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Jane Velez-Mitchell
Facebook Rage Leads to Torture; Girl Dies When Cop Refuses CPR
Aired September 01, 2010 - 19:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CARLOS DIAZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Tonight, uncontrolled rage sparked by Facebook? Cops say a jealous boyfriend tied up his girlfriend and tortured her for four hellish days. He allegedly beat her and strangled her right in front of their children. Tonight, did this all start with a Facebook post?
Also, a popular doctor found dead, stuck inside her boyfriend`s chimney. Cops say this woman tried to break into the house by sliding down into his fireplace. Three days later, her decomposing body was finally found. Tonight, why did she try to use the chimney instead of the front door?
Plus, bizarre new allegations in the Jon & Kate divorce drama. Jon Gosselin`s ex-girlfriend now reportedly claims Jon tried to extort Kate for hundreds of thousands of dollars. And if she didn`t pay up, he would report her to Child Protective Services. Is this for real? We`ll have all of the pathetic allegations.
ISSUES starts now.
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DIAZ: I`m Carlos Diaz in for Jane Velez-Mitchell.
Tonight, a stomach-churning attack. Was an innocent young woman held prisoner and brutally tortured for days by her maniacal boyfriend, all because of a Facebook post?
Anthony Lozano allegedly flew into a jealous rage after coming across a string of scandalous messages between his girlfriend and a mystery man on Facebook. Furious at the thought of his girlfriend having an affair, Lozano allegedly dragged the 23-year-old by her hair from room to room, threatening her life, and choking her with ropes and towels. Choking her with ropes and towels.
The woman was held captive for four hellish days and violently beaten every single day. She finally escaped when her enraged -- when her enraged boyfriend left the house.
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RACHAEL PEPE, NEIGHBOR: It`s heartbreaking. Like I said, that somebody could be that close, and I didn`t even know that she needed help.
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DIAZ: Lozano was arrested and faces charges of kidnapping, torture, false imprisonment and spousal abuse. The couple`s 3-year-old child and Lozano`s 12-year-old child were both in the house during the time of the attack. Thankfully, neither of them were injured.
I want to hear from you on this amazing story. Call me: 1-877-JVM- SAYS. That`s 1-877-586-7297.
Out to my fantastic panel. I want to begin with Tye Gearing, who joins us on the phone. He`s a neighbor who lives near this couple.
Tye, thanks for joining us. Did you have any idea that this woman was being held prisoner in her own home?
TYE GEARING, NEIGHBOR (via phone): No.
DIAZ: What -- at what point did you have an idea that something was wrong?
GEARING: Well, when the police came day before yesterday. I didn`t know what was going on. I just seen them over there.
DIAZ: Has there been any history of violence between these two previously?
GEARING: I don`t know of any. But I don`t really know them that well.
DIAZ: I mean, how would you describe the neighborhood that you live in?
GEARING: It`s a nice neighborhood. It`s a pretty quiet neighborhood.
DIAZ: Yes. So there`s not very many domestic disturbances in the neighborhood?
GEARING: Oh, no.
DIAZ: There is the disturbing twist. This couple apparently had a history of violence. And the police were apparently called on several occasions. Listen to this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PEPE: I don`t want to say I`m surprised. But, you know, because like I said, there has been times before where they`ve -- they`ve had a call because of the -- you know, the arguing and whatnot. Who would have dreamed anything like this would happen? And it -- I`m sick.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
DIAZ: Dr. Cheryl Arrut, I want to bring you in. Why did she stay with this man? Could this vicious attack have been prevented by her getting out sooner?
DR. CHERYL ARRUT: Well, Carlos, this is a really common question that people ask in domestic violence cases, why does somebody stay with somebody who treats them so violently? And...
DIAZ: By the way -- by the way, I want to say real quick, I`m not at all blaming her. I mean, this guy, he`s a scumbag. You hit a woman, you`re a scumbag. You are -- and look at the size of this guy. This guy`s huge. Pick on somebody your own size.
ARRUT: Exactly.
DIAZ: One of the worst things you can do is strike a woman. Or strike a child. And this guy -- look at him. He`s a big guy.
ARRUT: He`s a huge guy, Carlos. And the thing is, statistically, women who are in battering relationships are at most -- at greatest risk of being murdered by their batterer after they leave.
And this is a man who actually threatened her life a number of times, told her that if she left, he would kill her. And statistically, very often those kinds of things do, in fact, happen. And so fear of that, and fear for her children were very powerful motivators to allow her to stay and actually take on disproportionate responsibility for the violence when it actually -- he`s responsible. But she thinks "Maybe if I can, you know, be nicer, or do things right, or please him or placate him, then maybe this will stop."
DIAZ: Yes. We`ve heard -- we hear that all the time. You know, you have somebody. You have a guy like this who`s allegedly accused -- we don`t want to try and convict this guy right here, you know. He`s still accused of these crimes, so we still have to say this allegedly happened.
But he allegedly beats her and in her own mind, she`s saying, what am I doing wrong. You`re not doing anything wrong. This guy, if he did this, is a scumbag.
Police say the woman`s boyfriend not only tied her up but taunted her. He taunted her as her children sat in a bedroom next door.
ARRUT: And there have been calls...
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SHERIFF CHRIS JORDAN, KINGS COUNTY: ... her here, tied her up, jabbed her with an aluminum baseball bat, threatened to kill her, and would not allow her to leave the residence.
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DIAZ: Jabbed her with a baseball bat. Lozano apparently threatened to kill his girlfriend if she tried to escape.
John Lucich, there were two children in the house. One of them, this man`s son, is 12 years old. Do you think he psychologically is tormented by having to witness all this?
JOHN LUCICH, FORMER INVESTIGATOR: Well, absolutely. There`s no doubt in my mind. I`ve seen situations like this.
These kids were reported to be unharmed, but they`ve got to be scarred for life to see their mother over a four-day period to be bound and tortured and beaten by this animal. There is nothing that this woman could have done at all to deserve something like this.
And you know, part of the psychology with these animals, that they convince you that you`re the problem. It`s your fault. You deserve what you`re getting. And it`s just not true. This guy needs to go away for a long time.
DIAZ: So what did the scandalous Facebook messages say that caused this man to allegedly fly into an insane rage? Authorities do not know exactly what was in the messages, but the victim insists she was not having an affair, and the conversation that her boyfriend saw was between her and a friend.
I want to tell you right now, I don`t care if you walk in and your girlfriend is telling another guy that he loves -- that she loves him to his face. You never fly off the handle like this guy apparently did.
Laura, Lozano apparently forced his girlfriend to call in sick from work, miss work for four days, so that no one would miss her. Dr. Arrut, forensic psychologist that you are, if she wasn`t brave enough to run, could she have been killed?
ARRUT: She absolutely could have been killed. And I think that she was trying to be courageous, and I really believe that the power and control tactics that batters use, they use them because they`re effective.
He didn`t do this because of a conversation she had. He didn`t do this because she did something wrong. He did this because he uses violence and power and control in his relationships, because of problems that he has within himself.
DIAZ: Anita Kay, criminal defense attorney, I want to bring you in on this next one. I mean, how do you defend this guy, if this case is put in front of you?
ANITA KAY, CRIMINAL DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Basically --
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You`re asking me?
KAY: The best thing that you can do for him is try to work out a deal for him. Because torture in California is a life case. It`s life. So he`s potentially looking at life in prison. So the best hope he`s got is to potentially work out a deal.
DIAZ: Lisa Bloom, I know your head is about to explode.
LISA BLOOM: Yes.
DIAZ: I mean, life in prison for this guy? I mean, if these things are proven to have happened, is that enough time for this guy?
BLOOM: Life in prison is absolutely the appropriate sentence. I think that we overcharge and oversentence people in many cases, but this would not be one of them.
Four days where he`s exercising power and control, imprisoning her, and threatening to kill her with children in the house? This is a man who`s completely out of control. This is all about power and exercising dominion over someone else`s life.
It`s a news story because it involves Facebook. But in another sense, it`s the oldest story in the book, of a man who wants complete control over a woman. And when she appears to have some relationship with somebody else, which maybe she did and maybe she didn`t, he just flies into a rage. He can`t be trusted around children. He can`t be trusted around women, and I don`t think he should be out in the general public.
DIAZ: Lisa, the phone lines are burning up right now. We`ll get to Kathy from Georgia in just a second. Fantastic panel, stay right where you are. We`re going to have more on this Facebook fury in just a moment.
We`re taking your calls on this: 1-877-JVM-SAYS. That`s 1-877-586- 7297. We`ll get to the calls in just a second.
Plus a popular doctor was stuck inside her boyfriend`s chimney. Three days later she was found dead. So what led to this bizarre death?
But first, did a Facebook post really push a jealous boyfriend to torture?
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PEPE: I don`t want to say I`m surprised. But, you know, because like I said, there has been times before where they`ve had a call because of an argument or whatnot. Who would have dreamed anything like this would happen? And it -- I`m sick.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CAROL DOWNING, NEIGHBOR: It`s very shocking. Yes, it`s very frightening. I wish I`d known and could have helped.
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DIAZ: A young woman`s boyfriend flies into a jealous rage after reading a series of Facebook messages between her and another man. Infuriated, he kidnaps his girlfriend, beats her, ties her up, and holds her prisoner for four hellish days.
Tonight gruesome details about his endless torture. The phone lines are burning up on this one, and rightfully so. Kathy from Georgia. Kathy, your thoughts on this horrific crime?
CALLER: Well, I think it`s awful. And I`m wondering if he can be charged with cruelty to children? Are there any charges that will be filed in that regard?
DIAZ: That is a great question. Apparently, you know, he threatened her, if she left the house.
John Lucich, former criminal investigator, the kids are going to play a role in this case. But can you be charged in this case with, you know, keeping the kids confined, as well? And how do you -- how do you talk to these kids? Because really, they`re the main witnesses in this case.
LUCICH: I think these charges can be part and parcel to what happened to their mother also against -- for these kids. When you talk to these children, you have to be very careful. No. 1, you don`t want to scar these kids going forward.
And No. 2, you want to make sure you don`t ask them leading questions where the defense attorney is going to come out and say you told them to say that based on your questions. But you know what? What happened to her over the years, all you have to do is ask these guys what happened and just try to pull out more information without being leading.
These kids are going to start crying as they talk about the abuse that their mother suffered at the hands of their stepdad for some time.
DIAZ: Lisa Bloom, can you imagine the -- just the will of this woman, after four days of hell, to get out of that house and get to the police?
BLOOM: To survive. Let me just also say, if a man abuses a woman in a home where children are present, he is absolutely guilty of endangering those children, creating an unsafe environment for those children. A lot of crimes in connection with the children. Even if he never lays a hand on them.
That`s very important to understand, because a lot of women stay in these relationships thinking, "Well, he doesn`t harm the children. He`s only harming me." But I`ve seen cases, I have cases in my law practice right now where the abuser is charged with crimes against the children even if he doesn`t harm them physically, because he`s clearly harming them psychologically.
DIAZ: Doctor Arrut, you know, we see this time and time again now, with ways to -- you know, it`s no longer where, you know, you think your loved one might be having an affair. You can stumble across messages right on Facebook.
But even if you stumble upon a message where your wife or your girlfriend or your boyfriend, where it looks leading, how do you react to that? You don`t react in this way. But how do -- how should you react in this case?
ARRUT: Well, first of all, I just want to say, Lisa Bloom made some fabulous points. She`s absolutely right about the psychological damage.
And as for what we do about Facebook, you have a right, if you are unhappy in a relationship, you can break up. You can decide not to be together. But you don`t have a right to brutalize another person.
And I saw a study today that said that four out of five people won`t de-friend an ex, because they want to kind of keep tabs on them. And I really think we need to study more about the impact Facebook is having on exacerbating already troubled relationships.
DIAZ: That`s very important, too, because that is a huge part of relationships. A lot of people meeting on Facebook. And then, as you can see in this situation, the demise of a relationship can come as a result of Facebook.
Anita Kay, I want to bring you in on this. I mean, when you see a case like this, and there are so many emotions involved, can you take emotions out of this, or are they just part of this case?
KAYE: Well, they`re always going to be there, because you`re dealing with real live victims. You`re dealing with real-life people.
But I want to get back to the point of the kids and what Kathy said, the caller. You know, I don`t know what the story was with Lozano and the children. He was not allowing them to leave. The district attorney may look into filing kidnap charges per victim. My understanding is there were two people in that house. Each can be charged individually for separate victims.
And I think that`s what the D.A.`s office would do. You try and stack it against him so you put him in such a position where he is going to have to take a plea bargain, because you don`t want to put this woman on the stand and her kids on the stand and have them relive this horror. Because that`s where it becomes emotional.
When you`re just talking about plea bargaining, you want to try to protect the victims from having to go through that again and again.
DIAZ: Can you imagine, Lisa Bloom, being this woman, and not only are you being, you know, tortured, you`re being tortured in front of your own children.
BLOOM: Yes.
DIAZ: In this situation.
BLOOM: Yes.
DIAZ: I mean...
BLOOM: As a mother, that would be the worst part to me. I think as mothers, we have such mama bear instincts to protect our children. "Fine, you can harm me. Just don`t harm my children."
And Anita Kay, I love you, but I do want to take you on about the point about children testifying. I`ve represented a lot of kids testifying in abuse cases, and I think it`s empowering to them. Of course they`re scared. They have nervous anticipation. They don`t want to do it.
But when they go into the courtroom and answer questions and they tell the truth and help lock up a violent abuser, it`s a very empowering experience for them. And I don`t want kids to fear testifying. I want them to have the support of attorneys and social workers when they go in there so that they feel that they`ve got that power, they`re regaining the power and they`re getting justice. I think it can be a very healthy thing for children.
DIAZ: Anita Kay, your response?
KAY: I do agree with -- I do agree with that, Lisa. I absolutely do agree with you. I actually think it could be more detrimental for the adult victim to testify. Because she`s going to be worried about her own children, that type of thing. But I absolutely agree with Lisa, it can be very empowering for kids.
DIAZ: But if you look at the size of this guy. And, you know, he`s picking on his girlfriend, or his wife. You know, I mean, you do one thing to somebody, you could do something to somebody else. Wouldn`t these kids be intimidated by this guy, as well?
BLOOM: But there are bailiffs and sheriffs in the courtroom, Carlos. Those children are protected and safe in the courtroom. And if and when he gets locked up, and he will get locked up, they`re going to be safe from him forever. And they`re going to have the knowledge that they were a part of that. They were a part of getting safety for themselves, their siblings, their mom and the rest of the community. And they can walk home and be part of that.
DIAZ: Lisa Bloom, we`ve got 30 seconds. I mean, do you -- do you emphasize to those kids, "Hey, you`re safe, you`re in a safe place now"?
BLOOM: Absolutely. Absolutely. "You see that sheriff over there?" I say to my child clients. "He`s got a gun. He`s going to protect you. This guy can`t hurt you any more. I`m going to be in the courtroom with you. We`re going to go over your testimony."
And let me tell you, kids -- I`ve had personal experience of having kids feeling terrific after they testified in an abuse case.
DIAZ: Thank you, my fantastic panel. Great job to all you guys. We`ll have you back in just a second.
Now, an 11-year-old girl dies after a New York City cop allegedly doesn`t know how to perform CPR. What?
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
DIAZ: I`m Carlos Diaz in for Jane Velez-Mitchell.
Outrage and heartbreak when a young girl dies after a cop allegedly refuses to give her CPR. Eleven-year-old Briana Ojeda had an asthma attack while playing at a New York City park. Briana`s mom rushed her to the hospital. On the way, she accidentally takes a wrong turn. She gets pulled over by a cop, then frantically begs the officer to help save her dying daughter. She says the cop claimed he didn`t know how.
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CARMEN OJEDA, DAUGHTER DIED FROM ASTHMA ATTACK: I asked him to help me and my daughter, "My daughter can`t breathe. She needs mouth-to-mouth."
And he said, "I don`t know CPR." He smirked at me when I asked him for help. It wasn`t like, "Oh, I`m sorry I can`t help you." He was like, "I don`t know CPR." Like a jerk. Like a jerk.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
DIAZ: Wow, emotional. That cop apparently did not write up a report and vanished from the scene. His identity remained a mystery for four days, when the NYPD finally tracked him down. They based it on a gasoline purchase. That`s how they found the guy. He`s been suspended.
Meantime, little Briana`s future was supposed to hold the first day of 6th grade. Instead, just hours ago, her family held her funeral.
Straight out to John Lucich. This guy was a five-year veteran. He was on duty, on duty. Is there any excuse for a guy, a cop, not knowing how to administer CPR?
LUCICH: There are literally millions of great people in New York City that would have jumped at that chance to help that little girl. And the one person that you expect to, doesn`t. That`s unconscionable.
I can see this investigation proceeding past a civil investigation and moving on to some type of criminal charges here for him failing to provide assistance to this young girl. They came to him for help and all he says, "You know, I don`t know CPR." That`s got to be impossible. Everyone, even special police officers learn about CPR in the academy.
DIAZ: You know, and the thing is, I`m not cutting down cops. All right? Listen, cops, firemen, soldiers, you guys are...
LUCICH: Great, yes.
DIAZ: Seriously, ten times braver than anyone on this panel, I`m telling you that right now. But what I`m saying is, Briana`s mom was seething with anger when she spoke out about the cop who she says did not help her dying daughter.
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OJEDA: I want nothing from you or anybody else. I just want an apology. Give my daughter peace. Say I`m sorry. I just (EXPLETIVE DELETED) up.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
DIAZ: The officer reportedly claims that, when he pulled up to the scene, a good Samaritan was already performing CPR on Briana and that she had an oxygen mask on. He doesn`t deny telling her mom that he didn`t know CPR. We reached out to the NYPD but did not hear back.
John Llewellyn, is there criminal liability here, quickly?
JOHN LLEWELLYN: I don`t think so. The police officer, what he did was deplorable conduct. He wasn`t New York`s finest, but there are no criminal charges to be filed in this case.
DIAZ: OK. And just a quick follow-up. I mean, you know, hen you see this case, what can this guy be charged with, if there`s anything? What can -- can he be suspended? What can happen to this cop?
LLEWELLYN: Right. Most of his liability is going to rely on civil liability, which means he may lose his job. They may take back his pay. I mean, basically, they can`t throw him in jail but they could take away his livelihood.
DIAZ: John Lucich, John Llewellyn, stay right where you are. We`re going to have much more from you guys coming up in a second. Thank you for covering this incredibly hard case with me.
Now, a woman cops say was in an on-again, off-again relationship was driven to extreme lengths. Get this: she climbs through her boyfriend`s chimney. But her desperate attempt to reach him went horribly wrong, and she is found dead. Coming up next.
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DIAZ: A popular doctor found dead, stuck inside her boyfriend`s chimney. Cops say this woman tried to break into the house by sliding down into his fireplace. Three days later, her decomposing body was finally found. Tonight, why did she try to use the chimney instead of the front door?
Plus, bizarre new allegations in the Jon and Kate divorce drama. Jon Gosselin`s ex-girlfriend now reportedly claimed Jon tried to extort Kate for hundreds of thousands of dollars. And if she didn`t pay up he would report her to Child Protective Services. Is this for real? We`ll have all of the pathetic allegations.
I`m Carlos Diaz in for Jane Velez-Mitchell.
Tonight, a woman missing for several days is discovered dead, wedged inside the chimney of her boyfriend`s house. And the victim is a well- known doctor in Bakersfield, California
Dr. Jacquelyn Kotarac drove to the man`s house, reportedly to confront him about their relationship. What she didn`t know was that the boyfriend, 58-year-old William Moody slipped out the back door to avoid her. She then tried to break into the house, when a shovel didn`t work, she tried the chimney.
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VICTOR MUNOS, NEIGHBOR: Birds rarely fly into a chimney, let alone a human being who happens to be a doctor. I do believe she is the owner`s girlfriend.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
DIAZ: Get this, for three days, this woman remained lodged in the chimney. She suffocated. And no one knew. Neighbors finally noticed something.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TERRI TERRAZAS NEIGHBOR: Friday night we could smell something. Someone down the street said they thought they heard someone yelling quietly for help.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
DIAZ: This is not a crazy woman. Here`s an obviously educated woman, established doctor, who was so caught up in her relationship with this man, that she couldn`t realize that entering his house through the chimney might be dangerous. What was going on in this woman`s mind?
I`m taking your calls right now, 1-877-JVM-SAYS. That`s 1-877-586- 7297.
Straight out to my fantastic panel; but let`s begin with forensic psychologist, Dr. Cheryl Arutt. What brings a person to do something like this to risk their own life to get inside some guy`s house?
DR. CHERYL ARUTT, FORENSIC PSYCHOLOGIST: Carlos, this is a tragic error in judgment. Clearly this was a bright, intelligent woman. And when people get really emotionally worked up, the brain actually -- the part that can actually see logical consequences and allow us to respond with the brain that we have can go completely offline at times. And we react instead of respond.
And I think whatever was going on for her, clearly she was single- mindedly thinking, "I`ve got to get into this house." And not thinking about the danger.
I`m really touched, though, by Mr. Moody`s statements that he really doesn`t want this to define this woman`s life, that she was a superb internist and that he really respected her and she treated people for free and gave them medications. I was very touched by that.
DIAZ: Yes, I mean this guy, you know, I mean, could have gone the other way. Her boyfriend, William Moody, I mean, he says nice things about her now. He snuck out, though, of the house to avoid her. He didn`t return until the next day.
ARUTT: To avoid confrontation.
DIAZ: He wanted to avoid confrontation. Moody spent the night there the next night, not knowing that this woman, this doctor is stuck in his chimney, possibly already dead -- probably already dead. The following day, he leaves town. All the while the doctor, her car is parked right in front of his house.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TERRAZAS: Her purse was there, with her phone, all her money, all her credit cards, all that stuff.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MUNOZ: Everyone thought she was missing. Bill, us, everyone was looking for her.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
DIAZ: Police say Dr. Kotarac had been drinking earlier that evening at a restaurant. But it`s unclear if she was drunk when she climbed on to the roof and slid down the chimney feet first. And that`s where she remained until a pet sitter noticed the smell and saw her feet dangling about two feet from the interior opening of the fireplace.
Steve Swenson, writer for "The Californian", joins us on the telephone right now. Steve, bring us up to date. Am I missing any details on this?
STEVE SWENSON, STAFF WRITER, "THE CALIFORNIAN" (via telephone): No, I think you have them pretty well. When she went out to the restaurant that evening, she had to be driven home by a service, in her own car which may be a clue she wasn`t totally sober at that point. And then some two hours later she drove over to his house, some 12 or 13 miles from her house to have this confrontation with him.
DIAZ: Steve that is great information. And you`re right, that says a lot right there about her state of mind, about maybe that she knew, hey, I`m too drunk to drive home. And then you get home, you`re chilling out at home and all of a sudden, you know, you start thinking about things, and you make a bad decision by driving over.
The boyfriend, 58-year-old William Moody, talked to the Associated Press about Dr. Kotarac. He said, "She made an unbelievable error in judgment and nobody understands why. And unfortunately she`s passed away. She had her issues, she had her demons, but I never lost my respect for her."
I mean, Dr. Arutt, you made a reference to this earlier. John Lucich, what do you think about the boyfriend not coming down on the dead doctor later?
JOHN LUCICH, FORMER CRIMINAL INVESTIGATOR: Not coming down -- well, it just goes to show --
DIAZ: Go ahead, doctor -- John Lucich go ahead.
LUCICH: Ok. It just goes to show that he really cared for this woman. This is a classic example -- I`ve seen this time and time again -- you have a rocky relationship. You have this woman now obsessing about it. She`s sitting down and drinking. The alcohol kicks in and comes up with this bright idea that "I`m going to sneak inside his house and have the element of surprise. He`s going to think I`m going to come down through the front door, I`m coming down the chimney." Not realizing I can`t fit.
It is a truly a shame, this woman didn`t need to die.
DIAZ: And she was well liked. I mean she was like one of the most popular doctors in the area.
Let`s go to the phone lines right now. Tammy from Georgia; Tammy your thoughts on this crazy encounter?
TAMMY, GEORGIA (via telephone): Hi, Carlos. First of all, I want to say I really enjoy watching you. Do you think that this doctor maybe should have treated herself for depression?
DIAZ: I mean that sounds like that could be the case in this situation. Let`s go to our doctor, forensic psychologist, Dr. Cheryl Arutt. Dr. Arutt, I mean could she have been depressed?
DR. ARUTT: She could have been depressed. A lot of things could have been going on for her. I think that even doctors need to go to psychologists and psychiatrists sometimes. And have stress or difficulties and need to recognize when they need to get some help themselves.
DIAZ: John Manuelian, the neighbors are finding it hard to believe this happened. I mean this doctor is a success story in Bakersfield. She graduated from medical school with honors.
Take a listen to this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MUNOZ: It`s really sad to see that this had happened to such a great individual. How does anyone think about going down a chimney?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
DIAZ: But John Manuelian, I mean you`ve seen so many people in your line of work as a criminal defense attorney. It really doesn`t matter what you do in the academic world, anyone`s capable of making a bad decision like this.
JOHN MANUELIAN, CRIMINAL DEFENSE ATTORNEY: All of us are human beings. You`re a human being. I`m a human being. We`re all going to feel emotions.
And remember something -- and I have been saying this ever since I found out about this coverage that was going on. I said, I wouldn`t be surprised if after the autopsy, the toxicology results show that there`s alcohol in her system. Alcohol combined with emotion will make anybody fly over the cuckoo`s nest.
DIAZ: Yes. Well, you know William Moody describes the relationship as on again, off again. I mean this is a situation where obviously it was off again because this guy is going out the back door.
And, you know, Dr. Cheryl Arutt, you pointed out earlier that he was trying to avoid confrontation. Did he do the right thing in this situation by slipping out the back door or should he have gone to the door and tried to help her in some way so she didn`t try to go down the chimney?
DR. ARUTT: I understand that the man runs an engineering firm. And this is perhaps an overgeneralization, but very often engineers love logic and don`t like emotional intensity very much. So I`m not surprised that there may be an element of his just not wanting to have that human confrontation. But I don`t really think he had any idea that there was anything like that going on. It doesn`t sound like he imagined there was - -
DIAZ: Yes, it`s not -- you can`t imagine that. You can`t say, well, you know what, if I sneak out the back door maybe she`s going to go down the chimney and die. You can`t think that.
But Dr. Kotarac was missing for three days before she was found in the chimney. This reminds me of the story we did yesterday on ISSUES. Remember the elderly woman who was the hoarder who was found dead in her own house? People had been searching for Billy Jean James for four months. They searched her house. Dogs were used to search her out but nothing was found. Then finally her husband found her under a pile of garbage.
John Lucich, in both cases the victims were right there, under the noses of the searchers. And we know that in this case, the doctor cried for help but the cries were dismissed as children playing in the park. I have to believe this woman could have been saved if someone could have gotten to her sooner.
LUCICH: Absolutely. Someone could have gotten to her sooner if one of those neighbors had just made a phone call. There have been other cases recently in the news where people have seen something that would have been important. They just sat there and didn`t make that phone call.
I can just tell everybody, please, if you ever hear something suspicious, don`t -- pick up the phone and dial 911. Let them check it out. You know what? This boyfriend seeing her car out there for three days, that should have been a flag to do something.
DIAZ: Yes, exactly. The car is right outside. You guys all made amazing points.
A special thank you to my awesome panel.
Now, coming up: a missing little boy caught in the middle of a war between a mom and a dad. You are not going to believe the video that you`re about to see. He was ripped-off of a bus after his father tricked a judge into giving him custody. An update on this unforgettable story.
Plus: explosive new reports that Jon Gosselin tried to extort Kate? They`re surfacing now. And I want to hear all about your opinions about Jon and Kate; 1-877-JVM-SAYS. That`s 1-877-586-7297.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JON GOSSELIN, FORMER REALITY TV STAR: I had an epiphany one day. I just looked in the mirror and I said I don`t want to be this person anymore. I`ve made mistakes, I know I`ve messed up, I do regret a lot of things. But I have to learn from those mistakes and move forward.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
DIAZ: Did Jon Gosselin try to extort Kate using his kids as pawns? That`s next.
But first, time for "Top of the Block."
Finally, a happy ending tonight on ISSUES: a mother has been reunited with her 11-year-old son. Jean Paul LaCombe was kidnapped by his own father in San Antonio, Texas. His father tricked the courts into granting him custody. Then back in December this poor little guy was ripped off his school bus and taken out of the country.
You may remember this, an amazing video.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JEAN PAUL LACOMBE, ABDUCTED BY FATHER: Please help me he`s not my dad. He`s not my dad. I don`t want to live with him.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Come on, come on and get off the bus come on.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He said he`s not his dad?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Why is he not your dad?
LACOMBE: No, no, no. Someone help me, please. Someone help me, please. Someone help me.
Please help me he`s not my dad. I don`t want to live with him.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Come on and come on and get off the bus come on.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Why is he not your dad?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
DIAZ: I mean how could you watch that video and not shed a tear. His mom hasn`t seen him since. But they were finally reunited in France. A French court sided with the mother, thankfully, basically telling the father, you turn over the kid or you`re going to be facing kidnapping charges.
The two were on the first flight back to Texas. Mom says she just wants things to get back to normal.
That`s "Top of the Block".
Turning to the latest scandal though right inside the Gosselin clan; that`s right, Jon trying to extort his ex-wife. A new report from RadarOnline says he threatened to report Kate to Child Protective Services if she didn`t show him the money.
John`s ex, Hailey Glassman gave Radar handwritten notes she claims are proof of Jon`s extortion plot. She says Jon wrote the notes himself before calling Kate and making demands. He allegedly threatened to tell authorities that Kate injured their daughter, Mattie. Here are a few highlight of the notes.
"I`m not your child. I need my money. I need at least $50,000 in the next 48 hours. Twenty four to 48 hours or I`ll go to the district attorney." And we can`t -- we cannot confirm whether his notes are authentic. But if it is, it only verifies that Jon Gosselin might be the dumbest reality show guy out there.
I mean, apparently his post-divorce love fest with Hailey hasn`t gone quite the way you thought. Here`s Jon unforgettably last October.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
J. GOSSELIN: I`ve made mistakes. I apologized to Hailey. I`ve mistakes and she`s the only one person who stood behind me and had supported me. And she stays behind me no matter what. Whether we`re together or not, she said she stands behind me. She`s a rock. She`s always been there for me.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
DIAZ: She stands behind you, really? I don`t think so. You know what they say about a woman scorned.
Out to my fantastic panel: I want to start with Alexis Tereszcuk from RadarOnline. Alexis, how do we know these notes were really written by Jon Gosselin?
ALEXIS TERESZCUK, REPORTER, RADARONLINE.COM: Well, Hailey Glassman gave them to us. And she assured us that these are the notes that Jon would write while they were in bed together in the house together. He likes to refer to himself apparently in the third person. That`s why they say Jon should say this, Jon should say that.
She said she was there when Jon would call Kate and demand these things. He would put her on speakerphone. Kate wouldn`t even know that she was on speakerphone and Hailey would be listening. She spent a lifetime, a she lived with Jon. They shared an apartment together.
Remember, he tried to frame her for breaking into the apartment, and stealing his things, which didn`t work out. The police did not prosecute her for that and actually said that they thought that Jon was actually responsible for that. But they were together a long time.
DIAZ: But Alexis, is -- is Hailey, is she ticked off at Jon? I mean, is she doing this out of some kind of vengeance against Jon?
TERESZCUK: She -- she is, yes. She doesn`t like Jon. She says that he owes her money.
DIAZ: I love the fact that you`re being honest about that.
TERESZCUK: Yes.
DIAZ: Yes, she`s ticked off. Yes.
TERESZCUK: Yes.
DIAZ: Yes she is very mad about it.
TERESZCUK: She -- she is mad, there`s really no other reason to do this. This is not like this is a love letter to Jon.
DIAZ: Right.
TERESZCUK: She -- she`s pretty pissed off -- she said that he owes her money. He -- they`re not together anymore. He said bad things about her. She -- she wants to let people know exactly the true Jon Gosselin, is what she says.
DIAZ: All right, Jon completely denies the allegations that he tried to extort Kate. Here is what he tweeted today. "RadarOnline has been duped again by Hailey Glassman who is apparently without a job and desperate for money." Hello, pot, you`re black. "This article contains so many lies, they are too numerous to count".
Hailey responded to Radar by saying, "Look, the documents and the evidence speak for itself." Why does Jon never referenced to the notes or where they came from?
Alexis, right back to you real quick. We talked about Hailey`s motivation here. But was she looking for anything as a result of this? What did she hope to gain by this?
TERESZCUK: I think she just wants people to know the Jon that she actually saw. I think she spent a lot of time pretending he was someone else. And telling people he`s done this but now she really just wants people to know her side of the story, and what a bad guy Jon Gosselin was to her.
DIAZ: Ok but you know we can call Jon a bad guy. But Mickey Cucchiella host of -- in Baltimore of WIYY FM, is Jon Gosselin really one of the biggest losers on TV ever?
MICKEY CUCCHIELLA, MORNING HOST, WIYY FM, BALTIMORE: Yes. And he`s - - and he`s one of the dumbest. I mean, he has to be one of the dumbest men ever. I mean, here`s a guy who was making $75,000 an episode, to be a husband, and a father. And he walks away from it, to -- to live this playboy life.
I mean, I have to be a husband and father every day, and nobody`s paying me to do it. I think I`m -- I`m a bigger idiot than Jon Gosselin. I`m doing it for free.
LISA BLOOM, CNN LEGAL ANALYST: And you know what`s worse than that Carlos.
DIAZ: Yes.
BLOOM: It`s worse than that because think about -- if this is true what he`s saying? He`s saying that he thinks Kate abused his child but if he gets paid he won`t report that?
I mean for the interest of his children wouldn`t he want them protected?
DIAZ: Yes --
BLOOM: I mean this is just a crazy selfish, greedy kind of story.
DIAZ: How do you -- I know, how do you -- how do you try to blackmail, allegedly, your ex-wife by hurting your own kids?
Hold on. Everyone, don`t go anywhere. I guarantee you that my panel will be more fired up than any other panel in the world when we come back after this. There`s so much more to talk about in this new scandal in the Jon and Kate saga.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KATE GOSSELIN, "KATE PLUS 8": We did request a song and we did get it and we were really happy, because it truly does tell our story. I mean, my story is that.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
DIAZ: Remember that bizarre number of Kate Gosselin performed on "Dancing with the Stars"? It was the whole thing with the paparazzi that was totally bizarre but not as bizarre as Jon`s alleged extortion plot against his wife.
Welcome back I`m Carlos Diaz filling in for Jane Velez-Mitchell.
Let`s go back out to my panel on this one. Mickey Cucchiella, is further proof that reality stars are losing touch with reality?
CUCCHIELLA: Well, I mean, of course. I mean when you take your mundane, boring life and then put it on television and all of a sudden, people are really interested in it, you`re going to lose touch with reality and you`re going to become a person that doesn`t live in the now because you`re -- you`re living eight months later or whenever the show airs so you`re always ahead of what`s happening.
DIAZ: Right.
CUCCHIELLA: And I mean this guy in the first place, how do you abandon a woman with eight kids, making $75,000 an episode --
DIAZ: Right.
CUCCHIELLA: He`s just a disaster anyway. And for us to sit here and --
(CROSSTALK)
DIAZ: Lisa Bloom -- I want to get Lisa Bloom on this in a second. But first, Mickey, let me pick a phone call. Lakeysha from Florida; Lakeysha, what have you got?
LAKEYSHA, FLORIDA (via telephone): Yes, I believe that he`s just jealous because she`s making all of the money. She`s getting all of the fame.
DIAZ: Not.
LAKEYSHA: I think he`s just jealous because she`s making all of the money and all of the fame after the show and he`s not.
DIAZ: Now, Lakeysha, I completely --
BLOOM: That`s right, Lakeysha.
DIAZ: Lakeysha, you`re speaking the truth. You are speaking the truth. Lisa jump in here, this is a guy --
BLOOM: Yes, and I will tell you what, Carlos. I mean this is part of the pattern that we`ve seen with Jon trying to tear Kate down when she did "Dancing with the Stars", making hostile remarks about it.
You know, she`s out there working, earning money to support her children. Why doesn`t he go out and get a job instead of demanding money from Kate? I mean is that too much to ask of a father of eight that he get out there and do his own projects? Sign up to work at Starbucks, whatever it takes to bring in some money rather than trying to tear down the mother of his children?
DIAZ: And Mickey, yes, Mickey -- all they have do, Mickey, was, you know, if they`re going to have problems and then you know try to make money off of their problems and have therapy on TV. They gave away the product of their problems to the paparazzi, you know, at the end, no one cared about the kids. It was all about their fighting.
CUCCHIELLA: I think, Carlos, it goes back to what you said a couple of minutes ago. These people lose touch with reality and they think they`re the story. The story was Jon and Kate plus 8.
DIAZ: Right.
CUCCHIELLA: And you know what, when you see that -- when you see the name of that show it looks awesome but I have to be honest, no one`s going to watch a show called "Jon". Nobody. It`s just -- it`s not interesting.
DIAZ: Alexis --
CUCCHIELLA: The idea him and his wife and eight kids, that`s fun.
DIAZ: Alexis Tereszcuk, I mean when you heard at RadarOnline -- you guys broke the story -- when you heard, quickly, when you heard that there was this extortion plot out there were you surprised?
TERESZCUK: No, we were not. In fact, this is just another thing that Jon has done to try to hurt and embarrass Kate. She doesn`t try to do the same to him. She just tries to live their life and he does things constantly to try to make her look like a bad person.
He`s always dating someone new, breaking up with them, blaming Kate for all of their problems. Not letting the kids on TV, wanting them on TV. He just -- it`s been a pattern that he`s trying to hurt her.
(CROSSTALK)
DIAZ: I think that it`s proven --
CUCCHIELLA: Carlos.
DIAZ: Mickey, you know what, I want to talk to you for the next 20 minutes but we`ve got roll on this one.
I just think it`s further proof that watch what you say on TV because at some point it`s going to come back to get you. Mickey, Alexis, Lisa, you guys are awesome. My best panel, ever, ever.
All right. Nancy Grace --
BLOOM: That`s true. I agree.
DIAZ: Of course, and the best-looking as well.
TERESZCUK: Thank you.
DIAZ: Nancy Grace coming up next.
You`re watching issues on HLN.
END
