Early Start's new website
Gunman holds 6-year-old boy in underground bunker for third day in standoff – George Howell reports
It is day three now of a tense standoff in Alabama, where a gunman is holding a six-year-old boy hostage in an underground bunker. Police say the boy was dragged off a school bus Tuesday afternoon in Midland City after the gunman shot and killed the school bus driver.
Authorities are communicating with the suspect through a PVC tube. They've also sent down prescription medicine, crayons and coloring books for the six-year-old hostage. School officials are calling the driver a hero. They say Charles Poland Jr.’s quick thinking saved the lives of 21 children. CNN’s George Howell is live in Midland City with the latest.
'The Story of a Gun' – crime reporter Ed Komenda on how he tracked the journey of a Glock
A .40-caliber Glock gun ordered for a Palm Beach sheriff's deputy winds up in the hands of criminals. The gun then moved from place to place, from criminal to criminal. And a crime reporter set out to find out how, and why.
Reporter Ed Komenda traced the history of the Glock and recounted its journey in "The story of a gun: Serial number MPX753" for the South Florida Sun Sentinel. He explains his reporting on “Early Start” this morning.
Over four years, the gun traveled more than 5,000 miles and was involved in four shootings. Komenda says he daily looks for “interesting charges” in police reports when this story presented itself.
“It was much more dramatic than a typical gun story is,” he says. While the gun has passed from criminal to criminal, “nobody has really been convicted in any case tied to this gun.”
Concerning an issue of heated debate, Komenda’s story received a mixed response. While one person commented it was one of the best stories he's read, another said he didn’t like it. “Another guy says I have no business in the business,” he says. “They claim that it’s politically driven.” But Komenda just saw a story worth pursuing and that’s what he did. “I wasn't looking at either side.”
Read Komenda's story here: The story of a gun: Serial number MPX753
CNN Trends: J.J. Abrams to helm next 'Star Wars' movie
John Berman and Zoraida Sambolin tell you what's trending on the web this morning, including news of J. J. Abrams directing the next installment of the sci-fi phenomenon, "Star Wars: Episode VII".
Tributes to fallen firefighters from Christmas Eve blaze in Webster, NY; Fire Marshal of Webster Robert Boutillier reflects
This morning, we hear new recordings from a tragic Christmas Eve fire that stunned the town of Webster, a town in upstate New York. The blaze was set in a Webster home as a trap by a gunman who then targeted firefighters who responded. Sixty two-year-old William Spengler started a massive fire, then shot and killed two firefighters and injured two others.The awful scene playing out on the scanner: “Multiple firemen down. Multiple firemen shot. I am shot. I think it was an assault rifle. We have multiple firemen down. With a working fire.”
The two injured firefighters, who are still recovering in the hospital, released a statement thanking the nation for its support. They say: "We are humbled and a bit overwhelmed by the outpouring of well wishes for us and our families. Like so many others, our thoughts and prayers are with the families of Michael Chiapperini and Tomasz Kaczowka, and with those who lost their homes."
Meanwhile, the town is mourning for those two firemen who lost their lives as investigators try to figure out how and why this happened. Robert Boutillier is Fire Marshal of Webster, New York. He joins us live from Rochester, NY with the latest on investigation.
House For. Affairs Comm. Rep. Ed Royce (R-CA) thinks Patraeus knew 'instantaneously' Benghazi attack was 'linked to al Qaeda'
Ex-CIA Director David Petraeus will be testifying on Capitol Hill this morning about what he knew regarding the terrorist attack on the U.S. Consulate in Bengazi. The House and Senate intelligence hearings will take place behind closed doors. This will be the first time Patraeus will speak to government officials since he resigned last week over an extra-marital affair with his biographer, Paula Broadwell. Sources told CNN’s Barbara Starr that Petraeus wants to clear up "a lot of misrepresentations of what he told congress initially," and that he saw two streams of intelligence about the attack.
The House Foreign Affairs Committee also held a hearing on Thursday over Benghazi. California Republican Congressman Ed Royce is a ranking member of that committee and Chairman of the Terrorism Subcommittee. He joins John Berman on "Early Start" to discuss today's hearing.
Some Republicans have questioned whether Patraeus’ resignation was linked to what he knew about the attack on the diplomatic mission in Libya that killed four Americans, including Ambassador Chris Stevens. Rep. Royce thinks his testimony today will be to clarify what he knew about it and clear the record of the CIA.
“I think the reason General Patraeus wants to testify,” Royce says, “is because he knew almost instantaneously that this was an attack linked to al Qaeda.” Royce says its important to questions why Patraeus and the White House would maintain the “line of argument” that a video was responsible for the attack in “the face of the facts.”
CNN’s Atika Shubert on condition of 14-year-old Pakistani girl shot by Taliban: transported to Birmingham, Britain for her medical care
The 14-year-old Pakistani girl who was shot in the head by the Taliban is on her way to Britain for further treatment. Malala Yousufzai has had people around the world praying for her full recovery after the Taliban tried to kill her last week for being an outspoken proponent of the right of Pakistani girls to get an education. The Taliban’s attack on her life sparked outrage in Pakistan and support for young Malala from all over the world.
Malala’s flight is expected to land later this morning. CNN’s Atika Shubert is live in London with more on the young activist’s condition and anti-Taliban rallies in the wake of her attack.
Shubert says there’s still a concern for Malala’s safety. “The Taliban have continued to threaten her. She’s actually been put under armed guard.” However, the decision to transport her to Birmingham, Britain is really about her medical care. Shubert says, “She will be put in a hospital specifically to treat children with severe rehabilitation concerns.” Doctors will try to repair the extensive damage to her neck from a bullet wound, some of the bones in her skull and neurological damage.
CNN's Jamie Florcruz reports on the murder trial of Gu Kailai, who's accused of killing a British businessman
Jaime Florcruz shares details on Early Start regarding China’s “Jackie Kennedy” murder trial. Gu Kailai, the wife of a recently deposed top official in the Chinese Communist Party, is accused of poisoning British businessman, Neil Heywood.
Chinese officials report that “economic matters” were at the heart of the matter, and that Gu Kailai poisoned Haywood out of fear that Haywood would harm her son, Bo Guagua.
The trial has been adjourned, and a verdict will come soon. China has a conviction rate of 98%, so most experts expect Gu to be convicted.
The "Domain Awareness System" takes NYPD high-tech crime fighting to new levels
The New York City police department has teamed up with Microsoft to build a new high-tech surveillance system called the "Domain Awareness System".
The new system allows police officers to access more than 3,000 closed-circuit cameras, as well as license plate scanners and radiation detectors across the city. The "Domain Awareness System” runs from a single command center in lower Manhattan, where Mayor Michael Bloomberg announced the collaboration.
This new technology will not only profit the police but New York as well, since it will receive 30% of the revenue as Microsoft sells the technology to other police forces across the country.
Retired Nassau County police officer and director of the Elite Intelligence and Protection Agency Lou Palumbo gives some more insight on the new technology. Palumbo says, "Basically its just a very high-tech sophisticated, most recent generation surveillance system that enhances the city's ability to monitor activity on various levels. Even to the extent to the detection of radiation which is critical."
Joplin Islamic Society spokeswoman discusses the suspicious fire that burned mosque to the ground
This morning, the investigation into a suspicious fire that destroyed a mosque in Joplin, Missouri continues.
Investigators from the FBI, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms and the Jasper County Sheriff's department were at the scene of the fire all day Monday, combing through the wreckage searching for evidence of arson.
This was the second fire to hit the Islamic Center in little more than a month after a man attempted to set the mosque on fire on July 4th.
Although that man has still not been identified, his image was caught on surveillance camera and authorities are offering a $15,000 reward for information leading to charges from the FBI.
Islamic Society of Joplin member and spokesperson Kimberly Kester discusses the fire with Zoraida Sambolin on Early Start this morning, stressing that although the mosque has received threats in the past, the members of the center "don't want to jump to any conclusions or lay blame on anyone."
Dr. Morrison says Holmes' main reason for revenge was due to his failure in school
Dr. Helen Morrison says, Holmes "does fit the profile of an individual who becomes a mass murderer, meaning that he plans, he implements and the victims are usually individuals that he doesn't know but he's just chosen because of his anger and sense of revenge because of his rejections.”
Dr. Morrison goes on to say that Holmes' main reason for revenge was because he "was not making it in the doctoral program in neuroscience."
The graduate student dropped out of school in June.
On Twitter
