Return to Transcripts main page

LEGAL VIEW WITH ASHLEIGH BANFIELD

Top Legal Stories of 2015. Aired 12:30-1p ET

Aired December 25, 2015 - 12:30   ET

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


(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[12:31:09] ALISON KOSIK, CNN ANCHOR: A Christmas prayer for world peace and compassion from the Vatican.

Pope Francis specifically mentioning the plight of migrants and refugees from war-torn parts of the world and he urged an end to the conflicts in Ukraine, and Colombia and Syria.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

POPE FRANCIS (through translator): We pray to the Lord that agreement reached in the United Nations may succeed in halting as quickly as possible the clash of arms in Syria, and in remedying the extreme grave humanitarian situation of the suffering people.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KOSIK: This is Bethlehem, the biblical birthplace of Jesus for this morning mass at the Church of Nativity. Services were peaceful today despite a recent spike in violence in the West Bank, Jerusalem, and throughout Israel.

The Palestinian president and prime minister attended late night Christmas Eve services at the church.

And word today that the Americans held hostage by Iran more than 36 years ago will receive financial compensation thanks to part of the newly passed congressional budget bill. Thirty-eight of the 53 Americans released by Iran in 1981 are still alive. They were all held captive for 434 days. The bill allows each former hostage is to be paid $10,000 for each day they were in captivity. We remember that.

This is LEGAL VIEW, and so this time of the year, we have to look back at crime, punishment, and courtroom stories that dominated the news in 2014.

Here is CNN's Jean Casarez.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JEAN CASAREZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A biker shootout caught on video surveillance. 19 people killed and 18 wounded in May 17th at the Twin Peaks Restaurant in Waco, Texas. One hundred and seventy-seven bikers were arrested, police recovered 480 weapons.

In this video finally released, an officer fired the weapon after the police say the suspect was carrying a knife and acting erratically. An African-American teen Laquan McDonald was shot 16 times.

The Chicago police chief Gary McCarthy was fired after dashboard video of the suspect kill was kept under wraps for over a year.

MAYOR RAHM EMANUEL (D), CHICAGO: The public trust, and the leadership of the office has been shaken.

CASAREZ: The Officer Jason Van Dyke has been charged with first- degree murder while many in the community are calling for the mayor the resign.

The scene is heartbreaking and too familiar.

ANNOUNCER: This is CNN breaking news.

BROOKE BALDWIN, CNN ANCHOR: Oh, we are just getting word here of a school shooting.

CASAREZ: A shooting on the school campus, and this time at Umpqua Community College in Roseburg, Oregon. Gunman Christopher Harper Mercer shots and kills nine people. he dies after a gun battle at the college.

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Somehow this has become routine. The reporting is routine. My response here at this podium ends up being routine, and the conversation and the aftermath of it, we have become numb to this.

CASAREZ: As Bill Cosby maintained the silence, more women came forward saying the television star had sexually assaulted them in the past.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: He made me kneel down, and I'm not going to repeat what happened next. All I know is that it was the most horrifying thing that could happy to any young woman.

[12:35:00] CASAREZ: And Cosby turned the tables on some of his accusers in December, filing suit against them for defamation of his character. Mr. Cosby states plainly that he never drugged nor sexually assaulted the defendants.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It is my very, very sad duty to report that Allison and Adam died this morning shortly after 06:45, when the shots rang out.

CASAREZ: WDBJ television journalist Alison Parker and Adam Ward shot to death by a disgruntled former colleague during a live broadcast for their morning news, heinous acts recorded by the killer himself.

CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Not just horrifying, it's shocking. These were young people, Alison Parker was, what, 24 years old, Adam Ward was 27 years old. It's just unbelievably sad.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's been gut-wrenching for me to try and get through anything without breaking down in tears.

CASAREZ: The killer, Bryce Williams, shot himself as police closed in.

The scene read like a movie, and a escape tunnel chiseled away by inmates leading to a manhole on the street.

CHRIS CUOMO, CNN ANCHOR: We have new developments for you about the manhunt for two convicts that has crippled part of Upstate New York.

David Sweat and Richard Matt escaped from the Clinton correction facility in Plattsburg, New York.

(on camera): Richard Matt not only didn't surrender. He picked up that shotgun, he aimed it at the agent who ten shot three times.

(voice-over): Matt was killed. David Sweat is back behind bars. They were on the run for more than three weeks.

Prison worker Joyce Mitchell who helped with their escape but got cold feet for the planned getaway is now serving up to seven years behind bars.

JOYCE MITCHELL, PRISON WORKER: I did wrong, I deserve to be punished, but, you know, people need to know that I was only trying to save my family.

CASAREZ: In 2015, a jury sentenced bomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaev to death.

JAKE TAPPER, CNN ANCHOR: The convicted Boston bomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaev will meet his end by lethal injection for his crimes, actions that killed four people.

CARMEN ORTIZ, U.S. ATTORNEY: Even in the wake of horror and tragedy, we are not intimidated by the acts of terror or radical ideals.

CASAREZ: Nine people died inside of the historic Emanuel African-American Methodist Episcopal Church in South Carolina when Dylann Roof opened fire at a bible study. Roof was arrested the following day. According to police, he confessed and told investigators he wanted to start a race war.

Roof faced families of the victims who spoke directly to the killer from court.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You have killed some of the most beautifulest people that I have known.

MARTIN SAVIDGE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I have been through a lot of these hearings, this was the most emotional, the most powerful that I have ever listened to.

CASAREZ: The state is seeking the death penalty.

An arrest caught on tape. Freddie Gray died in police custody leading to riots in Baltimore that devastated the city.

MIGUEL MARQUEZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: As soon as the firefighters walked away or turned their backs, somebody walked up with a knife and cut holes, two holes into that fire hose.

WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: I want you to be careful over there, because it looks, Miguel, like the police are moving closer and closer.

CASAREZ: Gray was placed in a police van, and some point during the journey suffered an injury that ended his life one week later. The officers involved charged with numerous crimes, including not calling medic, and not buckling Gray inside the van. In the first of six trials, a hung jury.

Law enforcement calls this worst terrorist attack since 9/11.

ANDERSON COOPER, CNN ANCHOR: Tonight, new answers in the act of terror here that took 14 lives. That is how it is being investigated -- an act of terror.

CASAREZ: Fourteen people shot dead by a coworker and his wife.

JAMES COMEY, FBI DIRECTOR: This is now a federal terrorism investigation led by the FBI.

CASAREZ: Syed Rizwan Farook and Tashfeen Malik pledged their support to the terror group. This incident law enforcement's worst fear, lone wolf terrorists.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KOSIK: All right. Jean, thank you for that.

I want to keep this going with legal analyst Danny Cevallos and Joey Jackson.

Danny, let me start with you because we're seeing Freddie Gray made that short list of the top legal stories of the year, and this happens to be one of the cases that you really kept watch on.

DANNY CEVALLOS, CNN LEGAL ANALYST: Definitely. Freddie Gray, and really all of the police force cases, in just the last year alone, have caused us all to re-evaluate the way that police force cases are evaluated and prosecuted, not just from the county to county, but from state to federal court.

Freddie Gray was also interesting because it educates citizens about the very minimum quantum of evidence that is needed to have a police to initiate the stop. That was similar with the Sandra Bland case. What was the minimal amount of evidence that police need to invade your space and detain you to conduct an investigation?

[12:40:02] Because once they get to that point, they can pretty easily start hopscotching from there to an arrest.

KOSIK: Do you think average Americans are actually learning from the legal cases of what to do and what not to do?

CEVALLOS: I hope so. And maybe not so much what to do, but there is not a downside to the citizens becoming educated about not only their legal rights but police procedure. And when you have that knowledge, good or bad, it overall is a good thing for the citizenry. I mean, that plus the Internet, plus media coverage of it, it makes citizens more about police encounters. And that is always a good thing.

JOEY JACKSON, CNN LEGAL ANALYST: Always a good thing, Alison. And just to piggyback of that, and I do agree, Dan -- I mean, it is so important what happened with Freddie Gray and the police cases, but I say comply now and grieve later. No matter what your grievances on the street, Alison, comply with the officers and at some later, go to court, get a good lawyer, do what you have to do.

But my big story, Alison, was Bill Cosby.

KOSIK: And why is that?

JACKSON: You know, I say that because it touch so many people's lives, in terms of women, women who comes such a long way, as far as sexual harassment, the things that you're always taught growing up in terms of respecting women, we would not be here if it weren't for women, moms -- mom, love you -- you know, everyone, you know, wife, I love you, too.

You know, but the fact is, is that, you know, it is just affecting so many people, and not to say that he is guilty of anything, because it is not going to court, and, you know, in that way, in a criminal way, but just the sheer impact, and what it has on all of the notions of who Cosby is, and recognizing that he is not criminally convicted of anything, I get it. But the sheer accusations of 50 women or more has just affected so many people, and affected me in an impactful way.

CEVALLOS: And to piggyback off of what Joey said, he's absolutely right, the Cosby case is also what caused us in a more broad sense to reevaluate things like the statute of limitations for sexual abuse cases, and that is about line drawing. How do we as a society, when do we draw the line and say, well, something decades' old, maybe the evidence is too stale to persecute, or in the case of sexual assault or rape, there should be no statutes of limitations? And this is an issue that we are grappling with even today in the legislatures.

KOSIK: And interestingly enough, the book not necessarily closed on them, because they will be going into the next year.

JACKSON: So true, Alison. Freddie Gray and Bill Cosby, based upon the lawsuits now. He is suing with the defamation of character, they're suing saying he defamed them.

KOSIK: They may continue to be your top legal stories in 2016, for bad or good.

JACKSON: Probably will.

CEVALLOS: Could be.

KOSIK: All right. Thanks for coming on today. We'll talk to you later on the show.

Up next, before he was "Ironman", Robert Downey Jr. was a convicted felon, but thanks to the Christmas gift from the California governor, he is off of the naughty list for good.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[12:46:05] KOSIK: Robert Downey Jr. has an extra reason to celebrate this holiday season, because yesterday, the California governor granted the "Ironman" actor a full and conditional pardon for his 1996 conviction on drug and weapons charges. His sentence included almost four years of prison time, and probation. Governor Jerry Brown says Downey has paid his debt to society, and is served his time, and quote, "since the release from custody, he has lived an honest, and upright life, exhibited morale character, and conducted himself as a law-abiding citizen."

Let's go ahead and bring back CNN legal analyst Danny Cevallos and HLN legal analyst Joey Jackson.

So, Joey, Robert Downey, Jr., one of 91 people, you're giving him a congratulatory clap here, one of 91 people Governor Brown pardoned. He was a convicted felon, and a convicted felon as such, you lose certain rights.

JACKSON: You do.

KOSIK: You lose the right to vote, to own a gun. Are these rights going to be reinstated for Robert Downey?

JACKSON: You know what, well, this is what happens. First, let's approach broadly, Alison, and broadly speaking, the reason I'm clapping because here's our system is about -- it's about punishment, and deterrence, but also rehabilitation.

CEVALLOS: Redemption, Joey.

JACKSON: Absolutely. And when someone demonstrates that they have got -- look, they have done something terribly wrong to society, and after that, they've led a law-abiding reward, there has to be some reward for keeping straight and narrow. I think society benefits so greatly by that.

Now, whenever there is a pardon by the federal government or in the federal case, by the president, what happens is, rights are restored. But then we get into the rights that you mentioned in terms of voting, owning a firearm, employment rights, and that type of thing. But then, of course, you consult the counsel, same lawyer presumably to get the record expunged or sealed, because that's what's very important. Now, there's a distinction between expunging and --

(CROSSTALK)

KOSIK: Can Robert Downey Jr. have his record wiped clean now?

CEVALLOS: Right. So, under the federal law, first, yes, if you get a pardon, yes, you can vote, yes, you can own a firearm. But the expungement laws vary from state to state. And commonly, Joey and I get this phone call and people will say, hey, I have two armed robberies convicted five years ago, can I get those expunged? And the answer is usually no.

For the most part, expungement is a cleaning up of not only your criminal record, but even your arrest record. However, that is usually only permissible if you were not convicted. If you have been convicted for the most part, your only option is going to be a pardon.

And a pardon is not so much the striking of the record, but as much as executive forgiveness. It's the governor or the chief executive, which will be the president or the governor saying, yes, you committed a crime, yes, you were convicted, but you seem like a nice guy, and we're going to forgive it.

It's still -- you were still convicted of that crime. But many of those civil abilities, like the inability to own a gun, some of the other things we're talking about, they become lifted and restored.

KOSIK: OK. So here in my hand are a list of 95 people a week ago President Obama granted commutations and pardons. First of all, how does he choose and who is going to be the benefit of this?

CEVALLOS: Alison, that is really the question. For all we know, it could be one of the magic 8 balls. Who knows who and why and how executives choose to grant pardons? In the past, many have been accused of favoritism, cronyism. It really -- we hope that it's a merit-based analysis, but we really don't know. It really depends on the strength of their petition.

KOSIK: All right. Well, I will give a little clap to Robert Downey Jr. anyway.

CEVALLOS: Good job, Robert.

KOSIK: All right. Thanks for joining us. I love that. Merry Christmas.

CEVALLOS: There he is.

JACKSON: And that is for all of you who have been rehabilitated and pardoned, keep up the good work. Society needs the people to get back on the straight and narrow, and we are all benefit as a result of that.

And so, to the governor of California, kudos to you. And, Mr. President, kudos to you, too.

KOSIK: All right. thanks for coming on today. Merry Christmas.

And up next, home for Christmas takes on a whole new meaning when it's coming home from war.

[12:50:00] Moments you're not going to miss , coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KOSIK: If you're wondering what he presidential candidates are doing today, well, most of the 2016 candidates are sending out their Christmas wishes today.

Democratic frontrunner Hillary Clinton posting this picture of her and President Bill Clinton in the White House from years past.

Bernie Sanders is all about the issues, tweeting about the immigration raids, the middle class and national health care issue as well.

Martin O'Malley, he's attacking Trump and tweeting about refugees.

On the Republican side, we see the frontrunner Donald Trump posted, "Merry Christmas to all. Have a great day and have a really amazing. Together, we will make America great again. It will be done."

Marco Rubio posting a picture of his family, saying, "Merry Christmas and best wishes for a blessed New Year."

And Jeb Bush posting an animated card and this message, "Enjoying family time, and reflecting on all of the blessings God has given us. From mine to yours, Merry Christmas."

Ted Cruz posted an animated Christmas card with his family including his children.

Chris Christie tweeted out merry Christmas and also posted holiday wishes to members of the military.

Mike Huckabee tweeted out an old Christmas ad from his 2008 campaign.

Dr. Ben Carson sent out an old pic of his family saying, "Have a merry Christmas and enjoy time spent with people that you love."

[12:55:01] Carly Fiorina, she tweeted out a bible verse along with wishes of a merry Christmas.

Rand Paul posted a Christmas card with his wife.

John Kasich posted a pic of his family as well.

And, finally, Rick Santorum posted a picture of his family also wishing everyone a merry Christmas.

Everybody is busy on Twitter today.

President Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama are also wishing Americans a merry Christmas and happy holiday. And they're celebrating the blessings and values of the holiday season.

And it is in that spirit of gratitude that they sent this message today.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: During this season, we also honor those who defend those values in our country's uniform. Everyday, the brave men and women of our military serve to keep us safe and so do their families.

MICHELLE OBAMA, FIRST LADY: So, as we sing carols and open present, and win snowball fights.

BARACK OBAMA: Or lose snowball fights.

MICHELLE OBAMA: Let's all take time to pay tribute to those who've given our country so much. Go to joiningforces.gov to see how can serve the troops and the veterans and the military families in your community. And together, we can show them just how grateful we are for their sacrifice. That's a tradition that we all can embrace today, and everyday.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KOSIK: So, to celebrate the troops, we wanted to look back at some of the sweetest homecomings between children and their military moms and dads.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Our large prize to today, Josh is home for the holidays.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: All right. There is your present.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Oh, my God Almighty! My God Almighty! Oh, oh.

UNIDENTIFIED GIRL: I do everything with him.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I miss her and I love her a lot.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Who's in the car?

UNIDENTIFIED BOY: Daddy!

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What did you get?

UNIDENTIFIED GIRL: Daddy? UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Hi.

UNIDENTIFIED BOY: Dad!

You got home?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I got home just now.

UNIDENTIFIED BOY: Did an elf bring you?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, he sure did.

UNIDENTIFIED BOY: Thank you, elf!

UNIDENTIFIED GIRL: Mommy!

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I couldn't ask for anything more than being home for Christmas.

Nervous, anxious, and a little bit of every emotion I think.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Aaron, see if this is the real Santa. Santa!

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Oh, no.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Take it off. Take it all off.

UNIDENTIFIED BOY: Daddy!

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Who is that?

UNIDENTIFIED BOY: Daddy.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Go give him a hug.

UNIDENTIFIED BOY: Daddy!

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I haven't held him or touched him since January, the beginning of January, and so, here we are 10 months or 11 months later, and yes, this is an awesome feeling.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It was like, dear Santa, I want you the bring my dad home, and I want a Barbie dream house.

UNIDENTIFIED GIRL: I thought that I was dreaming. I was really happy.

UNIDENTIFIED GIRL: Daddy, I miss you.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What were you hoping for Christmas?

UNIDENTIFIED GIRL: For daddy to go home.

That is amazing.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Where is he?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Right there!

(APPLAUSE)

(CHEERS)

UNIDENTIFIED GIRL: Oh, my gosh.

UNIDENTIFIED GIRL: Santa bring daddy home to me.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Who is there?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Would you like to go see your daddy?

UNIDENTIFIED GIRL: Daddy! Hi, daddy. We miss you. I love you.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KOSIK: If that doesn't leave a tear in your eye, I don't know what will.

Thanks to everybody who serves in the military. A very merry Christmas to you.

Thanks for watching.

Dana Bash is in for Wolf. And she starts now.