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Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-NY) Discusses House Panel Meets As Calls To Release Gaetz Ethics Report Grow; U.S. Closes Kyiv Embassy Amid Threat Of "Significant Air Attack"; Now: Jose Ibarra Being Sentenced For Murder Of Laken Riley; Judge Sentences Laken Riley Killer To Life Without Parole. Aired 1:30-2p ET

Aired November 20, 2024 - 13:30   ET

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

[13:30:00]

REP. ERIC SWALWELL (D-CA): -- Republican colleagues of mine think about is that this person who becomes our attorney general has to have credibility as they go after counterterrorism cases, as they go after money laundering, as they go after public corruption.

The public needs to know, when they investigate and indict somebody, that it has the weight of the United States government and the people behind it.

And if that person has all of these storm clouds hanging over them, and we think, OK, you had, you know, your dirty laundry hidden by your buddies in Congress, the American people won't take it seriously.

And then we start to look like other countries where you don't have faith in the people who lead us like China, like Russia. It looks right now like a Chinese-Russian way of doing things rather than a place where we don't have anything to hide. And we're transparent with the American people.

BORIS SANCHEZ, CNN HOST: Congressman, if the report is either released publicly or it leaks and, ultimately, it finds that there was no violation and there was no wrongdoing, how much more likely do you think it will be that former Congressman Gaetz will be confirmed as attorney general?

SWALWELL: Yes, well, I actually think the report is a little bit of a distraction about the real issues with Matt Gaetz, which is that he is going to go in and politically punish Donald Trump's perceived enemies.

And he's going to do all of that work at the cost of us not investigating money laundering, corruption. counterterrorism, counterintelligence issues, because he's just going to be a lapdog for Donald Trump. And he's actually told us that's what he's going to do.

This report, again, undermines his ability to be taken seriously by the people who are going to work for him and the American people who need to trust him.

But the bigger issue is -- and this is not what I'm telling you. My Republican friends in Congress are laughing that he is the appointee, and no one actually thinks that he's going to be confirmed.

That's a disservice to the millions of Americans who voted for Donald Trump, wanted to see him come in and be their voice, take seriously the cost of eggs, the cost of milk, takes seriously --

SANCHEZ: Yes.

SWALWELL: -- the issues we have at our southern border and security that people want in their communities.

And they see this clown being appointed and they're like, this isn't what we voted for. This isn't the mandate that we gave you that he believes that he has.

SANCHEZ: Congressman, I have to ask you, you've been a frequent critic of former President Trump. Do you have concerns about personal retribution against you, that -- that if Gaetz is appointed, they will personally go after you?

SWALWELL: I imagine he's going to do that. And it's not just me. I've talked to January 6th, you know, police officers who feel the same way, colleagues of mine.

But to a tee, we all say the same thing, come at us. We're not going away. We're not going to hide. We're not going to cower. This is the United States of America. You speak truth to power when it's necessary.

And my issues are not with the president-elect. I want him to succeed because, when he succeeds, America succeeds.

But right now, as I see this broliarchy that is forming around him, of the people he's bringing into government, it looks like he is going to fight every day for the rich. And Democrats are going to fight for the rest of us.

And it has to be about the American people and what they need. I'm not going to worry about whether he comes after me or others because I'm not going away.

I recognize what is important in people's lives. And that's who I'm going to fight for. That's what my colleagues are going to fight for.

SANCHEZ: Congressman Eric Swalwell, we have to leave the conversation there. Appreciate your time, sir.

SWALWELL: Yes, my pleasure. Thanks.

SANCHEZ: So we're still awaiting the sentencing of Jose Ibarra, the man convicted earlier today of murdering Laken Riley. We just listened to some heartbreaking victim impact statements from her friends and loved ones.

We're going to bring you the sentencing live. This is a live picture of the courtroom. We're going to keep an eye on this and get you the latest, when we come back on CNN NEWS CENTRAL (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[13:38:10]

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN HOST: The U.S. embassy in Ukraine's capital of Kyiv is temporarily closed, warning Americans there of a potential of a significant air attack by Russia. It's a sign of soaring tension between Washington and Moscow.

The embassy even telling employees to be ready to immediately shelter in place if an air alert is announced.

But now we're also hearing Ukraine warned that Russia is staging a, quote, "psychological attack" on the Ukrainian people by spreading fake warnings of a massive, looming airstrike.

Let's talk a little bit more about this with CNN military analyst and retired U.S. Air Force Colonel, Cedric Leighton.

It's confusing, to say the least --

COL. CEDRIC LEIGHTON, RETIRED, CNN MILITARY ANALYST: Yes.

KEILAR: -- about what's going on here. So what do you make of this Ukrainian assessment?

LEIGHTON: So what -- there are a lot of things going on here. There are some reports that we see on social media where there are bombers that are coming in on their way from the eastern part of Russia toward points just to the east of Ukraine. You've got the possibility of missiles coming in.

So these are things that, blending with the, have done in the past,, could be true. But based on the recent assessments --

KEILAR: Colonel, I'm so sorry to interrupt you.

But Jose Ibarra is being sentenced in the case of the murder of Laken Riley. Let's listen in.

JUDGE H. PATRICK HAGGARD, Athens-Clarke County Superior Court: -- this stage or event in this in this tragedy and that's -- that's the way I view that people -- people mean well by making that -- saying that.

But its -- I've heard it explained that, when you have something like this that impacts one or many, you either have to make a conscious effort to breathe some times and that just comes on you at any particular -- you know, you just don't know what's going to bring it on you.

[13:40:09]

And you realize that you do make it through the day, but you don't know how you did it.

Also, and this goes back to what Kerry Howell was saying that, you know, as many times as you reflect on the loss, at some point, you start smiling about the memories. And I'm hopeful that, at some point, that takes over to a certain extent.

But there's very little, including the sentence of Mr. Ibarra, that's going to help much. And I acknowledge that.

With that, Mr. Ibarra, if you'll please stand.

Count one, malice murder, I sentence you to life without the possibility of parole.

Count two will be vacated as a matter of operation of law. Count three vacated by operation of law. Count four vacated by operation of law.

Count five, life in prison consecutive to count one.

Count six, 20 years to serve consecutive to count five.

Count seven will merge with Count one.

Count eight, 12 months consecutive to count six. Strike that. Twelve months -- I don't want it to six. Just -- it's just going to be consecutive.

Count nine, 12 months consecutive. Count 10, five years consecutive to count six. So that would mean the misdemeanors would come after the felonies.

That'll be the sentence.

Mr. Ibarra, I will advise you that you have 30 days from today to seek post-judgment relief in the form of a motion for a new trial or appealing this case directly.

If you make a motion for a new trial and that is denied, you have 30 days from that date to file your first appeal, first level of appeal.

The court will appoint a lawyer to represent you if you cannot afford one. I'll also advise you that you have four years from the date that your conviction becomes final in order to file a habeas corpus petition.

Mr. Goleb (ph), can you tell me, are you all going to be involved in the next stage?

UNIDENTIFIED DEFENSE ATTORNEY: That remains to be seen. My understanding is that we remain the defendant's team until - unless we're relieved by conflict counsel.

HAGGARD: All right. And you'll make -- make those arrangements?

UNIDENTIFIED DEFENSE ATTORNEY: We can communicate that with Mr. Barr and with the court.

HAGGARD: OK. All right.

Anything else, Ms. Ross?

SHEILA ROSS, SPECIAL PROSECUTOR: No, You're Honor.

HAGGARD: OK.

It's going to take a little - yeah, can we take -

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (INAUDIBLE

HAGGARD: OK, that'll be fine. I can do that.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Everybody remain seated, please.

[13:45:03]

HAGGARD: All right. That will conclude the proceedings.

Can I ask you something, Dan?

SANCHEZ: We've been listening to Superior Court Judge H. Patrick Haggard in an Athens, Georgia, courtroom as he sentenced Laken Riley's -- Laken Riley's killer to life without parole on several different counts. First, malice murder. Several counts were vacated.

But ultimately, it is clear from the sentencing that this now- convicted murderer, Jose Ibarra, will spend the rest of his life behind bars for the murder of Laken Riley.

KEILAR: Let's go to Ryan Young. We also have Misty Marris with us.

Ryan, after hearing the evidence over the past few days -- and there was so much video evidence, DNA evidence as well, clothing, pictures he had taken of himself, I don't think it's surprising to people that he was found guilty.

And I don't know that it's surprising that this is the sentence that the judge handed down.

RYAN YOUNG, CNN SENIOR NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, I'm honestly surprised that they decided to do a bench trial and not try to take their chances with the jury when you look at all the evidence that was here.

And you could just tell that the defense attorney was just overmatched. And you should know that Sheila Ross is just an excellent prosecutor.

As someone who's covered Fulton County and a lot of metro Atlanta for years, you know that Sheila Ross has a way of taking the evidence that's given to her by detectives and really pulling it out and showing a side of the evidence that is really easy to follow along with.

And even in her closing statements today that lasted some 55 minutes, she did three things that we're very solid. One, she obviously made the point that Laken Riley did not deserve this, and she was brutally attacked.

And even went over the fact of the evidence again, that there were scratches, there was DNA evidence. But she also found a way to humanize her beyond a point at this juncture where, for the first time, we heard from the family in such a way that we had not had a chance to hear from the family this way.

And when you put on top of that, this judge is a no-nonsense judge who's been on the bench since 2011. And anyone who's ever been in his courtroom understands this man follows the law to a T, doesn't take any trouble in his courtroom.

So you knew that the hands of justice were turning in a certain direction. This case has moved really quickly.

Something that happened while you guys were away, and I want to share this with you. They showed this body camera video. Laken Riley's family finding out about the death shortly after cops discovered it.

It's body camera footage, and you see her family arrive.

I'll be quiet for a second so you can just see their reaction. This was heartbreaking. Just take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

(CRYING)

UNIDENTIFIED LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICER: It's not good.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

YOUNG: OK, so you see this part right here? The officer's basically going to inform the mother of the worst. And you can see her go back in pain.

Look, this has been a tremendously hard case from the very beginning to follow, guys. As we've talked to people on that campus, they've been ripped up about this.

And even the day we were there for her memorial service, you could feel the impact for so many of these young people.

I think about the young lady who was wearing her blouse there, doing the victim impact statement, saying that she kept that blouse and she wanted to be able to smell her friend. I mean, imagine that as a young person being able to talk about losing a best friend that way. It's just heartbreaking.

Some of the words that were used today was "predator" and "monster." And even the idea of not having a motive for what this -- why this happened is something I think will leave all of us sort of questioning exactly what happened on that day.

Because she was running. It clearly shows they had no prior encounter. And then, all of a sudden, this attack occurred and she was dragged off that running trail.

This has really changed the fates of so many people on that campus because people are still in fear for the idea of running around there.

But the judge sending a very strong message, backed by that evidence today, life without parole. You can tell, certain folks feel good about this justice.

You brought up the idea earlier, talking about the death penalty. The D.A. who decided not to seek the death penalty in this before moving it to Sheila Ross, also lost reelection.

So you can understand there are some open wounds in this community that this case will -- will survive for quite some time -- guys?

KEILAR: Yes, you really got a sense listening to those victim impact statements, not just of the kind of person that Laken Riley was, but just how much she was really at the beginning of her life and the trajectory that she was on.

And watching that video of her family getting that devastating news, Ryan, you know, you hear the judge -- the judge saying there, you have to make a conscious effort to breathe sometimes, and you'll make it through the day --

(CROSSTALK)

[13:50:08]

KEILAR: -- and you don't know how you did it, he said. That's what he was saying to her friends and family.

YOUNG: Something that we couldn't show and we have several people in the courtroom, when they played the video and when folks we're talking, the entire courtroom burst into tears. There's obviously an impact that this young lady had in her short time.

And I know we don't talk about spirituality a lot, but the idea that kept referencing back to God. And the message that she had where she talked about her future life and she kept a journal and how she wanted to have those family members together and have that future husband.

That's what her mom, that's what her dad were all focusing on. The fact they'll never have grandkids, the fact that this life was taken away too early.

SANCHEZ: Ys, a senseless tragedy, no doubt.

Ryan, please stand by.

Ryan mentioned a moment ago, we have folks inside the courtroom. One of them was Rafael Romo, who comes to us live outside the courtroom now in Athens, Georgia.

Rafael, I imagine it must have been a very emotional scene, as Ryan was describing, not only some of the testimony but the video that was shown and then the sentencing by the judge and his message to the loved ones of Laken Riley.

RAFAEL ROMO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, that's right, Boris. For the last nine months, we've been talking about how this family has been through unimaginable pain. We don't have to imagine that anymore. We saw it in the courtroom. The whole world saw it.

We know exactly what that family has gone through. We heard Laken Riley's mother, Allyson Phillips, step-father, John Phillips, sister, Lauren Phillips.

We heard from numerous classmates, friends, roommates that all had to say the same thing, that she was a very bright individual with a contagious smile that was always willing to help anybody.

Her step-father, John Phillips, read a letter that she wrote in December of last year. And the letter was addressed to a husband in the future. And a lot of the testimony that we heard today has to do with that.

How the brutal heinous murder of Laken Riley has robbed not only her but her family, friends and the entire community of that peace, that joy that she had.

It was not a big surprise, to be totally honest with you, Boris, that Judge H. Patrick Haggard decided to give the defendant the maximum sentence of -under -- in this case, for that matter, of life without the possibility of parole.

But there was always a question there. And when he said that, when he said those words, there was a collective sigh of relief in the courtroom -- Boris?

SANCHEZ: Rafael Romo, outside the courtroom in Athens, Georgia, please stand by.

We have back with us Misty Marris, one of our legal analysts.

Misty, what did you make of this sentencing? As we heard from Ryan and Rafael, not really a surprise, but at least some measure of relief for Laken Riley's family,

MISTY MARRIS, TRIAL ATTORNEY: Yes, well, it's important to keep in mind what factors go into sentencing. And some is what we spoke about before the victim impact statements, not just on family and friends, but also on the community.

So all of that, all of those statements that we're set forth in the court showing Laken she was a young woman with a promising future whose life was cut short. And here's how it's impacting all of these individuals that surrounded her. That's one piece of it.

The other piece of it is the legal statutory requirements. And it's in the judicial discretion to give life without the possibility of parole when somebody is convicted of felony murder, of malice murder, when there are aggravating factors. And we heard the prosecutor go through those. And those aggravating

factors relate directly to the other charges that he is now convicted of, kidnaping, the attempted rape. All of those factors into that determination.

And the pillars of the justice system, deterrence, rehabilitation and punishment, all of that taken into consideration resulting in the life without the possibility of parole sentence that was handed down today.

KEILAR: Misty, talk a little bit about -- you're familiar with this -- but I think a lot of people hearing this sentence would not be.

As you -- as the judge went through the charges, there are a number of them that are going to be served consecutively. Just explain what that means.

For instance, count five, which is aggravated -- or pardon me, kidnaping with bodily injury for instance, that's life in prison that is going to be served consecutively to count one. Aggravated assault with intent to rape, 20 years consecutive to count five, for instance.

[13:55:12]

MARRIS: Yes, so it sounds a little confusing when he's going through all of the counts and then setting forth the sentences.

So there are a couple things that happened. One thing that happened was what's called merger. So it's called the Merger Doctrine. He was convicted of malice murder and felony murder. Those ultimately result in the same sentence. So they merge into one.

That's why we heard him say that he's sentencing Ibarra on life imprisonment without the possibility of parole on malice murder. So all of those felony murder counts merged into that. And that includes lesser included offense, of aggravated assault. All of those merge into that malice murder conviction, life without the possibility of parole.

And then, Brianna, we have the other charges where he was given years certain, one, life without -- or life with the possibility of parole, 20 years for others. All of those are consecutive, meaning -- or all of those are, excuse me, concurrent meaning they happen at the same time.

So all of those sentences will be served at the same time as the life without possibility of parole. What he carved out was the misdemeanor charges. Those will be consecutive, meaning after he serves the felony time, he could serve time on the misdemeanor charges.

SANCHEZ: So I had said a moment ago there was little to no likelihood he would ever step outside of prison. But still, the case, given kind of what you just outlined, right, Misty?

MARRIS: Right. At the end of the day, it's all about the malice murder sentence, life without the possibility of parole. All of those other sentences are being served at the same time, concurrently. And then the misdemeanor charges were consecutive. Now, the reason

that that's done, the reason it's broken down, say, hypothetically, on appeal, he's successful overturning one of those verdicts. And it's unlikely in this case. But it's certainly possible.

So it's enumerated to each individual charge in the indictment. And that's where we are today. But it's life without the possibility of parole, at the end of the day, that's most serious charge.

KEILAR: Misty, thank you so much for that.

Laken Riley's killer sentenced to life without parole. As she is described by her friends and family as a beautiful, kind, caring young woman with so much life ahead of her when it was taken in February.

We'll be right back.

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