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CNN Live Today
Interview With Derek Clay
Aired July 31, 2003 - 10:15 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: For the second time the family of this missing Indiana girl is victimized. This time allegedly by this woman who got their hopes up that the girl might be coming home, only for them to learn that it was a hoax.
Derek Clay, managing editor of "The Lebanon Reporter" newspaper joins us this morning to talk about this bizarre and heart breaking story. Derek, thanks for being with us.
DEREK CLAY, MANAGING EDITOR, "THE LEBANON REPORTER": Thank you for having me here this morning.
KAGAN: First let's talk about how and when your paper picked up the story. Did this woman also contact your paper?
CLAY: No. We were not contacted by the woman alleging to be Shannon Sherrill. We first found out about the incident from other media reports. And the way that we that followed up on the case immediately was to send reporters out to the Thorntown area and to start speaking with law enforcement officials.
We tracked down some information for our key story, the story that we broke about an arrest warrant being issued, simply by intuition and object serving things. Happen to be around the courthouse square and saw the judge in the case, who had issued the arrest warrant, coming out of the courthouse late after the courthouse had closed. It was kind of an unusual time.
And following that, I happen to see the state police officer's car who was in charge of the case sitting outside the courthouse. In turn I made a phone call to the judge at home and said, you know, Have you got something going on with the Sherrill case. He indicated to me at that time that, yes, they had a hearing but that it was sealed and that he was not allowed to speak with me about it, that I should contact the prosecutor.
I contacted Todd Meyer, the Boone County prosecutor, and asked him the same question. I said, Did you have a case or a hearing today in the Sherrill case? He told me basically, Yes, we did have a probable cause hearing, which led me then to believe that maybe an arrest warrant was issued. He told me the matter was sealed, he could not speak any further about it.
In contacting other sources, being the local media, we have sometimes access to sources that others might not have access to and people will speak to us. He ended up -- the source ended up telling me, Yes, I can confirm for you that an arrest warrant was issued in this case.
(CROSSTALK)
KAGAN: Let me just jump in here because when the word did leak out that there was this arrest warrant issued, I think a lot of people thought, oh, perhaps they're arresting the person who kidnapped (UNINTELLIGIBLE) this little girl all these years ago.
And it wasn't until this news conference when you saw the family up there on the dias, it appeared at the family was learning the news that this was a hoax. Police, I guess, say that actually they were told a few minutes before. But still, their devastation was just so painful, so painful to watch.
CLAY: My understanding is that the family found out just a short while before, when they arrived for the press conference at the local high school, at Western Boone High School. They called them into the office of the school, it appeared, and gave them the information at that time.
We confirmed in a story that we have in today's paper, Mike Sherrill, the father of the abducted girl, we have a story stating that he had actually left his home yesterday morning and put yellow ribbons out because he wanted to celebrate the fact that he was going to find his daughter at this press conference, headed down here to Lebanon to go to the press conference and ended up getting here only minutes before the press conference to find out that the devastating news that this was a hoax.
And his wife had tried to contact him by cell phone after she heard the news in an earlier report prior to the press conference, to let him know, to warn him in advance. We had that story in today's paper. And the devastation, like you said, was just so obvious on the face of the family members.
KAGAN: Yes, painful to watch. Hey, quickly, just tell me, does your paper have a Web site so if people want to pick up on your coverage?
CLAY: Yes. We can be seen on the Web at www.reporter.net.
KAGAN: Great. We will look for that. Thanks so much, Derek Clay with "The Lebanon Reporter."
CLAY: Thank you.
KAGAN: Appreciate you reporting here today. Thank you so much.
CLAY: You're welcome. Thank you.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
Aired July 31, 2003 - 10:15 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: For the second time the family of this missing Indiana girl is victimized. This time allegedly by this woman who got their hopes up that the girl might be coming home, only for them to learn that it was a hoax.
Derek Clay, managing editor of "The Lebanon Reporter" newspaper joins us this morning to talk about this bizarre and heart breaking story. Derek, thanks for being with us.
DEREK CLAY, MANAGING EDITOR, "THE LEBANON REPORTER": Thank you for having me here this morning.
KAGAN: First let's talk about how and when your paper picked up the story. Did this woman also contact your paper?
CLAY: No. We were not contacted by the woman alleging to be Shannon Sherrill. We first found out about the incident from other media reports. And the way that we that followed up on the case immediately was to send reporters out to the Thorntown area and to start speaking with law enforcement officials.
We tracked down some information for our key story, the story that we broke about an arrest warrant being issued, simply by intuition and object serving things. Happen to be around the courthouse square and saw the judge in the case, who had issued the arrest warrant, coming out of the courthouse late after the courthouse had closed. It was kind of an unusual time.
And following that, I happen to see the state police officer's car who was in charge of the case sitting outside the courthouse. In turn I made a phone call to the judge at home and said, you know, Have you got something going on with the Sherrill case. He indicated to me at that time that, yes, they had a hearing but that it was sealed and that he was not allowed to speak with me about it, that I should contact the prosecutor.
I contacted Todd Meyer, the Boone County prosecutor, and asked him the same question. I said, Did you have a case or a hearing today in the Sherrill case? He told me basically, Yes, we did have a probable cause hearing, which led me then to believe that maybe an arrest warrant was issued. He told me the matter was sealed, he could not speak any further about it.
In contacting other sources, being the local media, we have sometimes access to sources that others might not have access to and people will speak to us. He ended up -- the source ended up telling me, Yes, I can confirm for you that an arrest warrant was issued in this case.
(CROSSTALK)
KAGAN: Let me just jump in here because when the word did leak out that there was this arrest warrant issued, I think a lot of people thought, oh, perhaps they're arresting the person who kidnapped (UNINTELLIGIBLE) this little girl all these years ago.
And it wasn't until this news conference when you saw the family up there on the dias, it appeared at the family was learning the news that this was a hoax. Police, I guess, say that actually they were told a few minutes before. But still, their devastation was just so painful, so painful to watch.
CLAY: My understanding is that the family found out just a short while before, when they arrived for the press conference at the local high school, at Western Boone High School. They called them into the office of the school, it appeared, and gave them the information at that time.
We confirmed in a story that we have in today's paper, Mike Sherrill, the father of the abducted girl, we have a story stating that he had actually left his home yesterday morning and put yellow ribbons out because he wanted to celebrate the fact that he was going to find his daughter at this press conference, headed down here to Lebanon to go to the press conference and ended up getting here only minutes before the press conference to find out that the devastating news that this was a hoax.
And his wife had tried to contact him by cell phone after she heard the news in an earlier report prior to the press conference, to let him know, to warn him in advance. We had that story in today's paper. And the devastation, like you said, was just so obvious on the face of the family members.
KAGAN: Yes, painful to watch. Hey, quickly, just tell me, does your paper have a Web site so if people want to pick up on your coverage?
CLAY: Yes. We can be seen on the Web at www.reporter.net.
KAGAN: Great. We will look for that. Thanks so much, Derek Clay with "The Lebanon Reporter."
CLAY: Thank you.
KAGAN: Appreciate you reporting here today. Thank you so much.
CLAY: You're welcome. Thank you.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
