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Laci Peterson's Family Screens Made-For-TV Movie on Her Disappearance, Death

Aired February 12, 2004 - 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: If you were with us earlier this week, you saw we had actor Dean Cain on. He plays the character of Scott Peterson in the upcoming "USA Today" (sic) cable television movie, "The Perfect husband: the Laci Peterson Story."
And as we mentioned earlier, the movie premieres tomorrow night. And it already is seeing some criticism. Joining us to talk about that, Harvey Levin, executive producer of TV's "Celebrity Justice." Harvey, good morning.

HARVEY LEVIN, "CELEBRITY JUSTICE": Hi, Daryn.

KAGAN: You just have to feel for Laci Peterson's family. A great sound bite there, a great point from her stepfather saying we should be celebrating our grandson's first birthday, not going through a murder trial. And now they have to watch this television movie.

LEVIN: Well, they do. And, clearly, it's painful. And I think there are two issues here. One is taste and one is whether it will taint the jury.

As for taste, it makes me uncomfortable, too. As for tainting the jury, though, Daryn, I just don't think that any one movie or even any one news story taints a jury in a case like this.

I have been in so many court rooms where you have so much publicity. And when the judge sets the ground rules, it basically overtakes and overpowers everything else that the jury has heard before.

It's not that they're going to forget what they've seen, but most jurors really listen to the judge -- partly, I think, out of fear.

KAGAN: But on the matter of taste, does this family have any recourse?

LEVIN: No, because, look, this is a public trial and there's a lot of license that people get in public trials.

I know that there were legal actions involved with Jessica Lynch in terms of whether she had a right to participate in a story. That does not seem like they were talking about. Just in terms of bad taste, you can't get sued for that. It's just not going to happen here.

I think, you know, their one recourse -- and this may sound harsh -- but their one recourse is certainly not to watch it. But in terms of they're worried that it might affect the jury I don't think that's going to happen, Daryn.

KAGAN: Just a sign of what strange time we live in here. You have the show "Celebrity Justice." Usually we wouldn't talk about this because they were an ordinary couple in Modesto, California. And yet Scott Peterson and now Laci Peterson also have become celebrities just by the nature of the coverage of the trial.

LEVIN: Well you know this is a new world we live in. And part of it is 24-hour news where people -- you can almost serialize these cases like a real life soap opera. I mean that's really what soap operas are on television. That's what people see.

But in real life -- and you can't beat real life. And when you're able to -- if I can say it, get your fix every day, or even every afternoon, it becomes something that sucks in the viewer.

And I think that's why we're seeing this. It hasn't happened until the last five or six years. And I don't think it's coincidental that the onslaught of news and information is changing things.

KAGAN: Quickly, somebody who no one will dispute as a celebrity, Michael Jackson. Any update in that case?

LEVIN: Yes. There are two guys who we first told you about, Vinnie Amen and Frank Tyson who worked for Michael Jackson and were involved in handling the accuser's family at the Neverland Ranch.

We know that sheriffs' investigators in Santa Barbara have been in touch with these guys through their representative, their legal representative. And have essentially threatened that unless they cooperate with authorities they could be charged with obstruction of justice, even kidnapping for allegedly intimidating the family of this boy.

Right now I'm told directly by these kids that they are not going to cooperate with authorities, at least for now. And they believe Michael Jackson is innocent.

KAGAN: Harvey Levin, thanks for joining us from Southern California. Appreciate it.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com





Disappearance, Death>


Aired February 12, 2004 - 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: If you were with us earlier this week, you saw we had actor Dean Cain on. He plays the character of Scott Peterson in the upcoming "USA Today" (sic) cable television movie, "The Perfect husband: the Laci Peterson Story."
And as we mentioned earlier, the movie premieres tomorrow night. And it already is seeing some criticism. Joining us to talk about that, Harvey Levin, executive producer of TV's "Celebrity Justice." Harvey, good morning.

HARVEY LEVIN, "CELEBRITY JUSTICE": Hi, Daryn.

KAGAN: You just have to feel for Laci Peterson's family. A great sound bite there, a great point from her stepfather saying we should be celebrating our grandson's first birthday, not going through a murder trial. And now they have to watch this television movie.

LEVIN: Well, they do. And, clearly, it's painful. And I think there are two issues here. One is taste and one is whether it will taint the jury.

As for taste, it makes me uncomfortable, too. As for tainting the jury, though, Daryn, I just don't think that any one movie or even any one news story taints a jury in a case like this.

I have been in so many court rooms where you have so much publicity. And when the judge sets the ground rules, it basically overtakes and overpowers everything else that the jury has heard before.

It's not that they're going to forget what they've seen, but most jurors really listen to the judge -- partly, I think, out of fear.

KAGAN: But on the matter of taste, does this family have any recourse?

LEVIN: No, because, look, this is a public trial and there's a lot of license that people get in public trials.

I know that there were legal actions involved with Jessica Lynch in terms of whether she had a right to participate in a story. That does not seem like they were talking about. Just in terms of bad taste, you can't get sued for that. It's just not going to happen here.

I think, you know, their one recourse -- and this may sound harsh -- but their one recourse is certainly not to watch it. But in terms of they're worried that it might affect the jury I don't think that's going to happen, Daryn.

KAGAN: Just a sign of what strange time we live in here. You have the show "Celebrity Justice." Usually we wouldn't talk about this because they were an ordinary couple in Modesto, California. And yet Scott Peterson and now Laci Peterson also have become celebrities just by the nature of the coverage of the trial.

LEVIN: Well you know this is a new world we live in. And part of it is 24-hour news where people -- you can almost serialize these cases like a real life soap opera. I mean that's really what soap operas are on television. That's what people see.

But in real life -- and you can't beat real life. And when you're able to -- if I can say it, get your fix every day, or even every afternoon, it becomes something that sucks in the viewer.

And I think that's why we're seeing this. It hasn't happened until the last five or six years. And I don't think it's coincidental that the onslaught of news and information is changing things.

KAGAN: Quickly, somebody who no one will dispute as a celebrity, Michael Jackson. Any update in that case?

LEVIN: Yes. There are two guys who we first told you about, Vinnie Amen and Frank Tyson who worked for Michael Jackson and were involved in handling the accuser's family at the Neverland Ranch.

We know that sheriffs' investigators in Santa Barbara have been in touch with these guys through their representative, their legal representative. And have essentially threatened that unless they cooperate with authorities they could be charged with obstruction of justice, even kidnapping for allegedly intimidating the family of this boy.

Right now I'm told directly by these kids that they are not going to cooperate with authorities, at least for now. And they believe Michael Jackson is innocent.

KAGAN: Harvey Levin, thanks for joining us from Southern California. Appreciate it.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com





Disappearance, Death>