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Nancy Grace
Police Collect Evidence From Murdered North Carolina Jogger`s Home
Aired July 16, 2008 - 20:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
NANCY GRACE, HOST: Tonight, breaking news. A young mom goes jogging, 7:00 AM Saturday morning, upscale suburbs, Cary, North Carolina, leaving two little girls at home with Daddy. Finally, 3:00 PM, her neighborhood friend calls police.
Breaking developments right now. Police reveal the family home a potential crime scene and execute a search warrant in the dead of night, 2:00 AM, not only on the house and the two BMWs, but now police plan a search on the husband himself to obtain forensic evidence, including DNA. Yesterday, police announced a body found at an undeveloped retention pond not on her regular jogging route is, in fact, the missing mom. Why didn`t Daddy report her missing? Why was her Louis Vuitton purse left in her car? Where was her cell phone?
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What happened to Nancy Cooper? The mother of two supposedly went out for a jog, but was found dead Monday three miles from her home in Cary, North Carolina. Now cops are doing a more exhaustive search of her home, took away six bags of evidence. The first person we look at, obviously, her husband, Brad Cooper. He`s not being called a suspect or a person of interest, but the cops, we know, took his DNA.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We were allowed to look in the house. We had not done a detailed search. The search warrant allows us to do a detailed search of the home and vehicles. That would include forensic evidence. And we still are working (INAUDIBLE) and we will continue to be as long as we feel it`s necessary.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GRACE: Also tonight: Comedian and TV star Andy Dick arrested in California on sex battery on a minor and drugs, the star of TV hit "Newsradio" and movies like "Zoolander" and "Road Trip" arrested in a restaurant parking lot. Allegedly urinating outside the bar didn`t help anything. Well, tonight: Andy Dick plays the real life role as defendant. And tonight, Dick, nobody`s laughing.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You know comedian Andy Dick? Well, he`s been arrested south of Los Angeles -- there he is -- for investigation of drug use and sexual battery. A 17-year-old girl told police he pulled down her tank top, exposing her breasts, after leaving a Buffalo Wild Wings restaurant. Police later pulled him over and found marijuana and Xanax in his pocket, they say. Dick is now out on $5,000 dollars bail. Last year, he was removed from "Jimmy Kimmel Live" after repeatedly touching (INAUDIBLE) without her permission. And in 1999, he was arrested for cocaine and marijuana possession, as well.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GRACE: Good evening. I`m Nancy Grace. I want to thank you for being with us. Tonight: A young mom goes jogging, 7:00 AM Saturday morning, upscale suburbs, Cary, North Carolina, leaving two little girls at home with daddy. Finally, 3:00 PM, her neighborhood friend calls police. Breaking developments right now. Police reveal the family home a potential crime scene, and they execute a search warrant in the dead of night, 2:00 AM, not only on the house and the two BMWs, but now police plan a search on the husband himself.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Police now say a body found in North Carolina is that of a woman who disappeared while jogging. Nancy Cooper`s body was found yesterday at a Cary, North Carolina, construction site. A friend reported her missing on Saturday. And police say Cooper was murdered. Investigators are searching the home and the cars Cooper shared with her husband for any clues. One of the warrants also lets police to get DNA evidence from her husband -- that is, hair, blood, saliva samples. But they say he isn`t considered a suspect.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: There are some reports on line, on certain Web boards, indicating that Mr. Cooper may have gone to a variety store at 4:00 AM on the morning that Nancy apparently went jogging and that he purchased some bleach product at that store.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We cannot confirm or deny whether he was at a store and whether he did purchase bleach or any kind of cleaning products the morning of her disappearance.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GRACE: 4:00 AM? A variety store buying bleach? Well, he`s certainly the neatnick.
Out to Lori Mack, reporter with Metro Networks. What`s the latest?
LORI MACK, METRO NETWORKS: Well, Nancy, Cary police today obtained a search warrant to have Brad and Nancy Cooper`s houses and car -- their house and cars searched following the discovery of Nancy Cooper`s body. Now, that search warrant also allows authorities to obtain DNA evidence from Brad Cooper.
GRACE: When you say DNA evidence from Brad Cooper, to what are you referring?
MACK: Forensic evidence such as hair, saliva, things of that nature, things that may possibly link him to the crime, to the murder of Nancy Cooper.
GRACE: We are taking your calls live. Out to Stacy in Kentucky. Hi, Stacy.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Hello, Nancy. Congratulations on your twins. They`re adorable.
GRACE: Thank you very much.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I`m wondering -- do they suspect that he done it or if he hired somebody to do it?
GRACE: You know, that`s an interesting question. Gurnal Scott with WPTF joining us right now, if he is out buying bleach at 4:0 AM -- if I had hired somebody to do a job, I certainly wouldn`t be out, caught on video at a variety store buying bleach, if that`s correct, Gurnal.
GURNAL SCOTT, WPTF: If that is correct. As you heard in the video clip there, that the police chief in Cary, Pat Basemore (ph), says they won`t confirm or deny. Now, they won`t come out directly and say that that surveillance video does not exist. Now, they just simply say they won`t confirm or deny. So if there he`s out there, there may be a video with him on it, buying that bleach at that convenience store.
GRACE: Sounds like Scott Peterson all over again. But let me remind everybody, at this juncture, the husband has not even been named a person of interest, much less a suspect in his wife`s death.
Breaking right now, we learn, in the dead of night, police execute a search warrant on the family home, calling it a potential crime scene. Now, apparently, they want to go back. They got a search pursuant to his cooperation. They want to go back for a detailed search. Also, they want to get DNA, and a search on his body is the way to do that. You get fiber. You get hair. You get blood. You get saliva. We`re taking your calls live.
Out to Brian Reich, deputy chief with the Bergen County sheriff`s office. Why 2:00 AM? Why are search warrants performed in the dead of night?
BRIAN REICH, DEPUTY CHIEF, BERGEN COUNTY SHERIFF`S OFFICE: Well, Nancy, you don`t want to give -- if you do have somebody that you`re looking at to commit a crime, you don`t want to give him the opportunity to destroy evidence, to flee, or really to interfere with the investigation. So when we execute search warrants on potential suspects, we want to surprise them. We want to get them off guard. And we want to be able to have a sterile environment. If they know we`re coming, if there`s a lot of people in the house, there`s always the potential for evidence to be lost or destroyed.
GRACE: We are taking your calls live. Let`s unleash the lawyers. Joining us tonight, veteran defense attorney Renee Rockwell in the Atlanta area. Also joining us, Peter Odom, former prosecutor turned defense attorney.
Out to the lines. Heather in Illinois. Hi, Heather.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes. Hi. I was just wondering, there`s two children involved, and if the husband is a suspect, are they going to remain in his custody, or are they going to be put in protective custody until they figure this out?
GRACE: Heather, right now, he has not been named a suspect or even a person of interest. So as of right now, our sources tell us the children are with him. We have also been told that he is not in the family home, that he is staying with friends. There are conflicting reports. We don`t know exactly where he is.
But I find that unusual. Caryn Stark, if he were staying with friends, why? I would think you would want the children in their home, in their beds, with as much security and as much stability on schedule as possible.
CARYN STARK, PSYCHOLOGIST: That`s what we would hope, Nancy. That would be best for the children, to stay in their own homes. But this has to do with something that`s going on with him. And clearly, he feels better away from that home. You wonder why, though.
GRACE: Well, it could be -- I mean, to be fair to him, the home is now cordoned off with crime scene tape. So that`s not a good look for two little girls, to try to explain that to them.
Out to the lawyers, Renee Rockwell, Peter Odom. You know, I find it very interesting -- to you, Renee Rockwell -- that police would not confirm or deny that he was spotted at 4:00 AM at a variety store buying bleach. You`d be so lucky if your husband were out buying bleach at 4:00 AM to clean the kitchen floor, huh?
RENEE ROCKWELL, DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Nancy, first of all, I wouldn`t imagine that they would want to show too much of their hand at all right now. He is not in custody. He`s not even a suspect. But I can tell you this, that the police department is going to first eliminate him as a suspect before they go anywhere else. Good police work, start with the guy that`s closest to the victim, and I think it would be him.
GRACE: Peter Odom, you`re shaking your head yes. I assume that both of you are going to ignore the possibility he`s out buying bleach at 4:00 AM. That doesn`t concern either of you, Peter?
PETER ODOM, DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Well, we really don`t know anything about that yet, Nancy. It might have been bleach. It might have been something else. He -- we just don`t know. It`s speculation...
GRACE: OK. So Peter Odom...
ODOM: ... at this point.
GRACE: ... you`re going to play ostrich with your head in the sand and your butt in the air. You know what? Fine.
Let`s go out to the lines. Carrie in Georgia. Hi, Carrie.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Hi, Nancy. Congratulations on your twins. And I love your show. And my question is...
GRACE: I wish you could have seen those twins at quarter of 5:00 this morning...
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Oh, boy, they`re beautiful!
GRACE: ... when they wanted to play. OK. Go ahead. What`s your question?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: My question is, is there previous domestic violence in the home?
GRACE: That, Renee Rockwell and Peter Odom -- let`s go back to the lawyers -- is the big plus for the husband right now. According to what we have learned, Peter Odom, there are no previous calls to police. There`s not even rumors amongst the neighbors that there have been domestic squabbles.
ODOM: And you know that if there had been, it would be all over the news right now. So that goes in his favor.
GRACE: You know, very often, Renee, it`s not reported. In fact, very often, women deny that there`s a problem at home. But I would think that maybe somebody in her family would know about it, and as of right now, no reports of domestic problems whatsoever.
ROCKWELL: It is a little bit too early to tell, Nancy. But the things that I would want to be interested in, if I was the police department, is, was she on her regular route where she was jogging?
GRACE: No. I can tell you that right now. She was not.
ROCKWELL: And was there any talk of any marital discord? That would be one of the questions.
GRACE: OK. I can answer both of those questions for you right now. Number one, the pond where she was found was not -- repeat not -- on her regular jogging route, which I find highly probative. If she were on her regular route and this were a random crime, some killer or sex maniac, he would have grabbed her off her jogging route, assaulted her and left her for dead. She was not on her regular route. She was training for a half marathon. This was not her route.
As to marital discord -- yes, they were in the midst of marital discord, but not to the point where either of them had filed for divorce. Out to the lines...
ROCKWELL: Nancy, the biggest thing...
GRACE: Yes?
ROCKWELL: The biggest thing of all that screams is the fact of the delayed report. That is (INAUDIBLE)
GRACE: I agree. Now, why?
ROCKWELL: Because if your wife went for a jog at 7:00 AM -- I don`t know what kind of runner she is -- by 3:00 PM, it would be interesting to me if he was worried about where she was.
GRACE: Well, you know, last night, Joe Lawless out in the Philadelphia jurisdiction told me he`s gone all day long, and his wife never checks in on him. When you know somebody, especially a lady, is out running on a jogging trail, for instance, it`s 7:00 AM -- 3:00 PM, you haven`t noticed she`s gone? Her pocketbook is sitting right there. Her Louis Vuitton is sitting right there in her BMW. I assume that`s where her cell phone is. Renee, I assume you`re taking the defense side. So where is this leading?
RENEE: Well, Nancy, these are things that are interesting to me. And he is talking to the police, and he is probably answering questions like, Why didn`t you do this, Why didn`t you do that? I understand he`s being cooperative. But if I`m representing him, he can let people in the house, he can even give DNA samples, but he`s not going to make a statement because the statements always come back to haunt you every time, Nancy.
GRACE: Out to Dr. Michael Arnall, board-certified forensic pathologist joining us tonight. If you want to get rid of DNA -- for instance, blood -- will bleach do the trick?
DR. MICHAEL ARNALL, FORENSIC PATHOLOGIST: Only to a limited extent.
GRACE: Explain.
ARNALL: It may partially mask it. But there`s two problems. If there`s blood, you may not find all of the blood in the small spatter marks that the police are able to find. And if this happened in the middle of the night, as you`ve suggested possible, then there`s going to be a problem finding all of the blood spatter that exists.
GRACE: OK, let me ask you this. If you have a murder weapon, such as a knife, and it has blood on it, if you wash it in bleach, does that get rid of the DNA? I`m not talking about spatter, I`m talking about a weapon itself. Does bleach eradicate DNA evidence?
ARNALL: Not necessarily. And particularly if the knife has little crevasses that you don`t get into, the DNA is going to stay in those crevasses, even though you`ve dipped it possibly in the bleach.
GRACE: OK, let me rephrase. I`ve got DNA in a bowl. I pour bleach on it. Does bleach eradicate DNA if it touches it?
ARNALL: No.
GRACE: So under no circumstance will bleach destroy DNA? Is that what you`re telling me?
ARNALL: Well, we don`t know exactly what happened, but if the individual takes a rag or a brush and scrubs something with bleach, there may be some mechanical removal of pieces of DNA. I don`t think you can exclude that possibility. So there may be some removal of DNA, but it`s likely to be imperfect.
GRACE: Doctor, are you telling me that bleach does not destroy DNA?
ARNALL: Yes.
GRACE: Bleach does not destroy DNA?
ARNALL: Not necessarily.
GRACE: OK. I`m not talking about spatter, not talking about a spot the defendant or a suspect may miss. I`m talking about chemistry, biology, in a petri dish, bleach does not destroy DNA?
ARNALL: Not necessarily. And in part, it`s related to how long the DNA may be exposed to that chemical. If it`s a short period of time, it may well not get the job done.
GRACE: If you had to eradicate blood evidence with a detergent, how do you do it, then?
ARNALL: Well, the detergent will, just like in the commercials, lift the material off of the substance that it`s on and float it away. The term is "surfactant." But the mechanical disruption of that material and floating it away is likely to be more successful than chemical decomposition with a short treatment with bleach. That`s what I`m saying.
GRACE: Is there any bleach -- is there any substance that can completely eradicate DNA?
ARNALL: You can burn it.
GRACE: You can burn it. Gotcha.
Out to the lines. Kendra in Indiana. Hi, Kendra.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Hi.
GRACE: What`s your question, dear?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Quickly, your children are beautiful, and you`re the greatest.
GRACE: Thank you. What`s your question, love?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: OK. I was wondering, if the husband supposedly went out and bought bleach in the early hours of the morning, did he have his children with him?
GRACE: Interesting question. Out to Lori Mack with Metro Networks. What do we know?
MACK: Well, authorities have not even confirmed that story yet, Nancy, so there has been no comment as far as Brad Cooper actually going out at 4:00 AM. There`s been no confirmation that he actually was out at 4:00 AM buying bleach.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It`s very shocking and upsetting just to think that anybody could have a lack of respect for somebody`s life, that, you know, anybody could just dispose of a body.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yellow crime scene tape surrounds the house on Wallsburg (ph) Court in Cary that Nancy and Brad Cooper called home for seven years and where they were raising their daughters, ages 4 and 2. Chopper 11 flies over the area where Nancy`s body was found, alongside a paved road at the very back of a subdivision where homes have yet to be built.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Many of the questions for police focused on Brad Cooper, the couple`s reporter marital problems and whether he`s considered a person of interest. Cary`s police chief said there are no suspects in the case right now and reiterated that all signs indicate this was not a random act of violence.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GRACE: We are taking your calls live. Out to the lines. Monica in New York. Hi, Monica.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Hi. Good evening, Nancy.
GRACE: Hello, dear. What`s your question?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I wanted to know, was there anyone visiting the home, was, like, just maybe family members, friends, anyone over the weekend visiting, besides just the children, her husband and herself?
GRACE: Good question. I know the evening before, the wife, Nancy Cooper, went to a neighborhood get-together. To Lori Mack with Metro Networks. Do we know if the husband went to that party?
MACK: No, not at this time. Authorities have not commented on what Brad Cooper was doing.
GRACE: OK. Do we know if there were any visiting relatives or anybody else staying in the home?
MACK: No, authorities have not said. The only thing that they have said was that Brad Cooper reported his wife missing at 7:00 -- well, he -- not reported. We know he didn`t report her missing. But the only thing authorities say, that he last saw her alive leaving to go...
GRACE: OK.
MACK: ... to go to...
GRACE: To Judy in California. Hi, Judy.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Hi, Nancy. How are you?
GRACE: I`m good, dear. What`s your question?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Well, you know, I`m just so sick of hearing these stories all the time happening. But here`s my question. Do you think that there`s going to be an Amber Frey wannabe in the next day or so that they`re going to find, and perhaps this will...
GRACE: Well, you know, Judy, I`m wondering what the marital discord was. Out to Gurnal Scott with WPTF. What do we know about the marital discord?
SCOTT: To be quite honest, we don`t know much about the marital discord. The lawyers for Brad Cooper aren`t allowing him to say anything about it. He will only say publicly that there were martial problems, but that`s where he stops.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Brad Cooper -- he was the last one to see her. He saw her before she left the house that morning. She was also at a party the night before with friends, and she was seen at the party the night before.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: When we first learned about murdered North Carolina mom Nancy Cooper, I wanted to know more about her husband. (INAUDIBLE) as well. After all, he admits they were having marital problems. That`s pretty suspicious, when her body turned up a few miles from her home. But now cops are not calling Brad Cooper a suspect or even a person of interest. But today they did take his DNA they and pulled out six bags of evidence from the family`s home.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GRACE: Police now reveal they consider the home a potential crime scene. As of right now, the husband has not been named a person of interest or even a suspect. No cause of death has been released by the autopsy yet. What we know about Nancy Cooper, age 34, mother of two, Katie (ph) and Bella (ph), ages 2 and 4 -- she was an Olympic contender in Canada. She was an expert in the game of ringette (ph). It`s like women`s ice hockey. Instead of a puck, it`s played with a rubber ring. She hoped to go to the Olympics in an ice sport. The two met in Canada at the same business. She has been a stay-at-home mom for some period of time.
Out to Lori Mack. Any idea what the marital problems was?
MACK: No. Authorities have not said. The only indication is that they were having some type of problems.
And one quick point, Nancy. Authorities have not even confirmed the story that Nancy Cooper actually went jogging that morning. That story has yet to be confirmed.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: We all want to know what happened to Nancy Cooper, the mother of two, supposedly went out for a jog, but was found dead Monday, three miles from her home in Kerry, North Carolina.
Now cops are doing a more exhaustive search of her home, took away six bags of evidence.
The first person we look at, obviously, her husband, Brad Cooper. We want to make it clear, though, we`re not here to convict. He`s not being called a suspect or a person of interest. But we have questions and the cops we know took his DNA.
UNIDENTIFIED POLICE OFFICER: We cannot confirm or deny whether he was at a store and whether he did purchase bleach or any kind of cleaning products the morning of her disappearance.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
GRACE: I`d really love to know where that story came from.
Out to Gurnal Scott with WPTF, where -- what`s the source on him being at a variety store at 4:0 a.m. buying bleach?
GURNAL SCOTT, ANCHOR/REPORTER, WPTF RADIO: You know that`s a very interesting question, because we`d like to know that ourselves. I mean it was a story as you`ve heard that has come up on the Internet. And then we have been continually pressing Chief Basemore of the Kerry Police about what is this video, is there a video? And we won`t get any confirmation if there -- this video even exists.
So we`re trying to dig that up so.
GRACE: Well, I find it very interesting, Brian Reich, deputy chief with Bergen County Sheriff`s Office, that they don`t say -- when asked at the press conference about the bleach purchase incident -- we don`t know anything about that. Instead they won`t confirm or deny.
BRIAN REICH, DEPUTY CHIEF, BERGEN COUNTY SHERIFF`S OFFICE: Well, yes. They don`t want to give away their hand. Right now they`re not naming someone that`s a suspect. They`re trying to rule people out. Or, they may actually have a suspect. They may think he did it, they may think somebody else did it. But they don`t want to give away their hand.
And I think after they have some time to analyze any of the trace evidence that was found, any of the physical evidence that was found, they`ll be able to come out with more information.
GRACE: Right.
Well, to Renee Rockwell and Peter Odom -- Peter Odom, what the defense has going for it right now, if he were a suspect, she lived there. So you would expect to find her DNA, possibly blood in multiple areas within the home.
PETER ODOM, DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Right. The bleach part is troubling, though, because, even if the bleach were to eliminate blood, what is left behind when you use bleach? Bleach is left behind. If there`s bleach where bleach shouldn`t be, that will be something the police would be looking at, but again.
GRACE: That`s an excellent point, Peter Odom.
Speaking of bleach, back to you Dr. Michael Arnall, board certified forensic pathologist, you told me that bleach would not destroy DNA. But what about bleach with enzymes?
DR. MICHAEL ARNALL, BOARD CERTIFIED FORENSIC PATHOLOGIST: Yes, I think if you had some type of bleach detergent with enzymes, it may damage the DNA. But, again, you`ve got to find every little blood spatter there, and I don`t think that`s going to be necessarily successful at 4:00 a.m. in the morning.
GRACE: So from your experience with crime scenes, Dr. Arnall, very typically, the suspect or the defendant does not get it all. Bottom line is, even if you use bleach with enzymes on it, there`s some left behind.
ARNALL: That`s the bottom line.
GRACE: Out to the lines, Charles in Pennsylvania. Hi, Charles.
CHARLES, PENNSYLVANIA RESIDENT: Hello, Nancy. My question is, first of all, if he was her husband, wouldn`t DNA, like both, each party`s DNA be, like, all over. So what would be the equivalent for actually testing for DNA?
GRACE: OK. Do you have a second question?
CHARLES: No.
GRACE: OK. Charles, you`re absolutely correct. Her DNA would be expected to be all over the home.
What Peter Odom is bringing up is correct. If you find bleach where there shouldn`t be bleach. Remember the Jesse Davis case? Bleach was found all over the carpet where he had tried to clean up evidence, all over the bed spread.
And also, if you find blood, Charles in Pennsylvania, where it shouldn`t be, for instance, blood spatter on the ceiling or up on the wall -- yes, it`s her DNA, but you wouldn`t find blood in that location or in that spatter pattern. That`s what they are looking for at this juncture. They`ll probably have to go in with luminal.
Out to Mary in Arizona, hi, Mary.
MARY, ARIZONA RESIDENT: Hi. I have a question. Have they followed up on the fact that every morning, supposedly when she went jogging, she took her car, drove to a coffee house. This morning that this happened, she did not take her car, she did not take her curse, and did anybody in the neighborhood then there`s nobody that can corroborate that she -- that they saw her running from an area where she never ever ran?
GRACE: You`re absolutely correct, Mary in Arizona. You`re dead on.
And Caryn Stark, psychologist, I find this very interesting. She was training for a half marathon. And typically when you train -- and you can confirm this or not -- you have a set routine. She was seriously training. She`s an athlete.
And she always had a pattern that Mary in Arizona discussed. She goes to Starbucks, get all tanked up, leave her car there, and that is where her route started.
CARYN STARK, PSYCHOLOGIST: People are creature of habits, Nancy, and particularly people who are drivers. I know because I do jog. And you do take the same route all the time. You wouldn`t just get lost in the woods somewhere. She would be going that way, the way that she knows.
GRACE: And significant, Brian Reich, she was not on her training route.
REICH: Yes, absolutely. I mean you want to look for what`s normal and then identify what happened that`s not in the norm. And they`re going to be -- they`re going to interview him, I`m sure, what her regular routine was and comparing that with what happened.
GRACE: As of right now, the husband has been cooperative. A search warrant executed on the home in the dead of night, 2:00 a.m., the home and two BMWs, and now on the husband himself.
When we come back, comedian and TV star Andy Dick arrested in California on sex battery on a minor and drug allegations. The star of TV hit, news radio and movies like "Zoolander" and "Road Trip," arrested at a restaurant parking lot.
Tonight, Dick plays the real-life role as defendant. And tonight, Dick, nobody`s laughing.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(NEWSBREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Another run-in with the law for actor Andy Dick. He was arrested in Southern California today for alleged drug possession and sexual battery.
Witnesses told police Dick allegedly groped a 17-year-old girl. He was also found to have marijuana and one Xanax in his (INAUDIBLE) pocket.
Dick released on $5,000 bond.
Back in `99, he`s arrested for possession of cocaine and marijuana after driving into a telephone pole.
ANDY DICK, COMEDIAN: Two, almost two years, a year and nine months.
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: You know I didn`t noticed until I read this article about you in "Entertainment Weekly" the series of deaths that were so close to.
DICK: Yes.
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Chris Farley.
DICK: And one after the other.
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Phil Hardly.
DICK: Yes, and his wife, (INAUDIBLE). She was a great woman. People don`t hear it or know that.
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: So are those three deaths.
DICK: She was great, you know -- they were all -- all these great people and really -- it`s drugs and alcohol that brought them down. Drugs and alcohol, serious.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
GRACE: Speaking of drugs and alcohol, to Tom O`Neil with "In Touch Weekly," what allegedly happened?
TOM O`NEIL, SENIOR EDITOR, IN TOUCH WEEKLY: Well, Tuesday night at 1:00 in the morning, he`s at a chicken wings restaurant, about an hour`s drive south of Los Angeles. He`s coming out looking.
GRACE: You know what, O`Neil.
O`NEIL: Yes?
GRACE: You always have all the classy details, don`t you?
O`NEIL: Do you want the timeline?
GRACE: It was a chicken joint. Go ahead. Put it out there. Go ahead.
O`NEIL: OK.
And he had been talking to a young gal, who`s 17 years old, inside. As he left.
GRACE: Why? Why is a 40-something-year-old man.
O`NEIL: I know.
GRACE: . talking to a 17-year-old girl?
O`NEIL: What a good question.
GRACE: Number one.
O`NEIL: Yes.
GRACE: But I went to law school, not psychiatry school, so go ahead.
O`NEIL: So she`s outside, having a cigarette with her girlfriend. He walks up to her and grabs her by the tank top and the bra, pulls it down and exposes her breasts, thinks this is hilariously funny. Well, the manager calls the cops.
GRACE: Did the girl cooperate when police came? Or did she think it was funny, too?
O`NEIL: Oh no, no, no. She pressed charges. She is -- she`s very, very distraught.
GRACE: What is his history, O`Neil?
O`NEIL: His rap sheet`s longer than his resume.
GRACE: Yes.
O`NEIL: You know, he was just talking about these deaths here.
John Lovett, who took over the role of Phil Hartman on Newsradio, his -- what we probably know, Andy Dick best, blames Andy for Phil Hartman`s death, says that he got and Phil`s wife hooked on cocaine again right before she shot Phil.
These are the kinds of charges we`re talking about.
GRACE: You see a clip from TMZ.com, that is Andy Dick allegedly drunk last June. In 1999, Dick arrested for cocaine and marijuana possession after he crashed his car into a telephone pole. The charges were dismissed after he completed diversion program.
2004, marijuana possession arrest at a music festival. Charges dismissed when a security guard didn`t show up for court mysteriously.
2007, arrested for public urination. August, 2007 police call when he was allegedly throwing beer bottles at a neighbor`s home. Once again, no charges. No, it didn`t help anything.
Out to Lieutenant Dennis Vrooman, PIO at the Murrietta Police Department, that he allegedly was urinating in the restaurant parking lot. I mean this guy`s up -- he`s 42 years old.
LT. DENNIS VROOMAN, PIO, MURRIETTA POLICE DEPT: Yes, Nancy, can you hear me?
GRACE: Yes, go ahead.
VROOMAN: Yes, absolutely. That`s the call that we received from the manager at about 1:15 in the evening -- excuse me, in the morning that he was urinating in the parking lot which would -- which is why the manager called police. We responded and ultimately contacted him attempting to leave in a pickup truck.
He was a passenger in a pickup truck with several other male that were acting as his entourage.
GRACE: With us is Lieutenant Dennis Vrooman with the Murrietta Police Department there in California.
Lieutenant, what exactly are the charges at this juncture?
VROOMAN: Well, right now, the charges are misdemeanor sexual battery, as you stated, he walked up to a female, 17-year-old, standing outside the restaurant. And with his right hand reached at her tank-top and pulled down her tank-top and her bra.
GRACE: Why is that a misdemeanor if that`s minor? Why is that a misdemeanor?
VROOMAN: Well, it -- because there may have not been any skin to skin contact, although, ultimately, the charges that could be filed will be filed with the district attorney`s office and they could upgrade it to a felony.
But at this point in time, we don`t believe there`s any skin to skin contact and therefore only misdemeanor charges at this point in time.
GRACE: Lieutenant Vrooman, I`m not -- I`m sure you`re not familiar with wearing a bra, but I promise you, to pull down a bra, there is skin to skin contact.
Let`s unleash the lawyers, Renee Rockwell, Peter Odom.
Misdemeanor sex battery.
ODOM: Well, on the California law, it is a misdemeanor. There was no penetration. There`s no evidence that there was any kind of an attempted rape here. What he did was he pulled down her -- if the allegations are true, he pulled down her tank-top and he touched her skin.
Now this is only a felony under California law if there`s a prior felony conviction for sexual abuse. And as long as Andy Dick`s rap sheet might be, he does not have any convictions for sexual abuse.
So this remains a misdemeanor in California.
GRACE: Renee Rockwell, I find that very unusual when you`re talking about a minor.
RENEE ROCKWELL, DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Well, Nancy, let me just, just pose something to you? Do you think.
GRACE: Please.
ROCKWELL: . that is this was Matthew McConaughey or Brad Pitt, that would have grabbed somebody`s shirt and pulled it down, that he would have gone to jail?
No. I just think that they`re overreacting on this.
GRACE: Renee, Renee, I don`t think that Brad Pitt or Matthew McConaughey would grab a person`s clothes and pull them off in public. So your question is likely unfounded in any facts. I completely disagree with that.
ROCKWELL: Nancy, what.
GRACE: Dick has a history of public misbehavior, and for some mysterious reason seems to get off every time. He`s not once done a day of jail time.
Out to the lines, Shannon in Washington, hi, Shannon.
SHANNON, WASHINGTON RESIDENT: Hi, Nancy. You`re absolutely beautiful.
GRACE: Thank you. Thank you very much. I really appreciate that. You know dealing with the twins starting at 5:00 a.m. doesn`t give you a lot of beauty prep time. So thank you.
SHANNON: Well, you look great.
GRACE: What`s your question, dear?
SHANNON: My question kind comes to what you were saying before, with his history and with all these allegations against him, how (INAUDIBLE) on only $5,000 bond? I think if that were to be anyone else who wasn`t famous, they would be facing a much, much higher (INAUDIBLE) than that.
GRACE: What about it, Caryn Stark, psychologist? I`ve got a feeling that if an ordinary Joe on the street goes up to a minor and yanks her clothes off, that they would be facing a lot more jail time, as well as a higher bond.
STARK: Yes, well, we so many people who were in his position who are famous, who get away with a lot of stuff, Nancy. And I have to say this, this is a guy who really has no inhibitions. It`s as though the law was made for him to break it and he could do whatever he wants in the moment. Very impulsive.
GRACE: And Caryn Stark, question.
STARK: Yes.
GRACE: I really don`t know a delicate way to put this, but what`s with the -- let me say it as euphemistically as possible -- what`s with the public urination? And there are allegations that on another incident he goes.
STARK: Right.
GRACE: . into a public rest room with people and urinates on them.
What`s that all about?
STARK: Well, think about it. He`s a comedian, Nancy. He`s an exhibitionist and he`s the kind of comedian who gets a lot of negative.
GRACE: I don`t know if.
STARK: . attention.
GRACE: . comedy has to do with urinating on people and in public.
STARK: Well, he`s getting people to pay attention to him. And he has no inhibitions so that`s what -- that`s kind of thing with an altered state if you combine all of that, it makes sense.
GRACE: To Sheeba in Illinois, hi, Sheeba.
SHEEBA, ILLINOIS RESIDENT: (INAUDIBLE) Nancy. He does that look. He`s got this smirk on his face like, you know, this is no big deal. But as far as I`m concerned, he molested that young lady when he pulled her top then her bra down, even if he says he -- there was no skin to skin contact.
Personally, and I don`t know how many will agree with me on the panel, I think he`s a drunk, he`s a spoiled brat, and very possibly going to move up the ladder to a rapist.
GRACE: Well, he has certainly graduated to a sex battery allegation.
Out to Brad Lamm, board certified interventionist at Bradlamm.com, what do you think, Brad?
BRAD LAMM, BRADLAMM.COM, BOARD REGISTERED INTERVENTIONIST: Nancy, I see the video and I see a guy who`s struggling with alcohol and drug addiction. He needs help. I hope this will serve as a wakeup call to, you know, his family and friends who will see this and know that they have the power to step in and get him help.
I think, if he continues on this path, like many people have struggled with addiction, you know, he will die.
GRACE: A wakeup call -- don`t you think they would have woken up on the last three incidents, Brad Lamm?
LAMM: I know. I totally hear what you`re saying but families when they.
GRACE: And why are you saying his family and friends? It`s his responsibility to behave?
LAMM: I hear, but when.
GRACE: It`s not my mommy`s fault if I commit a sex battery.
LAMM: But when a person is addicted, and then the throes of addiction, you know, it`s the mind, the addicted mind, that`s doing these things, so friends and family have the power step in and help somebody get help.
GRACE: To Dr. Marty Makary, I understand allegations of marijuana and Xanax. Explain what is Xanax and how was it combined with marijuana, what effect would that have on a person.
DR. MARTY MAKARY, PHYSICIAN, PROF. OF PUBLIC HEALTH, JOHNS HOPKINS: Sure. Xanax is a controlled substance because it`s mood altering. It`s intended to be anti-anxiety, but really not for general anxiety of -- in life or stress. It`s intended for panic disorder as diagnosed by a psychiatrist. So it`s commonly abused.
And marijuana, when it`s mixed together, they have synergistic effects so they have sort of a compounded effect.
GRACE: Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa. Synergistic, compounded -- you know I got a J.D. not an M.D. Could you explain in simple terms?
MAKARY: Sure. It`s greater than the sum of the individual drugs and especially with alcohol involved, you`re talking about substances which alter your mood and then that filter -- your social filter is gone because of alcohol abuse.
GRACE: Out to the lines, Kristina, Indiana, hi, Kristina.
KRISTINA, INDIANA RESIDENT: Hi. I love your show.
GRACE: Thank you, and thank you for calling in. What`s your question, dear?
KRISTINA: OK, now, everybody wants to talk about how wrong he was and what he`s doing. But does anyone know if this girl provoked him into doing this? I mean she`s 17.
GRACE: To Lieutenant Dennis Vrooman, of course, children, minors cannot consent to anything, but what was she doing allegedly.
VROOMAN: Correct.
GRACE: . at the time of the incident.
VROOMAN: Our understanding is that she and her friend arrived at the restaurant, (INAUDIBLE) and several others once they heard that Mr. Dick was at the restaurant, and wanted to meet him.
There was a brief conversation at the restaurant and then the encounter happened outside the restaurant as he was leaving and she had no further contact with him.
GRACE: Lieutenant, there`s a big difference in meeting him and having him pull your clothes off.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
GRACE: He starred in movies like "Old School," "Road Trip," "Zoolander," Andy Dick arrested on drug charges and sex battery on a minor allegations.
You know, to you, Tom O`Neil, with "In Touch Weekly," you`re taking up for him.
O`NEIL: No, Nancy.
GRACE: No, because you deal with stars and celebrities all the time. You don`t want to rub them the wrong way.
O`NEIL: Well, no, you`re.
GRACE: What are you going to get, the big Andy Dick interview?
O`NEIL: You and I crossed swords the other night on Miley Cyrus and we were on different issues there, but here I`m on your side.
GRACE: You sexualized her.
O`NEIL: No.
GRACE: She`s fully clothed in a t-shirt and you say it`s x-rated.
O`NEIL: You outed me as a prude on your show the other night.
GRACE: OK. Go ahead.
O`NEIL: This is a guy who has been through rehab six or seven times that we know of. What has got to happen this time is the judge has got to enforce his sobriety as a condition to these terms.
GRACE: Out to the lines, Samantha, South Carolina, hi, Samantha.
SAMANTHA, SOUTH CAROLINA RESIDENT: Hi, Nancy, you`re a beautiful lady and I appreciate you taking your time to speak with me.
GRACE: Yes, ma`am. Thank you for calling in. What`s your question, dear?
SAMANTHA: My question is why do these people, celebrities or not, have the audacity to blame all of their misdeeds on drugs and alcohol?
GRACE: Why is it, Renee Rockwell, Peter Odom? I can see it lining up right now, Peter Odom. That`s the defense.
ODOM: When you look at this man`s history, you know, some people are happy drunks and some people are fall asleep drunks.
GRACE: OK. So that`s the defense.
ODOM: This is a man who exposes himself when he`s drunk and all his criminal problems have been related to alcohol.
GRACE: Renee, quickly.
ROCKWELL: Nancy, not a guy that`s scared of a cocktail. But what I see is no jail time and rehab.
GRACE: Everybody, let`s stop, let`s stop and remember Army Sergeant Shawn Suzch, 32, Hilltown, Pennsylvania, killed, Iraq. On a third tour, awarded the Bronze Star, loved basketball, became a mason in Maryland, receiving several honorary degrees, leaves behind wife Angela, baby daughter Alyssa.
Shawn Suzch, American hero.
Thanks to our guests, but especially to you for being with us. I`ll see you tomorrow night, 8:00 sharp Eastern, and until then, good night, friend.
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