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CNN NEWSROOM

Chattanooga Gunman Had History of Drug Abuse, Mental Illness; One Man's Family Trying To Cope and Chattanooga Family Puts Out Statement; Abdulazeez's Family in West Bank "Shamed" by His Actions; Banks Open Again in Greece; Defense Secretary to Meet with Netanyahu During Mideast Trip; U.S., Cuba Open Embassies; Professional Surfer Fends Off Shark Attack; Cosby Admits Giving Women Drugs in Deposition; Trump Refuses to Apologize over McCain Remarks; Documentary on Human Trafficking of Children; Amateur in the Running for British Open Win. Aired 2-3a ET

Aired July 19, 2015 - 02:00   ET

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


(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[02:00:13] ERROL BARNETT, CNN ANCHOR: A history of drug abuse and mental illness. We are learning more details about the Chattanooga gunman.

PAULA NEWTON, CNN ANCHOR: Also a return to normalcy. Banks have reopened in Greece. A live report from Athens is next.

BARNETT: And a shark attack in South Africa. A world champion surfer has to fight his way to safety.

NEWTON: Can't get enough of that video.

Thanks for joining us. I'm Paula Newton.

BARNETT: Good to have you here for the week. Hey, everyone. I'm Errol Barnett. This is CNN NEWSROOM.

NEWTON: We're learning new details about the 25-year-old man who went on a shooting rampage in Tennessee last week killing four Marines and a naval officer.

BARNETT: According to a source close to the investigation, Mohammad Youssuf Abdulazeez's family told investigators he has a history of mental illness, depression and drug abuse. Last year, his family sent him to Jordan to get him away from the Tennessee friends they thought were bad influences.

CNN crime and justice producer, Shimon Prokupecz, uncovers thee new details.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SHIMON PROKUPECZ, CNN CRIME AND JUSTICE PRODUCER (voice-over): This man appears, by all accounts, is suffering from a lot of demons, so to speak, you know, drug problems, issues with keeping a job, issues with just basically performing everyday life functions. And they've told investigators -- the family has told investigators his history with him and his drug abuse and what was going on in his life leading up to the shooting. And now, they are going over that, the investigators, you know, what role that may have played in the shooting.

It doesn't necessarily maybe give authorities, you know, any motive but it does sort of help them paint a picture of what was going on in his mind, for quite some time now, and where he was mentally, what he was feeling, what was going on in his life. I mean, none of this is really going to explain right now why he did this. And, again, you know, most people feel -- most of the investigators certainly, the family, now looking back, now feels maybe something did happen along the way that did radicalize him but they have not seen anything. They told investigators they didn't see anything.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BARNETT: Another angle to all of this is Abdulazeez's trip to Jordan last year. It's a major part of the investigation. Jordanian officials have interviewed his family there. His friends noticed differences when he returned to Tennessee but they never expected any type of attack.

NEWTON: Investigators are looking into a text message that Abdulazeez sent to a friend that read in part, "Whoever shows enmity to a friend of mine I have declared war against him." That was sent hours before Abdulazeez opened fire at two military offices.

Meantime, people have been paying their respects to a memorial that just keeps growing and paying their respects at churches all over the city.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED PREACHER: The shooter, Mohammad Youssuf Abdulazeez was a victim as well. And the reason he was a victim is because he was a victim of hate. A victim of hate. And that may be the worst kind of victim you can possibly be.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

NEWTON: Days of grief there.

BARNETT: Indeed. Also a parade of bikers as you see here paid tribute to the five men killed.

Boris Sanchez has more, including how one man's family is trying to cope.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BORIS SANCHEZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: An emotional time here in Chattanooga, the body of Randall Smith passed through here on Sunday in front of supporters waving flags and offering condolences to the families of those affected. Randall's mother was on hand here, visibly emotional and overwhelmed when she saw a picture of her son in the memorial behind me. I got a chance to speak with her. Her name is Paula. She told me she is overwhelmed by the showing of support in Chattanooga but she became distraught when I asked how the family was holding up. She was understandably very emotional.

We are also hearing from the family of the shooter for the first time. Mohammad Youssuf Abdulazeez's family, putting out a statement offering sympathy and condolences to the families affected. And they write, "There are no words to describe our shock, horror, and grief. The person who committed this horrible crime was not son we knew and loved. For many years, our son suffered from depression. It grieves us beyond belief to know that his pain found its expression in this heinous act of violence."

That tidbit about depression leading many to question if this is more than a jihadist mentality that led to the shooting but rather a mental illness that led to the shooting.

Boris Sanchez, CNN, Chattanooga.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

[02:05:28] NEWTON: Another angle CNN has been following is the impact of his actions that are stretching to the West Bank where he has family.

BARNETT: They are suffering the shame of what he did in the U.S.

Our senior international correspondent, Nick Paton Walsh, has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NICK PATON WALSH, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Where the Tennessee gunman's family began in the hills of the West Bank, the men of this tiny village now scrutinize his end. Palestinians have seen decades of trauma. In the shade here, words of comfort.

A gathering because the death of Mohammad Youssuf Abdulazeez has left his father without a male heir and without honor.

(on camera): The emotions on display here have little to do with the loss of Abdulazeez. They are showing solidarity for his father who is suffering the shame on the other side of the Atlantic. In some ways, this is a wake for that family's honor.

(voice-over): Most of the voices are stunned and angry at Mohammad, but one local, not a relative, speaks out.

"I think what he did is an angry reaction to the regime that is ruling America and the West in general. It's Muslim's enemy and it supports bad regimes.

But this was a rare voice. His father's cousin wants Americans, grieving their loss, to know their horror here, too.

UNIDENTIFIED COUSIN OF ABDULAZEEZ'S FATHER: All the people who are talking with me are feeling very angry and very sad about this behavior. All of them say, Youssuf was a good man. He --

PATON WALSH (on camera): It's OK.

UNIDENTIFIED COUSIN OF ABDULAZEEZ'S FATHER: Youssuf, as a man, must have a good son.

PATON WALSH (voice-over): This village has had martyrs fighting the Israelis whose posters adorned the streets but this won't happen to Mohammad, we're told, as many here feel he had everything but blew it.

UNIDENTIFIED COUSIN OF ABDULAZEEZ'S FATHER: He had higher education. He had passport. Can work. He can live where he want in all the world because of the USA passport. But this choice -- all of us can't know why? Why he do that?

PATON WALSH: Mohammad came here once in 2005, age 15, for a week with his father to get his Palestinian I.D., we're told by his father's other cousin.

"He looked like an American kid," he said, "didn't speak Arabic. If he played with other kids, it wasn't that casual, as he was really focused here with his father to get his Palestinian I.D. They were here during the uprising and you could be worried for lots of reasons not just the Israeli army on the street and people being shot but also being outside playing, the sort of friends you could make."

"Ten years later, the road to radicalization has changed so much," he says. "It's not religion but the technological revolution of the Internet that's created this. Before people were looked over, but now a father cannot monitor what their son's doing on the Internet."

One visit at a formative age to a village that barely remembers the Tennessee gunman but now deals with the infamy and suffering his twisted choice wrought upon his family, too.

Nick Paton Walsh, CNN.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

NEWTON: And to Greece now where the banks are back in business. Now they reopened their doors a little more than an hour ago. You are seeing live pictures right now. Banks were shut down for three weeks in a move at staving off a collapse of the financial system.

Journalist Elinda Labropoulou joins us now from Athens with more.

Elinda, from the pictures we are looking at there, there doesn't seem to be a sense of panic. How has the reopening of the banks been greeted in Greece?

ELINDA LABROPOULOU, JOURNALIST: It's being treated as a positive thing because the banks were closed for three weeks. We were outside this bank three weeks ago and the queues were forming back then as people were starting to panic and not knowing what's going to happen next. So the idea of the banks reopening, although not many of the terms are changing. The capital controls are here to stay. But some of the services are starting to resume and with it, a sense of stability which is really what the Greek people need more than anything else. During this time, we have had a referendum. The country has pushed close to a Grexit, an exit from the Eurozone. And lot of political questions have risen as well. And this whole issue of political stability as well. So now people are responding to this as a positive, a sign -- a first step towards some kind of recovery -- Paula?

[02:10:42] NEWTON: A first step, a tentative step. And we are not seeing a sense of panic in front of the banks and it might lend a sense of confidence but everyone there realizes it, the austerity ahead of them. How is everyone in Greece after everything they have been through? Is there rage or have we gone to resignation now?

LABROPOULOU: It's a combination of a lot of things because it's a very complex situation. We are now looking at a third bailout for Greece. This is a situation that has gone on for five years. Their income has decreased. They have lost a quarter of their overall quality of life. They feel the measures are too harsh but the majority seem to believe that a bad deal which is what they believe they got is better than a no deal. The latest poll over the weekend showed that 70 percent of Greeks are still very positive and certain that they want to stay in the Eurozone and the same percentage said that they are willing to do what it takes to do just that. But of course until we get to that point of stability and some kind of development for the country, the Greeks are fully aware there are very hard times ahead.

NEWTON: And extraordinary. When you look a little while ago when they had that referendum, rejecting those same austerity proposals. In terms of what comes ahead, how much impetus is there to say that, look, we still have to stand by for that kind of a deal or this economy ---

LABROPOULOU: Debt relief has been at the core of the negotiations between Greece and its creditors and the first signs from the international monetary fund and the European Central Bank and from Mrs. Merkel herself saying there is a possibility that if these measures are voted in, they are endorsed and they started to become implemented and the first positive assessment there could be a room for debt relief. This has gone down very well with the Greeks. It is really the only thing that gives them some hope at the end of the tunnel rather than just following the austerity and recession cycle they have been in. They are hoping if these measures are implemented properly and followed through for a while there will be some kind of reward at the end of that.

NEWTON: More tough times to come at the Greek banks.

Thank you for that update where we see calm in front of those Greek Banks.

Thank you, Elinda.

BARNETT: Now to some other big stories we're following.

U.S. Secretary of Defense Ash Carter is in Israel, the first stop on his trip through the Middle East.

NEWTON: He says his trip comes at, quote, "an important moment" because of the Iran nuclear deal.

CNN's Sunlen Serfaty has more details.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SUNLEN SERFATY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, this trip was planned before the nuclear deal with Iran was reached last week but the defense secretary telling reporters that, of course, during his talks with Israel and other countries over the course of his trip, of course, the nuclear agreement will come up in conversation. And he defended the deal saying that it will remove a critical element of danger and threat from the region.

During his trip, he will have a meeting with Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu. He's been one of the fiercest critics of the deal.

Here's what Netanyahu had to say today.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BENJAMIN NETANYAHU, ISRAELI PRIME MINISTER (through translation): if anyone thought that the sweeping concessions for Iran would bring about a change in its policy they have received a decisive answer over the weekend in the aggressive and provocative speak of Iran's ruler, Khamenei. They do not make an effort to hide the fact that they will use the hundreds of millions of dollars to arm their terror machine and they clearly say that they will continue their fight against the United States and its allies headed by Israel.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SERFATY: Carter says he not trying to change anyone's mind during this trip but he is expected to reinforce the shared security challenges that the U.S. and Israel have and what the administration can do to bolster the cooperation on the threats in the region. The defense secretary won't be offering to pour billions of dollars in American-made missiles and aircraft into the region as a former of reassurance to the Israelis.

Meanwhile, Secretary of State John Kerry appeared on all five Sunday shows this morning in defense of this deal, telling CNN's Jake Tapper, quote, "The real fear of the region should be that you don't have a deal."

(END VIDEOTAPE)

[02:15:29] BARNETT: Sunlen Serfaty there.

Now, it's been more than 50 years since Cuba or the United States had embassies in each other's country but that has all changed. We'll bring you new details on this historic moment after this short break. NEWTON: Plus, an amazing escape from a shark. It happened on live

TV. What a world champion surfer did to avoid being bitten during a competition. Amazing.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[02:19:50] BARNETT: We have this information into CNN in the past hour or so. Police in Afghanistan say a U.S. air strike has struck an Afghan army outpost killing eight Afghan soldiers.

NEWTON: It happened in eastern Afghanistan's Lovar Province (ph) on Monday morning local time. A U.S. Army colonel says the incident is under investigation. We will bring you more information when we have it.

BARNETT: The decades-long tumultuous relationship between the United States and Cuba is entering a new era.

NEWTON: An incredible era. Today the two countries restore full diplomatic relations, each opening embassies in the other's capital.

Patrick Oppmann has more from Havana.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

PATRICK OPPMANN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): For decades, when Fidel Castro wanted to rail against American policies, he came here, the U.S. intersection in Havana. Since Cuba and the United States broke off relations in 1961, this was considered Swiss territory.

Although there's no American flag or embassy sign, the United States says it has more diplomats in Havana than any other single country.

(on camera): The intersection has long acted as the front line in the U.S.-Cuba conflict. The Cuban government built this massive stadium to hold demonstrations against the United States.

(voice-over): Former U.S. Diplomat Vicky Huddleston remembers seeing Fidel Castro leading demonstrations below her balcony.

VICKY HUDDLESTON, FORMER U.S. DIPLOMAT: With a stone, I could have thrown it and hit Fidel. We have always been the best of enemies. There is always this relationship. There's a trust underlying. I'm not going to go out with my stone and throw it at Fidel, am I?

(LAUGHTER)

OPPMANN: Not to say there hasn't been tension.

James Cason, another former chief at the intersection, shocked the Cubans by installing an electronic ticker on the top of the building in 2006.

JAMES CASON, FORMER U.S. DIPLOMAT: I knew the Cubans would never allow us to talk to the Cuba people so we decided we would talk over the heads of the regime by putting the moving billboard in the top floor inside our windows.

OPPMANN: Cuban officials responded by putting up rows of flags to cover the American messages. Eventually, diplomacy won out and the flags and the ticker were taken down.

There have been fewer demonstrations since Fidel Castro left power in 2006. And anti-U.S. propaganda signs have been removed.

U.S. diplomats say they face less harassment but they still watched by Cuban government cameras and guards that surround the building.

As relations normalize, the work of U.S. diplomats in Havana may transition from Cold War-era confrontation to address the needs of an increasing number of U.S. visitors to the once-off limits island.

JOHN CAULFIELD, FORMER U.S. CHIEF OF MISSIONS, INTERESTS SECTION, CUBA: We have many more American citizens coming to Cuba, and a small percentage have accidents and become injured or ill and look to the U.S. embassy to provide assistance. And we will, I believe, need additional full-time staff to deal with these challenges.

OPPMANN: New challenges for a new chapter in U.S.-Cuban relations as the United States on Monday, for the first time in 54 years, opens an embassy in Havana.

Patrick Oppmann, CNN, Havana.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

NEWTON: At least 43 civilians were killed and more than 100 injured when rebels bombed Yemen's port city of Aiden.

BARNETT: Days ago, Yemen's exiled vice president declared the city has been liberated after months of fighting between loyalist forces and Iran-backed Houthi rebels. Houthi officials deny losing the city and say the clashes are still ongoing.

A much different style of story you could say here. You have to see to believe. A championship surfer fought off a shark attack during a competition on Sunday in South Africa. This was captured live on television.

NEWTON: This is enough to make sure my children never get in the ocean again. You can see Mick Fanning of Australia being rammed by the shark and struggling for a few seconds before getting away. He barely knew what hit him.

BARNETT: Yeah.

NEWTON: John Vause now has more on this absolutely epic tale.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JOHN VAUSE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A professional surfer found himself competing for more than just points on Sunday.

(SHOUTING)

VAUSE: Australian Mick Fanning had to fend off a shark attack at South Africa's open competition. Dramatic video shows a shark circling the surf champion and then violently shoving him from his board. Fanning was able to swim to a rescue jet ski and was hoisted into a boat to safety, unhurt by clearly shaken.

MICK FANNING, PROFESSIONAL SURFER: I was sitting there about to start moving and I felt something grab, like, got stuck in my leg rope. And I instantly just -- just jumped like away. And then it just kept coming at my board and I was kicking and screaming.

VAUSE: Back on land, fellow surfers watched in disbelief.

SURFER: I saw all the boats and skis go straight to the line up. I'm like there is only one possible reason that would ever happen in a contest. Someone got whacked by a shark.

VAUSE: The organizers of the event, the Samsung Galaxy World Surf Championship, cancelled the rest of the competition.

[02:55:15] UNIDENTIFIED MALE: 30 minutes later, that shark was spotted again just down the line up a little. Not safe to send them back out.

VAUSE: Fanning and competitor, Julian Wilson, both agreed to both accept second place in the final, splitting the points and the prize money.

But Fanning leaves with more than that, he has his life and an amazing story.

(LAUGHTER)

VAUSE: John Vause, CNN.

BARNETT: And it would be an unbelievable story if we didn't have that story to watch but you saw him do what they suggest you do, against your instincts, just punch the shark, try to fight it off on the nose, or the stout, and hope for the best.

NEWTON: Hope for the best. How do you have that split-second decision? Look at what we're watching. That video is making the rounds. Terrifying stuff.

BARNETT: Staying out of the water for the time being.

NEWTON: Keeping the kids out of the water.

BARNETT: Still to come on CNN NEWSROOM, FIFA's executive committee set to meet in an hour and a half from now. Members are expected to set a day to elect the organization's next president and discuss reforms in the wake of a corruption scandal.

NEWTON: We also expect to hear from FIFA president, Sepp Blatter. He was re-elected to a fifth term in May as the U.S. announced indictments in the corruption case. Days later, he announced he would step down.

Now Bill Cosby admits to having affairs with several women but says they were all consensual. Coming up, more details on the comedian's newly released deposition.

BARNETT: And Donald Trump has sparked a new political firestorm and has no apologies to offer either. Details on that after this short break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[02:30:20] ERROL BARNETT, CNN ANCHOR: Welcome back to our viewers in the U.S. and those tuned in from all around the world. I'm Errol Barnett.

PAULA NEWTON, CNN ANCHOR: And I'm Paula Newton. We want to update you on our top stories this hour.

BARNETT: A source says the family of the Tennessee shooter, Mohammad Youssuf Abdulazeez, told investigators he abused drugs and had a history of mental illness. He was killed in a police shootout after opening fire on two military buildings. He murdered four U.S. Marines and a petty officer.

NEWTON: U.S. Defense Secretary Ash Carter is in Israel. He says that the trip comes, quote, "at a very important moment" because of the Iran nuclear deal. He plans to meet with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the country's defense minister during this trip.

BARNETT: Banks in Greece have opened their doors after a three-week shutdown. The European Central Bank raised the level of emergency funding to the banks last week. Withdrawals are still limited to 420 Euros, approximately $455 per week.

There have been new revelations in the scandal surrounding Bill Cosby. CNN has obtained a sworn statement from 2005 in which Bill Cosby admits to having sexual relationships with at least five women and giving them prescription drugs when they, quote, "partied." The relationships and drug use, Cosby says, were all consensual but he acknowledged hiding the affairs from his wife.

NEWTON: The 78-year-old entertainer discussed his philosophy on sex, claiming he tried to avoid it because he didn't want women falling in love with him.

Barbara Bowman, one of the dozens of women who have accused Cosby of sexual assault, told CNN what she thought of the deposition.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARBARA BOWMAN, ACCUSED BILL COSBY OF SEXUAL ASSAULT: And it is not just self-validating but it validates everyone that is involved in this and opens the door for communication to educate and to, you know, make aware, of our younger people, our children, of predatory behaviors and the, duh owe, the psychopathic and sociopathic behaviors. Sociopaths try to divert the attention away not to just protect them but they have enablers and handlers and people to manipulate the people around them to make their predatory behaviors possible and they believe the lies they tell everyone else. So when they are under oath or under pressure they believe what they are saying when it is completely untrue. I never asked for drugs and I never asked for sex and never asked to be put in that volatile and violating position ever.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

NEWTON: Cosby has not been criminally charged and denies any wrong doing. CNN reached out to his camp about the deposition and they replied with a no comment.

BARNETT: Donald Trump has set off another political controversy but he is refusing to apologize.

NEWTON: No surprise on either point. The U.S. Republican presidential candidate questioned whether Senator John McCain was really a war hero.

Andy Rose reports the reaction from Trump's own party was swift and heated.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MARCO RUBIO, (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE & FORMER FLORIDA GOVERNOR: It's offensive and ridiculous.

ANDY ROSE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Candidate after candidate is piling criticism on Donald Trump after his remarks about Senator John McCain.

DONALD TRUMP, (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE & CEO, TRUMP GROUP: He is not a war hero.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He's a war hero.

(CROSSTALK)

TRUMP: He's a war hero because he was captured. I like people who weren't captured, OK? I hate to tell you.

ROSE: Candidates from Trump own party pounced on the remarks and called on him to apologize.

RUBIO: This is not just an insult to John McCain, who clearly is a war hero and a great man, but it's also an insult to all POWs.

ROSE: Fellow candidate, Rick Perry, told NBC's "Meet the Press," he questions Trump's fitness to lead the nation.

RICK PERRY, (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE & FORMER TEXAS GOVERNOR: Until Mr. Trump apologizes directly to John McCain and also to the veterans of this country, I don't think he has the character of the temperament to hold the highest position in this country. ROSE: Trump is holding fast. Sunday, he called into ABC's "This

Week."

UNIDENTIFIED ABC HOST: Do you owe him an apology?

TRUMP (voice-over): No, not at all.

ROSE: The embattled candidate told "FOX and Friends" he is angry with Senator McCain for insulting his supporters.

TRUMP (voice-over): I had thousands of people in Phoenix, Arizona, talking about the whole horrible situation with illegal immigration, thousands and thousands of people, and he called them crazies. He insulted them, and I then insulted back.

ROSE: Trump says that McCain has not done enough for the country's veterans. A McCain spokesman said the Senator had no comment on the remarks.

I'm Andy Rose, reporting.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

[02:25:15] NEWTON: The question political analysts are asking is whether this controversy reshaped the Republican contest. Trump has been a front-runner in the polls, but this could, of course, knock him out of the top spot.

One of Trump's harshest critics will be speaking today, Jeb Bush. He's expected to outline his priorities if he becomes president.

BARNETT: Also, Marco Rubio is heading to New Hampshire and he called the remarks on McCain, absurd, offensive and ridiculous.

Also, Chris Christie will be on the campaign trail in South Carolina.

NEWTON: On the Democratic side, Bernie Sanders is facing an uphill battle to win African-American support. He faced some protests over the issue of police brutality at a weekend campaign event.

Now Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari is set to meet with U.S. President Barack Obama today at the White House. Mr. Buhari arrived on Sunday.

BARNETT: He defeated President Goodluck Jonathan's in an election in April. He vowed to defeat Boko Haram. He is expected to seek U.S. assistance in fighting militants across West Africa as the two leaders seek to rebuild U.S.-Nigerian relations.

Heavy rain is taking its toll in India. The River Ganges is rising by one centimeter per hour in the north. Residents have had to evacuate. The town is a center for Hindus who bathe in the river.

NEWTON: Many cities and central states are flooding. Water rushed into homes and other buildings. Roads, bridges and railroad tracks were damaged. They had all that terrible heat and waiting for the rains but obviously not in this way.

Thousands of children forced into prostitution in the United States. Up next, we'll look at why this crisis is especially bad in Atlanta, and hear from several activists.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[02:40:] BARNETT: Welcome back. There are tens of thousands of human trafficking victims in America and the majority of them are children.

The CNN Freedom Project partnered with actress, Jada Pinkett Smith, to expose this form of modern-day slavery.

NEWTON: In a documentary, "Children for Sale: The Fight to End Human Trafficking," she discovers why Atlanta has become a breeding ground for predators.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

(MUSIC)

JADA PINKETT SMITH, ACTRESS & ACTIVIST: When my daughter was 11, she came to me and she said, mommy did you know there were girls that were being sold for sex that are my age in this country? And I was like, I think there's a mistake. That doesn't happen here. After that, it was just -- I remember I was stuck to the computer for days, story after story after story, and I couldn't believe that I didn't know.

(on camera): Dalia Racine knows. She's DeKalb County's assistant district attorney.

(voice-over): Would you say there is a difference between prostitution and trafficking?

DALIA RACINE, DEKALB COUNTY, GEORGIA, ASSISTANT DISTRICT ATTORNEY: Trafficking is the manufacturing of children for the sex trade. They are just getting sold and passed on from one exploiter to the other. And a lot of times it's because they don't know a life after this.

SMITH (voice-over): Those exploiters can come from anywhere.

(on camera): Is there such thing as trafficking occurring in airports?

RACINE: It is the world's busiest airports, which lends to us being one of the hubs. That man can get on that computer, anonymously, say I'm coming in to go have sex with this child. He'll fly in on a 3:00 flight, meet the child at 6:00 and be gone on the 8:00. How are we to ever find them? How are we to ever know who they are?

(END VIDEOTAPE)

NEWTON: Earlier, our Amara Walker spoke with Lisa C. Williams whose work is featured in the documentary. BARNETT: She is the founder and CEO of Circle of Friends, Celebrating

Life and the Living Waters Program, which provide a safe place for young victims of sex trafficking. Here's their conversation.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

AMARA WALKER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: How pervasive is this child sex trafficking problem in this country?

LISA C. WILLIAMS, FOUNDER & CEO, CIRCLE OF FRIENDS AND THE LIVING WATERS PROGRAM: Well, I think you judge the size by the demand. And there is a great demand for children under the age of 18. And you can go online and purchase a child in three minutes. You choose what color hair you want, what eye color, how tall, the weight and that child is brought to you. And so anyone who feels a sense of entitlement can do that. And quite often, that is what we see. Most of our girls being bought over the Internet.

WALKER: Most of the transactions happen online but it's what I learned is that they are physically being accosted and abducted from shopping malls in Atlanta?

WILLIAMS: Some are. I talked about the 14-year-old girl who out of Henry County, who was taken because she was at a mall and she was having a conversation with a guy and he wanted her to get in the car and further that conversation. When she went around the car that's when that trunk was popped and she was forced inside it and she was taken to Florida and I got her three months after this incident. And we had a baby out of Fulton County like that. And while that is not the norm, we saw that happening so we started to alert teenagers to that trend.

WALKER: This young girl taken to Florida, how did she get rescued?

WILLIAMS: She escaped.

WALKER: She escaped.

WILLIAMS: When their guard was done she escaped and got on a bus and back to Atlanta. The courts called me and asked for a safe refuge with us.

WALKER: Tell me about your organization and how many young girls and boys we are also talking about, you have been able to rescue out of these situations.

WILLIAMS: None of the boys come to our safe home. The safe home is for girls. But we have had the opportunity to help spare the lives of 12 boys and 120 girls. The majority of girls are girls from Georgia but we have rescued girls from California, Kentucky, Florida, New York, New Jersey, as well. The FBI have brought girls from different places to our facility.

[02:45:16] WALKER: In that clip you hear the woman interviewed by Jada giving -- differentiating between prostitution and sex trafficking. And some of these victims who are sold in these underground rings have been arrested and charged with prostitution. Explain how that happens. They are victims, correct?

WILLIAMS: First of all you have to understand that. We got involved in this eight years ago with children because a 10-year-old girl was arrested and charged with the act of prostitution. There is no way you can assume that a 10-year-old decided to sell herself and the people who abducted her walked away freely.

WALKER: With the airing of this documentary, what do you hope to achieve?

WILLIAMS: I hope we will achieve to do something to prevent this. Secondly we must hold those accountable and we must prosecute them and why is there a demand? When we look at those questions we look at our homes and places of worship and the places that we work. And we have to turn in these predators.

WALKER: It is shocking but, Lisa Williams, we commend you for the work you are doing and wish you all the luck.

Thank you for joining us on CNN today.

WILLIAMS: Thank you for having me.

WALKER: Best of luck. Thank you.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BARNETT: There is so much important work being done. Tune in later this week for the CNN Freedom Project documentary, "Children for Sale: The Fight to End Human Trafficking." It premieres Wednesday night at 8:00 p.m., for those of you in London, that's 9:00 p.m. central European time, only here on CNN.

And we'll be back with more of the world's biggest stories after this.

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[02:50:] BARNETT: The winner of the 2015 British Open is? We don't know yet.

(LAUGHTER)

Weather is to blame in delaying the tournament, which usually wraps on Sunday.

NEWTON: Sure, blame the weather.

(LAUGHTER)

We want to get back to talking about the leader board and we can. One golfer is in a three-way tie for the lead. He is a 22-year-old amateur but he's not the 21-year-old favorite who is now chasing history.

Alex Thomas reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ALEX THOMAS, CNN WORLD SPORTS CORRESPONDENT: The extreme wind and rain which caused Britain's Open Golf Championship to go to a Monday finish for the second time in its 155-year history has given way, the Armageddon of weather giving way to a birdie avalanche in perfect scoring conditions over the old course here at St. Andrews. And this tournament is thrills after the third round. And also the tale of two young man, one Jordan Spieth, we knew about, and Paul Dunne, a 22- year-old amateur from Ireland that we didn't know an awful lot about. He's a former University of Alabama college player and he's ranked 80th in the world amateur rankings. No one expected him to be a joint leader at 12 under par with one round to go. He's alongside South Africa's Louis Houstaven (ph) and Australia's Jason Day, but just one stroke behind them is Jordan Spieth, the 21-year-old American who won the Masters and U.S. Open this year and is bidding to become the first since Ben Hogan, a legend of the game back in 1953, to win the year's Open, in three-major champions. Others, Jack Nicholas and Tiger Woods, have tried and failed to do that. If he manages it, he could go on for a historic grand slam of all four majors, but he has a round to go. All eyes on Spieth. But what about Dustin Johnson, the overnight half way? He has plummeted down the rankings and is almost out of contention.

From St. Andrews in Scotland, this is Alex Thomas for CNN.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BARNETT: Myself and Paula Newton are joined by our meteorologist, Derek Van Dam.

We've got some viewers watching from California. They'll be interested to know there was some kind of bridge collapse in the past few hours and a dramatic rescue you'll tell us about.

DEREK VAN DAM, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Interstate 10 between Los Angeles and Phoenix. Look at this video. Terrifying video. One vehicle went over the side when the bridge gave out. Bystanders used straps from their trucks to secure the truck to the side. Pieces of asphalt and debris were falling from the road as the torrent of water started to erode the particular area there, including the bridge. Eastbound completely closed. Westbound is, as far as I know, still open. Here is the side angle of what happened there. You can see how terrifying that moment was. The extraction of the driver was successful. They took him to a hospital. He sustained injuries from this terrifying incident.

And it's all thanks to the remnants of Tropical Storm Dolores. And that continues to spin just to the south of Los Angeles and San Diego. And we have had over 50 flood reports in this region from Los Angeles to San Diego and if you get in even closer. This is a rainfall estimate for the past 48 hours. Here is Interstate 10, Riverside and Palm Springs. This is the location where the collapse took place. And that area received between two and four inches of rain in a short period of time. It's easy for flooding to occur in desert conditions because the ground is so dry and the rain does not absorb into the ground and rushes down stream. And this video out of Wisconsin, outside of Milwaukee. This is a hot

air balloon event and this balloon was taken by a gust of wind just as they were trying to take the balloon down and it was still tethered to an SUV.

(CROSSTALK)

[02:55:21] BARNETT: Was anyone inside that hot air balloon?

VAN DAM: There was an injury in the tents there. Terrifying, stressful moments. No fatalities. One person was rushed to the hospital.

BARNETT: Derek, thanks very much.

VAN DAM: Thanks.

BARNETT: We'll see you next hour.

NEWTON: Appreciate it.

Rocker Phil Rudd was back in court Monday. The AC/DC drummer was charged in New Zealand for consuming alcohol, a breach of his home detention conditions.

BARNETT: Just 10 days ago, the 61-year-old was sentenced to eight months of home detention for threatening to kill someone and for drug possession. Rudd did not enter a plea to the charge and was released on bail.

Finally, beach goers in Wildwood New Jersey got an extra treat on the shore. Check out this Harlem Globetrotter and his trick basketball shots.

NEWTON: I can't get enough of this. The tricks included a no-look over-the-head shot -- Errol does that all the time -- from a life guard station and a long-distance shot from the top of a water slide.

(CROSSTALK)

(LAUGHTER)

NEWTON: Spectacular, considering the weather conditions were pretty windy in -- get this -- the Garden State.

Looks like a lot of fun.

BARNETT: It does. He didn't seem very amused, but I do this all the time.

(CROSSTALK)

NEWTON: Love those guys.

You have been watching CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Paula Newton.

BARNETT: I'm Errol Barnett.

Stay with us. We'll be back next hour with a new edition of CNN NEWSROOM.

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