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CNN NEWSROOM

Colorado Wildfires Coming Under Control; Restaurant Deck Collapses into Water in Miami; Phil Mickelson Attends Daughter's Graduation, catches Overnight Flight to US Open; Rupert Murdoch Files for Divorce

Aired June 14, 2013 - 11:00   ET

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


ASHLEIGH BANFIELD, ANCHOR, "CNN NEWSROOM": Hello, everyone. Nice to have you with us this morning. I'm Ashleigh Banfield, and we have a very busy show ahead, the day's big stories and, of course, as always, our take on "Daytime Justice."

Let's start here, Colorado. It's never had a more destructive wildfire than the one that is torching the Black Forest as we speak. It's near Colorado Springs, and just look at the video that's been coming into CNN.

These flames have cost 379 families everything they own. Their homes and their belongings have been reduced to piles of smoldering ashes, despite all the work to stop that.

Even more tragic, two people have now died, and they died before they could escape, actually in their garage trying to get into their cars to leave. The flames have been that fast-moving.

So far, this one fire has nearly incinerated nearly 16,000 acres, or roughly 25 square-miles.

Our Dan Simon is live in Colorado Springs, where he's been trying to follow the path of it and the progress of it. It's remarkable.

They're about to hold a news conference, but do we know the very latest this morning so far, Dan?

DAN SIMON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yeah, I have to say things are actually looking better. You almost feel like there's a momentum shift. I mean that in a good way.

We were told that the fire did not spread last night, which is saying something because the winds were pretty significant last means, which means that all the manpower they have on the ground, more than 700 firefighters, all the air assets that they had yesterday dumping water, dumping retardant, all of that is beginning to make a difference. The fire did not advance.

Now the thing is, Ashleigh, we are not out of the woods by any means. The key is keeping this fire contained, not letting it go into Colorado Springs, for instance.

And we feel like, or at least the firefighters are saying that there's a good shot of that happening because right now the winds are relatively minimal. It's a bit cooler today, and so if firefighters are going to make good progress, today is a really good day to do that.

Ashleigh?

BANFIELD: OK, Dan Simon, thank you. He's watching it for us, live, and he'll continue to break into our coverage just as soon as the news warrants.

In the meantime, one moment they're sitting on a sports deck and cheering on the Miami Heat in the NBA Finals, and the next moment, screaming and a collapse.

This is the result, a deck collapsing at a restaurant right into south Florida's Biscayne Bay. Twenty-four people were hurt, three of them critically.

Our John Zarrella is standing by, live in Florida. The nighttime view is remarkable with the divers in the dark water, looking for people and looking for survivors, and the daytime view is remarkable that anybody wasn't hurt worse.

But what's the story with why this happened? Do we know anything more about it?

JOHN ZARRELLA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yeah, you know, Ashleigh, you're absolutely right. When you look at it in the daylight, it is absolutely remarkable that this wasn't a much, much worse situation than what it ended up to be.

Part of the reason for that is that the water here is very, very shallow, and it allowed for the rescue team which are literally only a mile away from here. There's a rescue station - fire rescue station -- to get here very, very quickly, get the people out of the water, as quickly as they did, the divers in the water, as you mentioned.

But to answer your question more specifically, we've already had inspectors, structural engineers out on a Coast Guard patrol boat, out on a city police boat, looking at the dock from all angles, taking pictures of it from all angles.

So already they are beginning the - to try and figure out, was it too many people? Was it a structural failure? Was it perhaps the environmental conditions, the salt water deteriorating the pilings, the posts? Was it a combination? And they just don't know.

We've already been told it's likely to be some time before they really come to a conclusion, Ashleigh?

BANFIELD: And at this point, are they speculating on cause? Have there been any complaints, building inspectors, that sort of thing? Or is it really just a big mystery?

ZARRELLA: Yeah, it is. It absolutely is a big mystery. Certainly there are people going around already speculating about what it might have been, whether there were too many people, but quite frankly, a lot of people who frequent Shuckers here say that on any big sporting event like the Miami Heat game last night, that dock is always packed with that many people.

So whether it was just stress, strain, wear, tear, they're not speculating on that, but they are saying it's going to be a while.

BANFIELD: OK. John Zarrella watching that for us, he'll continue to report on it as we find out more on the cause, but in the meantime, you can imagine there is a lot of guessing going on right now.

I want to bring in our legal panel on this story. Our L.A.-based attorney Brian Kabateck and also defense attorney Danny Cevallos.

Danny, let me begin with you. I can only just imagine at this point that the lawsuits among all of those families who've been affected by this are being crafted as we speak. Am I wrong?

DANNY CEVALLOS, DEFENSE ATTORNEY: You're probably right, but this is -- in terms of looking at damages here, there probably aren't tremendous damages. There are no deaths, but you better believe there will be some kind of injuries that will be sued on.

When it comes to liability, the landowners are on a duty, if you're spending money at their establishment, to inspect the premises. Even defects that are not visible to the naked eye, if they could have been discovered with a reasonable inspection, any landowner is going to be on the hook, and that's just the owner of the property.

There may be additional layers of liability once we look at the contractors who were hired to build, or whether they built negligently or whether they failed to build properly.

BANFIELD: And, Brian, what about those whose job it is to inspect this for us? That would be the authorities who are actually with the city.

Does the liability extend to them if they've done all their inspections? Everything was supposed to be A-OK and it really wasn't.

BRIAN KABATECK, L.A.-BASED ATTORNEY: No, generally speaking, when you have a governmental entity, when you have somebody that works for the government or works for a city or municipality, they're going to be free from liability under certainly governmental immunities. So they're not going to have any responsibility.

But you're going to have to look long and hard at the people that own this place. What were they doing? What were they doing to protect their customers? They've got a heightened duty.

This is a very serious time for them. They've got to be in crisis management right now because let's not forget. There may be criminal liability here, too.

BANFIELD: Well, especially if someone dies. I mean, if somebody dies -- right now we've got several people in critical condition.

Danny, does alcohol play into this at all? And I'm just talking about the notion that this is a bar, there's a lot of drinking going on, but I don't care if you're loaded or not, you don't expect the floor to go out from under you.

CEVALLOS: So you're talking about contributory negligence, and the law would ask, what is a person contributorily negligent if they drink at a bar and the floor falls out from under them. I don't think the law contemplates that as part of contributory negligence.

That might be more in terms of doing something in the bar, maybe getting into a fight or maybe slipping over an obvious danger.

However, patrons, whether drinking or not, have an expectation that a landowner, the bar that they are spending their money at, as what the law calls an invitee, that landowner owes the highest duty of care, the duty to inspect and make those premises safe, whether or not they're there for happy hour or dinner.

BANFIELD: Yeah, the reasonable expectation of safety, you might call it.

OK, hold those thoughts for a moment, Danny Cevallos, Brian Kabateck, and of course, our John Zarrella, who's still on the story for us. Thank you to all three of you.

A couple of other big news stories. We're looking for a little "Daytime Justice" here.

It is your solemn and your civic duty, jury duty. And it's tough enough on the average case, but now potential jurors in George Zimmerman's trial are being told they're going to be sequestered, possibly up to a month. Is that going to make it even tougher to seat a panel here?

And the business of love when you're a billionaire. Rupert Murdoch is getting a divorce -- again. So could his 11.2 billion with a "B" empire take a big hit? Or better yet, did he marry in a place that helps him or hurts him? Why geography matters when you are worth that much money.

And Michael Jackson's ghost makes an appearance in a Los Angeles courtroom, and if you think I'm kidding by playing this music, think again, how the superstar spoke from the grave in this case, and maybe more importantly, why the judge allowed it.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BANFIELD: So if you're counting, we are on day five in the jury selection process for George Zimmerman in his murder trial, and the people who do end up getting picked for that one, once they're seated, they're not going to be going home, really, until this thing's over. The judge has ruled that the jury will be sequestered.

Now there's lots of different kinds of sequestered, but for the most part, it ain't fun. Here's the good news for them. Originally that trial was supposed to be four-to-six weeks. Now it's expected to be two-to-four weeks instead, so a wee bit shorter, but small consolation if you're the one who has to sit there all that time.

HLN legal correspondent Jean Casarez is live in Sanford, Florida. It is her job to be sequestered, essentially, on these cases, so you're going to be stuck there, too, my friend.

But you know, talk to me a little bit about this because, once you start adding that into voir dire, it's a world of difference. Moms of small children, single parents, that kind of thing, all of a sudden, doesn't it make it way tougher to seat that panel?

JEAN CASAREZ, HLN LEGAL CORRESPONDENT: It definitely changes the game plan because not only mothers that don't have care for their children, but maybe elderly parents or grandparents are being taken care of in the home. And that means a constant overnight vigilance by the person that's supposed to be that juror.

So they were told originally they might be sequestered, but then yesterday the judge affirmatively issued that order that they would in fact be sequestered, but also two-to-four weeks.

So I think the court will be working overtime, possibly even on Saturdays. It hasn't come down yet, but she does work on Saturdays, so jurors won't have to be away from home for that long.

BANFIELD: Yeah, and that's the other thing. I've seen variations on sequestration, and sometimes they get to go home on weekends, and sometimes they don't.

What's the story on this one? Or they haven't -- have they got that far yet?

CASAREZ: She has not issued any time of particulars, but I'm sure you remember with the Casey Anthony jury. They were sequestered.

Once a week their families could come and visit them, but a security officer from the court had to be present for any conversations. They could make phone calls once a week. I remember at the time we were saying, gee, it's like the jury is in jail.

But this, of course, is a very high-profile trial, and they can't be influenced by anything or anyone that wants to talk to them about it.

BANFIELD: Yeah, and I think -- correct me if I'm wrong, but don't they get sort of a lifetime exemption? I mean, I hope you do after you do that.

That Casey Anthony thing felt like six years. It was several months, but it was very difficult on those jurors, and of course, they rendered a not guilty verdict on the most serious charge, and they took it on the chin for it after doing all of that service.

So let me know if they get a lifetime exemption in Sanford, Florida.

CASAREZ: You have a good memory because Judge Belvin Perry did say that to the Casey Anthony jury. I remember that.

BANFIELD: Oh, I thought I'd heard -- you know, I have a terrible memory. It's just you. I just - I hang on every word of yours, Jean Casarez.

Thank you for that, Jean, live for us in Sanford, today.

And still to come, a little "Daytime Justice" for you, the slap heard around the world, a "Tiger wife" protecting her man.

Well, it was her man, anyway. Rupert Murdoch now has said, see you later. He's filed for divorce from Wendy Deng.

And we're going to check in on another Tiger, too, as this golf pro needs to make up some ground at the U.S. Open. Find out all about it, coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BANFIELD: Father's Day is Sunday. Don't forget.

But golf great Phil Mickelson has already proven that he is one great dad, because even with an early tee time at the U.S. Open yesterday, he refused, he just flat-out refused to skip his daughter's 8th grade graduation all the way in California. So he went, and then he flew overnight -- what you call the red-eye -- to Pennsylvania and then teed off after only a little bit of sleep.

Can I tell you something? If you pull those kinds of all-nighters, you get "New York Post" headlines like "WonderPhil (ph)." Maybe he should do it more often. He finished the first round at the top of the leaderboard. And our Shane O'Donoghue is at the U.S. Open in Ardmore, Pennsylvania, outside Philadelphia, on a sunnier day today.

It's a great headline.

Is everybody so surprised that, given the circumstances, he was able to pull this off?

SHANE O'DONOGHUE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Not necessarily. And I certainly wasn't surprised, Ashleigh.

Good morning to you.

I mean, you know, the thing about Phil, one of his monikers is Philly Mick. And here we are in Philly, so you know, maybe the "New York Post" should take a lead from that book as well and perhaps post another headline, because -- the other thing you should actually really consider here is that Phil Mickelson has a G-7, or is it a G-8? I'm not really up on private aviation, but he has got a bed of his own in this thing.

He circumnavigates the globe on this. And he is well known for this sort of circuitous travel.

So I spoke to him. And I was fortunate to speak to him on Monday night at a very special dinner that was held by Rolex, who sponsor our show on CNN International, "LIVING GOLF," and so it was really nice to be there.

And I went up to Phil and kind of -- I had a word with him, because you mentioned Father's Day. Phil will be 43 on Father's Day. And he's been runner-up in this -- the U.S. Open five times now at this stage. And that's a lot of pain for anyone to go through. So he knows and understands what the U.S. Open is about more than anyone, really. And he really gets it.

And on a personal note, my son will be 4 on Father's Day. And I went up to him on Monday night and I said to him, Phil, you know I'm a big fan of yours. And I told him --

BANFIELD: Can I borrow your G-8?

(LAUGHTER)

O'DONOGHUE: Yes. Well, that will come later, you know what I mean?

But it's --

(CROSSTALK)

BANFIELD: Hey, by the way, Shane, where do you get off -- where do you get off thinking that there's a G-8? The last time I checked into the fleets available for my private use, there were only G-6s. That was the big new thing, the G-6. I don't think they got to a G-7 or a G-8. But maybe you travel in big circles.

O'DONOGHUE: Well, yes.

(LAUGHTER)

O'DONOGHUE: Well, this is my ignorance with regard to private aviation.

And by the way, I love your spectacles. They are just class.

BANFIELD: Aww. You know, you're invited back any time.

O'DONOGHUE: (Inaudible) Phil, though, is --

BANFIELD: Hey, a quick question for you before I let you go, because I'm in a bit of a --

O'DONOGHUE: -- the U.S. Open.

BANFIELD: OK. So really quickly, I want to ask you about Tiger. We've been talking about a Tiger White. We want to talk about the real Tiger, Tiger Woods. How is he doing?

O'DONOGHUE: Now Tiger Woods is struggling a bit, although I think he's on for a birdie here on this 13th hole. So he's just getting under way in round 2. He's just a few holes into it. And you know, he carved a +3 par first round. So six shots behind Phil, but Tiger knows how to cope with adverse conditions.

Tiger is the most motivated and complete professional golfer that we have ever seen, certainly in my generation. I have no fear for Tiger Woods, but he really wants to add to his three titles and make it number four and join Jack Nicklaus, Ben Hogan and Bobby Jones.

And this is the home of American golf. This is where all the history of the United States in golf, you know, has happened. So those two guys are very aware of that. And it's a fascinating (inaudible).

BANFIELD: That would be pretty cool, I've got to say. All right. Keep us posted. Thank you. You've got a great assignment.

Shane O'Donoghue gets to do the live at the U.S. Open thing.

We talked about Tiger. Here's another kind of tiger. One of the world's richest men says he's done with his tiger wife. Rupert Murdoch, filing for divorce. Will Wendi Deng get anywhere near what some think she might? It's $11.2 billion in that fortune. So let's talk geography and why that matters, after the break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BANFIELD: The mayor of Toronto, Canada, Rob Ford, has commended the police in that city for doing a great job after a series of raids on apartments.

What was it they were looking for in their raids?

Guns, drug evidence, including a video that purportedly shows Mayor Ford smoking crack cocaine.

This is weird, I know. "Toronto Star" newspaper reports that the police seized cell phones and guns, about 40 guns in fact, and about $3 million worth of drugs, but did not get their hands on any video. An investigation into this alleged video has been going on for years. Mayor Ford told reporters that he has nothing to hide, yet very proud of the police for what they were able to do and what they were able to get.

(MUSIC PLAYING)

BANFIELD: It was a romantic twilight wedding ceremony onboard a beautiful yacht with a celebrity singer, Charlotte Church, crooning in the background, but now 14 years later and two kids later, News Corp's chairman Rupert Murdoch has filed for divorce from his third wife, Wendi Deng.

It was Murdoch who filed -- Murdoch, not her.

Do you remember this part, when Wendi was the one whacking a guy for throwing a pie at her husband during this phone hacking controversy and hearing?

Yes. Stood by her man big time. Our Alina Cho has all the details of this story. (BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ALINA CHO, CNN HOST: The marriage of Rupert Murdoch and Wendi Deng was a partnership in every sense of the word, he, the 82-year-old chairman and CEO of News Corp with holdings that include Fox News and "The Wall Street Journal," one of the richest men in the world.

She, age 44, nearly half his age, a glamorous third wife with a taste for high fashion and high-powered friends.

But this is what made Wendi internationally famous: 2011, smacking a protester who tried to throw a shaving cream pie at her husband as the media tycoon testified before Britain's parliament about his newspaper's practice of phone hacking.

The video went viral, earning her the nickname "Tiger Wife."

Now their divorce, first reported by deadline.com is front page news. This is Rupert and Wendi Murdoch in happier times, talking to our Piers Morgan at this year's Academy Awards.

PIERS MORGAN, CNN HOST: And how do you feel about CNN doing so well against FOX at the moment.

RUPERT MURDOCH, CEO, FOX: I think we're OK.

CHO (voice-over): The Murdochs met in 1997 at a News Corp party in Hong Kong, where the Yale-educated Wendi worked at Murdoch property "Star TV."

Two years later the couple married on his yacht in New York Harbor. They have two young daughters and all the benefits that come with being super-rich.

No word on what Wendi could walk away with, but Murdoch, worth $11.2 billion, paid his last wife a reported $1.7 billion in what was billed as the most expensive divorce settlement in history.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BANFIELD: CNN's Alina Cho reporting for us. And going by history, it seems like Murdoch the billionaire may not be good at the business of love. He's got three wives and six children, and they all range in age from their 50s to their 40s, all the way down to the youngest one, age 10. A bit weird, I know.

Murdoch's divorces do not come cheap, either. It cost him $1.7 billion when he left his second wife.

So what do you suppose it might mean for wife number 3, Wendi Deng?

I want to bring back our legal panel, Brian Havotac (ph) and Danny Cevallos.

OK. So before we even ask the question, I want to show you a couple things when it comes to international law, because Rupert Murdoch has houses everywhere and wives everywhere, so it might matter where they got married and where they live.

Let's start with New York, because in New York, when it comes to prenup agreements, they are binding. When it comes to accrued assets, they get split 50-50, but the judge has some discretion. And when you it comes to pre-marriage assets -- clearly Rupert Murdoch has a lot of those -- they are usually excluded in New York.

How about Australia? (Inaudible) Rupert Murdoch is from Australia, has residences in Australia. Here's how it shakes down there. Prenup agreements, binding also. Accrued assets, again 50-50; judge has discretion.

But look at this bottom one, premarriage assets? Yes, they could be included in Australia.

So let's go to London because in London, it's a little different there as well. Prenup agreements nonbinding. Well, that's not always good if you're Rupert Murdoch. Accrued assets, judge has the discretion, not necessarily 50-50. And when it comes to those premarriage assets again, may be included.

So maybe England and Wales not as favorable for Rupert Murdoch.

Danny, let me begin with you. Ouch. Maybe the reason they were married in New York, would he be saying, I live in New York, I'm filing divorce in New York?

DANNY CEVALLOS, LEGAL ADVISER: Yes, that would probably be tactically good for him for two reasons. First, if he does not have a prenuptial agreement, New York will hold that the -- during equitable distribution that the property prior to the marriage will stay probably with Rupert Murdoch.