CNN Sunday Morning - Transcript

HEADLINE: Prices at the Pump; History of Apollo Theater

GUESTS: Sam Graves, Stacie Walters

BYLINE: Fredricka Whitfield, Catherine Callaway, Dana Bash

HIGHLIGHT:
A look at record prices at the pump. Then, the history of the Apollo theater.

BODY:

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning, everyone. This is "CNN SUNDAY MORNING. I'm Fredricka Whitfield.

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

WHITFIELD: That was the Army paying tribute last year to Sergeant Donald Walters after the soldier who killed in action. That same attack led to the capture of Private Jessica Lynch.

It was March 2003 when a U.S convoy was attacked near Nasiriyah, Iraq. Walters was awarded the Bronze Star and a Purple Heart.

Well, that was a year ago. Since then, the Army's investigation determined Walter's action in the convoy attack deserved more than the Bronze Star and the Purple Heart. Sergeant Donald Walters has now been awarded the prestigious Silver Star for his bravery in the line of duty. And, last Tuesday, about 150 family members, friends and veterans, and dignitaries, paid tribute to the warrior at one of his favorite spots. A maple tree in Smithville, Missouri, was dedicated as a living memorial to the fallen soldier.

Joining us this morning from Kansas City, Missouri, are his widow, Stacie Walters, and Congressman Sam Graves. Graves was instrumental in pushing for more details on how Walters died, and being able to award him the prestigious Silver Award.

Good to see both of you, Ms. Walters and Congressman. Thanks for joining us.

REP. SAM GRAVES ®, MISSOURI: Thank you.

STACIE WALTERS, WIDOW: Thank you.

WHITFIELD: Well, Ms. Walters, let me begin with you. You really did spearhead this push to get more recognition for your husband, who really fought to his death to try to help save his fellow comrades shortly after that Nasiriyah ambush.

WALTERS: Yes, I did. After the debriefing, we went through the story and tried to account for everybody, and realized that Don was the one that was still missing, and there was no story for him. And we wanted to know why he was left out there and why no one helped him.

WHITFIELD: And when his body was found, it was determined he had been shot, as well as stabbed. And it was your feeling that those details were not known publicly, and people really didn't understand what kind of fight he underwent before his death?

WALTERS: That's right.

WHITFIELD: And Congressman, you know, you felt that this was certainly a case in which it needed to be recognized more. He got the Purple Heart, as well as a Bronze Star. But you felt like more needed to be done. Why?

GRAVES: Well, if you read the information, you obviously see that there is a lot more to what happened then what the public generally knows. And you kind of read into it and you realize there was a very fierce fight took place. Sergeant Walters had a lot of injuries consistent with hand-to-hand fighting. And we asked for the Army to open their investigation, to dig a little bit deeper and see what else they could find out.

WHITFIELD: And what kind of cooperation did you get initially?

GRAVES: The Army has been pretty cooperative. The problem is, is just finding reliable information.

Iraqi prisoners of war have been very unreliable, unfortunately. And there isn't a whole lot of eyewitnesses as far as Americans to see what happened. But all the evidence surrounding the situation points to the fact that there was a fierce fight. And, obviously, he had multiple gunshot wounds and multiple stab wounds.

WHITFIELD: And, Ms. Walters, you have a 21-month-old daughter. In part, was this effort to try to paint the picture of what a brave soldier your daughter's father was, and that perhaps this would help her understand the story as she was to grow older?

WALTERS: Yes. Yes, we wanted her to know the truth of what happened to her dad, and know the sacrifices that he made to give her a better life.

WHITFIELD: And now, as we are at the one-year mark of this war, I imagine for you and your family it is like reliving what happened that fateful day last March all over again.

WALTERS: Yes, it is. I still remember when they came to the house and told me that he was gone. And when we had to bury him. I relive all the nightmares.

WHITFIELD: So when you had this most recent ceremony, the planting of the tree and receiving the prestigious Silver Medal, how comforting was that for you?

WALTERS: Oh, the planting ceremony in memory of him was something that was a very beautiful tribute to Don. And the Silver Star will help bring closure.

WALTERS: And, Congressman Graves, closure, is that something that you saw as a possibility by making sure that he got the kind of recognition that you thought was proper?

GRAVES: Well, we want the family to know everything that the Army can find out. And closure is something that I think Stacie and her family are going to seek for a long time. And I don't know if we'll ever know all of the facts surrounding the case, unfortunately. But we're going to continue to dig.

I know Stacey is very passion about this and wants to find out as much as she can. And it's just a process that we're going to continue with.

WHITFIELD: Congressman Sam Graves and Stacie Walters, thanks very much to both of you for joining us. And our heart-felt sympathies go out to you, Ms. Walters. To you and your family.

WALTERS: Well, thank you.

GRAVES: Thank you very much.

END