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CNN NEWSROOM

New Threats after Cops Killed in New York; Cop Killer Had Extensive Criminal History; Interview with Former NYPD Commissioner Howard Safir; More Threats From Sony Hackers; Sony's Christmas Wishlist; Seeking Peace and Progress Amid Tragedy

Aired December 22, 2014 - 09:00   ET

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


RANDI KAYE, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning. I'm Randi Kay in for Carol Costello today. Thanks so much for joining me.

New York Police are looking into more than 15 online threats against the department and warning its officers to be even more vigilant after the cold blooded murders of two officers by a career criminal.

Thirty-two-year-old Officer Wenjian Liu, a seven-year veteran of the NYPD and 40-year-old Officer Rafael Ramos who joined the department just two years ago were ambushed inside their patrol cars Saturday afternoon.

A makeshift memorial is growing in the Brooklyn neighborhood where they lost their lives. The city's police commissioner says they were gunned down with no warning, no provocation.

Last night mourners attended a candlelight vigil for the officers. Their murders are triggering an even wider rift between the city's mayor and police force.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PATRICK LYNCH, PRESIDENT, PATROLMAN'S BENEVOLENT ASSOCIATION: There's blood on many hands tonight. Those that incited violence on this street under the guise of protest that tried to tear down what New York City Police officers did every day. That blood on the hands starts on the steps of city hall in the office of the mayor.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KAYE: CNN's Alexandra Field is live in the Brooklyn neighborhood where the officers were killed.

And Alexandra Mayor Bill de Blasio is expected to address the Police Athletic League today.

ALEXANDRA FIELD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Right, Randi. This was a previously scheduled event. The mayor is set to talk about how to strength the bond between police and the community. But of course this comes on the backdrop of these very high tensions between the mayor and the police officers' union. The mayor hasn't addressed those tensions head on. We'll wait and hear what he has to say. Until this point he has said that the focus of everyone right now

should be on the victim. The two police officers who were gunned down, executed right here on this corner. This is a city that is still very much in mourning. At the same time, police officers are on even higher alert.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

FIELD (voice-over): Breaking overnight, officers on heightened alert following a new online threat. In Brooklyn, police are searching for an alleged gang member who posted a threatening message toward officers on Facebook with a photo of a police vehicle. And in Memphis, police questioned a 26-year-old man after he posted on Instagram #shootthepolice, two more going down tomorrow.

Investigators scoured social media on the lookout for copycats after 28-year-Old Ismaaiyl Brinsley shot and killed two NYPD officers, Rafael Ramos and Wenjian Liu, execution style, Saturday afternoon.

Police looking into more than 15 online threats according to a law enforcement official. Family and loved ones mourning the loss of Officers Ramos and Liu at an evening vigil in Brooklyn.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I hope and pray that we can reflect on this tragic loss of lives that have occurred.

FIELD: Earlier Sunday, New York's commissioner and mayor attending mass at New York's historic St. Patrick's Cathedral where the congregation stood and applause for the slain policemen. This a stark contrast from the NYPD turning their backs on Mayor de Blasio at a news conference Saturday angered about his support of the protest for Eric Garner, the unarmed Staten Island man who died after an apparent chokehold by NYPD officers.

The shooter's onslaught began Saturday morning when he posted this ominous warning on Instagram. "I'm putting wings on pigs today." Accused of shooting his ex-girlfriend in Baltimore, the 28-year-old then travelled to New York murdering Ramos and Liu with his semiautomatic gun before taking his own life. The scene, horrific.

(On camera): When you walked up and you saw that patrol car, what was going through your mind?

TANTANIA ALEXANDER, FIRST EMS RESPONDER ON SCENE: He had a family. So, and you don't know if you're going to go -- you don't know if you're going to make it to your family. I mean, this job, you put your life on the line every day for people.

FIELD (voice-over): Brinsley also posting before his rampage, "They take one of ours, let's take two of theirs." His postings made references to Michael Brown and Eric Garner, according to police. Garner's mother, heartbroken all over again.

GWEN CARR, ERIC GARNER'S MOTHER: We want you to not use Eric Garner's name for violence because we are not about that. These two police officers lost their lives senselessly. FIELD: Officer Ramos' son posted this message on Facebook. "This is

the worst day of my life. Everyone says they hate cops, but they are the people they call for help."

He writes, "I will never forget you. Rest in peace, Dad."

(END VIDEOTAPE)

FIELD: We are also learning more about the gunman who fled from this intersection and ultimately killed himself in the subway station just around the corner. We now know that he had a very lengthy rap sheet, more than 19 arrests. He was in prison for two years.

And at one point, Randi, he told a judge that he had some mental illness issues. We also know that he used his social media page not just to talk about this attack on police but to rant against the government in general -- Randi.

KAYE: And Alexandra, I notice some police officers there behind you, it looks like. Is that a memorial that has been made behind you there?

FIELD: Yes, this is a place where a lot of people have been coming. Again, this is the intersection where these two officers were gunned down. They were inside their patrol car. They never saw the suspect coming. This is a place where over the last two days, people have been stopping, they've been leaving flowers, they've been lighting candles. It's the same spot where we held a -- saw a vigil held here last night.

It's also a place people are calling for this corner to be separate from the politics of the situation, the politics unfolding between the mayor and the police officer's union. People here are saying that what they want to do is reflect on the lives that were lost and pay tribute to two of the NYPD's finest.

KAYE: Alexandra Field, thank you very much.

The man who killed those two New York City officers was no stranger to police. 28-year-old Ismaaiyl Brinsley had an extensive criminal history that included at least 19 arrests, mostly in Georgia. He also spent about two years in a Georgia prison. His mother says he had a very troubled childhood. Just three years ago Brinsley told a Georgia judge about mental health issues.

CNN's Nick Valencia is live at the CNN center in Atlanta.

And, Nick, what more have you learned about this man?

NICK VALENCIA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, as you mentioned, Randi, we are beginning to piece together a little bit more about the checkered history of 28-year-old Ismaaiyl Brinsley. It's a history that's filled with broken relationships and plenty of run-ins with the law. You mentioned those 19 arrests. The majority of those happening right here in the state of Georgia. Handful of others happening in Ohio. It's a variety of things that got him in trouble with police. Things

like shoplifting, possession of stolen gun, damaging property. We also know that he had a long history, a troubled history. He battled with mental health issues, dating back to his childhood and by his own admission from court records we know that he had admitted to having spent time getting treatment for that mental health.

If it's any indication exactly what kind of man Brinsley was, we'll take you back to 2011 when he had a run-in with police here in Cobb County. He shot at a woman's car, stolen gun, fled the scene. He was later arrested and charged.

You're looking at a timeline of what happened on Saturday. That bloodshed, that onslaught of bloodshed happening just before 6:00 a.m. in Baltimore, Maryland, where he would go on just hours later taking the lives of two of New York's police officers.

Now we know this morning, New York Police Department is continuing to scour through his social media trying to piece together more clues and hints about exactly who this man was that took the lives of two of New York's police officers -- Randi.

KAYE: All right, Nick, thank you very much for that.

Now some people are claiming New York City's Mayor Bill de Blasio, U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder and President Obama have contributed to rising tension by encouraging or at least permitting antipolice hatred. Former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani spoke earlier on CNN.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

RUDY GIULIANI (R), FORMER NEW YORK MAYOR: When you start doing this stuff that the mayor is doing, that the president is doing, that the attorney general is doing, they are -- they are perpetuating a myth that there is systemic police brutality, there is systemic crime. There is occasional police brutality.

ALISYN CAMEROTA, CNN ANCHOR, "NEW DAY": What do you think the president has done? I know that you've said that you think that he has been part of this propaganda --

GIULIANI: The president has shown absolutely no --

CAMEROTA: I mean, what has he done?

GIULIANI: He's shown absolutely no respect for the police. All the president has done is see one side of this dispute.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KAYE: While many protesters have been peaceful, some have been violent. Listen to this crowd chanting they want, quote, "dead cops."

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What do we want? CROWD: Dead cops.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: When do we want it?

CROWD: Now.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What do we want?

CROWD: Dead cops.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: When do we want it?

CROWD: Now.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What do we want?

CROWD: Dead cops.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: When do we want it?

CROWD: Now.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KAYE: That incident has concerned police officials around the country. This weekend, Obama called several commissioners and said that he's outraged over the senseless killings.

Joining me now is Howard Safir. He is the former commissioner of the New York City Police Department under Mayor Giuliani.

Mr. Safir, you wrote a piece in "TIME" magazine saying that Brinsley killed the two officers, quote, "in an atmosphere of permissiveness and antipolice rhetoric unlike any that I have seen in 45 years in law enforcement." And you're calling on the president to make a national day of support for police.

Tell me what else you want from President Obama?

HOWARD SAFIR, FORMER NYPD COMMISSIONER: I want him to recognize that police officers all over this country are not involved in brutality and in killing people. There are 18,000 police departments in the United States. Hundreds of thousands of good police officers. There are millions of contacts with the public. There are hundreds of thousands of arrests. And very, very few of them result in death or injury.

When that happens, if there's misconduct, we should deal with it. But broad brushing the entire police community as brutal and racist which is the message that has been coming from mayors and the president and the attorney general just is not true.

KAYE: So is it your feeling that police officers feel under siege as a result of this?

SAFIR: I know they feel under siege. If you look at the statements of the president of the PBA in New York, he basically is saying we're unappreciated. And my concern is what will happen is that police officers will do what they did in the '70s and '80s, not take action, sit in their patrol cars and crime will come back. We'll go back to 2,000 murders, we'll go back 80,000 car thefts. That's not what the public wants. That's certainly not what police officers want.

And what we need to do is to come together. The president needs to send the message by declaring a day of police support that we appreciate what police officers do in keeping our community safe. Violence is down to its lowest level in the history of this country. That should be appreciated.

KAYE: Now a lot of people, though, are referencing Mayor de Blasio's comments that he's had to train his son how to act around police. Listen to this. And then I want to ask you about it.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MAYOR BILL DE BLASIO (D), NEW YORK: Chirlane and I have had to talk to Dante for years about the dangers that he might face. Good young man, law-abiding young man who would never think to do anything wrong and yet because our history still hangs over us, the dangers he may face we've had to literally train him as families have all over this city for decades.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KAYE: What else? I mean, what other comments has de Blasio made do you think or even the president that you think might fuel this antipolice sentiment?

SAFIR: Well, the fact that they're saying that all police need to retrain, telling their children that they need to act a certain way with police officers. It's very simple. If a police officer gives you a lawful order, you should react and respect it. If you disagree with it, there are certainly mechanisms to deal with it but not to have confrontation with a police officer doing their duty.

And the idea that all blacks should be fearful of police is totally wrong. I went to dozens and dozens of community meetings and town halls in black communities. I never heard about racism. What I heard about was we need more cops. Black families want exactly what any other family wants, they want to live their live in safety and be free from harm. And this whole thing about race has gotten out of proportion.

KAYE: So when you look at the suspect, though, in this most recent killing in Brooklyn. I mean he had a long history of problems, he had been arrested 19 times. I mean, do you see this as an isolated incident by a deranged man, or do you think that this is directly linked to antipolice protests? I mean, I know that -- I understand that they're still trying to figure out if maybe he was even a part of those protests after the Eric Garner case.

SAFIR: We don't know what was in the mind of Brinsley. What we do know is that the atmosphere has been protests in which people are blocking bridges where they are burning down buildings of black businesses in Ferguson. And that whole atmosphere certainly, I believe, contributed to the purpose of Brinsley. He posted on his Instagram or Facebook page that he was going to kill two cops in retaliation. That atmosphere is fostered by this antipolice rhetoric.

KAYE: All right. Howard Safir, former commissioner of the New York City Police Department. Thank you very for your insight this morning.

SAFIR: Good to be with you.

KAYE: The sports world, by the way, is turning its attention to the two fallen NYPD officers. The New York Yankees will pay for college for Officer's Rafael Ramos' two sons. That was first reported by the "New York Daily News."

The team's Silver Shield Foundation has paid for the education of thousands of children who lost a parent while serving in law enforcement.

New York Giants head coach Tom Coughlin showed his support for Officers Ramos and Liu at yesterday's game against the Rams. He wore a black stripe on the shoulder of his jacket and a peace sign under its New York logo.

New York Jets center Nick Mangle wore an NYPD cap before the game with the Patriots. Later Mangle said if wearing that hat gives a little bit of comfort, I'm happy to do it.

There was also a moment of silence for the fallen officers before last night's Brooklyn Mets game with the Pistons.

I'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAYE: Sony may have pulled the plug on releasing "The Interview" this week, but North Korea isn't done threatening Americans. They warned this is just the beginning. Quote, "Nothing is more miscalculation than guessing just a single movie production company is the target. Our toughest counter-action will be boldly taken against the White House, the Pentagon and the whole U.S. mainland, the cesspool of terrorism."

The new security threat comes after President Obama exclusively told CNN that he didn't consider the initial attack on Sony Pictures an act of war but instead called the hack, quote, "cyber vandalism". Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I don't think it was an act of war. I think it was an act of cyber vandalism that was costly and very expensive. We take it very seriously. We will respond proportionately.

(END VIDEO CLIP) KAYE: Joining me now for more, CNN senior media correspondent Brian Stelter and CNN Money tech correspondent, Laurie Segall. All right, good morning to you guys.

BRIAN STELTER, CNN SENIOR MEDIA CORRESPONDENT: Good morning.

KAYE: SO, Brian, I love this. You made a wish list for Sony, which I guess they could use now, right? All the things they want for Christmas. Let's talk about that.

STELTER: Trying to get in the holiday spirit.

KAYE: I love it. No. 1 being a way to release "The Interview".

STELTER: Yes, I think that has to be at the top of the list. I'm about to put this list up on CNNmoney.com. And now that they are in active talks once again to get this movie distributed, the question is how> Who is going to help them do it?

And that gets me to No. 2, which is support from other companies. They need help from others to get this done. They also need the leaks to stop. These leaks keep coming from these hackers, from these anonymous hackers. E-mails, medical records, Social Security numbers. And the hackers have even more data so Sony needs the leaks to stop.

I've got to also imagine that they want the lawsuits to stop. There's been a number of class action lawsuits against them.

KAYE: Well, let me bring Laurie in. Because No. 2 (sic) on Brian's list is a way to stop the leaks, but is that possible?

LAURIE SEGALL, CNN MONEY TECH CORRESPONDENT: I mean, who knows what else is out there. Speaking to Sony employees who are within the company and are just sitting there thinking, oh my god, we have no idea if our personal information is going to end up on the web.

And to Brian's point, talking about these lawsuits. Sony right now is facing a lot of lawsuits. I spoke to an ex-Sony employee who's thinking about filing a lawsuit because he's enraged. He received a letter two weeks after this whole incident saying his personal information has been compromised. Let me read you a little bit of that letter.

They said that Sony Pictures "has determined cause of disruption was a brazen cyber attack. After identifying, they took prompt action to contain the cyber attack." And the letter goes on to talk about all their personal information that could be missing -- Social Security numbers, bank account info, compensation, medical insurance, if they had a certain diagnostic. A lot of really personal information that could lead to identity theft. So they are not happy. This is going to be a problem for Sony.

KAYE: So, Brian, how likely No. 3 on your list is to get the lawsuits to stop?

STELTER: I would be shocked. I mean, I would be really surprised if this doesn't continue to snowball for Sony. And that's the kind of damage that might only pile up months and years after this attack.

KAYE: And also sympathy, you say. They want some sympathy.

STELTER: They feel like the rest of the industry hasn't rallied around them enough. We started to see that happen, though, last week. We saw the association that represents all the studios came to Sony's defense. And now what Sony wants is sympathy also from distributors, whether it's Netflix, or YouTube, or theater owners, somebody is going to have to step up and help Sony release this movie. Otherwise, maybe they'll put it on their own web site, Crackle, which is a free streaming web site. That's sort of their back-up plan, so to speak.

And I just checked in with Sony; no update this morning on distribution, but I think before long we will hear about some plan to release this movie.

KAYE: Laurie, you think we're going to see any sympathy for Sony on this one?

SEGALL: You know, this one's hard because Sony has always been a target for hackers, dating back to 2005. In 2011 PlayStation was hacked, leaving something like 70 million accounts exposed. What this former employees said to me yesterday on the phone was they should have learned. They left our information out there and of course we -- anyone would have sympathy for someone that's been through such a violating hack. But a lot of people are shaking their head and saying you should have had better security in the first place.

KAYE: What about No. 6, Brian? You say Sony wants successful release of "Annie".

STELTER: Yes, I put that one last one the list because it shows the movie studio is up and running, that it's able to get out of this and still be online and alive. "Annie" came out Friday. It made about $16 million over the weekend. It's OK, didn't do great, but it did OK, and they're hoping it will gain momentum in the next two weeks as people go to the movies over Christmas and over the new year's holiday.

KAYE: A little peace and quiet maybe too on that list, for them? For the company?

STELTER: Yes, I think that's what we're hoping.

A really interesting situation for them right at the holiday season because this is the biggest time of year for movies to be released. It's also the time of year that a lot of Hollywood executives try to get the heck out of the country and go on vacation for a while. I don't think folks at Sony will be able to do that though.

KAYE: All right. Certainly a little bit messy there. Brian Stelter and Laurie Segall, nice to see you guys. Thank you.

Still to come, falling oil prices, good or bad? The answer may not be as obvious as you think. We'll look at the global game of chicken surrounding oil production, next. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAYE: Welcome back. Everyone from President Obama to mothers whose sons were killed by police are condemning Saturday's execution style murders of two New York City police officers. Officers Wenjian Liu and Rafael Ramos were just sitting in their patrol car when their killer circled the car, approached from behind, and fired four shots. Both officers were struck in the head.

Gunman Ismaaiyl Brinsley referenced the names of Michael Brown and Eric Garner in Instagram postings warning that he was going to kill police. The death of Brown and Garner, both unarmed men killed by police, have triggered weeks of protest. But Garner's mother says it is no excuse for what Brinsley did.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GWEN CARR, ERIC GARNER'S MOTHER: Anyone who's standing with us, we want you to not use Eric Garner's name for violence because we are not about that. These two police officers lost their lives senselessly.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KAYE: I'm joined now by . Her unarmed son, Amadou, was killed in a hail of 41 bullets by New York police back in 1999. She's also the founder of Amadou Diallo Foundation to promotes racial healing through educational programs.

Thank you for coming on this morning to talk about this. First of all, when you first heard and saw the news about these two officers who were killed by this man sitting in their patrol car, what did you think?

KADIATOU DIALLO, UNARMED SON KILLED BY NYPOD IN 1999: I'm so sad about the violence, of killing of those two officers. And I want first and foremost to lend my support to the family about the unjustifiable execution to those two officers.

I also have a message to those who may seek vengeance and violence. At this moment, being the mother of Amadou Diallo, people might think I have every reason to hate and every reason to seek vengeance, but in my heart I have no hatred. I have love. I am for seeking peace, humanity, legal justice. That's my calling. And that's my message to those who seek revenge and hatred.

KAYE: And in the 15 years since your son was killed, you've been vocal about trying to get that message across. Have you seen a lot of changes in the NYPD since then?

DIALLO: It's an ongoing process as issued because the community and law enforcement has to be one community. It could not be two different world. So bringing people together and promoting racial healing, understanding this is what we have to dig for, this is what we have to carry as a message. We need more changes, positive changes, because in the end if we live peacefully with those who are supposed to protect and serve, then we have achieved peace and for all humanity.

KAYE: You remember after your son died, the protests and the anger. How did the city and everybody get through it then?

DIALLO: As I said, when Amadou was killed, people protested, but in peace. All races, all religion came together and prayed, protested, and demanded justice. That was beautiful. And this is the moment when we have to reflect and do everything that those who are supposed to want to protest to turn their pain and their anger into something positive. This is my message.

KAYE: There is though still a lot of anger, even a lot of tension between the New York police department and city hall now. The officers are turning their back on Mayor Bill de Blasio, saying that he didn't do enough, perhaps, to stop the protests, maybe even encouraged them and supported them.

How difficult now is that divide and having that divide between city hall and NYPD in order to move forward to a peaceful process?