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CNN Live Event/Special
Eight People Sharing Record Powerball Jackpot; The Nouveau Rich; California Execution Delayed
Aired February 22, 2006 - 10:59 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: Let's check on what's happening right "Now in the News."
Sectarian tensions are on the rise after the bombing of one of Iraq's most famous Shiite shrines. Authorities say a group of men dressed as Iraqi police commandos entered the Golden Mosque in Samarra and set of the explosives. The blast sent protesters into the streets and triggered attacks on Sunni targets. And it's drawing strong condemnation from Iraqi and American officials.
Iraqi politicians and the powerful Shiite cleric Grand Ayatollah al-Sistani are calling for a mourning period.
In California, another reprieve for convicted killer Michael Morales. The state has delayed his execution indefinitely amid concerns about constitutional issues involving California's lethal injection policy. The latest delay came last night about two hours before Morales was scheduled to be put to death.
In a case that has sparked shock and outrage, three Florida teenagers have entered not guilty pleas in what authorities believe was a string of attacks on homeless men. The suspects are charged with murder after one of the men died. They also face attempted murder charges in two other attacks.
A grim search goes on in a village in the Philippines. U.S. Marines are using a huge drill trying to reach a school buried in last week's mudslide. More than 240 students and their teachers were at the school when the mudslide hit. Officials fear the death toll in the village will top 1,000.
Good morning and welcome to CNN LIVE TODAY. Let's check some of the time around the world.
Just after 4:00 p.m. in Torino, Italy; just after 10:00 a.m. in Lincoln, Nebraska.
From CNN Center in Atlanta, I'm Daryn Kagan.
First up, get ready to meet the world's newest multimillionaire. Maybe millionaires. He, she, or they are about to claim that record- busting Powerball jackpot, all $365 million of it.
CNN's Jonathan Freed is standing by in Lincoln, Nebraska.
Jonathan, good morning. JONATHAN FREED, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Daryn.
That's right, in 29 minutes from now -- and I can verify that because I will check my watch again -- yes, in 29 minutes from now, somebody is going to join that very exclusive multimillionaire club, and that $365 million check, you know, the big one, the oversized one that they always hand out at these things is right over there under that red drape.
And at half-past the hour, we are told that the winner or winners -- they are still keeping that quite hush-hush -- are going to be brought out on stage. They'll explain the ground rules of how the news conference is going to work, and then the Q&A, the questions will begin. Ad all of that set to happen in about a half an hour from now.
Now, if they take -- if the winner or winners choose to take this prize in one lump sum, it comes out to $177 million. And after taxes, that comes out to about $124 million -- Daryn.
KAGAN: And any clues? Any rumors swirling around Lincoln about who the winners might be?
FREED: There are a lot of rumors. And the most persistent one is regarding a group of people that work at a plant right near where the convenience store where the ticket was purchased was.
KAGAN: Well, I guess we'll have to wait and see in a few minutes and let them announce and see the new millionaires for ourselves.
FREED: All right. Thanks.
KAGAN: Jonathan Freed, live in Lincoln, Nebraska.
You know we'll be going live back there when the winners are announced.
Meanwhile, three minutes past the hour, we move on to other news.
It is execution delayed twice in recent hours. California planned to put Michael Morales to death. Twice the penalty was not carried out. That's because the state couldn't find a doctor or nurse to take part in the execution as ordered by a federal judge.
Let's talk about this case with our senior legal analyst, Jeffrey Toobin, who is in New York this morning.
Jeffrey, good morning.
JEFFREY TOOBIN, CNN SR. LEGAL ANALYST: Hi, Daryn.
KAGAN: A most unusual situation with the death penalty this time in California.
TOOBIN: You know, Daryn, only lawyers could come up with a system that is designed to find a safe and effective manner of killing someone. I mea, that's the paradox at the heart of this case, which is the legal system wants someone killed but they want to do it in a kind of way that doesn't offend their sensibilities. And what they're learning is that through many years of American history, through hanging, through electrocution, through the gas chamber, and now with lethal injection, there are problems with killing someone in what the legal system regards as a humane way.
KAGAN: As I understand it, the Supreme Court has never found any method of execution to be unconstitutional.
TOOBIN: No, but they have set down standards for punishment that do not allow a state to simply kill somebody any way. The judges aren't making this up as they go along. The judges are applying general standards about treatment of prisoners that the Supreme Court has established, but those -- those standards are somewhat vague.
One of the famous articulations of that standard is, you know, consistent with the values of a maturing society. Well, what does that mean exactly? And judges are struggling.
And this judge near San Quentin has been trying essentially to micromanage here and force doctors to gets get involved and become essentially participants in the execution. And the anesthesiologists said, look, that's a violation of our Hippocratic Oath. We're not going to participate. And that's why there's this standoff now.
KAGAN: Well, and talk about pain, the concern of pain for the man who has the death penalty, what about the pain for the victim's family? A young woman killed in the early '80s, raped and left to die out in the woods.
TOOBIN: Twenty-five years ago this crime took place, 23 years ago Morales was sentenced to death, yet here we are with no end in sight to this legal drama. I mean, California is the capital of death penalty -- death penalty delays.
There are 649 people on death row in California. And since 1978, 15 people have been executed. That -- if you dot math, that shows that the vast majority of those people will die of old age. The victim's families will continue to suffer decade after decade without a resolution.
It seems -- however you feel about the death penalty, the situation in California is totally unacceptable. Either execute these people, get them off death row. But this lingering uncertainty seems the worst of all possible worlds for everyone involved.
KAGAN: And so where does the case stand? And could it have an impact on other death penalty cases across the country?
TOOBIN: It really could because death penalty opponents are pointing out that the current method of executing people involves use a three-dug cocktail. One of those drugs has been banned from veterinarians using it to put dogs and cats to sleep because it's too painful.
That's a problem. Judges are having a problem approving that for use in executing prisoners.
What seems likely to happen is that there may be some new cocktail used that is more satisfactory to the legal system, but that is untested at this point, uncertain, and all of that means more time.
In terms of the Morales case, the hearing itself is set to begin in May, but that could be delayed. And even if it does finish in May, that will be subject to a new round of appeals. So the Morales case is going to be unresolved for months and months more to come.
KAGAN: Jeffrey Toobin, thank you for your input.
TOOBIN: OK, Daryn. See you.
KAGAN: This just in to CNN, news out of the Naval Academy. The Naval Academy, according to The Associated Press is announcing that Lamar Owens, their quarterback, the quarterback of the 2005 football squad for Navy, has been charged with rape and raping a female midshipman last month in her dormitory room.
They have not released the name of the victim, as would be customary. They are also saying that since the alleged incident took place on academy grounds, Owens was charged under the Uniform Code of Military Justice and the investigation is being held by the Naval Criminal Investigation Service.
So, once again, Lamar Owens, the quarterback of Navy's 2005 football squad, has been charged with raping a female midshipman. And that alleged incident taking place last month in her dormitory room.
More on that from The Associated Press as it is available.
The storm brewing over the management of some major U.S. ports is pitting President Bush against members of his own party. Republican leaders want to put the agreement for an Arab company to run six U.S. seaports on hold. The president threatens to veto any legislation that would block the deal.
On CNN's "AMERICAN MORNING," The White House counselor said port security is not in jeopardy.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DAN BARTLETT, WHITE HOUSE COUNSELOR: It's a pretty natural reaction that the first thing you see, the first headline you read, or the first thing you see on the icon across the bottom of the cable screen is to say, "Arab country to take over ports." And I think it would make anybody pause and want to have more information, more greater understanding of this transaction.
And it's critically important for your viewers to understand that port security in the United States of America is charged to the United States Coast Guard and the United States Customs Office. That hasn't changed by this deal. Every port in America is the responsibility of the United States government, and that will not change.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KAGAN: If the major concern about port security is -- the port agreement is security, then experts say there are already gaps in the existing system. If the concern is foreign management, well, that ship has already sailed.
Homeland Security Correspondent Jeanne Meserve has a reality check about protecting the nation's ports.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JEANNE MESERVE, CNN HOMELAND SECURITY CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Though ports are the major arteries of the American economy, the vast majority of their facilities are already operated by foreigners.
In Los Angeles, for instance, the nation's busiest port, all seven container terminals are leased to companies from China, Taiwan, Japan, Singapore and Denmark. But most experts don't lose sleep over that.
STEWART VERDERY, ADJUNCT FELLOW, CENTER FOR STRATEGIC AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES HOMELAND SECURITY PROGRAM: Remember, no matter who owns the port, whether it's a foreign government, a foreign company, a U.S. company, or U.S. government, it is Customs and Border Protection, federal agents, who do the inspections. It's the Coast Guard, federal agents, who do the patrolling of the -- of the -- of the waterways. It's the FBI and the rest of our apparatus that does criminal and terrorist investigations.
MESERVE: More worrisome to security experts are the nine million cargo containers that arrive in U.S. ports every year. Eighty percent of cargo is screened in foreign ports before shipment to the U.S., but the quality of the screening is inconsistent.
The cargo manifests of all ships are analyzed at the National Targeting Center to determine which containers should be opened or X- rayed, typically around 6 or 7 percent.
But nobody, including the former commandant of the Coast Guard, thinks the system is failsafe.
ADMIRAL JAMES LOY (RET.), U.S. COAST GUARD: I certainly cannot sit here and assure you that all the information we think we need to lock up the notion of security of our ports is now being flowing -- is now flowing day after day after day into the National Targeting Center for its use. So, that -- that is work still to be finished.
MESERVE: Technology that could detect cargo tampering is still in the development phase, as is an electronic card system to verify the identities of the thousands of people who work at ports or drive through them.
VERDERY: There has been a lot of in-fighting about whether these should be centrally produced or locally produced. Should they have biometrics, these kind of things? And it seems it has fallen off the radar screen. MESERVE: And though the Coast Guard has seen increases in its budget, few experts think it has what it needs to track threats and respond to them over, on, or under the water.
LOY: I will never be a commandant, ex or otherwise, that sits and tells you that -- that that terrific service has everything that it needs. It does not.
MESERVE: But some think the current fury could refocus attention and resources on security questions above and beyond who owns the real estate.
Jeanne Meserve, CNN, Washington.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KAGAN: Three Ohio men are in custody charged with plotting to kill U.S. troops in Iraq. One of the suspects is also accused of threatening to kill President Bush.
CNN's Alina Cho reports from -- excuse me -- from Toledo, Ohio, where all three men lived within the last year..
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ALINA CHO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: The 12-page indictment unsealed here in Ohio yesterday is quite detailed. It's essentially a timeline and says these three men were planning a holy war, targeting U.S. troops in Iraq.
(voice over): The three suspects allegedly began plotting the attacks 15 months ago.
ALBERTO GONZALES, ATTORNEY GENERAL: The folks had the motivation, and I think that they demonstrated that they had the means.
CHO: One of the men, 26-year-old Mohammad Zaki Amawi, is accused of verbally threatening to kill or injure President Bush. His younger brother, who spoke to CNN in silhouette, said Amawi was all talk, that he wasn't against the president, just U.S. foreign policy in Iraq.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He said doesn't like, you know, the war. And he was against the war. You know, that's why he said that.
CHO: The federal indictment unsealed Tuesday said Amawi and two others, Marwan Othman El-Hindi and Wassim Mazloum, had detailed plans to enter Iraq to wage a holy war against U.S. forces there. The men allegedly tried to set up terrorist training camps. The indictment said Amawi conducted target practice at a Toledo indoor shooting range, that the men downloaded videos like this one showing how to make and use suicide bomb vests, that they discussed how to build improvised explosive devices, that they even talked with an informant about practicing setting off explosives on July 4 when fireworks would mask the noise. All three men lived in Toledo, Ohio, within the past year. One of them allegedly used his Toledo car business as a cover to travel in and out of Iraq.
The three suspects pleaded not guilty in Ohio courtrooms Tuesday. A lawyer for one of the men, El-Hindi, said his client has never been a part of anything to undermine the U.S. at home or abroad. Amawi's family said he left for Amman, Jordan, seven months ago to set up an Internet cafe and find a wife. They called Amawi a nice guy who cries at movies and wouldn't hurt a bird.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He probably talks too much. Maybe that's what the problem is. You know?
CHO (on camera): The government would not say how far along these men allegedly were in planning these attacks or if an attack was imminent. Federal authorities would only say in a post-9/11 world the U.S. must remain vigilant in the war on terror.
Alina Cho, CNN, Toledo, Ohio.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KAGAN: CNN "Security Watch" keeps you up to date on safety. Stay tuned day and night for the most reliable news about your security.
Parents worry, that one's a fact of life. But imagine worrying that a roadside bomb could explode on your child's trip to school. That's what life is like in Iraq. And yet, life goes on and the war continues.
More on that coming up.
And later, two boys, one gun, and a secret pact between friends. This is a story about safety that you will want to share at the dinner table tonight.
Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KAGAN: To Iraq now. A blast at a mosque is pumping tensions today between Shiites and Sunnis. Thousands of Iraqis flooded the streets of Baghdad today, angry over the attack in the northern town of Samarra.
Authorities say men dressed as police commandos set off an explosion that heavily damaged the gold dome of the revered Shiite shrine today. The Golden Mosque is one of Shia Islam's holiest sites. It holds the remains of two 9th century imams said to be descendants of the Prophet Mohammed.
Iraqi politicians and the powerful Shiite cleric Grand Ayatollah Sistani have declared a mourning period.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PRES. JALAL TALABANI, IRAQ: (SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KAGAN: The constant violence has made life's daily chores and routines risky business for Iraqis. CNN's Arwa Damon looks at how one family is coping.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ARWA DAMON, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Ask carpenter Nassir Najeeb what he's thinking. He may look like he's focused on building a door, but his mind is somewhere else.
NASSIR NAJEEB, CARPENTER (through translator): I wonder if my kids made it to school. I worry about my family's safety, even at home, how to get around. It's not so much living in fear, but we feel that danger is all around us.
DAMON: The power is out as usual. On average, most of Baghdad gets a few hours of electricity a day. Najeeb used to work on the sidewalk outside his shop and enjoyed the sunshine, but these days, only goes out when necessary.
NAJEEB (through translator): Now I wait for the household needs to pile up and I go myself. I go shopping to spare my kids, because an explosion can happen at any moment. I don't feel safe at work. And I don't feel safe walking home.
DAMON: Najeeb's fears were reinforced when a suicide bomber detonated himself in front of a bank. Najeeb was just meters away.
NAJEEB (through translator): I saw them lifting chunks of flesh of people who are brothers from rooftops, from sides of building.
DAMON: The mood at home is gloomy. Three years of violence is wearing the family down. But like other parents, Najeeb and his wife keep on their kids about their studies.
NAJEEB (through translator): Pull yourself together. You need to concentrate daily. If you study, you'll find the questions easy.
DAMON: Just getting to school is the hard part.
NAJEEB (through translator): Across the main road as fast as possible. Stay away from crowds. Just rush home from school.
DAMON (on camera): Most of the world does not think twice about a trip to the grocery store for milk or stopping by the bank. But Iraqis like Nassir Najeeb ask themselves if a loaf of bread is really worth the risk.
(voice over): But people have to take risks. And shop owner Moyaed al-Hassani (ph) has to make a living.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): This whole area is just patrol. So it's targeted 24 hours.
DAMON: His store is across from one of Baghdad's prime insurgent targets, the Green Zone, and between two Iraqi checkpoints.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): The glass here I had to replace like three or four times and then I finally gave up. I left plywood and aluminum instead, and I fixed the roof three times.
DAMON: And he says that's the last time he will fix his shop. Like other Iraqis, he has learned to accept that even the simplest things in life are not so easy anymore.
Arwa Damon, CNN, Baghdad.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KAGAN: Coming up, bringing Alaska's resources to the Midwest. We'll tell you about that plan.
And remember when the president said we're addicted to oil? See how his plan to change adds up in dollars and cents.
And later this hour, whoever it is, they have 365 million reasons to quit their jobs today. So will they do it? We expect to hear from the newest Powerball winner or winners for the first time in a few minutes here live on CNN.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KAGAN: We are standing by. In about five minutes, we expect to hear from the new lottery winner, Powerball, $365 million. It might be winners. In any case, there are plural dollars here. And perhaps Susan Lisovicz has some investment advice from the New York Stock Exchange.
(STOCK MARKET REPORT)
KAGAN: Right now we're going to check out weather. And Jacqui Jeras has that for us.
(WEATHER REPORT)
KAGAN: And this just in to CNN. More news out of Iraq about the destruction of the Golden Mosque, that sacred Shiite site.
For that, let's go to our Aneesh Raman standing by in Baghdad -- Aneesh.
ANEESH RAMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Daryn, good morning.
Tensions here rising by the hour after this morning's attack. CNN has now confirmed from Iraqi police that in the aftermath of the attack, some 27 Sunni mosques in the capital alone came under attack. Also, three Sunni imams were killed.
We also understand from residents in Baghdad that the Mehdi militia -- those are the armed men loyal to Shia cleric Muqtada al- Sadr, who today went out in to the streets in hundreds, were going door to door, asking the head of each household to come to the front, place their hand on the Koran and swear they had nothing to do with the attack that took place at the Escaria (ph) mosque in Samarra.
This follows reprisal attacks in the southern city of Basra, where gunfights broke out today amid massive demonstrations between a Shia militia there and Sunni politicians.
And Daryn, this is the big fear, is the rise in terms of the prospect of civil war, the continual rise in sectarian strife. The Shia community that had been long been oppressed for decades under Saddam Hussein had been showing incredible restraint in the now almost three years since the war, where they have been bearing the brunt of near daily insurgent attacks, largely Sunni-dominated insurgency explicitly targeting the Sunni community. But many today are saying their patience is wearing thing, and the fear is that this one event itself might be the breaking point -- Daryn.
KAGAN: Aneesh Raman, live in Baghdad.
Thank you.
And they're also watching this and these developments from the White House. And Suzanne Malveaux joins us for more on that -- Suzanne.
SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Daryn, Scott McClellan, the press secretary, reacting to all of this going on, that attack against the Shiite mosque earlier today, saying, and I'm quoting here, "On behalf of the American people, the president extends our deepest condolences for the people in Iraq for the brutal attack on one of Iraq's holiest sites, one of the holiest of the sites of Shia Islam. The United States condemns this cowardly act in the strongest possible terms. The terrorist continue to show that they are enemies of all faiths and all humanity. He goes on to say as well, that the United States is ready and willing to help Iraqi people to bring them to justice, those guilty of this.
I also asked him as well about those follow-up attacks on the Sunni mosque. Was their concern that there would be civil war, this strike between the Sunnis and the Shiites. Mcclellan saying earlier today. He says, "I think that our message would be that we urge all Iraqis to show restraint in the wake of this tragedy and to pursue justice in accordance with the laws and the constitution of Iraq."
So, Daryn, you can imagine, everyone paying very close attention to the developments there. Very worrisome.
KAGAN: Indeed. Suzanne Malveaux, thank you.
And now we're going to lighten things up and make some dreams come true. We go live to Nebraska, the presentation of the Powerball winners.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: First off, I'd like to introduce you to some of the people who make the Nebraska Lottery function. We have Nebraska state tax commissioner, Mary Jane Egger(ph).
(INAUDIBLE)
And Nebraska Lottery acting director, Jim Haynes (ph).
(INAUDIBLE)
And we, as the lottery, want to say thank you to the Cornhusker staff and facilities, because they did a great job turning this place around. They had a breakfast in here until 9:00 this morning, and then got everything set up and ready to go for us shortly after 10:00. So thanks to the Cornhusker Marriott Hotel for their help this morning.
And now it is my pleasure to introduce the governor of the great state of Nebraska, the honorable Dave Heineman.
GOV. DAVE HEINEMAN, NEBRASKA: Thank you, Tom. As you mentioned this $365 million jackpot is the largest lottery prize ever awarded, and I'm pleased to say that this jackpot was won right here in Lincoln, Nebraska.
(APPLAUSE)
Unfortunately, none of us sitting or standing right here are the winners!
(LAUGHTER)
Over the years, the Nebraska Lottery has quietly raised more than $244 million for K-12 education and the environment. I'm pleased to have this opportunity to meet this lucky group of hard-working Nebraskans and present them with their share of these winnings, although all this national attention may have diminished the surprise.
Ladies and gentlemen, life just got a bit more interesting for eight Nebraskans. Tom...
(APPLAUSE)
Tom, if you would, please introduce the winners of the nation's largest jackpot ever, so that we can present them with their winnings.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: All right, ladies and gentlemen. First off, our first individual is Michael Terpstrom (ph).
Michael, come on down.
(APPLAUSE)
Our second individual is Wang Dow (ph).
(APPLAUSE)
And we're happy to introduce Rob Stewart.
(APPLAUSE)
Chastity Rutjens.
(APPLAUSE)
Our next winner is Alan Muboso (ph).
(APPLAUSE)
Next, Dung Tran.
(APPLAUSE)
He bought the ticket, folks! He's the one that bought the ticket!
(APPLAUSE)
And we have two left, Eric Zornes.
(APPLAUSE)
And our final of the group, David Gailey (ph).
Three of these individuals actually went to work last night and got up this morning at 6:30. How about -- David was one. Now, let's make the presentation of the big check.
Wang, do you want to step out here, sir? You can be with the governor.
Jim Haynes, Mary Jane Egger.
(APPLAUSE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We want to see it, too!
(LAUGHTER)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Each of the individuals will receive a check, not quite this big, for themselves.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Smile, brother. You heard me.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Turn it around.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We need a trailer.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Here you go, guys.
(LAUGHTER)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: All right, Governor Heineman, we want to thank you for being with us this morning and taking time out of your schedule and being with us this morning. Thank you, sir.
HEINEMAN: You bet. Thank you very much.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Now we're going to have a little bit of fun with these individuals, because they did take the lump sum, which is $124.1 million. Each one will get a pretty good chunk of change. And we have a small check which Mary Jane and Jim Haynes will bring up and present to the individuals.
We first have Michael Terpstrom.
(APPLAUSE)
Wang Dow.
(APPLAUSE)
Rob Stewart.
(APPLAUSE)
The governor is inviting them over for dinner.
(LAUGHTER)
Chastity Rutjens.
(APPLAUSE)
Alan Muboso.
(APPLAUSE)
Dung Tran.
(APPLAUSE)
We didn't forget you Eric. We didn't forget you.
Eric Zornes.
(APPLAUSE)
And last, but not least, David Gailey.
Thank you, governor. Thank you, Jim. Thank you, Mary Jane.
Ladies and gentlemen, these are the winners of the $365 million Powerball jackpot.
(APPLAUSE)
KAGAN: Well, It looks like they're getting a photo opportunity in here now, but we're getting a better idea of who won the largest jackpot in U.S. lottery history. Eight people, we believe they're coworkers, although we haven't really had a chance to hear from them, because they're so...
ZORNES: Oh, yes.
QUESTION: Can you describe discovering that you were the winner? Can you go through that for us?
ZORNES: Well, I probably couldn't say the words here, but...
(LAUGHTER)
ZORNES: You got to be kidding me!
QUESTION: Were you at home?
ZORNES: Yes, I was at home, return trip from the casino when I lost.
QUESTION: What time was it?
ZORNES: Roughly 1:00 in the morning. My wife wrote the numbers down and left them on my chair there.
QUESTION: Did you have any idea you won?
ZORNES: Oh, yes. It didn't take long to look at them tickets and pick that number out.
QUESTION: How many tickets did you buy?
ZORNES: There was probably 48 total on that piece of paper.
QUESTION: You are you in a pool regularly, like weekly?
ZORNES: Oh yes, for five years at least.
QUESTION: What did your wife tell you?
ZORNES: Oh, she was sleeping. I had to wake 'em all up. It didn't take much. Around 1:00 in the morning.
(LAUGHTER)
QUESTION: She found that you won and she went to sleep?
ZORNES: No. It was party time.
I tried. No one seemed to answer their phones or messages.
QUESTION: For those of us who haven't retired yet, can you tell us what your four days of retirement have been like and what you anticipate your life to be like?
ZORNES: It's been hell for the last four days.
QUESTION: In what way?
ZORNES: Oh, you just trying to get all of these people in the same room, and trying to agree on things and hiding from you guys.
(LAUGHTER)
ZORNES: We probably ate breakfast with you a couple of times but you didn't know that.
(LAUGHTER)
ZORNES: Oh, yes, that's in the plans. It's in the works.
QUESTION: Take a little bit of stress off?
ZORNES: Oh, yes.
QUESTION: Any big purchases?
ZORNES: Undecided right now.
QUESTION: Are you from Lincoln area?
ZORNES: Yes, I am.
(APPLAUSE)
ZORNES: Born and raised.
QUESTION: Are you staying in Lincoln?
ZORNES: Undecided. Undecided. Undecided right now. Good possibility.
No, she never knew I even had them.
QUESTION: What did she leave you on the chair?
ZORNES: Just the numbers. She had her own numbers.
Excuse me?
QUESTION: Are you going to share the prize with the people in the convenience store?
ZORNES: I can't tell you.
QUESTION: Did any of you guys come back in the store after you knew you won and everybody was there?
ZORNES: Not to my knowledge.
QUESTION: Eric, who held on to the ticket the last four days? How did the custody battle start?
ZORNES: Shall I tell them? No, it was done the whole time the guy who originally purchased them.
QUESTION: Can you step up?
ZORNES: So I'm done.
(LAUGHTER)
QUESTION: Dung, how long have you been in the United States?
DUNG TRAN, LOTTERY WINNER: Sixteen years.
QUESTION: Sixteen years.
TRAN: Yes.
QUESTION: Did you come from Vietnam?
TRAN: Yes.
QUESTION: Were you a refugee?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He asked you if you came as a refugee.
TRAN: Yes. Yes.
QUESTION: What does it mean to you to win this kind of money now that you're in the United States?
QUESTION: What was your job?
TRAN: Mechanic.
QUESTION: How long did you work there?
TRAN: About 15 years.
QUESTION: Do you have family here?
TRAN: Yes.
QUESTION: Are you married?
TRAN: Yes.
QUESTION: You have children?
TRAN: Yes.
(LAUGHTER)
I got children.
QUESTION: How many children?
TRAN: One.
QUESTION: Is your child in college now?
TRAN: No. Only a little boy.
(LAUGHTER)
TRAN: That OK.
QUESTION: How do you feel about winning?
TRAN: I happy.
QUESTION: What do you plan to do with your money?
TRAN: Stop working, stay with my wife and my kid, and play a little basketball again.
QUESTION: Are you going back to Vietnam?
TRAN: No. I want to stay here.
QUESTION: You want to stay here?
TRAN: Yes.
(APPLAUSE)
QUESTION: Who is your favorite convenience store clerk?
(LAUGHTER)
TRAN: I remember her. I don't forgot her.
(LAUGHTER)
QUESTION: Did you have any premonition in mind? Did you have a dream or anything? Was there any kind of...
TRAN: I don't know for -- only lucky.
QUESTION: Is this your boy in the back of the room?
TRAN: No.
QUESTION: Tell us what you're going to do with your life now with all this money.
TRAN: I don't know.
QUESTION: When did you find out?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: How did you know?
TRAN: For when?
Saturday night about 12:30.
QUESTION: Did you watch the news to find out?
TRAN: No, I called on the phone.
QUESTION: What did you think? Did you scream?
TRAN: I don't know.
QUESTION: Did you call your other pool members?
TRAN: Yes.
QUESTION: Did they believe you?
TRAN: Nobody answered, only sleeping.
QUESTION: Were you worried about holding on to the ticket for the last couple of days?
TRAN: Yes, I hold the ticket. But I can't sleep. I scared, too.
QUESTION: What did you do with it until you gave it to the lottery official?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Where was the ticket? where was it? go on. Show them.
TRAN: Inside. I don't know how to say that! I hide somewhere!
(LAUGHTER)
QUESTION: Have you ever changed clothes since you bought the ticket?
TRAN: Yes.
QUESTION: Have you quite your job yet?
TRAN: I intend to go back for work, and then later I quit.
QUESTION: You'll quit later today?
TRAN: Not yet.
QUESTION: We think you're doing an excellent job in English, but our network has arrange for a simultaneous translator. And if you would feel comfortable of saying a few words in your language, perhaps (INAUDIBLE) to your family and friends, you can tell us now when you realized that you had the winning ticket. Was it...
QUESTION: Say hello to Vietnam.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: He wants you to speak in Vietnamese. They're translating. Tell them about when you noticed you got the winning ticket, in Vietnamese. They've got someone translating.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Better if you ask him a question.
TRAN: Talk Vietnamese?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.
TRAN (through translator): I've been working for 16 years. Every day I had to go to work. And I bought the lottery to try to make more money.
(APPLAUSE)
TRAN: I got to say thank you for anybody.
(APPLAUSE)
QUESTION; How did this whole pool come about? Can you explain the process?
CHASTITY RUTJENS, LOTTERY WINNER: I haven't been in it very long. This is my third entry in this pool.
(APPLAUSE)
QUESTION: How does it work?
RUTJENS: Well, from I guess about $40, $45 million, they start pooling together, and everybody chips in $5, and we make photocopies and write down everybody's names who contributed.
I don't know yet.
Yes.
KAGAN: It's the top of the hour. This is CNN. And we're listening in, in Lincoln, Nebraska. These are the eight winners of the Powerball jackpot, the largest lottery jackpot in U.S. history.
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