that should have never been brought. it's an injustice of justice. uh, very respected jonathan turley, andy mccarthy, judge david rifkin, a wonderful man who just passed away, by the way, uh, gregg jarrett, elie honig from cnn, of all places, cnn said that paul ingrassia, alan dershowitz, they all said this is not a case that should be brought. it's not. think about it. legal expenses are down as legal expenses. and and i get indicted for business records. everybody should be so accurate. it's been a political witch hunt. it was done to damage my reputation so that i would lose the election. and obviously that didn't work. and the people of our country got to see this firsthand because they watched the case in your courtroom. they got to see this firsthand, and then they voted, and i won and got the largest number of votes by

far, of any republican candidate in history and won, as you know, all seven swing states won conclusively, all seven swing states and won the popularity. the popular vote by millions and millions of votes. and they've been watching your trial. so they understood it. i wasn't allowed to use the lawyer client privilege or the reliance on counsel. had a lawyer that made this deal, and he admitted that. and he was also a totally discredited person. we weren't allowed to use the information from the southern district that totally discredited him. it wasn't allowed to be put in. and that was terrible. unbelievable. and this is a man who's got, uh, no standing. he's been disbarred on other matters. unrelated. and he was allowed to talk as though he were george washington. but he's not george washington. he

shouldn't have been allowed. the southern district did a book of approximately 28 pages where they. i've never seen anything like it. they excoriated him. you wouldn't let it be put into evidence. so he was able to testify as a witness. and i think it's a disgrace to the system. i was under a gag order. i'm the first president in history that was under a gag order, where i couldn't talk about aspects of the case that are very important. i guess i'm still under, so probably i won't do it now. i assume i'm still under a gag order, but the fact is that, uh, i'm totally innocent. i did nothing wrong. they talk about business records, and the business records were extremely accurately counted. i had nothing to do with them. anything that was done by an accountant or bookkeeper who, uh, i think gave very credible testimony and was corroborated by everybody that was asked and with all that's happening in our country today, with a city that's burning to the ground,

one of our largest, most important cities burning to the ground with with wars that are uncontrollably going on with all of the problems of inflation and the attacks on countries and all of the horrible things that are going on. i got indicted over calling a legal expense a legal expense, which was called a legal expense. i just want to say, i think it's an embarrassment to new york, and new york has a lot of problems, but this is a great embarrassment. i believe that this and other cases that were were brought, as you know, the doj is doj is very much involved in this case. it's because that's the political opponent. they're talking about. the doj is very involved. you have a gentleman sitting right there from the doj who was from the doj's office. he was also involved with the new york state attorney general's case, and he went from there to here. he went around and did what he had to do. he got them to move on me. but in the meantime, i won the

election. and a massive landslide. and the people of this country understand what's going on. this has been a weaponization of government. they call it lawfare. never happened to any extent like this, but never happened in our country before. and i just like to explain that i was treated very, very unfairly. and i thank you very much. >> thank you, mr. trump. mr. trump, you appear before this court today to conclude this criminal proceeding by the imposition of sentence. although i have taken the unusual step of informing you in advance of my inclinations before imposing sentence, i believe it is important for you, as well as those observing these proceedings, to understand my reasoning for the sentence i am about to impose. >> the imposition of sentence is one of the most difficult and significant decisions that any criminal court judge is called upon to make.

our legislature sets the parameters for an authorized sentence, but it is a judge that must decide what constitutes a just conclusion to a verdict of guilty. the court is vested with broad discretion in determining what sources or evidence may consider to arrive at an appropriate sentence. in doing so, the court must consider the facts of the case, along with any aggravating or mitigating circumstances in my time on the bench, i've been called upon to grapple with this weighty responsibility for countless defendants who have been found guilty after trial for an assortment of offenses ranging from nonviolent, classy felonies to the most heinous of crimes, including homicides, sex trafficking, and child sexual abuse. the task is always difficult and

deserving of careful consideration. whether the sentence be an unconditional discharge or incarceration of 25 years to life. however, never before has this court been presented with such a unique and remarkable set of circumstances. indeed, it can be viewed fairly that this has been a truly extraordinary case. there was unprecedented media attention, public interest and heightened security involving various agencies, and yet the trial was a bit of a paradox, because once the courtroom doors were closed, the trial itself was no more special, unique or extraordinary than the other 32 criminal trials that took place in this courthouse at the same exact time. jury selection was conducted, the same rules of evidence were followed. opening statements were made, witnesses

called and cross-examined, evidence presented, summations delivered, the same burden of proof was applied, and a jury made up of ordinary citizens delivered a verdict, and it was all conducted pursuant to the rules of procedure and guided by the law. of course, part of what made it feel somewhat ordinary was the outstanding work, preparation and professionalism of the clerks court officers or reporters, security personnel and the entire staff of this building who did their jobs as they would with any other criminal trial. so while one can argue that the trial itself was in many respects somewhat ordinary, the same cannot be said about the circumstansurrounding this sentencing, and that is because of the office you once occupied in which you will soon occupy again. to be sure, it is the legal

protections afforded to the office of the president of the united states that are extraordinary, not the occupant of the office. the legal protections, especially within the context of a criminal prosecution afforded to the office of the president, have been laid out by our founders. the constitution, and most recently interpreted by the united states supreme court in the matter of trump versus the united states, which was decided on july 1st, 2024. as with every other defendant in your position, it is my obligation to consider any and all aggravating and mitigating factors to inform my decision. some of those aggravating factors have already been articulated in my sandoval ruling at the start of this trial, and by my recent written

decisions on december 16th and january 3rd. thus, they need not be repeated at this time. however, the considerable, indeed extraordinary legal protections afforded by the office of the chief executive is a factor that overrides all others. to be clear, the protections afforded the office of the president are not a mitigating factor. they do not reduce the seriousness and seriousness of the crime or justify its commission in any way. the protections are, however, a legal mandate which, pursuant to the rule of law, this court must respect and follow. however, despite the extraordinary breadth of those protections, one power they do not provide is the power to

erase a jury verdict. it is clear from legal precedent which until july 1st was scarce, that donald trump, the ordinary citizen, donald trump, the criminal defendant, would not be entitled to such considerable protections i'm referring to protections that extend well beyond those afforded the average defendant who winds their way through the criminal justice system each day. no ordinary citizens do not receive those legal protections. it is the office of the president that bestows those far reaching protections to the office holder. and it was the citizenry of this nation that recently decided that you should once again receive the benefits of those protections, which include, among other things, the supremacy clause and presidential immunity. it

is through that lens and that reality that this court must determine a lawful sentence. after careful analysis and obedience to governing mandates and pursuant to the rule of law, this court has determined that the only lawful sentence that permits entry of a judgment of conviction without encroaching upon the highest office in the land is an unconditional discharge, which the new york state legislature has determined is a lawful and permissible sentence for the crime of falsifying business records in the first degree. therefore, at this time i impose that sentence to cover all 34 counts. sir, i wish you godspeed as you assume your second term in office. thank you. >> and you've been listening to audio from inside trump's sentencing hearing in a new

york courtroom. let me first go to kaitlan collins and elie honig. you heard trump respond there in the sentencing. he is angry. he said, this is very unfair. this case should have not been brought in the first place. he's going to be the first president to be entering office as a convicted felon. >> yeah, nothing he said was surprising, but hearing from him was notable because it was an open question going into this. if you know, as any anyone who's been convicted gets that chance to speak at their sentencing hearing, it was an open question of whether or not trump would take that opportunity to do so, or if he would just speak, you know, after and put out a statement on truth social, which he is. he has subsequently done. but but i do think looking in this moment, you know, people in trump's orbit are viewing this as a best case scenario. when he was convicted and that guilty verdict came down, it was long before it was clear that he was going to win the election or what was going to happen here. they didn't know what was going to happen. now, seeing this and with the outcome of this unconditional discharge, they're viewing this as the best case. but trump himself, you know, has been

having been on a roll essentially since he won the election. two things have really been bothering him. this sentencing and jack smith's report that is expected to come out imminently. those are two things that that you could see an undertone of anger in his press conference that he did the other day because of these two legal issues that he's been dealing with, the sentencing primarily, i was told, was bothering him. and so that is why he ultimately did decide to to take this chance to speak and just to explain to people what they're looking at. trump didn't actually go to to court in new york, where he he was every day for this trial and where he was ultimately convicted. he appeared virtually from mar-a-lago. that's where he's appearing there, where he was unmuted and then took that opportunity to speak. >> and we should note these pictures were taken before the sentencing hearing actually started, where he's pointing there. um, but that's a really important point, caitlin, because it really emphasizes just the unique and remarkable set of circumstances here. as judge merchan himself put it. and we should also note, elie honig, you were mentioned in this hearing. yeah. >> so first public service

announcement you are anyone is free to use anything i say on air or in writing, but my words have zero binding impact on any judge anywhere, so i don't recommend citing me. but you're free to do it. there was there was such a contrast here between sort of the remarkable and the unremarkable, and the judge actually noted this. on the one hand, it wasn't really that different than any of the other. the judge said 32 different trials happening in that courthouse at that time. it was orderly. we followed all the normal procedures. the jury came out with its verdict. on the other hand, of course, this guy was at that point a former president. now he is the president elect. and the fundamental divide that we just heard between the d.a. and the judge on one hand and donald trump on the other, is was this justice right? the da said many times, the judge said, no man is above the law. you should not be above the law. you're only getting this very minimal sentence because of your status as the president elect. on the other hand, donald trump's position and his lawyer's position is that he was singled out unfairly and that he was actually he was treated, in

their view, differently than any other person in that position would have been viewed. the other thing that strikes me from hearing the audio is having been part of many, many sentencings sentencing is a humbling moment for any defendant even there. i mean, caitlin, you would, you would, you would, i guess, be able to expand on this. but donald trump sounded subdued. he he was saying the usual things, playing the greatest hits, but he wasn't so much ranting and raving. he sounded a little soft spoken. you know what it is. >> and i'm actually so glad you brought that up, because i was there for for several days of trump's trial in the courtroom, watching how he acted, where he would come out outside the courtroom in front of the cameras and go on a tirade against the judge, criticizing him, reading, quoting these legal scholars and then go into the courtroom. he was relatively subdued once he was actually in the room. that was actualla window into what that actually was like inside the courtroom. he's very different when obviously he's in front of the cameras. he knows people are watching how he's talking about this case, and then when he knows he's there in front of the judge and still in a courtroom,

technically, even though he was appearing via zoom. and so it does give a window into what he's actually like when he's he's addressing the judge and speaking to him. and you also got to hear from the judge himself. you know, it was funny to hear elie say he'd never heard rashad's voice. right? >> right. >> because obviously, you know, there are no court cameras in the courtroom, unfortunately. but you could also get a window into how the judge presided over this, acknowledging that trump won the election and that the voters decided months after he was found guilty in this case, to to restore him to the protections that the presidency affords him. and i thought that was a really interesting point there, that judge merchan went out of his way to, to make that. and also, judge merchan was pretty restrained in his statements. he has been very critical of trump, where he's saying he's attacking the rule of law, going after him. the district attorney's team. you didn't hear that as much in his in his final statement. >> you really didn't. and he ended it by saying, i wish you godspeed in your second term to trump. and i want to bring in cnn anchor and chief legal analyst laura coates on that note. and it was

interesting, laura, sort of as an extension of what caitlin was talking about. judge merchan really emphasized that the protections afforded here for the office of the presidency, not the occupant, not the actual occupant. but he noted, this is just so out of the norm. this is an anomaly. it's a first. and this is very unique. >> in fact, one, we did see the decorum that is supposed to be in every one of these court proceedings at play here. but you have this split screen, the typical sentencing, first of all, would have had a defendant present. you would not have had the preview to know what type of sentence you would hand down or not hand down, whether it be jail, a fine, a probationary period of some form. in that circumstance, that's the typical thing. and of course, the prosecution would be asking and trying to advocate for particular position, bringing in the conduct of the defendant. the very nature of the allegations as a proven burden of proof. here the prosecution endeavored to do that, talked about how the

defendant's words put the court personnel. i'm paraphrasing here in in peril in different ways, but ultimately each not just the prosecution, but also the judge himself. and obviously defense counsel all recognized one thing, all of those details were now subordinate to the fact that the person sitting there on that zoom is ten days away from becoming the 47th president of the united states, and they all recognize the impact. in fact, the prosecutor making a statement about how every american, the american people deserve a president unencumbered by having to deal with the court. i wonder how that will factor into later on. and of course, the judge talking about who he was at the time of trial, the so-called ordinary citizen, although clearly he was a former president at that point in time to who he is now. at no point did you see, though, anyone disrespecting the jury who were in the position to have to rule and decide something based on the presentation of evidence. but what you heard from a reserved and subdued donald

trump and president elect was that he was defiant, without aggression about the fact of his innocence. there is no requirement that a defendant have to say that they agree with the verdict, or that they, in fact, are guilty, but they have to respect the process. and here you saw some evidence of at least that from the judge and others. >> certainly i want to bring in our chief legal affairs correspondent, paula reid, on this as well. paula, this is a first in history. donald trump will enter his second term as a convicted felon as a result of today's sentencing. but he is also vowing to appeal and to fight this. and the question is, how successful could he be on appeal? >> he could be really successful. pamela, what we saw last night is a divided supreme court on an issue that many legal experts thought was a long shot, that it was way too early for the supreme court to intervene in this case and block sentencing before the appeals had had a chance to work their way through the system. but it was five four. he got four justices to agree

with him that, yeah, maybe they should put this sentencing on hold. so now, as he continues his appeals that i'm told, you know, they're going to push all the way to the supreme court, all he would need is one justice to agree that their recent immunity ruling applies in this case, that certain evidence should not have been brought in, and that conviction could be overturned. so we were watching very closely last night what the supreme court would do. and it suggests that he is a fair shot of getting this overturned. but what i just heard in that recording were the dueling interpretations of the legacy of this case. the prosecutors said. they believe really the legacy of this case is the damage that trump has done with his attacks on the judiciary, putting the lives of officers in the court at risk. but the defense attorneys said no. the legacy of this case is that it's one that never should have been brought, and also that the public agrees with them and inferred that this is part of why trump got elected. now, trump didn't really have anything new to say. like any

defendant, he was really unhappy to be there. it was pretty clear why he didn't testify at trial. but pamela, we are likely going to be dealing with this case for at least another year or two. this has to deal with conduct that occurred back in 2016, and i would expect that these appeals, in order to make their way all the way through the system, could go through 2026. >> yeah, i remember when i was covering the white house during trump's first term when this all started percolating and coming about, and now this. and it's not ending just with the sentencing today. as you note, paula, i want to bring in reporter kara scannell right outside the court. if we could just put up those pictures again showing trump, if you would help us understand what's going on in these pictures where we see donald trump next to his attorney, todd blanche. >> so those pictures were taken at the very start of the hearing before the judge was even on the bench. that's something that the court allows still photographers to come in and take photos of the defendants because they don't allow cameras in the courtroom. normally. it was highly unusual that we were even given the

audio that we had just played and listened to, but that was something that a media coalition had worked out with the court. of course, the argument, because of the public's interest and one thing that you know, you can't see, but you can kind of piece together between that still shot and the audio is just what this scene was like. the judge is sitting on the bench. when trump did speak, it was that image of him side by side with his attorney that the that we, the members of the media saw in there and the members of the public that were allowed into the courtroom. the judge was looking at that screen as trump was giving his statement. and then when the judge handed down his sentence, he was directing his attention fully to that screen, looking directly at it, speaking to donald trump as he handed down the sentence, i mean, one thing that stands out a lot about today is there has been so much that the public has heard from donald trump. i've been in this courthouse every single day during this trial, and the other three trials that donald trump has had, where he speaks often to the cameras in the hallway. one thing that you never hear from

the public never hears from is the judge. so for the first time today, the public was able to see the demeanor of judge juan merchan. trump has launched numerous attacks throughout the course of this trial, and you were able to hear marchand's demeanor. that is the tone he carried throughout this entire trial. even while trump was making statements about marchand and his family in the hallways, the person, the voice you heard on the bench today is the judge who presided over this case, keeping an even keel. and, as you could hear, being very judicious in his statements and thoughtful on them. pam. >> all right, karen, thanks so much. and thank you to everyone. still to come on, this very busy friday morning, we are following breaking news out of southern california. now, five fires ravaging that area. we're going to bring you the latest on the devastation and efforts to contain the blaze. up next super man, the christopher reeve story. >> february 2nd. >> on. time to press rewind

with neutrogena rapid wrinkle repair. it has derm proven retinol expertly formulated to target skin cell turnover and fight not one, but five signs of aging with visible results in just one week. neutrogena i have another pancake from full house to empty nest to free birds. >> vanguard. we got this. 50 years of helping you invest for every chapter. prime's exclusive wild card playoff game is coming. >> the steelers, the ravens they're a prime super bowl contender. >> what a night. >> front exclusive wild card playoff game. steelers. >> ravens. oh on prime. >> i brought in ensure max protein with 30g of protein. >> those who tried me felt more energy in just two weeks. here, i'll take that. >> ensure. >> max protein, 30g protein, one gram of sugar and a protein blend to feed muscles up to seven hours. >> oh, our car's value went

up. >> maybe we should track all our car's value on carvana. we need more trackers. >> oh, i'm getting a value update. do you see which one is going on? >> how's it tracking? >> some dips, some rises. now what? hold. >> sold. track your car's value on carvana today. >> tempur-pedic designed the ergo pro smart base to help you fall asleep more easily. it's gentle massage and relaxing sounds help calm your mind every night. save up to $500 now on select adjustable mattress sets. >> molly leaving was one thing, but then i thought mom's osteoporosis might keep us stuck on the couch. no way. if you have postmenopausal osteoporosis and are at high risk for fracture, you can do more than just slow bone loss. you can build new bone in 12 months with evenity. evenity is proven to significantly reduce spine fracture risk, she said. the evenity she's taking builds new bone builds new bone evenity can increase risk of heart attack, stroke, or death from a heart problem. tell your doctor if you have had a heart

attack or stroke. do not take evenity if you have low blood calcium or are allergic to it. as serious events have occurred with evenity. signs include rash, hives, swelling of the face or throat, which may cause difficulty in swallowing or breathing, muscle spasms or cramps, numbness or tingling. tell your doctor about severe jawbone problems as they have been reported with evenity report. hip, groin or thigh pain unusual thighbone fractures have occurred with evenity building bone. we dig it. we want stronger bones. ask your doctor about evenity like a relentless weed. >> moderate to severe ulcerative colitis symptoms can keep coming back. start to break away from uc with tremfya with rapid relief at four weeks tremfya blocks a key source of inflammation. at one year, many people experienced remission and some saw 100% visible healing of their intestinal lining. serious allergic reactions and increased risk of infections may occur before treatment. your doctor should check you

for infections and tb. tell your doctor if you have an infection, flu like symptoms or if you need a vaccine. healing is possible with tremfya. ask your doctor about tremfya today. at are you ready for this? >> are you ready for this? are you ready for this new alka-seltzer plus cold or flu? >> fizzy. choose chew. fizz. feel better. fast. no water needed. new alka-seltzer plus fizzy juice. >> i haven't achieved all my ambitions. they've always been about more than just football. even as a kid, i wanted to get my money right and have the financial freedom to support the next generation of athletes. just like my family supported me. i joined sofi because they've helped millions of members earn more money, save more money, borrow better, and invest for their ambitions. join a generational player. sofi. get your money right. >> want a next level clean?

swish with the whoa of listerine? it kills 99.9% of bad breath germs for five times more cleaning power than brushing and flossing alone. get a next level clean with listerine. feel the whoa song. >> unforgettable. more than incredible. are you not entertained? are guarantee the. >> unforgettable. it's ready to watch on tnt, trutv and stream. >> br sports on max america. >> we glad to have y'all back. >> and we are following this breaking news five wildfires are now tearing through the area. they're out in california and more than 10,000 homes and businesses have been lost. so many people right now are just grieving all that they've lost. and as you can see, the images there are just they are breathtaking and they are just terrifying. ten people are confirmed dead, but fire officials say that number will likely climb. and this is some new video of the kenneth fire, which erupted just yesterday

afternoon. overnight, we learned a man has been arrested on suspicion of arson. but police won't say if he's a suspect in this fire. and here's a quick look at the five active fires in and around l.a. county. you see it right here on your screen. the palisades fire is the most destructive in l.a. history. the county's infrastructure is also severely damaged. the power grid, transportation, even the ability to use toilets. this is pacific palisades before the fire and the heart wrenching image of a neighborhood leveled this new exclusive satellite imagery from airbus shows the overwhelming majority of homes and businesses are destroyed. think how many people are impacted there. we've also heard varying explanations of why some fire hydrants were temporarily dry when they were needed the most. >> there has also been a water shortage. >> the fact is, the utilities

understandably shut off power because they are worried the lines that they carried energy were going to be blown down and spark additional fires. but the cal fire and when they did that, it cut off the ability to generate pumping the water. that's what caused the lack of water in these hydrants. >> according to the department of water and power, all 114 water storage facilities were filled, but heavy use of fire hydrants depleted the supply. the extreme conditions, compounded by high winds keeping firefighting aircraft grounded. >> i mean, just when you have a system where it's not dissimilar to what we've seen in other extraordinarily large scale fires, whether it be pipe electricity or whether it just be the complete overwhelm of the system. >> we also know that fire hydrants are not constructed to deal with this type of massive devastation. >> right now, los angeles officials are giving an update. let's listen

in. >> thank you and good morning. >> the district attorney's office will be considering up to now five different types of cases that will eventually be presented from law enforcement. >> let's start with arson. if it if it is determined that there is a manmade and intentional setting of any of the fires involved in this situation, the people who committed this arson will be arrested. they will be prosecuted and they will be punished to the full extent of the law. right now, obviously, law enforcement and the firefighters are focused on containing these properties, saving lives, saving homes. but eventually we will get to the causes of those fires. and that part. the da's office will be working with law enforcement to go after anyone who is guilty of the crime of arson. second, types of crimes. if people are going to violate this curfew restriction and they get arrested, they will be

prosecuted. let me make let me back up what the sheriff has said in order to protect the homes of people who have been ordered to leave those homes, the sheriff, the los angeles police department and local law enforcement is going to be working overtime to protect your home. in that way, if you violate the curfew, you will be arrested, and then you will be prosecuted by the district attorney's office. third issue looting. looting is a despicable crime for the people who have already been arrested. please know that this is not going to end well. you will be punished to the full extent of the law, and i'm sending this warning message out again. if you want to take and go ahead and take advantage of people who are tragically suffered enormous losses in this county. the district attorney's office, working with law enforcement will make sure you are arrested. you are prosecuted,

and you are maximally punished. drones. if you're thinking that it's fun to send a drone up in the area for your own amusement, or you want to get information that nobody else can get, and you do it in one of these areas that for which drones are not permitted. i'll repeat one more time. you will be arrested, you will be prosecuted, and you will be punished to the full extent of the law. and the last type of crime that we will be looking a scams. and we're already seeing them. we're seeing people being targeted and gofundme scams by people who are trying to entice people to give money to people who have suffered. when the people who are arranging this gofundme page are nothing but scammers, you must be aware of who you are being approached by and who you actually can go ahead and give your money to if you want to help them. we're going to see that eventually with insurance scams. we'll see it with government benefit scams.

and yes, they are going to target the people who have been tragically affected and you cannot allow them to do it. i would suggest that if you want internet resources and who to give money to go to recover. dot l.a. county.gov. it has a whole list of organizations that you can if you want to contribute to, and it does it in both english and spanish. also, you can go to the lafd.gov website as well. but my message to the public is beware these scammers look at this as an opportunity. do not let them take advantage of you. and one more message to the scammers. you will be arrested. you will be prosecuted and you will be punished to the maximum extent possible. i'd like now to introduce california insurance commissioner ricardo. >> you've been listening there to the l.a. district attorney, nathan hochman, giving some stern warnings there for anyone

who is looting or scamming or breaking curfew. and he also talked about working with law enforcement to see if anyone might be behind these fires. any arsonist. so a lot going on there with that press conference. i want to go to the ground now because the california wildfires have now burned an area equal to the size of minneapolis. cnn's julia vargas jones is in pacific palisades. julia, what are you seeing there on the ground? well, we're seeing people are starting to try to get back to their homes, and they're seeing this. it is completely unrecognizable. >> and, you know, we're hearing from from these officials some really important updates and some information that i do want to share with you now. >> the first thing is something that happened to our team here. we have been receiving alerts. these have been critical alerts to get people to evacuate specific areas. as you know, we have five different fires

burning in los angeles. people need and they rely on this kind of information to be able to know when they need to leave their homes. i got this at my house last night. i received an alert that said, evacuate immediately. gather your pets, your belongings, and leave. 20 minutes later, we got another alert that said disregard the last evacuation warning. it was for kenneth fire only go to alert la org for more information. of course, that has caused so much panic and officials are now saying, look, this is unacceptable. we had a city official saying that they will investigate. how is it that this happened, that it is unacceptable that in the middle of all of this panic to be inserting even more uncertainty into people who are just trying to be safe? we also heard that this was not human error, that this was not a person behind a desk pushing those alerts out. this was an error from their

system, but they will be investigating so that this does not happen anymore. but this is important to note. they are urging people to not turn off their alerts on their phone. they have been going off, but it is important because it could make the difference between life and death. now, another topic that they spoke about that is important is this kenneth fire. there's been an arrest made of a man under suspicion of arson. they don't know if this person is connected with the beginning of the starting of the kenneth fire near calabasas. that's not too far from where we are here in the palisades, but it is. it is a fire that started the latest fire to start of this fire. we are hearing also the national guard has been deployed yesterday. we knew they were coming in to altadena to fight the eaton fire. the eaton fire, by the way, and the palisades fire two of the most destructive fires in california history there. number three and

four and the happening at the same time. it just goes to show how unprecedented this all is that's taking place in california. just this tragedy of just extreme, extreme proportions. >> we just we haven't seen anything on this scale. you can't even wrap your head around it. julia vargas jones stay safe out there. thank you. we'll be right back. >> kobe believed in himself at the youngest possible age. >> it's one of the most remarkable stories in sports history. >> i don't want to be remembered as just a basketball player. kobe premieres january 25th on cnn. >> can support your brain health. >> mary. janet. >> hey, eddie. >> no. fraser. frank. frank. fred, how are you? >> fred. >> support up to seven brain health indicators, including memory. when you need to remember. >> remember, nariva want a next level clean swish with the whoa of listerine. it kills 99.9% of bad breath germs for five times more cleaning power than

brushing and flossing alone. get a next level clean with listerine. feel the whoa! >> explore the world the viking way from the quiet comfort of elegant small ships with no children and no casinos, we actually have reinvented ocean voyages, designing all inclusive experiences for the thinking person. >> viking voted world's best by both travel and leisure, and condé nast traveler. learn more at viking.com. >> go friends. >> gather. kiki, chris. jason. >> friends. let's go, let's go. >> friends, hold on to your dice. >> nice frosting. pratt. thank you. how are we doing, kiki? >> tastes like money to me. i can't go back to jail. >> wait. did you rob my bank?

>> are we winning? oh, buddy. our friendship. >> let's go for more than a decade, pozega has been trusted again and again and again. pozega ask your doctor about pozega when i hear cancer, i hear death sentence. every 15 seconds. someone will hear the words. you have cancer at the american cancer society. we're here to help people through their entire journey. and today we're asking for your support. your gift helps fund important research that saves lives. >> i owe it all to the american cancer society. >> we can't do this without you. donate today. >> many remedies you take for chest congestion only mask the symptoms. >> hey, how you doing? this mucus won't move out.

>> you're gonna love this property. the guys congestion remedy. harmless. try this. >> mucinex 12 hour treats. the mucus that causes chest congestion for all day relief. don't leave. >> find. i was worried about this side of town. >> mucinex in mucus out. don't mask symptoms. treat the cause. >> you make good choices. always planning ahead. like to not just chase a career, but one day. follow your heart with ambition like that, you need someone who elevates advice to a craft. at ubs, we match your vision with insight and expertise to shape a unique outcome for dave's been very excited about saving big with the comcast business 5-year price lock guarantee. five years? -five years. and he's not alone. -high five. it's five years of reliable gig speed internet. five years of advanced securit. five years of a great rate that won't change.

it's back. but only for a limited time. high five. five years? -nope. comcast business 5-year price lock guarantee. powering five years of savings. powering possibilities. comcast business. and can regain his lunch break. try now for free. visit otter.ai or download the app. >> all there is with anderson cooper. listen wherever you get your podcasts. >> officials say the tide may

be turning on the palisades fire, but with less than 10% of it contained, most people have not even been allowed back to check on their homes or what's left of them. two people who have not been back join us now. heidi banks and her boyfriend, jeb bryan. heidi's home is on the hillside in palisades, and jeb lives in downtown palisades. heidi, do you even know if your home is still standing i have no idea. >> yesterday afternoon at about 1:00, somebody got up there. i don't know how. and the houses above me, which are literally maybe 200 yards, were all burnt down. >> the house right below me was intact. i have no idea what could have happened overnight. what could have happened? the rest of yesterday. we're just in limbo. and. and even. even if it is intact, i'm sorry. with everything around us gone

and all of our neighbors. we just don't know. we know nothing. and we keep asking and trying to get up to the house. we're trying to get up there. i need to get some medication out of the house that i forgot, and they just will not let us up there. >> and you got sort of emotional thinking about, even if it is still standing, the community is no longer there. go ahead. >> it's it's a mix right now of, you know, optimism and grief. that's what we're going through. we know so many people, um, who have lost homes. we've been in a hotel. >> fortunately for us, we've been safe. but we've met people that we've embraced and new friends. and then hours later, they come knock on our door and said, hey, by the way, we lost our home and it's apocalyptic. >> what's going on right now?

>> and like heidi said, our community is gone. >> and fortunately for me, it looks like my building is the last one standing in the village. >> my condo, um, and so for that, i'm fortunate. >> but there's nothing but rubble around me. >> it looks like dresden after the second world war. it's sad. >> it's sitting in that uncertainty. heidi, in limbo. just must be agonizing. >> it really is. i mean, i've spent my life. my career is is helping people through grief, helping people deal with stuff like this. and i have to say, you know, things like, well, at least at least you've got your health. yes. and of course, but when you're watching your community, you're the people. you just. the palisades is just not a place to live. it is truly a community. we are always here for each other, and i know we will be here as we

rebuild. we all know that. but in this moment right now, the uncertainty, we're just all holding out that things will get better. and yet we are in the midst of this grief. it's it's undeniable. it's palpable. everywhere you look. >> as someone who, as you said, dedicated their lives to helping others with grief, how are you sort of using those coping tools to help yourself through this unimaginably difficult time? you don't know if your home is still there, but you do know your neighbors homes aren't there and that they are going through an incredibly difficult time and your community that you loved is no longer there. >> i'm i'm just i'm allowing myself these feelings. i think that's just really important that you don't deny what's going on. and yet you hold out and hope so. it's it's, as deb has said, you it's the up and the down and you just know it's a wave. and anybody

who's been in an ocean knows that the wave comes. sometimes it washes over you, sometimes the water is clear and we're up and down. and that's just that. we're just knowing that's the new normal for right now and that and that alone brings comfort, you know, pamela, we're adults, but i have grandchildren in this community. >> some go to public schools, some go to private schools. they have no schools right now. so their coping mechanism going forward, how is that going to impact them? that's what i think of, you know, it's how is it going to impact them. first, the pandemic and now this. and um, it's you know what heidi said sense of community. when your schools are gone, you've really lost your community. and that's what we're going through right now in the palisades. >> and we know we're the lucky ones. we know we're lucky. we

know that whether our homes are there or not, that we have each other and that we we have friends and the people who have reached out to us, and the loving. that's what's getting us through. >> heidi banks, jeff bryant, i hope that you'll stay in touch with us. heidi, i wish you the best. i hope that your home is still standing, but even if it is, as you said, it's still so much to grieve over. thank you both. keep us updated. we'll be right back as the new year starts, follow cnn. >> president carter will be remembered for his lifetime of service reporting the events shaping history. >> follow all the changes in 2025. >> i, donald john trump, follow the facts. >> follow cnn jim parrott. >> nice going lou. nothing like a little confidence boost to help ease you back into the

dating scene. of course, that also includes having a smile you feel good about. fortunately, and flexible ways to pay. and r interest if paid in full in 18 months. helping our patients put their best smile forward. it's one more way. aspen dental is in your corner. >> want a next level clean swish with the whoa of listerine? it kills 99.9% of bad breath germs for five times more cleaning power than brushing and flossing alone. get a next level clean with listerine. feel the. whoa! >> now's the time to go back in time and shine a light on the family journey that led to you. learn when they said i do. when they became heroes. how they ruled the school. curious about what you might find. with

billions of records, photos and more, you're bound to find some gems. ancestry can help you piece together the past. memberships are on sale now, so start your journey today. >> greatness hurts. but sometimes you gotta put on your game face. that's why tylenol provides fast, effective pain relief. that's tylenol, that's care without limits. >> time to press rewind with neutrogena rapid wrinkle repair. it has derm proven retinol expertly formulated to target skin cell turnover and fight not one, but five signs of aging with visible results in just one week. neutrogena. >> home. it's where we do the things we love with the people we love. celebrating. sharing. living. so why should aging mean we have to leave that in the past? what if we lived tomorrow in the same place as we did yesterday? what if we

stayed home instead? with help, we can. >> all. this is where i belong. homestead for a better. what's next? >> covid 19. i'm not waiting. >> if it's covid. paxlovid. >> paxlovid is an oral treatment for adults with mild to moderate covid 19 and a high risk factor for becoming severe. it does not prevent covid 19. >> my symptoms were mild now, but i'm not risking it. if it's covid. paxlovid. >> paxlovid must be taken within the first five days of symptoms and help stop the virus from multiplying in your body. >> taking paxlovid with certain medicines can lead to serious or life threatening side effects, or affect how it or other medicines work, including hormonal birth control. tell your doctor about all medicines, vitamins and herbal supplements you take as certain tests or dosage changes of your other medicines may be needed. tell them if you have kidney or liver problems. hiv one r or plan to be pregnant or breastfeed. don't take paxlovid if allergic to its ingredients. stop taking and call your doctor right away. if you have allergic reaction symptoms. serious side effects can include allergic reactions,

some severe, like anaphylaxis and liver problems. these are not all the possible side effects, so talk to your doctor if it's covid. >> paxlovid. >> ask your doctor today. >> can nariva support your brain health? >> mary. janet. hey, edie. >> no. fraser. frank. >> frank. fred, how are you? >> fred. >> support up to seven brain health indicators, including memory. when you need to remember. remember. nariva you don't stop being you just because you turn 65. >> but you do face more risk from flu and covid. last year alone, those viruses hospitalized nearly 1 million people 65 and older, 1 million vaccines lower your risk of getting really sick so you can keep doing you. >> closed captioning brought to you by

mezzo book.com. >> if you or a loved one have mesothelioma, we'll send you a free book to answer questions you may have. call now and we'll come to you. >> 800 821 4000. >> i'm going to bring in griff and kit goldsmith. they lost everything in the altadena fire from the eaton fire, andrew serwer and altadena, i should say from the eaton fire. and they're expecting their first baby next month. they are the brother in law and sister in law of the actress and singer mandy moore. kit, we were just talking in the break. you know, you're about to have your first baby in a few weeks. you were in the nesting mode, getting the nursery ready, getting everything ready for your precious baby, and now you have lost your home and you had to flee for your life. how are you feeling now? >> we are definitely, as everyone in our community and like truly unbelievable circumstances. um, i don't think we had enough time to process what we're all being confronted with and

um, you know, the idea of trying to figure out where we're going to be for the next month, where we're going to have this baby is all really hard to process, given that it's all just been in the last 48 hours, where this has kind of come down on us. um, i think the thing that i'm truly the saddest about is having lost our community. we had so many friends and a massive support group there that i was really, really planning to lean on and losing them is like. it's almost harder than losing our home, because i know we're all going to be scattered from each other. um, so it's, uh. yeah, we're just going to have to start altogether from scratch and rebuild. >> i sense that is the hardest part for everyone. i've talked to the loss of community, you as a as a new mother, you know, wanting to lean on that community and feeling like now you've just you don't have any

community to lean on. you don't know where you're going to be in the next day, the next week. and for your part, griff, you're a musician. you lost all of your instruments. you lost your source of your livelihood. >> yeah, it's been something i've collected for 20 years, and it's gone, but it's been a pretty it's been a test in how to, you know what, what's valuable in your life. and, you know, from one day to the next, i everything that i've built is gone. but i have my family and our pets and and my parents are here and our niece. and so it's it's just. yeah, i'm just trying to remind myself, like, that's that's gear. this is what matters to me. and, um, i am still a musician, and i can i can still play music. so i plan on doing that. >> and you said, mandy moore. i guess there's a studio at their house that was built for you and your your brother, right? that's still standing. yeah.

>> yeah. that part's. no, it's not the studio. >> that's not still standing. okay. >> yeah, that from what i've heard, that was, like, more on fire than anything else at the time that our friend went down there. it was a i think his words were it was a literal inferno, which is pretty devastating because that place has been around for less than a year, and we've just been breaking it in. and i mean, the day that that the day of the fire, we were in there working till 330 and it just felt so good and it felt like we were finally, you know, like, oh, this feels like our record. this feels like something that this feels like a place we can, you know, we can just continue to work out for the rest of our lives. like it was really getting to that place. studios need to be lived in. they need, they need, we need people in there to to use them. and it was just finally getting broken in, if that makes sense. and they poured their heart and soul into that place. you know, it was also a place where they were going to open it up to other musicians to be able to use, you know, and, and that aspect of their community is also now struggling. so, yeah.

but on the other hand, every musician i know and and every musician too, everybody's been so incredibly supportive that it's it's been strange to have lost everything. and then feel so much gratitude. and for for what? everybody's giving us and everybody, you know, reaching out and just wanting to help, knowing that this baby is on the way and people saying they want to ship me drum kits and it's incredible. >> yeah. that's incredible. i know there's like a gofundme page for you. i saw on mandy moore's instagram. that's how i initially found you all, and my heart just sunk when i saw, you know, everything you're going through, baby on the way. lost all of your instruments, lost your studio. um. it's just so much to even bear. but you're not alone. as you said, people are reaching out to help. but also other people are suffering too. there are so many in your same boat right now, and we are just wishing you the best, and you're going to be okay. that baby is going to be okay. you're going to land on your

feet somehow, someway. griffin kit goldsmith. please keep us posted on how things go. thank you so much for coming on to talk. thank you for joining me. i'm pamela brown. you can follow me on instagram, tiktok and x at pamela brown, cnn. cnn's coverage of the devastating wildfires in california continues after a short break. >> i just took a shower above the clouds. you know why? because this is the emirates a380.

>> if you have generalized myasthenia gravis, picture what life could look like with viv. hi, trudeau a subcutaneous injection that takes about 30 to 90s, for one thing. >> could it mean more time for you? >> viv can improve daily abilities and reduce muscle weakness with a treatment plan that's personalized to you. >> do not use chip carter trudeau if you have a serious allergy to any of its ingredients. it can cause serious allergic reactions like trouble breathing and decrease in blood pressure, leading to fainting and allergic reactions such as rashes, swelling under the skin, shortness of breath, and hives. the most common side effects are respiratory and urinary tract infections, headache, and injection site reactions. it may increase the risk of infusion related reactions and infection. tell your doctor if you have a history of infections or symptoms of an infection. talk to your

america. >> this is