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CNN NEWSROOM

New Arrest in San Bernardino Attack; Obama Hopes to Assure Americans They Are Safe; Visiting a Russian War Ship; Russia's Putin Praises Trump; U.N. Resolution Calls for Stop in ISIS Funding; U.S. Delivers New Ammunition to Syrian Arab Fighters; Authorities Search for "Affluenza" Teen; Chelsea Football Club Manager Jose Mourinho Sacked; Is "Star Wars" Movie Living Up to Hype; "Star Wars" Franchise Unfamiliar to Chinese. Aired 2-2:30a ET

Aired December 18, 2015 - 02:00   ET

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


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[02:00:35] GEORGE HOWELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: From CNN world headquarters in Atlanta, welcome to our viewers here in the United States and around the world. I'm George Howell. CNN NEWSROOM starts right now.

And a good day to you.

We begin this hour with a new arrest in the U.S. state of California following the terror attack in San Bernardino. We now know that a friend of one of the killers' is accused of buying two of the assault rifles used in that mass shooting. That friend's name, Enrique Marquez. He made his first court appearance a few hours ago. His attorney declined to comment as he left the courthouse.

CNN's Kyung Lah joins us now from our Los Angeles bureau.

Kyung, good to have you with us.

So we're learning more about Marquez and his relationship with Farook. What more can you tell us?

KYUNG LAH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Up until this time, George, we have known Enrique Marquez as the gun buyer, the one who bought those two high-powered rifles used in the shooting, but also as a friend of Syed Rezwan Farook. He is one of the terrorists who went into that room and killed all those people. But we're getting a few more details, a portrait from this federal complaint that lays out prior attacks as recent as four years ago here in southern California.

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LAH (voice-over): Just hours after the terror attack in San Bernardino, Enrique Marquez called 911. According to a federal complaint, he told the operator he was the shooter, talking about Syed Rezwan Farook. Marquez said, "The (EXPLETIVE DELETED) used my gun in the shooting." Those A.R.-15 rifles were purchased by Marquez in late 2011 and early

2012. Why? Farook and Marquez were childhood friends. Court documents say Farook first introduced Marquez to Islam. Marquez would convert in 2007.

The complaint says, in 2010, Farook also introduced Marquez to radical Islamic ideas, like the lectures of al Qaeda recruiter, Anwar al Awlaki. In 2007, the men began discussing attacks, using homemade pipe bombs and their newly purchased rifles. First, on nearby Riverside City College, and on an Orange County, California, freeway, deploying their pipe bombs during rush hour, and then gunning down drivers who tried to flee.

Investigators say Marquez also purchased explosives. A bottle of smokeless powder when he bought the guns that explosive powder was found in the undetonated bombs in the San Bernardino attack, and also traced back to Farook's apartment.

TOM FUENTES, CNN LAW ENFORCEMENT ANALYST: At this point in the investigation, Marquez can supply a lot of information. That's a critical thing is that he can fill in a lot of blanks about a time period that electronically the FBI may not be able to recover at this point.

LAH: The terror plots stunned Marquez's family, who remain out of public view, telling reporters only that he was, quote, "a good boy."

MORGAN: He couldn't find his way out of a wet paper bag.

LAH: Morgan says Marquez never mentioned his sham marriage to Farook's relative. He never talked about the hobby he would tell investigator, building pipe bombs with Farook, or the guns he bought that would murder and terrorize his community.

MORGAN: That's what makes him so spooky is because he is just a normal everyday Joe Blow that you don't give the time of day to. And the next thing you know.

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LAH: And he did have an initial court appearance in federal court today. Marquez did not speak that much. He did not enter a plea. He is in custody, George, will remain there. There is another court hearing next week -- George?

HOWELL: So, Kyung, the weapons charge. The big question, why did he buy the weapons for Farook?

LAH: Well, according to federal agents and laid out in the complaint, he didn't. At least Syed Rezwan Farook didn't want to be detected. He didn't want there to be any additional questions because he had already purchased some handguns. According to federal agents, he had as many as three handguns already under his name. So he asked his friend to buy the A.R.-type weapons so he wouldn't raise any additional red flags. HOWELL: And, Kyung, we're talking about the person, Marquez, who came

forward, called 911. To tell investigators about his childhood friend and also told them about these plots that thankfully did not come to light. But now those plots could be used against him.

[02:05:09] LAH: Absolutely. What we had heard very early on was when he was first speaking and trying to cooperate with federal officials that he had waived his Miranda rights. That he was speaking openly with agents without the presence of an attorney. He now has an attorney. We're in a different realm of the investigation.

And you bring up a very interesting point there, George. He called 911. He called the police to let them know who he was, even though they would have found him eventually because the guns were registered under his name, he still called police first. It really suggests, how aware was he. He claims he didn't know this was going to happen.

HOWELL: CNN's Kyung Lah reporting live for us in Los Angeles. Kyung, thank you so much for your report.

LAH: You bet.

HOWELL: Now on to the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. Federal prosecutors there indicted a 19-year-old man for attempting to provide support to ISIS. They say he posted links online with the names and addresses and other information of U.S. military members.

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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's pretty crazy. You know, when it's right here at home, it's a different story. You hear it in California and Paris. But then it's right up the street from your house. It's real.

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HOWELL: And in California, a 22-year-old man is facing charges after he tried to travel to Turkey. Authorities say he wanted to join the terror group al Nusra Front.

Meanwhile, U.S. President Barack Obama is hoping to reassure Americans that they are safe in their own country. The president says there is no specific or credible threat to the country over the holiday season.

Our senior White House correspondent, Jim Acosta, has this report.

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JIM ACOSTA, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It was one more attempted show of strength from President Obama as he vowed to keep the nation safe from ISIS terrorists and their so-called lone- wolf followers during the holidays.

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Of course, when terrorists pull off a despicable act like what happened in San Bernardino, it tears at our hearts, but it also stiffens our resolve. ACOSTA: After a rare briefing at the National Counterterrorism

Center, the president said there is no current specific or credible threat to the U.S. homeland. With that intelligence in hand, he urged Americans to remain calm.

OBAMA: So anyone trying to harm Americans need to know, they need to know that we're strong and that we're resilient, that we will not be terrorized.

ACOSTA: Under discussion at the president's meeting, the growing high-tech menace of terrorists concealing their intention through social media and encrypted messaging on Smartphones.

JOSH EARNEST, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: We are concerned about the way some terrorists are using encryption technology to make their plots harder to detect and disrupt.

ACOSTA: To calm a jittery public after the terror attack in San Bernardino, the White House has amped up the president's use of the bully pulpit, from an Oval Office address to a stop at the Pentagon. The administration has unveiled changes to the terror alert system, and a view of travel visas to spouses entering the U.S. from abroad, the same opening apparently exploited by the California terrorists.

But the president is still facing major doubts. A new "Washington Post"/ABC News poll shows only 22 percent of Americans are confident the government can prevent a lone-wolf attack, while another poll finds Paris and the San Bernardino terror attacks are viewed as the top events of the year. And 71 Americans see mass shootings in the U.S. as a permanent part of American life.

SEN. JOHN MCCAIN, (R), ARIZONA: We saw too many dark days in 2015. It didn't have to be this way.

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ACOSTA: Republican Senator John McCain argued the president won't be able to stamp out the ISIS threat without taking out the terror army's capital of Raqqa in Syria.

MCCAIN: There is no plan by this administration to retake Raqqa. There is no strategy. And that is, indeed, shameful.

ACOSTA (on camera): President Obama will pay a visit to the families of the victims of the terrorist attack in San Bernardino tomorrow en route to his family vacation in Hawaii, an annual trip that has been interrupted by the threats of the homeland before.

Jim Acosta, CNN, the White House.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HOWELL: More than a month after the terror attacks in Paris and French authorities believe the leader of that massacre got into Europe through Greece. Abdelhamid Abaaoud is the ISIS operative who directed the attacks. And investigators think he had been in Syria for several weeks before the attack.

For more on this story, let's bring in our senior international correspondent, Sara Sidner, who is live on the Greek island of Lesbos.

Sara, good to have you with us.

The thinking here is Abaaoud arrived on the island of Lesbos, which plays into the growing concern across Europe about terrorists slipping in as asylum seekers. What more are you hearing?

[02:09:55] SARA SIDNER, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: That is exactly right, George. It really has been a great concern, a security concern that not only Abdelhamid Abaaoud, the ringleader, now has been identified as someone who has done that same type of thing using the asylum seekers as cover to get into Europe, but there were two others. The stadium attackers are also believed -- they've been unnamed so far, but also believed to have used the same system.

We're on the Greek island of Lesbos where hundreds of thousands of refugee, mostly Syrian have come and are simply looking for help. But these men had a whole different idea of what they were planning on doing. And there is a great deal of concern about how they're going to suss out those who intend to do harm as opposed to those who simply need a new home, need a new life because life is just too terrible where they are, too dangerous where they are.

I want to give you some idea, George, of just how long it may have taken them. Authorities have not said exactly the route that they may have taken. But if they were coming out of Syria, these attackers, and going through Turkey, it could have taken them quite some time to get to Leros. Getting to Lesbos is a lot easier. At Leros, they probably would have had to stop at an island that is abandoned in the middle of the ocean and picked up by the Coast Guard. That's how a lot of the refugees if they're heading to Leros from Turkey would have been able to get there because it is a very treacherous waterway there. And people would have had to have gotten help from the Coast Guard. However, we don't know. It's possible their boat could have capsized in the area. That is exactly what has happened this morning with some refugees trying to make it across to Lesbos. These are very difficult waters because of the boats that they are using. A lot of the boats ill equipped. Not piloted by someone who really knows how to navigate these dangerous waters. And so this has been a place where mostly people are having to be rescued in order to be able to make to it the Greek islands.

But again, George, this new information is confirming from the authorities that indeed a third person, the ringleader of these Paris attacks may well have used these asylum seekers to try and get through to Greece and then on to Europe -- George?

HOWELL: Sara, because of all that, there is effort among E.U. leaders to create an additional Coast Guard to help compliment the Coast Guards of its nations to better patrol and to better basically process the flow of migrants coming through.

Sara Sidner live for us. Thank you so much for your reporting. You're watching CNN NEWSROOM.

And still to come, CNN takes you onto an active Russian naval ship.

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MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, this really is extraordinary access that we're getting to Russia's military operations in and around Syria.

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HOWELL: More on the fight against ISIS in Syria as NEWSROOM continues.

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[02:16:48] HOWELL: Welcome back. Diplomats say that Russia may be softening its stance on keeping Syria's current president in power. But Moscow continues to intervene in the country at a military level on behalf of Bashar al Assad.

Our senior international correspondent, Matthew Chance, is embedded with the Russian military. And on Thursday, he stepped on board a warship to bring us this report.

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MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Off the Syrian coast, a rare glimpse at the naval power behind the Kremlin's air war who were off shore by the Russian military.

(on camera): This is extraordinary access we're getting to the military operations in and around Syria. We've been brought off the coast of Syria. We're in the eastern Mediterranean. And we're just about to go on board that ship there. It's called the Moskva. It's a missile cruiser and one the most important Russian vessels in this entire region.

(voice-over): On board, we were shown why the Moskva is such a formidable symbol of Russian power. After the shoot down of a Russian war plane by Turkish interceptors last month, the Kremlin vowed to destroy anything that threatens its aircraft in Syria.

The captain of the Moskva told me his ship, brisling with antiaircraft missiles, was sent as a warning on the direct orders of a furious Russian president, Vladimir Putin.

UNIDENTIFIED MOSKVA CAPTAIN (through translation): The Moskva itself is a threatening weapon. And with its arrival in the region, we have noticed a significant decrease in activity over the skies of Syria.

CHANCE: Other countries bombing Syria, in other words, have taken notice.

(on camera): Well, this is an extremely impressive bit of military hardware out here in the eastern Mediterranean. It has these enormous missile launching tubes that can carry a nuclear missile, although we're told there are none are on board at the moment. It's got this big gun as well to defend itself. But most importantly, this ship, the Moskva, has very sophisticated surface-to-air missiles and that's why it's been deployed here off the coast of Syria to provide air defenses for the Russian war planes to carry out their air strikes back in Syria.

(voice-over): Already Russian has used its naval power to strike targets across Syria, firing cruise missiles from the Caspian Sea and from a submarine in the Mediterranean.

So far, the Moskva has yet to fire a shot in anger. But its mere presence off Syria is delivering a powerful message.

Matthew Chance, CNN, on board the Moskva missile cruiser.

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HOWELL: In the meantime, Mr. Putin is making comments about the U.S. presidential election. He called Donald Trump the, quote, "absolute leader of the U.S. presidential race."

But as Brian Todd explains, there may be a hidden agenda behind these compliments.

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BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): For about three hours, he wouldn't comment on the American presidential race. But after an exhaustive news conference, Vladimir Putin got a question he couldn't resist: What do you think of Donald Trump?

[02:20:08] VLADIMIR PUTIN, RUSSIAN PRESIDENT (through translation): He is a very flamboyant man, very talented, no doubt about that. He is an absolute leader of the presidential race, as we see it today. He says that he wants to move to another level of relations, to a closer, deeper level of relations with Russia. How can we not welcome that?

TODD: Is the feeling mutual? Donald Trump has both praised and criticized the Russian leader.

DONALD TRUMP, (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE & CEO, TRUMP ORGANIZATION (voice-over):

(on camera): Putin is a nicer guy than I am.

Putin is a nastier guy than me.

TODD: Either way, Trump seems to think he is the right person to talk directly with Vladimir Putin. TRUMP: I think I would get along well with Vladimir Putin. I think

so. People say what do you mean? I think I would get along well with him. Obama and him -- he hates Obama.

TODD: But analysts have a warning for Donald Trump, reminding him Putin once managed KGB agents.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He reads Trump, and he says this is a guy I want to feed his ego. I want to make him feel like he can actually achieve the unrealistically big things he says he can achieve. And then I want to use him in doing that.

TODD: Experts say by praising Trump, Putin probably was taking a jab at President Obama. But they say Putin and Trump also have similar perspectives on leadership.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They're both focused on this image of action and strength and the individual's ability to Bend global forces, that you really need the great man at the top of the apex of the nation to defend it against the shadowy forces at home and abroad.

TODD: But there is one shadowy force who Vladimir Putin happens to respect, a man, who, like Donald Trump, is an antagonist of Barack Obama, General Qasem Suleimani, Iran's top commander in Syria. U.S. officials have classified Suleimani as a terrorist who helped target U.S. troops in Iraq. Iranian media reports Suleimani met with Putin in Moscow last week. The Russians deny it.

(on camera): If they did meet, it was very likely to assess their common client, Syrian President Bashar al Assad. Analysts say Putin and Suleimani are both very worried that Assad may fall, and may have wanted to discuss just how much staying power Assad has left.

Brian Todd, CNN, Washington.

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HOWELL: In the fight against ISIS, the U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry is holding -- hosting, I should say, diplomats in New York on Friday specifically to talk about targeting the terror group's funding. Russia's Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov is among those expected to attend. Both Washington and Moscow worked together on a U.N. Security Council Resolution. That resolution adopted unanimously on Thursday. It calls for U.N. members to be more assertive in cutting off all the ways ISIS makes money, from closing financial loopholes to stopping the abuse of charitable causes.

For some context on this, let's go live to Moscow. Jill Dougherty was CNN's former bureau chief there, but is currently a researcher at the International Center for Defense and Security.

Jill, it's always good to have you here to talk all things Russia.

Let's jump right into it. First of all, we have seen the Kremlin make it clear it no longer has an objection to Syrian president Bashar al Assad stepping down as part of a peace process. And we saw from Secretary Kerry's latest visit to Moscow that the U.S. is no longer pushing for regime change. So is this how the two superpowers come together and save face?

JILL DOUGHERTY, RESEARCHER, INTERNATIONAL CENTER FOR DEFENSE AND SECURITY & FORMER CNN MOSCOW BUREAU CHIEF: Yeah, I think actually, George, those positions have been developing for quite some time. And Russia was never a really insistent that Bashar al Assad had to stay as it is right now. I mean, they were always open to the idea that maybe eventually he would go. But the question was would he be forced out? Would he, you know, as the United States initially wanted, would we have to step down before any type of transition started, et cetera? That's softening. And the American position is moving as well. So what we're getting right now is this push at the United Nations to get into a political transition phase. Some of the dolts are already there, at least broader details which would be political transition. Assad probably goes to the side, maybe is not part of that. But the main thing is he is no longer the main person. It now moves. This is a theory, to a guiding group that would then help to rewrite the constitution, carry out elections, and move to a new governing body while retaining the institutions of the state. They do not want it to collapse as happened in Iraq. Now a lot of these details, the sticking points are really, OK, precisely what does happen to Bashar al Assad. That's where Russia comes in. That's where Iran comes in. Because they do have influence with Mr. Assad. And then also, who is at the table from the opposition? That has been a big sticking point. So it's not that hard to define some of the real terrorist organizations like ISIS, the al Nusra Front. Everybody agrees on that. But there are other groups that come in like the Free Syrian Army. Most of them are actually acceptable now to Russia and to the United States. But there are other groups as well. So that's where the rubber hits the road when you get into these really nitty-gritty details -- George?

[02:25:33] HOWELL: And, Jill, when it comes to cracking down on ISIS and its funding, this meeting in New York, what more can you tell us about that?

DOUGHERTY: Well, that's a very important part of this. And as you mentioned, that resolution was passed unanimously. And what it seeks to do is stop terrorist organizations. And especially ISIS from using the international banking system as a means of getting funding. And a lot of it is focused on oil sales. Much of the money that ISIS gets is from oil sales. Russia in particular has been very insistent about those sales. It has said that Turkey is facilitating. You remember the reporting we have been doing on that, the spat between them. So preventing oil, money from getting into the hands of is would be one of the main things.

HOWELL: Jill Dougherty live from Moscow.

Jill, thank you so much for the context on this.

DOUGHERTY: You're welcome.

HOWELL: You're watching CNN NEWSROOM. And still to come, the word is out from law enforcement, we're going

to find you wherever you are. That's the message from the sheriff searching for the so-called affluenza teen who killed four people and saw no prison time. We've got the story ahead as this broadcast continues around the world on CNN.

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[02:30:17] GEORGE HOWELL, CNN ANCHOR: Welcome back to our viewers here in the United States and around the world. You're watching CNN NEWSROOM. Good to have you with us. I'm George Howell.

The headlines we're following this hour.

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HOWELL: The U.S. delivered a new supply of ammunition to Syrian Arab fighters that are battling ISIS. This makes the third shipment since the United States shifted away from training rebel forces.

CNN's chief U.S. security correspondent, Jim Sciutto, reports.

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(JIM SCIUTTO, CNN CHIEF NATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Hundreds of ISIS militants launch a barrage of rockets during a coordinated attack on a Kurdish base in northern Iraq. A chilling moment in the aftermath, Kurdish Peshmerga forces find a truck with a label in Arabic, "suicide bomber section."

(CROSSTALK)

SCIUTTO: Wednesday's assault was the largest attack of its kind in months and came just days after President Obama touted this fact.

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Since the summer, ISIL has not had a single, successful major operation on the ground in either Syria or Iraq.

SCIUTTO: The Kurds thwarted the attack with help from coalition air support.

What was behind the latest offensive? ISIS fighting to defend its stronghold in Mosul, Iraq's second-largest city.

GEN. CEDRIC LEIGHTON, CNN MILITARY ANALYST: They're basically willing to do whatever it takes to prevent the Kurds from effecting their operations. They want to keep Mosul at all costs. This is one way in which they're trying to ensure that.

SCIUTTO: Likewise, the U.S. sees the Kurds as the coalition's most capable ally on the ground. And today, Defense Secretary Ash Carter, visiting Erbil in northern Iraq, praised the Kurds' resolve.

ASH CARTER, U.S. DEFENSE SECRETARY: The Kurdish Peshmerga have been exactly what we've been looking for in this whole fight in Iraq and Syria, namely capable and motivated force that we can enable.

SCIUTTO: Now the U.S. is attempting to fortify partners on the ground inside Syria, sending a fresh shipment of ammunition to Arab rebels there.

The U.S. hopes the new supplies will aid the rebels' advance on the capital of ISIS' self-proclaimed caliphate, the Syrian city of Raqqa.

Delivered over land from northern Iraq, this is the third shipment since the U.S. shifted away from training rebel forces outside the country.

LEIGHTON: The feeling in DOD is these types of operations are actually working. So the resupply efforts are not only being repeated, they're being intensified.

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HOWELL: And that was CNN's Jim Sciutto reporting.

U.S. prosecutors have charged the vilified pharmaceutical chief with fraud, all stemming from his time as CEO of a biotech firm. Martin Shkreli is accused of using millions of company dollars to pay off debtors. The 32-year-old made waves this year when he jacked up the price of a potentially life-saving drug by 5,000 percent. Shkreli has bailed out of jail and denies the charges.

The FBI and U.S. Marshals are looking for the so-called affluenza teenager. He is now missing two years after a judge sentenced him to probation for a drunk-driving crash, a crash that killed four people.

CNN's Randi Kaye picks up this story.

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RANDI KAYE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Look closely at this video.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

(LAUGHTER)

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KAYE: That young man with the blond hair may be Ethan Couch. And if it is, he could be in big trouble. That's because Couch is on probation and isn't supposed to be drinking alcohol. Two and a half years ago at 16, Couch drove in a drunken haze, crashed, and killed four people.

(BEGIN AUDIO FEED)

CALLER: We really need some ambulance. We flipped and -- oh, god.

(END AUDIO FEED) KAYE: Someone posted the beer pong clip on Twitter earlier this month, and the county D.A. got wind of it. They went to talk to Ethan Couch about it. But it seems he disappeared. His probation officer hasn't heard from him in days. No one knows where he is.

UNIDENTIFIED SHERIFF: I hate to say I told you so, but I told you so.

[02:35:] KAYE: The county sheriff wanted Couch locked up back in 2013. But one defense witness changed that.

(on camera): In one of the most bizarre defense strategies we've ever heard of, attorneys for Couch blamed the boy's parents for his behavior that night, all because of how they raised him. A psychologist and defense witness testified that the boy suffered from something called "affluenza," a lifestyle where wealth brought privilege, and there were no consequences for bad behavior.

(voice-over): The so-called affluenza defense touched off outrage around the country. After all, Couch's blood alcohol was three times the legal limit, and four people were dead. But the court bought it. Couch pleaded guilty to intoxication manslaughter. But instead of going to jail, the judge sentenced him to alcohol rehabilitation and ten years' probation. His father agreed to pay half a million dollars for his son's pricey rehab digs.

Victims' families were horrified.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We had over 180 years of life taken, future life. Not 180 years lived, but 180 years of future life taken. And two of those were my wife and daughter.

KAYE: ABC News obtained these deposition tapes from one of the victims' civil suits against Couch.

Listen as Ethan Couch's mother admits letting her son drive illegally.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED ATTORNEY: You understood if he was at any time he was under 16, he was never to be driving by himself?

TONYA COUCH, MOTHER OF ETHAN COUCH: Yes.

UNIDENTIFIED ATTORNEY: Nevertheless, you allowed that behavior to happen, correct?

COUCH: Yes.

UNIDENTIFIED ATTORNEY: When is the last time you recall disciplining Ethan for anything?

COUCH: I don't remember.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KAYE: And now the authorities think Couch might have fled the country with none other than his mother. The boy's attorney would not discuss the case.

If authorities do find Couch, a judge will decide if he violated his probation. If so, this time Ethan Couch could end up behind bars for a decade.

Randi Kaye, CNN, Miami.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HOWELL: You're watching CNN NEWSROOM.

And still to come, Chelsea Football Club Manager Jose Mourinho is sacked over a dismal season. Coming up, we'll have more on what led to the downfall of the so-called "Special One."

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[02:40:40] HOWELL: So it turns out the richest league in the world's most popular sport has lost one of its star members. Chelsea Football Club has sacked its manager, Jose Mourinho, on Thursday. Known as the "Special One," Mourinho is the club's most successful manager. But Chelsea has had a dismal season, losing nine of the last 16 games.

"World Sport's" Patrick Snell has the story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

PATRICK SNELL, CNN WORLD SPORT ANCHOR (voice-over): Jose Mourinho's second charge in Chelsea was somewhat similar to his first, success and silverware aplenty mixed in with a spectacular exit nobody would have predicted at the start of the season in August. The Special One returned in 2013, almost six years after he left, in the words of the club, "by mutual consent."

But even back in 2007, there were a series of disagreements with Russian owner, Roman Abramvich, who to this day still presides over the West London Club. While there was no silverware in his first season back, three was clearly the magic number in 2014-'15. Mourinho won his third Premiere League title with three games to spare, only losing three times in the process. For good measure, the Blues also added the English League Cup, their third under Mourinho.

But this current campaign has seen one setback after another for him, ever since the Portuguese signed a new four-year deal the day before the season started. On opening day, home to Swansea, overshadowed by an unseemly spat between Mourinho and his medical staff, including club doctor, Eva Carneiro, who they called naive for their handling of a supposed injury. Carneiro has since left the club and her lawyers have reportedly served notice of a claim of constructive dismissal against the Blues.

Mourinho could be seen by some as a contrary character, as journalist and biographer, Patrick Barclay, explains.

PATRICK BARCLAY, JOURNALIST & BIOGRAPHER: As a person, he could be the most charming individual you would ever meet in your life, and very considerate, very humble, and very thoughtful. And it's just that he chooses to act the part of someone else. And, you know, we've all assumed for years and years and years he does this because it makes him a more effective leader of players.

SNELL: The defeats come thick and fast, including losses to Crystal Palace, West Ham and Southampton. Mourinho's once tried and trusted skipper, John Terry, at halftime as his team lost to Manchester City. It followed a defeat to Liverpool before another setback at Stoke City, a match Mourinho couldn't watch due to his one-game stadium ban. Stoke, the team that also eliminated the Blues from the English League Cup.

But the biggest shock of them all came when newly promoted Bournemouth before it would turn out to be his last two matters in charge between Porto in the European Champions League and away to table-topping Leicester City.

Patrick Snell, CNN.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HOWELL: Switching to weather, and there is a thick smog once again over Beijing.

Karen MaGinnis is here to tell us about it.

KAREN MAGINNIS, AMS METEOROLOGIST: George, we're looking at this same type of event about seven to 10 days ago. It is going to be so oppressive in Beijing. And that is going to be lasting for days. Typically, these events are not one or two days. They're a series of events.

Let's good ahead and show you what is going on. The weather event is very conducive for there to be very stagnant air around Beijing. Very typical. But we have seen two now separate events, or the upcoming one that are going to produce smog conditions so thick, they're saying that visibility may be half of a kilometer or less. So what will happen under this red warning? Schools will be closed. That's what happened about a week or so ago. Alternate driving days based on driver's license numbers. And because there is so much industry there, they say they're going to be limited, no use of freight vehicles. Now this time of year, there is lots of burning of coal for keeping warm. Lots of industry. This is the kind of thing that you get when you put that many pollutants in the atmosphere. And there is no mixing in the lower levels. Why is there no mixing? Well, we've got this dome of high pressure across the region. This dome kind of keeps everything settled. So the cooler air lies below there is no mixing in the lower levels. So those pollutants stay trapped. And they will stay trapped for days. So you get this buildup of pollution in the lower levels.

So we go from Saturday into Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday. So this is probably about a four to five-day event. And we're looking at those levels between 201 and 500. You may remember we saw the first time a red alert. That was on about December 7th. That is the hazardous category. Lots of people are saying they are spending a lot of time at the doctors because it is just so difficult as far as your pulmonary system goes. But also on air filters, because just in their own space, they have to keep the air clean.

Well, as I mentioned, high pressure dominating in this region. But it's also pushing some of this snow over into the coastal ranges of Japan. So it looks like some of those areas are expecting some snowfall as we go into the next couple of days, but mostly along those eastern edges. So they'll be dealing with that all the way from Sapporo down towards Osaka, generally speaking.

[02:46:16] HOWELL: Yeah.

MAGINNIS: All right?

HOWELL: Thank you so much.

MAGINNIS: Thanks, George.

HOWELL: You're watching CNN NEWSROOM.

Still ahead, the new "Star Wars" movie has made it to screens in North America. You'll hear from some of the first fans to see the movie, next on NEWSROOM.

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[02:50:22] HOWELL: Fans around the world have been filling movie heaters to see "Star Wars: The Force Awakens." It's now playing in North America. And there alone the movie could pull in some -- get this -- $220 million this weekend. But is it living up to the hype?

CNN's Paul Vercammen checked in with some early moviegoers in Los Angeles and has this report.

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PAUL VERCAMMEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Absolute mania here at the Chinese theater in Hollywood where they premiered the first "Star Wars" in 1977. Fans came out, 932 of them, to watch for the first of the shows. Many of them getting dressed up. There was just sort of mass euphoria as people came out.

Let's go ahead and get a review from a couple of the fans. No spoiler, please.

We have Jarrell and Arturo.

Your impression of this "Star Wars."

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Wow, it was incredible. It was a rush. It had a lot of the old elements. I don't know. A lot of -- it was a rush. That's all I can say, really. VERCAMMEN: And for you, Arturo?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It was really exciting. I was blown away right there at the end. It was very climatic. It was good.

VERCAMMEN: This almost took on a sports event type of thing. What was it like to be inside the theater with 932 other people?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Oh, man, you wouldn't believe it. Everybody having their light sabers up and it was an electric crowd. It was awesome. I've never been to anything like it.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It was cool.

VERCAMMEN: Thank you both so much for taking time out.

By the way, they're predicting all these box office records. And here at the TCL Chinese Theater, they say they are also outpacing all expectations. And they expect to shatter the box office records.

Reporting from Hollywood, I'm Paul Vercammen.

Now back to you.

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HOWELL: Paul, thank you.

And what you saw there in L.A., that is not the scene in China, as the new "Star Wars" film hasn't triggered the same frenzy seen everywhere else in the world. The franchise isn't all that familiar in China, and won't be seen until much later.

Let's go to CNN's Matt Rivers, who joins us from Beijing.

Matt, good have you.

Let's talk about this. Why -- help our viewers understand why this movie won't be shown until three weeks after it is shown in the United States and elsewhere.

MATT RIVERS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, as of right now, the Chinese government set the release date here in China for January 9th, about three or so weeks after the U.S. premier. And if it sounds odd that it would be the Chinese government setting that release date, well, that's just how things work here. The Chinese authorities control which foreign films are allowed to be shown in the country. And they also set the release dates for all of those films.

So as far as the reasons why the Chinese government makes that decision, like so many other things with the Chinese government, we don't exactly know the specific reason why. But there is some situation about the reasons behind it. One of the reasons is that there is a quota of foreign films by Chinese law that are allowed into the country each year. So perhaps that quota has already been reached. Hence, the premier getting moved from December 2015 to January 2016. That's one reason.

Another reason could be that this particular month in December, the Chinese government wants to allow domestic films here in China, Chinese films, to really pull in as many dollars as possible. And if "Star Wars" opened up here, perhaps it would drive some of the ticket sales away.

So a lot of speculation. But no real clear-cut answers. All I know is I'm trying to avoid spoilers, George, for the next three weeks.

HOWELL: Try to avoid the spoilers. But, Matt, so how do you get your hands on one of those bootleg copies, right? I bet that's out there.

(LAUGHTER)

RIVERS: They are out here. They are out here. You can find counterfeit just about anything on the cheap here. So I would imagine in the course of journalistic due diligence, over the weekend, I might go visit one of the shops just to see what kind of inventory they might be stocking the shelves with now that the movie has officially premiered.

HOWELL: OK, Matt.

And, look, so I was talking the director here who is running the show, and he said look so, if you like the original, you're going to love episode 7. OK. So the question that I have for you is how is Disney trying to raise interests in episode 7 there in China?

[02:54:46] RIVERS: Well, "Star Wars" here in China is not really the cultural phenomenon that you see in other parts of the world. When the movies first premiered back in the late '70s, China was just emerging from Chairman Mao's Cultural Revolution, which was this period here in China where any form of Western cultural influences were strictly prohibited. So the original films were not even shown here. So then when the prequels came out in the late '90s, they really generated very little interest here in China.

That's something that Disney is well aware of, that they're basically starting from scratch here. There is no sense of nostalgia like there would be in the states. There has been a big marketing push with people on social media here, with events on the Great Wall. Disney is certainly banking on the Chinese market.

HOWELL: Matt Rivers, live for us in Beijing.

Matt, thank you so much. And no spoilers. We won't tell you.

(LAUGHTER)

You'll have to wait, though, I suppose, Matt. Thanks.

RIVERS: Thank you.

HOWELL: And finally, a seasonal sight that is nothing short of magical. For the 17th year, the Canadian-Pacific Railroad has decorated two trains with spectacular holiday lights. Look at that. They send them through 150 communities in Canada and the United States. And they attract attention wherever they go. Organizers asked people to bring items for their local food bank, and they have even raised more than $9 million in donations. When the trains arrive in a town, it is a party with free concerts. That's awesome.

We leave you with that for this hour. We thank you for watching. I'm George Howell at CNN Center in Atlanta. I'll be back after the break with more news from around the world.

You're watching CNN, the world's news leader.

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[03:00:12] HOWELL: This man accused of helping the San Bernardino terrorists --