Teens Charged with Running Prostitution Ring; Senate Debates Gun Control
BROOKE BALDWIN, CNN ANCHOR (voice-over): Three teenaged girls accused of running a prostitution house using social media. We're "On the Case." The IRS says it could read your e-mails without a warrant. And in a fight between a gun and bat, bat wins. Plus Madonna hitting back against international claims that she is a diva. And Republicans admit they need new faces, but apparently they include this one. I'm Brooke Baldwin. The news is now.</s>BALDWIN: Hour two. I'm Brooke Baldwin, beginning with breaking news here in the world of weather reports of a tornado moving right now over Alabama.</s>BALDWIN: Now three teenaged girls charged with a shocking crime, running a prostitution ring, enslaving young girls out of this Ottawa townhouse, luring their victims through social media, pimping them out to johns, some who raped them, others who sent them home after realizing they were sex slaves. One of these alleged ringleaders even boasted about it on Twitter, called her victims hos, tweeting that she was -- quote, unquote -- "the female Bill Gates." The accused were just 15 and 16 at the time. Police raided that home. They found cell phones. Those cell phones had nude photos of these alleged victims and along with names and phone numbers of men willing to pay for sex. These johns recruited from online dating sites like Lavalife, Quest. I'm joined now by former host of "America's Most Wanted" John Walsh, live from New York. John, good to see you here. A lot of questions come to mind. Obviously, the first for me is when you think of sex slavery, I don't think of ringleaders of some group being 15- and 16-year-olds. Does that help them, I don't know, lure these younger victims, gain trust?</s>JOHN WALSH, FORMER HOST, "AMERICA'S MOST WANTED": I think you're right, Brooke. You know, social media can be a great tool. The Internet's a wonderful, wonderful, super information highway, but it's also a dangerous place. So these younger gals have figured out how to exploit other girls. For example, I know this is in Canada which has problems, but the United States is the number one country that is the number one offender of sex trafficking, and we are the country that uses children for sex trafficking. Last year, for example, the FBI took down 100 pimps around the country and they recovered over 2,000 kids that were between 13 and 14. So this is just a lower age of pimps using social networking to exploit children.</s>BALDWIN: But then, John, also to hear about these alleged offenders here boasting on Twitter, and again, the power of social media as you talk about that. In all of your years here, have you ever heard of something like this?</s>WALSH: Well, in other countries -- I have about done sex trafficking cases all over the world. And in other cases, the pimps are younger and they exploit younger children than themselves. But this is really kind of unique, and I have got to give the police in Canada a lot of credit for going after these victims because they will be tried as juveniles, they may, you know, only pay a penalty of a couple of years, but it's a tough, uncomfortable subject, and I think cops are getting better at it. Who's not getting better at it are parents monitoring what their kids on social -- doing on social networking Web sites. That child is your responsibility until they're 18 years old. Whether they're a victim or whether they're a pimp, somebody needs to jump in here and see what these kids are doing.</s>BALDWIN: Good takeaway for parents, certainly sharing the responsibility and watching their kids closely. John Walsh, thank you.</s>WALSH: Thank you, Brooke.</s>BALDWIN: President Obama called families of Newtown victims today after the Senate voted to end the filibuster against tougher gun laws, the threat of that filibuster. The Senate voted 68-31 to kick-start a major debate on gun control legislation. The White House says today's procedural vote is a big step, but the real battle is just getting started.</s>JAY CARNEY, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: We have been encouraged by bipartisan progress on this very important package of proposals. There is still work to be done. This was simply, while very important, a first stage in an effort to get sensible commonsense legislation that would reduce gun violence in America while protecting Americans' Second Amendment rights signed into law.</s>BALDWIN: As we mentioned, this is the very beginning. Any gun control legislation the U.S. Senate might pass would face steep hurdles in the House. Republican Speaker of the House John Boehner says he will wait and see what the Senate produces.</s>REP. JOHN BOEHNER (R-OH), SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE: Our hearts and prayers go out to the families of these victims. And I fully expect that the House will act in some way, shape, or form. But to make a blanket commitment without knowing what the underlying bill is, I think, would be irresponsible on my part. The Senate has to produce a bill. And I have made clear if they produce a bill, we will review it and take it from there.</s>BALDWIN: And the NRA made one thing crystal-clear today. It will seek political retribution against lawmakers who support gun control proposals that the NRA opposes, saying this -- quote -- "Given the importance of these issues, votes on all anti-gun amendments or proposals will be considered in NRA's future candidate evaluations." It's a question heard around the world. Is North Korea about military action or is it just testing the world? CNN has learned a Musudan missile which the U.S. believed was ready to fire when it was raised into an upright position now has been lowered. CNN's Anna Coren is in Seoul. And, Anna, what does the lowering mean? Was this a bluff altogether?</s>ANNA COREN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Brooke, who really knows, but I think it means one of two things, either that it is testing its rocket launcher and perhaps raised it and lowered it just to make sure everything is good to go. We know that it is fueled and that perhaps a launch is imminent. That's according to the United States and also South Korean authorities, or perhaps North Korea is bluffing. You have to remember that we have had a month's worth of all that rhetoric coming out of Pyongyang now. So perhaps this is just more posturing. But I think, Brooke, the real factor in all of this is an upcoming date, a very important date as far as the North Koreans are concerned, and that is anniversary of the birth of North Korea's founder, Kim Il- Sung, who of course is Kim Jong-un's grandfather. There will be huge celebrations in Pyongyang. And you can expect if that those missiles are to be launched, it will be before then or perhaps on that day, which is the 15th of April.</s>BALDWIN: Anna Coren live in Seoul, Anna, thank you. Here at home, two grandparents of these two little Florida boys who were abducted, they're speaking out today. Police say the boys' parents kidnapped them, took them on a sailboat, they headed to Cuba, and authorities then rescued the boys. They swooped in, reunited them with their grandparents, who had been given legal custody of these little boys. The grandparents say these little guys, they have no idea what had happened.</s>PATRICIA HAUSER, GRANDMOTHER: They have been told that everyone heard about their sailboat trip to Cuba, another country, as they called it, and their airplane ride back to America, and that everyone wants to take their picture. We ask that there be no mention of any events of the past week. This is Cole and this is Chase.</s>BALDWIN: The boys' parents are being held without bond. They have a hearing Monday on kidnapping charges. And you ever heard the expression here don't bring a knife to a gunfight? Well, this store -- you have to see this video. A store owner in Chicago did something similar, instead of -- look on the left-hand side -- instead of a knife, he's got a bat. He battled bullets with a bat. But this surveillance video shows the bat was enough. Coming up next, we're talking to a former NYPD detective about the store owner's gut reaction.