cnn's dianne gallagher is with them. dianne, how was the march?ly short march, just a few blocks up here. the kids are incredibly organized. we were going to try to talk to some of those kids, but they had meetings right away. they said, look, this is the reason we're here, these meetings. i do have a teacher with me, geography teacher. >> government teacher. >> reporter: my apology, government teacher. >> talk to me -- >> i'm their teacher. i came with a colleague. i had all these kids in class, all the famous kids now, david and emma. you're obviously compelled. it affected us as well as them. i luckily got out, i'm here along with the kids as well. i drove them up -- actually it's for you guys. we're going back tonight for the debate. i volunteered to be the guy to drive a few of them and be back for tonight. >> reporter: as a government teacher, how do you feel about them using that voice to come up here? >> it's amazing. i hope it endures. i'm -- i'm kind of at a loss for words. they're all bright, as we've seen. they're passionate. they were

dianne gallagher, thanks so much for that.re waiting for the press conference to begin behind me with new details on the investigation. joining me now by phone is rebecca bogart, 17 yoers old, a student here at marjory stoneman douglas high school who went through what i have to believe is the worst day of her life. rebecca, thanks so much nor being with us. i know how difficult this is to discuss. tell me how are you doing this morning. >> i'm just in complete shock. i still don't believe this happened. it's something that i would never, ever think would happen here. >> i don't think anyone wants to believe it happened, but the sad reality is that it did. now we're all trying to find a way to cope with it right alongside you. yesterday after 2:20, when did you know it was real, rebecca? >> i was in the freshman building where i heard the gunshots, and no one really knew what that was. but we all automatically knew to hide. we all hid -- i hid underneath the teacher's desk with a bunch of students and the teacher. and when we'

. >> and dianne gallagher is in deer fieeel deer field beach, florida.hearing more about the victims and their conditions? >> reporter: that's right. so we are at broward north and this is where the majority of those victims who were injured were taken. there were three who remain here, three who remain in another hospital in broward county. only one victim is still in critical condition. we're expecting another update on those conditions a little bit later today. broward north is the hospital the president and first lady visited last night, they spent a little less than 20 minutes here talking to the doctors, the first responders, and visiting two patients, a male and female patient. that is 18-year-old mattdy willford, a back player, shot several times according to her mother's facebook post and has been through several surgeries as well last night in the parkland area, there was another vigil that friends of those killed and those injured showed up to, other students who lived through that shooting placed candles and angels and flowers and photos of t

. >> our cnn correspondent dianne gallagher is in deer field beach, florida. what can you tell us about those still in hospitals and about the president's visit? >> victor, renee, the good news is that only five in the hospital this morning. that means that since we first spoke earlier, somebody has been discharged. still one in critical condition. broward north behind me is where the president and first lady visited. they spent time with two patients, one of whom was 18-year-old maddie willford. >> i just got back from the hospital. a young woman was shot, four bullets. two in her lungs and they got her over to the hospital in less than 21 minutes. she had no chance and between the first responders, your people who got her, you know who i'm talking about, they got her there, scott. what a job you're doing. i hope you're getting credit for it. believe me, you deserve it. the job you've done is unparallel. >> thank you. >> give limbhim a raise. give everybody a raise. >> now as far as we know, the president didn't meet withive in the familiar lives the deceased

dianne gallagher is live in tallahassee, florida. dianne? >> reporter: chris, for the past 24 hours, you can only describe it as emotional, the tense exchanges between people impacted by these schools with mass shootings and their elected officials. i just got a text from some of the students who left here in tallahassee on the buses. they're just getting home. they are pulling almost 24-hour shufts. they h shifts. they want to know what their elected officials are going to do to prevent this from happening ever again. >> why do we have to speak out to the capitol? why do we have to march on washington just to save innocent lives. >> republican senator marco rubio coming face-to-face with survivors of the high school massacre, defending his opposition to an assault weapon ban despite being heckled. >> your comments and that of the president have been pathetically weak. >> my daughter was shot in the back with an assault weapon. the weapon of choice. >> yes, sir. >> it is too easy to get. it is a weapon of war. the fact that you can't stand w

we begin with dianne gallagher live this tallahassee, florida. dianne? >> reporter: chris, those were points made in discussions that were had at a cnn townhall. lawmakers were texting me. they were back on a bus going home to park land, watching the townhall on their phones. and they said in seeing that, this emotional tense 24 hours that have passed, they felt like perhaps their movement is starting to really make its mark. >> why do we have to speak out to the capitol? why do we have to march on washington just to save innocent lives. >> republican senator marco rubio coming face-to-face with survivors of the high school massacre, defending his opposition to an assault weapon ban despite being heckled. >> your comments and that of the president have been pathetically weak. >> my daughter was shot in the back with an assault weapon. the weapon of choice. >> yes, sir. >> it is too easy to get. it is a weapon of war. the fact that you can't stand with everybody in this building and say that, i'm sorry. >> rubio breaking with the nra on a number of key is

dianne gallagher is in nearby deerfield beach with more on those whose lives were taken. >> reporter: there are those who were injured as well. i want to give a quick update on that. we have seven who remain in the hospital, one in critical condition here at broward north. as we talk about those who were killed in that shooting, we want to remember martin, nicholas dworet, on his way to college. he was a senior and he was a standout swimmer. he was a recruit at indianapolis university and planned to swim there in the fall. there's peter wang, a 15-year-old freshman who his friends remember as hilarious in life, and in the momention before his death, a hero. >> peter was very funny. i used to joke around with him and call him peter griffin and he would laugh with me. he was one of my closest friends, and he was very kind. he died a gentleman, holding the door for other students. knowing he's gone is going to haunt me forever. >> a freshman, anderson, who his last actions in life were making sure that other people got out okay. there are so many stories of heroism amongst those 17 that

and cnn's dianne gallagher joins me in parkland, florida. what are we expecting today? >> reporter: i think they're not sure. i talked to teachers, alisyn, who said right now they want to kind of all be together. the word i heard most from students was apprehension. they're a little nervous about coming back, but they want to be with their classmates and return to normal, whatever that means. the principal said today is about comfort, not curriculum. >> the first time walking through the gates, hearing the bells ring, there will be a dramatic shift. you will feel the presence on of emptiness. >> reporter: thousands of students returning for the first time that a campus that just two weeks ago they ran away from in terror. >> our lives and lives of our friends are what take priority now. >> reporter: and while some are ready -- >> i guess there is a certain feeling of, you know, relief that i am going back to school. >> reporter: others aren't so sure. >> how do you comprehend the empty desks? how do you return to normalcy after that? >> reporter: parents also aren't sur

cnn's dianne gallagher is there.t has to be a very emotional morning there. >> reporter: john, that's an understatement. the parents of children who were killed were walking to school this morning, hugging students. the police officers from dozens of neighboring departments were here. as the principal said, it was going to be the highest security they had ever seen. undoubtedly, that is exactly what happened. they were escorting kids in. i've been texting with some of the kids inside the school there, some of the kids i rode up on the bus with last week to tallahassee. they said they started the day off with a 17-second moment of silence. one second for each life lost during the massacre. they described it, john, as weird. that's a word i'm getting the most from these texts. it's strange being back. it's emotional. it's tough for them. when we talked to the kids right before they went in, they told us they were apprehensive about going back to school. >> i'm hesitant to walk into the building but i know i have to to

cnn's dianne gallagher travel being the students of marjory stoneman douglas high school.ve. >> reporter: we walked from the civic center where those 100 or so students spent the night in cots and sleeping bags on the floor. they came in and just a few moments ago started meetings with lawmakers. they're expecting 70 meetings overall with republicans and democrats. they're doing it in small groups. we're talking about ten students per meeting. they feel that one-on-one strategy will help get the message across better and open it up for a discussion. that's what upset them so much. i was on the bus with them when the news came in, that the legislature decided they didn't even want to discuss the bill that had been proposed to ban assault weapons in the state of florida. they said to them the worst part was they didn't want to talk about it. they said what they really understand for the most part, students know this isn't going to happen overnight. they're going in that building there, inside the rooms to open up and start the discussion. they say they want action, but they

. >> cnn's dianne gallagher joining me live from the state capitol tallahassee. what are the students asking for from lawmakers? >> reporter: you know, jake, it is a multilayered request. really demand if you will. but on the face of it, they want gun control. now, if you talk to them individually as we have been over the past 24 hours about this, it may vary. some of then aren't even sure exactly what would fix this in their eyes, but overall most would like to see a reinstatement of the assault weapon ban. specifically banning high capacity magazines. others want to see the age limit increase where a larger amount of time that you have to wait, pull that waiting period out even longer than it is, or just have one for the semi automatic or ar-15 style rweapons. but really today during the midday press conference that they held after that he had these meetings, some were very frustrated, some want to know that they are still grieving and they want people to remember that. >> we will not be silenced. it has gone on long enough that we just because we are kids, we'