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Cleaning Up After Catastrophic Flooding; Tel Aviv Shooter Identified by Relatives; The Race for 2016; Changes in Carson's Campaign; Police Assigned to Protect Airports Denied Weapons; Camille Cosby to Testify; California Families Flee Gas Leak; Top Ten Trending Stories of 2015. Aired 12-1p ET

Aired January 2, 2016 - 12:00   ET

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


(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Hello, everyone, again. Thanks so much for joining me. I'm Fredricka Whitfield. So while some residents are beginning to clean up from that catastrophic flooding in Illinois and Missouri, others are bracing for the worst. In southern Illinois, officials are anxiously monitoring a second levee, after one levee was already overtopped.

Overtopped levees can lead to erosion, or worse, breaches. This hour, Missouri Governor Jay Nixon is touring the flood-damaged areas. Cities like Eureka and Cape Girardeau were completely evacuated. This, as residents are returning to their homes today, to survey the damage and begin the cleanup.

CNN's Dan Simon is live for us now in Eureka. So Dan, I know you spoke with a father earlier who was, you know, pretty upset. What else are you finding in residents there who are trying to, you know, salvage what they can?

DAN SIMON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well hi, Fredricka. It's just a real mess out here. And we're trying to give folks, you know, sort of the lay of the land and how things look. We're in the backyard of one home and you can see where the water crept up. It actually came over this hill, and then completely flooded the basement of this home.

You can see the water line right here, and we're actually going to show you what this basement looks like. The owner of this home, his name is Tim Hodge, who you'll see in a second, he actually moved in just six weeks ago. They had a baby just a couple of weeks ago, so you can imagine what a stressful situation it's been like for Tim.

Tim, we appreciate you talking to us. Don, come on in here so we can show the situation. So they just bought all this furniture, Fredricka, and look at this, you can see the refrigerator completely on its side. It actually came across the room. Tell me what it was like when this was all flooded.

TIM HODGE, EUREKA RESIDENT: Just, you know, having all this brand-new stuff sitting in your new house, you know, and you're trying to fight it, but you're watching just water just creep around the doors and it's just not going out as quick as it's coming in, you know, it's just -- it's pretty intimidating, you know. And with a newborn baby, you know, you watch this water get up to where it's inches from those electrical outlets, you know, it's probably time to get ready to go.

SIMON: And you can see on the wall right there where the water line was, maybe about six feet -- six feet high. What do you do now? I mean obviously, as we said, you moved in about a month ago, and all this stuff is new. We see neighbors helping neighbors, trying to clear everything out, but how do you get through something like this?

HODGE: You know, it's kind of -- it's -- we're kind of winging it, really. Thank God all these neighbors have come in. We would never have been able to, you know, do half the stuff we have without them. But we just hope that, you know, insurance will help take care of some of the loss and, you know, that the cleaning of the, you know, drywall, and getting the old, stagnant water out of here, will do what we need to do, you know, and we can bring a baby back into the house.

SIMON: Right. What was the most surprising thing or most amazing thing?

HODGE: Really, out of everything, just the way everybody came together. I mean we've got other cities, even around, you know, just outside of Eureka that came in to help everybody. It was pretty amazing, so community really.

SIMON: I actually want to show our viewers one more thing. Don, if you come with me, you can actually see back here in this room, once again, you get a real sense of how high the water came up. But look at this, I mean just a complete mess. You can see all the mud on the floor, the washer and drier in the back, the hot water heater came apart.

This is really, Fredricka, I mean this is -- this is what folks are having to deal on the day after New Year's, they never thought they would see anything like this. Obviously wintertime flooding is such a rare event, and so today, it's really just about cleanup. Thankfully, the waters have receded but now they're having to deal with all the aftermath. Fred?

WHITFIELD: My goodness, that is going to be quite the undertaking, indeed. Our hearts go out to them. Dan Simon, thanks so much.

So while the residents begin to clean up, southern Illinois is bracing for more flooding. Meteorologist Allison Chinchar is live for us in the CNN weather center. So Allison, is there potential for the levees, you know, to be breached there?

ALLISON CHINCHAR, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Absolutely, yes. We already know of at least one levee that has overtopped itself, but in addition to that, we have the possibility of them actually breaching, meaning that it actually breaks apart the levee. We have 16 states right now with flood warnings, again, a lot of it, and the reason for that, is just how many sites, all of these sites that you see, all 272 of them, are either at or above their flood stage. Again, incredible amount of them across much of the Midwest and into parts of the southeast. And the reason is, this gray-shaded area is the basin. So any river, stream, creek that's in there, all at some point flows back into the Mississippi. Not to mention all the rain that came down, that just ends up flowing into the Mississippi. So all the rain from the Missouri River and Ohio River comes back into the Mississippi.

Now, in St. Louis, they did already crest. That's good news. The water is receding. That allows for the cleanup process to begin. But as you move farther south into southern Illinois, you get closer to Tennessee, places like that, a lot of these areas have yet to crest. Cape Girardeau is likely going to reach their number one crest on record, but they won't do it for another day or two.

Just southeast of that town, on the east side of the Mississippi River, we do know of at least one levee that overtopped, that's near Miller City. But again, it's very possible as you continue to go downstream, we could have more of that, or even some of these levees that they can't get to it in time, they could possibly actually breach.

And again, the bigger issue, as you go farther south, as those crest states move a little bit later, you run the risk of any new rainfall you would get, say, in the next 7 to 14 days, that could also have a big impact on this. So fingers crossed. I know for a lot of the folks downstream that they don't end up getting what the folks a little bit farther north ended up having.

WHITFIELD: Oh, my goodness. Fingers crossed, indeed. Thank you so much, Allison Chinchar.

All right, relatives have identified the gunman who killed two people near a pub in Tel Aviv, Friday. An uncle of the suspect tells CNN that the person in this surveillance video is his nephew. And relatives say he is a 29-year-old Arab Israeli man.

Police say he fired more than 15 rounds from an automatic weapon, killing two people and injuring at least eight. The gunman is still on the lam, and the manhunt continues. Ian Lee is following this story from Jerusalem. Ian, are police any closer to locating him?

IAN LEE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: At this hour, Fredricka, we haven't heard if they are any closer, but they're describing this incident as complex, unique, and radical. And mainly because it doesn't fit any molds. It doesn't fit the typical criminal act, it doesn't fit a typical terrorist attack. And terrorist attacks, usually you have the suspect either killed or detained at the scene of the crime, and in talking to police, it is unusual to see them flee like this, and that's what makes this person very dangerous.

They're still treating this as if he is armed, he is dangerous, and potentially could carry out another attack. And so, this massive manhunt is underway. They have the Shin Bet is involved, this is like the Israeli FBI. But they also released a statement, and I'll read that to you, they say the police want to expose all the aspects of the event, including the possibility of a victim in an additional area. The motive and other elements, including the question whether it is about a murderer who acted alone. Now, police are looking into another event that took place just shortly after this attack, where a cab driver was killed near a hotel.

They're looking to see if those two incidents were related also. They're looking to see if he acted alone. Did he have help? These are the questions that security forces are looking at, at this hour. But really, the main thing right now for the police is trying to find him and trying to make sure that he is captured or neutralized, to make sure nothing else can happen. Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: All right, Ian Lee in Jerusalem, thank you so much.

All right, coming up, several presidential candidates are back on the campaign trails. Starting this hour, we'll also discuss who might be out there and the big changes in one candidate's campaign, next.

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WHITFIELD: All right, with just under a month until the Iowa caucuses, presidential candidates are spending the first weekend of 2016 on the campaign trail. Republican Senator Marco Rubio was supposed to make three stops in South Carolina today, but canceled the first one because of some sort of travel problems. He still has two stops in Hilton Head and Lexington.

And then Democrat Bernie sanders will be in New Hampshire this afternoon and then later tonight. Donald Trump holds a rally in Mississippi. So CNN investigations correspondent Chris Frates is in our Washington bureau with a look ahead for the race of 2016. Chris?

CHRIS FRATES, CNN INVESTIGATIONS CORRESPONDENT: Hey, good afternoon, Fred, and welcome to this first political day of the presidential election year. And after a rager of a campaign year in 2015, the political world took a little time off on New Year's Day to recover. But with the voting just a few weeks away, a number of Republican presidential candidates are back on the trail.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: We're going to have a great time next year. It's going to be an amazing year. We're going to make America great again, and we're going to do everything in our power to make sure that happens.

FRATES: Donald Trump has been off the campaign trail the last few days, but that hasn't stopped him from going after his rivals on Twitter. I would feel sorry for Jeb Bush and how badly he is doing with his campaign, other than for the fact he took millions of dollars of hit ads on me.

Hoping to regain some mojo in the New Year, Jeb Bush changed things up this week, canceling ad buys in Iowa and South Carolina, and moving dozens of staffers to early states, to try to cut into Trump's momentum (ph).

JEB BUSH (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: He's not a serious candidate, he has a broad appeal, but it may not be as deep as people imagine. So we're going to -- we're going to put together a ground game, if you will, in Iowa and New Hampshire, and here in South Carolina, that I think will be second to none. And that's how -- that's how we'll do -- we'll win, and we're going to do well. So I'm excited about it.

FRATES: Trump leads by wide margins in national polls, but his lead in Iowa is more disputed. With the Iowa caucuses less than a month away, Ted Cruz is gaining on the billionaire. The Republican senator is up with an ad there selling his conservative credentials, and he starts a six-day Iowa bus tour on Monday. To help blunt Cruz' rise and stay on top, Trump says he'll soon start spending at least $2 million a week on his own advertising.

TRUMP: I'm going to be doing big ads in Iowa, New Hampshire, South Carolina, and they're going to be very substantial and I think they're very well done. I've seen the first two or three of them. We're very proud of them. We're going to be talking about a lot of things, including the border, including trade, including ISIS and security for the country.

FRATES: And Ben Carson rang in the New Year with a new cast of advisers after three top aides resigned on New Year's Eve. The struggling contender promised to reinvigorate his campaign ahead of Iowa's February 1st caucuses.

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FRATES: Now Democrats are also getting back on the campaign trail. Bernie Sanders is in Massachusetts today and over the next two days, New Hampshire gets a double dose of Clinton. On Sunday, Hillary Clinton makes several stops in the Granite state, and on Monday, former president Bill Clinton makes his first solo appearance of the campaign to stump (ph) for his wife. Fred?

WHITFIELD: All right, thanks so much, Chris Frates. Happy New Year.

FRATES: Happy New Year.

WHITFIELD: So let's talk a little bit more about the changes, particularly in Ben Carson's campaign. I'm joined now by Larry Sabato, director of the Center for Politics at the University of Virginia. Good to see you. Happy New Year.

LARRY SABATO, DIRECTOR, CENTER FOR POLITICS, UVA: Happy New Year, Fred.

WHITFIELD: OK, so what do you think? New campaign manager, communications director, what does this mean to you for Ben Carson?

SABATO: Fred, it's never a good thing when a campaign has a shakeup, and especially when the shakeup comes with a month to go before Iowa. You do not shake up a winning campaign. That just doesn't happen, at least not very often. So you know frankly, campaigns are a lot about luck.

They're about the man meeting the moment, or the candidate meeting the moment. And unfortunately for Ben Carson, the focus of the campaign has shifted from domestic issues where he's strong, to national security issues, where he's weak.

WHITFIELD: Well the campaign's use of the word invigorate, this is about invigorating, you know, the campaign. When I spoke with the new campaign manager yesterday, he said this is not a worrisome change, but it really is -- it means a greater effort to try to reach the voters, reach his support group, even though polls show that, you know, he is -- a lot of his support is dwindling.

SABATO: Well, of course the campaign would say that, and especially a new team, because they were -- they were brought on to try to fix things. But, you know, at a certain point, a campaign isn't fixable. Ask Jeb Bush.

WHITFIELD: All right. Let's listen to the sound from my interview yesterday with the campaign manager, the new one.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ED BROOKOVER, CARSON'S NEW CAMPAIGN MANAGER: Inside Dr. Carson's campaign we're always re-evaluating where we are, what we're doing, how to get better. Dr. Carson did that. Added General Bob Dees as his campaign chairman and that situation led to a couple of aides resigning, and we're moving forward.

WHITFIELD: So some might interpret this kind of shakeup at this juncture as a real sign of trouble, especially since Dr. Carson is slipping in the polls. How does the campaign respond to that?

BROOKOVER: We've raised more money than any other campaign. We have over 5 million followers on Facebook. We have hundreds of thousands of volunteers across the country. We think we need to do a better job, always, of getting Dr. Carson's message out. And that's what we plan to do.

WHITFIELD: So raising money, but losing traction?

BROOKOVER: I would say that polls go up and down, especially national polls. February 1st is what we're very focused on and the caucus in Iowa. We have over 7,000 donors in Iowa, over 19,000 people have attended our events in Iowa. We feel good about our opportunities to do very well when we get to the caucuses on February 1st.

We're still operating today, as we did yesterday, and the day before, and will do tomorrow. Very focused on working with our team, our staff, our volunteers, our donors, to get Dr. Carson's message out across the country.

WHITFIELD: So as the new -- you know, campaign communications director, what is the message being sent within the campaign that needs to be the primary focus in this New Year as it pertains to resuscitating Dr. Carson's viability?

BROOKOVER: We want to get our message in front of as many voters as possible, especially those voters who agree with Dr. Carson's message of wanting to heal what's wrong with our country, and revive the American spirit once again. We're going to focus on that through our social media, through our volunteers, through our door-knocking as we move forward.

WHITFIELD: OK, heal the country, I know that's the big moniker, but specifically, can voters expect to hear something more concrete from Dr. Carson, the campaign, from you the communications director, in this New Year?

BROOKOVER: I think that -- I think that you will. I think Dr. Carson's been pretty specific about what he wants to do in terms of taxes, in terms of dealing with ISIS, in terms of dealing with the race problems that this country faces. And I think that you will continue to hear those kinds of plans and programs as we move forward.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: All right, so Larry, as the new campaign manager there, Ed Brookover said volunteers and Facebook friends. Do you buy that notion that that's enough to translate into the voters, the voting support needed, to allow Ben Carson to at least win the nomination?

SABATO: I doubt it, Fred. You know, campaign managers and campaign officials are relentlessly optimistic. That is their job. They are sunny, whatever the weather. The campaign superstructure could be collapsing around them, and they'll simply say they're dismantling it to move it to another state.

So you know, put me in the former category. I believe that Ben Carson's moment has probably passed, and that we will see that first in Iowa, and then also in South Carolina, which has a very large percentage of evangelical Christians. After all, they've been Ben Carson's base.

WHITFIELD: All right. Larry Sabato, thank you so much. Happy New Year.

SABATO: Same to you, Fred.

WHITFIELD: All right. We have much more NEWSROOM straight ahead, right after this.

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WHITFIELD: All right, it's a busy travel weekend with a lot of people heading home after the holidays, and O'Hare is one of the nation's busiest airports. And along with another Chicago airport, Midway, well it's the focus of this CNN investigation.

We wanted to know why some of the police officers assigned to protect both airports are not allowed to carry weapons. They work alongside armed police officers, but there's one major difference. If there is an attack at any terminal, these aviation police officers say they are trained and told to run away. And now those officers are speaking out. Here's CNN senior investigative correspondent, Drew Griffin.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DREW GRIFFIN, CNN SENIOR INVESTIGATIVE CORRESPONDENT: Take a look around the passenger terminals at Chicago's O'Hare and Midway airports, and you will see what appear to be police officers, but take a closer look. Not one of them is carrying a gun. In the event of an active shooter or a terrorist strike here, you might be surprised to hear how they've been told to react. Not fight back, not try to neutralize the threat, but instead to run.

You guys are police officers, but you don't have guns. You're unarmed. Do you feel safe when you're working?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No, sir. Not safe at all.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Absolutely not.

GRIFFIN: Do you feel almost as if you're a sitting target?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Absolutely.

GRIFFIN: It's not for lack of training or licensing or experience. Aviation police officers are all sworn officers in the state of Illinois. They get the same training as Chicago police, and many are military veterans or have second jobs in suburban police departments. These two officers, speaking in silhouette for fear of being fired, say all they want is to carry a gun like any other law enforcement officer.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: On the floor! On the floor, now! On the floor!

GRIFFIN: Just two years ago at Los Angeles International Airport, a man with an assault rifle killed a TSA officer, wounded several others, before being shot and wounded by an armed police officer. If the same event took place in Chicago's two airports, the nearly 300 unarmed aviation police would be defenseless to stop it.

So in the event of a terrorist attack, let's say it's a shooter, what are you supposed to do?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Run.

GRIFFIN: Run?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Hide.

GRIFFIN: Hide?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And seek shelter.

GRIFFIN: This internal Chicago Aviation Department document obtained from aviation department sources outlines the policy. If evacuation is not possible, hide. We must also ensure that unarmed security personnel do not attempt to become part of the response. Here's the training video officers say they were instructed to watch.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: If evacuation is not possible, you should find a place to hide where the active shooter is less likely to find you. Block entry to your hiding place and lock the doors.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We're nothing but casualties if you tell us to run and hide. And how can the public look at us if they see police officers running and hiding. That goes against the very oath that we were sworn to -- that we took.

GRIFFIN: It's the Chicago police that carry guns at both airports since they are the primary law enforcement agency. If there's a major incident or an arrest, aviation police tell us they must wait for Chicago police to show up, a unique arrangement among major U.S. airports.

MATT BRANDON, SERVICE EMPLOYEES INTERNATIONAL UNION LOCAL 73: It doesn't make any sense.

GRIFFIN: Matt Brandon is an official with the union that represents aviation police officers. So basically, they're just -- I mean, no disrespect to those officers, but as their role at the airport, they're glorified security guards?

BRANDON: That's exactly right and my question to the city is, you send these men and women to the Chicago police academy to be trained as police officers, to be able to respond as police officers, to be able to act as police officers.

GRIFFIN: The Chicago police department has 231 armed officers assigned to O'Hare and Midway, and the city says that's enough. So, too, does the Chicago Aviation Department about its unarmed force. And the staffing level of armed police is for the most part similar to other major U.S. airports.

If you compare the top three busiest airports in the U.S., Atlanta's Hartsfield-Jackson has 178 armed police, Los Angeles, 572, while O'Hare has budgeted 175. The numbers do not include additional security, such as private security personnel.

In an e-mail to CNN, the aviation department says the multi-level security has proven effective in stopping and preventing crime and that violent crime incidents are extremely low. But there's been no explanation why the nearly 300 aviation police officers here are unarmed. The department is declining to discuss security measures. CNN has surveyed large U.S. airports and found Chicago's use of unarmed aviation police officers is unique, and according to Miami's security expert Wayne Black, absurd.

WAYNE BLACK, PRESIDENT, WAYNE BLACK & ASSOCIATES: You've got sworn law enforcement officers at a U.S. airport that are trained to hide if there's an attack. That's crazy. Airports are targets of terror activity. What are they going to do if somebody runs in with a gun and there's no law enforcement officer there?

GRIFFIN: In October, a man caught with these knives attempted to get on the airfield and actually told the officers he knew they were not even armed. The gun issue has been part of an ongoing dispute between the officers and their chief, Richard Edgeworth. Chicago's aviation police recently took a no-confidence vote against Edgeworth, calling him incompetent, and someone who exerts control through intimidation and fear.

Despite the vote, Edgeworth's boss says he has the full confidence and trust of the aviation department. Edgeworth has repeatedly refused to even answer numerous phone calls from CNN, and when we approached him to ask our questions, he did what his officers are supposed to do if anyone approaches them armed.

GRIFFIN: Excuse me? Hi, Chief Edgeworth? Drew Griffin with CNN.

RICHARD EDGEWORTH: Oh, how are you?

GRIFFIN: Good to see you. We wanted to ask you why your officers aren't armed? Why that the only aviation police officers in the United States that apparently are not armed? Wouldn't the public be better protected if they were armed and were able to engage a threat instead of -- sir? Instead of having to run and hide?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: All right, that was Drew Griffin reporting.

Up next, marital privilege in the courtroom usually means your spouse cannot be questioned. But that may not be the case when it comes to Camille Cosby. Will the comedian's wife have to tell all?

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WHITFIELD: Bill Cosby charged with sexual assault in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania. He's now out on bail. And one of his accusers says seeing Cosby's mug shot triggered an emotional reaction. Here's CNN's Jean Casarez.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JEAN CASAREZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Tonight, Bill Cosby out on $1 million bail, his legal team vowing to mount a vigorous defense after Cosby was arraigned on criminal sexual assault charges.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Mr. Cosby, anything to say?

KEVIN STEELE, FIRST ASSISTANT DA: These charges stem from a sexual assault that took place on an evening in early 2004 at Mr. Cosby's home in Cheltenham Township, Montgomery County.

CASAREZ: The 78-year-old comedian charged with three counts of aggravated indecent assault of Andrea Constand. Constand worked with Temple University's athletic program and considered Cosby, 37 years her senior and a Temple alum, a friend and mentor. She accuses Cosby of drugging, then assaulting her when she visited his Pennsylvania home. STEELE: Mr. Cosby made two sexual advances at her, that were

rejected. On the evening in question, Mr. Cosby urged her to take pills, that he provided to her, and to drink wine.

CASAREZ: According to the criminal complaint, the pills and wine left Constand feeling dizzy, nauseous, frozen, and paralyzed, but aware of Cosby fondling her breasts and putting his hands into her pants. Constand went to the police about a year later, but the district attorney did not file charges, citing lack of evidence.

She filed a civil suit against Cosby, forcing him to be deposed. He settled the suit with her, the terms of which were sealed. That deposition was unsealed in July. In it, Cosby admits to giving women Quaaludes, but never without their knowledge. Constand is the first of at least 50 women to have come forward with similar allegations over four decades, some of those women now sharing their reactions to the news.

VICTORIA VALENTINO, BILL COSBY ACCUSER: When I saw the mug shot, I started to cry. It was -- it was -- it just hit me so hard, and I really didn't anticipate that I was going to react that way.

CASAREZ: An attorney representing some of the accusers says she believes other alleged victims may be called to testify against Cosby at the trial.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: They're going to demonstrate that kind of courage. They're going to tell what they say is their truth.

CASAREZ: The comedian has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing, and even filed a countersuit against seven women earlier this month. He has yet to directly answer questions about the allegations. In interviews last November, Cosby refused to comment.

SCOTT SIMON, NPR HOST: Shaking your head no.

BILL COSBY, COMEDIAN: There's no response.

CASAREZ: In a statement, his attorneys called the charges, quote, unjustified, and vow that he'll be, quote, exonerated by a court of law. Jean Casarez, CNN, New York.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: All right, now in just a matter of days, Camille Cosby will be giving her story, answering questions in a deposition that will be taking place in Massachusetts. Camille Cosby, being married to Bill Cosby for 52 years now, has been ordered by a judge to answer questions from the attorney of one of the seven accusers who are suing the comic legend for defamation.

It's a separate case from what's going on in Pennsylvania, involving that sexual assault. Very complicated, but there's a lot to talk about here. Let's bring in our legal experts, Avery Friedman, a civil rights attorney and law professor in Cleveland, and Richard Herman, a New York criminal defense attorney, joining us from Las Vegas. All right, good to see you guys. Happy New Year.

RICHARD HERMAN, CRIMINAL DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Happy New Year.

WHITFIELD: Okay, well, this is -- this is really something else, isn't it? Because let's, you know, really make it clear that there are two separate cases here that Bill Cosby is now in the center of, and we talked about the sexual assault case involving Andrea Constand, there in Pennsylvania.

But this deposition involving his wife of more than 50 years, this deposition involves the Massachusetts case, defamation, where these seven accusers say, you know, he's accused them of lying, they've sued him on defamation, and that's where this discovery phase, right, Richard, of this deposition that involves Camille Cosby?

So she must now carry through on this deposition. Her attorneys have tried to say that because of marital privilege, she shouldn't be able to carry through with this deposition, but why? Explain, Richard, why in Massachusetts, because this is a part of the discovery phase, she still has to give, I guess, whatever answers to whatever questions are asked.

HERMAN: Well, she must appear at the deposition, Fred, that's what the court order says, she must appear. Now when they ask her certain questions, because of the criminal prosecution now in Pennsylvania, there is that spousal privilege.

And I guarantee you, when a question is posed to her about what Bill said to her, in other words, what did you discuss with Bill, what did he say to you, the attorneys are going to assert this privilege and she will not give any testimony, if she even has any testimony to give, I don't know. But I'm sure, I guarantee you, she will not break that privilege, so she can vote that in the case of Pennsylvania, in the event that case does go to trial.

WHITFIELD: So, Avery, do you agree with that? Because I thought some legal minds are arguing that because it's the discovery phase, that she wouldn't have that same kind of privilege, that she would if it were trial, that she could invoke that privilege and not testify.

HERMAN: With all due respect, they're wrong, Fred. Because the fact that that criminal case is now pending (inaudible).

AVERY FRIEDMAN, CNN LEGAL ANALYST: It has nothing to do -- it has nothing to do -- it has nothing to do --

WHITFIELD: All right, so go Avery on this?

FRIEDMAN: Yeah, it has nothing to do with discovery, because a deposition, Fredricka, is essentially like being in court, the same essential rules apply. And if there's any potential criminal jeopardy that would come out of communications between Camille and Bill, believe me, the lawyers representing Cosby will be effective in blocking that.

And frankly, I've been in cases like this, where you have civil and criminal implications. Often what a judge will do, like in a defamation case, is stay proceedings, because discovery is going to be obstructed, properly so, because of the potential jeopardy in interfering with the marital privilege. Bottom line is, yes, there will be questions related, but when it comes to the communications between the two of them --

WHITFIELD: So, Avery -- interesting. So Avery, does it change at all for a spouse, if a spouse is also acting as a manager? Because that has been reportedly the case with Camille Cosby, that she's not just his spouse, you know, and it speaks to, you know, their 52 years of marriage, but that she is also heavily involved in, you know, the financial and the management of this comedian.

FRIEDMAN: Well, I think that's a wonderful question, because there's no privilege between a client and a manager. There is a privilege between spouses. So the question really will be, how are the lawyers are going to interpose their objections? And for those people representing the women, the lawyers representing the women, how are they going to make that distinction?

I think you pointed out at the top of this, this is going to be very complicated, but I think bottom line, I think the civil case will likely be stayed until the resolution of the criminal case. And that will moot out this question.

WHITFIELD: All right, and then Avery, we did not squeeze out Richard in this conversation. We hope he's going to be able to make it back, because something's going on with the signal that we had for him, so hopefully he can make it back for this final question.

Because I do want to ask, then, so now you've got the Pennsylvania case, the sexual assault case. In any way, might what is said in this deposition, if anything is said by Camille Cosby in the Massachusetts case, could it find its way into the Pennsylvania case by the prosecutors there?

FRIEDMAN: Well, and that's -- you nailed the question. That's why the civil cases, the defamation cases, are likely to be stayed, because anything that Camille could say in respect to responding to questions, could have criminal implications. Bottom line on it, civil case is likely to be stayed, criminal case will go forward.

WHITFIELD: Okay. Looks like Richard, we have him on the phone. So Richard, I would love to hear, you know, your point of view on that, whether you think whatever is or is not said in this deposition by Camille Cosby in the next few days, whether it potentially could find its way into the Pennsylvania case.

HERMAN: Well, it absolutely could, Fred. And that's why she will not testify. And Avery, don't be so sure. I'm involved now in a case where there is a pending criminal prosecution and an ancillary civil proceeding, and a California judge has deemed, no, we're going to proceed with the civil case.

So you're not guaranteed a stay. Most learned judges, I think, would give a stay in a civil case when there was a potential for it creeping its way into a criminal prosecution. Obviously, a civil case the remedies are dollars, criminal prosecutions it's liberties, some of them potentially could go to prison, much more important, and therefore the civil case should be stayed.

I'm sure they'll make a motion to try to stay it. I'm not sure it will be granted. But in any event, if she's compelled to testify, Fred, because of the spousal privilege and the impact of jeopardizing the criminal case, she will not testify to any substantive information, guaranteed.

WHITFIELD: OK, all right.

FRIEDMAN: We agree.

WHITFIELD: OK, we agree. Wow, all right. See, even when it's complicated to keep it together, we make things happen and make sure that no matter what, there is no separation between Avery, Fred, and Richard. Happy New Year, you guys. Thank you so much, appreciate it.

FRIEDMAN: We'll see you in a little bit.

WHITFIELD: All right. All right, straight ahead, why thousands of people in California have been forced to evacuate their homes, and why it could be months before they are allowed back.

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WHITFIELD: People in one southern California community have been forced from their homes because of a massive leak of methane gas. Officials say it will be months before the leak can be stopped. Here's CNN's Paul Vercammen.

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PAUL VERCAMMEN, CNN REPORTER: The Katz family, a blended modern-day Brady Bunch with five children and dogs lives in a temporary home.

WIFE OF BRIAN KATZ: It's disgusting what's going on. I'm heartbroken. We had to leave our beautiful home.

VERCAMMEN: They're 33 miles from the house they vacated in Porter Ranch, a Los Angeles suburb reeling from a massive methane gas leak.

BRIAN KATZ, GAS LEAK VICTIM: The smell can cause you to be nauseated. It can cause to give headaches, nose bleeds, which I have had, stomach problems.

VERCAMMEN: Infrared video taken by environmental activists shows a noxious plume rising over Porter Ranch from the Aliso Canyon storage facility owned by Southern California Gas. The utility says the underground leak first detected in October, may not be stopped until late March.

MIKE MIZRAHI, SOCAL GAS SPOKESMAN: We're drilling a relief well. That relief well is going to go way down, about 8,500 feet. It's going to intersect with the leaking well, and then pump liquids and muds down there to stop the flow of gas. And then cement to permanently abandon the well.

VERCAMMEN: While SoCal Gas drills, it is paying for residents of 2,200 Porter Ranch homes to stay in temporary housing.

YITZ (PH) DEKEL (PH): It's a slow-moving tsunami of evacuees. People realize that this is serious stuff.

VERCAMMEN: The gas company adds more than 6,000 people are seeking financial aid due to the leak, many of them applying for help at a community center it established. Some government agencies are now taking extreme precautions. The FAA invoked a no-fly-zone to 2,000 feet, and a half mile around the leak site in response to fears gas fumes could be ignited by aircraft above.

The L.A. Unified school district closed two schools below the leak, and is transferring almost 1,900 students. That means two of the Katz boys will start class on a new campus after winter break, and the family says 2-year-old Ava has suffered the most.

The Katz's claim in one of several lawsuits against SoCal Gas, the leak resulted in upper respiratory symptoms that left Ava in intensive care for four days. The suit adds Ava had no prior health problems, and experienced some form of seizure.

WIFE OF BRIAN KATZ: Even though we're so upset and saddened and stressed, we're trying to hold it together for them. It's hard. We're a big family.

VERCAMMEN: Just one family moved out by a gas leak disaster that might be unseen and is still months away from being undone. Paul Vercammen, CNN, Porter Ranch, California.

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WHITFIELD: And tonight on CNN, Erin Brockovich joining us live. She'll talk about this case and the work that she's doing to help the families. That's tonight at 7 o'clock Eastern Time right here on CNN. All right, next, the big stories of 2015. We take a look back at the stories that got all of our attention on the internet.

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WHITFIELD: So in these days of rampant social media, current events can also be summed up in one pithy hashtag. Our Brooke Baldwin takes a look at the biggest trending stories of this past year.

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BROOKE BALDWIN, CNN HOST: Social media's role in breaking news is undeniable, but sometimes it's the hashtags that start a movement. Here are the top ten trending hashtags for 2015. Number ten, guacamole with peas? When The New York Times tweeted a recipe that included peas, the internet was skeptical. People jumped on Twitter, not exactly showing the love. Even the President of the United States jumped in. But I have to tell you, I did a taste test. It was kind of delicious. Number nine, a little girl's body washed ashore in the Boston Harbor, and so the Massachusetts state police jumped on social media trying to get help in identifying this little baby Doe. More than 50 million people viewed this composite image of this little girl. After 85 days, she was identified as Bella Bond.

DANIEL CONLEY, SUFFOLK COUNTY DA: This child, whose very name means beauty, was murdered.

BALDWIN: Her mother was charged as an accessory to murder. Her boyfriend, charged with murder. Number eight, 14-year-old Ahmed Mohammad was detained at school because his teacher thought his homemade clock was a bomb.

Less than six hours later, the hashtag #IstandwithAhmed emerged. Queueing more than 370,000 tweets, all focused on the discrimination of Muslim Americans, including one from President Obama himself, inviting Ahmed to the White House.

Number seven, #WelcomeCaitlynJenner.

ANDERSON COOPER, CNN ANCHOR: Call me Caitlyn. Caitlyn Jenner's first public appearance as Caitlyn Jenner, formerly known as Bruce Jenner.

BALDWIN: The reality TV star in June introducing herself on the cover of Vanity Fair, and with a new twitter handle, @CaitlynJenner reached 1 million followers in Guinness world record time, four hours and three minutes.

Number six, a refugee crisis spread through Europe in 2015 as people from Syria and other countries fled war and persecution.

ARWA DAMON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: People reach such a point where they physically, emotionally, mentally can't take it anymore. And so they eventually end up deciding the to take matters into their own hands.

BALDWIN: Thousands of people used the hashtag #RefugeesWelcome, to call for European countries to grant them sanctuary.

Number five, Pluto may no longer be a full-sized planet. But as NASA released these close-up images of the dwarf planet from its new Horizon spacecraft, Twitter users took notice. The hashtag #PlutoFlyby generated more than 1 million tweets on July 14th, as the stunning images were transmitted back here to earth.

Number four, choose your answer wisely. What color is this dress? Is it #blueandblack or is it #whiteandgold? The great dress debate of 2015 all started when a woman posted this polarizing garment to Tumblr. The dispute raged on Twitter, with more than 4.4 million tweets in two days.

Number three, social media celebrated the national recognition of same-sex marriage. With rainbow color profile pictures and the hashtag #lovewins.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: No state can ban gay marriage after the decision passed today.

BALDWIN: Twitter registered more than 6.2 million tweets and counting.

Number two, the hashtag #blacklivesmatter started in 2014, but it became an equal rights movement in 2015. Other hashtags were used alongside #blacklivesmatter to bring other controversial race incidents to light, one being #AssaultatSpringValleyHigh, where a video showed a school resource officer violently removing a student right out of her desk.

Number one, 2015 started and ended in the shadow of horrific attacks in Paris. After terrorists attacked the offices of the Charlie Hebdo magazine, the world showed support by using the #jesuischarlie.

COOPER: Tens of thousands of people wearing black, black stickers proclaiming je suis Charlie, I am Charlie.

BALDWIN: Ten months later, people united on twitter with the #prayforparis to show their solidarity for the city of light.

WHITFIELD: A look at our top stories right now, Iraqi troops are still trying to weed out the last ISIS fighters in the city of Ramadi. It's being called some of the most intense fighting in the city yet. ISIS fighters attacked an Iraqi army base yesterday, killing 3 and wounding 17. Local leaders say ISIS still controls about 25 percent of that city.

And the latest installment of the Star Wars franchise is now the top movie of 2015. Final box office numbers came out -- come out tomorrow rather, but Walt Disney Studios says Star Wars; The Force Awakens, has already raked in almost $680 million worldwide and is second only to Avatar as the highest grossing film of all time, a record that could fall by Monday.

And funeral services have not yet been announced for singer Natalie Cole, who died of heart failure New Year's Eve. Cole's death touched off an outpouring of sympathy and condolences from legions of longtime fans. The daughter of Nat King Cole, one of her biggest hits was the 1991 song Unforgettable, a duet with her late father. Cole was 65.

All right, coming up, we're live as the threat of flooding forces more people from their homes along the Mississippi River. The next hour of the CNN NEWSROOM begins right after this.

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