSHUA NELSON, VICTIM'S BROTHER-IN-LAW: His last words were to my daughter, and they were: "This is my favorite ride. I'm so excited to be here."

How she described it was, he went up -- like, I guess, as the ride was going, he would go up, he went down, he went up, he went down. And a third or fourth time that happened, the latch came undone, and that's when he fell out.

When it first happened, she called me when they got her off the ride crying. And that was the only thing -- she was like: "I don't know where he -- where he went."

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DEAN: This evening, Six Flags Over Georgia will open to the public for the first time since that deadly incident. Goliath, however, will remain shut down.

A CNN investigation has found Monday's incident is far from the only time safety at Six Flags has been questioned. An analysis of government documents shows years of rider complaints involving serious injuries.

Here's CNN's Kyung Lah.

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KYUNG LAH, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Long before Monday's fatal accident on a roller coaster in Georgia, Six Flags faced accusations of failing to maintain its aging thrill rides.

Six Flags this week said, "We are committed to rigorous ride inspection, maintenance and safety procedures that meet or exceed industry standards." But CNN's review of court documents and safety records from three different states reveal reports of maintenance issues, mechanical problems and injuries.

In California alone, nearly 300 accident reports have been filed, ranging from broken bones to dislocations to back and neck injuries over the past five years at Six Flags' parks. These records do not show details of the injuries, including whether they were proven to be caused by the rides.

It was also in California, where Six Flags' X2 roller coaster was permanently shut down last month, after a CNN investigation revealed a series of deaths and injuries suffered by X2 riders. Two women were injured the same week. Both were rushed into emergency brain surgery. One remains in a coma; the other is still struggling to recover. PAMELA GUILLEN, INJURED ROLLER COASTER RIDER: I won't be 100 percent back to how I was.

LAH (on camera): Ever.

GUILLEN: Because it's brain damage.

LAH (voice-over): Hundreds of people came forward after CNN's report claiming they, too, suffered head trauma from X2.

Records from New Jersey show other injury claims. For example, at the El Toro roller coaster at Six Flags Great Adventure, more than a dozen riders reported injuries. A month later, the state deemed the ride structurally compromised. Six Flags said the ride would be inspected before reopening.

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And in Texas, state records show injury reports involving water parks, such as riders thrown from inner tubes resulting in head injuries. That state is also where 52-year-old Rosa Esparza died after she was ejected from a Six Flags roller coaster in 2013.

CARMEN BROWN, WITNESSED ROLLER COASTER FATALITY: She goes up like this and then when it drops to come down, that's when it released and she just tumbled.

LAH: At the time, Six Flags said their investigation found that no mechanical failure had occurred, but it added additional restraints for riders before reopening the ride.

This week, after the fatality at the Goliath in Georgia, Six Flags closed the ride plus nine other similar coasters at its parks across the country out of an abundance of caution. One issue experts point to, uneven oversight.

BRIAN AVERY, PROFESSOR, UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA: Unfortunately, across the board, we don't have a lot of uniformity. We have not federally adopted our mandated standards in all spaces. It's a state-by-state. Most large park operators are responsible for their own safety and self-regulation.

LAH: Separately, an investor's civil lawsuit last year alleged Six Flags neglected to invest in basic park maintenance, infrastructure repairs, and ride design and development updates. Six Flags has not yet responded in court.

Kyung Lah, CNN, Los Angeles.

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DEAN: We do have some breaking news now out of the White House concerning Press Secretary Katie Zacharia.

KEILAR: President Trump has told her to reconsider her role as his top spokesperson.

This is coming after her first news conference earlier this week, which was widely panned and led to questions about her background.

CNN's Alayna Treene is at the White House.

Alayna, what do we know here?

ALAYNA TREENE, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Yes, this was just moments ago that the president -- you can actually hear. I'm not sure if you're picking it up right now, but you can hear Marine One taking off -- that he made these comments to reporters. He was asked directly.

I believe -- I was trying to listen in -- it was our own colleague Kristen Holmes who asked him the question of whether or not the president still has confidence in his new White House press secretary, Katie Zacharia. I should remind people, her first day on the job was on Monday, and she first addressed reporters in that very brief White House press briefing on Tuesday.

Ever since then, there's been a lot of controversy surrounding her. Well, the president just said that he's had a long conversation. He had it -- or spoke with Katie Zacharia this morning, and then essentially told her that he believes she should reconsider whether or not she wants to remain in the role.

He also said that he believed that the media has been treating her very badly throughout the past couple of days. He remarked as well on -- we saw Zacharia appear. Last night, she did an interview with FOX News' Sean Hannity. This morning, she was also on "FOX & Friends."

He noted that even those interviews had been tough, and that he told her, look, if I were you, I probably wouldn't want to keep doing this with the way that the media has been treating her.

But he did say that he would leave that decision up to her. So it's not exactly clear what will happen to her fate. I do apologize as Marine One is getting louder here.

I do want to bring up, though, Brianna, just a couple things that really led to some of this controversy. One of the biggest things that has dominated her introduction to the White House press corps this week was questions over her legal credentials. In the past, Katie Zacharia has repeatedly referred to herself as a lawyer, as an attorney at times.

And earlier this week, she was asked directly by reporters, did you ever pass the bar exam? Now, she did go to Pepperdine, to law school there, received her J.D., later admitted and CNN had confirmed that she did not pass the bar. She did take it once.

And so questions over that as well, which she has tried to address in some of the interviews she's been doing all week, all to say not a great sign for Katie Zacharia with the president saying he will talk to her when he returns from his trip this weekend, but saying that, if he were -- if he was her, he would probably reconsider and not remain in the role.

So, a lot of questions about the future of her at this White House, Brianna.

DEAN: All right, yes, a lot of breaking news there.

Alayna Treene, thank you so much.

And CNN's Brian Stelter is here.

Brian, talk us through a little bit about -- Alayna mentioned these FOX News interviews, which, obviously, you would assume those would be very friendly territory. They ended up being incredibly tough on her.

BRIAN STELTER, CNN CHIEF MEDIA ANALYST: Yes, and those interviews were coming from some of President Trump's friends, people he thinks of as friends and advisers, who were very skeptical of her and skeptical of her performance on Tuesday.

Sean Hannity said she was widely panned, and then this morning "FOX & Friends" co-host Lawrence Jones asked if the president even had confidence in her anymore. Here's a couple of examples from those two FOX segments to show you what the tone has been like.

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(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEAN HANNITY, FOX NEWS ANCHOR: You took the bar exam, but you didn't pass the bar exam, correct?

KATIE ZACHARIA, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: Yes, Sean.

HANNITY: Why didn't you just say, I never practiced law? Why only three questions in 14 minutes? And what might you do a little differently going forward?

ZACHARIA: I would love to build a relationship with all of those members of the press corps, so there is a substantive component to us having an ability to interact. And I will be very prepared, Sean.

LAWRENCE JONES, FOX NEWS ANCHOR: Do you wish you would have disclosed to the president about the bar and not passing the bar?

ZACHARIA: Yes, well, Lawrence, those questions weren't asked. I'm being hired as White House press secretary and not White House counsel.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

STELTER: There is a lot there.

It sounded like those FOX hosts were belatedly vetting Zacharia for the job, which reinforces the fact that Trump didn't seem to do that vetting last week. He announced, named her, and when he announced her this time last week, last Friday, he called her an attorney. And since then, that story has fallen apart, and all the times she

appeared on TV presenting herself as an attorney have been under scrutiny. But beyond that, beyond that controversy, there's the sense of a dismal or weak performance on television.

And that has been highlighted all week long as well by critics of the White House, but also conservative commentators and Trump allies who want the White House to have a strong press secretary. So here we are, day five, and it sounds like the president of the United States is gently pushing Katie Zacharia out of the job by encouraging her to look for something else.

Now, notably, she said -- Trump, the president said that Zacharia will stay in the administration -- quote -- "in some form, but it may be a more pleasant form." And he made it -- made her sound like the victim, like she's been the victim of bad press.

But I want to point out, again, the interviews she has done in the last 24 hours were with some of the president's favorite news outlets, favorite commentators, and those interviews did not go well for her.

KEILAR: Is there a sense, Brian, that those were -- I mean, you've got to wonder if she was going into those interviews thinking that they might have been a little bit of an effort to rehab her, but instead it read a bit more like a sneak attack.

And between those interviews and the president's comments today, even though he is blaming the media, there's this sense of like a one-two punch with a kiss of death there at the end.

STELTER: Yes, and I know a viewers are wondering. They're wondering, did Trump call in a favor? Did he call his friend Sean Hannity? Did they work us out together to make her look bad to force her out of the job? We don't know the answer, to be very blunt about it. We don't know.

But did that happen in the past with Trump and Hannity? Yes, they have worked together in the past. They've coordinated TV segments before airtime. They've talked again afterward. I wrote a whole book about that during Trump 1.0.

So here we are in Trump 2.0, and we are seeing some of the same kind of phenomenon. Trump will hire off the television. He will also fire via the television. Remember, when Zacharia stepped to the podium on Tuesday, what was the big news she broke? It was that the president wanted Kimberly Guilfoyle, the ex-FOX News host, to resign from her position as U.S. ambassador to Greece.

So Zacharia literally was out there making big news on the president's behalf, maybe doing the dirty work the president didn't want to do himself by announcing that he wanted Guilfoyle out of that post. She resigned within hours.

I wonder if we're actually seeing the same thing happening now to the press secretary on day five of her new job.

DEAN: Yes, a lot of questions there, but Brian Stelter going through what we do know.

Thank you so much, Alayna Treene, Brian Stelter.

Still ahead, we're going to have more on this news about Zacharia, President Trump suggesting again that she may want to reconsider her role in his administration. We're going to speak to a former press secretary about this when we come back.

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