dr. richard s. i think a cut you off, and you were giving us a real perspective on the impact criminal history has on a person's life, and a one to give you back your time. >> i appreciate the legislation and the work that you do any work you are doing, but i think we have kind -- we do not realize how big a problem this has become. united states today, we are this global power. we are fighting wars that do not end. you all know this. and the war has come home. the war is in the streets. we have arrested millions of people for drugs. thank god i'm in california. show me some pot, you know? california is wonderful, but it is not that way in the rest of the country. they are still giving people felony convictions for possession of marijuana. you guys are really progressive. the rest of this country is not. the rest of this country is fighting a war that you cannot even protest. we are so far, even though barack is in the white house, isn't that great? the country is more right wing than you ever reali

dr. richard s. -- dr. richards. >> [inaudible] >> we love the excitement. this is all intentional. >> i'm happy to be in san francisco, and that kind of brings me to the point i want to say. this morning, we were in the courtroom, and we have lawyers, public defenders talking about legal cases, talking about the roles they play. what i think has been lost here, and maybe even this gentleman kind of raised it, is what happens to these defendants? what happens when they go back into the court, into the lock up after they have pled guilty? about 95% of them plead guilty. you know that they are being forced to plead guilty. you all know it. it is like there is a gun to their head. i call it the terror of arithmetic. they are being threatened with 100 years, 50 years, 20 years -- you know what that does to them. they go back to their jail cells. those numbers bounce around in there had. after a week or a month or six months or a year, a year-and-a- half, they plead guilty. and you know as public defenders, one of your main jobs is to make them plead guilty. and

dr. richard s. -- dr. richards. >> [inaudible] >>

dr. richard besser. most viewers know you used to work at the cdc, and as we heard in the piece, this is something we haven't seen in a long time. >> reporter: that's right. this is a serious outbreak. eggs have caused salmonella for a long time but we haven't seen it. they've only been detected in three states right now, but they're distributed nationwide and i expect there are cases all over the country. >> what is the most important thing someone can do to protect themselves? >> reporter: well, make sure you don't get infected now that we know about this. so, you want to go home and look at your eggs and at the end of the carton is a plant number. so, check that and compare it to the numbers we gave here on the air and that are on abcnews.com, and make sure if you have those, you take them back to the store and get a refund, or throw them away. >> and what are the symptoms that you may already be infected? >> reporter: well, you could have fever, cramps and diarrhea. if you have those, see your doctor

dr. richards is touching on. in the realm of criminal policy, the more fear there is that the more laws we have that limit what people can do, people with criminal records can do. an example of that this session is there is a bill pending from assemblyman night from palmdale that basically what say that anybody who has ever had a drug conviction cannot volunteer in their child's school. there already are laws on the books that allows school districts to criminal background checks, but this would add this permanent exclusion for any -- and i'm not talking only net labs. i'm talking any possession. that is an example of the ever- expanding range of laws that limit people with criminal records. that is ab 2034. >>? there anyone here who can inject a little hope -- is there anyone here who can inject a little hope? we know that there are barriers. we know the laws are overreaching. we have employers that ignore the laws. so what is the solution, dr. richard s. -- dr. richards? how are we going to turn this around for

dr. richard s. -- dr. richards? how are we going to turn this around for california and the nation? >> i am actually giving this paper in two weeks in finland at a conference, but just some of our ideas that come out of the convict criminology group. the first is and the war on drugs. just and it. -- just end it. it started in 1960 with richard nixon. it has been going on 50 years. nobody has even kept count of how many people have been arrested -- 10 million, 20 million, 30 million? it sounds like something out of stalin's russia. turn in your neighbors, turn in your friends. if you turn in 10 people, you get less time in prison. that is what it is, you know? this war on drugs is something out of stalin's russia. and let's stop this war on sex offenders before this gets way out of hand. it is already way out of hand. [applause] i know we are concerned about sexual assault and rape and people assaulting women and children -- i know that. most of the people in prison as sex offenders are not those people. i call them romeo and juliet's. he is 19 and she is 16 or she is 19 and he is 1

dr. richard besser, abc news, new york. >>> vice president joe biden has been involved in a runway mishapa long island new york airport. air force 2 was taking off from the hamptons when the jet sent a small private plane into the air. no one was injured. just last week, two new york city officers got into an accident while escorting bide ton jfk airport. >>> hundreds of influential democrats rallied around embattled charles rangel here in new york last night. the occasion, an 80th birthday party for rangel who was also seen in light of the ethic charges. among those, two new york senators facing re-election in the fall. >>> another longtime congressman who battled ethics charges has died. democrat dan rostenkowski represented the chicago area. dan rostenkowski died yesterday of lung cancer. he was 82 years old. >>> and now the amazing ascent of africa's highest peak. three u.s. veterans with only one real human leg among them the top of tanzania mount kilimanjaro. they reached it last saturday after six days of climbing. the men said the message is you can be active no matter disability.

dr. richards, it is my understanding you have some personal experience in this area.ould ask you to share your experiences with us and tell us about the barriers that exist for people who have a criminal record. >> i'm a convicted felon. i'm an ex-con. and i'm a professor. i'm the leader of the convert criminology group. if you just go to google and google convict criminology, you will find our website. our group was actually started many years ago by professor john irwin, who was at a san francisco state university for 30 years. john recently passed away. john, even after he retired in 1995, for nearly 15 years helps me to organize the convicts criminology group. there is now 30 of us. we are all ex cons, ph.d., and professors at different universities. because i'm a convicted felon, i should say i went to federal prison for nine years. >> [inaudible] i came to a public forum, which included a lot of

dr. richards, it is my understanding you have some personal experience in this area.ould ask you to share your experiences with us and tell us about the barriers that exist for people who have a criminal record. >> i'm a convicted felon. i'm an ex-con. and i'm a professor. i'm the leader of the convert criminology group. if you just go to google and google convict criminology, you will find our website. our group was actuall

dr. richards, it is my understanding you have some personal experience in this area.ould ask you to share your experiences with us and tell us about the barriers that exist for people who have a criminal record. >> i'm a convicted felon. i'm an ex-con. and i'm a

dr. richards, it is my understanding you have some personal experience in this area.ould ask you to share your experiences with us and tell us about the barriers that exist for

dr. richard restak. what's to come. >> dr. richard restak, welcome, and you are now on the air. this is book we're going to be referring to "the longevity strategy" how to live to live to 100 using the brain-body con dmeks. we might make reference to the magazine you are affiliated, which i think is the child of david mahoney and his philanthropy. >> yes, that's correct. >> i knew david a little bit. >> did you? >> he had been chairman of canada dry. >> yes. >> then he took an interest in the brain. >> yes. >> and he founded dana. >> dana lives, yes. >> dana. well, this is an extremely interesting subject. tell me what is the essence of the brain-body connection and how can our brains help us live longer lives? >> well, the brain and the body are interconnected in such a way that you really can't divide one from the other. if somebody comes in here and yells the word fire, we're going to get excited and run out. it's because that particular word goes into our ears, to the brain, and causes chemical changes and suddenly we're alerted and on our feet. there is the connection at al

dr. richard besser is here with what you need to know. for-profit colleges, their popularity is on the rise, but are students always getting what they bargain for? >> true love, is the secret to finding your one and only not in your heart but in your brain? at purina one, we want your dog to be as healthy as possible. so, we set out to discover the science in some of nature's best ingredients. we created purina one with smartblend. new, delicious shredded morsels and crunchy bites, with real meat, wholesome grains and antioxidants, for strong muscles, vital energy, a healthy immune system, and a real difference in your dog. purina one improved with smartblend. discover what one can do. it was a mystery to me. i found out that connected to our muscles are nerves that send messages through the body. my doctor diagnosed it as fibromyalgia, thought to be the result of overactive nerves that cause chronic, widespread pain. lyrica is believed to calm these nerves. i learned lyrica can provide significant relief from fibromyalgia pain. and with

dr. richard besser had his first one.g we have to fear is not having a colonoscopy. >> such an important test to take. we'll bring us through it this morning. >>> also, if you think it's impossible to make a career change in this tough economy, think again. these three women did it by starting their own businesses. they will share the secrets of their success. tory johnson will be here with that. >>> first, we go to bianna golodryga, who is in for juju chang and the news. >> good morning, everyone. former governor rod blagojevich, is gearing up for a retrial, after big convicted of one of two dozen counts. jurors in his corruption trial found him guilty of lying to the fbi. but they were deadlocked on the other charges. one holdout in the jury saved blagojevich from the most explosive charge of trying to sell president obama's old senate seat. >>> a disturbing development in pakistan this morning, where there are few signs that conditions are improving amid the epic floods that have killed at least 1,500 people. our jim s

dr. richard besser is here with what you need to know. >>> and, change of heart. a famous catholic convert mega-selling author, anne rice, now says she's quit being a christian. she tells us why. >>> good evening. the warning tonight is blunt and urgent. the worst floods in memory are threatening one of the world's most dangerous places. huge chunks of pakistan have been swallowed by monsoon rains, and the united nations says that millions of lives are at risk. the u.n. coupled its warning with a call for almost half a billion dollars in emergency aid. u.s. help is on the way, too. the pentagon is rushing three ships and 19 aircraft to the region. nick schifrin starts us off from pakistan tonight. >> reporter: this was once land, home to tens of thousands of people. today, it's under 12 feet of water. we spent the day with the pakistani navy. abdul malik came to them, pleading for help. his family is stranded in their own home. he's not sure if they're okay. this is what is left of his neighborhood, but his house survived and became an island. those are his parent

dr. richard besser. >> reporter: parents are worried about a new study from pediatrics making headlines.bout it because we didn't know if this was something that was going to cause other problems years down the road. >> reporter: chanda lewis' anxiety seems to be supported by this study which suggests american girls are entering puberty earlier than ever. if true, concerning news. >> girls at earlier onset of puberty are at risk or higher risk for earlier onset of sexual initiation and teenage pregnancy, as well as earlier onset of substance abuse. long-term these girls can be at higher risk for breast cancer and adult obesity. >> reporter: what does this study really say? we asked the senior author. many of the headlines about this study were the age of onset of puberty is going down dramatically. is that a fair conclusion from this study? >> i don't think from this study we can say that the age is going down in the world at large. >> reporter: so despite all the press reports, the girls in the study are not representative of the general population. and some cases were selected because

dr. richards probably will not authorize this, but i am going to make a plug for the book he has written.ant to say he has written the book "convict criminology." another book called "behind bars." and "beyond bars." so check it out on amazon. we also have with us the policy co-director of the national employment law project. and eliza hirsch is the supervising attorney in the clean slate pride is at the east bay community law center. welcome, panelists. i want to tell the audience that while we are having this session, if you have questions, feel free to write them down, and the ushers will get them some you. at the en

dr. richard besser undergoes the one test millions of americans avoid. a colonoscopy. us through the 15-minute procedure that could mean the difference between life and death. >>> for some of you, your local news is coming up next. >> for everyone else, "america this morning" continues after this. ♪ your favorites, in pieces. aveeno hair shines in real life. new aveeno nourish plus shine with active naturals wheat smooths damaged cuticles for 75% more shine in one use. real shine, for real life. yours. [ female announcer ] new aveeno nourish plus shine. when allergies make them itch, don't wait for your pills to kick in. choose alaway, from the eye health experts at bausch & lomb. it works in minutes and up to 12 hours. bausch & lomb alaway. because it's not just your allergies, it's your eyes. because it's not just your allergies, [ announcer ] you make healthy choices every day-- oh, max! and you want to do the same for your laughable, lovable dog. [ barks ] that's why purina fit & trim is specially formulated... with high-quality protein, including delicious real ch

dr. richard besser has been going through that report and will give us analysis later today on "good morning america." >>> also, former vice president dick cheney is back home this morning after being released from a hospital in virginia. cheney had been recovering from heart surgery last month. the operation installed a pump that helps his failing heart work. >>> well, it is time now for sports. here's adnan virk. >> the best rivalry in baseball to most, the yankees and red sox. boston trying to close the deficit in the a.l. east. lester getting the call after the sox scored two early runs. mark teixeira got in the fourth. alex rodriguez. he went 6 1/3 shutout innings. then a drive to right center off the top of the wall for a double. the yankees would load bases. none out. after the next two batters struck out nick swisher will join them. the sox have a huge dent. still up 2-0. it's teixeira, a solo home run to right. his 26th of the year. the yankees down 2-1 at that point. but that would be as close as they get. papelbon strikes out to end the game and they earn themselves a split. >>> m

dr. richards probably will not authorize this, but i am going to make a plug for the book he has written.ant to say he has written the book "convict criminology."

dr. richard besser is here with the latest news. >> reporter: it's considered the holy grail in its field a transplant of the trachea. and last month, dr. paolo macchiarini did it twice. replacing the tracheas of two patients with cancer using stem cells. one was speaking just hours after surgery. how did he do it? first, he and his team removed the trachea from a donor. and stripped it of all of the donor's tissue, which the patient's body would have rejected. next, they drew stem cells from the patient's own bone marrow and used them to coat the surface of the new trachea before surgically implanting it in the patient, with the hopes that those stem cells would generate new tissue and a fully functioning trachea. >> they are back to the home, able to speak, able to socialize with everybody, having this quality of life is wonderful. >> reporter: just two years ago, macchiarini performed the first successful transplant on claudia castillo, a spanish mother. that procedure took two weeks. but the new procedure, just four hours. stem cells have been used to transplant bladders and researche

dr. richard besser digs into the research for what you need to know. >> fast wasteland. he most fattening food, the journey.aconator is number two. person toe amazing journey. theid it, the first person to walk the length of the amazon, 59 days, too many snakes and scorpions to count. >>> good evening. >>> a dragnet spans a nation drnight. ation ards from seattle to philadelphia are warning ia arens to keep an eye out for a couple who fancies themselves a couple whotury's bonnie and fancies that's how police describe the fugitives as they announce that oóóóof the others who escaped ught.nn arizona prison ten days sidehad been caught. it happened outside yellowstone park at the height of tourist season. >> reporter: good evening. with tracy province now sitting in a wyoming county jail, two of now ugitives who broke out of the arizona prison are now phind bars. convicted murderer tracy province was walking was walking teetse wyoming church when he was captured. police had been tipped off by a sharp eyed citizen. >> after speaking with province, she went home as soon as sh