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CNN NEWSROOM

Protests Marred by Police Shootings; Two Secret Service Agents Crash Into White House Barrier

Aired March 12, 2015 - 09:00   ET

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


CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Happening now in the NEWSROOM, Ferguson demonstrations turned violent and ugly. Two police officers shot just hours after the police chief steps down.

Also, Secret Service agents accused of driving drunk and crashing into a White House barricade. The Obama administration now investigating how the supervisor handled it all.

And key evidence is unveiled in the Boston bomber trial. New video, new witnesses put Dzhokhar Tsarnaev at the scene of a cop killing.

Let's talk. Live in the CNN NEWSROOM.

And good morning. I'm Carol Costello. Thank you so much for joining me. In Ferguson, Missouri, this morning a manhunt is underway for whoever pulled the trigger and shot two police officers overnight.

Here are the moments that have pushed this besieged community even closer to the brink.

Also this morning, both police officers from neighboring departments are in serious condition. The shootings just hours after the embattled police chief resigned amid criticisms that his department largely targeted African-Americans. The community anger first ignited by the shooting of an unarmed black teenager now threatens to boil over.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CHRIS KING, MANAGING EDITOR, THE ST. LOUIS AMERICAN: I don't think it's really connected to the protests as far as we know. I think the protest was probably a cover. I mean, I'm speculating, of course. But I think the protest was a cover for someone that wanted to shoot a cop.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: CNN's Sara Sidner has been following all of these developments overnight. She spent a lot of time in Ferguson. She joins us now with more.

Good morning.

SARA SIDNER, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Good morning. Two officers, both shot, both taken to the hospital in serious but stable condition. They are expected to live. Nonlife threatening injuries, but one was shot in the face, one was shot in the shoulder.

A lot of people worried about what's happening with them. We are told that they will be OK but they are, you know, currently trying to recover from all of this.

How did this all happen? And that's what everybody is asking right now. What we are hearing from witnesses is that there were sounds of what they thought were fireworks. Turns out as they turned one of the witnesses I spoke to saw a flash from the muzzle of a gun. Up the street there is a hill, there is a street that goes up a hill that looks back towards the department, and that is where several witnesses have said the gunfire came from.

The police inference from that is it looks as though the police officers were the targets, that it wasn't some random just shooting and trying to hit anything, that perhaps the police officers were the targets.

Who is responsible for this, nobody knows yet except for the people who did it or person who did it.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SIDNER (voice-over): Breaking overnight. Two police officers in St. Louis County shot outside the Ferguson Police Department. A night of protests in Ferguson winding down when shots rang out.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Acknowledgment nine months ago would have kept that from happening.

SIDNER: Witnesses report hearing multiple shots and seeing one officer down.

BRADLEY RAYFORD, FREELANCE PHOTOGRAPHER: Bullets went really right past my head. It was kind of traumatic. I'm still kind of in shock because of it.

SIDNER: The injuries are serious. One St. Louis County officer was shot in the shoulder, another officer, a Webster Groves officer, shot in the face.

CHIEF JON BALMER, ST. LOUIS COUNTY POLICE: These police officers were standing there and they were shot. Just because they were police officers.

SIDNER: Earlier police drew their guns during a scuffle between protesters. Police making multiple arrests.

Some protesters cheered at the resignation of Police Chief Tom Jackson. For others it comes too little too late demanding the entire Ferguson Police Department be disbanded.

MAYOR JAMES KNOWLES, FERGUSON, MISSOURI: The chief's resignation is effective March 19th, 2015.

SIDNER: His resignation comes on the heels of a scathing report from the Justice Department slamming Ferguson officials for widespread racial bias and targeting African-Americans. Jackson now one of the six city officials gone after the DOJ's damming report. Some are calling for Mayor Knowles to be next. He says he won't budge. For now, a nationwide search for a new chief of police is underway.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COSTELLO: All right. We just got new pictures in from last night's demonstrations. And since you spent all of that time in Ferguson, I want you to take us through what we're seeing.

Apparently during this demonstration last night there were two groups of protesters, one relatively peaceful, and the other kind of ugly and violent, and then there were some shooters up on a nearby hill, right? And that's where the gunshots came from.

But tell us what we're looking at right now.

SIDNER: This first picture, I'm seeing these as the audience is seeing them as well. But this first picture is clearly in front of the police department. To the left of the picture if you're looking straight on, that is the fire department. The police department you can see where the officers are crouched down there, that's the driveway where you would normally drive into the department so that you could go into the front door.

So that is the actual time right after the shooting happened when the police officers and you're seeing another one from right at those gunshots went off, they are trying to take cover, not necessarily from the protesters because the protest was actually starting to wind down when this happened. People were dispersing.

It was around midnight and people were starting to disperse, and that's when these shots went off. Another shot from a different angle. You're seeing the front door of the new police department and -- that has just been built. The building has just been refurbished and built. And then you're seeing the officers standing around there. And that looks like long after it happened because they look awfully, awfully calm. Now it does look like --

(CROSSTALK)

COSTELLO: You can see the evidence team is out there, right?

SIDNER: Yes. To the left --

COSTELLO: They're taking pictures of the -- yes.

SIDNER: There is -- there is, you know, what is normal on a crime scene. Someone taking a photograph. I cannot tell what that item is. It looks like it is potentially a helmet from -- it looks like riot gear potentially if I'm -- if I'm seeing that correctly. We do know that one of the officers was shot in the face so perhaps he had his helmet down and perhaps that is why it wasn't a life threatening injury. Now I don't know that for sure but that would explain why when someone

says an officer was shot in the face, that perhaps he had, like you're seeing there, the helmet pulled down and --

COSTELLO: And for full riot gear.

SIDNER: Exactly. Exactly.

COSTELLO: Can we get to the picture that shows the hill from one of those gunshots apparently came from?

SIDNER: OK. So this picture, you're seeing them pull the tape. So this is all, you know, sort of just happening. Behind where these officers are, if you were to turn around completely and look behind where these officers are, where his back is turned, and you look forward, that is the hill. That is the street that goes up the hill where witnesses have said they saw the flash from a muzzle of a gun and then they heard the -- there we go.

There's a map. And so you're seeing that right there. That orange is Tiffin Avenue which is the hill. It sort of goes up into a neighborhood. On the left is a tire company where a lot of people would gather. On the right is a subway and some places to eat and up that hill is a neighborhood. And it's very dark up there.

COSTELLO: Very dark?

SIDNER: Yes.

COSTELLO: There are homes up there? A lot of hiding places in other words.

SIDNER: Absolutely.

COSTELLO: I know police went up there and they searched the area, couldn't find anyone. But it would be easy for someone to hide or escape if the shots came from that hill.

SIDNER: Absolutely.

COSTELLO: All right. So I'm sure you're going to keep digging.

Sara Sidner, thanks so much. We'll see you next hour. I appreciate it.

We do have more breaking news on the investigation into that shooting. Joe Johns has that from Washington.

Tell us more, Joe.

JOE JOHNS, CNN SENIOR WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Carol. More than anything else, some common sense inferences from the feds this morning. A federal law enforcement official speaking to CNN justice producer Mary Kay Mally tells CNN if the shots as reported came from a spot overlooking the police department, which is what we've been hearing, what other conclusion they ask could there be than the officers were targeted.

Now this federal law enforcement official also telling CNN investigators are going to have to identify the shell casings. That's pretty obvious, too. And certainly that is what is going on at this stage in the investigation to try to identify the shell casings, also pointing out that if those shots did, in fact, come from that spot overlooking the police department, then there's a natural inference to be drawn that police were targeted -- Carol.

COSTELLO: All right. Jim Johns, thanks so much. I appreciate it.

The strange tense relationship between Ferguson Police and the community has been simmering a long time. The Justice Department report certainly proved that. Elements within the crowd of demonstrators were unruly with scuffles breaking out among them. Someone actually had written in chalk on the sidewalk outside of the police station, and we have a picture of this, you can see it there, "pigs, kill yourself."

And then there's this. Listen to what a bystander yelled after those two officers were shot.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Acknowledgment nine months ago would have kept that from happening.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: The question now, is it too dangerous for Ferguson Police to work safely?

With me now to talk about that, former NYPD detective, Mike Sheehan. He was the lead investigator for the John Lennon murder and other celebrated cases.

Welcome, sir.

MIKE SHEEHAN, FORMER NYPD DETECTIVE: Welcome, Carol. I'm glad to be here. First of all let me just say from a personal note, my heart goes out to those two officers and certainly my prayers and their families as well. Tragic situation there. These cops in my opinion were obviously targeted.

The problem that you have here now is you have some elements in Ferguson, and I'm not saying that these people are necessarily from the actual community, they could be outside agitators, but these people do not want this thing to end peacefully. It's obvious. Whoever targeted these police officers, and I do believe they were targeted, fired over the heads of the demonstrators.

Now it still puts the innocent demonstrators also in jeopardy, you know? Their fellow demonstrators, their fellow citizens are now in jeopardy as well. So they have a real serious situation. As far as the safety goes, you know, we had this in the early '70s here in New York City when the Black Liberation Army, which was a break-off group from the Black Panthers, went on a rampage and they were killing black and white police officers who were partnered up to send some kind of a berserk message.

You know, it would put a lot of fear in the streets and it led to some very tense moments even with car stops. So these -- these are very similar times and these are -- they're elements of that group.

COSTELLO: So what's the answer? What's the answer? I mean, is it safe for the Ferguson Police to operate within the city of Ferguson? Should -- should police from other agencies come in and take over? What's the answer?

SHEEHAN: Well, you know, the strange thing is that the two officers who were shot here are not actually from Ferguson, they're from two neighboring police departments who were there to assist. So the answer I think is just to use a lot of vigilance and we need, as we did here in New York, you need cooperation from the community.

You know, this is a two-way street. Everybody talks about community relations. Yes, it's a two-way street.

COSTELLO: But, sir, there's no trust between --

SHEEHAN: The police have to be more proactive.

COSTELLO: There's no trust at all between the community and the police at this point so there's a big problem there, right?

SHEEHAN: Sure. And the other thing is all this -- this thing that was going around, you know, snitches get stitches and all this kind of ridiculous stuff. This is your community, you know, the people who live in Ferguson. This is your community.

Do you want someone out there randomly firing shots? I mean, it could have easily -- one of those bullets could have easily hit an innocent person who's simply, you know, demonstrating. So you really need the cooperation of the community. If someone knows who this -- who the shooter is, and I'm sure there are people who know, they really have to come forward and make an anonymous call because this is a, you know, dangerous situation. It's only going to escalate.

COSTELLO: The peaceful demonstrators, they want the Ferguson Police Department dissolved. Do you think that should happen?

SHEEHAN: You know, I don't know enough about the Ferguson Police Department to have them dissolved, but certainly I would think from a citizen's point of view you'd want to have guys who -- and women who live in your community police your own streets. You know, they have -- this is where they have an active interest certainly. I mean, if I lived in that community I want to -- you know, I want to certainly make sure and ensure that it's safe for all people to live and go to school and prosper.

So I think that the Ferguson Police Department should stay perhaps, you know, as we can see right now, there are some substantial changes and once again, it's a two way street. I mean, they -- both sides have to come together and sit down and have a meaningful dialogue.

I also think that the police officers should get out of the cars a lot more and walk some foot posts and actually get them intermingle with people. That goes a long way.

COSTELLO: Mike Sheehan, thanks for your insights. I appreciate it.

SHEEHAN: Thanks, Carol.

COSTELLO: Still to come in the NEWSROOM -- you're welcome.

Still to come in the NEWSROOM, a police chief resigns over what was supposed to be a peaceful rally marred by police shootings.

We'll talk about this more next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: This was supposed to be a day to celebrate progress. The Ferguson police chief resigned. He's the sixth person to resign in Ferguson, since Michael Brown was shot -- and then last night, two police officers shot.

I want to bring in Nakisha Lewis. She's an organizer of the New York chapter of Black Lives Matter.

Thank you so much for being with me. I appreciate it.

NAKISHA LEWIS, ORGANIZER, BLACK LIVES MATTER NYC: Thank you for having me.

COSTELLO: So, these protesters seem to be in two camps. One group wanted the Ferguson Police Department to be disbanded. They were very peaceful. The other group was volatile. And then you had the shooters up on the hill and apparently targeting police.

Is it time for peaceful protesters to come back and say it's time to stop the demonstrations in Ferguson for just a little while and let the Justice Department handle things?

LEWIS: Right. I think that's a huge question and it's definitely a difficult moment for all of us in this country, right? I think as you explained, so many different emotions, right? Resignations, as well as -- it's always a sad moment when anyone in America is shot, specifically if those shootings result in death. So definitely want to acknowledge that.

I think that we also have this opportunity though coming just off of the 50th anniversary or commemoration marching across the Edmund Pettus Bridge, known as Bloody Sunday. So, we commemorated this weekend with Americans converging upon Selma with our president, Barack Obama, introduced by Congressman John Lewis, right, who was also one of the leaders of the original march across the Edmund Pettus Bridge.

So, I bring that to our attention for us to think about what it means for our people to be under attack, to be at tension with police officers, so civilians in America, citizens alike on either side -- on either side --

COSTELLO: Martin Luther King preached peace, peaceful demonstrations, not violence.

LEWIS: That's exactly what we continue to see is people taking to the streets, not only in Ferguson but also in New York and Wisconsin and around the country.

COSTELLO: But you could argue in Ferguson, we're really not seeing that because in chalk on the sidewalk in front of the police department was, you know, pigs hang yourself. I mean, there were -- from the get-go there were angry reactions to the police and the mood there was just ugly. It wasn't all peaceful.

LEWIS: Yes, I have no idea what's actually happening on the front lines in Ferguson at this moment as someone who is not there but here, but definitely had the opportunity to go to Ferguson back in September as part of the freedom ride to Ferguson, I left from New York, and travel down with a whole contingent of folks when we converge from across the country as peaceful protesters, so I can speak from that place, and I know that spirit of nonviolence continues within our movement, continues to live in the hearts of folks across the country. And that's something which you see.

COSTELLO: I hear you, but when these things happen, it paints an ugly picture across the board. So, how do you combat that?

LEWIS: I think it definitely raises questions, right? Because we're living in a moment of state-sanctioned violence. America has become a really just violent nation. And so, that's just a question we have to continue to ask ourselves, as why are we so OK with violence on all sides, right?

Violence at the hands of police officers, violence that really comes from a place of deep racism, right? That's what led to the resignation of these officials in Ferguson. So, we've got some deep- rooted questions that we have to ask ourselves as a nation, what is our way forward going to be? Knowing that we live in the legacy of violence, right? It was violence that met the peaceful protesters at the Edmund Pettus Bridge, right? That's why we have this term, Bloody Sunday.

COSTELLO: So, what would bring together this --

LEWIS: We have to look at a time when there's no more bloodshed, right? That's the vision that we get to continue to hold up as a nation, as protesters, as law enforcement officials, as elected officials. All of us together really ought to be looking forward to working together in that way towards that end.

COSTELLO: Thank you so much for being with me. I so appreciate it.

LEWIS: Thank you. My pleasure. COSTELLO: Still to come in the NEWSROOM: the Secret Service suffers

more embarrassment. Sunlen Serfaty is at the White House this morning.

Good morning.

SUNLEN SERFATY, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Michaela, another scandal here involving the Secret Service. Two high profile agents under investigation after driving and drinking then crashing through a barricade here at the White House. All those details coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: The Department of Homeland Security is investigating yet another Secret Service slipup. Two top agents, including a key member of President Obama's detail, crashed into a White House barricade following a late-night party. The agents reportedly had been drinking. One former agent who knows the men is shocked.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JONATHAN WACKROW, FORMER SECRET SERVICE AGENT: Both of them I saw as, you know, the future of the Secret Service, so I find it really, you know, disturbing that they would be caught up in an incident like this.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: Sunlen Serfaty is at the White House this morning. She's following the story.

Good morning.

SERFATY: Good morning to you, Carol.

Well, keep in mind: this is the agency responsible for protecting the president. This incident took place last Wednesday evening when allegedly these two high profile agents, they attended a party for a retirement of another one of their colleagues at a bar here in Washington, D.C., and allegedly they were drinking. Then they got behind the wheel of a government vehicle. That's when an altercation here happened at the White House. These allegations are embarrassing, especially because this agency is trying to recover from their tarnished image.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SERFATY (voice-over): Another scandal for the embattled agency responsible for protecting the president. This time claims two of its top officials including a second in charge of President Obama's all personal security detail, went out drinking at a party, got behind the wheel of a government car, and plowed into a security barricade at the White House.

Uniformed officers at the scene wanted to check the official sobriety and make arrests, but a supervisor I intervened and let them off, details reported first in "The Washington Post."

CAROL LEONNIG, THE WASHINGTON POST: Our sources have said to us that the uniformed officers believed these two individuals very likely to be -- have been drinking and that's a violation of being in a government car for the secret service and that they were told to stand down when they were talking about a test.

SERFATY: The Secret Service sayings the agents in service have been reassigned to, quote, "non-operational positions", and now, the organization is investigating the incident. Chairs of the House Oversight Committee is calling for quick action as well, saying, quote, "The fact that this event involved senior level agents is not only embarrassing but exhibits a clear lack of judgment in a potentially dangerous situation."

But it's not the first time agents have gotten in trouble. In 2012, nearly a dozen agents were accused of bringing prostitutes back to their hotel rooms in Colombia. And last year, three agents sent home from the Netherlands after they were found drinking passed out in a hotel.

This latest incident comes just six months after that knife carrying manmade it into the East Room of the White House, leading to congressional outcry and eventually to the Secret Service director's resignation.

Her replacement, Joe Clancy, an old agency hand, vowed to clean up.

JOE CLANCY, SECRET SERVICE DIRECTOR: We've got to do a better job of mentoring, coaching, teaching, training our people that this is unacceptable.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SERFATY: And administration officials say that President Obama is aware of this incident and supports a full investigation. Carol, the chairman of that oversight committee tells us that he believes this is one more indication which shows the -- there is a deep seeded cultural problem at the agency -- Carol.

COSTELLO: All right. Sunlen Serfaty, thanks so much.

Still to come at the NEWSROOM: as the clock ticks down to strike a nuclear deal with Iran, the supreme leader is lashing out against world powers. Up next, why Iran warns of deception, trickery and backstabbing.

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