autopsy report. the report finds houston died of accidental drowning but cocaine was a factor and it wasn't the only drug in her system. >> charges could come today. the u.s. military about to begin the long process of prosecuting army staff sergeant robert bales who's accused in that massacre of afghan civilians. he's expected to be charged with 17 counts of murder. an explosion at a silicon factory in portland, oregon, sends at least two people to the hospital. the fire was reportedly sparked by a chemical used to make silicon. haz mat crews were called to the scene there. rick santorum slamming mitt romney and raising a lot of republican eyebrows while doing it with how he did it. >> we might as well stay with what we have instead of taking a risk at what may be the etch a sketch candidate for the future. >> what we have. stay with what we have? really? the fallout from a republican candidate putting the president before his party. and up first, cries of justice for trayvon martin ringing out from coast to coast. there were protests in at least ten cities yesterday and this case has touched a lot of nerves. the anger triggering rallies from los angeles to charlotte, north carolina. protesters demanding the arrest of george zimmerman. that is a neighborhood watch captain who shot and killed the unarmed florida teenager. about 8,000 people gathered in sanford, florida, last night. that was not far from where trayvon was gunned down last month as he was walking home with candy and iced tea. his parents spoke to the crowd there. >> i stand before you today not knowing how i'm walking right now because my heart hurts for my son. trayvon is my son. trayvon is your son. >> i'd just like to thank every one of you all for just showing us the love, the support, signing the petitions, and making sure that george zimmerman pays for what he did to your son! >> and that rally taking place just hours after the city's police chief temporarily stepped down. george howell is live from sanford, florida, this morning. what can you tell us about all of those protests and also the sheriff stepping down? >> reporter: well, the police chief certainly stepping down came as a surprise to the thousands of people who arrived here in sanford. the police chief saying that his being in that position is coming as a distraction to the investigation so that was a big deal for many people, but they say that the police chief should either be fired or should resign. many people were not satisfied with the wording that he's temporarily stepping down. just before the rally we also learned that the family, is a bryn in a fult ton and tracy martin, got to meet with members of the department of justice to start talking about this case. we understand that the word was patience, to be patient as this investigation continues. we also learned through the rally that a new special prosecutor has been assigned to this case. angela cory will take over investigating this case. she takes over from norman willfinger whose district is in sanford -- he represents part of sanford. he says he's stepping aside to avoid any conflicts of interest. we heard from cory about exactly how she plans to look into this case. take a listen. >> it requires a thorough investigation, extensive interviews of every witness, extensive review of all physical evidence and then a determination of how we apply florida's law to the facts of any case. we don't worry about backlash from cases. what we worry about is seeking the truth. that's our mission. that's the united states supreme court defined mission for prosecutors, is to seek the truth. >> reporter: so a lot happened yesterday. there were a lot of press conferences, a lot of news came out of that rally, but as far as george zimmerman, he has still not been seen. zimmerman has not been charged with anything. in fact, police say that they know where zimmerman is if they have to reach him. again, a grand jury will convene on april 10th to decide whether zimmerman could face charges in this case, zoraida. >> hey, george, i have one other question for you. when we take a look at the crowds they look really large. there are conflicting reports as to how many people actually attended them. was it a crowd full of mostly young people or was it a mixed group? >> reporter: you find all ages. you find many different colors. you find people there who really just had a problem with the way this case was investigated. many people saying i am trayvon mart martin. people who are very upset about the way this case was investigated. they want to see george zimmerman put behind bars. >> all right, george howell live in florida for us. thank you very much. at 5:30 eastern we will be joined by florida state senator chris smith. /posed florida's controversial stand your ground law in 2005 and is now trying to get it amended. it is now five minutes past 5:00 on the east coast. she used cocaine until the very end. that's what we're learning with new details on whitney houston's death this morning. >> a lot of people hoping that that simply would not be the truth. a los angeles county corner's office coming out with the results of that autopsy. an accidental drowning but it's what was found in her blood system that has many people talking this morning. alina cho is joining us now with the very latest. >> you took the words right out of my mouth. i think a lot of people when they first saw this had said, oh, goodness. we had hoped there would not be drugs found in her system. that was not the case. good morning, this report is answering a lot of questions about whitney houston's death and the last moments of her life. you'll remember that houston died on february 11th, the night before the grammy awards. she was found dead in the bathtub at the beverly hilton hotel. according to the coroner's report, the cause of death is drowning, but it also says that heart disease and cocaine use played a role. in addition, blood tests showed the presence of marijuana, xanax, a muscle relaxant called flexeril, and benadryl. at a news conference yesterday a spokesman for the coroner's office talked about all of the drugs found in her system. >> those drugs were all at the therapeutic or subtherapeutic level. they're not considered to be related to the actual cause of death. cocaine use indicated an acute use and it appeared that the cocaine had been used in the time period just probably immediately prior to her collapse in the bathtub at the hotel. >> unbelievable. >> tough for the family to hear, i would imagine. what does that report say about heart disease? >> right. i think a lot of questions were raised when we saw that on the report. it's called atherosclerosis, and what this is, medical term obviously, but what it means is that it was a narrowing of the arteries around the heart. now in houston's case, pretty serious, about 60% narrowed. that, of course, obstructs the flow of blood. now combine that with cocaine use and the results obviously can be deadly. last night on "anderson cooper 360" dr. sanjay gupta explained just how cocaine can damage the heart. >> you get this huge adrenaline surge. you also get this reaction where your blood vessels spasm so instead of allowing blood to sort of flow through normally, the blood vessels that go to the heart, it's spasming and therefore the heart itself is not getting enough blood. >> so, alina, obviously the family had intimated before that drugs were the bane of this woman's existence. are they talking about this now? >> they are. released a very short statement. the family was warned about what was going to be released in the report before it was taken out to the public. whitney's sister-in-law and former manager, patricia houston, did issue a short statement saying, quote, we are saddened to learn of the toxicology results although we are glad to now have closure. but you look at not just the cocaine but all of the other drugs that were in her system. i was speaking to a doctor last night. he said, that's a lot to have in one woman's body. we should also mention that the final coroner's report will be out within the next two weeks. that will be the next step in this case. at that point the 911 calls will be released as well. >> what can of worms does this open up. whitney houston doesn't walk out on the street and get cocaine. >> that's right. sure, of course. >> we're also going to talk a little bit more about that medical component with elizabeth cohen coming up. it's interesting. >> it is. a lot of people want to know if this was heart disease, how long. we were talking about that just a minute ago. so, sure, elizabeth can hopefully shed some light on that. >> thank you. appreciate it. >> nine minutes now past 5:00 on the east coast. they're expected to announce formal charges against robert bales. you know that now he's facing 17 counts of murder in an afghan shooting rampage. that's one more count than previously had been anticipated because up until now the death toll had been 16. his attorney,on heb ri brown e believes proving the case against his client will be extremely difficult. legal experts say the quick burial of the victims in accordance with islamic law could present a lot of forensic problems for the prosecution. browne suggests that his client suffered from ptsd. last night a former army captain said the ticking time bomb is an outdated military stereotype. >> there's no evidence that says that ptsd or tbi makes someone inclined certainly not a ticking time bomb but incline someone toward violence. this is one incident among millions who have served among about a million who have served in these current conflicts. if this were a civilian serial killer in a civilian situation we wouldn't be asking these questions. >> there are also charges this morning that before joining the military bales allegedly engaged in securities fraud while working as a financial advisor. according to financial records, he left for war without paying a $1.5 million judgment for defrauding an elderly client in a stock scheme. >> wow. 11 minutes past the hour here. j us in, the latest gas prices. are they up or down. >> i'll b$3.89 a gallon. >> not fair. >> not fair. >> you know what, again, it's up eight tenths of a cent. >> that's better than two or three cents. >> we had almost two cent rises. >> good news, folks. >> there. it's friday. >> we can spin this. we are minding your business this morning. it was another tough day for the markets on thursday. the stocks posted modest losses because of concerns about the global economy. and this on news that manufacturing in china and germany is slowing. >> let's bring in patricia woo. nice to see you stepping in for christine. >> good to see you, too. >> why are you coming in with this news? >> i know you think it's bad. it could be good at the end. let me finish. the 30 year fixed rate, yes, it has topped 4%. it's at 4.08%. as i was saying, that's not necessarily bad news because it's a sign that the economy is improving. it means that people are feeling more confident so you'll see increased demand for loans, mortgages, consumer loans, and that's what drives the rates up. to give you a little bit of perspective, yes, just two weeks ago we hit the record lows at 3.13%. so we're used to those lows, but to give you a little perspective. in 2006 right before the housing bust you were looking at 6.4% on the 30 year fixed. so, guys -- >> i'm doing the math though. that's a pretty big jump, isn't it? isn't that kind of a big one? i don't know anything about it. >> it's about ten bucks a month on a $100,000 mortgage. all right. >> but the good news is, this could actually spur those home buyers who have been on the fence like looking at it. it's all psychological. when prices are falling, interest rates are low, you're thinking is it going to get any lower? when you see that first jump, like your reaction, ashleigh, it's a big one. i better jump on that house i've been eyeing before rates get any higher. that could get people buying which could help us pare down that glut of homes. we saw 11 months during the peak of the recession. we're now at a six month supply. you want to get that supply down so you can keep the home prices firming up instead of falling. >> qualifying also is the problem. in this economy it's difficult. >> it doesn't affect the standards. it's still tight but -- >> i call it the technical business term is lighting the fire under your butt. >> exactly. kicking the butt. >> there you go. patricia wu, nice to see you. >> bonnie snyder is doing the duty for rob marciano. >> good morning. we're looking at some rain coming across the southeast. this is actually good news. everybody wants relief from the pollen so the rain coming in will make a difference. it'll help wash out the air and give us some better air quality. also some rain moving into st. louis this morning. nothing too heavy. lighter showers over chicago. chicago's really seen some incredible weather. nine days in a row of record highs. nine days. as you can see, yesterday was no exception all the way into the 80s for much of parts of the midwest and columbus cleveland, even into delaware and central park hit a record high of 78. that's not at all feeling like march weather. on the big picture of today's forecast, we still have mild conditions. notice the front pulling up that moisture from the gulf. that will trigger showers and thunderstorms across places in the mid south and southeast. if you're traveling, watch out for delays. it will usher in cool air for the up coming weekend. airport delays, chicago showers. today will be the first day in nine days you won't break a record. we're also looking at delays in philadelphia due to fog. across the south and midwest, you do fog and possibly thunderstorms. >> thanks, bonny. still ahead, a mystery solved. what made a wisconsin town go boom in the night? we finally have some answers. and extreme road rage ends with a pedestrian pinned between a car and a wall after a brawl. >> amazing. kim kardashian, usually in the news for glamor stuff. this time flower bombed. look at that picture. you don't want that on the who wore it best list. the authorities had to be called in on this one too. we'll explain what happened and how it was resolved. you're watching "early start." turn left. the passat is one of nine volkswagen models named a 2012 iihs top safety pick. not that we'd ever brag about it. turn right. come on, nine. turn left. hit the brakes. huh? how'd that get there? 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[ female announcer ] new aveeno skin strengthening body cream helps transform dry, thinning skin, by strengthening its moisture barrier, for improved texture and elasticity in 2 weeks. reveal healthy, supple skin. aveeno skin strengthening. hi and good morning, atlanta. a lovely tower cam shot of your fine city at 66 degrees. >> fine city. i like that. >> i do like atlanta. 66 ain't bad. it ain't half bad at 20 past 5:00. you are going to get some thunderstorms and 77 degrees a little later on today. so there's that. >> still a beautiful town. time to check the stories that are making news this morning. about 8,000 people took to the streets of sanford, florida, last night. take a look at that. doesn't that look like more than 8,000 people. they're demanding justice for trayvon martin. they want the neighborhood watch captain who shot and killed the unarmed teenager arrested. earlier yesterday the beleaguered chief of police in sanford stepped down temporarily. the governor appointed a new state attorney to handle the investigation now. newly released toxicology reports reveal that cocaine did play a factor in whitney houston's death, although coroners say houston ultimately died from drowning in the bathtub. marijuana, xanax, benadryl also found in her system. but the coroner says those drugs did not play a role in her death. and look very closely at your screen here. see that black object in the sky? that is a syrian military helicopter and there are little flickers coming from it. it's firing allegedly at anti-government protesters on the ground. some of those protesters are reportedly directors in the syrian army. if you look closely, you can actually see return fire. the u.n. security council has called for an end of the bloodshed. edward avery pleaded gilley to child sexual abuse. 245 plea coming days before avery was to stand trial in a landmark case involving monsignor william lynn. the first u.s. catholic church official charged with concealing priest sex abuse. the 69-year-old avery was immediately sentenced to two and a half to five years. wild road rage and it was all caught on camera. look at this. two women. one's a driver, one's a pedestrian throwing down in a parking lot in california. the pedestrian you can see reaching into the van punching the driver repeatedly. the driver runs the pedestrian down with her vehicle, pins her up against a wall. the pedestrian was treated for non-life threatening injuries. the driver was arrested. >> i should hope so. lord. i wonder if that's over a parking spot. you know how it often is. >> wouldn't that be terrible? >> yes, it always is. any kind of road rage is terrible. look at those pictures. they sure tell the story. guys, check it out. fans of the hunger games, they've been lining up from coast to coast to catch the midnight showing of this highly, highly anticipated movie. it's the first adaptation of the wildly popular book trilogy by suzanne collins. "the hunger games" is expected to break box office records, big time break them, for a march movie release. there are some bleary eyes on staff today because of that midnight showing. also for an expanded look at all of our top stories, you can head to our blog. cnn.com/earlystart. it is 21 minutes past the hour. we're getting an early read on your local news making national headlines. we have stories from san diego and to the milwaukee journal sentinel. we'll start at san diego, the tribune. u.c. san diego finds genes that are possibly linked to autism. they're saying that the problem begins during the second and third trimester of pregnancy. neuroscientists say many genes miss fire and produce too many brain cells affecting a child's social and communication skills. the findings lend hope that eventually drugs could be engineered to help remodel the brain. >> i'm curious about that. in what respect? in utero or once that child is born that they can actually reprogram that child? >> i don't know. i would suspect that it's something that's going to happen in utero