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Nancy Grace
Cheerleader Missing in Kansas, Body Just Found
Aired August 24, 2010 - 20:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
NANCY GRACE, HOST: Breaking news tonight. Live to the heartland. A 14-year-old Kansas cheerleader leaves home for a party. She`s never seen again. Less than 48 hours before her first day of high school as a freshman cheerleader, she vanishes. Cops on high alert for a new model black SUV possibly linked to the cheerleader`s disappearance. Tonight, where is 14-year-old cheerleader Alicia?
Bombshell tonight. In the last minutes, as we go to air, we are learning a body has been found. We go there live to determine if it`s connected to the case of the missing cheerleader.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The cheerleader and high school freshman goes missing from her small Kansas town Saturday night after she`s picked up by a 19-year-old male friend driving a small dark SUV, Alicia never heard from again, family extremely concerned because the avid cheerleader missed a booster club dinner Sunday night, and Monday was her first day of school. How does a 14-year-old girl, entering the most exciting time of her life, vanish?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GRACE: And tonight, live, Amber Alert, an 8-year-old snatched from his own home, broad daylight. Breaking tonight. As we go to air, we learn the convicted perp, a convicted sex offender with convictions for child porn and wanted for actual sex attacks on at least three children, that we know of, snatches the little boy just as the cops close in. Tonight, every minute counts. Where is 8-year-old little Terry (ph)?
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: An Amber Alert has been issued for an 8-year-old New Jersey little boy.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Police are desperately searching for an 8-year-old boy who was allegedly taken by a registered sex offender.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: ... allegedly abducted by his father, who is a registered sex offender.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Cops allege 38-year-old Terry Dussault (ph) abducted his son, Terry, Jr., from a home in central New Jersey today.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Dussault was last scene driving a black 2001 Hyundai Santa Fe with New Jersey plates registered to his girlfriend, Amy White (ph).
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: According to jail records, Dussault was convicted in 2007 of third degree sexual exploitation of a minor.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The suspect is 5-foot-10, 210 pounds, brown hair and brown eyes, with a tattoo of "NY" on his left arm, and chaining (ph) on his upper chest.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Last seen wearing tan short-sleeved shirt and khaki shirts.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GRACE: Good evening. I`m Nancy Grace. I want to thank you for being with us. Bombshell tonight,. A 14-year-old Kansas cheerleader leaves home for a party. She`s never seen again. In the last moments, we have just learned a body has been found. We go there live to determine, is it connected to this case?
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Cheerleader Alicia DeBolt was supposed to be out enjoying a party Saturday night. Reports say the 14-year-old girl was picked up by a 19-year-old male friend to head to a local party. But Alicia never makes it, the cheerleader even missing a very important booster club dinner the next night, a dinner family says she was looking forward to attending, also missing the first day of school.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GRACE: We are taking you there to Kansas. Right now, to Jean Casarez, legal correspondent, "In Session." Jean, what do we know right now...
JEAN CASAREZ, "IN SESSION": Well, Nancy, we`ve got some...
GRACE: ... about the body?
CASAREZ: We`ve got some breaking news coming in to your newsroom right now. A body of a young woman has been found outside Great Bend, Kansas. And it wasn`t 72 hours ago, Nancy, that a little cheerleader went missing, never came home to her mother Saturday night in Great Bend, Kansas. You see her right there, Alicia DeBolt.
GRACE: We are taking your calls live. Jean, tell me the circumstances around her disappearance. And where has this body been found?
CASAREZ: All right, she left her mother Saturday night and she went with a friend. It was around 11:00 o`clock at night. Her curfew was at midnight, but her mother says she always calls at curfew time to tell her mother exactly when she`ll be home. She didn`t call. And she was supposed to meet another friend at the convenience store. She never met that friend. Her mother then next morning alerted authorities, and there has been rampant police action to try to find this missing little cheerleader that was supposed to start school yesterday, Nancy.
GRACE: And Jean, I know her big dream was to be a cheerleader, and this is less than 72 hours before that dream comes true.
Everybody, you`re seeing photos of Alicia off of FaceBook.
To Dale Hogg, managing editor of "The Great Bend Tribune." Dale, thank you for being with us.
DALE HOGG, "GREAT BEND TRIBUNE" (via telephone): Certainly.
GRACE: what can you tell us about this body that has just been recovered?
HOGG: Well, they don`t know very much right now, Nancy. They`re saying right now they have found a body, an unidentified body. (INAUDIBLE) a male or a female yet. And it`s being (INAUDIBLE) autopsy be conducted in Wichita probably tomorrow.
GRACE: Back to you, Jean. You`re telling me it is a young female?
CASAREZ: This body was recovered minutes ago. This young woman went missing less than 72 hours ago. It is very coincidental. Authorities are going to have it autopsied in Sedgwick County, Wichita, Kansas. I`m sure there`s no confirmation until that autopsy`s done.
GRACE: Well, OK, let me see a map, Liz. The reality is -- Dale Hogg, what is the population there in the area in which she went missing?
HOGG: Well, Great Bend (INAUDIBLE) about 15,000.
GRACE: So in a town of 15,000, Clark Goldband, our producer on the story, you`ve got a body found of a young woman in the Great Bend area. It`s 15,000 population. The likelihood is it is the little cheerleader.
CLARK GOLDBAND, NANCY GRACE PRODUCER: Oh, Nancy, it`s extremely high, at this point, you would have to think. But also concerning to Alicia`s family was at the time she vanished, there was a fund-raiser just the next day and she had been looking forward to this cheerleading fund-raiser for the boosters. She did not attend. And the first day of school was the next day, Monday, yesterday. Also Alicia was a no-show.
GRACE: Out to the lines. Leah, Virginia. Hi, Leah.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Hi, Nancy. Love your show. Your babies are beautiful. I wanted to know, have the police checked with any sex offenders in her area, possibly around her house or anything?
GRACE: Let`s see the map of the sex offenders, Liz. Out to Marc Klaas, president and founder of Klaas Kids Foundation, joining us out of San Francisco. Marc, this is your specialty. Weigh in.
MARC KLAAS, KLAAS KIDS FOUNDATION: Well, the first thing they have to do is get ahold of that young man she got in a car with. He was obviously the last person to see her alive, and he now has to prove to the police that he had an alibi and that he did not have anything to do with this. This would obviously occur through interrogation and polygraph. Other than that, then you start looking at the sex offenders. Then you start looking at the other possibilities.
GRACE: OK, I`m still waiting on that map, Liz. I want to see the number of sex offenders right in the area where the little girl went missing. Now, there`s a map, the location of the convenience store where she failed to meet her friend after leaving home, where she was last seen leaving home, the location of the party where she was headed. That is where the body is found, just outside of Great Bend.
OK. Ellie in the control room, pull up the number of sex offenders for me in that area. Cut in my ear and tell me.
Pat Brown, criminal profiler, author of "The Profiler: My Life Hunting Serial Killers and Psychopaths" -- Pat, what do you think?
PAT BROWN, CRIMINAL PROFILER: Well, the chances are they`re looking exactly at that young man who picked her up because, after all, she didn`t get to the party. As we know, nobody said they saw her there. It`s possible she got in an argument with the young man in the car, and she got out and then she was walking and somebody got her. But let`s face it, he was the last one with her, as Marc Klaas said. So they`re going to be all over him -- Did you -- do we -- do you have proof that she, you know, left your company in one piece?
GRACE: Thirty registered sex offenders right there in the area where the little cheerleader went missing. Dale Hogg, how was the body found?
HOGG: It was -- I`m not sure what the circumstances surrounding the finding of the body were, but (INAUDIBLE) found it on a rural road, I`ve heard south of town, but I`m not certain of that.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: ... family extremely concerned because the avid cheerleader missed a booster club dinner Sunday night and Monday was her first day of school. How does a 14-year-old girl entering the most exciting time of her life vanish?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We`ve got some breaking news that is coming in to your newsroom right now. A body of a young woman has been found outside Great Bend, Kansas. And it wasn`t 72 hours ago, Nancy, that a little cheerleader went missing, never came home to her mother Saturday night in Great Bend, Kansas. You can see her right there, Alicia DeBolt.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GRACE: Right now, we are being joined by Kevin Wheeler of CNN affiliate KSN. Kevin, what more can you tell me?
KEVIN WHEELER, KSN (via telephone): Well, Nancy, a lot is going on right now. The family, I believe, is just now finding out about this. About 5:00 o`clock, I believe, they were told that a body was found. But right now, officials are not saying if that body is of Alicia DeBolt right now, the 14-year-old who was a cheerleader at her high school.
We are still actually trying to locate the area where that body was found. They`re trying to hold the details until tomorrow so they can figure out exactly what`s going on here.
Like you said, she was -- she went missing Saturday, supposed to be going to a party with a friend and they were going to be picking up another friend at the time, but they apparently never picked them up and they were not heard from again.
But again, they are still trying to figure out what`s going on here. The body was found. I`m hearing details that the body may have been burned. We`re not confirming that right now. But the details are very sketchy on that right now.
GRACE: The body of the little cheerleader may have been burned? Did you just say that, Kevin Wheeler?
WHEELER: Yes, ma`am, sure did. We haven`t see anything. We`re still trying to find the scene if that did, indeed, happen. The body may have been found earlier today, so they`re probably still out there trying to dig up some kind of evidence, if they can.
GRACE: Kevin Wheeler joining us from CNN affiliate KSN. Kevin, where, to your knowledge, was the body discovered?
Everyone, and for those of you just joining us, 14-year-old cheerleader Alicia DeBolt leaves her home for a party. It`s about 72 hours before her dream of becoming a cheerleader comes true. She`s never seen again. As we go to air, we discover a body has been located, possibly of the 14-year-old little girl.
Back to you, Kevin Wheeler. Where exactly, can you tell us, has the body been found? And under what conditions, a passerby, a search team? Who found this body and under what conditions?
WHEELER: OK, right now, they`re not really saying actually who found it. I believe authorities had gone looking for the body. They had interviewed several people who may have seen Alicia DeBolt and the person that she was with, and they may have gotten some details as far as where they have been located. We`re not sure exactly -- I`ve been told that the body was unidentifiable. They weren`t able to tell if it was a male or a female. But they did find a burned body somewhere out there. I believe it may have been about 20 miles from Great Bend.
GRACE: OK. Let me get something straight, Kevin Wheeler -- Kevin joining us from KSN, CNN affiliate. Kevin, you`re saying that her curfew was at midnight, but she left the home at 11:00 PM for a party?
WHEELER: That`s correct. Her mom said that her curfew was at 12:00 and she knew that her curfew was at 12:00. And that was about the last time that she saw her. So I`m not exactly sure how far the party that she was going to may have been from her home.
GRACE: Kevin, did she ever make it to the party?
WHEELER: We do not have any information on her making it to that party. Her best friend -- we did not get in touch with her, but we understand that she did not pick up the best friend, so we don`t believe that she did make it to that party.
GRACE: So she never made it to the party. And you mentioned something about a parent was supposed to pick them up and the parent did not pick them up?
WHEELER: No, the person that she rode with picked her up, and I`m not sure if someone told you that that was supposed to happen, but she was supposed to be back at home at 12:00. We`re not sure exactly who she was supposed to ride back home with.
GRACE: We are taking your calls live. Out to Tina in Florida. Hi, Tina.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Hi, Nancy. I`m so excited to finally get to talk to you! You`re such an inspiration. And I just -- your children are so beautiful!
GRACE: Thank you. Thank you so much. What do you make of this case, Tina?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Oh, my gosh! I actually have a comment and a question.
GRACE: OK.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The first thing is not to throw -- it`s not the time to throw blame or anything like that, but I just don`t understand why a 14-year-old is out with a midnight curfew. When I was -- I couldn`t have a midnight curfew until I was at least 17 years old, and I had to beg for that. So I don`t know if this -- the circumstances may have been a little different had she not been out that late. But you know, who knows.
GRACE: You know, Tina, I`m right there with you. I had an 11:00 o`clock curfew and had to beg on junior/senior night for 11:30, OK? But what I don`t get is, if she`s got to be home at 12:00, she left at 11:00? The story to me is very discombobulated about a parent not picking her up, who took her to the party. I mean, from the moment that she did not arrive at the party, I think the parents should have been alerted right then. The whole story hasn`t jelled yet.
But this much we know. As we go to air, we learn that a body has been found, not positively identified, but with a population of 15,000 people, who else could it be?
To Dr. Jake Deutsch, doctor of emergency medicine joining us out of New York. Dr. Deutsch, thanks for being with us.
DR. JAKE DEUTSCH, EMERGENCY MEDICINE: Hi, Nancy.
GRACE: It`s my understanding that you can look at bones and determine if it`s a man or a woman.
DEUTSCH: Sure. There`s differences in bones, like, in the pelvis. There`s going to be really three things that this medical examiner is going to be looking at, first to identify the body. Second, they`re going to be looking for a cause of death. And then thirdly, any signs of sexual assault. So this makes my stomach absolutely sick. And it`s a gruesome task, but there`s some really important information that this medical examiner is going to be able to ascertain.
GRACE: Doctor, have you ever dealt with a charred or burned body?
DEUTSCH: Burns are some of the most terrible injuries. The smell alone is just nauseating, and the damage that can occur from even minor burns can be life-threatening. To deal with somebody that was a homicide and killed by being burned is -- it`s just mind-boggling and it`s a terrible thing.
GRACE: Unleash the lawyers. Joining us tonight, Raymond Giudice, defense attorney, Atlanta, Richard Herman, defense attorney, New York. Raymond Giudice, it`s another level of crime to burn the body. Now, you two may tell me it doesn`t matter. It matters to a jury if you burn up a 14-year-old little cheerleader.
RAYMOND GIUDICE, DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Well, Nancy, it matters in Kansas because Kansas has the death penalty, which requires premeditation, torture, rape, kidnapping, or death of a child under 14. And they haven`t used it since 1965 in the state of Kansas.
GRACE: OK, weigh in, Herman.
RICHARD HERMAN, DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Nancy for the person to burn this body, if that`s what happened here, that person had the specific intent necessary on a murder because you`re looking to get rid of DNA. This is a tragic case. As Marc Klaas teaches us since your show began years ago, Nancy, those first 24 to 72 hours are critical. And look at this, within 72 hours, they find a dead body.
GRACE: To Sharon in Virginia. What`s your question, dear? And Liz, as we`re talking to Sharon, I want to see this map of where that body has been discovered. Go ahead, Sharon.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes, Nancy, I kind of want to reiterate what your last caller said, that I don`t understand why a girl this age would be out at a party that late. But my question is, why would a mom let a 19- year-old pick a 14-year-old girl up? She`s -- you know, she`s a baby. I just don`t understand...
GRACE: To Dr. Leslie Austin, psychotherapist. You know, a lot of parents don`t know if it would make it worse to say no, as long as a child is being honest about what they`re doing. You know, I wasn`t allowed to do that. But what do you make of it, Dr. Leslie?
LESLIE AUSTIN, PSYCHOTHERAPIST: Right. And again, it`s -- this is the wrong time to blame the parents. I really feel for them. But I don`t know how much they knew about this boy. I`d be uncomfortable having a 14- year-old...
GRACE: Well, you know, that brings up...
AUSTIN: ... daughter...
GRACE: ... a good point, Leslie. Kevin Wheeler, where is the 19- year-old, Kevin Wheeler?
WHEELER: We have not heard anything about the 19-year-old. I`ve called several agencies today to see if they may have interviewed him or if they located him. They won`t give any kind of clue of where he might have been or where he is located right now. So they also did -- I think they said they may have interviewed five or more people at the time. So it`s possible that some of the friends who were at this party may have known something about this.
GRACE: For those of you just joining us, a body identified on the edges of Great Bend. Is it the body of 14-year-old Alicia DeBolt?
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: ... mother says she always calls at curfew time to tell her mother exactly when she`ll be home. She didn`t call. And she was supposed to meet another friend at the convenience store. She never met that friend. Her mother the next morning called authorities, and there has been rampant police action to try to find this missing little cheerleader that was supposed to start school yesterday.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GRACE: We are taking your calls live. To Amanda in Kansas. Hi, Amanda.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Hi, Nancy. Thanks for taking my call. I have a question. Have they tried to question the guy that she supposedly went in the SUV with? They really haven`t said anything about this guy.
GRACE: Good question. To Dale Hogg, managing editor, "Great Bend Tribune." Dale, what do we know about the 19-year-old? Where is he? He`s the last one to see her or be with her.
HOGG: Well, that`s a good question. I asked the police chief this afternoon, Is he -- is he missing, as well? And the chief said no, we only have one missing person, and refused to elaborate any further on it than that. So it led me to believe that they were aware of the location of this gentleman whom she left and went to the party with.
GRACE: That`s a good point, Dale Hogg, because they would have said he`s missing, too. What about it, Jean Casarez?
CASAREZ: ... missing persons case until minutes before your show started. This was a little cheerleader that had her hair in a ponytail with a pink ribbon when she left her mother Saturday night. Here is something very important. This happened in Barton (ph) County. The remains are being taken to Sedgwick County, Wichita Forensic Center. They`re not going with the small town DA -- ME.
GRACE: But the reality, Dr. Jake Deutsch, is a comparison of dental records will give you the answer in just minutes.
DEUTSCH: Right. Hopefully, there are dental records to compare. That would be confirmatory. Other DNA evidence would also be confirmatory.
GRACE: OK, Liz, let`s see a picture of her smiling, and I can tell you in about two seconds if she`s got -- she`s got -- yes, she`s worn braces. This kid has dental records. I can tell you that right now.
Back to Kevin Wheeler, KSN, CNN affiliate. Kevin, what are you learning? I know you`re on your way to the scene right now. What do you know?
WHEELER: Yes, actually, we`re just still trying to locate where it is. They haven`t -- we`ve spoken to several agencies about whether this happened. We`re actually headed north of Great Bend to see if we can locate the area where this happened, and we are assuming that they still have some type of crime scene investigation on the scene. But we have not located it. Now, we`re hearing that a body may have been burned, but that`s not confirmed by anybody. We are just hearing that from some of the people who are around town. None of the authorities have said that.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: The family, I believe, is just now finding out about this -- about 5:00 I believe they were told that a body was found. But right now officials are not saying if that body is of Alicia Debolt right now -- the 14-year-old who was a cheerleader at her high school.
We are still actually trying to locate the area where that body was found. They are trying to hold the details until tomorrow so they can figure out exactly what`s going on here.
She went missing on Saturday and she`s supposed to be going to a party with a friend. And they were being picked up by another friend at the time but they apparently didn`t pick them up and they were not heard from again.
But, again, they are still trying to figure out what`s going on here. The body was found -- I`m hearing details that the body may have been burned. We`re not confirming that right now. But the details are very sketchy on that right now.
(END OF VIDEO CLIP)
NANCY GRACE, HOST: We are taking your calls live.
For those of you just joining us, a little 14-year-old cheerleader supposed to start school in 72 hours for her freshman year, goes missing on Saturday night. Her curfew midnight. She leaves home 11:00. She has never been seen alive again.
As we go to air right now, we are learning of the discovery of a female body just outside of Great Bend.
Let`s see the map, Elizabeth.
Our to the lines, Shirley in Canada. Hi, Shirley.
SHIRLEY, CALLER FROM CANADA: Hi, Nancy. How are you?
GRACE: I`m good, dear. What`s your question?
SHIRLEY: I have a comment and a kind of a double question here.
GRACE: OK.
SHIRLEY: My comment is, I loved your new book, "Death on the D-List." It was just excellent. As well as, I think you could play Hailey Dean.
GRACE: Thank you.
SHIRLEY: Seriously. And when I was reading it, I just thought of you. And the question I have is, does the mother know who the -- who the girl was going to the party, like who was throwing the party? And have they checked out her cell records?
GRACE: Good question. Back to you, Kevin Wheeler, joining us from a CNN affiliate, KSN. I assume the mom knew who she was going with because she -- the family is the one that told us who she was with, who she left with.
But what about the fact that she never reached the party? It`s my understanding that the family had an SOP, standard operating procedure, that she was supposed to call if she was going to be late -- text, just let them know that she got there, and that never happened.
KEVIN WHEELER, CNN AFFILIATE KSN: Right. And, you know, she told me that she knew who the guy was. She didn`t know his last name. She told me his first name. And she knew that he was a friend of Alicia. But -- she knew too much more about him but she may have.
She said that she did not leave with any clothes or a phone charger or anything like that. So it`s possible that her battery may have died between when she left home and when she was supposed to have left the party.
GRACE: Right. I am reading straight from the wires as I`m receiving them, everybody. We`ve been told the body is not identifiable. To me that says it has been charred beyond recognition.
An autopsy, as Jean Casarez has pointed out, will be conducted at Cedric County Forensic Science Center in Wichita. Positive ID expected on Wednesday.
Right now, law enforcement from Great Bend, the Barton County, and KBI -- Kansas Bureau of Investigation -- on the scene. We are also learning she was only supposed to be going for one hour.
They have been searching for this girl for three days now. Last seen Saturday night. Tammy Conrad says her daughter left the home with a 19- year-old man. The two planned to go to a party. She had a midnight curfew, was to meet another friend at a nearby gas station but she never showed.
The mom starts calling her at midnight because of her curfew. The mom says we have a system. She texts back or she will call back but she didn`t and she hasn`t. They became increasingly nervous because they believe her phone is off. No one has seen or heard from her since Saturday.
That this is not like Alicia. She has never run away. Somebody has my baby girl.
The tip line, 800-KS-CRIME. That`s for KBI CrimeStoppers.
To Lou Palumbo, former Nassau County police investigator, now private investigator.
Lou, where`s the 19-year-old? He`s not missing?
LOU PALUMBO, FORMER NASSAU COUNTY POLICE INVESTIGATOR, PRIVATE INVESTIGATOR: No. Actually, they have him in custody right now and I`m sure they are conducting an investigation involving him.
And one of the things they`re going to need to try to determine is the time of death as well to try to create a timeline and make him accountable for where he was at any given time.
The reason, as we know, the body is so badly burned is to try to hinder or impede the investigators from --
GRACE: Exactly.
PALUMBO: -- conducting further investigation.
GRACE: To Kevin Wheeler, is the 19-year-old in custody?
WHEELER: That`s what we -- we still haven`t heard anything about the 19-year-old. I`ve asked several times for details on his whereabouts or as he`s been located or the vehicle that they ran, if it`s been located in, and they refused to comment further on that.
GRACE: To Lou Palumbo, where are you getting your information that the 19-year-old is in custody?
PALUMBO: Nancy, I said that from the basis that he`s basically the strongest and only lead at this point. And I am certain at this point they`re interviewing him.
And when I say he`s in custody that doesn`t mean he`s in a state of arrest. I am certain that they are conducting interviews with him as we`re talking.
GRACE: Lou, that would make sense that they would be investigating him and questioning him. Not necessarily investigating him right now because we know this. She leaves home at 11:00. She`s supposed to be back at midnight. She never made it to the party.
So in the space of one hour this 14-year-old cheerleader goes missing.
Out to the lines, Sunny in Oregon. Hi, Sunny.
SUNNY, CALLER FROM OREGON: Hello, Nancy. I want to thank you very much for all of the work you do. I`m very grateful for all the people that you help. And the kids are gorgeous and you`re very blessed.
But what I wanted to say is there is surveillance at the gas station at all and did they find any of her belongings at the party whatsoever?
My other questions were answered about the boy being in custody and have they searched his vehicle, I`m also wondering.
GRACE: To Clark Goldband, our producer on the story, what do we know?
CLARK GOLDBAND, NANCY GRACE PRODUCER, COVERING STORY: Well, Nancy, we know it was a convenience store in the gas station. So you`d certainly have to assume those things are blanketed by surveillance cameras.
Also, Nancy, the sister-in-law of this girl has posted a message on Facebook that we believe is her and she says that it was not a huge party but more of a small type party and that Alicia always notifies her family when she`ll even be just a few minutes late.
GRACE: We are taking your calls, out to Tami in Texas. Hi, Tami.
TAMI, CALLER FROM TEXAS: I guess you already answered my question because I was wondering, was it ever confirmed that there really was a party, that maybe she was just lying to get out of the house just for an hour to be with this guy? Because you know --
GRACE: Huh. What about it, Marc Klaas? Do we know? Can we confirm? Because now the situation has changed, it`s not a big party, it`s a small party. She never made it to the party. What do we know?
MARC KLAAS, PRESIDENT AND FOUNDER, KLAASKIDS FOUNDATION: Well, I don`t know anything but I think it`s really unfair to accuse this young girl of lying. After all, she is dead. She is the victim.
What should have happened, Nancy, is when the little girl did not call her mother, when she did not confirm that she would be home on time or late, she should have followed her instinct and notified the authorities right then. They might have been able to intervene and save her.
I`m assuming that the body that`s been found is her because there`s doesn`t seem to be anybody else missing. But if she`d notify the authorities early perhaps it could have intervened perhaps she could be alive today.
GRACE: Yes. And you know what? I don`t think anyone is casting aspersions on the little girl. She asked for permission to go. She was supposed to be back in an hour. She had never run away or really misbehaved in any serious ways in the past.
She had good grades, was set to become a cheerleader. Her big excitement was going to the booster meeting, you know, the next night. And that does not sound like a little girl is giving anybody any problems.
Raymond Giudice, Richard Herman, we know that lie detectors are not allowed into evidence unless both parties stipulate up front. If the 19- year-old is under questioning right now -- weigh in, Herman?
RICHARD HERMAN, DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Yes. If he`s under questioning right now, he has to have an attorney because if he blinks the wrong way, if he sneezes the wrong way, based on this circumstantial evidence, he`s going to be the target. He`s going to be the one they`re going to charge with this.
So he has to be very careful with his story and what he says has to be one million percent the truth. If he knows anything about this and about her missing or her -- the murder that took place here, he has to come forward right now.
GRACE: Whoa, Richard, do you believe if there`s a sex assault, that there will be any DNA depending on the charring nature of the body?
HERMAN: I`d like to hear the forensic pathologist on that, Nancy. I`m not sure. It depends -- I guess it depends how severe the charge is.
GRACE: What about it, Ray?
RAY GIUDICE, DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Well, let me just say one thing. There`s a fine line between an investigative questioning and custody. And when custody kicks in, i.e., detention, that young man is going to get his Miranda rights read and he needs a lawyer.
GRACE: Everybody, as we go to break, we are taking your calls. And happy birthday to special friend, Chris Brown. He loves cooking. He is a professional caterer. He loves traveling, classic cars, and Elvis impersonators.
Happy birthday, Chris.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
JEAN CASAREZ, LEGAL CORRESPONDENT, "IN SESSION": Authorities were just about to arrest Terry Dusseault for several accounts of sexual assault on juvenile victims.
Three different juvenile victims -- two counts of first degree aggravated sexual assault, two counts of second degree endangering the welfare of a child, and three counts of third degree endangering welfare of a child.
Authorities say Terry Dusseault knew he was about to be served with this criminal complaint and abducted his little 8-year-old boy. He is considered a fugitive.
(END OF VIDEO CLIP)
GRACE: We are taking your calls live right now. An 8-year-old little boy deemed to be in urgent, urgent danger. This little boy had -- to our knowledge -- has been abducted by a registered sex offender. He had a 2007 conviction for child pornography and is wanted in the molestation on at least three children that we know of.
Tonight, where is the little boy, Terry Dusseault?
Straight out to Matt Chappardi, joining us from "Burlington County Times." What happened, Matt?
MATT CHAPPARDI, REPORTER, BURLINGTON COUNTY TIMES: Hi, Nancy. Apparently this morning New Jersey State Police put out an Amber alert for 8-year-old Terry Dusseault.
His father had custody of the child. The mother is deceased, apparently, and it seems that there are -- some relatives, especially the brother who were concerned about his mental state and the safety of Terry Jr. and that`s why they got state police to issue an Amber alert for the child.
GRACE: Are you telling me a convicted child pornographer has custody of an 8-year-old boy?
CHAPPARDI: That is what we -- that`s what we`re led to believe. That`s the authorities are telling us. As far as we know, at one point, the mother is deceased and he was left with custody of the child.
GRACE: You know what, Matt Chappardi? I just want to take off my mike and just go home. Because when you put an 8-year-old child in custody with a child pornographer, and then we`re all surprised where is he and there`s an Amber alert?
Jean Casarez, what more can you tell me?
CASAREZ: Nancy, it was just hours ago, this Amber alert on this little 8-year-old boy. And authorities were trying to serve the father with a complaint for felony first-degree aggravated sexual assault on three minor juveniles, Nancy.
That is raping a child. That was what he was about to be served with when authorities say he fled with his son.
GRACE: OK. Jean, I don`t understand how a child pornographer is the custodial guardian of an 8-year-old boy. How can that be, Jean?
CASAREZ: I don`t know. I just don`t know. It was North Carolina. It was 2005 that he was charged with 15 counts of what we know is possession of child porn, convicted in 2007.
GRACE: Look at this little boy. What has he been living through? What has he endured?
Terry Dusseault, 8 years old boy, 4`8", while male, 80 pounds, brown hair, brown eyes. Last seen in a maroon and white stripped shirt and blue jeans. Lumberton, New Jersey is just about 25 miles east of Philly.
It happened at 11:00 a.m. today just as this perv right here is about to get arrested on assault molestation on children. He takes off with an 8-year-old little boy.
Out to the lines, Cindy, New Jersey. Hi, Cindy.
CINDY, CALLER FROM NEW JERSEY: Hi, Nancy. Thank you so much for the work that you do. It means so much to all of us. Actually, my question was answered. I wanted to know what the circumstances were, whether he had a visitation. But now I find out he actually has custody. I`m outraged. Absolutely outraged.
GRACE: Matt Zarrell, how in the heck does he get custody? I`m with Cindy. How did that happen? Was the judge completely asleep on the bench?
MATT ZARRELL, NANCY GRACE STAFFER, COVERING STORY: We`re still trying to figure that out at this point, Nancy, because he only got six to eight months for that `07 conviction. He only got 36 months of probation. He was let out, he got custody of the child, he moved to New Jersey.
And at this point we don`t know why he had custody, why DCFS hasn`t been involved. And what is going on? They`re still looking for him. He`s in a 2001 black Hyundai Santa Fe, New Jersey license plate. It`s registered to the girlfriend, Amy White. They don`t know what direction they are headed in but they are looking in multiple states for him.
GRACE: Hey, Liz, see if you can pull up a -- there you go. L, love, X, X-ray, B, brother, 61, U, Utah. Look at this 2001 Hyundai Santa Fe, color black. That`s what we`re looking for right now. In the car is an 8- year-old boy. Behind the wheel a child predator.
Marc Klaas, help me.
KLAAS: Megan`s Law, which was passed in 1996 and signed by President Clinton, does two things. It makes the state`s register sex offenders and it gives the community information about who they are so that they can protect themselves against them.
In this particular instance, the authorities had to know who this character was, yet they allowed him to keep custody of the child. That`s a complete and total failure of law enforcement.
The other thing that concerns me is I`ve not been able to find anywhere when the child was reported missing and when the Amber alert was reported because he was taken just a very short distance from the New Jersey turnpike. Meaning that he could get on to the freeway with that -- with that child, in that vehicle, and be practically anywhere on the Eastern Seaboard by this time.
GRACE: To Dr. Leslie Austin, psychotherapist, what was the judge thinking? What -- and the DFCS -- Department of Family and Children Services -- not involved. Why? Why aren`t they involved?
DR. LESLIE AUSTIN, PSYCHOTHERAPIST: I can`t imagine. I have to think this is the justice system`s worst nightmare where something horrible slipped through the cracks. Maybe one state didn`t notify the other. I don`t really know. But there is no excuse for having this child in his custody under any circumstances.
GRACE: Let`s put up the tip line, Liz. We`re looking for a black 2001 Hyundai Santa Fe, New Jersey license L, love, X, B, brother, 61, U, Utah. Take a look at this little boy.
Where`s the tip line, Liz? You`re just putting up a 911 number. We`ve got to get the tip line.
Very quickly, Judy in Pennsylvania. Hi, Judy.
JUDY, CALLER FROM PENNSYLVANIA: Hello, Nancy. I adore you and I adore all your panelists. And I just have to sit here and say, I am shocked and horrified at this. And I would like to know, did this man and his former wife have other children?
GRACE: Good question. Back to Matt Chappardi with the "Burlington County Times". What do you know?
CHAPPARDI: As far as we know this is the only child. I can`t confirm that he doesn`t have others, but as far as we know this is the only child.
GRACE: Everybody, you are seeing a shot of a little boy now missing.
Quick break.
Everyone, the other day I met a young lady named Stacy Bailey. She`s the proud wife, Army wife of Specialist Chad Bailey. He`s just come home safely from Iraq.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: An Amber alert has been issued for an 8-year- old New Jersey boy allegedly abducted by his father who is a registered sex offender.
Police say 38-year-old Terry Dusseault took his son, 8-year-old Terry Jr., from a home in Lumberton, New Jersey, today.
(END OF VIDEO CLIP)
GRACE: Out to the lines, Gloria in North Carolina. Hi, Gloria.
GLORIA, CALLER FROM NORTH CAROLINA: Hi. How are you doing, Nancy?
GRACE: I`m good, dear. What`s your question?
GLORIA: I`m concerned -- I`m a social worker. I`m concerned why the court system was not working with the Department of Social Service to keep this child from his father who is a sex offender.
GRACE: OK, Raymond Giudice, Richard Herman, we`ve all been in the system. And this is galling, this is disgusting. An 8-year-old boy in custody with a guardian is a child pornographer? Convicted in 2007?
They`ve had three years to straighten it out. He only goes on the run when he`s accused of assaulting, of raping three other children? He`s got the baby boy.
GIUDICE: Nancy, it would be good to see the original sentencing order. There may have been some exception carved out due to the death of the mother for him to maintain custody of this child.
GRACE: Yes, you know what? I don`t think so. I`ve never seen such an exception with a child pornographer.
What about it, Herman?
HERMAN: No way. Because they would have had to have a guardian ad litem appointed for the child. First question, have you ever been convicted of a crime during the custody proceedings? He answers yes to that. What were the circumstances? There`s no way they would have given custody.
This guy either lied on the application or the system completely broke down.
GRACE: Everybody, we have double-checked. The only number they are giving us to find Terry Dusseault is the 911 number. He`s been taken 25 miles from Philly, last seen Lumberton, New Jersey.
Please help us find this boy. Last seen in a black 2001 Hyundai Santa Fe, Jersey license L, love, X, B, brother, 61U.
Let`s stop and remember Army Sgt. Tromaine Toy Sr., 24, Eastville, Virginia, killed Iraq. Awarded the Purple Heart, also served Korea. Remembered for a sense of humor and always smiling.
Loved video games, shopping, favorite player in basketball, Kobe Bryant. Leaves behind parents Michael and Patricia, brother Terrell, widow Dominique, daughter Arianne, son Tromaine Jr.
Tromaine Toy, Sr., American hero.
Thanks to our guests, but especially to you. I`ll see you tomorrow night, 8:00 sharp Eastern, and until then, good night, friend.
END
