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Nancy Grace
Body ID`d as Missing California 17-year-old Norma Lopez
Aired July 23, 2010 - 20:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
JANE VELEZ-MITCHELL, GUEST HOST: Breaking news tonight. Just 70 miles outside Los Angeles, a darling 17-year-old girl with dreams of becoming a fashion designer fixes lunch for her sister, then heads off to summer school. When classes are dismissed, she goes to meet with her sister at a friend`s house, but she never makes it there. Her personal belongings are found discarded just one block away. There are obvious signs of a struggle.
The search comes to a tragic end when her body is found in a remote field just two miles from her high school. Tonight, a grieving California community is on edge with fear that a killer is on the loose. And tonight investigators remain on high alert searching for her killer.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Law enforcement desperately searching for the perp who killed Norma Lopez.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We are terribly saddened. My heart is broken in pieces just that my sister is no longer going to be here.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Mom says she can`t even describe her pain. Dad is almost speechless.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Seventeen-year-old high school student Norma Lopez left her summer school biology class to walk over to a nearby friend`s house. Norma never made it.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: As the family made its first public comments, Riverside County sheriff`s deputies stepped up their search for Norma`s killer.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What we`re hoping for is somebody to drive by who tells us, yes, you know, last Thursday at 10:30, I saw a girl standing next to a car, talking to a guy.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Police questioning sex offenders in the area, even setting up checkpoints to question those passing by.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Just turn yourself in.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Riverside County sheriff`s investigators say they have interviewed family members, friends, even Norma`s boyfriend, and all are cooperating. At this point, authorities say they have no suspects.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: If you know something, tell the police. It could be anonymous. That way, we could find this person and this will not happen to another girl.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Also tonight, breaking news out of Portland, Oregon, bombshell developments in the mystery surrounding the disappearance of 7- year-old Kyron Horman. As stepmother Terri Horman forced out of the family home, a stunning new twist. Investigators reportedly serve three search warrants at the homes of the stepmother`s friends. Kyron`s family reveals one of them may be holding critical information in the case but is refusing to cooperate with police. And teachers also drop a bombshell, reporting the stepmother told them little Kyron had a doctor`s appointment and would not be returning to school on the very day he vanishes.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Terri, do you know where Kyron is? Can you tell the world something? Can you please tell the world something?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Law enforcement have been focusing a lot of attention on one of Terri Horman`s friends.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I just really want her to do the right thing.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Her name, DeDe Spicher. She was doing gardening work for a homeowner the day Kyron disappeared, and for some reason left the house around 11:30 in the morning, didn`t return for 90 minutes.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There`s only one child that gets off at our stop, and that`s Kyron. The bus driver look at us and told us that he wasn`t on the bus.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I know she`s involved.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: ... biological parents imploring Terri Horman`s good friend, DeDe Spicher, to cooperate with detectives.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: She, Spicher, has not only been in close communication with Terri, but has been providing Terri with support and advice that is not in the best interests of our son.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I`m so angry, I don`t even have words.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: She is going as far as to suggest to others that may have information regarding Kyron`s disappearance not to cooperate, as well.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Completely unacceptable.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Not telling the truth.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Good evening. I`m Jane Velez-Mitchell, in for Nancy Grace tonight. A beautiful 17-year-old southern California girl vanishes on her way home from summer school, found dead. Tonight, police on high alert searching for her killer.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Norma Lopez left her summer school biology class to walk over to a nearby friend`s house.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I love her! I really miss her!
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: When Norma didn`t arrive, her friend and younger sister went to look for her. What they found, shocking.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We did locate some personal belongings on the trail that she normally takes back from school. It did appear that there could have been a struggle.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Days later, Norma`s body located in another nearby field.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: ... trying just to find who the person responsible for this to pay for what he has done.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Elizabeth Lopez says the death of her sister, Norma, has devastated this family of six siblings.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: She hasn`t done anything to anyone to deserve this at all.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Deputies stopped every car passing by Valley View High School in Moreno Valley, where Norma was last seen. While the checkpoint did create quite a traffic back-up along Nason (ph) Road, drivers say they did not mind the questioning.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It`s a good thing, man. They need to catch this guy.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: For the very latest, let`s go straight out to Phil Willon, staff writer with "The LA Times." Phil, what is the very latest?
PHIL WILLON, "LOS ANGELES TIMES" (via telephone): Well, there`s still a county-wide manhunt looking for the killer and any clues they can glean to find whoever did this.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Well, what about the SUV? Apparently, they`re looking for a green SUV. Tell us about that.
WILLON: Yes, on the day that Norma disappeared, a witness saw an SUV speed away from the field where she was abducted. And so they`ve been looking all over for that. They haven`t found it. And they -- I mean, I know they`ve been checking, you know, DMV data bases and everything like that about who may have a vehicle that matches that description, but they haven`t found anything so far, at least not that they`ve been saying.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Well, Mickey Sherman, criminal defense attorney, here`s a big problem. I know that area very well. It`s a 70-mile ride to Los Angeles, the second largest city in America, a very good place to hide. So this is going to be like finding a needle in a haystack.
MICKEY SHERMAN, DEFENSE ATTORNEY: And the problem is, you know -- remember the D.C. sniper? The idea was that they were in a white van and they spent so much manhours, so much time, effort and expense looking for that white van, and it turned out to be just bogus information somehow lost in the shuffle. And that`s what the police, hopefully, will not wind up doing her, is in some way becoming narrow-minded or closed-minded to every possible lead, instead of rounding up the usual suspects, going through the normal sex offender list and stuff like that. I just hope they keep an open mind for everything.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: We`re getting a call in from Shawna in California, who apparently lives right down the block from where this all went down. Shawna, what are your thoughts tonight, ma`am?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: My thought is just -- I mean, people are just terrified out here because everyone`s opinion is that it has to be someone really local because the only way to get from that field to where the body was found is to go right on the freeway. It`s three exits up. And the only thing out there is a landfill and a couple farmhouses. No one would ever take that road unless they knew the area.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Well, hold on a second while we go to Clark Goldband, a NANCY GRACE producer. Tell us about this field that is so crucial to this case.
CLARK GOLDBAND, NANCY GRACE PRODUCER: And Jane, first let`s start at the high school where Norma was last seen walking from. It`s right here. And she was traveling south, Jane, down to her friend`s house, where the friend and the sister were waiting for her arrival. This total distance, less than one mile, about three quarters of a mile.
Now, she takes a shortcut, apparently a common shortcut in the area. As you can see, there`s a long road you can walk down right here. But rather than walk down and across, you can simply cut through the field this way to the home. She did not arrive at the home, and that`s when the friend and her sister traveled out of the house, reverse route, and found some personal items in the field.
If we advance off to this next screen, Jane, we will see this field the caller was talking about. It`s right over here, where that body was discovered by a local farmer who was on a tractor. It`s about two miles away from the high school. So that body did need to be transported quite a ways over to that field.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: All right. Andrew Scott, former chief of police, Boca Raton, Florida. Here`s the way I see it. The body was found just five days after this beautiful young lady disappeared. And it was only two miles away. The cops began searching very quickly only two hours after she disappeared. So I would say that that indicates that she was killed very quickly and in close proximity to where she was abducted. What do you say?
ANDREW J. SCOTT, FORMER BOCA RATON POLICE CHIEF: Exactly. That was my indication, as well, that she was probably killed rather quickly, and within, obviously, that vicinity and clearly transported over. She was probably alive at the area where she was found and probably killed there. Even though there was a scene where there possibly was a disturbance or a fight or some type of struggle, I suspect that she was probably killed in the area that she was found.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: You know what this reminds me of, Susan Moss? Another horrific case out of California, that one toward the San Diego area, John Gardner, the monster who confessed to raping and murdering Chelsea King and Amber Dubois. And in the case of -- of both of them, abducted in broad daylight, one on the way to school, one going jogging. And Chelsea was found very close to where she disappeared. She had gone for a jog. She hadn`t gotten very far.
SUSAN MOSS, FAMILY LAW ATTORNEY: Absolutely. And in this case, a 17- year-old is dead, the murderer fled, and now this town sees red. I got to tell you something. They need to put as much local resources and national resources as necessary to find whoever did this to this woman because I`m going to tell you something. If we don`t find this killer, if we don`t get this guy behind bars, he`s just going to do it again.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Oh, God forbid! And on the phone right now, Elizabeth Lopez, the sister of the murder victim. Elizabeth, first of all, I want to say everyone here at NANCY GRACE, our hearts go out to you and your entire family. Our deepest condolences. We are so sorry for your loss, Elizabeth.
ELIZABETH LOPEZ, SISTER (via telephone): Thank you.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Tell us about your sister, Norma, a beautiful girl who never got to celebrate her prom and who had dreams. Tell us about her dreams and hopes.
LOPEZ: Her dreams were basically just to be a fashion designer, be a makeup artist. And she also wanted to be a model. She had really big dreams in life that apparently were not able to get accomplished from what just happened.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Let me ask you about the last time you saw her. I understand she did something very sweet for you right before she left for school that day. Tell us about that.
LOPEZ: Yes, before she actually left off for school that day, she brought me a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, and I opened up my sandwich and it had a happy face made with banana in it.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Oh! And why did she do that?
LOPEZ: Because she wanted to borrow my shoes.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Oh, I am so sorry. You know, it`s little details like that, Jeff Gardere, that makes my stomach turn. I mean, this young girl, completely innocent, actually going to school in the summertime because she was determined to graduate and she needed to do a makeup in biology. And I know, you know, for a teenager, that takes a lot of commitment, and yet this is her payback.
JEFF GARDERE, PSYCHOLOGIST: Yes. Isn`t it amazing? This is a small community, a beautiful community. People know one another. You would think that they are safe, but you are not safe anywhere. This can happen to anyone.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We know that she was a very amazing girl.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Who could have done this?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We haven`t caught the suspect who killed Norma.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Norma`s decomposed body was dumped in a dirt field.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: So obviously, there`s at least a murderer out there.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: To the person that did this, why? Why her?
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Tonight, the manhunt heats up.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Contact the police. Don`t be scared. If you know something, tell the police.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They need to catch this guy.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Law enforcement desperately searching for the perp who killed Norma Lopez.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Last seen around 10:00 AM Thursday, when she left summer school classes and was expected to go straight home.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Days later, Norma`s body located in another nearby field just a few miles from the school.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: There`s a family here that loved her very much. We miss her, and one day, we will be together again.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Police questioning sex offenders in the area, even setting up checkpoints to question those passing by about their whereabouts the day Norma vanished.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: ... this will not happen to another girl out there.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: I`m Jane Velez-Mitchell, in for Nancy Grace tonight. As the hunt continues for the killer or killers of a beautiful, innocent 17-year-old California girl who was taking biology classes for the summer because she was determined to graduate high school after class. She cut through a field to get to a friend`s house, and in that short walk was abducted. Tonight cops searching for a green SUV. What kind of world do we live in when cutting through a field can cost a girl her life?
Michelle, Pennsylvania, your question or thought, ma`am?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes. Hi, Jane. How are you?
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Good. Thanks.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I just wondered, did she ever happen to have any problems with somebody in school or in summer school? There`s so much bullying going on anymore via Internet and cell phones. If anything like that has happened to her, say in the past year, that might link somebody to this happening to this poor young lady?
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Excellent question. And let`s send that out to Elizabeth Lopez, the sister of the dead girl. Elizabeth?
LOPEZ: Well, she -- that I know of, she never even had enemies. She was always a friendly person. And so I really doubt it was someone that hated her because everybody loved her and cared about her.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: I`ve got to ask about the decomposition. Apparently, her body was very decomposed, and that is because there was a heat wave in the area. Dr. Jennifer Shu, how is that going to hurt the investigation?
DR. JENNIFER SHU, PEDIATRICIAN: Well, definitely, anything like heat and moisture can speed up decomposition. Think about mummies. They keep them in cool, dry areas that really preserves it. So when a body decomposes, it can take days to years, actually, with the teeth and bone decomposing last. So if that body was really decomposing in the heat, they may have to use dental records or DNA from the bone or the teeth to identify the body.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Matt Zarrell, NANCY GRACE producer, tell us about the sex offenders in the area.
MATT ZARRELL, NANCY GRACE PRODUCER: OK, Jane, this is pretty scary. Within one mile of the school, there are five sex offenders. Within two miles of the school, there are 14 sex offenders. Within 15 miles of the school, there are 167 registered sex offenders. Police plan to interview each and every one of them.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: And Peter Elikann, you`re a defense attorney and author of "Super Predators," that does not include the rogue sex offenders who are transients who fail to register.
PETER ELIKANN, DEFENSE ATTORNEY: That`s true. And I think they -- you know, I mean, it`s worth asking people, but they really are the usual suspects. The best the cops can do is really (INAUDIBLE)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: All right, guess what? Your mike fell off. We`ll let you get your act back together. Let me throw that at Susan Moss. The rogue sex offenders -- and there are so many of them -- that don`t register because they`re transients.
MOSS: And worse than that, they register -- sometimes they give false addresses. It`s all part of their plot to try to be in the underground, to live so that society doesn`t see their dirty little secret! But there is no -- there`s no excuse for sex abuse and for this murderer on the loose! We need to as a community come together, as a national community. and make sure that we give as much resources to this local police department as they need to make sure that we find this guy!
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Now, Andrew Scott, here are some facts. She was found face down. She was wearing her jeans, but she was shirtless, and there were signs of a struggle. Her personal belongings were found. What does that tell you?
SCOTT: It appears that she was clearly fighting for her life literally and that she did give up a good fight. Unfortunately, it wasn`t sufficient for her to survive. And I just want to go back real quickly with regards to these sexual predators. You know, there`s got to be some type of a law that we`ve got to enact to keep these people permanently caged.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Well, absolutely. I mean, how many times do we have to see these predators attack, get freed, then violate their parole, and then they ignore that and then they go on to kill again? That`s exactly what happened in the case of this monster, John Gardner, down in the San Diego area. He had been behind bars. He was released. He violated parole. They ignored it. And he went on to kill two young girls! And how much do you want a bet that the sicko that`s responsible for this latest murder, the murder of this beautiful 17-year-old, has a rap sheet a mile long? We all know that that`s likely to be the case!
Nancy Grace`s brand-new book, "Death on the D-List," is going to be out August 10th. To preorder your copy, go to CNN.com/nancygrace and click on Nancy`s new book. Hurry! Order your copy of "Death on the D-List." It should be another "New York Times" best-seller. And best part, proceeds go to Wesley Glenn to give a loving home to the mentally handicapped who need one. Congratulations, Nancy.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: To the person that did this, why?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: ... Norma Lopez...
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Why her?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: ... disappeared on her walk back to a friend`s house that was just a few blocks away from summer school.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We did locate some personal belongings on the trail. It did appear that there could have been a struggle.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Days later, Norma`s body located in another nearby field.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You killed her when we want her here home. Just turn yourself in. That`s all we want.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Police need your help in finding the killer.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: I`m Jane Velez-Mitchell, in for Nancy Grace tonight. It`s heart-breaking to listen to Norma Lopez`s devastated family. We`re trying to find out who is responsible for this obscene act.
Debbie, Michigan, your question or thought, ma`am?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes. I have a comment and a question. My comment first is I am so sad and so tired of seeing these poor women and children being abducted, murdered and just thrown away like they`re garbage. I mean, what happened to the morality in this country? And the second -- my question is, do the police have any suspects? I mean, did anybody see anybody?
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Well...
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Anybody...
VELEZ-MITCHELL: ... the only thing we know about is a green SUV speeding away. They do believe, Peter Elikann, the author of "Super Predators," that this is stranger abduction. What are your thoughts?
ELIKANN: Yes, I guess it`s worth looking into. I mean, that very well may be the green SUV. It may have nothing to do with it. It may have just been in the area. But the police can leave no stone unturned. So it`s certainly worth looking into any little bit of evidence at all.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: What do you think the possibility is that Norma was watched? And I`ll put this out to Andrew Scott. You`re the former chief of police. She was taking that shortcut every single day, so she had a pattern.
SCOTT: That`s correct. But I want to make this clear that I think she was watched, but she was probably one of several individuals that was watched for a pattern, not that they specifically sought her out. She was the victim of opportunity. But I do believe that the suspect was clearly surveilling the area of the high school and the kids leaving.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Phil Willon, "L.A. Times," how was she found, and who found her?
WILLON: She was found near a wheat field on the far edge of town, basically. And one of the residents that lives nearby was some doing yard work and ran across the body. That was on Tuesday. He called the police immediately. And they`ve closed the road down for several days, kind of gleaned through the field for any possible clues.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: ... kidnapped and later murdered.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Why her?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: At this point, authorities say they have no suspects.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Boyfriend Josh is not a suspect, but the family can`t understand why he hasn`t reached out to them.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: There is no suspect description in this case.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Chilling picture of what Terri Horman may be capable of.
JOHN ROBERTS, CNN ANCHOR: Focusing primarily on Kyron`s stepmother, Terri Horman.
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: She`s the last known person to see Kyron before he disappeared.
DESIREE YOUNG, MOTHER OF MISSING 7-YR-OLD BOY, KYRON HORMAN: We know the truth.
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Very amazing allegations from stepmother`s friends.
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Dede Spicher, Terri Horman`s friend, to be under a microscope.
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Kyron`s parents made their suspicions against Spicher clear providing Terri with support and advice that`s not in the best interest of our son.
YOUNG: What was she focusing on?
KAINE HORMAN, FATHER OF MISSING 7-YR-OLD BOY, KYRON HORMAN: Herself and how she feels and how the experience was for her.
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: These are not the normal things that people do when you`re searching for a child.
Terri, do you have anything to say? Do you have anything to say? Do you know where Kyron is?
YOUNG: It`s extremely frustrating that she is not cooperating.
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Can you tell us, yes or no?
YOUNG: She`s so not cooperating. She`s not taking an active role in finding Kyron.
HORMAN: He`s waiting to be found. He`s out there.
(END OF VIDEO CLIP)
JANE VELEZ-MITCHELL, GUEST HOST: 7-year-old Kyron Horman reported missing from his own elementary school. His stepmother says she walks him down the hall to his classroom after the science fair. He is never seen again.
Suspicions continue to mount against stepmother Terri Horman. Tonight major new developments. We learned of new searches and critical information that could be key to finding little Kyron. The focus now is on a close friend of the stepmother.
For the very latest, let`s turn to James Pitkin, reporter with the "Willamette Week" newspaper.
James, what is the very latest?
JAMES PITKIN, REPORTER, WILLAMETTE WEEK NEWSPAPER: Well, they`ve identified a friend of Terri`s, a close friend for about seven years named Dede Spicher. This came out last night and said that she is not cooperating with investigators. Not only that but she`s providing poor advice to Terri Horman that`s not in the best interest of Kyron.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Wow. Now, Natisha Lance, NANCY GRACE producer, what do we know about Dede`s moments on the morning that she disappeared?
NATISHA LANCE, NANCY GRACE PRODUCER: Well, according to reports, Jane, what we`re hearing is that she was gardening at a home that was nearby the Horman`s home. She was gone for about 90 minutes.
Now in that time no one was able to make any contact with her. And so now this is one of the reasons why police want to talk to her and also why Kyron`s parents are a bit suspicious about what her movements were and if she might have been be an accomplice with Terri Horman, if she did something to Kyron.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: OK. And we have to stress that she is not considered a suspect or even a person of interest. Cops do want to get her cooperation because she has been very close reportedly with the stepmother, Terri, who is also not named a suspect or person of interest but is clearly the focus of this investigation.
Matt Zarrell, NANCY GRACE producer. OK, this friend, Dede, disappears mysteriously from 11:15 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. on the very day that Kyron disappears. And by the way this is a photo from Dede from what we believe to be her Facebook page.
How does that dovetail with the established timeline we have about this case?
MATT ZARRELL, NANCY GRACE STAFFER, COVERING STORY: Well, what`s interesting, Jane, is that we know that the stepmother -- we believe that the stepmother was at the school at 8:45 a.m.
Now her whereabouts until about 1:20 is not accounted for. We do not know exactly where she was in those hours. But we know at 1:21, that`s when she posted on Facebook the picture of Kyron at the science fair, and then Kyron`s father came home at 2:00. They waited for the bus at 3:30. That`s when Kyron didn`t come home and that`s when they called the school.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Wow. So this time frame between 8:45 and sometime around 1:00, 1:21, that is the key time frame.
Now I have to tell you, there is other breaking news. Three homes have reportedly been raided and those three homes belong to friends of Terri who have been reportedly spending time with the stepmother. One them is this friend, Dede. We don`t know who the two others are.
Andrew Scott, former chief of police, Boca Raton, what to you make of it?
ANDREW J. SCOTT, FMR. CHIEF OF POLICE, BOCA RATON, FL.; VP OF SCOTT- ROBERTS AN ASSOCIATES, LLC: Well, actually, the police obviously have some leads that might direct them towards some physical evidence that might be in any one of those homes that may be related to the child.
And that is extremely positive for this investigation because a judge would not give a search warrant for three residences without probable cause and they must have some good leads to go there.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: I mean, this family, this is extraordinary. This family has released a statement. I`m talking about Kyron`s parents -- his biological father and biological mother -- essentially accusing this Dede of not cooperating with police and additionally giving advice to Terri that is not in the best interest of their son.
I`ve never heard of anything like this, Susan Moss. It`s unbelievable.
SUSAN MOSS, FAMILY LAW ATTORNEY & CHILD ADVOCATE: Good for her. Good for them. Friends don`t let friends kidnap children.
Let me tell you something it`s pretty simple. If a child is in harm`s way anything you know, you say. The fact that this friend is not coming forward is not saying everything she knows when a child is missing, a child could still be saved.
The fact that she`s staying quiet speaks just lots in term of what her possible involvement in this case is.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Well, psychologist Jeff Gardere. I got to tell you, this Terri Horman, the stepmother, is one busy lady. In the time that Kyron has disappeared, she has been sexting nude photos of herself to a new boyfriend.
She`s been blogging under an assumed name on TV Web sites trying to bolster her case. She`s been hanging out with these three mystery friends. She`s been hitting the gym.
The one thing she hasn`t apparently been doing, searching for little Kyron.
JEFF GARDERE, PSYCHOLOGIST, HOST OF VH1`S "DAD CAMP": That`s right. And cooperating with the police. It`s really amazing that she`s doing all of these inappropriate things when her stepson is missing.
She should be mourning if she has nothing to do with this disappearance. So this speaks volumes that this is an inappropriate person with deep, deep emotional issues, and I think she is a prime suspect from my psychological point of view.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Yes, but again, officially there are no suspects.
Nolanda, Utah, your question or thought, ma`am?
NOLANDA, CALLER UTAH: Yes, hi.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Hi.
NOLANDA: Thank you for taking my call.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Thanks for calling.
NOLANDA: I`m a hopeful CSI investigator one day. And I have a question.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: OK.
NOLANDA: The dogs that were brought in privately, did they search at the same time that the police dogs did? And the reason why I ask that is because sometimes the scents can be caught stronger during different times of the day or night.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Wow. OK. I think we`ll go to James Pitkin on that. He is the reporter at the scene.
PITKIN: The search dogs that were brought in privately several weeks after law enforcement completed their search efforts so it was some time after. Not only that but another problem is that the parents -- the family of Kyron would not give a scent item for the dogs to track Kyron specifically. The dogs therefore were tracking only human cadaver scent. So that is a problematic (INAUDIBLE) concern.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Now we`ve got another bombshell to tell you about. This is a stunning new claim that Terri told teachers that Kyron had a doctor`s appointment and this apparently was told to them on the day that Kyron disappeared.
Matt, what can you tell us about it?
ZARRELL: Well, yes, in the week that he went missing, that week, he - - Terri Horman allegedly told the teacher that Kyron had a doctor`s appointment on Friday. However, investigators believe that she has been very vague about what Friday she`s referring to because the June 4th was on a Friday, and she allegedly told her friends that she was referring to the June 11th, the following Friday.
Now one friend told the "Oregonian" last week that Terri Horman claimed that the teacher was new and was hard of hearing in one ear so she may not have heard correctly what Terri Horman told her.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: What a can of worms. Dr. Jennifer Shu, you`re a pediatrician. Obviously, if this little boy did have a doctor`s appointment, police could find out who the pediatrician is and find out if he did have a doctor`s appointment. And if so, when was it.
DR. JENNIFER SHU, PEDIATRICIAN, CO-AUTHOR OF "HEADING HOME W/YOUR NEWBORN": Absolutely. That informing can be obtained. And other information that might be helpful is if he maybe has some kind of medical condition that was stressful for the family. Was it something that maybe Terri resented him for or had trouble with. So there are certainly some -- you know, certainly some information that could be obtained from that.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Well, how about this?
SHU: The doctors could say.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: How about he didn`t have a medical condition and there was nothing wrong with him, and there was no doctor`s appointment, and the father was not even aware. I mean that`s also a possibility.
And I`ll throw it out to Mickey Sherman.
MICKEY SHERMAN, CRIMINAL DEFENSE ATTORNEY, AUTHOR OF "HOW CAN YOU DEFEND THOSE PEOPLE?": Well, you know, I think what`s encouraging -- and there`s not a lot encouraging -- is what your law enforcement guest indicated. To get search warrants for three different premises, there had to be probable cause, not just suspicion, not just a hunch.
So there had to be something called probable cause which is less than beyond a reasonable doubt but at least it shows that they`ve got some concrete or semi-concrete lead.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Well, we`ve got to talk about a shared passion for fitness and gardening that this good friend of the stepmother, Dede, apparently shared with Terri. And of course we have to show those photos, once again, of her working out, which we will.
Dede and Terri reportedly used to work out together and that is a big obsession in this case. The obsession that Terri Horman had with body building. Take a look at her. That`s the before picture. And then there`s the after-picture after she had her child.
Was she resentful of how she changed?
Before we go to break, we want to wish a very special happy birthday to Peggy Cash in Missouri. She never misses a show. Way to go.
Happy birthday, Peggy.
Nancy Grace`s brand new book, "Death on the D-List," going to be out August 10th. To pre-order your copy, go to CNN.com/Nancygrace and click on Nancy`s new book.
Hurry up. Order your copy of "Death on the D-List." It should be another "New York Times" bestseller. The best part, proceeds go to Wesley Glenn to give a loving home to the mentally handicapped who need one.
Congratulations, Nancy.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Do you have anything to say? Do you know where Kyron is? Yes or no?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Just when you think it can`t get any worse.
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: The case surrounding missing 7-year-old Kyron Horman takes a shocking turn.
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Was involving the boy`s stepmother. Keep getting more bizarre.
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: The investigation into 7-year-old Kyron Horman`s disappearance seems to be shifting slightly to include a small circle of his stepmother`s friends.
LANCE: Her name is Dede Spicher. She was doing gardening work for a homeowner in Northwest Portland on the day that Kyron disappeared and abruptly left the house about 11:30 in the morning.
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Kyron`s father moved out, filed for divorce and got a restraining order.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: At this particular point, I think our detectives got -- they`re working on a very sound case.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The focus is still to find little Kyron Horman.
YOUNG: We pray each day for Kyron.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Employing people that Kyron is still missing but they believe he`s alive.
HORMAN: He`s still out there. He`s still out there. We just need to find him.
(END OF VIDEO CLIP)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: So many new developments and now the stepmother -- you`re looking at her right there -- the last person to see little Kyron before he vanished, has moved out of the marital home and moved away.
What can you tell us about it, Matt Zarrell?
ZARRELL: She moved 175 miles away to her parents` home in Roseburg. Now she did this because Kaine Horman had her evicted. He wanted her out of the house so he can move back in with Kiara and wanted everything set out in case Kyron came home. He would have his room ready just like it was.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Andrew Scott, former police chief, is that going to hurt the investigation, given that the investigation seems to be centering on the stepmother`s relationship with people who lived in her neighborhood?
SCOTT: No, I don`t think it`s going to impact the investigation at all, Jane. I think it`s going to be helpful as a matter of fact and I don`t think there`s going to be any downside to it.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: How is it helpful?
SCOTT: Well, it`s going to be helpful --
VELEZ-MITCHELL: To me -- look, to me it seems obviously it`s going to hurt because she`s hanging out and talking to her best friend. Obviously it was cell phone communication and e-mails that led authorities to focus in on this best friend.
So stepmom moves 170 some miles away. She`s not going to have the same of one-on-one contact with these people.
SCOTT: No, I understood. And I do understand that but in the sense that it`s good to have that house vacated from where she was at. There could be evidence in the house that might be helpful to the case and the police hopefully have already investigated or searched the house.
On the flip side, whatever contacts she has electronically are still going to be able to be monitored.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Stephanie, Washington, your question or thought, ma`am.
STEPHANIE, CALLER FROM WASHINGTON: Hi, Jane. Happy Friday.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Hi.
(CROSSTALK)
STEPHANIE: -- parents and the family of the little boy. But my question, Jane, is, has anyone looked into the possibility that maybe she had taken the boy to upset the stepdad so she could set up, like, him having a suicide in case she wanted out of that marriage and that would have been a good way to get rid of dad and then, you know, make it look like a suicide, not a murder.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Well, Susan Moss, the key fact in this case, and it`s not a fact but it`s a report that came out is that this woman you`re looking at purportedly, allegedly, according to Kyron`s dad, tried to hire a hit-man, a landscaper, that she tried to seduce with reportedly sex to kill her husband, Kyron`s father.
That is the key stunner in this case.
MOSS: Absolutely, because it goes to motive. It goes to why this happened. All the pieces are coming together. But what kills me, what makes me so angry is that there are adults out there who know what happened and there is this blind allegiance to this woman.
They`re not coming forward. They`re not saying what they know and more and more children are dying and children are disappearing and the adults, the people who are supposed to know better, are sitting back and that is what`s causing a crisis in this nation.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Pam, West Virginia, your question or thought, ma`am.
PAM, CALLER FROM WEST VIRGINIA: I`d like to know, after seven weeks how come they`re just now finding out about this so-called friend, Dede.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: That is a very good question.
James Pitkin, what do you know?
PITKIN: There is little information coming from inside the investigation. We don`t really know what they`re thinking or what kind of tracks they`re working on but certainly some people have said this looks a little bit desperate at this point that they`re going after this friend in a very public way, that they`re almost grasping at straws at this point. Not a (INAUDIBLE).
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Mickey Sherman, you`re the criminal defense attorney. This is a very bizarre way of handling an investigation. It appears that the cops are telling Kyron`s dad and mom all sorts of things, then they hold a news conference or issue a statement and tell the rest of the world. It`s sort of like a game of telephone.
SHERMAN: Yes, but you know we don`t know what they`ve done. You know I laud the police for being secretive about this. And, you know, the police may have -- probably did know about this other wacky woman before now.
But now they`re just trying to put as much pressure on her as possible to come forward and talk. You know, you can`t force people to cooperate with the police. People are allowed to be jerks and nasty and mean. It happens.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Natisha Lance, what is evidence against the stepmother, Terri? Again, she`s not considered a suspect but apparently she did fail some polygraphs.
LANCE: Yes. That`s according to the parents of Kyron Horman. They said that she took two polygraphs and she failed both of them. They were also given polygraphs. They only took one. They said that they passed with flying colors.
But, again, police are not giving any indication as to why Terri Horman is being looked at so closely by the parents of Kyron Horman, why the media is focusing so much on her, but in some questions that were given to law enforcement two days ago, they came back today and did publicly state for the first time that there have been times that Terri Horman has not cooperated with the investigation.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Well, Matt Zarrell, apparently her cell phone pings, according to published reports anyway, do not match up with her stated version of events on the day that Kyron disappeared.
ZARRELL: Yes. There reports out there that cell phone pings place her at or near Sauvie Island, which is about six miles from the school. We know that police very early on in the investigation had searched that area. Did not find anything. There were private searches that went there. Did not find anything.
But that remains a mystery as to where she was from 8:45 to 1:21 p.m. that afternoon.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Well, it`s absolutely astounding. Her-- the parents of Kyron believe that what happened to the little boy was carefully orchestrated and plotted. The question is who.
Now to tonight`s "CNN Heroes."
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KATHRYN HALL-TRUJILLO, COMMUNITY CRUSADER, CNN HERO: African-American babies die two to four times the rate of other babies. As a public health administrator, I use the words "infant mortality" every day. But until I held that baby in my arms, I never realized that meant counting dead babies.
My name is Kathryn Hall-Trujillo. And I remind women they`re really sisters and can help each other have healthier babies.
What we`re saying is that you don`t have to have this by yourself.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The Birthing Project takes regular women in the community like me to work closely with the little sisters throughout their pregnancy and after they have the baby.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I`m one of the big sisters that have accomplished in life already to teach me things that I don`t know.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: My job is to just really help you. Whether it`s figuring out how you`re going to pay your rent, whether you have food in your house, and making sure she`s (INAUDIBLE) her prenatal appointments. It`s all because I`m trying to make sure that you`re not stressed in order for you to have a healthy baby.
HALL-TRUJILLO: Healthy babies that are born into healthy communities. It`s pretty special how we grow on our own.
We`ve been doing this long enough now that you can hear a child say, I was born into the Birthing Project. That means more to me than anything that I may have given up because in return I have received a whole community.
(END OF VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: And now a look back at the stories making headlines this week.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Lindsay Lohan is behind bars finally.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: She was almost emotionless.
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: She was ushered through a crush of photographers.
LINDSAY LOHAN, ACTRESS: Right now they`re going to take my pictures. They`re the paparazzi.
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: She went through security and went inside and basically faced the judge.
JUDGE MARSHA REVEL, SUPERIOR COURT, BEVERLY HILLS: I`m going to order her be remanded at this time.
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: And the judge had some stern, stern words for this actress.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Mel, you`re imbalanced. There`s something wrong with you. You need medication.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Oh, you shut up. You --
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You cannot raise this child with these symptoms.
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: It just keeps getting worse for Mel Gibson.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You need a -- for being a -- gold digging -- and I want my child and no one will believe you. So -- you.
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: California will pay kidnap victim Jaycee Dugard $20 million.
PHILLIP GARRIDO, SUSPECT FOR KIDNAPPING JAYCEE DUGARD: Wait until you hear the story of what took place at this -- at this house.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We missed an opportunity.
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: The 911 call that children had been living in backyard tents.
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Dugard and her two daughters were held captive.
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Frantic 911 call from a deadly shooting.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I just see a bunch of blood. She`s on her side. She`s on her side. And there`s a bunch of blood.
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Obviously, the victim`s boyfriend discovered her body.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I come to my house. I put the key in, and my door`s open.
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Kingsberry had been shot in the head at least twice.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I come in, and my friend is on the floor with her head and she`s bleeding. She`s bleeding out her head.
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: A California judge will impose a restraining order against actor Mel Gibson. A hearing is scheduled to take place.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I`m not giving you my house and you can rot. Unless you crawl back, suck my -- and say you`re sorry in that order. Do you understand me?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: To hear him just berating Oksana, it doesn`t end.
(END OF VIDEO CLIP)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Tonight, let`s stop to remember Marine Corporal Matthew Wyatt, 21, from Millstadt, Illinois. Killed in Iraq. He was awarded the Bronze Star, Purple Heart, National Defense Service medal, an Iraq Campaign medal.
He loved the St. Louis Cardinals, the Rams, music, movies and driving his Chevy S-10. He leaves behind parents Allen and Ravine, stepmother Lauren, grandparents Millie, Vern and Arlene.
Matthew Wyatt, an American hero.
We want to thank all of our guests for their insights and thanks to you at home for tracking these very important cases with us.
And please remember Nancy Grace`s brand new book, "Death on the D- List." It`s going to be out August 10th. You can preorder, go straight to CNN.com/Nancygrace. Proceeds go to Wesley Glenn to give a loving home to the mentally handicapped who need one.
We hope to see you again right here tomorrow night. Until then, have a terrific and a very safe evening.
END
