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Nancy Grace

Videotape Child Rape Suspect Stiles Apprehended

Aired October 16, 2007 - 20:00   ET

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


NANCY GRACE, HOST: Breaking news tonight. In one of the single most shocking cases of child abuse uncovered, a 3-year-old little girl the victim of a brutal sex assault, an assault caught on videotape. After police finally locate the unidentified child in Las Vegas, an urgent APB -- all points bulletin -- issued by Nevada police and the feds for a suspect, 37-year-old Chester Stiles, a known survivalist, typically armed to the hilt. Well, tonight, pay dirt! An arrest goes down.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: After a nationwide manhunt, police in Las Vegas arrested 37-year-old Chester Arthur Stiles late last night. He`s seen on a sex tape that surfaced last month in Nevada, Stiles with a then 3-year-old girl. Police pulled him over last night in Henderson, Nevada. His car had no license plates.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: When police officers arrested Chester Stiles, they say he was calm and cooperative. And then he told them something they`ll never forget.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He finally told us, Hey, I`m Chester Stiles. I`m the guy you`re looking for. And that`s when he said, I`m sick of running.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Chester Stiles was booked into the Clark County detention center, facing a number of felony counts, 21 to be exact. Many people say they`re thankful he is not on the run anymore.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GRACE: And tonight: Music superstar Britney Spears`s string of wild, erratic behavior culminates when she turns herself into police on a hit and run, this on the heels of losing custody of her two toddler boys. As Spears`s legal troubles mount, will this hit and run be the final straw when it comes to ever getting her children back?

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Britney Spears turned herself in to police over an August fender bender. You`ll recall that story. The Web site Celebtv.com caught these pictures of Spears in a fluorescent pink wig just before she surrendered last night, all smiles. She reported to a Van Nuys police station and left about 45 minutes later sporting a different do. Spears was booked on misdemeanor counts of hit and run and driving without a valid license. Each count carries a maximum penalty of six months in jail or $1,000 fine. She hit another car in a parking lot, and the paparazzi caught the wreck on video.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GRACE: Pink wig? OK.

And tonight: A beautiful 3-year-old little girl, baby Maddy, reportedly snatched during a luxury resort vacation, her parents at a dinner party a full football field length away, leaving baby Maddy and her twin siblings home alone. Police name Maddy`s own parents prime suspects. Headline tonight: Maddy`s mom makes it all about her. She`s upset, claiming she, Maddy`s mother, is being targeted by police and press. Why? She says because of her looks. Word to the wise, Mommy. You better worry about a bloody footprint cops have just released and new DNA reports. As we go to air tonight, police conducting all new searches at that luxury resort.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The parents of baby Madeleine McCann, reportedly kidnapped from a holiday resort, remain suspects in their little girl`s disappearance. Under intense scrutiny, Kate and Gerry McCann continue to search for their baby girl and strongly deny they have anything to do with her disappearance. Kate McCann even goes as far to say she`s being persecuted because of her looks. According to UK reports, Madeleine`s grandmother says her daughter, Kate, believes if she weighed more, had bigger breasts and appeared more maternal, people would be more sympathetic. One hundred and sixty-six days later, Madeleine McCann is still missing.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GRACE: Good evening. I`m Nancy Grace. I want to thank you for being with us. First, breaking news. Nevada PD close in on a man wanted in one of the most heinous cases of child abuse uncovered, a 3-year-old little girl the victim of a brutal sex assault all on videotape.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We have 21 counts pending against Mr. Stiles. These counts all stem from viewing the tape. We established a team to include the district attorney`s office, police department, FBI, and as we viewed the tape, identified each and every count against this child committed by Mr. Stiles.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This case goes back to a 4-year-old videotape that was found in the desert. And it shows a little girl being raped. And we when we say a little girl, I mean she really is not much older than a baby. Now, one of the detectives who saw the tape said it was one of the most horrible things he had ever seen in his life.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GRACE: When you hear about this arrest, you`re never going it believe how this guy, the subject of a federal search, as well as a Nevada PD search, was finally found.

Let`s go out to Kristin Flowers, news anchor at KXNT AM 840. How did they finally catch this guy?

KRISTIN FLOWERS, KXNT AM 840: Well, they found him last night around 7:00 o`clock in Henderson. They found a white Buick station wagon, and it didn`t have any plates on it, so Henderson police pulled the car over. The man inside actually gave him a California license, and they looked at the license, they looked that driver, it didn`t match up. They started to ask him some questions. The driver started to get a little panicky. They finally asked for his Social Security number, and at that point, Chester Arthur Stiles said, I`m the man you`re looking for. I`m Chester Arthur Stiles. I`m sick of running.

GRACE: You know, to Mike Brooks, I just got to say, on top of videoing himself, molesting a 3-year-old little girl in every way imaginable, hasn`t he ever heard of Tim McVeigh? Don`t you remember how McVeigh got caught, how so many others like him before him have gotten caught? This guy driving around without a tag and somebody else`s ID? Hello!

MIKE BROOKS, FORMER D.C. POLICE, CNN LAW ENFORCEMENT ANALYST: Just good old-fashioned police work, Nancy. This is just a basic traffic stop, no tags, expired license that didn`t even look like him.

I tell you, I want everybody to take a look at this picture, Nancy, everyone across the country. If you recognize this man having done anything, having even run across him, please let the police know because if he did it once, we know he`s probably done it many, many other times.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We didn`t believe his story or who he was. He finally told us, Hey, I`m Chester Stiles. I`m the guy you`re looking for. And at that time, he said, I`m sick of running.

I was very pleased that we got to meet off the street like that (INAUDIBLE) suspected of doing what he did.

I asked the driver what his Social Security number was, at which time he said he couldn`t remember. And from my training and experience, that sounded a little suspicious, too. So I -- upon further questioning, the gentleman said that he was Mr. Stiles, a person wanted -- or on "America`s Most Wanted," and so he come out with his name.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GRACE: That is a spokesperson with the Henderson, Nevada, Police Department. As you have heard by now, Chester Arthur Stiles, age 37, has been arrested, this after a videotape came to light of a grown man videotaping himself molesting a 3-year-old little girl in every way imaginable. There he is, Chester Arthur Stiles. And here`s a pixilated photo that he took during the molestation of this 3-year-old little girl. Throughout the molestation, which lasted for a long period of time, the child didn`t cry, she didn`t scream out, she had no affect whatsoever.

To Ed Miller with "America`s Most Wanted." Ed, the guy said, I`m tired of running. He didn`t run that far. He was, like, in the next town over.

ED MILLER, "AMERICA`S MOST WANTED": Absolutely. Henderson is just outside of Las Vegas. You know, this is almost identical to what happened to Warren Jeffs, remember? He was caught the same way, with bad tags just outside of Las Vegas. So again -- and how stupid can you get? He was driving the car that we said on "America`s Most Wanted" he was last seen in. We also said that he may have had his hair grown long. I mean, most people -- most crooks and most bad guys, fugitives, they, like, shave their head, they dye their hair, they try to look different. This guy, either out of arrogance or a thought that, you know, he was never going to be caught, he didn`t change a thing.

GRACE: Joining us tonight is a very special guest. We are taking your calls. With me, Elaine Thomas. This is the ex-girlfriend of the suspected molester, Chester Stiles. And you know, Elaine Thomas has been working with the police. She has been cooperating. She`s proof that you - - one person, can make a difference in our justice system. Ms. Thomas, thank you for being with us.

ELAINE THOMAS, STILES`S FORMER GIRLFRIEND: Thank you, Nancy.

GRACE: You know, Elaine, I have looked back over cases that I have prosecuted, cases I have covered, and I have always wondered, was there a warning sign? Was there a red bell of alarm going off in the back of these people`s minds that they just ignored, they didn`t catch it? What about Chester Stiles? Did you ever get a hint that something was very, very wrong?

THOMAS: I really didn`t, Nancy. I knew that he had had legal problems in the past. I had always been led to believe they were a little bit more minor than what they were actually -- what they actually...

GRACE: What they were.

THOMAS: Right, more of a wild youth type of a thing versus anything serious. I didn`t have a problem with that, per se, in the sense of -- he wasn`t that way when he was with me.

GRACE: What did he lead you to believe his legal problems had been?

THOMAS: He said that he had resisted arrest, carrying a concealed weapon without a permit. But he was a weapons enthusiast, and I had never seen him mishandle them in the sense of, you know, he didn`t leave them lying around, he didn`t -- he didn`t carry one on him. It was more, you know, he liked to have a gun in the house type of a thing. He -- I`m trying to remember. He said something that there was something about a stolen vehicle that was actually just a borrowed vehicle and then got reported as stolen.

GRACE: You know what, Elaine?

THOMAS: It all seemed very minor.

GRACE: Elaine, I have talked to so many people, men and women alike, typically women, they are hard-working, they`re educated, they`re articulate, they`re attractive, all just like you, and they really and truly did not get a warning sign. They really didn`t. And then they torture themselves for years on, thinking, Why didn`t I see this? I could have done something about it. You, in fact, did do something about it. You helped police.

THOMAS: Yes, Nancy.

GRACE: Tell me.

THOMAS: Well, when the enhanced photos came out on the news, when I realized that it definitely was him, I knew that there was really nothing else that I could do. How could I not tell them who that man was? That little girl suffered unimaginable things, and I knew for a fact it was him. The pictures...

GRACE: Oh, my -- I can`t even imagine, Ms. Thomas, when you first saw that video on television, what went through your mind. I want to hear, were you walking by the TV? Were you sitting on the sofa, eating some popcorn? Were you at work and it was playing in the background?

THOMAS: I was actually...

GRACE: Where did you see it?

THOMAS: It was on the 11:00 o`clock news. I was in my bedroom. I was playing on my computer, and I had the local news on the TV and it was just kind of running in the background. I wasn`t paying a whole lot of attention to it until the pictures flashed across the screen and they showed the picture of him from the waist up.

GRACE: Oh, Lord!

THOMAS: And I screamed.

GRACE: Oh, my gosh! You screamed. You`re sitting -- let me get this visually. You`re sitting on your bed, I guess. I always sit on the bed, I`m on the computer. You look up and you see this and scream.

THOMAS: Yes.

GRACE: OK, then what happened?

THOMAS: My roommate came in and confirmed that I was not insane and that it was definitely him. And I felt very physically ill. I was hyperventilating a little bit. And after a few minutes of calming myself down and my roommate saying, Elaine, what are you going to do? What are you going to do? And I said, Well, I need to turn him in, and I need to talk to somebody to find out the best way to do that.

I didn`t want to be an anonymous tip on a tip line and have it take couple of days or a couple of weeks to get to the information that I had because I was sure. It wasn`t a "It might be," you know, "It kind of looks like" -- no, it was definitely him.

So I called my friend, Conrad Claus, who is an attorney here in Vegas, and he is a kind enough gentleman to take my calls at midnight, and let him know that I knew who was on the tape and that I wanted to talk to somebody, but that I was very afraid because Chet has always had access to my life. We have stayed good friends long past the time that we dated.

GRACE: Why did you guys break up?

THOMAS: Differences of lifestyle choice, is the best answer. He wanted to live a little bit...

GRACE: I don`t know what that means.

THOMAS: That means he wanted to live a little bit on the edge of the law. He wanted to smoke pot, grow pot, and I can`t live like that.

GRACE: Oh, no, no, no, no, no. The last thing you need is the feds in a helicopter over your back yard, looking at some pot plants, all right? OK. So you broke up, but you stayed on good terms.

THOMAS: Stayed on good terms. You know, he had always treated me well. I can`t say that he didn`t. I`m not saying we didn`t have our fights, but he always -- you know, he always held open doors. And we could have -- we could talk about anything. I enjoyed his company in general.

GRACE: OK, what was his personality? Was he upbeat? Was he quiet and morose? Was he one of those angry guys that sit in the corner and brood, and you know, clean their shotgun? What was he like? Oh, do you have children?

THOMAS: No, I do not.

GRACE: Oh, thank you, Lord!

THOMAS: Yes.

GRACE: That was my first question because I was told that you thought he always liked middle-aged, older women, that you were stunned when you found out that he had an interest in children.

THOMAS: Yes. Very much so.

GRACE: Did he -- did he indicate to you that he had been molested as a child?

THOMAS: Yes, he did. A couple of times, we talked about it. He didn`t spend too much time talking about it, but he did mention that he had been molested or sexually assaulted as a child.

GRACE: What have these last few weeks been like since he was identified by name and he hadn`t been caught, and there you are, a sitting duck?

THOMAS: I`ve had my share of nightmares.

GRACE: Man, I bet you have.

THOMAS: I have done a lot of thinking and soul searching and wondering where he could be. A few people were definitely my shoulders to lean on, one of them being an FBI agent and one of them being Conrad, as far as, you know, listening to me ramble on when I had another idea of, OK, well, maybe he`s here, or, I just remembered this.

GRACE: Well, Elaine, if this goes to trial, get ready because they are going to cross-examine you on the stand, trying to slice you up like a Thanksgiving turkey. But just listening to you tonight, I think you can handle it.

THOMAS: Thank you, Nancy.

GRACE: I`m just so happy to have you with us. Ever since I found out about the little girl and nobody knew who she was, it was just tormenting me...

THOMAS: Tell me about it.

GRACE: ... that she was possibly still in the home, or with the molester having access to the home of that little girl. And now, finally, you see the woman and you meet the woman that made a difference in this girl`s life. And there will be justice in this case!

Out to the lines. Barbara in North Carolina. Hi, Barbara.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Hi, Nancy. Good evening. Love your show. Congratulations to you.

GRACE: Thank you, dear.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I just wanted to find out -- this had to have taken some type of time for him to set up the cameras and everything else, and I`m just curious how her mother didn`t know -- you know, like, when you bathe a child and give the child a bath -- that she wasn`t hurting.

GRACE: Well, I have talked to the mother and the mother is adamant that she knew nothing, and the mother really believes that this has only happened one time. What about it, Bethany Marshall?

BETHANY MARSHALL, PSYCHOTHERAPIST: Two signs you look for in children are subtle signs of petrification. That is being petrified, scared, terrified. But the other thing you can always look to is their play. If a child is being sexually molested, they will act it out. They`ll make another little doll, take off another doll`s clothing, one doll lie on top of another. So if you`re very, very attuned, you can know if your child is being molested.

And don`t let a 3-year-old out of your sight. It`s just really that simple. And only put them in the hands of other caretakers you know and trust and not in the hands of men who like to evade the law.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We didn`t believe his story of who he was. He finally told us, Hey, I`m Chester Stiles. I`m the guy you`re looking for. And at that time, he said, I`m sick of running. I was very pleased that we got to meet off the street like that (INAUDIBLE) suspected of what he did.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GRACE: Finally, pay dirt. A lot of prayers answered tonight . The man suspected in the molestation of a 3-year-old little girl on the tape -- he taped himself -- has been arrested.

Out to the lines. Terry in West Virginia. Hi, Terry.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Hi, Nancy. You look beautiful.

GRACE: Thank you.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: My question is, you know, when my daughter was little, we always took her to the pediatrician and we always emphasized on her if someone touched her in any way, you know, and taught her the ways...

GRACE: Right.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: ... to tell us. And me as a mother, I mean, I even washed her up until she was 6, 7 years old, and I would have known something was going on with my child. Can the woman not be held liable in some way? I mean, there has...

(CROSSTALK)

GRACE: Well, I tell you, Terry, I spoke to the mom, and she is adamant. She`s totally distraught over what happened. She`s adamant she knew nothing about it, and she firmly believes this only happened the one time. I would say the answer is no, there`ll be no legal liability for the mom in this case.

Out to Bob Beckett, the Nye County district attorney. Mr. Beckett, you`re on the other end of this thing, with the guy that found the videotape out in the desert. Do you believe that he, Tuck, is somehow connected to the alleged molester, Chester Stiles?

BOB BECKETT, NYE COUNTY DISTRICT ATTORNEY: Well, recently, we`ve come across new information that Chester Stiles lived in Pahrump earlier this year, about January. Tuck claims to have found the tape about April. The tape was found in between where Stiles lived at the time and where Tuck lived.

GRACE: Ah!

BECKETT: And they actually lived pretty close together. Coincidence maybe, but probably not. We`re looking into it further.

GRACE: With me, Bob Beckett, the Nye County district attorney working the other end of the investigation regarding the videotape.

Now to Conrad Claus, attorney for Elaine Thomas. You just met Elaine, who helped crack this case. Was her identity kept a secret during the investigation for her safety? How?

CONRAD CLAUS, ATTORNEY FOR ELAINE THOMAS: Well, we first off talked to Bob Beckett. And I know Bob Beckett personally. I knew his word was going to be solid as oak. And he promised that we would keep everything anonymous up front. We also talked to the FBI, and after getting secure promises from them, as well...

GRACE: You know, Mr. Claus, that is an incredible feat on your part - - Conrad Claus, the veteran trial lawyer in the Nevada area, that managed to keep his client`s ID a secret during this investigation. And once again, I just want to over the airwaves thank Elaine Thomas.

Everybody, when we come back: Music superstar Britney Spears turns herself in to LAPD.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Britney Spears turned herself into police over an August fender bender. You`ll recall that story. The Web site, CelebTV.com, caught these pictures of Spears in a fluorescent pink wig just before she surrendered last night, all smiles. She reported to a Van Nuys police station and left about 45 minutes later sporting a different do. Spears were booked on misdemeanor counts of hit-and-run and driving without a valid license. Each count carries a maximum penalty of six months in jail or a $1,000 fine. She hit another car in a parking lot, and the paparazzi caught the wreck on video.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GRACE: Will this hit-and-run be the final straw in music star Britney Spears` custody fight over her two little boys? Right now she has lost custody. She is trying to get those little boys back, and this isn`t helping.

Out to Kelli Zink with CelebTV.com, Kelli, what happened?

KELLI ZINK, CELEBTV.COM: Well, Nancy, this is interesting. Yesterday, Britney Spears, I spoke with her lawyer this morning, his name is Michael Flanagan, the one that`s handling these misdemeanors, and he called the watch commander at the LAPD and he said, "Listen, let`s avoid a huge paparazzi mess. Let`s bring Britney Spears in at 9:00 p.m. instead of the standard 8:00 to 4:00, and let`s try to make it so the paparazzi isn`t everywhere. And if my client complies, it will be nice and easy for everyone. Britney can go in and get booked," which is what she did. So instead of going in and creating a huge media frenzy, she got it done.

GRACE: With me, Kelli Zink from CelebTV.com. She`s a host there. And that is also video from CelebTV.com.

Speaking of Michael Flanagan -- excuse me, J. Michael Flanagan, Britney Spears` attorney, he is with us tonight. Mr. Flanagan, thank you for being with us.

J. MICHAEL FLANAGAN, ATTORNEY FOR BRITNEY SPEARS: Well, thank you for inviting me.

GRACE: Well, I`ve got to say, that was pretty darn brilliant to try to bring her in at a different time, but the reality is, how are you going to hide Britney Spears, especially in a pink wig?

FLANAGAN: Well, I`ve never seen Britney Spears wearing a pink wig except on your show. She left her house yesterday to come to get booked, and her hair was brown. We never told her to change it. I didn`t tell her what to wear. And she...

GRACE: Hey, Mr. Flanagan, I`m showing a video of her right now. Did she take that dog in with her for book-in?

FLANAGAN: The dog wasn`t there when I was there.

GRACE: Good. Good legal strategy.

FLANAGAN: Britney did not drive herself there. That shows her behind the steering wheel. She was not -- she was picked up and brought to Van Nuys.

GRACE: OK, I`m glad to hear that. Hey, Mr. Flanagan, J. Michael Flanagan, veteran trial lawyer handling Britney Spears` hit-and-run case is with us. We`re taking your calls live. Mr. Flanagan, this will probably be pled down to a fairly reasonable sentence, agree or disagree?

FLANAGAN: I would think so.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(NEWSBREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Oh, god.

BRITNEY SPEARS, MUSICIAN: We`ll pretend like we didn`t see that. You all edit it to make yourself look cool. Watch out again.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: So, what`s next? You have it be in court on the 25th?

SPEARS: No.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: So you`re pretty much done?

SPEARS: Yes.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: OK.

(CROSSTALK)

SPEARS: Where`s the party at?

(CROSSTALK)

SPEARS: Did you guys have a good time tonight?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: This has been the night of Britney Spears.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GRACE: That is a shot of superstar Britney Spears leaving the police department after getting booked in on a hit-and-run. And you may say, why is she laughing and giggling? But let`s think about it a moment. When you`re surrounded by paparazzi and cameras and all that, what`s your choice? Do you want to say something totally nasty, curse them out, shoot a bird, throw your bottle at them, and make sure you get on the 6:00 news?

So I don`t know. If you take it in that perspective, she may be doing a very good job right now leaving the police department. Kelli Zink, tell me about the hit-and-run, in a nutshell.

ZINK: Sure, Nancy. It happened back in early August. Britney Spears was pulling into a Studio City parking lot, hit another Mercedes with her Mercedes, got out of her car, didn`t even look at Kim Robard-Rifkin`s car, and just walked into the store, then drove off. She didn`t contact the victim, so eventually the victim filed two charges.

GRACE: Has the "victim" -- and I`m putting that in quoties -- her car was just dented -- has the victim filed a civil lawsuit yet?

ZINK: You know, the victim filed papers. She was under two things, misdemeanor for hit-and-run, and then Britney was also charged with driving without a valid California license. Since then, that`s been cleared up. All Kim Robard-Rifkin ever wanted was Britney Spears to apologize, which she hadn`t done. But now they`re in negotiations to try to get something settled before her next court date on October 25th.

GRACE: Settled? Out it her lawyer, J. Michael Flanagan, Britney Spears` lawyer, does the woman want more than just her car fixed?

FLANAGAN: Oh, I don`t think she does. She`s also entitled to any out-of-pocket expenses that she might sustain, and we`re going to pay her rental car expenses while she gets her car fixed, if she ever does decide to get it fixed.

GRACE: Has she filed anything for emotional distress yet?

FLANAGAN: Oh, no, that wouldn`t be appropriate in this type of a case. She wasn`t...

GRACE: Oh, Mr. Flanagan, when has that ever stopped anybody?

(CROSSTALK)

FLANAGAN: ... was not in the zone of danger. And in California, you can`t get emotional distress for that.

(CROSSTALK)

GRACE: You`re absolutely correct.

FLANAGAN: ... damage only matter, and it involves a couple thousand dollars in property damage, and that`s going to be taken care of as soon as we can decide what the exact amount is.

GRACE: OK, I`m glad it hear it.

Out to the lines, Al in New York. Hi, Al.

CALLER: Hi, how are you doing, Nancy?

GRACE: I`m good, dear.

CALLER: Big fan of the show.

GRACE: Thank you, love. What`s your question?

CALLER: Well, I just am a little curious. She seems to be taking this as casual as she does with every one of her run-ins with the law, but what impact could this have...

GRACE: Excellent question.

CALLER: ... as she was just granted some more visitation, and now two months later she is going to fess up for this. What could the impact possibly be?

GRACE: Al in New York, it can`t be good. Let`s go to some experts. Joining us tonight, out of Atlanta, Ray Giudice, veteran trial lawyer, along with Greg McKeithen, also a trial lawyer.

Ray Giudice, will this impact her custody battle? I can see it being brought up. It`s like, look, she can`t even park a car without hitting a fixed object.

RAY GIUDICE, DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Right, Nancy. In and of itself, this is an insignificant minor offense. It`s a fender-bender. The insurance company or she`s going to cut a check. But as a piece of the puzzle in the analysis of the custody of the children, I think this is one more thing for a court to be concerned about. She can`t park a car, she doesn`t have a license, she leaves the scene. It`s a parking lot. But what if she had her kids in the car at the time? It`s irresponsible at best.

GRACE: Yeah, responsibility, that`s the key right now.

GIUDICE: Right, that`s where it goes to. It`s just one more piece.

GRACE: And, you know, a lot of people have had fender-benders. A lot of people have struck fixed objects. But, Greg McKeithen, looking at the big picture with all of her other run-ins with the law -- and, no, she doesn`t have a serious criminal record or anything like that, but, you know this is going to be brought up at custody hearing, Greg.

GREG MCKEITHEN, DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Absolutely. But, Nancy, in the grand scheme of things, I would submit that these are matters that can be easily remedied with proper counseling, taking the correct steps that are given to her, and that should put it in proper perspective.

GRACE: You know, but to Dr. William Morrone, medical examiner and toxicologist, it`s not all that easy if someone has a drug or alcohol problem to just -- remember when Nancy Reagan, God bless her, wasn`t it Nancy Reagan that just said, "Just said no." Just say no, it will be easy.

DR. WILLIAM MORRONE, MEDICAL EXAMINER: It`s not that easy.

GRACE: It`s not that easy. I`ve seen people lose everything in court from a drug or alcohol problem.

MORRONE: There`s usually an underlying psychological deficit, but that drug problem, if it shifts to another substance and they`re not being counseled or they`re not being tested for a full drug panel, that can slip by, and they still have the problem.

GRACE: What about it, Bethany Marshall?

BETHANY MARSHALL, PSYCHOANALYST: You can`t treat someone in counseling who`s substance abusing. They have to get off the drugs and then, as William Morrone said, you have to see what`s underneath. And often, it`s another psychiatric disorder. Sometimes it`s something like bipolar and mood disorder.

And what strikes me -- you made the comment about, of course, she`s going to have to smile with the cameras around, and I agree. But she has inappropriate affect. The day she lost her children, she was driving around with a Starbucks smiling, and laughing, and waving at a gas station. And that is what is going to count with this custody battle, because if you`re that disconnected from reality, how can you connect to your own children? And that is the problem.

GRACE: Well, one thing I`ve got to hand it to Spears about, she went in and -- correct me if I`m wrong, J. Michael Flanagan, her lawyer is with us. He`s joining us from Glendale, California. Didn`t she go in the front door of the police department?

FLANAGAN: Well, she went in the front door. Her other option was to get in the police car and go in the...

(CROSSTALK)

GRACE: OK. I`ve got to give her credit for that. She didn`t slink in like so many celebs. They slink in and get special treatment. No, Miss Britney goes in the front door, "Here I am. I`m not trying to hide it. You all know what happened. There." It`s not a big ruse or a cat-and- mouse game. I do have to hand that to her.

I want to go back to our lawyers, Ray Giudice, Greg McKeithen, at the end of the day, although it could be argued to a jury that shows a certain degree of irresponsibility, the hit-and-run -- and it`s a hit-and-run. It`s a fender-bender, and she walked into a building. It`s not like you run somebody down on the street and then you try to get away. Hit-and-run sounds a little more dramatic.

Bottom line, when a judge hears this, there`s the big hit-and-run. There it is. To suggest that this is more than it is, a veteran trial judge is going to laugh that off. He`s going to choke on his coffee when he hears that, right?

GIUDICE: It`s just a run-of-the-mill traffic parking lot accident. There`s insurance. It will get fixed. There was nobody injured. Again, in and of itself, I think Mr. Flanagan has got this well-managed and he`ll do a great job on it. How it spills over into the custody battle is I think a little more interesting and a little more problematic for her.

GRACE: I agree with both of you.

To Kamesh in Pennsylvania, hi, Kamesh.

CALLER: Hi, Nancy, how are you?

GRACE: I`m good, dear. What`s your question?

CALLER: I wanted to know, based on her actions, are we sure she wants these children back?

GRACE: Good question. Bethany Marshall?

MARSHALL: You know, it`s so hard to tell. And I think that in and of itself is the problem. With most mothers, you know they want the children. As you said on a prior show, Nancy, they will show up to court and do anything to get the child back.

GRACE: To Mike Brooks, coming and going and being out in 45 minutes on a fender-bender, is that normal procedure, Mike?

MIKE BROOKS, FORMER D.C. POLICE: Yeah, Nancy, I think LAPD did the right thing here. They didn`t want to make this into a huge, big media circus. She went into the front door. She wasn`t like Michael Jackson, who went into the sally port. Yeah, this is normal, just easy in-and-out, fingerprint, photograph, then set a next court date, that`s it.

GRACE: To Michelle in Michigan, hi, Michelle.

CALLER: Hi, congratulations. We love your show.

GRACE: Thank you. I`m going to bring the twins on as soon as they come and they`re ready to come out.

CALLER: Oh, wonderful.

GRACE: And we`ll have a little pink hat and little blue hat. What`s your question, love?

CALLER: Yes, was she under the influence of anything at the time of her accident?

GRACE: Oh, good question. Kelli Zink?

ZINK: You know, no, not that I can report. There are no reports that she was acting even strange when she pulled in the parking lot. So not that I know of.

GRACE: To Deborah in Louisiana, hi, Deborah.

CALLER: I was just wondering, since Britney had two child births in a little over 12 months` time, has anyone considered that two pregnancies that close together may have triggered some type of mental illness or something?

GRACE: Dr. Morrone?

MORRONE: Number one problem people have after pregnancies is reported is depression, but thyroid can also cause these kind of aberrations. So they need to be checked.

GRACE: Everybody, I`m going to switch gears, but before I go, I want to thank again, not only our panel of lawyers, but J. Michael Flanagan, a veteran trial lawyer there in California, who is handling Britney Spears` hit-and-run case. Sir, thank you for being with us. Please join us again.

Right now, I want to take you across the waters to a 3-year-old little girl snatched from a luxury resort vacation. Here`s the latest. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The mother of missing girl Madeleine McCann feels persecuted, according to her parents. Madeleine`s grandparents speaking out to hometown paper "The Liverpool Daily Post."

Grandma Susan Healy saying Kate told her she`s being persecuted because of her appearance. Kate contending if she weighed more and looked more maternal, people would be more sympathetic, this as family and friends hold out hope in the desperate search for Madeleine, while investigators launch a new search in the vicinity of the luxury vacation resort.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GRACE: All right. I`m stunned. Maddy McCann`s mom, the 3-year-old little girl missing, there she is, her mother says, "I`m the victim, I`m being targeted." What she really said, according to reports, was if I had a bigger bosom and looked more maternal, I wouldn`t be targeted by the press.

Jerry Lawton, chief reporter with "The Daily Star," has the world turned upside-down? How did this get to be about her personal appearance?

JERRY LAWTON, REPORTER: Well, simply because she`s made it that way, Nancy. It`s quite remarkable news, really. This emerged for the first time today. Kate`s own mother, Susan, revealed that she was concerned about her daughter`s state, and her daughter confided in her that she felt that her sheer physical appearance was affecting the way she was being perceived by the general public.

Basically, she seems to think she`s a very slim, almost model-like woman, and she feels that her issue -- if she had two stone in weight, was a little bustier, and maybe looked a little bit more maternal, she would be perceived in a better light by both the media and, indeed, by the public at-large.

GRACE: Ed Miller with "America`s Most Wanted," I`ve got to say, this is a first. I`ve never heard the mother of a missing child say, "If only I had a bigger bosom the press would not attack me." I mean, I think she should be a little more worried by the evidence that has been reported -- we haven`t confirmed it yet -- about this bloody footprint, about the police DNA theory. They`re back on the parents as suspects.

ED MILLER, REPORTER, "AMERICA`S MOST WANTED": Absolutely. You know, this woman is under a great deal of stress. Part of this is very, very true. She is being tormented. The father is being tormented. And these parents are being targeted.

Portuguese police, everyone knows they botched this investigation, and you can`t believe a word they say. They said the cadaver dogs barked and indicated that there was a dead body. The next day, they come out, "Well, maybe the dogs didn`t bark." They say, "Oh, there`s DNA, it`s the child`s DNA is in the car." The next day, they come out and they say, "No"...

GRACE: The bloody footprint. The bloody footprint and the new DNA.

MILLER: Well, the bloody footprint, let`s talk about that bloody footprint, because they have -- first of all, there was no indication that someone tried to clean up a bloody footprint. So let`s just say they really are guilty. Are they also stupid? Wouldn`t they try to clean up a bloody footprint? I mean, you`ve got to ask yourself -- I`m not saying their innocent, I`m just saying they have been persecuted, and there`s lots and lots of questions, and the Portuguese police are not to be believed.

GRACE: Ed Miller, I have to tell you, the police have changed their theories so many times, I`ve got a severe problem with anything they come up with.

And, Mike Brooks, the bottom line is, when we finally, if we ever get to a trial of somebody, all of these theories that have been made public are going to come out at trial and cast big suspicion on the police case.

BROOKS: The defense attorneys will have a ball with this, Nancy. Because of all the different theories, they`ve now changed investigators. And remember right back in the beginning, there was a suspect. Whatever happened to him, the guy that lived right there near the place?

GRACE: Exactly. To Ray Giudice, Greg McKeithen, come on, the mom saying it`s all about me because I need bigger bosom? Greg, you prosecuted cases before you were a defense attorney. Ever heard that one, yes, no?

MCKEITHEN: No, I haven`t, Nancy, but let me put something in perspective here.

GRACE: Yeah, me either. Quickly. Quickly.

MCKEITHEN: I think that some people may perceive your image as an indication of something. Perhaps that`s where she`s going with that.

GRACE: Ray?

GIUDICE: Nancy, a part of defending a high-profile TV case is managing your clients. These people are not being managed well. That`s a mistake, her statements.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

GRACE: Three-year-old baby Maddy now missing for months. Tonight, her mom speaks out, saying she feels persecuted.

Out to the lines, Sarah in Massachusetts, hi, Sarah.

CALLER: Hi, how are you, Nancy?

GRACE: I`m good, dear. What`s your question?

CALLER: My question is, in regard to a mother, I guess my main thing is, is that there are so many children that get no media attention in these kinds of cases, and she has so many people on her side trying to find them. Wouldn`t this kind of attention-seeking behavior...

GRACE: What does it mean?

CALLER: ... go against -- yeah, well, wouldn`t that actually work against her in the whole case?

GRACE: Good question. To Dr. Bethany Marshall, what about her question, as well as the use of the word "persecuted"?

MARSHALL: Well, I`m really concerned about the behavioral evidence all the way around in this case, that the parents left Portugal, that she ruined the forensic evidence with the cuddle cat, and that she`s making it all about her and she doesn`t look at the camera. That concerns me.

GRACE: Dr. Morrone, 30 seconds. We have heard so much about the DNA. Normally DNA can be back by now. What`s the hold-up?

MORRONE: The hold-up is the sample may be degraded. There may not be enough sample or there might be mixed sample. If the DNA came from the child or the toy, there`s complications.

GRACE: With us, Dr. William Morrone, joining us out of Michigan.

Everyone, let`s stop and remember Army Corporal Joshua Reeves, 26, Watkinsville, Georgia, killed, Iraq. A Boy Scout who dreamed of flying helicopters, awarded the Purple Heart and Bronze Star. A Civil War buff, charismatic, adventurous, leaves behind parents James and Jean, sisters Sherry and Joanie, brothers, Jared and Michael, grieving widow, Leslie, a newborn boy named after him he never got to meet. Joshua Reeves, American hero.

Thank you to our guests but, most of all, to you, for inviting us into your home. And a special happy birthday to someone dear to my heart, he got all the looks and personality, my brother, Macky. And he can do it all. He can give a speech dressed up in a suit. He can ride a Harley. He can hit a softball. He can tell a joke, play a guitar, sing a song. Father, husband, son, brother, happy birthday.

See you tomorrow night, 8:00 sharp Eastern. Good night.

END