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Jane Velez-Mitchell
Tiger Woods to Make Public Statement
Aired February 17, 2010 - 19:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JANE VELEZ-MITCHELL, HOST (voice-over): Tonight, fast-breaking news. Tiger Woods, breaking his silence. We haven`t seen the billion-dollar golfer since his Thanksgiving debacle. We`ve already heard from most of his alleged mistresses. Now he is coming out of hibernation. And he has a whole lot of explaining to do.
And jaw-dropping new twists in the search for little Haleigh Cummings. Misty Croslin cries out from behind bars, "Leave me alone." She was the last person to see this beautiful little girl. Tonight we will play the shocking new jailhouse tapes.
MISTY CROSLIN, EX-WIFE OF RON CUMMINGS: I will prove to the world that I didn`t have anything to do with it.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Exactly.
CROSLIN: And everybody can kiss my (EXPLETIVE DELETED) and I`m going to get on TV, and I`m going to tell them all to (EXPLETIVE DELETED) off.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Whoa! Fighting words from Misty Croslin, lashing out to at the media and the cops. And now she is at the center of the Haleigh firestorm. But is she starting to crack? We`re going to play these astounding tapes, tear-filled tapes for you tonight.
Plus, a sea of red flags completely ignored. Very disturbing new insight into Amy Bishop`s dark, dangerous past. The college professor accused of gunning down three faculty members at the University of Alabama. Tonight, new information that Bishop punched a woman in the head inside a restaurant in 2002, all over a booster seat?
Now students are coming forward, claiming they also complained to the college, three times, just last year, saying Bishop was off, had odd behavior. And let`s not forget, we know already, Bishop shot and killed her own brother. Why didn`t anyone stop this woman? We will ask that tonight.
ISSUES starts now.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: We begin with bombshell developments in the Tiger sex scandal.
It is official, people. Tiger Woods is finally coming out of hiding. The golfer plans to make a very public statement this coming Friday from a Florida golf course. Where else?
We`ve also just gotten these brand-new pictures of Tiger. Just hours ago, he was photographed jogging near his Florida mansion. Take a look at it. Now, we checked it real close. He`s not wearing a wedding ring. Then again, he didn`t always wear his ring, even before the sex scandal broke. Perhaps we know why. This is the first confirmed photo of Tiger in public since the world learned about his bevy of alleged mistresses.
Tiger allegedly spent time in rehab for sex addiction. So what will he tell the world Friday morning? His agent says Tiger will apologize for his behavior, and talk about his past and his future. We`ve got to fill in the blanks.
But in true superstar form, it`s going to be a very controlled, highly-orchestrated appearance. He will not be, for example, taking any questions. Why not? Instead, Tiger will speak to a very small group of friends and colleagues. The number of reporters, extremely limited.
So how personal and candid will Tiger get? Is his appearance a genuine part of recovery from sex addiction, or some cynical P.R. move?
Straight out to my fantastic expert panel: Vinnie Politan, former prosecutor and host of "In Session," as well as -- wait a second. Let`s get -- there he is. There`s Vinnie.
Are you a golfer, Vinnie?
VINNIE POLITAN, FORMER PROSECUTOR/HOST, "IN SESSION": No, but my whole family is, so I know a lot about golf.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: All right. Yes, I was also forced to play golf as a child so I actually can play, but not very well.
Forensic psychologist and attorney Brian Russell. There you are. We need some analysis of the Tiger mind from you tonight, sir. And Carlos Diaz, correspondent for "Extra."
Carlos, I want to start with you, an analysis of this photo that has just come in, hot off the presses, of Tiger jogging with this unidentified male in his neighborhood in Florida. And we are told that he`s wearing a Nike shirt. Why is that significant?
CARLOS DIAZ, CORRESPONDENT, "EXTRA": Well, it shows that Nike -- Nike has stood behind him throughout, and will continue to stand behind him. You know, like you said, no wedding ring. We believe that`s his trainer with him in the photo you see.
He does look like he has put on a little bit of weight. He looks a little bigger than when we`ve seen in the past. But, you know, if you`re not out and about, and if you`re in sex rehab, maybe you can`t exercise as much as you`d like to.
But Jane, I`ve got to say, as this -- as this big press conference -- as it`s called, when there aren`t going to be any -- any questions taken at all. When this press conference goes down on Friday, I don`t think the thirst for knowledge, as far as what`s happened in the past, will be quenched. I honestly thing Tiger will...
VELEZ-MITCHELL: No, I don`t think so, either.
DIAZ: Yes. Tiger will say that he`s sorry. He`ll apologize for his transgressions. And then I think they`re going to move on and talk about the future. And the fact that there are four golf events in the state of Florida in the month of March that he can play in as he gets ready for the masters.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Well, I don`t think it`s going to work. Frankly, it`s not going to cut it anymore to come out and do some kind of just "I`m so sorry." You know, that`s very 20th century. In fact, it`s early 20th century.
DIAZ: I agree.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: It`s kind of like a Soviet era photo op. Something that North Korea would cook up. I mean, what we need is some new information. We need him to be real. We need him to say something genuine, Vinnie Politan.
POLITAN: Well, that`s not going to happen until he appears on your show or with Oprah or somebody else who`s going to ask some questions, and that`s just not going to happen. It`s going to be controlled. It`s going to be about Tiger. And I think it`s going to have a lot to do with him trying to get back in the swing of things and get back on the golf course and try to catch Jack Niklaus.
Because at the end of the day, I think professionally, that`s all he cares about. He`s got all of the money. They already call him the greatest golfer ever. But he`s got to get that record. So to get that record, he`s got to get this out of the way. And that`s why he`s doing it right now.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: We are delighted to have with us tonight Gloria Allred, famed attorney, representing two of Tiger`s alleged mistresses: Rachel Uchitel, also known as mistress No. 1, and the former adult star who you`re looking at right there, Joslyn James, whose real name, I believe, is Veronica.
Gloria, what`s your reaction to this announcement that he`s going to hold this news conference that`s really just a statement on Friday, given that your client, Joslyn, a.k.a., Veronica, just came out with the news just the other day that she says Tiger impregnated her twice.
GLORIA ALLRED, ATTORNEY: Well, my reaction, Jane, is that I think at his news conference, on Friday, that Tiger Woods needs to name my client, Veronica Swift Daniels, a.k.a., Joslyn James, and apologize by name to her, because she has sacrificed a lot for him.
She had a three-year relationship with him. She left the porn business, because he wanted her not to be with any other man and he couldn`t stand to see her on the films with any other man. She gave that up, which was her only source of income. Then she went into hiding when the whole scandal broke, trying to protect him. And I think that the minimum that he could do now is apologize to her.
And I think that, in addition to doing it at the news conference, he needs to pick up the telephone and apologize to her over the telephone, one-to-one.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: When is the last time that he contacted Joslyn James? I hear somebody laughing. We`ll get to your laughter in a second. When is the last time, Gloria, that he contacted Joslyn James, a.k.a., Veronica?
ALLRED: I don`t know -- I don`t know why anybody is laughing, but I can say this. I don`t take kindly to, and I don`t laugh when a woman has been hurt, when a woman has been betrayed, when a woman has been lied to.
POLITAN: Are you talking about Elin? Or are you talking about...
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Hold on! I`ve got to bring out the gavel.
ALLRED: I`m talking about any woman by any -- by any person.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Yes.
ALLRED: And so all I can tell you is that`s how I feel, and I don`t consider it a laughing matter.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: I want to find out which one of you was -- or maybe all -- it`s you and me, Gloria, two women versus three men. OK, Vinnie. Vinnie.
POLITAN: Well, I was laughing, because I`m thinking, is Elin going to let him get on the phone and speak to one of his old mistresses?
DIAZ: Yes.
POLITAN: He`s going to get hit with another golf club if he does that. Come on. That`s how he got in trouble in the first place. He`s not going to make the call.
But I understand what you`re saying, Gloria. Maybe he does it in the news conference. He won`t do it specifically. Maybe he`ll just apologize to everybody.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Well, I mean, honestly, I think there needs to be some transparency here. We`re calling everybody alleged mistresses. He has acknowledged indiscretions, but he has not gotten specific.
And honestly, Brian Russell, you`re the psychologist. I think for us to have a cathartic moment, for us to feel like we`ve really learned something or he`s really changed, I think he`s got to get specific. He needs to say, "I had had sex with all these women," if that is what happened.
BRIAN RUSSELL, FORENSIC PSYCHOLOGIST: Well, you don`t know how right you are when you say that the bottom line on this is it`s just -- you don`t buy this. And I don`t buy it either. And the reason is because somebody who was truly sorry would not have done this stuff in the first place, because the same empathy that would make him sorry about it now would have kept him from doing it in the first place.
He`s sorry, I`m sure, but I think what he`s sorry about is all the negative consequences that have befallen him since it became public, not about the behavior itself. And until he`s sorry about that, I`m sorry -- I`m sorry, he`s the same guy. And I admit, I was laughing. I`m sorry, Gloria. But it`s tough for me to see Joslyn James as an innocent victim in all this.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Why? Just because she`s a former adult star doesn`t mean she...
RUSSELL: She was a willing participant. She was a willing participant.
DIAZ: She took place in a relationship with who she knew was a married man.
RUSSELL: Absolutely.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Let he or she who has...
ALLRED: They are human beings, too.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: You know, that old stones -- yes. All right.
RUSSELL: OK.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: All right, everybody, stay right where you are. More on Tiger Woods. Is he a changed man?
We`re taking your calls on this: 1-877-JVM-SAYS, 1-877-586-2987.
Plus, a defiant Misty Croslin lashes out from behind bars, cussing like a sailor, and then praying to God, saying the lord will help her get out of jail? We`ll play the tapes.
But first, Tiger Woods sold an image of perfection to the public. But in private, well, he was up to a lot of shenanigans. So what are we going to expect when he comes out and talks on Friday? A new Tiger Woods, or maybe just more of the same highly-managed persona?
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I was in love with Tiger, and because of what he said to me, and the length of time that we spent together, and how long we were together, I believe that he loved me, too.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JAIMEE GRUBBS, TIGER WOODS` ALLEGED MISTRESS: I think he`s very good at playing the person you want him to be. I think he`s very manipulative that way. There are so many sides to him that I didn`t know that I couldn`t tell you the person he is.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: That was Jaimee Grubbs, one of Tiger Woods` many alleged mistresses.
So which Tiger are we going to see this Friday morning when he emerges from hiding? Will the statement be just straight damage control, or will we hear a genuine mea culpa? We know he`s not going to answer questions, so it`s all up to him.
Phone lines lighting up. Julie, Florida. Your question or thought, ma`am?
CALLER: Actually, it`s a thought. I`ve been watching this saga for a while, and I appreciate all you guys` comments, but why can`t we give Tiger a break and first let him come out and speak before we all start jumping on him?
And as for Gloria`s comments about these two women she`s representing, especially the one that he supposedly got pregnant, why does he owe them an apology? They knew what they were getting into.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Gloria, I have to echo what that lady said, because Bob, our floor manager, was saying the same thing during the break. Essentially, she knew -- your client knew that she was involved with a married man who had children.
ALLRED: Well, that`s true. She did. Here`s what she didn`t know. She didn`t know, though, that he was having relationships with other women, intimate relationships. Because he told her...
RUSSELL: She`d have to be a nut not to assume that.
POLITAN: Come on, Gloria.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Let Gloria finish. Wait a second. Let Gloria finish. And then the guys can talk.
ALLRED: Let me finish, please. Let me just finish. You know, I don`t -- I don`t call women nuts when they`ve been lied to by men. I consider them victims when they have been lied to by men. And there are many millions of women in this country who have been, not by Tiger but have been lied to by men, and those people are not nuts. Those people are vulnerable; they`re in love.
My client, Veronica, was in love with Tiger Woods. She had every reason to believe that he was in love with her, from his words, from his actions, from his texts to her. And she thought that she was the only one other than his wife.
And I don`t believe in name-calling with her. She`s a victim, and he was wrong to lie to her. If he told her honestly what was going on, then she could have made the decision as to whether or not to be with him for three years.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Gloria, can I ask you one -- one follow-up question? Because we know a lot of times, when women have affairs with married men, they will sometimes say, "You know, I have an arrangement." I`ve heard that myself. "I have an arrangement. OK? We`re married, but it`s in name only. It`s not -- a real marriage. And we have an agreement that we`re going to do our own thing."
Did he say anything like that to your client?
ALLRED: You know, I don`t want to say what he said to my client about his wife. But, you know, there -- we have over 120 texts from Tiger to Veronica. And we have a lot of evidence of their relationship, some of which may come out at a later time. And most of it has not yet come out.
And all I can say is...
POLITAN: Jane...
ALLRED: ... I think Tiger Woods is a great golfer. I wish him the best in his career. I really do. But he has wronged Veronica, and he needs to apologize to her. Any man who hurts any woman needs to personally apologize to her, not just get on television and apologize to the world...
RUSSELL: Gloria -- Gloria, has she apologized to Tiger`s wife and kids?
VELEZ-MITCHELL: What?
RUSSELL: Has she apologized to Tiger`s wife and kids? Have your clients apologized to Tiger`s wife and kids?
ALLRED: You know, if his wife wants to speak to Veronica, I will make that happen. I would be very happy to make that happen.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Now -- will Tiger announce that he will be back on the PGA tour soon? Listen to what golf analyst Jim Huber reported earlier on HLN.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JIM HUBER, GOLF ANALYST (via phone): He`s going to announce Friday that he is going to play at the Tavistock Cup, which is the home course thing -- sort of a controlled, gimmicky tournament that they have between Lake Nona and the Isleworth players, and they`ve both right across the lake from each other.
And it will be controlled. It will be all of his friends there. He - - it won`t be that many gallery-ites. And then he`ll play at Arnold`s tournament at Bayhill just right down the street from there. Again, another controlled environment. And then he`ll play the masters.
(END VIDEO CLOP)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Now, Carlos Diaz, if Tiger returns, will the reserve master`s tournament turn into a total circus? I`m not just talking about the paparazzi. But the masters is at the Augusta National Golf Club, which as you know, excludes woman and has been the subject of protests by women in the past. If Augusta goes out of its way to protect Tiger, who is a serial philanderer, while excluding women, could we see more women protesting the masters again?
DIAZ: You won`t see any women protesting the masters on the hallowed grounds of the masters, and that`s why Tiger is going to feel welcome there, because of the fact that it`s a private course, and they will not -- you won`t have paparazzi running around the course. It`s the perfect environment.
And you bring up the point, you know, they don`t let women, you know, in the country club, at Augusta there. And when there were boycotts before, what did they do with the masters? They said, "OK, well, we`ll drop all of our sponsors." And they had no commercials during the masters, because they didn`t want to upset the sponsors. And that`s the kind of controlled environment you have at the masters, and that`s why it`s perfect for Tiger.
And your golf analyst was dead-on. That`s what he`s going to do. He`s going to play two tournaments in Florida and then go on to the masters and begin to gain...
VELEZ-MITCHELL: You`re saying it`s all so controlled, but I`m not so sure that they`re going to be able to control...
DIAZ: Jane -- Jane...
VELEZ-MITCHELL: he can`t live behind a shield forever, going only to these tournaments.
DIAZ: He won`t. He won`t forever. But I`m telling you right now, Augusta will not be a circus. It will not. It has handled this in the past.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: OK, I hear you.
DIAZ: It will handle it this year. It will not be a circus.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Here`s my question to all of you. I think he needs to really come clean and give us some new information, not just say "I`m sorry."
Because first of all, if this is some kind of stage-managed, jaded event and he hasn`t really changed, Brian Russell, there`s a very good possibility, if he is a sex addict, that he`ll slip and go back to his old behavior. And it`s my fervent belief, if that happens, and he`s caught again, then this is really going to turn into a tragedy. People will really revile him.
RUSSELL: Well, you know what, Jane? I really don`t believe in the whole sex addiction thing, either. So I`m not buying that part of it, either. And I really think, who needs the details of all this, as Tiger and his family -- what everybody out there watching needs to know is, if somebody will cheat with you, they will cheat on you. And if you think they won`t, you are a nut.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Got it. More on this. We`ll also get into that shooter, Amy Bishop. Stay there.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KOBE BRYANT, PROFESSIONAL BASKETBALL PLAYER: Furious at myself. Disgusted at myself. For making a mistake of adultery. I`m so sorry, for having to put you through this and having to put our family through this.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: That was Kobe Bryant with his wife, Vanessa, after his sex scandal. The big question, will Elin Woods appear with her husband Tiger on Friday?
I want to get everybody`s reaction on the panel. Let`s start with you, Gloria Allred. We know that we`ve heard she`s gotten rid of the attorney she hired, the powerful divorce attorney, possibly trying to work it out. You suggested maybe she renegotiated a prenup. Do you think she`s going to show up Friday?
ALLRED: I don`t know, Jane, if she`ll show up. I wish her the best. She`s definitely an innocent victim on this -- in this, and it must be very hard on her with two little children. And I just wish her the best, whatever she decides.
But I think Tiger needs to stand there, frankly, by himself, and acknowledge everything that he has done wrong and the hurt that he has inflicted.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Specifics? Naming names?
ALLRED: Specifically naming my client, and what he has done to her, and that it was wrong. And that he`s sorry.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: What about -- what about Rachel Uchitel?
ALLRED: Well, right now, I`m only commenting on Veronica.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: OK.
Carlos, should Elin show up?
DIAZ: I don`t know if she should. I think she will, because we`ve seen already that this is becoming a controlled environment. There will be a handful of reporters who are hand-picked there. There will be no questions. It`s very, very controlled.
It`s really basically in his backyard. It`s on a golf course. It`s in a clubhouse. There`s so much control. I would be very surprised if Elin wasn`t there, considering all the control that`s already gone into it.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: All right. Helen, Wisconsin, your question or thought?
CALLER: I hope she doesn`t go. I was married to a sportsman that was just like him, exactly. He had ten illegitimate children. And you know what? I lost everything. They took my home. Everything. Because his parents are rich and bailed him out all of the time. Same thing.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Ma`am, I agree with you.
Vinnie Politan, I don`t necessarily think that she should have to go. If it`s true that her husband cheated on her with 12 to 14 women, why does she have to show up and be a door mat and stand there like one of those political wives, like a robot, and take all this? I say stay home, let him deal with it.
POLITAN: I would actually be -- I disagree with Carlos. I would be surprised if she does show up. You know, why does she have to be there, is a great question. And when you look at these political scandals, which of the women did we -- did we respect the most out of all of them? The one that didn`t stand by her man?
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Jenny Sanford.
POLITAN: Jenny Sanford, exactly. I think that`s the mode that she`s going to go with. She`ll be taking care of her kids, taking care of his family. Let him stand there like a man and take it like a man and face the world as a man by himself.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Yes, but if he`s taking it like a man, why not take a couple of questions, Brian Russell? I don`t like the fact that he`s not taking any questions.
RUSSELL: Yes, I don`t like that either. I don`t think that his wife will show up. I don`t think she should show up. If she does show up, I`ll be disappointed. I basically agree with everything Gloria said this time around, except that he`s going to apologize to her client. Kumbaya.
(CROSSTALK)
ALLRED: Let me say, I think...
DIAZ: Don`t you want to see Tiger say he`s sorry to Elin? Don`t you want to see Tiger apologize to Elin, turn like Kobe Bryant did, to his wife, Vanessa, and say, "I`m sorry I put you through this"?
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Well, it certainly made for good television. But I don`t know -- beyond that.
POLITAN: Good television. It would be torture for her. If he really loves her, he tells her to stay home...
ALLRED: Jane...
POLITAN: ... and he tells us he told her to stay home.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: We`re out of time.
ALLRED: Jane...
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Thank you, fabulous panel.
Up next, Amy Bishop.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Mind-blowing new jailhouse tapes of Misty Croslin behind bars. Is Haleigh`s former step mom on the verge of cracking?
Misty was the last person to see 6-year-old Haleigh Cummings alive. The little girl vanished more than a year ago in the dead of night while then 17-year-old Misty was supposedly babysitting. Misty insists, she doesn`t know anything about little Haleigh`s disappearance. But cops still believe she is the key to solving this case.
Now, Misty is in jail, on serious drug trafficking charges. She was caught pushing pills and is being held on a whopping $1.3 million bond. Do cops finally have Misty right where they want her? Are investigators putting the squeeze on Misty and her co-defendants which include Haleigh`s dad, Ron -- putting the squeeze on them for any information about what happened to Haleigh?
Listen to this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MISTY CROSLIN, HALEIGH CUMMINGS` STEPMOTHER: Mom, I want out of here.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: All right. We`re going to play some of these jailhouse tapes for you tonight. It`s really unbelievable. She puts on a tough act, but in these brand new tapes she also breaks down.
So the question we`re asking tonight, is she on the brink of telling cops something that could help them find little Haleigh?
Straight out to my fantastic expert panel: Mark Eiglarsh, forensic psychologist Brian Russell, veteran police officer Marc Harrold and joining me by phone, WDBO.com reporter, Nikki Pierce.
Nikki, what is the very latest?
NIKKI PIERCE, REPORTER, WDBO.COM: The very latest is that Misty Croslin and Ronald Cummings senior and three other people still remain in jail on those drug trafficking charges, and unfortunately, the investigators in the missing Haleigh Cummings case are stumped. They still say that they`re no closer to finding Haleigh Cummings after a year of investigating and following thousands of leads.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: All right. Well, let`s get to these tapes. Misty tells her mom she is in isolation, and her only contact is with an inmate who helps braid her hair. Misty says she knows prosecutors have set her bail high to keep her in jail, and to try to get information out of her about Haleigh, but she swears, "They won`t break me."
Listen to this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CROSLIN: As soon as they find out what happened to Haleigh, everything will be different.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I know. I can`t believe they still believe -- it`s crazy.
CROSLIN: It`s ridiculous, because they`ve got my bond set so high just because of that. And that`s not fair. This has nothing to do with it.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I know. That`s exactly what it is.
CROSLIN: That`s what they think. I`m going break. There is nothing to break me on, so they need to leave me alone.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Mark Eiglarsh, what do you make of her behavior? Defiant, saying they`re not going to break her, but then she says there is nothing to break me of.
MARK EIGLARSH, CRIMINAL DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Jane, you know exactly what she is doing. She is grandstanding. This is not some kind of moment that was captured. She knows -- she saw all the tapes out of Orlando. She knows that this is going to be broadcast on all the media, so she is carefully watching what she is saying. She is not a bright girl, but she is not dumb. She is cunning, and she knows that we`re all watching this.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: I don`t think she is that stupid. I mean to be able to hold police at bay for this long is absolutely extraordinary, given she looks like about a 9-year-old child, even though she is an 18-year-old teenager.
EIGLARSH: With an awesome smoking habit.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Exactly. And maybe other habits.
You bring me to my big issue tonight: her own reality show. Is Misty the star of her very own very real reality show? During jailhouse conversations with her mom she constantly refers to these tapes being played on TV, and even works the cameras. Take a look at this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CROSLIN: The girl upstairs, she is real nice, she did my hair. Can you see it?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes, I see it. It looks good. I had mine done like that.
CROSLIN: She had to do it through the little bars, but she did it for me.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: She done it --
CROSLIN: Yes.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Don`t cut it.
CROSLIN: I`m not cutting it. I`m not (EXPLETIVE DELETED) up in here cut my hair.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Don`t cut it at all.
CROSLIN: They can all put this on TV and kiss my (EXPLETIVE DELETED).
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: That`s right.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: They can all put this on TV and kiss my bleep. Brian Russell, is she working the jailhouse cameras? This is a certain level of sophistication. And I think she might be enjoying some of this attention, as well.
BRIAN RUSSELL, FORENSIC PSYCHOLOGIST: Yes, it`s striking to me the similarities between these tapes and some of the jailhouse tapes that we saw out of the Casey Anthony case. And I think Mark is right. I think that she probably has seen those, too. She is down there in Florida. And I think to some degree, she probably does know that she`s a little bit of a star right now.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Even though they`re in jail for very different crimes, you have to -- you have to look at the similarities as you just heard between Misty Croslin and Casey Anthony`s demeanor.
When Casey first went to jail, she also came off as cheeky, self- centered, cocky. Listen to this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Hey, gorgeous, how are you doing?
CASEY ANTHONY, ACCUSED OF MURDERING DAUGHTER: I look like hell.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: And then once she was in jail, as you see there, she starts to break down. Misty seems to be kind of having the same progression. Listen to this tough girl attitude.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CROSLIN: I will prove to the world that I didn`t have nothing to do with it.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Exactly.
CROSLIN: And when I`m out of jail, everybody can kiss my (EXPLETIVE DELETED) and I`m going get on TV, and I`m going to tell them all to (EXPLETIVE DELETED) off.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: That`s right. I don`t blame you at all. They need to give you a nationwide apology.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: So Marc Harrold, you`re the veteran police officer. Imagine the cops who have to interrogate this young woman. They`re at the age -- Casey and this young lady, where they think they`re invincible, absolutely invincible. And they also think they`re hot stuff.
And in their little communities, they`re attractive, they`re cool, they all have that sort of "I`m the cool one in high school persona". But then after a couple months behind bars, it starts to wear off, and they start to really crumble.
MARC HARROLD, VETERAN POLICE OFFICER: Yes, this is a situation where, you know, when you`re in prison, you`re in jail, you really don`t have any control over your life. And I think what`s happening here, she is trying to take some of that control back, she is trying to assert herself.
I think she does know she is on TV. I don`t think she is particularly bright. I don`t think she`s savvy. But I think she does have enough sense to know that this is her one way to community with the world, and if nothing else, it`s a break from the boredom. She is in jail and she`s starting to get a little stir crazy.
You know I think if she knows something, they are going to be to a point where they`ll get to know what she knows. I think she`ll speak eventually if she does know something. But we`ll just have to see.
But I think she is acting out, because she has lost that control and this is the one way that she can get that control back and talk to the country, so to speak.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Yes, well, or the real Misty is coming out, just over the course of time in all these tapes.
Does Misty, by the way, have a soft spot for Ronald? In these jailhouse tapes, we see her acting real tough, until -- until her mother brings up Ronald`s son, junior, who she was also watching that night.
Listen to this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I know you had nothing to do with Haleigh. You loved her, just like you do junior. And I`m sending you a picture of junior.
CROSLIN: Ok.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Ok? Don`t cry.
CROSLIN: You got one of Haleigh, too?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I don`t know, but I can find one. Ok?
CROSLIN: Ok.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And I`ll send them to you.
CROSLIN: All right.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Are cops going to play on those feelings? Can they use them to squeeze Misty for information on little Haleigh`s disappearance? Perhaps they have already started to.
Listen to this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
RON CUMMINGS, FATHER OF HALEIGH CUMMINGS: They came and told me what to say and I had to tell Misty that I really, really loved her and to stand behind her no matter what. I`m missing Haleigh and I`ve lost Junior speaking like this, you know.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Mark Eiglarsh, this is such a can of worms, it seems everybody is trying to manipulate everyone else. And it`s just sort of a mutual manipulation fest.
EIGLARSH: Yes. I have no problem with law -- yes, I`m a defense lawyer, former prosecutor. I have no problems with cops doing within the law all those things, all the tools that are handed to them. And trickery, according to the appellate court, has been upheld as something they can use. So, if they want to play her against him, him against her, affections, or wave in front of her how much time she is facing on these trafficking charges, whatever it takes to get her to reveal the truth, assuming she`s got it.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Now, that was -- the other woman we saw there was Donna Brock, who`s another piece of work, who is also behind bars. And she started out as somebody who was going to befriend Misty for Texas Equusearch and get the real story, and now she is also swept up in this alleged drug ring and behind bars.
I don`t know if I believe Misty at all. Nikki Pierce. I mean, final thoughts on this. When she is saying, oh, do you have a picture of Haleigh? I think they orchestrated that whole thing.
EIGLARSH: Oh, yes.
PIERCE: it`s entirely possible. As you see, she does address the camera. She does know she is on TV. We`re in the same markets that the Casey Anthony case was going on in. So, of course, she knows that these cameras go out.
And detectives believe that the disappearance of Haleigh and the drug case will eventually cross and more will come to light. They really do think that Misty has the key.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: More will definitely be revealed. Thank you, fantastic panel.
Moving on, Amy Bishop`s past coming back to haunt her. We are tracking a bizarre string of events that led to Friday`s mass shooting at the University of Alabama. Were many red flags ignored?
And we`re taking your calls on this; 1-877-JVM-SAYS, 1-877-586- 7297.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DEBRA MORIARITY, REPORTEDLY TRIED TO STOP SHOOTING: People keep asking, you know, what were you thinking? There wasn`t time to really think. I mean, I tried to count it out this morning, and I think from the beginning to when we finally got things barricaded, it couldn`t have been more than 20 seconds.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Now, to mind-blowing new details about accused mass murder Amy Bishop. Tonight: the chilling portrait of the self-absorbed, alleged calculated campus killer.
The 44-year-old biology professor could face the death penalty for slaughtering three colleagues Friday at the University of Alabama. Three others were injured. Her rampage was reportedly sparked by the prospect of her losing her job.
Fellow professor Debra Moriarity, the hero who tried to stop the bloodshed is speaking out about the horrific execution-style murders.
Listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MORIARITY: I don`t really know that her face changed at all during any of it. She looked angry when I first saw her. You know -- somebody who just was mad at you and was going to shoot you. Like -- you know? And I don`t think that that changed.
She didn`t -- when she saw me, it wasn`t any different. It was not like, oh, here`s Deb, let me shoot her, too. You know, it was just that face was there.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Plus, reports that Bishop`s students complained to school administrators at least three times because she had, quote, "odd, unsettling ways", end quote. They even signed a petition. But no action was taken.
Also tonight, did Amy Bishop suffer from delusions of grandeur? You won`t believe this. In 2002, cops say she punched a woman in the head after confronting her and demanding the last booster chair at an iHop restaurant. This, as she yelled, "I am Dr. Amy Bishop. I am Dr. Amy Bishop." She was charged with assault. Amy Bishop got -- want to take a guess? What did she get for that? Punching a lady in the head. Probation.
Prosecutors recommended anger management classes, but did she go? What do you think about all this? The number, 1-877-JVM-SAYS, 1-877-586- 7297.
Joining me, my fantastic panel. Tom Pettigrew. He claims a 20- year-old Amy Bishop stuck a gun in his chest, and told a wild story about needing a get-away car after a fight with her husband. We`re going to get your story. Thanks for joining us, Tom.
Fred Hanson, reporter with the "Patriot Ledger" in Massachusetts and Michelle Sigona, investigative reporter and founder of MichelleSigona.com.
Michelle, so many developments, what`s the latest?
MICHELLE SIGONA, INVESTIGATIVE REPORTER: The very latest in this case, Jane, is that at this point, Amy Bishop is behind bars. She`s being held without bail. She faces capital murder charge. Also, three counts of attempted murder.
As of yesterday afternoon, she was not -- a prosecutor was not assigned to this case, but they do tell me that probably some time before the end of this week that they will be able to move forward and to hand this case over at this particular time.
I also learned more about what happened after the incident, after the alleged incident. Apparently, according to one of the sergeants in Huntsville, he told me that she had thrown the .9-millimeter gun in a trash can on the second floor. They didn`t find it until that evening after scouring the entire building, putting her in handcuffs and taking her away.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Didn`t she also call her husband and say, "Hey, pick me up, it`s date night," or something like that?
SIGONA: Yes. Apparently, there was a telephone call that was made earlier, and it didn`t sound like anything was wrong. She was very calm, and just was moving forward with plans.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Well, I mean, this is absolutely insane that this woman was out there. Given what we know about her past, the 2002 iHop rage incident, and let`s go back to 1986, and Tom Pettigrew`s horror story.
The Braintree Massachusetts police department has been taking a real beating for letting Amy go after she shot and killed her brother in `86. The D.A., Bill Delahunt, who`s now a Congressman, says he doesn`t understand why there were not criminal charges.
Here`s what the police chief says to that.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOHN POLIO, FORMER POLICE CHIEF, BRAINTREE, MASSACHUSETTS: If you had a crystal ball and could see a quarter of century in the future about the pipe bombs and about the tragedy in Alabama, you would have probably thought a little different.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Yes, that has nothing to do with it. Of she should have been charged then. Ok? Instead, she was -- let off as a hysterical young female in the care of her mother, even though she was 20 years old.
The fact is she shot and killed her brother in the family`s kitchen after the mother reportedly told her not to point the gun at anyone. Cops say she fled with the gun and then ran into a local car dealership near her home. And that`s where we pick up the story from Tom Pettigrew, who joins us tonight.
Let`s cut right to the chase, Tom, when you confronted her, what did you see? Was she holding a gun? What did she say?
TOM PETTIGREW, CLAIMS BISHOP HELD GUN TO HIS CHEST IN 86: Well, she was holding a shotgun at first, which is what I thought was a BB gun. And I had seen her run from one corner of the lot into another building on the property that we were at. And I entered that building with a friend of mine, and I heard someone coming from the stairs from the second floor. And I went over to the door, and she was right on other side of the door.
And I opened the door, and we kind of startled each other. And like, I was walking into her, she was walking into me, and she had the gun up. And that`s when I got the gun in my chest.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: And what did she say?
PETTIGREW: I asked her -- well, I asked her first, what`s going on, what are you doing here? And then she told me to put my hands up. Told my other buddy to put his hands up, and then we backed up. I asked her the question again. And then she said that "My husband is looking for me. We just got into a fight. He`s going to kill me." And she asked me for my car keys.
And I said, well, the car I`m hearing, it`s on a lift with wheels and tires off, it doesn`t move.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Ok. I`m going to cut to the chase. Because you didn`t give her a car, right?
PETTIGREW: No.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: And then the cops swept in and arrested her.
PETTIGREW: Yes, they did.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Are you shocked that she was let go without any charges, given that your story is outlined in the police report that they just found.
PETTIGREW: Well, on the following days, there was an article in the local newspaper that said that it was a accidental shooting. And at the time, I was young, so I just, you know, read that. And I`m like, ok, accidental shooting.
They interviewed me after this incident happened. I gave my account, which turned up in the police report. And I never heard anything from it. You know, and I just figured, you know the police had it under control --
VELEZ-MITCHELL: When you saw her -- when you saw her arrested for this mass shooting at the University of Alabama, what ran through your brain?
PETTIGREW: Well, I got out of work late, at like, 2:30 in the morning and I was in my bedroom watching TV. And when they said, you know, Hollis Avenue, accidental shooting of her brother, I immediately knew this was the same girl that I had a run in with that day.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: What was your reaction? Were you horrified? Did you say, oh my gosh I wish they would have arrested her when she stuck a gun in my chest in 1986, she wouldn`t have be free to do that?
PETTIGREW: Well yes, I thought that. Yes, you know, it took -- something happened back then and she probably got treatment or got some help or, you know, got found guilty for killing her brother. These people in Alabama would probably still be here right now.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: They`d be alive today. You are right.
Everyone, stay right there. More on Amy Bishop`s troubled past right after the break. We`re going to talk to a reporter from the "Patriot Ledger" who has inside information.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Ma`am, do you have anything to say? Do you know about what happened?
AMY BISHOP, ALLEGED SHOOTER: It didn`t happen. There`s no way.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What about the people who died.
BISHOP: There`s no way. They`re still alive.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: No, their not they`re not alive, and yes it did happen, Amy Bishop. Her denial just never ceases to amaze. Imagine the shock when Amy Bishop stood up in a staff meeting on Friday and allegedly opened fire on her colleagues at pointblank range.
This, from NBC`s "Today."
MORIARITY: A bang, a gunshot and looked up and Amy was standing there with a gun and shooting.
My thought was she is going to go around the room and shoot everyone. When I saw what was happening it looked like she was just methodically going around the room.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Phone lines lighting up. Leila, Texas, your question or thought, ma`am.
LEILA, TEXAS (via telephone): I keep thinking of these poor children of hers and with someone with a short volatile fuse, temper that she has, it seems to me that child protective services should be getting in on this case, too.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Yes. Amy Bishop had what some consider a dark hobby. We`re talking about the game, Dungeons and Dragons. Bishop and her husband reportedly met in a Dungeons and Dragons club while biology students at Northeastern University. They were said to be heavily into the fantasy role-playing game. And D&D was also a favorite pastime of infamous workplace killer Michael McDermott. He shot and killed seven co-workers at a Massachusetts Internet company in 2001.
Dungeons and dragons has a long history of controversy because of demonic elements. What do we know about the husband and wife relationship here because he also went target practicing with her before the shooting?
FRED HANSON, REPORTER, PATRIOT LEDGER: I don`t know much about that that all happened in Alabama but I do know their son talked to one of his friends today, who was playing Dungeons and Dragons when it first came out back before the shooting.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Say that again?
HANSON: I talked to a friend of the son who was playing Dungeons and Dragons back in the day. So maybe the mother -- he got it from the mother and father.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: In other words Amy Bishop`s son is also a proponent of Dungeons and Dragons is what I`m hearing.
HANSON: Yes, he also played the game.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Yes. Brian Russell, what does that tell you about them?
RUSSELL: Well, her own history of actual violent behavior says a lot to me -- a lot more to me than any games that she was involved in. You know, I always say that there are warning signs in every one of these mass shootings. There always are.
This looks like a woman to me who has some kind of a narcissistic sense of entitlement to lash out at people that she perceives had slighted her somehow. And another interesting thing about her is how intelligence and profound personality disorder can co-exist together. There`s a reason why we have this archetype of a nutty, eccentric professor.
Remember the astronaut, Lisa Nowak, same thing. We`ve got a real intelligent person doing a real crazy thing. But I think that that statement she made on the way out into the cop car, "It can`t be, these people have to be alive." That sounds to me like she thinks she`s going to outsmart the system twice with a bogus insanity defense.
EIGLARSH: Jane --
VELEZ-MITCHELL: All right.
EIGLARSH: I agree with Dr. Russell. It will be an insanity defense. Jurors are not going to let her go. She hid the gun. That`s going to show consciousness of guilt.
RUSSELL: Absolutely. And they`re not going to let her go with this.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Absolutely. Got to leave it right there.
And remember, we`re going to have much more on the Tiger Woods announcement right here on ISSUES. It will be carried live.
END
