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Laura Coates Live

Special Counsel Asks Judge For Gag Order In Trump Documents Case; Source Says, Biden To Ramp Up Trump Attacks Trial Ends; NCAA Agrees To Deal That Will Let Schools Pay Student Athletes; Former NFL Player Arian Foster Talks About Compensation For Student Athletes; Apple Releases Their Top 100 Albums; White House Reacts To Recent Killings In A Statement. Aired 10-11p ET

Aired May 24, 2024 - 22:00   ET

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

MARIA CARDONA, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Be something that is going to hurt Donald Trump, I believe, in the long run, and Joe Biden does not need to help him do that.

[22:00:06]

KAITLAN COLLINS, CNN HOST: Yes. Well, it's just fascinating because in a month, almost from today, there'll be on the debate stage together. We will note the verdict certainly by then. Maria Cardona, Kristen Soltis Anderson, great to have you both here on a Friday night.

CARDONA: Thanks, so much Kaitlan.

KRISTEN SOLTIS ANDERSON, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Thanks.

COLLINS: And thank you all so much for joining us here on this Friday night. I hope you have a great Memorial Day weekend.

Laura Coates Live starts now right now.

LAURA COATES, CNN HOST: Good evening and welcome to a special early edition of Laura Coates Live.

We begin with breaking news. Special counsel Jack Smith is now seeking a gag order against Donald Trump in the classified documents case. Jack Smith is asking the judge to, quote, make clear that Trump may not make statements that pose a significant, imminent and foreseeable danger to law enforcement agents who are participating in the investigation and prosecution of this case.

So, now, why is the special counsel asking for this, you might be asking? Well, it's because of what Donald Trump said this week, when he falsely claimed that FBI agents who searched Mar-a-Lago were, quote, locked and loaded and authorized to shoot him. He was misrepresenting the standard language and documents that the FBI says it uses routinely.

Here's, by the way, how Attorney General Merrick Garland explained it just yesterday.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) MERRICK GARLAND, ATTORNEY GENERAL: Okay, on that one, that allegation is false and it is extremely dangerous. The document that has been referred to in the allegation is the Justice Department standard policy, limiting the use of force, as the FBI advises it as part of the standard operations plan for searches. And, in fact, it was even used in the consensual search of President Biden's home.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COATES: Now, unsurprisingly, Trump's team has opposed the request for the gag order. Keep in mind, this is the first time that Special Counsel Jack Smith has actually sought one in this case. And he did apparently do so on the Friday night before Memorial Day, seemingly because he very strongly feels the need for this gag order.

With me now, former Federal Prosecutor Jennifer Rodgers, also Criminal Defense Attorney Joey Jackson, both are CNN legal analysts.

Let me begin with you here, Jennifer, because this is significant, first of all, when we first heard about these statements, the locked and loaded terminology that was being used. It is not accurate, it was not what was actually going on, and yet it has caught fire. How dangerous is this, given that he wants to have a gag order now?

JENNIFER RODGERS, CNN LEGAL ANALYST: Yes. Well, this is the problem, right? It's one thing for the former president to, you know, say things that aren't true about what the different special counsel cases are doing and so forth, but this is saying FBI agents were effectively coming to assassinate me. I mean, it's ridiculous and that you can see some of his followers kind of take that as an invitation to go out and do some violence of their own, possibly against law enforcement. So, I think that's why everyone is so concerned about this and they want to really tamp down on it as soon as possible.

COATES: I mean, Joey, he's fundraising off of this, by the way, on the same misrepresentation here, and this request, I mean, not for nothing, the federal government doesn't move as quickly as other entities, shall we say. It is the Friday before Memorial Day weekend, of course, and this suggests, in many respects, the urgency for A.G. Garland to come out and talk about this as well, and why this is so significant. I mean, the idea of putting maybe agents in danger over this is incredible.

JOEY JACKSON, CNN LEGAL ANALYST: Yes, Laura, this is troubling for a lot of reasons. Just in terms of a fact check, I think two things are very significant. The first is that he was not at the location at the time, Mar-a-Lago, when it was searched, very critical. Number two, the Secret Service was informed with respect to the actual search. And those things I say, because it puts it in context. It's not like he was there and ducking with his family while bullets were flying.

And I think everyone needs to understand that language and rhetoric have consequences, right? And people, if the wrong things are said, particularly when you have a bully pulpit, like he does, where he has many millions of followers, people can take it in the wrong way. And when you're talking about law enforcement and what they're not doing, right, he's saying they are doing, they're trying to assassinate him, it puts people in danger and jeopardy.

Last point, and I will continue to say, we saw this as it related to the former speaker of the House and what happened to her husband. Some deranged person goes and really, you know, attacks him, right? And that's a problem. And so to avoid any type of, you know, just danger to anybody else, you need to consider a gag order to stop things that are said that are irresponsible.

COATES: And, remember, I mean, after there was the search, the executed search warrant, they're calling it the raid on the Mar-a-Lago compound in the state, there were threats to kill or posts that were said to kill all federal agents.

[22:05:01]

There were people who were doxed. There were incidents where even FBI field offices had different threats made against them and beyond. So, it's not just a perspective issue, we can look back not too long ago and see something like this.

This is before Judge Cannon though, Jen, and Judge Cannon has had a lot of headlines around perception that she's not going to take this case as seriously moving the needle and moving the case forward. She says all these motions that are still pending that she could resolve at least half of them in the ordinary course of things. Will this judge take this seriously, this request?

RODGERS: Well, it's interesting, because one of the things that was so contentious between Judge Cannon and the special counsel was the issue of information about witnesses, right, identifying people who had testified in the grand jury and potentially putting them at the risk of intimidation or threats. And there was a lot of back and forth where she was really pushing back against the notion that this information should or shouldn't become public.

So, my concern is that she doesn't really take seriously this notion that people's lives can be in jeopardy or turned upside down if their information becomes known to the public, which, you know, that makes me think she might not move on this as quickly as she should, but, you know, We'll see.

COATES: Joey, there are multiple gag orders now that are pending or requested against Donald Trump as the defendant. We know, of course, the one in Manhattan. You've got Judge Merchan, the potential is only, I think, $3,000 or a certain amount per different violation, a maximum penalty. He is not -- although he threatened potentially jail, the right to go to the jury, it's not going to happen anytime soon, if at all. Does this indicate to you that this will be the moment he begins to take it more seriously, a new request, a different jurisdiction, a federal court?

JACKSON: Yes. You know, Laura, I certainly hope so. The fact of the matter is, is that, again, when you act and you say things that are irresponsible, people could be put in danger. And to everyone who says, First Amendment, First Amendment, yes, we have First Amendment rights, but your right to the First Amendment ends where someone else rights begin. We know you can't yell fire in a movie theater. Why? People will be endangered. You know, you can't defame people. Why? Because you're spreading falsities that impair and impugn their reputation.

What am I saying? I'm saying there are limits with regard to what you should say. And when you have so many people who believe and buy into things that are false and irresponsible, the consequences could be dire, and so I hope so.

COATES: But, you know, you're a wonderful defense attorney, so well respected. Have you ever seen an instance where -- is it typical for average American viewer to see, is it typical to have gag orders in place in your cases for the average defendant? Not just because this particular one has this extensive pulpit that could be a bully pulpit, is it normal to have these gag orders?

JACKSON: Well, first, thank you for that, Laura. You know, the answer is no. It's not because, generally, people follow the rules. There's a certain decorum and there's a certain protocol. And I think people understand in our process that that protocol needs to be respected. They respect the person in the robe and there's not a sense of entitlement because the normal person, when they do something, they say, excuse me, Mr. Jones, did you understand my ruling? You didn't. Okay, officers take charge. And when you don't have that to worry about, there's a different way that you comport yourself.

And so I just hope that perhaps is a change in the rhetoric. I know there's an election. I get it. People can vote for who they vote for. Everyone has a side. But at the end of the day, putting people in danger is not the place we want to be or not the thing you want to do. And so it's unusual. It shouldn't happen. It is happening. And it's got to get under control.

COATES: Well, I mentioned, of course, Judge Merchan in this Manhattan trial, the hush money trial. We know that there have now been jury instructions that have been finalized. The councils for the different parties do have them. The jury is not going to see them until obviously next week when they return to begin to hear instructions and also deliberate.

I want to go to you, Jennifer, on this, because this is going to be the most critical part of a trial. I know everyone thinks about the witnesses, of course, but the idea of what they're going to actually be able to decide on is so important. And one thing I'm looking at in particular is this idea of how they're going to quantify the word, substantial, when it comes to whether or not Donald Trump made this hush money payment reimbursement or otherwise because he was looking at his marriage and his family or for the campaign.

There's no quantifiable number attached to it. What are you looking for in these jury instructions for this jury?

RODGERS: Well, what's interesting, Laura, as you probably know, is the jury actually doesn't take them with them in written form, so they're going to have to listen very carefully, and if they're confused about what they're supposed to do with the law, they'll have to ask for it to be re-read to them. So --

COATES: Can the judge change that in this case?

RODGERS: I'm told no. I'm told that they can't go back with them in written form. So, I don't know whether they're going to come back out and ask for clarification, like you say, but, you know, we ask jurors to do this all the time, right?

[22:10:00]

What is beyond a reasonable doubt mean? You know, what does a preponderance of the evidence mean, like all these different terms. So, I think they'll just talk amongst themselves what does substantial mean to us in the jury room, right? What was in his mind? Was he more worried about the election? Was he more worried about his wife, reputation, kind of where did it all fall? But to me, if a good chunk of that, whatever good chunk means, substantial, is that he was worried about the election and what was going to happen with respect to that, then that's probably good enough. You know, this is what jurors do. They kind of take their everyday experience and their understanding of words, like substantial, which is not a crazy legal term, and that's how they figure it out.

COATES: And sometimes they can ignore all those things and unbeknownst to us, right? And they rule any other way.

Joey, really quick before I let you go, what do you think the prosecution is going to have as the theme and what's the defense going to have as their theme?

JACKSON: Yes. So, very quickly, remember, prosecution has to end where they began, conspiracy and cover-up. And what they will try to do is to minimize Cohen with regard to what you have to believe and trust and maximize common sense and what the other witnesses did and establish that you can infer facts that the president certainly knew and that he hit it based upon the larger issue of impairing the election. And as a result of that, he's guilty.

In terms of the defense, they will maximize Cohen. He's a liar. He's a hater of the former president. He was doing this motivated out of animus. He's the only one who establishes the direct connection. You can't believe him. And as a result of you not believing him, you have to acquit. Those will be the competing areas.

COATES: But no glove at the end. No -- if you can't -- no glove will happen. There will be none of those moments. I mean, if it is though, I'll be watching it very close.

Thank you both. We're glad to have you all on tonight, Jennifer Rodgers and Joey Jackson, everyone.

Ahead, preparing for the gloves to come off, see my transition point? The Biden campaign gets ready to enter a new, aggressive phase as Trump's hush money trial draws to a close. What's going to look like, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[22:16:23]

COATES: For weeks, Biden has stayed silent on Trump's legal troubles, even as some in his party have really encouraged him to speak out. So, might a verdict in the Manhattan trial change Biden's mind or maybe even force his hand? CNN reports that once the trial ends, the president's campaign is ready to launch into what they're calling a new phase, essentially start taking the fight right to Donald Trump.

And we got a taste of what that meant today with the release of this ad voiced by none other than the Trump critic, Robert De Niro.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ROBERT DE NIRO, ACTOR (voice over): Now he's running again, this time threatening to be a dictator, to terminate the Constitution.

DONALD TRUMP (R), FORMER U.S. PRESIDENT, 2024 PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: If I don't get elected, it's going to be a bloodbath.

DE NIRO: Trump wants revenge, and he'll stop at nothing to get it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COATES: And that's just the start of it. Remember, in 34 days, Biden and Trump are going to face off for the first presidential debate right here on CNN. We're told Biden will aim to needle Trump, taunt him and press him to explain his own words. Campaign Chair Jen O'Malley Dylan, put it this way, quote, we make no bones about the fact that the more people see the choice, the better it is for us. We will feel and hear him see the crazy stuff he says.

Joining us now are public strategist, Joe Pinion, excuse me, and also columnist for Rolling Stone Jay Michaelson.

Jay Pinion, you, I mean, look, it's Friday night. I don't want anyone to give me a hard time right now, okay? I'm putting the wrong emphasis, the wrong syllable. I know who both of them are. Joe Pinion, tell me your opinion, please, in a moment, about all this. Is that, that the first time you heard this, opinion? That's a good one. That can't be new to you. Opinion for Pinion, that's got to be old.

JOE PINION, REPUBLICAN STRATEGIST: Look, I think what is clearly old are these attacks that the Biden administration has launched as new against President Trump. And so whatever you think about the Republican versus Democratic side, you had Barack Obama who ran on Obamacare, the Affordable Care Act. You had Bill Clinton who ran on the surplus and you have Joe Biden trying to recycle the attacks against President Trump in 2016 that didn't work.

And so I think not talking about the merits of the attack, I think it does show that they do believe there is a perceived weakness in the, quote/unquote, accomplishments that they would like to try it out, that the inflation reduction plan did not perhaps reduce inflation to the level they wish. In fact, of course, according to Jim Clyburn, it did perhaps, that's the add to the inflation, that if you're looking at the migrant crisis, the fentanyl crisis, the problems in Gaza, the issues in Ukraine, the South China sea, that we have a world in disarray. It has happened on the watch of the man that promised to be the return to normal president.

So, yes, it is their approach. They are entitled to have their opinion and their strategy, but I think their strategy belies what they believe their own perceived weaknesses, whether they're willing to acknowledge it or not.

COATES: So, Jay, do you see it this way, that the reason he's coming out on the offense is because he thinks that he wants to have sort of a don't look over here at the bright shiny object instead of attack dog, as opposed to showing some of the accomplishments he has?

JAY MICHAELSON, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: No, I mean, this is just like Joe Pinion stuff. No, I mean, the reality is that Americans are suffering from Trump amnesia, right? We've forgotten how chaotic and insane the Trump administration was. I mean, ordinary Americans. I mean, January 6th, sure, I think people remember. But the reality is there's forgetting, you know, the constant, you know, rotating of staff in the White House, all of the chaos.

You know, I wish the ad would go a little bit deeper. I want to see the sharpie on the track of the hurricane. Because Trump chaos actually hurt people, right? Where Trump said that COVID was going to go away in three weeks, you know, while the pandemic was raging.

[22:20:00]

It's not just random chaos or personality attacks. These things actually hurt people's lives.

So, I feel like maybe as an opening salvo, this goes a little bit, but I think they need to go further to remind folks that while in an ordinary election, we could debate foreign policy or something. This is not an ordinary election.

COATES: Well, one second. One of the things, though, that I always notice is we remember when Trump first was campaigning and debating, people often criticized him for being not presidential enough because he was going and being attacking, and you had a lot of people who are at the stage of the remember the ten or more people who are next to him would say, we don't do this now, because now they want the current president to do just that.

MICHAELSON: Well, this was Trump saying, like a little Marco and Lying Ted, right? I mean, this was degrading the discourse to a level that it hadn't been before. I think, look, this is an unusual election also because it's two former incumbents, an incumbent and a former incumbent. So, we can run on the past, not just the future. And Trump has a record.

And for, you know, right now, all the polls are saying for, you know, ordinary Americans, the economy is by far the number one issue that they're concerned about. Great, we can address that. But also, the fact that that's the number one concern suggests that there is this kind of institutional amnesia that we've forgotten the chaos that we went through for years, up to and including the COVID pandemic.

PINION: I'll just say this because it's a lot to digest there. You can talk about President Trump's record. There are things that Democrats want to highlight, but I think what most Americans feel, which I think is reflected in the polls, whether you choose to believe them or not, is that there were 7 million jobs created pre-pandemic, that there was this sense that their dollar went from further during the Trump administration that they're currently going, that, yes, and wages are up under Joe Biden, but also those wages are being crossed by the inflation that Joe Biden told us was going to be transitory, and yet here it is persisting on everything from the milk to the chicken, to the fact that we have half a million Americans who are actually defaulting on their car payments when one third of the people who are turning in their cars who aren't defaulting owe more money on the car than the car is worth.

MICHAELSON: So, this is like being on the Titanic and you're complaining about the band, right? I mean, when we're looking at an election democracy --

COATES: Hold on. Excuse me. Hold on, both of you. It's all right. We can both talk. I want to hear both of your points. I want to have him get in for a second, and I'll come right back, and you can respond. Go ahead.

MICHAELSON: To talk about these kind of issues, yes. Of course, there are always economic issues to talk about. This is not a normal election where we need, like, a wakeup call when Trump says, you know, with Project 2025 and what he's planning to do.

PINION: Respectfully, I get that you want to frame it as not a normal election. I get that for the last 40 years, every time black mothers and black families want to talk about the fact that the public schools are failing them or that the economy is not working for us, we are told that, yes, we'll get to that in a second. But in this particular election, your life is quite literally on the lines.

You must vote for us because the other people will not defend it. That is the argument you want to make and you're entitled to make it. But I think the polls suggest, as you see Joe Biden in just four years, going from 90 percent with black voters to now 76 percent support, as you see swing states where President Biden was successful, now those swing states lagging month after month in favor of Trump that the average American is not approaching this as, oh, Trump is the abnormality. They're approaching that saying, the person who said he was the normal guy, the person who quoted Lincoln and said his whole soul was in uniting this country, has left the world in complete and utter despair and dischaos.

COATES: Well, to be fair, both have quoted Lincoln. Both have talked about this, and the other aspect of it, of course, is there is a abnormality in the fact that we've never actually had a moment in time, I think to his point, where you have a former president of the United States who's campaigning and all but the confetti is dropped, and there are these legal troubles that are facing him as part of this. There, in there, that is, in and of itself, chaotic and many of the cases talked about that issue but point well taken. We'll see how the voters feel about it.

Gentlemen, thank you so much. You can go arm wrestle outside. Joe Pinion, Jay Michaelson, thank you so much.

Ahead, a decision that could change how college sports operate, as we know it, the NCAA agreeing to let schools pay student athletes. Former NFL Player Arian Foster, who has long pushed for this change, joins me next.

But, first, if you're a product of the internet era or know someone who is, a moment of silence for the dog that sparked a meme craze for more than a decade. Kabosu, the Japanese shiba, known legendary for the legendary doge memes, has passed away and it all started with this photo and a look that can be interpreted a hundred different ways.

Thousands of memes, I'm being serious, thousands of memes were sparked from there, often depicting an inner monologue with, well, doge grammar. She even got morphed into a loaf of bread and liked to spawn one of the most well known cryptocurrencies, Dogecoin.

Kabosu's owner says the 18-year-old dog died without suffering and has, quote, crossed the rainbow bridge.

[22:25:02]

Her popularity is up there with other internet famous animals like Grumpy Cat, who we hope may now be a little less grumpy if Kabosu has indeed joined her on the other side of that Rainbow Bridge. So long, Kabosu, and never stop being amazed.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COATES: It's a decision that could change the shape of college sports forever, the NCAA and college's biggest conferences, known as the Power Five, agreeing to let schools pay their athletes. It's all a part of a deal to settle three pending antitrust cases.

[22:30:01]

And what it means is a bit complicated, but let's lay it out. So, if the agreement is approved by a judge, first the NCAA has to pay more than $2.7 billion in damages over 10 years to pass and get this, current athletes, as well.

Second, and this is the big one, the agreement lays out a revenue sharing plan that would allow each school to share $20 million per year with its student athletes who played in 2016 and onward. Those payments could start fall of 2025.

Now, who gets paid and how much is still unclear. This is an issue that has been hotly debated for years. During the last school year, football and basketball at Division One schools brought in a revenue of $7.9 billion. And in 2022, all of D1 athletics generated almost $17.5 billion. Now, many student athletes have long believed that they should get some cut.

Arian Foster was one of them. He's a former NFL running back who played at the University of Tennessee. And he says he took benefits back when he was playing in college and he could afford things like rent and food. Arian joins me now. Arian, thank you so much for joining us. This is a very important and significant moment if this all goes through as it says it might.

You support this decision and you have been very vocal about college athletes getting paid. And a lot of that comes from your own personal experience at Tennessee. For those who might not be familiar with it, can you explain a little bit why you think up until now this system has been so unfair?

ARIAN FOSTER, FORMER NFL PLAYER: I appreciate you having me on. I think the big reason as to why this has been able to go on for so long is because of brilliant marketing by the NCAA and the ownership over there. They have been able to kind of hoodwink the public into creating this false narrative of student-athlete, right? That's their key term. They'll say student-athlete.

And they're able to use this circular reasoning to say, well, the reason why we don't pay them is because they're student-athletes and the reason why they're student-athletes is because we don't pay them. And so, they've been able to create this veil of amateurism which has been gatekeeping the revenue share from student-athletes all across the nation for decades.

And so, we all knew this day was coming because this is America. And ironically enough, in this capitalist system, the free market says that these players should be able to go out and get paid for their labor. And this is going to be a labor issue in the near future.

COATES: This is fascinating to think about the idea of this veil of amateurism, I think you put it, and the way it has been marketed. And there are those who will say, well, hold on. How about the average student? They are contributing, as well, and they make it seem like the college athletes. It is really something that they should be just grateful to have the opportunity to do so.

Meanwhile, you do see the numbers coming in. But, you know, since 2021, Arian, college athletes have had the opportunity to make money through their name, their image, or likeness deals. Why is this still different even from what happens in 2021?

Well, they're still hiding behind the guise that they're not employees. And I think if once that facade is broken down, that wall is broken down, it's going to open up more labor issues. But to your point, that's all to the marketing of the NCAA. Oh, we give them room and board. Oh, we give them things.

That is nothing but, you know, plenty of, you know, CEOs and different companies give their workers room and board and they have interns and all these other things. But the main revenue share from a product is not receiving benefits from their labor. That is the issue. And that's why this was going to happen one way or the other. This is just a domino effect.

Arian, how would this have changed your personal experience? You've been vocal about what happened with you in Tennessee and, you know, trying to get rent, trying to have food, the problem of being a college athlete and not being able to work, not being able to get a job, and still having expenses. How would this have changed your experience?

FOSTER: I mean, tremendously. I mean, even now, you know, it's very different than when I went to college, which is we're all rooting for all the, from my vantage point, all the older guys are rooting for the young guys to get paid because we put in the sweat, the blood, the tears to build the brand of these universities that make millions and sometimes billions of dollars off of these laborers.

[22:35:00]

And it would have changed my experience and our experiences tremendously. But I'm not so focused on, you know, I've lived a good life, you know, I was lucky enough to make it to the NFL. I'm more focused on, I guess, the aftershock of what happened when we played, right? So, like I said, this is going to open up a can of worms of labor issues.

And one of those big labor issues I think that they're going to have to deal with is workman's comp, things like that, injuries that these players have accrued over their time playing, they're going to have to deal with that.

COATES: Yeah.

FOSTER: And I think it's only fair. I got a bunch of buddies missing cartilage in their knees, shoulders. You know, it's real issues that people live with. But, you know, we saw coaches driving off in $600,000 cars. It was hard to stomach then, and it's harder to stomach now. But it's getting better, and that's, to me, that's the beauty of progress in this country is, like, every era, you know, leaves a trail of a little bit better than when it was here, when you were there.

COATES: Arian Foster, we'll see how this all plays out, including for how the money is distributed. Will it go to women equally, as well? Thank you so much for joining us.

FOSTER: Appreciate you having me.

COATES: Well, this just in, there's some good news. The first of several Americans recently charged with possession of ammunition in Turks and Caicos is now back on U.S. soil. Moments ago, Brian Hagerich reunited with his family after getting a suspended 52-week sentence and a $6700 fine. The Pennsylvania daddy of two was facing up to 12 years in jail.

I should note, four other Americans are still awaiting their fate. Ahead, he was sentenced to 55 years for murder, but he didn't even commit the crime. He could barely even walk at the time.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[22:41:21]

COATES: An American missionary couple shot and killed by a gang in Haiti, according to their family. Davey and Natalie Lloyd, who were married in 2022, were ambushed when they were coming out of church. Their family is saying they're working on retrieving the couple's bodies. Here is Natalie's father speaking to CNN's Caitlin Collins tonight.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BEN BAKER, DAUGHTER NATALIE LLOYD KILLED IN HAITI: I've always taught my kids that doing something for people, putting others in front of you, is so important. And they lived that out in what they did there. I don't think you could find a better example of people who truly had a deep love for the people of Haiti and had a vision to help them in any way that they could.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COATES: CNN's David Culver has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DAVID CULVER,CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): An outpouring of grief for two young missionaries brutally killed in Haiti's capital. They went to heaven together, Missouri State Representative Ben Baker posted. His daughter, Natalie, and her husband, Davey Lloyd, attacked by gangs Thursday night in Port-au-Prince. The couple, in their early 20s, served as part of Missions in Haiti, a Christian non-profit organization run for more than two decades by Lloyd's parents.

The organization, posting Friday, they were ambushed by a gang of three trucks full of guys. Davey was taken to the house, tied up and beat. The gang then took our trucks and loaded everything up they wanted and left. At some point, as the attacks unfolded, Davey Lloyd called his father.

DAVID LLOYD, DAVY LLOYD'S FATHER: He was injured, so he was hurt. And he was very nervous and very scared because I asked him why they tied him up. And he's like, well, because you're the only one that's got strength that we have to worry about. And so, they wanted to make sure he couldn't put up a fight back. And then he was begging me to find somebody to get in there to help him. And I did all I could, but I couldn't locate anybody.

CULVER (voice-over): Three hours later, the group posted that the couple was shot and killed by the gang. Missions in Haiti says a third person, a Haitian staffer named Jude, was also killed in the attack. We're told he'd been with the organization for 20 years.

The violent incident started as the missionaries were leaving church and lasted for several hours. Davey Lloyd's father says the three died barricaded in the Lloyd family's living quarters on the mission's compound. Haiti has been spiraling into gang-fueled chaos, which forced the resignation of Prime Minister Ariel Henry in April. The U.N. estimates some 80 percent of the capital city is under gang control.

In recent months, CNN's made multiple trips to Port-au-Prince. We've met victims of the gang's brutality, including rape, kidnappings and murder. Hundreds of thousands now refugees in their own cities, as gangs have torched their homes and forced them to flee. We've also met with the leader of one prominent gang, he and others demanding a say in Haiti's future, a future that may again be shaped by foreign forces.

President Biden hosted Kenya's President, William Ruto, for a state dinner in Washington Thursday, around the same time that the deadly attack on Davey and Natalie Lloyd was taking place. Top of the two leaders' agenda, Haiti.

WILLIAM RUTO, PRESIDENT OF KENYA: We are going to take up that responsibility alongside the Haiti police.

CULVER (voice-over): Kenya plans to lead a U.N.-backed multinational support mission to Haiti, with at least a thousand Kenyan police officers set to deploy. President Biden stating Thursday, the U.S. will not send troops, but is providing equipment and intel.

The White House reacting to the killings in a statement on Friday. Our hearts go out to the families of those killed as they experience unimaginable grief. Missions in Haiti, among many others, has been warning.

[22:45:00]

Haiti is on the brink of collapse. The group posting last month, it seems the world has turned their backs on Haiti and it's going to be left in complete gang control. Now, three of their members just the latest victims of that unrelenting gang violence.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CULVER: Laura, these latest killings only add to the pressure facing the multinational security support mission led by Kenya, which has been delayed now for several months. We're expecting it could be deployed any day now, but experts tell us that if the gangs on the ground don't feel like they have an off-ramp, an alternative to resistance, then you can expect increasing bloodshed in a country that is already so desperate for healing. Laura.

COATES: David Culver, thank you. Tonight in our "Exonerated" series, I want to introduce you to Anthony Robinson. In 2014, he was sentenced to 55 years for a murder he did not commit, going on to spend about a decade behind bars before he was even released. And you might be asking, why?

Well, the story begins in Chicago in 2013 when a car pulled up next to two young men. A man got out of the car with a gun and opened fire. A security camera caught the incident. And the video allegedly showed the victims turning and running away from the shooter, the gunman sprinting after them, killing one of the men.

Now, Robinson was wrongly I.D.'d as the shooter and was eventually found guilty of murder, attempted murder, and aggravated discharge of a weapon. But remember that security footage that showed the gunman running?

Well, Robinson himself was shot multiple times less than three months before that incident. And the bullets shattered bones in his leg and left him with pins holding them in place. Not only could he not run, he could barely walk.

Now, the security footage also showed a man with short hair. Robinson had shoulder-length dreadlocks at the time. So, in 2023, the Exoneration Project at the University of Chicago Law School got a hold of Robinson's medical records and filed a petition explaining that it would be impossible for him to have committed the crime.

You know, just last month, the same judge who sent Robinson to prison vacated his conviction and he was released. Anthony Robinson, he joins me now along with his attorney, Lauren Myerscough Muller. Thank you both so much for being here today. Anthony, first, welcome home. And it just brings tears to your eyes to think about what you've had to endure. Can you tell us what have these past six weeks of freedom been like for you?

ANTHONY ROBINSON, EXONERATED AFTER 11 YEARS IN PRISON FOR MURDER HE DIDN'T COMMIT: It's been good. I got a chance to spend time with my family and all my loved ones and just, you know, and just spend on top of everything I need to do to move forward with my life. But I'm just happy to be around my loved ones.

COATES: I know they're happy to have you home. But what was it like knowing you did not commit this crime, to have gone through a trial, to have had the finger pointed at you, to know you didn't do it, and still have to wait all of this time? What was this like for you in prison?

ROBINSON: It was hard. Like, every day and night, it always been hard. Like, every day it got harder and harder because I always knew I was innocent. And I always wondered, like, why I had to go through this and spend 11 years in jail for something I didn't do.

But every day was just harder. But while I was in there, I always tried to stay focused. And I just always just tried to, you know, keep a positive mind and just always just stay focused on the real goal of me just going home and just trying to figure out ways, like, to prove my innocence.

COATES: There was the video. I mean, there were multiple witnesses, one who even recanted his I.D. of Anthony on the stand, a handgun identified as belonging to someone else. I mean, how much more evidence would you have needed to be able to show that he did not commit this murder, and yet he was convicted? How?

LAUREN MYERSCOUGH-MUELLER, POST-CONVICTION ATTORNEY: It's honestly shocking. And I worked on Anthony's co-defendant's case during law school. So, I've been involved in the case for many years. We knew they were all innocent the whole time. And Anthony's two co-defendants were acquitted on the same evidence. So, there was no reason that Anthony should have been convicted.

Not only did the only person who ever identified Anthony recanted on the stand and said that he lied, he was scared, he had a warrant out, and he lied, but the judge believed, and it was a bench trial, so it was just the judge deciding.

The judge believed his prior police testimony over his recantation and over two independent eyewitnesses who saw the crime and said it was not Anthony. I saw the shooter. It was not Anthony. There were several other eyewitnesses who witnessed the crime and also did not identify Anthony to the police in line-ups because it wasn't Anthony.

[22:50:00]

So, the evidence was always so thin. He never should have been convicted to begin with. It's absurd that he was, but then that it takes 11 more years when the whole time we had the surveillance video, we had -- I mean, the medical records existed.

We had to get them on post-conviction, and once we got them, we sent them to an expert who immediately said, absolutely, he could not have committed this crime. His leg was shattered. The X-ray showed that his leg was shattered, and he could not have run like the perpetrator in the video.

COATES: Anthony, I want to bring this back to you because I think everyone is just wondering, what is next for you? How are you feeling? I mean, that same judge who sentenced you is the same one to have exonerated you. You said that you've tried to keep a positive outlook and just keep your mind strong. What is next for you?

MYERSCOUGH-MUELLER: Really, I just want to try to do-I got a book I want to write about my life story, so I want to come out with a book about my life story, like everything I've been through, like about me being innocent, about me going -- being 55 years for something I didn't do. It's basically like putting out everything.

So, I'm working on coming out with a book about my life and just moving forward with my life and try to be successful in life, and write a book and try to talk about how messed up the system is, how people --how a lot of people in there are found guilty that are innocent just like me.

It's just a lot that I'm going to break down like you know, just speaking like a motivational speaker and just speaking to motivate people and to show people like it is, hope that you're going to get out of jail because it was hope for me.

COATES: Anthony, I have no doubt that you will accomplish that goal, and you will continue to motivate people and inspire them. Thank you so much for joining us and sharing your story. I cannot wait to read the book. You let me know when that comes out. Anthony --

ROBINSON: Okay.

COATES: Lauren, thank you both.

MYERSCOUGH-MUELLER: Thank you so much for having us.

COATES: We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[22:56:30]

("DOO-WOP THAT THING" BY LAURYN HILL PLAYING)

COATES: That's the best part. That, I would start singing. But, you know, because this thing, Laura Elle Boog (ph) was kind of a nickname. I won't get into it. It was a college thing. It's fine. That's "Doo- Wop That Thing". The chart topper from Lauryn Hill's 1998 album, "The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill". And this week, "Miseducation" got dubbed the best album ever. That is, according to Apple.

The company has been releasing their top 100 albums over the past several days. And now, we've got the ones at the very tip top, filling out the rest of the top five -- Michael Jackson's "Thriller", The Beatles' "Abbey Road", Prince's "Purple Rain" and Frank Ocean's "Blonde".

But when it comes to any best of list, well, there are those that agree wholeheartedly. And then there are those who hate this list. Here to break down who made the cut, CNN's Harry Enten. Harry, this is quite a list. It is walking down memory lane for me, most of them. But this is a subjective list, obviously. But run me the numbers. What do you see?

HARRY ENTEN, CNN SENIOR DATA REPORTER: I would just say, number one, don't be a hater. You know, come up with your own list, all right? If you don't like their list, come up with your own list. But you know, there were a couple of interesting little nuggets that sort of popped out to me about these 100 best albums from Apple. And that is the genres. Let's take a look here.

Look at this. Twenty- one of the genres -- twenty-one of the albums on this top 100. Genre, hip hop or rap. I think that's a little bit surprising to some folks. I'm not necessarily sure that always tops the list. But on this particular one, it did. Eighteen, a rock.

We see the beautiful Beatles there. How about some pop coming in at 16? We see, of course, Taylor Swift, Tay-Tay, who's having a moment in the sun right now. And alternative music. I had to actually ask my producer, Sydney, what alternative music exactly is. I'd like to think I'm a little bit alternative. But when it comes to music, I'm not necessarily sure I consider myself alternative.

And then, of course, there's the question of when were these albums actually produced? Apple's best 100 albums ever. Just one in the 1950s, 10 in the 1960s. Those are my decades, baby. Eighteen in the 1970s. We're getting a little bit better here. But in fact, the top decade for the songs, look at this. Twenty-three in the 1990s.

As a child of the '90s, I like it. Of course, number one, as you mentioned, was from the 1990s. But that seems a little bit high to me. I feel like we should have a lot more in this general area, if I'm being honest. That's my critique of the list.

COATES: I mean, I don't know how you don't think the '90s should be the Michael Jordan number in general. That just tells you a lot about what happened at that point in time.

And I wholeheartedly agree with these particulars. Although in my household, if you didn't have Stevie Wonder, songs in the key of life, or Marvin Gaye was going on, you got put out of the car. I mean, you actually had to walk home from wherever you may have been. But talking about this breakdown when it comes to diversity.

ENTEN: Yeah, "What's Going On" when it comes to diversity, Laura.

COATES: I like what you did there. I saw it, Harry, and don't surprise me again. I love it.

ENTEN: You know, I always try and work in the word play here. Look, when it comes to the diversity of lists, I think perhaps a little bit too male heavy right here at 67 percent, just to 29 percent of the artists being female. White versus black, there we have a pretty nice mix.

[23:00:00]

You know, 53 percent white, 44 percent black. So, it's a fairly diverse list when it comes to race, but not necessarily such a diverse list when it comes to gender, Laura.

COATES: All right, tell me who and what is your favorite album on here?

ENTEN: You know, I'm not sure I can give you a favorite album, but I will say Stevie Wonder for the win. "Isn't She Lovely?" That was a song that if it wasn't written so long ago, I'd say it was written about you.

COATES: Oh, man, but yet it was written for his daughter, baby Aisha, right, he says? And she's crying for a second. But my Stevie Wonder song is when he says, la, la, ra. I add it every time. So, thank you for having that in there. I appreciate it, Harry Enten. Thank you all, as well, for watching. "The Whole Story with Anderson Cooper" is next. I love that song.

("ISN'T SHE LOVELY" BY STEVIE WONDER PLAYING)