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Nancy Grace

Private Eye Says Anna Nicole`s Son Dreamed of her Death

Aired March 14, 2007 - 20:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

JANE VELEZ-MITCHELL, GUEST HOST: Tonight, breaking news, eviction action in the Bahamas. The legal battle over a seaside mansion once the home of covergirl Anna Nicole Smith heads to a Bahamas court. Smith`s former companion says he owns the million-dollar house and it was never, never the superstar model`s to begin with, and now he wants Anna Nicole`s companion/lawyer out of there. Will Howard K. Stern and Anna Nicole`s 6- month-old baby girl get evicted and be forced out on the streets? And the paternity dispute heats up over little Dannielynn, who could inherit a fortune of $475 million.
Also tonight, a 6-year-old vanishes into thin air in this Georgia neighborhood. Now, a flurry of new developments, multiple arrests, suspects named, but still no sign of the little boy. Where is Christopher Barrios, Jr.? The search by land, air and water.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Last night, about 8:00 o`clock or so, David Edenfield (ph), the father of George Edenfield, gave us a statement that he has personal knowledge about Christopher`s disappearance and his involvement in the disappearance.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I told him, Don`t go near this man. I said, He can hurt you bad, baby, and you may never see Grandma and Daddy again.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That led us to the name of a friend, a Donald Dale (ph), that we picked up and asked to come in for questioning. We questioned him, and then he gave us a statement as having personal knowledge about his involvement in the disappearance of Christopher.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I said, Stay away from him. You might think he`s a nice man, but he`s not. I said, Stay away from him and stay out of his yard.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That (INAUDIBLE) led to, Not only do we have personal knowledge of it, but we actually know where he is. They told us (INAUDIBLE) that`s what`s going on now. Last night (INAUDIBLE) we would expect to find Christopher back here buried (ph).

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He`s a quiet, shy type kid. He wouldn`t harm anybody. For this to be happening to this young boy is just unimaginable. There`s been a lot of people here and they`ve searched everywhere. It may be that he`s not in this area. Maybe there`s other areas that we may need to move on to and search. Until Christopher finds (ph) up, I`m not going to ever stop searching.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Good evening. I`m Jane Velez-Mitchell, in tonight for Nancy Grace. First, the Anna Nicole Smith legal battles.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

NANCY GRACE, HOST: Is it true that your client had to have an injunction ordered against him to change the locks back so Stern could get in?

GODFREY "PRO" PINDER, ATTORNEY FOR G. BEN THOMPSON: No, the injunction was not to change the locks back. The injunction was to maintain the status quo until the 26th of February, 2007, when it will be decided before (INAUDIBLE) decided the true owner of the house.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This private eye may have some important clues in the Anna Nicole Smith mystery. Did Anna`s son, Daniel, worry about his mother living in the Bahamas, cut off from the rest of the world?

JACK HARDING, PRIVATE INVESTIGATOR: He was concerned about the safety of his mother.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: A startling revelation from California private investigator Jack Harding. Harding says Daniel wanted him to investigate his mother`s relationship with her lawyer.

HARDING: He felt that this attorney, Stern, he was controlling his mother to the point like Svengali. He said that his mother is like a prisoner.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Harding`s suspicions were piqued even more last month after Anna died in Florida.

HARDING: It`s too soon to be a coincidence.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: I`m Jane Velez-Mitchell, in tonight for Nancy Grace. The latest on the hurricane of controversy over Anna Nicole Smith`s death and the wreckage she left behind. Tonight, a swirl of new developments from California to the Caribbean. In LA, the photographer who says that he is the real daddy of Anna Nicole Smith`s baby girl goes shopping for pink baby clothes and a crib.

Meanwhile, in the Bahamas, a crucial hearing over whether that same little girl should be kicked out of the mansion where she has spent the first six months of her life.

For the very latest on today`s big hearing on the big house, let`s go straight out to David Caplan, deputy New York bureau chief of "Star" magazine -- David.

DAVID CAPLAN, "STAR" MAGAZINE: All right. So the latest is, earlier today in Nassau, in the Bahamas, a hearing was held with the goal to evict Howard K. Stern and Dannielynn. This is a case being brought forth by Ben Thompson, who`s a South Carolina businessman, who says that he let Anna Nicole and Howard stay in the house just merely as sort of -- not a gift, but since they were in the Bahamas. Howard K. Stern, meanwhile, is arguing that, no, this house was a gift, and therefore Dannielynn -- it`s her house and that they should stay there. So this is going to be very interesting.

But the hearing -- it was closed to the public. The lawyers were very mum about it. It lasted two hours. And the judge said, Let`s talk about this again on Friday at 3:30 PM, which is very late in the day. And it was sort of very suspect because the courts really end their hearings in the Bahamas at, like, 4:00 o`clock. SO I don`t know what we`re going to see on Friday.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: You know, I want to talk to former New York state prosecutor Lisa Pinto about this because all we`re hearing in these cases is delay, delay, delay. From California, to the Caribbean, everybody`s just saying, yes, come back in a couple of days or a couple of weeks, and they don`t make a decision. What`s going on? This is ridiculous. Everybody`s following this case. Everybody in America has the details and could render a decision.

LISA PINTO, FORMER NEW YORK STATE PROSECUTOR: Well, Jane, they don`t want to look like jerks, like that judge in Florida did, so they`re taking two weeks, for example, in California to research their ruling and do the proper legal research.

But I think the issue here in this eviction isn`t a bad thing if Dannielynn is evicted from this house. I think she`s better of in this country. And frankly, if you look at it under contract law, which controls in the Bahamas, the same as it does here, there was no written contract that she was given the house. The deed was not recorded in her name. When it`s just a question of, "She said so, the statute of fraud governs, and it`s not enforceable without a writing.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: So Mike Brooks, former D.C. police officer, does it all boil down to the fact that she had a relationship with the immigration minister, who allegedly fast-tracked her residency?

MIKE BROOKS, FORMER D.C. POLICE, SERVED ON FBI TERRORISM TASK FORCE: Well, that`s another story in and of itself, Jane. But right now, I can tell you, I spoke with Godfrey "Pro" Pinder. He`s the attorney for G. Ben Thompson, who was actually at the hearing today. I spoke with him earlier, and he wasn`t saying much. He just said, basically, they started the process. But when I was in the Bahamas a couple of weeks ago, we spoke at length about this. And he is saying that G. Ben Thompson bought the house. It was a foreclosure. He bought it for right around $900,000. And his son-in-law, who handles most of his business dealings, Ford Shelly, went over to Anna Nicole with a promissory note.

Now, as -- they said, We`re basically going to bankroll this until you get your $435 million, then you can pay us back. He gave a promissory note to Anna Nicole Smith. And they`re saying -- their camp is saying that she ripped it up in a drunken rage. Now, they have -- they say they have the original paperwork because she just ripped up a copy. So you know, it remains to be seen. Hopefully, we`ll get to the end of this Friday, but things move slow in the Bahamas, Jane.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: I think they do. Pro Pinder, G. Ben Thompson`s attorney, is actually with us on the phone from Nassau, Bahamas, tonight. Good evening, sir. How are you?

GODFREY "PRO" PINDER, G. BEN THOMPSON`S ATTORNEY: I`m just fine, thank you. How are you?

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Doing well. I understand you were at the hearing but can`t talk about it. My question to you is, first of all, I understand that this house, if you get it back, could be put on the market for $10 million, so you could actually make a lot of money in the long run because it was worth about $1 million.

PINDER: Originally, it was bought for $1 million, but it was appraised at $3 million and -- but it`s now up for sale for $10 million.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: So you could end up, or your client could end up really making a lot of money, despite all the hassle that he has been through. Let me ask you a question because you may have the answer to this. In terms of other living arrangements for little Dannielynn, I think what everybody`s concerned about, beyond the technicalities of who owns the house, is where is this child going to end up? Now, is there another house that Anna Nicole Smith bought? What can you tell us about that?

PINDER: Yes, there is another house. That house is off Ramsley (ph) Drive in the Pearl (ph) Harbor area. And it`s being fixed up now. And eventually, I think they planned to live there.

Aside from that, much monies have been made recently by Mr. Stern with respect to the funeral and other matters such as that, and I think he can either rent, or even -- well, just another house for a short period of time, resell it or whatever. But he has enough monies to take care of Dannielynn. We don`t want to throw Dannielynn out of the house.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Well, you`re saying he has enough money. Let`s bring in the lawyers, Lisa Pinto, former New York state prosecutor, and Richard Herman, defense attorney. Let`s start with you, Richard. I mean, Anna Nicole Smith`s money is not necessarily his money. There`s this will, but it hasn`t been probated. So how can he and Dannielynn automatically move to this house that Anna Nicole Smith owned?

RICHARD HERMAN, DEFENSE ATTORNEY: I think Mr. Pinder`s referring to monies that Stern may have made with respect to the funeral and respect to certain television stations paying him up-front monies. So he`s accumulated a war chest right now to use for legal fees and perhaps to buy or rent another home in the Bahamas.

You don`t need a filed deed to have an ownership. If you have a deed, that could determine ownership. If there was a gift, there`s elements for a gift, too. So it may not be a slam dunk for Mr. Pinder -- who looked great today, by the way, in his wig. I saw that.

(LAUGHTER)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: OK. Well, let`s move on to another very, very serious issue, and that is the upcoming inquest into Daniel Smith`s death. That is scheduled to happen in the Bahamas in approximately two weeks` time.

We have with us tonight a man who has a very interesting story to tell. Jack Harding, you are a private investigator. Thank you for joining us. Let`s get right to the heart of it. I know we could talk for hours about this, but essentially, you`re saying Daniel contacted you and had some concerns. What specifically were those concerns? What`s the heart of the matter?

JACK HARDING, PRIVATE INVESTIGATOR: Well, he contacted me, and he was really concerned about his mother, someone taking control over his mother`s life, and that was Stern. He told me that he was afraid of Stern and that he was feeding his mother drugs and that he was acting like some kind of Svengali and that his mother was receiving some kind of mind-bending drug.

The boy was very concerned, and so I became concerned. And I didn`t take the case at that time because he said he was going to get back to me, and I hadn`t seen him for a couple of weeks since that time. And he did tell me that he had a nightmare, and this is what spurred him into talking to me, in that the nightmare was he saw his mother in a coffin.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: My gosh.

HARDING: And I had just remembered that in sort of reminiscing what he had said to me.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: All right, let`s jump in and get Caryn Stark, psychotherapist`s, reaction to, if this is true, if it`s all laid out, Daniel before his death in the summer coming to this private eye and saying he was worried about his mother possibly dying.

CARYN STARK, PSYCHOTHERAPIST: Well, it doesn`t surprise me. If you take a look at her lifestyle, even hearing the fact that she ripped up a deed in a drunken rage, this is a woman who led her life that way. And so I would understand completely if her son were worried about what happened to her and had that kind of premonition.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: All right. Let`s go to the phone lines. They are lighting up. Sherry from Arkansas. Your question, ma`am?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes, I was just wondering how Howard Stern and Larry Birkhead can say on the -- on -- on the news that they are the father, if they haven`t been tested.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Well, yes, that`s the big question. I mean, there`s apparently about a dozen men who have made some sort of claim in some way, shape or form that they could be the father.

Let`s go back to David Caplan, deputy New York bureau chief of "Star" magazine. I mean, let`s not forget that all of this is happening in the context of this paternity battle. We had a hearing in Los Angeles that was less than conclusive. And now this Friday, the day after tomorrow, aren`t we going to have another hearing on the paternity issue in the Bahamas?

CAPLAN: Yes. Absolutely. On Friday in Nassau, there`ll be a hearing at which, essentially, Larry Birkhead`s lawyer, Debra Opri, has said that, We expect a Bahamian judge to demand that Howard K. Stern present Dannielynn, as well as Howard, for DNA testing, so once and for all the real baby`s father can be proven. And it`s really that simple. They want the DNA. They want Dannielynn and Howard.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: You know, I want to ask Aidan Pickering, investigative reporter, how all of these cases dovetail because they are enmeshed. They overlap. You have this paternity battle. Then you have, of course, the inquest coming up into Daniel`s death. Then you have us waiting for the toxicology and the final autopsy results on Anna Nicole Smith`s death. We understand that police from the Bahamas have been coming up to Florida and talking with law enforcement in Florida. So obviously, there`s a possibility here of some kind of linkage. But the question is, what is that linkage?

AIDAN PICKERING, INVESTIGATIVE REPORTER: Well, Jane, it`s a great question. And you`ve got, basically, you know, a death in the Bahamas, a death in Florida. And how do these two sets of investigations come together? Well, really, the nightmare scenario for Howard K. Stern is this upcoming inquest at the end of the month because unlike an American proceeding, this is a full judicial inquest, where people are going to have to give evidence. And there are going to be live witnesses. And Howard K. Stern is going to have to give evidence under oath.

And if you think about it, you know, there are a lot of people who are suspicious of his behavior, and here he is under oath, having to tell all about what happened. We got a flavor of it in the Broward County proceeding. But this is an occasion where an examining magistrate is really going to get into the nitty-gritty about where he was, what he was doing, what drugs were around and who gave whom what at what time.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Yes, there is so much here. We have only gotten to the tip of the iceberg in terms of all the controversies and how they interconnect. Stay right there. We`ll have more in just a second.

To tonight`s "Case Alert." A Miami jury says death penalty for a convicted child sex predator and murderer, the recommendation handed down today for John Evander Couey, found guilty last week of the kidnap, sexual assault and murder of the beautiful little girl in the pink hat, 9-year-old Jessie Lunsford. Couey, already a convicted sex predator, was back on the streets when Jessie went missing in February of 2005. The judge to make a final decision within weeks on whether Couey will serve life behind bars or die by lethal injection.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: A majority of the jury, by a vote of 10 to 2, advise and recommend to the court that it impose the death penalty upon John Evander Couey for the murder of Jessica Marie Lunsford.

MARK LUNSFORD, JESSIE`S FATHER: This is justice for Jessie. But not just Jessie. I am sure there`s other victims out there that may have felt like nothing ever -- that they didn`t get justice. If you crossed paths with Couey and he hurt you, today is justice for you.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Days after Daniel died, Harding says, he was visited by Bahamian detectives investigating the young boy`s death. He says they found his business card on Daniel`s body.

HARDING: They wanted to know why Danny had my card, and did I do an investigation in the Bahamas.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Harding`s suspicions were piqued even more last month after Anna died in Florida. And Harding says Daniel blames Stern for pushing him away.

HARDING: Danny didn`t like him. He was afraid of him.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: I`m Jane Velez-Mitchell, in tonight for Nancy Grace. It seems that all the controversies around Anna Nicole Smith`s life and death are converging. With key hearings scheduled for the coming days and weeks, will there soon be a major break in the case that will clear up the mystery surrounding cause of death and paternity?

Let`s go straight out to Dr. Jonathan Arden, who is a medical examiner, and talk a little bit about the fact that the Broward County medical examiner says that he will have the final autopsy report in, including the toxicology reports, in a couple of days. How could that affect the inquest into Daniel`s death in a couple of weeks?

DR. JONATHAN ARDEN, MEDICAL EXAMINER: Well, of course, that`ll be the key to see if there`s any possible linkage between the two deaths. Now, we know that he died from a drug intoxication, an overdose. There is strong suspicion his mother did, as well, and I think that`s likely going to be what we have revealed by the medical examiner. And so if they have died from the same combinations of drugs, for instance, then one might make the inference that perhaps they were getting them from the same person, from the same place.

You have to think, you know, about whether perhaps they were both being given the drugs against their will or surreptitiously. I don`t want to generate, you know, wild conspiracy theories, but as long as we`re concerned about perhaps a bad actor and two people who died from the similar or the same drugs, then you have to start considering all the options and all the possibilities like that.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: And Dave Caplan, "Star" magazine, give us sort of a recap of all the examples of possible drug use involving Anna Nicole Smith that we`ve heard, because there have been quite a few.

CAPLAN: Yes, I mean, there`s really been sort of, like, a smorgasbord here of drugs. Definitely morphine was a big, you know, favorite for Anna Nicole. We`re hearing she was definitely prescribed that -- Xanax, as well, antidepressants and other anti-anxiety pills...

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Did you say morphine? Because I thought it was methadone.

CAPLAN: (INAUDIBLE) Sorry. You`re right . It is -- well, "Star" magazine has a new exclusive today. I jumped the gun there. I should tell you that "Star" magazine exclusively learned, actually, this week that Anna Nicole -- that police are investigating that someone may have injected Anna Nicole Smith with Demerol, which is a morphine-like substance. And this is something police are looking at.

And this is very new, and it`s -- you know, it`s a big thing to really be talking about because we`ve heard in the past there`s been the methadone and all the antidepressants and anti-anxiety pills. So we now have this new drug that`s being out there, so now we`re hearing that police are looking to that, as well.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Wow, that`s a shocker. But of course, we can`t jump the gun, can we, Richard Herman. We have to be very careful. Nobody has said foul play in either of these deaths, and we have to be very careful about speculation.

HERMAN: Absolutely. You know, Jane, it`s reckless. Everybody`s pointing fingers at this Stern. Everyone`s convicting him right now. And it`s reckless to shoot this out there. She had prescription drugs prescribed to her by this quack doctor in California. That`s the guy that should be on the hot seat right now.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

DEBRA OPRI, LARRY BIRKHEAD`S ATTORNEY: We are continually challenging Howard K. Stern`s standing. We got another peg and a chip in our favor that he`s going to have to take a test ultimately here. That paternity test order will be forcefully -- it will be enforced. And Howard K. Stern`s presumed father status will be destroyed, I promise you that.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: I`m Jane Velez-Mitchell, in tonight for Nancy Grace. The wild Anna Nicole Smith case just keeps getting crazier with every new tidbit of information, and bombshells still to come. We just heard a bombshell from "Star" magazine, reporting that Demerol could have been involved, as well. Now, I have, and we have no independent confirmation of that at all, so we have to stress that.

But let`s go to medical examiner Dr. Jonathan Arden for a little explanation of these various drugs. I mean, how does Demerol differ from methadone?

ARDEN: Methadone and Demerol are both in the broad category we call opiates. These are the true narcotics that includes heroin, morphine, methadone, hydrocodone, Demerol and several others. And many of them are commonly used therapeutically. They all have the same mechanism of action.

And this is the interesting point here, if this is, indeed, what happened to Anna Nicole. Methadone is a very strong opiate, Demerol a medium strength one, but they act the same way and they can depress your ability to breathe. So having the two of them together could be a very dangerous combination that could be, in fact, a way that you die unexpectedly because of the depression of your breathing.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Lauren, Utah. The phone lines lighting up. What is your question, ma`am?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Hi, Jane. It just seems in the real world that Howard K. Stern would be drilled by police as to the details that only he knows because he was present during both those deaths. I want to know, is he being questioned secretly, or has he been questioned?

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Aidan Pickering, investigative reporter, I know the medical examiner talked to him.

PICKERING: Yes, the medical examiner talked to him, but I don`t believe that he`s been spoken to by police in a formal interview sense, no.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You have seen them among us. You have always suspected. They look human, but act very strange.

ANNA NICOLE SMITH, FORMER MODEL: (INAUDIBLE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Illegal aliens.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You were right!

SMITH: (INAUDIBLE) and gets away with it! I have something a little special, just for the occasion.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What is it, some kind of mind control serum?

SMITH: It`s much better. Mind control suppositories! (INAUDIBLE)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Whoa! That is a movie starring the late Anna Nicole Smith. "Illegal Aliens" will be released straight to DVD this May.

Again, Jane Velez-Mitchell sitting in tonight for Nancy Grace. What will happen to the daughter of the late Anna Nicole Smith? Will Dannielynn grow up to be a multimillionaire worth half a billion? Or will she grow up stuck in the shadow of her mother`s astoundingly complex life? Will she ever know who her real father is?

Tonight, that child, a 6-month-old baby girl, thankfully unaware she`s at the center of an international tug of war and an eviction battle. And, by the way, let`s go to Dave Caplan, deputy New York bureau chief for "Star" magazine, over this really fascinating aspect of the case, Larry Birkhead shopping for baby clothes, apparently pink baby clothes, and bought a crib.

Now, is that a P.R. move? Or do you think he really feels like, "I`m so confident of winning, I`m just going to make this nursery now"?

DAVID CAPLAN, "STAR" MAGAZINE: Well, it`s a great photo-op, it`s a great P.R. move. What`s better than seeing the doting dad at Babies R Us in Los Angeles? It doesn`t get sweeter, right?

But, you know, I think it`s a bit of move. But at the same time, listen, this is a guy who`s very confident that he`s the father. Most of us believe it. So at the same time, he`s getting ready to be a dad so he has to prepare the house. In his mind, I don`t think he sees Dannielynn being with Howard K. Stern in the Bahamas much longer. But definitely great move. I saw the photos of him, and I thought they were great. Definitely everyone was on Team Larry when they saw that.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: And there is a TV episode of a very well-known show that`s going to base an episode on Anna Nicole Smith. Tell us about that. Who is going to play Anna Nicole?

CAPLAN: Kristy Swanson, who used to be in "Skating with the Stars," and she was with Lloyd Eisler. She was a tabloid fixture, honestly, last year and she has been chosen to play Anna Nicole Smith in "CSI." And I think it will be great, because that`s a show that always pulls stories from the headlines, so you can bet that there`s going to be a lot of realistic features in the episode.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: All right. There she is, Kristy Swanson. Hmm, interesting. What do you think, viewers, for Anna Nicole Smith, Kristy Swanson?

And, you know, while we`re kind of tying up loose ends here, let`s go to Aidan Pickering to talk about the doctor, because, you know, he`s come under harsh criticism. We`re talking about the Studio City doctor who allegedly prescribed methadone for Anna Nicole Smith while she was pregnant. A California medical board is investigating him. What`s happening with that?

AIDAN PICKERING, "INSIDE EDITION": Well, there`s a medical board investigation, certainly, in my experience, take a long, long time to be completed. They have said that they are investigating him. Obviously, there`s questions over the methadone that was prescribed, and how -- whether it was for a correct therapeutic purpose, especially in view of the fact that it was prescribed apparently at a time when Anna Nicole Smith was pregnant. The California Medical Board say they`re investigating. That`s about as much as we know at this stage.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: All right. Let`s go to the phone lines. Loretta, Michigan, your question?

CALLER: Yes. I`d like to know, can Mr. Stern`s standing as a California attorney come into question if he does not cooperate with California`s request for a DNA sample?

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Let`s bring in the lawyers. Lisa Pinto, former New York state prosecutor, and Richard Herman, defense attorney, yes, I mean, he is a lawyer. How does that play into all of this?

LISA PINTO, FORMER PROSECUTOR: I`m so glad someone`s pointing the finger at Stern, because I`m happy to it. Sleazy move, number one, sleeping with his client, not writing a decent will, and now we`ve got him hanging on to the baby so that he can then argue to the judge, "Oh, I`m psychologically bonded with the child. She loves me, even if she`s not mine via paternity test. Really, she loves me and she thinks of me as the only father she has." And now you add this, he`s not cooperating. He won`t get disbarred, unfortunately, over this, but certainly it doesn`t smell good, does it?

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Do you want to defend him, Richard Herman?

RICHARD HERMAN, DEFENSE ATTORNEY: It`s ridiculous. Anna chose to be with this guy. She stayed with him. She lived with him while she was pregnant in the Bahamas, not Birkhead. She had nothing to do with Birkhead. In addition to that, he was there before the baby was born and after. And he was put on the birth certificate. And under Bahamian law, those facts just might trump the fact that Birkhead might be the biological father.

PINTO: Well, the under Family Law Reform Act of 1969, which is the...

(CROSSTALK)

PINTO: ... it is what they`re going to look to...

(CROSSTALK)

HERMAN: They don`t look to that in the Bahamas. Come on. It`s a sovereign nation. They don`t care about California law.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: All right, guys, you know what?

(CROSSTALK)

PINTO: ... British law. It`s the common law of England which is what they are persuaded by. And the issue is, is that the court can mandate paternity testing, even when one parent...

(CROSSTALK)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: I want to ask this question. The bottom line is, a lot of people are saying this is all about money. This child potentially stands to inherit $475 million. Now, Howard Stern is listed as the executor of the will, but that will hasn`t been probated. And you can`t be the executor and the beneficiary. So where does he -- under the worst-case scenario, people who are very suspicious of him, Lisa, where does he make money if he`s just the executor?

PINTO: You know, I`m looking to the Bahamian court to say, "Enough of the scandals, enough of phony ministers, enough of buying visas." Here we have a baby in crisis. She`s not a proper resident. Let`s do a paternity test. Let`s see who the real father is. And someone, for goodness`s sake, look into the best interests of the child, which is to be reunited with the grandmother, the real father...

(CROSSTALK)

HERMAN: The grandmother? Mommy dearest? Come on, she`s not going to the grandmother. Hey, Jane, here`s the situation. In the Bahamas, he was deemed in that will that he did not draft -- another lawyer drafted that will.

PINTO: But he was her attorney.

(CROSSTALK)

HERMAN: He was the executor. He was listed as a trustee.

(CROSSTALK)

HERMAN: And if he is deemed the custodial parent, Jane, he will control the entire estate. He`ll control everything.

PINTO: In the way he controlled the mother, letting drugs around the house.

(CROSSTALK)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: I think you`re agreeing, guys. I think you`re agreeing. You`re both saying that he has a financial interest, I think.

PINTO: Of course he does.

HERMAN: They all do, Jane, everyone. Birkhead does, too, please.

PINTO: I mean, these lawyers and doctors, sleeping with their clients, going partying with them, this was a strange world of an addict that we`re left to sort out the mess. And this poor child is not being treated...

(CROSSTALK)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Well, you raise a very important point. And let me bring psychotherapist Caryn Stark in on this. It seems that Anna Nicole had a couple of patterns, one, that when she needed someone from someone, and she`s not here to defend herself, so we have to acknowledge that, but she would turn up her professional relationship with a doctor or an immigration minister into a personal relationship.

And she also had a tendency to burn bridges with people like G. Ben Thompson, who she was involved with romantically, and then he helped her with the house, by then saying the house was a gift. Do you see any pattern in this? Because I`ve heard people even saying this is the kind of pattern that sometimes borderlines exhibit, not knowing where boundaries exist.

CARYN STARK, PSYCHOTHERAPIST: Well, borderline is a good definition. I like that, Jane, a lot, because, in truth, she does have that kind of behavior. It`s unpredictable. You really can`t make a commitment to one person. And her behavior will switch all the time.

You could also say that she had a lot of mood swings, but she was taking a lot of drugs. And, again, when you look at this baby, you really wonder, will there be someone there to take care of her who really have her best interests at heart. Just like Lisa said, what will become of this baby? She needs a good environment.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Yes. Pro Pinder, G. Ben Thompson`s attorney, I want you to weigh in on this, because you know this back story like no one else, being G. Ben Thompson`s friend. When did it turn sour? I mean, when did this very kind relationship between Ben and Anna go south?

GODFREY PINDER, ATTORNEY FOR ANNA`S LANDLORD: Well, I don`t think it really ever turned sour, but I think, at one point, it was requested that he put his name on the birth certificate, and he declined. And so she turned to Howard so that he could put his name on the birth certificate.

And I think maybe she resented the fact that he didn`t do as she requested, and so I believe that`s probably where it might have changed. But he was still prepared to help, and he still liked her very much.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Very quick question, Debra Opri, Larry Birkhead`s attorney, predicts this Friday the judge in the Bahamas will order a DNA test for Dannielynn. Do you agree, Mike Brooks?

MIKE BROOKS, FORMER D.C. POLICE: Absolutely. Absolutely I think it`s going to happen. It was a guardianship; now it`s a paternity action. And I think that`s what you`re probably going to see. But, again, things move slowly, but I think that will be the final outcome.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Friday, a very big day in this case. Thank you all.

When we come back, to Georgia, more arrests in the disappearance of 6- year-old Christopher Barrios, Jr. Stay there.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(NEWSBREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Last night, about 8:00 or so, David Edenfield, father of George Edenfield, gave us a statement that he has personal knowledge about Christopher`s disappearance and his involvement in his disappearance. Well, that led us to the name of the friend, a Donald Dale, that we picked up and asked him, and questioned him.

And then he gave us a statement as to having personal knowledge about his involvement in the disappearance of Christopher. That then led to -- not only do we have personal knowledge of it, but we actually know where he is. And they told us he was back here. That`s what`s going on now, last night, that we expect to find Christopher back here buried.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: I`m Jane Velez-Mitchell in tonight for Nancy Grace. A major break in the heart-wrenching case of 6-year-old Christopher Barrios, Jr., who disappeared near his Brunswick, Georgia, home on Thursday. Tonight, four people are under arrest in connection with this case.

In addition to the registered sex offender and neighbor who was picked up Friday, that man`s mother and father are now in custody, along with a friend of theirs. According to police, all four gave various accounts of where the boy`s body was, but a search of those locations has turned up nothing. So authorities are still hoping that somehow, some way, this child might still be alive.

Let`s go straight out to WJXT reporter Scott Johnson. Scott, what is the very latest?

SCOTT JOHNSON, WJXT REPORTER: Well, right now, there`s hundreds of people in cars out here just wrapping up a vigil for Christopher Barrios, Jr., these people out here, from all over southeast Georgia, and into Florida, hoping he can be found.

At the same time, investigators are at a nearby pond, about a mile north from where those suspects lived. They took two of the suspects down, we are told, to search this pond, and some dogs. At last report, they had not turned up anything, but they are still searching.

We`ve also been told a number of things, such as they still believe Christopher may be alive. And they have more than one piece of evidence that they took out of the trailer where the suspects lived. But they`re being somewhat elusive on what that evidence is at this point, not releasing it to the press.

A few other things, a tip came in that Christopher may have been seen at a nearby Dollar General near this area on Sunday. Now, that would have been two days after George Edenfield, the registered sex offender, was taken to jail on a probation violation. The person that this tipster described the boy as being with was a white male with long hair, so that`s a different description than the descriptions of the suspects we`ve received at this point. So no word on if this is a legitimate tip or not. Investigators, of course, following it up.

So they are continuing to search this water at this point, and that will probably be the big thing they do into the night. Of course, throughout the night, in recent days, since last Thursday, they`ve kind of given up at dark and then started over in the morning. But we`re waiting to see if they will continue throughout the night or if they find anything.

We`re live in southeast Georgia, Scott Johnson for CNN.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: All right. Well, everybody is hoping and praying that this little boy is somehow found alive and safe.

We want to mention that we did reach out and contact the public defender for George Edenfield to get his side of the story; that attorney declined to speak with us.

We want to clarify that none of these four individuals is charged with murder or abduction. Not the case: They face lesser charges at this point. George, probation violation. And the others, concealing the death of another person, obstruction of officer, and giving false statements.

Lisa Pinto, let`s talk about the criminal history, however, of George Edenfield, guilty of two counts of child molestation in 1997 involving two young male victims. Never served time, got probation.

PINTO: So frightening. Where was his parole officer? Why was he having unsupervised contact with a 6-year-old boy? The grandmother, apparently, knew that this guy -- I mean, this is Mark Lunsford`s worst nightmare all over again. This is why we need more federal law enforcement agents. We need more computer tracking. We have to crack down on these people.

There`s so much that is frightening here, the fact that he admits to being with the boy, the fact that this all-American family we saw...

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Yes. Now, we have Christopher Barrios, Sr., the father of the missing boy, on the phone.

First of all, thank you, sir, for joining us. You must know that all of us here at the NANCY GRACE show, our thoughts and prayers are with you. We hope your son is found alive, and we want to help.

Tell us about what`s happening in the community, because I understand people are really coming together around you, hundreds, and there was a vigil tonight.

CHRISTOPHER BARRIOS, SR., FATHER OF MISSING BOY: Yes. We had hundreds of people over here. We had a candlelight vigil for Christopher. We walked through the trailer park, and it`s really uplifting in such a bad time that, you know, so many people are coming through and lending a hand. And we`re searching day by day.

I am positive that my son`s going to come home. Even through all the bad rumors about the Edenfields and all that, I`m still -- in my heart, I believe my son is alive and that he`s coming home.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: What are authorities telling you? Because we understand that there is a search going on right now in the area of a pond, not too far from where you live.

BARRIOS: Well, the Edenfields, who stay across from my mom`s, they have repeated said that they have something to do with this. There`s four of them under arrest. They have changed their stories up, so I`m hoping that, you know, maybe they were lying about killing Christopher and that he is still with us.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Let`s pray that you are right.

Mike Brooks, former D.C. police, I don`t understand, maybe you can explain, they allegedly changed their stories. What`s the possible motivation for that? Why not just not say anything?

BROOKS: That`s just it. This is a real stellar cast of characters we`ve got here. I mean, this is unbelievable. But I tell you, you know, when you have some people like this -- and I spoke to a law enforcement source today who said that the story, the interrogation that Edenfield and Dale have been going through, it`s been all over the map, Jane. It`s just been unbelievable.

But they have been working these two very, very hard today. Investigators have them both separated under intense scrutiny. They`ve been hammering them with questions, and they`ve been playing them off each other. So that`s good. They`ve got the investigation going now.

The tip on the dollar store, I used to live in that area. The dollar store is not too far from the trailer park where they live. You know, there`s a lot of other stores around there that could have video cameras. I`m sure investigators are taking a look at that.

But the search at this pond right now, it`s about a mile north of the trailer park. The area down there, Jane, they probably will not be able to get the divers into that pond tonight, because you`ve got to take very, very caution, a lot of caution because of snakes and there`s also alligators, a lot of alligators in that area. Just for the safety of the divers, they probably would not go in tonight. I`d say secure it and go back in the morning and take a look.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Anytime you get someone who tells you something and it turns out that that doesn`t lead us to anything, that`s frustrating. But that`s the nature of what we do. It`s not the first time (INAUDIBLE) we ask ourselves, people actually lie to the police?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: I`m Jane Velez-Mitchell in tonight for Nancy Grace, as we track the horrifying disappearance of little Christopher Barrios, who disappeared Thursday near his Brunswick, Georgia, home. Now four people are in custody in connection with the case. But the big question: Where is the little boy?

We are very pleased to have with us Christopher Barrios, Sr., the father of the missing boy with us tonight. Sir, I know how tough this must be for you. I know that the little boy, your son`s, grandmother lived across the street from this family that had been arrested, and grandmother spoke to her grandson about this family.

What did she warn him about George Edenfield?

BARRIOS: She told him to avoid him at all costs. I did, too.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Because you knew his history as a registered sex offender?

BARRIOS: Yes, and also the way he would look at children as they would pass by. This guy was just totally odd.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: I know that you are suffering so much tonight, and I just want to say that we are really, really feeling your pain, and we pray and hope your little boy is found. Let`s hope that this child is found. Thank you so much for joining us.

Tonight, we remember Army Staff Sergeant Joshua Hager, just 29, from Broomfield, Colorado, killed in Iraq. On a yearlong tour of duty, Hager also served in Korea, receiving the Bronze Star medal. Hager loved outdoor activities with his 9-year-old son, including biking. Remembered as a born leader and a great husband, Hager leaves behind a grieving widow, Heather, a son, Bailey, and a proud mother, Lois. Joshua Hager, an American hero.

We`d like to thank our guests for their insights. Thanks to you at home for tracking these important cases. I`m Jane Velez-Mitchell in for Nancy Grace. Nancy`s back tomorrow night, 8:00 sharp Eastern. Until then, have a terrific and a safe evening.

END