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CNN Headlines: Fast-Growing, Uncontained Fire Forcing Thousands To Flee Reno; Jurors Hear Recordings Of Duane Davis Discussing Night of 1996 Tupac Shakur Shooting; Closing Arguments Set To Begin This Week In Lindsay Clancy Case. Aired 5:30-6a ET
Aired August 24, 2026 - 05:30 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
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[05:30:50]
BRAD SMITH, CNN ANCHOR: It is half past the hour. Let's hit the refresh button on our top stories.
The military is saying this morning that it struck an alleged drug trafficking boat in the eastern Pacific on Sunday and that two people were killed in the strike. This is the first known strike since June 21. Before then the military had destroyed at least 67 vessels and killed at least 221 people since the campaign began almost one year ago.
Also President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump, along with spectators of thousands -- they watched Kyle Kirkwood win the IndyCar Freedom 250 Grand Prix in Washington, D.C. The race cars -- they reached speeds up to 180 miles per hour as they took 147 laps through the heart of the nation's capital. It was all part of America's 250th anniversary celebrations.
And firefighters are battling a fast-moving wildfire burning near Reno, Nevada. The Hawk fire started Saturday and exploded in size yesterday, scorching roughly 15,000 acres. Nearly 90,000 people -- they have been urged to evacuate.
Our Reed Benyon has more.
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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: As always, Life safety, and firefighter safety is going to be our number one priority.
REED BENYON, CNN REPORTER (voiceover): Crews in Nevada are racing to contain a massive wildfire that started over the weekend.
CHIEF COREY SOLFERINO, RENO POLICE DEPARTMENT: We just recently finished containment on another one. That one was more in our rural communities. This is coming within the city of Reno and it's densely populated.
BENYON (voiceover): The Hawk fire in northwest Reno started Saturday. But Sunday evening it had exploded in size, growing to roughly 15,000 acres according to officials. Timelapse video from across the border in California showing just how fast the blaze spread. Authorities say the fire was human-caused but there's no indication yet that it was intentionally set.
As of Sunday night, 90,000 residents had been urged to evacuate with 42,000 under mandatory evacuation orders by Sunday afternoon, according to officials. Hundreds of people spending the night in an evacuation shelter at the Reno-Sparks Convention center with support coming from the Red Cross.
Meanwhile, people also coming together to offer support in Hawaii, bracing for Tropical Storm Moke, which made its closest approach to Hawaii Sunday and is now a tropical depression. The biggest threat, rainfall hitting the same places that flooded last weekend when Hurricane Lala tore a deadly path through parts of the islands.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We're praying that we're going to be covered and it won't hit us.
BENYON (voiceover): A flood watch is in effect for the Big Island through Monday afternoon.
I'm Reed Benyon reporting.
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SMITH: Thank you, Reed.
Dramatic video inside a Florida hospital -- it captures the moments that an Ecuadorian mother and daughter were detained by ICE following a car crash. We want to warn you that it is difficult to watch.
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Ecuadorian mother and daughter begin detained by ICE in hospital after car crash.
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SMITH: Authorities claim they were allegedly living in the U.S. illegally. A GoFundMe page set up by a relative disputes that, saying the mom was a pending asylum case and a work permit while her daughter's visa is valid through 2030. CNN cannot independently verify that information. The Homeland Security Department tells CNN that both women entered the country legally but allegedly overstayed the periods of legal admission.
Well, a pilot in Florida was forced to crash her twin-engine plane into the ocean after experiencing engine trouble. The scene was captured on video by beachgoers.
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Pilot crashing plane in the ocean.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What the?
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SMITH: The pilot was uninjured and says she felt it was safer to land in the water than try to navigate buildings along the coast. One witness agreed with her.
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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I don't know. It just kind of came in low and just -- I didn't think -- I was like is it going to go for the beach or is it going to go for the water, and they went for the shallow water, which I think is kind of smart.
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[05:35:00]
SMITH: The 23-year-old pilot, Faith Tenkley, says that the plane belongs to her family and she was on her way to the Bahamas to pick them up.
Week two in the Tupac Shakur murder trial begins today as Duane "Keffe D" Davis is the only person ever charged in the hip-hop legend's death. Davis shocked the court Friday by scolding the prosecutor over the investigation.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DUANE "KEFFE D" DAVIS, DEFENDANT: They keep giving out my address. They broke in my house, vandalized my house, vandalized my wife's car, you know what I'm saying? Because they keep giving out our address. Now they gave out my sister's address. This stuff is wrong.
JUDGE CARLI KIERNEY, CLARK COUNTY DISTRICT COURT: I've heard it's going on both ways. That there's -- that there's concerns both ways.
DAVIS: Yeah. Well, they're wrong.
KIERNEY: I've admonished them to --
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SMITH: Davis also alleged that his family is getting threatened and harassed. Prosecutors dismissed those claims.
And CNN's Josh Campbell has more for us.
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JOSH CAMPBELL, CNN SENIOR CORRESPONDENT: Week one of the trial of the man accused of taking part in the murder of legendary rapper Tupak Shakur is complete and the star witness, so far, the defendant's own words. Duane Davis has pleaded not guilty to allegations that he helped orchestrate Shakur's killing. In a 2008 police interview prosecutors played for the jury, Davis claimed the shooting of Shakur and rap producer Suge Knight near the Las Vegas Strip nearly 30 years ago was done out of retribution. Davis said his nephew, Orlando "Baby Lane" Anderson, had been beaten up earlier that night by Shakur's entourage. Hours later, Davis, Baby Lane, and two others spotted Shakur and Knight driving and pulled up alongside.
OFFICER: You did a U-turn, so then you pulled alongside of it. You guys are in the car. So you hand the gun to the backseat?
DAVIS: Yeah. I gave it to Dre and Dre was like no, no, no. And Lake's like give it here.
OFFICER: OK. Lane starts blasting. And you say Suge looks over and he sees you.
DAVIS: Yeah. I seen a bullet going to Suge's head and I thought he was dead. I thought he was dead. He must have scraped him or something in the head or something.
OFFICER: So Tupac's trying to jump in the backseat, and what's Suge doing? Just ducking?
DAVIS: Ducking. He couldn't really duck because he was too big, you know?
CAMPBELL: A Las Vegas medical examiner testified about the wounds Shakur received.
DR. LISA GAVIN, CLARK COUNTY MEDICAL EXAMINER AND FORENSIC PATHOLOGIST: He died of gunshot wounds of chest and abdomen.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And do you have an opinion as to the manner of death?
GAVIN: Yes.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And what is that?
GAVIN: Homicide.
CAMPBELL: The jury also viewed video clips from a 2018 documentary entitled "DEATH ROW CHRONICLES." Davis was interviewed for the show and provided a moment-by-moment explanation of how the shooting happened while a recreated dramatization was displayed on screen.
DAVIS: When we pulled up, I was in the front seat. I happened to see my friend, Suge.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You said the shots came from the back. Big Dre, Orlando. Who shot Tupac?
DAVIS: Going to keep it for the code of the streets. It just came from the backseat, bro. CAMPBELL: In his police interview, Davis also claimed that disgraced
rapper Sean "Diddy" Combs offered a $1 million bounty to have Shakur and Knight killed -- allegations that Combs has repeatedly denied. He has not been charged in connection with this case.
Now, despite past comments by Davis describing his role in the shooting, he and his attorney now claim he made it all up and was merely trying to make money off of his stories. Of course, the major question that will decide his fate, which version of the story will the jury ultimately believe. The trial is expected to last several more weeks.
Back to you.
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SMITH: All right. Next up on CNN HEADLINE EXPRESS, Dolly Parton is speaking out about recent health challenges -- some that have caused her to cancel appearances. What's she's saying straight ahead.
Plus, what it takes to move an entire castle. We're going to show you on the other side of the break. Stay with us.
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[05:43:25]
SMITH: In the Lindsay Clancy murder trial, closing arguments are set to begin this week. Clancy is the Massachusetts mom who has admitted to killing her three young children, but her defense argues that she was in the midst of postpartum psychosis.
CNN's Brynn Gingras gets us caught up.
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BRYNN GINGRAS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: So before the defense rested maybe their most important witness the stand, Phillip Resnick, a forensic psychiatrist. Now, he basically has made an entire career testifying in high-profile murder cases. We're talking about the Unabomber. We're talking about Casey Anthony, Andrea Yates.
Of course, that name probably draws the most similarity to the Lindsay Clancy case. In fact, the defense submitted his resume -- 40 pages long -- top the jury almost to say to them, listen, you need to listen to the testimony of this witness because he essentially testified that Lindsay was going through a psychotic break during the time that she killed her children back in January 2023, and that is the crux of the defense's case.
I want you to hear what he testified to juror -- what he said.
DR. PHILLIP RESNICK, FORENSIC PSYCHIATRIST: She had what is known as a delusion of influence. That is, not only did she hear a command, but she felt that her body was taken over by an external force where she was in a dream state and did not have control of her own body. It was almost like she was a puppet and someone else was pulling the strings.
[05:45:05]
GINGRAS: And when it was the prosecution's turn to cross-examine Resnick, essentially, they continued to try to poke holes into the defense's case, of course, but basically questioning why if, you know, Linsday was hearing voices or she was receiving these commands, how come there was no documents -- of that in any of her medical records? How come she didn't tell anybody that -- any doctors, therapists -- any of the medical professionals that she got help from? How come they never wrote that down?
So that is a continuing theme that we have heard from the prosecution's case and certainly that was something that they tried to bring out of this witness as well.
OK, here's where we stand on this trial. The prosecution ended Friday with a rebuttal witness. The defense was cross-examining by the time the day was over but we're expecting the prosecution to calla t least two more rebuttal witnesses before this entire trial wraps up. And then, of course, you have closing arguments, and then the jury should get the case. So we do expect all of that to happen at the start of next week and the jury might have this case in their hands as early as Tuesday and maybe even Wednesday.
Brynn Gingras, CNN, New York.
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SMITH: All right. Thank you, Brynn.
Well, years before Natalie Harp became a key White House aide, she was showing her zealous support of the president on social media. On January 6, 2021, she flooded her Twitter feed with posts that were urging Republicans to fight for Trump as rioters stormed the Capitol.
CNN's Isabelle Chapman and Andrew Kaczynski reviewed Harp's now- removed account on X. Isabelle spoke to my colleague Erica Hill about what they uncovered.
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ISABELLE CHAPMAN, CNN REPORTER/PRODUCER: In the last week or so, there has been a lot of attention focused on the president's aide, Natalie Harp. And that's in part because Sen. Jon Ossoff invoked her when criticizing the president but also because of the administration's pushback when it defended her role in the White House. Her consistent proximity to the president and her loyalty has stood out even among Trump's devoted inner circle.
We wanted to get a sense of how far back this devotion to Trump extended and we learned a lot in examining Harp's now-suspended Twitter feed which goes back many years.
What was particularly interesting was a series of posts related to the events of January 6, 2021, the day Trump supporters broke into the U.S. Capitol while Congress worked to certify that Joe Biden was the winner of the 2020 presidential election. More than 150 tweets that have since been deleted. It's unclear if X deleted those posts or if Harp did. But these posts offer a public display of fealty before, during and after the Capitol riot.
At the time, Harp was working as a conservative news anchor, but she continuously praised those fighting to keep Trump in office and repeatedly cast him in heroic terms.
ERICA HILL, CNN ANCHOR AND NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: So what exactly did she say about the president and about his allies on that day?
CHAPMAN: In one post she amplified Rudy Giuliani's call, "Let's have trial by combat." Lawyers for Giuliani later said his call was hyperbolic and not a call for violence.
In another, as the president started speaking near the White House, she wrote "Fight for Trump" a dozen times within a single post.
She also specifically called out lawmakers who had supported challenges of the election results -- Josh Hawley, Ted Cruz, Marjorie Taylor-Green -- praising their courage and calling them patriots.
I should add neither Harp nor the White House responded to our queries about these posts.
HILL: So besides January 6, what else did you find in terms of her posts on X about Donald Trump?
CHAPMAN: Harp had been tweeting for a long time about Trump. We found posts dating back to 2016 praising him.
We also found that on the day of his impeachment she tweeted bible versus in reference to him. In one, she tweeted at him saying, "I thank my God upon every remembrance of you." And in another she wrote, "Vindicate @realDonaldTrump, my God, and plead his cause against an unfaithful nation."
Now all of this fits a pattern that has continued since she began working for the president several years ago similar to the letters from Harp to Trump that were published by the Daily Beast earlier this week in which she wrote to the president about the devotion that she has for him.
CNN didn't independently confirm the letters, but the White House did defend them, telling CNN she is "one of the most loyal and hardworking aides of the president."
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SMITH: It's time for Buzz Express, the stories that have people talking.
[05:50:00]
And first up, the buzz around the buzz. Soccer star Erling Haaland's buzz to be exact. He revealed the transformation in a now-viral social media post. Who even is this? His long, blonde hair made him one of the most recognizable players during Norway's run at the 2026 World Cup. The caption for this was "New season, new trim." And another post said, "Short hair, don't care."
And "National Treasure 3" got the green light. The director behind the film's told fans the news at live recording of the "National Treasure Hunt" podcast. As for Nicolas Cage, the director says that he's on board too, but he said it's Hollywood so anything can happen. No word from Cage just yet.
And Dolly Parton has opened up about her health. She told people.com she's dealing with issues that she ignored while she cared for her husband before his death last year. She said her doctor told her not to attend an event at Dollywood earlier this month and at the time she said she sometimes gets a little dizzy and dehydrated.
All right. A thousand people won't he chance to help move a massive castle. Yes, they moved a castle. Here is CNN's Hanako Montgomery to explain.
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HANAKO MONTGOMERY, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: How many people does it take to move a 400-ton castle? A thousand, as this Japanese city found out.
In 2015, Hirosake Castle, in Aomori Prefecture, was moved so that workers could repair the stone wall that supported it. Here's a timelapse from that time. You can see it was put on rails and moved about 80 meters to a temporary foundation. And now that the repairs are done it's time to move the castle back.
Around 1,000 lucky people were picked by a lottery to play tug-of-war with the giant castle on Sunday, moving it about one meter. But it still has a long way to go with the full move expected to finish by the end of the year.
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SMITH: Wow.
All right. Still to come on CNN HEADLINE EXPRESS, flock cameras backlash. Law enforcement say that they capture crucial information to keep the public safe. Protesters say it's an invasion of privacy.
And check out this massive marlin -- 1,200 pounds -- and it took three hours to reel it in. That sounds about right.
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[05:56:25]
SMITH: Flock cameras have sparked a nationwide debate over privacy and public safety, but as cities grapple with the technology some anti- flock activists are taking matters into their own hands. CNN's Meena Duerson sits down with a masked activist who calls himself
"NoMark" to understand what's driving the growing backlash.
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NOMARK, MASKED ACTIVIST: (Bleep) flock cameras, bro. I hate those things.
MEENA DUERSON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: So we're in downtown Minneapolis where hundreds of people have come out to protest against flock. They're protesting what they say is surveillance that they didn't sign up for.
One of the biggest faces of this protest calls himself "No Mark." He says he a masked vigilante who is saving the country from flock.
Flock cameras use AI to capture the identifying characteristics of vehicles that pass by. Law enforcement uses its national database to solve crimes, like stolen cars or missing people. But recently, dozens of stories have come out about police officers who are accused of abusing the data, like officers charged with stalking who allegedly used the system to look up their ex's license plates hundreds of times.
NOMARK: Look at that.
DUERSON: Oh wow, someone got this one.
NOMARK: Someone beat me to it.
When I read like in a week, I would see a new article about how these cameras are being misused. How they're being used to stalk people. It's way too powerful.
DUERSON: People are now fighting back against flock cameras. We found that people have damaged, destroyed or stolen these cameras in at least 33 states. Earlier this month in Winona, Minnesota police announced that every single camera in town had been stolen.
This is one of the right cameras that Winono police say were cut down by vandals.
JEROME CHRISTENSON, COUNCIL MEMBER AT-LARGE, CITY OF WINONA, MINNESOTA: (Bleep) the Flock cameras.
DUERSON: Did you get that?
CHRISTENSON: Yep. That's the post. You betcha.
DUERSON: So somebody just cut this off?
CHRISTENSON: Uh-huh. Just got up here and (making saw sound).
DUERSON: Two weeks after the damage, Winona police said the cameras would not be replaced. They're one of about 100 cities around the country who said they're no longer using flock. CHRISTENSON: We're not going to rush out and buy new cameras. Just let it settle down. It'll go away. As soon as the football season starts, if the Vikings start winning, nobody in Winono is going to pay a whole helluva lot of attention.
DUERSON: Flock has announced changes, like shortening the amount of time they store the data and adding flags so they can catch people who are searching it inappropriately.
NOMARK: I think it's wild that people have to take matters into their own hands. I mean, I wish people didn't have to do that but, I mean, I do think it's nice to see people fighting back.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SMITH: All right. Let's get a check-in on some of the other stories making news across the country.
We start in Phoenix. That's where two police officers have been arrested and fired for their alleged involvement in a violent traffic stop earlier this month. Police say the two officers assaulted two people during the stop and used a taser on them. Police also say the officers never reported the traffic stop and did not activate their body-worn cameras, which is against the department's guidelines. The officers are facing several charges, including aggravated assault, aggravated robbery, and kidnapping.
All right. And check this catch out. Two fishermen brought in this 1,200 pound marlin. It is more than 11 feet long. They caught it about 100 miles off of Cape Cod. They told the Associated Press they thought it was a shark at first and it took them about three hours to reel it in. What a catch.
[06:00:00]
And the high school football team that had the title of America's longest losing streak is now a winner. After 11 years and 101 straight losses, Columbia High School in Huntsville, Alabama celebrated a win Saturday night. The final score 41-14. And they hope to extend that newfound success and victory in a matchup this Friday.
That does it for CNN HEADLINE EXPRESS. I'm Brad Smith. "CNN THIS MORNING WITH AUDIE CORNISH" starts right now.
