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Jane Velez-Mitchell
Arrest Nearing for Missing Boy?
Aired July 26, 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, is an arrest imminent in the disappearance of missing 7-year-old Kyron Horman? The investigation appears to be reaching a crescendo as cops focus like a laser beam on the three hours when Kyron`s step-mom claims she was doing errands. Police are studying surveillance videos of the stores she claims to have visited and the roads she says she traveled. I`ll tell you why cops say they are making significant progress.
And a jaw-dropping twist in the case of missing little Haleigh Cummings, who disappeared on Misty Croslin`s watch. Now Misty`s parents have been arrested, accused of buying crack cocaine from an undercover agent. With the whole family in jail on drug charges, will somebody finally reveal what happened to little Haleigh?
Then, Casey is cut off. Records of Casey Anthony`s jail accounts show she`s in debt because her parents haven`t deposited any money in months. Could this have anything to do with her defense team reportedly investigating her dad, George, or Casey`s shocking claims that her dad may have sexually abused her?
ISSUES starts now.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JANE VELEZ-MITCHELL, HOST (voice-over): Tonight, fast-breaking developments in the Kyron Horman missing child case. A new search at Kyron`s school.
Plus, there are new questions tonight about the whereabouts of Kyron`s step-mom on the day little Kyron vanished. Also -- this is big -- we`re learning a grand jury is hearing testimony on this case. And the sheriff`s department is saying, quote, "Criminal behavior has occurred." They are set to hold a big news conference tomorrow afternoon. Are they on the verge of making an arrest here?
Reports are step-mom Terri Horman has not said a word to investigators for more than a month, every since she hired an attorney. Tonight, she has still not been named a suspect.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DAN TILKIN, KATU REPORTER: Do you know where Kyron is?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Hey.
TILKIN: Do you -- Terry, do know where Kyron is?
Desiree and her husband are saying you know where he is. Do you know? Can you tell the world something? Can you tell the world something?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Kyron has been missing for more than seven weeks now. Kyron`s step-mom, Terri Horman -- you saw her there just a second ago -- says she watched him walk towards his classroom on Friday, June 4 at 8:45 a.m. He never made it into that classroom, and cops cannot verify her story. Cops reportedly believe her explanations just do not add up.
On the CBS "Early Show," Kyron`s biological mom expressed complete frustration.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DESIREE YOUNG, BIOLOGICAL MOTHER: I can tell you what I ate that day. And she can`t tell you where she was.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: And, tonight, the fight between Terri and her now estranged husband, Kyron`s dad, is turning into an all-out war. I am holding the divorce papers he filed right here.
And there`s yet another stunner. Terri Horman reportedly forked out a whopping $350,000 for her attorney? Her soon-to-be ex wants to know where she got that kind of cash.
Is an arrest imminent tonight? Why are cops planning this huge news conference for tomorrow?
I`m taking your calls: 1-877-JVM-SAYS. That`s 1-877-586-7297. Straight out to my fantastic expert panel. But we begin with investigative reporter Michelle Sigona.
Michelle, what is the very latest?
MICHELLE SIGONA, INVESTIGATIVE REPORTER: I can confirm for the sheriff`s office that Terri Horman has not spoken with investigators since she retained counsel, Jane.
Also, there have been 3,300 leads that have come in on this case. And over the weekend, just like you mentioned, investigators, specifically Lieutenant Lindstrand, just told me that they were, in fact, out near Skyline Elementary School over the weekend re-canvassing the area. She wouldn`t say for what specifically, but there was some sort of search that was definitely conducted over the weekend.
In addition, we did learn from investigators, from questions and answers -- questions that they answered on Friday that they have ruled a number of people out in this case. And that they also have a lot of photos and surveillance, but they`re still asking the public for more.
So if you do have any surveillance or photos or anything to help in this investigation in the Kyron Horman disappearance, please turn that over to investigators.
And also, one last point: this is Oregon`s largest search that they`ve ever conducted in this particular area for any child or any person, for that matter.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: So many developments. Where do we begin? Well, I have to say that Kyron`s parents have publicly lashed out at Terri Horman`s good friend, DeDe Spicher, claiming that she`s been giving advice that is not in the best interest of the missing child. Well, now DeDe has hired an attorney herself and reportedly testified before an investigative grand jury here today. Here she is leaving.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Do you know if Terri is hiding something? Were you with her on June 4?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Her attorney says Spicher has been cooperative and met with investigators last week after her car and home were searched. By the way, we invited both of them to come on ISSUES and tell their side of the story.
Her attorney says Spicher is no longer in contact with Terri Horman but would not comment on where Spicher was between 11:30 a.m. and 1 p.m. when witnesses claim she abruptly left her job on the morning Kyron vanished.
First of all, Debra Opri, what do you think about the fact that a grand jury has been convened?
DEBRA OPRI, ATTORNEY: They`re gearing up for charges in an arrest. I mean, I`ve done criminal defense work. And frankly, she`s smart to have shut up and not spoken to anyone. And hiring attorneys don`t hurt whatsoever.
If she`s spending -- if they`re spending money like they`re doing in terms of hiring an attorney and keeping quiet, I would just basically, as a defense attorney, say keep going down that road.
But, Jane, look at it this way, you`ve got video surveillance. You`ve got people who are going to have seen that vehicle. A block of time is a long time in the life of a child. We need to know where this woman was. Point -- point in fact is, was she with the child on a rural road and why?
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Well, let`s get to this timeline, which is absolutely unbelievable.
Cops reportedly have a problem with Terri Horman`s account of what she did on the morning Kyron disappeared. Again, 8:45 a.m. Friday, June 4, she claimed she watched little Kyron walk toward his classroom and then said bye-bye and left. The boy never made it inside the classroom.
Terri told investigators she went to the gym at 11:39 a.m. and worked out for about an hour. So where was she during those crucial three hours that morning before she pops up at the gym?
Terri told cops she went grocery shopping and took her 18-month-old daughter for a drive in the family truck to soothe the child`s earache. Cops are looking at grocery store surveillance tape and video from local highways. So far, nobody can corroborate her story.
Here`s my big issue tonight. Mike Brooks, earache? Earache? If your child has an earache, do you resolve that by driving the baby around in the truck?
MIKE BROOKS, HLN LAW ENFORCEMENT ANALYST: That`s a new one on me. I`ve heard if you have maybe the child won`t sleep, you might take it out and drive it around a little bit. But usually, you have somebody else with you when you`re doing that.
But I can tell you one thing, Jane. The cell-phone records of DeDe Spicher better add up to where she`s told law enforcement, if she`s told law enforcement or what she told the grand jury now of where she was. Because I guarantee you: that was one of the questions they asked her while she was inside that grand jury today.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Pat Brown, criminal profiler and author of the fabulous book "The Profiler," you heard about DeDe Spicher and so many people in this cast of characters. There`s two other friends, not DeDe, but two other friends who are reportedly cooperating with authorities and have taken polygraphs and passed. Supposedly, these women have had their houses searched.
Well, one of them told a reporter that cops questioned her for hours. And in the process, they told her they had probable cause to arrest Terri in both Kyron`s disappearance and in an alleged murder-for-hire plot against her husband that she allegedly cooked up months before this child disappeared. What do you make of it?
PAT BROWN, CRIMINAL PROFILER: Well, I think that news conference tomorrow is going to blow this thing out of the water. They obviously have been only on Terri from the very beginning. So I mean, when they even went to answer those questions from the media, remember they said, has the media been helpful? And they said, "Yes, we want to thank the media." And this is a recent Q&A. Because they thanked the media.
They could have used that opportunity to say, you know, "We appreciate the media being out here. But, really, you`ve over-focused on Terri. We think that you -- you know, you`re making this into -- you know, you`re exaggerating things that aren`t necessarily true. We want to look at everybody." But they didn`t say that. They just said thank the media for all their help keeping the focus on Kyron.
They`re looking at Terri Horman, Terri Horman alone, and I think tomorrow we`re going to find out exactly why.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: But Bruce McCain, you`re the former investigator. What I don`t understand is, if an investigative grand jury is meeting, doesn`t it leave it in the grand jury`s hand to issue an indictment? How can cops pop up and hold a news conference tomorrow when the grand jury is still meeting and say, "Oh, we`re going to do X, Y, Z?"
BRUCE MCCAIN, FORMER INVESTIGATOR: Well, good questions, Jane. And not only did I used to work there, but I`m still practicing law in Oregon. So let me give you a little bit of background here, because this grand jury was convened, and it is clear that DeDe answered the subpoena. It`s not clear that she actually testified. In fact, I believe she did not testify, and she`s probably waiting for a grant of immunity.
Under Oregon`s constitution, a grand jury can compel someone to testify, but they`re entitled to what`s called transactional immunity if they do so. They do have law with her. I wouldn`t be surprised if she went in and said, "I`m not going to talk to you unless I get immunity."
As for the press conference, that actually was scheduled last week for Tuesday. So the press conference may not have anything to do with the grand jury. We`ll find out tomorrow.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: But I mean, they can`t charge -- they can`t announce charges now that they`ve chosen to do the grand jury route, right? They`d have to wait for the grand jury.
MCCAIN: That`s -- that`s correct. That`s why I don`t believe tomorrow`s press conference is going to be announcing anything big. I really don`t. Because the press conference was scheduled last week for tomorrow. And now we`re just hearing about the grand jury proceedings part.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: But by the same token, Mike Brooks, when police go out of their way to call reporters on a weekend and tell them, "Hey, there`s going to be a news conference on Tuesday," it makes it sound like something big is going to happen.
BROOKS: It does. But again, you heard Mr. McCain say there`s a possibility that there may not.
But the grand jury, they are not going anywhere, and they are a sitting grand jury. And they`re going to be seeing other people besides DeDe Spicher.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: All right. Barbara in California, hang on. We`re going to get to you right on the other side of the break.
We`re taking your calls on all of this.
And, plus, more of the Croslins locked up on drug charges. This time the parents of Misty, the last person to see Haleigh Cummings, are arrested for allegedly buying crack? Are you kidding me? Could this finally help put pressure on Misty to tell everything she knows?
And much more to talk about in the disappearance of Kyron Horman.
(BEGIN VIDE CLIP)
YOUNG: Unfortunately, I`m kind of at that point where I`m so angry I don`t even have words. I just really want her to do the right thing.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
YOUNG: No. I know she`s involved.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Do you think she would have done this alone?
YOUNG: I don`t believe so. Because honestly, she didn`t take out a contract on her husband alone. So I think that she would probably need help.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: What a wild story. Step-mom Terri Horman has not been named a suspect, but Kyron`s dad says months before the boy disappeared, she allegedly, according to cops, offered sexual favors to a landscaper in order to try to get someone to kill him. Kyron`s dad, her husband.
Cops also say according to Kyron that she sent sexually-explicit photos of herself to her husband`s high-school buddy at the time that everybody was looking for Kyron right after her husband moved out. And she allegedly, according to Kyron`s dad, tried to abduct her own daughter from the gym where her husband, Kaine was working out.
This is unbelievable stuff. Teams of Hollywood script writers couldn`t come up with these developments.
Barbara, California, your questions or thought.
CALLER: Hello?
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Hi, Barbara.
CALLER: Hi, Jane. We love your show.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Thank you.
CALLER: Yes. My question was, on the day that Terri brought him to school for the science fair and then he suddenly disappeared, and she said that she had to take him to a doctor`s appointment, was that ever confirmed by police or anyone?
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Michelle Sigona, investigative journalist.
SIGONA: I did speak with Matt Shelby, who`s a spokesperson for the school district. He wouldn`t go into detail about that particular note, but there are reports out there that do indicate that she said that, on a Friday, that Kyron did have a doctor`s appointment, not stating whether it was that Friday or another Friday. So that`s something that investigators are looking into, as well.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: And it makes me wonder that, if the child was confused about, "Wait, why am I not going to class?" an explanation may have been given, `Oh, you have a doctor`s appointment, honey." That is, if true -- and that`s a big if -- really sinister and twisted.
Kaine Horman wants to know how Terri is paying for her attorney. Here`s another huge stunner. I`ve got the divorce paperwork in my hand. Kaine claims he found out that Terri is paying $350,000 for her hot-shot attorney, Steven House. Kaine Horman file a motion in court this morning, demanding Terri disclose the source of that money. And he wants her to pay half of his attorney`s fee.
Now, we didn`t hear back from Terri`s attorney. But if it`s true, Debra Opri, where in the heck did she get $350,000 to hire a hot-shot attorney?
OPRI: Well, first, you have to look at what they do for a living. Do they own any real estate? Do they have any collateral? What is their credit score?
You also have to consider frankly, $300,000 that`s high by anybody`s standard for a retainer. So, frankly, I`d be curious as to where she got the money, too. Unless she made a media deal. Who knows?
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Oh, my God, a media deal? Pat Brown, that just made my jaw drop. But, you know, nothing -- nothing is impossible in today`s world.
BROWN: Oh, that`s absolutely true. What is weird, however, and we`ve been saying this forever, is that her -- if she did such a thing, again, what kind of woman does this when her stepson is missing, when she`s the target of an investigation? Her behavior is so peculiar that it keeps the focus on her.
The real point is, what were her behaviors that day? And I`m really curious whether her story changed over and over and over when she was talking to the police and that`s one of the reasons all that suspicion came on her. She couldn`t keep those stories straight where she was during those hours when she was wondering about, supposedly in that truck with her car -- her child screaming his head off for an hour and a half because of an earache.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Edna, Illinois, your question or thought, ma`am?
CALLER: My thought is that there is possibly a connection between the landscaper who was -- talked to about killing her husband, and the gardener who obviously was working or somewhere else in the gardening. It is, I think, every -- every landscaping job that was going on during the time of the little guy`s disappearance should be investigated.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Whoa. Well, you raise a very interesting, fascinating issue there.
Now, DeDe Spicher. OK, she`s the landscaper/gardener and who`s a very close friend to Kyron`s step-mom, Terri Horman. They`ve been friends for about seven years. And this is Spicher`s picture from what we believe is her Facebook page.
On the Web site Blogspot, she describes herself as a fitness junky, med school wannabe and pet sitting veteran. Her common interests with Terri: fitness and body building. There`s Terri a long time ago. That`s - - wow, that is -- that`s wild. That is video of Terri. OK, the step-mom.
And -- also they shared a passion for gardening. All right. Now we know that Terri is -- that Spicher stayed with Terri in the days after Horman moved out.
I`ve got to ask you this, Mike Brooks. She`s a gardener. She leaves for whatever, an hour and a half, right?
BROOKS: Yes.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: And then there`s this landscaper, but my understanding was the landscaper was a man. She`s not the landscaper?
BROOKS: No, no, I don`t think there`s any connection between the landscaper in this murder-for-hire plot and DeDe Spicher. I don`t believe there`s any connection there.
But what really is the connection and what was she doing in that time? That is the big question. And, you know, where was she in the days to follow that? So, I mean, these are all questions that I`m sure law enforcement already have answers to.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: We`re not done yet. We got more, next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
YOUNG: You need to do what is right, not for me, not for Tony, not for Kaine, and not even for Kyron. You need to do it for Kiara, because she needs to see that you did the right thing to help bring her brother home.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Kyron`s mother, biological mother, making a plea to his step-mom to tell everything she knows. Meantime, 30 investigators went back to Kyron`s elementary school over the weekend. What were they looking for? Of course, this is the last place anyone saw the precious boy.
Here`s the picture of Kyron in front of his tree frog science product just minutes before he vanished. Sources say Terri Horman e-mailed a teacher later that afternoon to find out when she could pick up Kyron`s science project. Kyron`s dad finds that very suspicious, claiming Terri told him she planned to bring the science project home that morning and said that`s why she needed the truck that he usually drove.
Mike Brooks, is the implication here that she tried to get a hold of that truck on that morning? And if so, why would the truck be significant?
BROOKS: Well, the truck could hold -- hold evidence, but they have given Kaine Horman the truck back. Apparently, they did take it. They did forensic testing on it. And they have returned it over to him now. So, you know, that says to me that they probably didn`t find anything.
Otherwise they probably would have kept that truck as evidence as they were building a case against someone, whom we don`t know yet. But they would have kept that truck if there was significant evidence in it.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Yes. And again, she`s not a suspect or a person of interest at this point, although obviously the focus of the investigation. But hypothetically speaking, I`ve got to wonder, a truck, Pat Brown?
BROWN: Well, I don`t know if she took the truck for any particular purpose. It may -- may really be that, after something happened that day, she simply forgot about the project. She thought, "Oh, my God. I was supposed to use the truck for that purpose, and I completely forgot. So now I`ve got to make up for that." So it may mean that the truck isn`t for any specific thing except for...
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Hmm. All right. .
OK. June, Tennessee, your question or thought?
CALLER: Yes. I was wondering if they (UNINTELLIGIBLE) to the land where the friend works?
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Interesting. Bruce McCain, again, the friend, DeDe Spicher, leaves her gardening job near Kyron`s home at 11:30, reportedly, according to witnesses, and doesn`t return until about 1 p.m. What do you think they should have done with that area?
MCCAIN: Well, obviously, they have searched that area, Jane. As far as the vehicle real quickly, you`ve got to remember, Terri`s other vehicle was a bright red Mustang with customized plates of red squirrel. So if you`re trying to hide in plain sight, you`ve got a choice: red Mustang, customized plates or nondescript white pickup truck.
And again, real quick, I`d like to go back to the $350,000 issue, because there`s something very important here. Because I`m on the ground here in Portland. What`s happening in that divorce case is that Steven House, the criminal defense lawyer, he left himself, apparently, as the attorney of record on the divorce case. That allows Kaine now to go look at that $350,000 retainer and say, "That`s now marital property. I`m entitled to half of it."
And it has a second date. It also has another court date for Terri Horman. She has to appear in court and show cause. The criminal investigators cannot force her to talk. But Kaine now has got her dragged into court two times now coming up. She`s going to have to answer to a judge under oath.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Well, again, if it`s true that she paid her lawyer $350,000 -- we don`t know that it is; we tried to reach him -- where did she get the money?
Thank you, fabulous panel.
Up next, more shockers in the Haleigh Cummings case. A cocaine sting leads to Ma and Pa Croslin joining Misty behind bars. You won`t believe it.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Jaw-dropping twist in the case of missing little Haleigh Cummings who disappeared on Misty Croslin`s watch. Now Misty`s parents have been arrested accused of buying crack cocaine from an undercover agent. With the whole family in jail on drug charges, will somebody finally reveal what happened to little Haleigh?
Then Casey is cut off. Records of Casey Anthony`s jail account shows she`s in debt because her parents haven`t deposited any money in months. Could this have anything to do with her defense team reportedly investigating her dad, George? Or Casey`s shocking claims that her dad may have sexually abused her.
Tonight, mind boggling new misadventures in the Haleigh Cummings family drama: Misty Croslin`s parents have landed in the clink on drug charges. Police said Hank Croslin was busted in a cocaine sting Friday. Daughter, Misty and her brother, Tommy are already in jail on drug charges. Does the family that drug together stay together? In jail? It seems that way.
Misty`s ex and Haleigh`s dad, Ron Cummings also face drug charges. Ron`s cousin Hope Sykes is also serving a 15-year prison sentence for drugs. What the heck is going on here? This is outrageous.
Florida police say Lisa and Hank Senior tried to buy crack cocaine from undercover officers.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ASST. CHIEF JAMES GRIFFITH, PALATKA POLICE DEPT: They bought $20 worth of crack cocaine -- one rock.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Hank and Lisa Croslin also allegedly threw the drugs out of the car window when they saw the cops were closing in. That earned them an evidence-tampering charge.
Now, this isn`t the first time at the dance, folks. The happy couple are also accused of violating parole. I don`t think Misty is going to be turning to mommy and daddy for comfort anytime soon.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MISTY CROSLIN, HALEIGH CUMMINGS FORMER STEPMOTHER: I want out of here.
LISA CROSLIN, MISTY CROSLIN`S MOTHER: I know, baby, I know it.
M. CROSLIN: I want out so bad.
L. CROSLIN: I know.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: What a mess. Misty was babysitting little Haleigh the very night she vanished nearly a year and a half ago. Police have ruled this case a homicide but a body has never been found. Nobody has been charged.
Now that Misty and her whole darn family are behind bars, will Misty finally, finally, finally spill the beans about what happened the night Haleigh went missing?
I want to welcome back my fantastic expert panel but first, to investigative journalist Art Harris, who`s all over this case. Art, what is the very latest?
ART HARRIS, INVESTIGATIVE JOURNALIST: I can tell you that Hank and Lisa Croslin were cruising through a rough neighborhood in Palatka, Florida on Friday night looking for drugs, Jane. They pulled over to a drug house that they`re familiar with. Lisa is driving. Misty`s father gets out and goes and buys from an undercover cop. He did not know that this is a place they just busted and they were now playing dealer, selling to buyers who were driving by.
This is a frequent thing they do down, you know, in a lot of places for drug busts. And right now so we drive off, Hank`s got a rock of crack cocaine. And just down the road, they pull over. In the meantime, the mother is seeing a blue light in the back. She throws the rock of crack cocaine out the window. Police never find it. And they`re charged with possession, with buying cocaine, evidence tampering in the toss of the rock and probation violation for previous charges, Jane.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: You know I heard somebody chuckling. And it would be funny because it`s so crazy and so self-destructive but except there`s a dead little girl at the heart of this. At least that`s what police think. They believe she was murdered, but we don`t know how or why or by whom yet.
Now, here`s my big issue -- are you ready to ride into dysfunction junction? All aboard, Croslin family.
It`s hard to believe the irresponsibility of Misty`s parents. Their kids are in jail facing the possibility of decades in prison. How do they respond to that? Let`s go get busted for drugs.
Listen to this clip of Hank visiting his son, Tommy, in prison.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TOMMY CROSLIN, MISTY CROSLIN`S BROTHER: I`m worried about Misty.
HANK CROSLIN, MISTY CROSLIN`S FATHER: Me too.
T. CROSLIN: She`s got herself in a mess.
H. CROSLIN: Yes.
T. CROSLIN: Me too.
H. CROSLIN: Yes, but not as big a mess, for sure.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: All right. Why allegedly offer police and prosecutors even more leverage against your own children?
Got to go to Jim Werter who`s Tommy Croslin`s attorney. I mean this is -- these are the parents of your client. Is this a case of apples not falling far from the tree?
JIM WERTER, ATTORNEY FOR TOMMY CROSLIN: Well, Jane, you have to understand that this is generations of drug addiction in this family. And if you`re talking crack cocaine, you have to know that this is a horrendous drug. I`ve never seen -- in 30 years, I`ve never seen the addictive quality of this kind of substance. And it`s just terrible. And they were hoping that Tommy would be the one to break the cycle.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Well, I guess not. I guess not. Misty, Tommy, Ron and his cousin, Hope Sykes were all arrested last January in an undercover drug trafficking sting. Hope pleaded no contest and was sentenced to 15 years. Tommy pleaded no contest and he`s awaiting sentencing. Ron is reportedly close to a plea deal and will likely be sentenced to 15 years. Will Misty end up copping a plea too?
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Ms. Cummings, you`ve been charged with four counts of trafficking in hydrocodone out at Putnam County -- with a total of five counts of trafficking hydrocodone out of Putnam County and one count of trafficking oxycodone in St. Johns County.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: So Mike Brooks, you know it all comes down to Misty sort of holding the bag while everybody else is copping a plea.
MIKE BROOKS, HLN LAW ENFORCEMENT ANALYST: So to speak.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Yes.
How does this work -- how does this work to put pressure on her to really tell the truth and nothing but the truth about what happened to Haleigh?
BROOKS: Well, you know, I thought maybe, Jane, maybe, there might have been some pressure when Tommy got locked up. You know, but with Hank Senior now, you know, I -- does he really know anything? Tommy should have been telling him on the phone, you know, put the pipe down, daddy. But do the Croslin parents know anything at all? Possibly not.
And I don`t think really it`s going to really put much pressure on Misty. Investigators say from the very beginning that she was a tough nut to crack. And this was months ago we heard about this.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: You know what? If we all sound speechless, it`s because we all are speechless.
BROOKS: It`s unbelievable.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: It`s really unbelievable every time you think you`ve heard the most outrageous aspect of this story, one that`s even more outrageous comes and takes its place.
Jeanne (ph) in Texas, your question or thought, ma`am?
JEANNE, TEXAS (via telephone):: I want to go back to a time when I heard the little boy say that the kid seen something on the couch in a trailer. And I wanted to know did the police ever check for DNA on the couch in Ron Cummings` trailer?
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Ok. Good question. Art Harris, remember the little boy --
HARRIS: Yes.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Tell us about that.
HARRIS: Junior said he saw a black man and the couch bouncing. Now, I know that police had a forensic psychologist interview the child and they have not been able to confirm it.
He was under the age Jane of a child witness who could be credible in court. He may have seen it but we don`t know. As far as DNA, they have not released any information about any matches, but then again, any DNA in that trailer, there is an alibi for, Jane because they all live there. They all visit there.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Now, I have another big issue tonight. Does all of this boil down to what the heck happened down by the river? It seems like there are several missing pieces to the Haleigh puzzle.
Whatever came of the river search, whatever came of it? Whatever came of the cement blocks police dragged out of the river? Did they yield any clues in this case? Grandma Flo Hollars, remember her? She says Cousin Joe Overstreet killed Haleigh and Tommy helped him dump her body in the river.
Let`s listen to this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
FLORA HOLLARS, MISTY CROSLIN`S GRANDMOTHER: She called me on Monday to let me know that Tommy and Joe had wrapped Misty -- I mean had wrapped Haleigh in a yellow rope and tied a brick to it and throwed her off the dock in the St. Johns River.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Levi page, whatever happened to down by the river?
LEVI PAGE, CRIME BLOGGER: Apparently the police didn`t believe anything that was told to them by the liars, Tommy Croslin and Misty Croslin who lied through their teeth since the beginning of the case. And they didn`t believe Tommy Croslin that Joe Overstreet was involved because if they did believe them, they wouldn`t have to harass him which they falsely claim the police did to him while he was in jail.
They don`t harass people that are telling them the truth and giving them information that would lead them to find a missing child.
And I disagree with what Mike Brooks just said. I think that what we`re going to see -- this will put pressure on Misty because her parents are the ones that have been giving her money to buy all of these little snacks in jail. They`ve been talking to her.
And now that`s not going to happen now. She`s not going to get any money from her parents to buy, you know, all these Doritos and stuff that she likes, she picked 20 pounds in jail. She`s not going to get those treats anymore. She`s not going to have her nightly conversations with them. I think this will put pressure on her.
BROOKS: I don`t think so.
(CROSS TALKING)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: All right. We`ll agree to disagree. It`s just a bizarre, bizarre, bizarre clan down there.
Right.
All right. It`s no secret that I`m passionate about the environment. You know, really it`s up to us -- you and me keep this planet clean and beautiful. One easy way to start, do your part; just throw away the plastic. Instead of these horrible plastic water bottles, what about trading them in for a re-useable canteen?
ISSUES wants to be part of the solution. So we have designed an ISSUES water canteen. I`m very proud of it, this little canister. We want to hear how you`ve made an impact on your environment, be it recycling, getting rid of plastic bottles or these terrible plastic grocery bags.
We`re going to feature your stories live on ISSUES. And those who have made the most difference will receive one of these environmentally safe water canisters. I just love this thing.
So start sending in your green improvements. Go to CNN.com/Jane. You`re going to be able find links to e-mail me your story directly or post your stories on my Facebook or twitter pages.
People, let`s be part of the solution. Go green.
Up next -- the Anthony family drama heats up. Reports that Casey is broke. Has Casey Anthony`s family finally turned their backs on her?
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Has accused child killer Casey Anthony`s family turned against her? Tonight, breaking news -- the Anthony family keeps their home and escapes foreclosure. I`m happy about that. I don`t want to see them lose their home.
But Casey is going broke behind bars. Her jailhouse account is in the red. She is more than $41 in debt. The last time Casey did put money in her account was two long months ago.
Casey`s parents have not given her a dime since top-secret jailhouse letters Casey wrote to a fellow inmate were leaked. In those letters, Casey said her dad, George, may have molested her. Her family calls that claim hurtful and false. George in fact raged in a letter to Casey, "You are destroying the family."
In those notes, Casey accused her brother, Lee, of touching her breasts. But Lee seems to have forgiven his sister. At Casey`s most recent hearing, he was called to the stand and mouthed, "I love you."
Take a look.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Thank you. Please tell the court your name?
LEE ANTHONY, CASEY ANTHONY`S BROTHER: Lee Alexander Anthony.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I`m assuming you weren`t speaking to me just now.
ANTHONY: Absolutely not.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I didn`t think so.
How are you related to the defendant, Casey Marie Anthony?
ANTHONY: She is my sister.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: And just recently, published reports claimed Casey`s defense was investigating George. Could they possibly be trying to blame all of this on dad?
George showed up at the hearing where Casey`s mom, Cindy, testified. They were still willing to stand behind Casey, vehemently insisting she`s innocent of killing her 2-year-old daughter, Caylee. But have they personally reached their limit? Are her parents now punishing Casey, taking away those little luxuries, the Doritos, the shampoo, the makeup? Maybe that explains Casey`s slimmed down frame. She hasn`t had any money to buy all of that junk food.
George`s attorney has no comment. Straight out to the fantastic panel: HLN law enforcement analyst, Mike Brooks; family law attorney, Debra Opri; and criminal defense attorney, Mark Eiglarsh.
Mark, I know, you`ve been tracking this case from the start. What do you make of her being $41 in the red?
MARK EIGLARSH, CRIMINAL DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Well, Jane, let me just first say, I don`t know if you can see me, but I wanted to tell you something -- I love you.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: You know, I always felt that there was something.
BROOKS: Go suck it up, Eiglarsh.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Something between us that --
EIGLARSH: Here`s what I really -- you know what I really?
VELEZ-MITCHELL: -- chemistry.
EIGLARSH: Yes, it`s there. If you`re ever locked up, i`ll let you buy some Twinkies.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: I don`t eat Twinkies.
EIGLARSH: That`s true.
The challenge is anyone who sends her money now is going to be all over the news. It`s public record. So I think that -- even those who want to marry her and sent her marriage proposals, they`re hesitant because their names will become somehow synonymous with donating money with her.
Her father? My thought is he said, "Ok, dead body in the car, I`m still with you, baby. You lied to law enforcement about the whole Zany the nanny thing? I`m still with you. Wait, I molested you? Buy your own damn food, I`m out."
Yes, possible.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Yes. I mean seriously, we`re chuckling because these developments are so bizarre. But it`s not funny. This poor family, Cindy and George, they have been through hell. And I have to wonder is this family emotionally exhausted?
Listen to what Cindy said when she testified about the chilling 911 call she made after she realized her precious granddaughter Caylee was missing. Check this out.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You wanted them to keep searching for a live kid?
CINDY ANTHONY, CASEY ANTHONY`S MOTHER: Correct.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And you`re clear about that?
C. ANTHONY: Oh, absolutely. I -- I still think Caylee is alive.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Debra Opri, you`ve covered so many of the huge cases, you have to wonder, is this family, Cindy and George, are they at their breaking point because they keep defending a young lady who keeps betraying them?
DEBRA OPRI, FAMILY LAW ATTORNEY: Look, Jane, I`ve known you many years and we covered cases together. And I`m looking at a family that is not only broken, they`re disintegrated, and you just buried the pieces right now. This girl in jail with an account of $150 paid by the dad in three days, it`s -- it`s ridiculous.
She has a spending cap. He should keep her on a budget. The family is broke. They`re emotionally shattered. And the bottom line is they can stand by their daughter because as a family law attorney, I`m telling you, a mother and father will forever love their children. And they will always say I know she committed a crime. I believe she may have committed a crime. But she is my daughter. And we will love her till the day she dies.
As far as this disintegrated family, and it is disintegrated, the bottom really is coming. It`s going to fall out very soon. And they`re going to get on with their lives, forever be shattered, scarred and there`s no way you can put this family back together again.
BROOKS: No.
OPRI: We`ve spoken about that.
BROOKS: And you know, Jane, I think that Cindy -- she may still be drinking that Casey Kool-aid a little bit. But George has had it up to here.
OPRI: Oh, no, no, no.
BROOKS: No, no, no. I think so. But George, if I were George, I would say, no, I`ve had enough, I`ve had enough. But he puts on a good front.
OPRI: He`s a father.
BROOKS: Now if Lee loves her so much, why doesn`t he make a deposit? Everybody would understand that. And where has he been. Where is Lee with the "I love you"? where has he been for the other court appearances. Now, nowhere to be seen. I`m not buying these guys either.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Dolores, Texas, you`re question or thought, ma`am?
DOLORES, TEXAS (via telephone): Yes, ma`am. I was just wondering, has anyone every genetically tested Casey`s brother or father that they may actually be the father of the little girl, Caylee? Because I --
VELEZ-MITCHELL: First of all ma`am, thank you for your question but I have to go back to Mike Brooks on this. This has been some kind of urban myth that has floated around.
And I think again these kinds of questions come up because of all these outrageous allegations that have been made by Casey. But there is absolutely no evidence of that. I believe that obviously investigators know that this is a mystery father, we have heard so many stories, maybe he died in a car accident.
What do you know, Mike?
BROOKS: No. You know, they really do not know right now or they have not said who the father of little Caylee is. And as you said, you know, it`s an urban myth. It`s been put out there, the brother, the father. But there is nothing, nothing at all to say that either one of them is.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: All right, thank you.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: A tragic mix-up, an unthinkable mistake gives one family hope and leaves another in mourning. After a horrific car accident, the Guerra family was told their 19-year-old daughter Abby was dead. With her body at the medical examiner`s office, they began planning a funeral for the promising young soccer star.
What they didn`t know was -- Abby was actually alive, totally unrecognizable and clinging to life in a nearby hospital. Gathered around her bedside was Abby`s friend, Marlena Cantu`s family, holding vigil, waiting and praying for the girl they thought was their daughter to pull through and wake up.
Nearly a week after the terrible crash, fingerprint records finally confirm that the two girls` identities had actually been switched accidentally at the scene. Marlena is dead. Abby is the one in critical condition with a brain injury, a broken back and a collapsed lung.
(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You believe for a week that that was Marlena. Ultimately, it`s the hospital that told my dad. They came out and said your daughter is on the second floor and then that`s it.
(END AUDIO CLIP)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: HLN law enforcement analyst, Mike Brooks. This is incomprehensible. How can something like this happen today?
BROOKS: You know, Jane, I asked the same question as soon as I heard this. You know apparently this scene, I listened to the presser just a short time ago. Apparently the scene on I-10 out in the desert, outside of Phoenix, there was one-girl, one girl dead on the scene. There were four other patients taken to the trauma center.
The Spokesperson for the hospital said, and the department of public safety, the highway patrol said it was just a chaotic scene. Now, the hospital said that they were going on the best information they were getting from people there. You know, they`re not talking about injuries or anything at all of the two girls. But that was the information that led them to give the information department of public safety who, one of the troopers, officers along with the chaplain went to tell the Guerra family that their daughter was dead.
And you know, I just said, wow. But you look at how people are identified. One of the ways identifying marks, any scars, birth marks, broken bones that they may have had in the past. Then you have dental records, DNA and fingerprints. Are they going to take the person`s fingerprints right there on the scene in the emergency room? No. Are they going to take dental records? No. They`re going to look at identifying marks most likely, Jane and try to identify --
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Well, these girls --
BROOKS: Yes, go ahead.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: -- look so similar.
BROOKS: They do.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: That`s the thing. They could be sisters.
BROOKS: They do.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Guess what, Mike, this is not the first time something like this happened. Four years ago, Whitney (INAUDIBLE) family held a funeral after they thought their teenage daughter died in a car crash. Five hellish weeks later they realized she was alive and they had actually buried her friend, Laura Van Ryn, who was also tall and blond. The girl`s purses got mixed up at the scene.
Eventually the surviving girl was able to whisper, I`m not Whitney. I`m Whitney, not Laura. So in each of these cases, you have a set of girls who look very much like each other. But I would think, with DNA today, if you had any kind of a doubt wouldn`t you do the test?
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Well, you know right away you are not probably going to go to DNA because that is going to take a long time. You go on fingerprints or dental records. And it`s up to medical examiner -- and they`re the ones who are actually -- they`re the ones where the body was taken to Maricopa County, in Phoenix. And they`re the one that said, wait a minute. They called the hospital.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Got to leave it.
BROOKS: The records we have don`t match the one you have in the hospital. And they`re the ones who found out.
(CROSS TALKING)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Our condolences to both of the families.
BROOKS: Yes, absolutely.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: You`re watching ISSUES.
END
