Return to Transcripts main page
Jane Velez-Mitchell
Is TV Deal Close for Casey Anthony?
Aired July 21, 2011 - 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 a Casey Anthony TV deal close? The TV producer who reached out to Casey on this show, offering $1 million for Casey`s first interview, now says he just met with her. So what`s next? I`ll ask him about how Casey looked. You won`t believe what he says she said to him.
Plus, a missing mother of three found dead in her own neighborhood.
HARRIET GARRETT, VICTIM`S MOTHER: This is just a mother`s nightmare.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Now cops are looking into her husband. Police say she called 911 on him less than two weeks before she disappeared. The victim`s devastated sister joins me exclusively tonight.
Then, keeping the search for Kyron Horman alive. I`ll talk to Kyron`s desperate mom, Desiree, in an exclusive live interview. It`s been over a year since this little boy vanished into thin air. Are investigators any closer to finding little Kyron?
ISSUES starts right now.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CASEY ANTHONY, ACQUITTED OF MURDER: You want me to talk, then give me three seconds to say something.
CINDY ANTHONY, CASEY`S MOTHER: All right.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: It looks like she`s coming out, possibly, right now.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Caylee! Caylee! Caylee!
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Caylee! Caylee! Caylee!
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Caylee! Caylee! Caylee!
VELEZ-MITCHELL: I have no interest in watching her lie to me and get paid to lie to me.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I will not say anything further as to her whereabouts, but I can absolutely 100 percent tell you that that is not her.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Tonight, tantalizing tales of a possible deal for Casey Anthony to tell her story.
Hello, everyone. I`m Jane Velez-Mitchell, coming to you live from New York. And I`ve got some explosive developments in the Casey Anthony case to tell you about. Casey might talk, and it`s all because of something that happened right here on ISSUES this past Monday. Check it out. Watch this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Do you have a message for Casey?
AL TAYLOR, INDEPENDENT TV PRODUCER (via phone): Yes, I want to bypass Jose Baez. Let me talk to Casey directly. I know you`re out there watching, because apparently, you like to follow everything that`s going on in your case. And if you`re going to be watching everything, you`re going to be watching this network, because they`re doing the great job.
Casey, he`s a great attorney, Jose Baez, but he`s not a great agent. Take my offer, because this is a legitimate offer for a million dollars. We`ll do a great interview.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: That was Monday night, less than 48 hours after Casey`s released from jail. The next morning after appearing here on ISSUES, independent producer Al Taylor says he got a call and somebody said, a representative, Casey wants to meet with him. And he was told that Casey was in Palm Springs, California, across the country from Orlando, Florida. Is that where Casey flee off to after midnight Saturday night?
A rep for Casey told Al Taylor, he says, that if he wanted to meet Casey, he better be there in 15 minutes. Al made it to an undisclosed motel in Palm Springs. And when he showed up, as he tells it, Casey was there waiting. And he says her first question was, "Where`s the check?"
Well, back with me tonight, Al Taylor, the independent producer, and he prepares -- actually he prefers to keep himself off camera, but he is here on the phone. OK, Al. First of all, given everything you know and what you have told me, do you think Casey Anthony is watching right now?
TAYLOR (via phone): I do believe she`s watching. From when I talked to her, her whole demeanor, I believe she`s watching everything that`s being talked about her, especially, I think, your show, because obviously she saw the show, and she mentioned it during the meeting that she saw me on the show making the plea. That`s why she wanted to meet with me.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: All right. Now, you say that you sat down with her and you spoke with her. So first of all, what I`d like to do is play a little clip from Charles Green, her civil attorney, explaining why she couldn`t attend a deposition in the Zanny the nanny case, because she was just spent from having gone through this traumatic trial. Let`s listen to him.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CHARLES GREEN, CIVIL ATTORNEY FOR CASEY ANTHONY: I`ve got a psychological evaluation yesterday indicating that Miss Anthony needs a period of adjustment, because she`s emotionally unstable. And I will attest to that from my personal observations last night.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: All right. He says she is emotionally unstable. He also says in this legal document that she is emotionally and mentally exhausted. Al Taylor, when you met with her, as you claim, was she emotionally and mentally exhausted?
TAYLOR: She`s basically on the run. She seemed up and excited, kind of peppy. You know? It blew my mind. I thought I might see somebody who was, like, really downtrodden, but not at all. It seemed like nothing had fazed her, nothing at all.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: How would you describe her mood?
TAYLOR: First of all, excited to see me. Because again, she thought I was going to give her the check. She`s like, "Where`s my check?"
I`m like explaining to her, "Well, we`re going to give you $50,000 up front as a down payment, the rest in escrow," so that kind of leveled her off a little bit, but still during the whole -- I was there about 15 minutes, she was excited. I could tell she`s into making money and it didn`t seem that anything affected her. Again, you would never know. It was demanding. I would never have thought that somebody who had just been through her ordeal would be acting the way she did. Emotionally spent? Not at all.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Now, do you feel that this explains, perhaps, the 31 days?
TAYLOR: I think it explains everything, because here it is. She`s been through all that, and you can`t tell. That explains how she could go 31 days after either killing her kid or the accident or whatever happened and act like nothing happened. It`s amazing. It`s like she`s Teflon or something. Things just fall off of her. It doesn`t affect her at all.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Now, once again she was found not guilty of those serious charges of murder and...
TAYLOR: Yes, let me clear, I know she`s not watching. I`m not saying you`re guilty, Casey. I`m not saying...
VELEZ-MITCHELL: But a lot of people think she is. And that`s one of the reasons why she has not been able, apparently, to land a traditional media deal, because major corporations are afraid to touch her, because there are plans for boycotts of any corporation that has anything to do with Casey Anthony.
Now, let`s look at what the prosecutor, Jeff Ashton, said in his closing statement about Casey Anthony`s intelligence. Check this out.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JEFF ASHTON, PROSECUTOR: When Casey is faced with a problem, her solution is to change her life. Casey is very bright. You can`t take any of that away from her. She`s very smart. And her lies are very detailed.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: So based on that, Al, what did you make of her intelligence? What did you make of her intelligence?
TAYLOR: He was spot on. She was very smart. She was able to follow everything I was explaining to her. Because I was explaining to her why she should take my deal and not another deal. Because I said, "I`m going to give you the money up front when you do the interview. The other people are going to try to pay you on the back end, what is called basically a spec deal." They`ll sell it, like we`re going to sell it, throughout the world. They`ll give her a cut of it later. I`m saying I`m going to give you the money now.
And I could tell from the way she was responding to everything that that`s exactly what they have promised her and that`s why she was interested in my deal. And that`s why she made me come to Palm Springs so she could meet with me.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: So she was sort of leading her reps in your...
TAYLOR: Yes, she was controlling it. The problem is, I probably would already have a deal if they -- but they`re hiding her, is the problem. I can`t hide her in my house there in Palm Springs. That`s not going to work out. So she`s kind of beholden to them, because they`re hiding her. And you know, they got her off. But she also seems like she`s calling the shots, as well. But it wasn`t that problem, is that they`re still minding the store, as they say, and I think I would have already had a deal. That would have been the problem. But of course, she still has to kind of listen to what they say, because they`re responsible for her safety.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Now, around the same time, you met with her when, Tuesday?
TAYLOR: Early Tuesday morning.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: OK. Around Tuesday afternoon we had that now infamous shot, helicopter shot of a woman in a pink outfit running off a plane in Orlando at Orlando Executive Airport. Do you think there was any connection between this and your meeting with her on the other side of the country?
TAYLOR: Well, she could -- she had enough time to get back to Carlsbad and take that flight. That could have been her. I can`t say it`s not her. But it does seem very strange. I believe she`s still in the area.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: In Palm Springs?
TAYLOR: I`m hoping to hear from her again before she leaves the area so we can conclude the deal. As I explained to her the other day, I said, "Look, I have got a verbal commitment from your agent, you know, Baez, who I consider her agent now, not her attorney. I`ve got written confirmation confirming that verbal agreement, and I`m going to sue you if you don`t do it. I`ll sue you for breach of contract."
And it was like, again, nothing fazes her. The spunkiness that she said, she stood there looked at me right in the eye and said, "Go ahead. Join the line if you have to sue me."
I was like, "Whoa."
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Yes. And listen, a lot of people have criticized Baez for acting as her, quote/unquote, agent. In Hollywood there are plenty of attorneys who broker deals for people. And -- and I think, given the bizarre and unique circumstances that this woman finds herself in, I don`t really fault Jose Baez.
TAYLOR: No, no.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: I`ve tried to reach Jose numerous times. I texted him in English and Spanish: "Jose, you are always invited on this show to explain whatever it is you want to explain about this case."
Now, let me just ask you about the lie detector aspect. Because apparently, that`s the sticking point in your...
TAYLOR: She`s very concerned about the lie detector. I was explaining to her -- and again, she was following all of this. Again, very intelligent.
I said, "Look, we`re worried about you giving one-word answers to our questions." That used to happen when I booked for the Jerry Springer show all the time. Because you`d get the person on there and be like, "Yes, no, yes." It`s the worst kind of guest, you know, as a TV producer. You`ve been around TV for a while. You can`t have a guest who says yes and no answers.
So I`m saying, "Look, this will make it easier, so in case your answers aren`t very detailed and we hook you up to the lie detector and we ask you straight on you, did you kill Caylee? Did you hide her body? Was it an accident?"
VELEZ-MITCHELL: She probably doesn`t want to answer those questions.
All right. I just want to run one other thing by you. We`ve got some video of a dunking booth at a bluegrass fair in Lexington, Kentucky, and attendees could choose whether to aim for two faces of Casey Anthony, labeled "guilty" or "not guilty."
Now, this is the kind of infamy, I think, that you described as shortening your life span in terms of being a saleable commodity? The final answer, Al, for this.
TAYLOR: As I told her, I said, fame is fleeting, but infamy is even more fleeting. I worked a lot of deals with Tonya Harding with a man named David Hans Schmidt, rest in peace.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: He is -- he was very, very infamous.
TAYLOR: And she was the most hated woman in America, like Casey is, we made her a lot of money, and now nobody bothers her. I was explaining that could happen with her, as well.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: All right. Well, if you`re watching, Casey, first of all, call us, text us. Come on our show. You`re always invited.
And thank you, Al, for weighing in. and keep us posted. All right? You`ll find out about it here whatever happens. A very bizarre case. And let`s never forget that there`s a tragedy at the heart of it. The loss of an adorable 2-year-old child, and that all the circus surrounding it is -- it`s just a sad aspect of what happens in America these days.
Now, speaking of another adorable child, this one, Kyron Horman, missing for more than a year. I`m going to talk exclusively to his devastated mother, Desiree Young, coming up.
And a missing mom`s body is found. Did domestic problems lead to her murder? I`m also interviewing one of her relatives exclusively, next.
And we`re taking your calls, 1-877-JVM-SAYS.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GARRETT: I think in the back of my mind, I mean, she would have never left her girls.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GARRETT: This is just a mother`s nightmare. She was so beautiful, a devoted mother. In the back of my mind, I knew she never would have left her girls.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GARRETT: This is just a mother`s worth nightmare. She was so beautiful. She was a devoted mother. I think in the back of my mind, I knew she would have never left her girls.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: "This is just a mother`s worst nightmare. She was so beautiful. She was a devoted mom herself. I think in the back of my mind, she would never have left her girls."
Tonight, an ISSUES exclusive, a murdered mom`s family desperate for justice, determined to keep her young daughter safe from the only suspect, her husband. Nique Leili called police on June 28 to say her husband, Matt, would not let her leave their home near Atlanta. You`re going to hear that 911 call in just a moment.
Matt claims Nique vanished, disappeared ten days later, though he waited two days to report her missing. Two days after that, while Nique was still missing, Matt filed for divorce from her.
Last Saturday, Nique`s body tragically was found, partially buried under some leaves, less than a mile from their home. Police are now saying Matt is a suspect and has stopped cooperating with them, although through his attorney he denies any wrongdoing.
Police won`t say how Nique died, and they have not filed any charges. I want to welcome my very special guest, Amy Elk. You are Nique`s sister.
Amy, this has to be so heart-wrenching for you and your family. Our hearts go out to you, our condolences, it`s just absolutely unimaginable. What are you and your family members going through right now?
AMY ELK, NIQUE`S SISTER: Oh, it is. It`s a complete nightmare. We are a very close family, very, very close with Nique. So personally she was my best friend. We would call each other accept times a week and chat, and her children obviously are our biggest concern.
Her older daughter, Alex, is obviously just devastated. I mean, a 19- year-old girl should not have to be worried about planning her mom`s memorial service. She should be registering for college classes and, you know, dating boys. Instead she`s planning a memorial.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: I understand that your top priorities are your two nieces, who are living with their dad, and they are ages 9 and 12, and police say that their dad is a suspect in this case, and your other priority is getting the body, getting the body of your sister released to you. Tell us about that.
ELK: That`s right. Our biggest concern right now is the girls, is the safety and the well-being of the two younger girls. Because we have not had any contact with them since before my sister was found. We haven`t heard from them since Thursday. And she was found on Saturday.
So we`re very concerned, because we don`t know what they`ve been told. We don`t know if they`ve gotten any sort of counseling. We`re really concerned for their emotional well-being, and also our -- as you mentioned, we`re in litigation right now for her body. Matt went and arranged a funeral home and signed a release for her body without even consulting her family. So he was going to just plan her funeral without us.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Now, let`s listen to the 911 call involving your sister and her husband Matt from June 28. Check this out.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Gwinnett County 911.
NIQUE LEILI, FOUND DEAD: Yes, my husband refuses to let me leave the house.
MATT LEILI, HUSBAND: My wife is -- my wife is yelling and screaming and just spoke up the children. My name is Matt Leili. I have a tape recorder of them.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What`s your address, ma`am?
Leili: Can you hold on one second, please? Do you really want the cops here? I think my wife is just throwing a temper tantrum. I don`t believe we need the police.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Let me -- let me have her tell me that. Otherwise they`re going to come.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You don`t need to come. I`ll stay in the house all day.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Ma`am, I`m sorry. We really don`t need the police.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: All right. I`m going to go ahead and have them come out there and just...
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: If you don`t pick up the phone -- can you hang on...
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I already have them dispatched.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: All right. Thank you, ma`am.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You`re welcome.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Amy, should cops have done more?
ELK: Well, unfortunately, I understand in a situation like that there`s not much they can do if my sister is saying, "No, we`re OK."
From what I understand, the police were dispatched, and they went. They interviewed them, and Nique said, "I`m fine. I`ll stay in the house. Everything is OK." So I don`t know that there was much more that they could do at that point.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Well, I just want to say her husband says, "Contrary to allegations as reported, Mr. Leili cooperated with the police and provided every known fact and circumstance regarding his wife`s disappearance. He has done nothing wrong and, as such, is refusing to respond to allegations as reported in the media."
I`ll get your response on the other side of the break. Stay right there.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ALLISON ROCKWELL, SEARCH VOLUNTEER, FOUND BODY: I just saw a huge big pile. It just looked -- it looked like it was covering up something, so I just started kicking away at it, and then saw her body and her hair.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: That is the woman who discovered Nique Leili less than a mile from her home. The police are calling this a murder.
I`m with the sister of the murder victim, Amy Elk. Thank you for joining us. I know this has to be so difficult. But what do you make of her husband`s explanation that the night before she disappeared they were having an argument, they were yelling back and forth, they decided to sleep in separate rooms. The wife then disappeared before 6 a.m., leaving behind her cell phone, keys, car, clothes and wallet.
ELK: I mean, that just doesn`t make any sense at all. Why would she leave without even her wallet? If she were trying to get away from Matt, I could understand not taking her cell phone, because there are applications where you can be tracked, but why -- why would you leave without your wallet? I mean, just nothing. She apparently left with nothing. And it just -- that story just doesn`t make any sense to me at all.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Now, did they have a history of argument? One of the relatives is quoted as saying every time she saw the two of them, they were arguing about something.
ELK: Yes, I mean, they did -- they did fight quite a lot. You know, I had actually lived with them when they first got together even before they were married. And there was a good bit of fighting.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Was she planning on divorcing him?
ELK: Not that I`m aware of.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Well, let me ask you this. Why did she say -- she calls 911, "My husband refuses to let me leave the house," and then after he discourages her from the cops coming, she says, "You don`t need to come. I`ll stay in my house all day." What does that mean?
ELK: I think that was basically, "Fine, Matt, you win. You get your way. I`ll just stay in my house all day. You know, I`ll just stay here and I won`t do anything about it."
VELEZ-MITCHELL: By the way, Matt Leili is invited on our show. His attorney is invited on our show. We did reach out to them. They did not get back to us. So we want to be fair. If he wants to come on, he is invited at any time or his reps.
But let me ask you this. Do you think that there was an attempt -- was he controlling of your sister?
ELK: You know, I -- I -- he was a very overbearing person, I will say that. He tended to monopolize conversations. So as you can hear on the 911 call, you know, that was -- she called the police, and he immediately took control of that entire situation. As to what was going through his or her mind during that, I don`t really know, but I can tell you that he was pretty much in control of just about any situation.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Now, you are seeking custody of your sister`s two children, who were living with their father, who cops say is a suspect, although he says he denies any wrongdoing. What are you doing to get custody?
ELK: My -- my dad and his wife are actually filing the petition to get custody of the girls. So we are -- we`re in talks with attorneys, and petitions have been filed for us to get custody of the girls.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Do you think it`s crazy that they`re still there, given the controversy surrounding this case?
ELK: I do think it`s very concerning. I mean, he`s a suspect in their mother`s murder. I mean, that speaks to child welfare to me.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: I want to thank you for coming on. I know it had to be very difficult.
ELK: Yes.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: We will keep this case in the public eye.
ELK: Thank you so much.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DESIREE YOUNG, MOTHER OF KYRON HORMAN: I want them to talk to her. I want them to ask, where is Kyron? There`s someone out there that has him and there`s someone out there that knows information and they have not come forward.
KAINE HORMAN, FATHER OF KYRON HORMAN: He`s still out there. We just need to find him.
YOUNG: Yes, we just want him home. I`m tired of dreaming.
I hope every day that Kyron comes through the door, and that we find him ok. I want that with everything.
HORMAN: One minute away was awful enough. And to be this far along and have him not home, it`s terrible.
YOUNG: We love you, Kyron. Never give up hope. We are all coming to get you to bring you home.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Tonight, an ISSUES exclusive; Desiree Young, the mother of Kyron Horman, who has been missing now for more than a year, is here live to talk to us about the latest in the case. Desiree wants to shout it from the mountaintops, "Where is my son?"
Kyron vanished June 4th of last year during his school science fair. He was last seen with his stepmom Terri Horman. She has never been named a suspect, but Terri Horman is still a big part of this investigation, especially after claims surfaced that Terri allegedly tried to hire someone to kill Kyron`s dad Kaine.
Kaine then left Terri, filed for divorce and took their young daughter with him.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Terri, how can you stay silent when Kyron is still missing?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Kaine Horman still has a protective order against Terri, and she`s still not talking. Despite search after search after search after search, not a shred of evidence has turned up in little Kyron`s disappearance.
Look at this precious child. Imagine what his mother is going through not knowing what happened to her little boy. It`s unimaginable.
I`m very honored tonight to be joined by Kyron`s mother Desiree Young. Desiree, first of all, I feel like I know you, because we devoted so much of our shows over the past year to finding your child. We want to bring him home. Thank you so much for being here.
We hope that somehow talking to you will spark somebody`s memory, to cause somebody who may have some information who`s not coming forward, to come forward and tell everything they know.
I have to ask you, Desiree, police are still saying that they cannot say for sure whether your son is dead or alive.
YOUNG: Yes.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: It`s a difficult question, but what do you think has happened to your precious boy?
YOUNG: Obviously I have changed my opinion over time, but in the beginning of the case, I -- I definitely thought Kyron was going to come home any second. I knew we were going to find him, he was going to be ok and everything was fine. I didn`t think for a second that Terri could have ever done any harm to my son.
I know differently now, and it`s further reinforced a year later, we know way too many details about Terri and what she`s been doing and what she was doing prior to Kyron going missing, and everything about her personality just screams to me that we know that she hates Kyron, just hates him. And we see a lot of writing from her communicating that she did not like him and did not want him in her life.
And I just feel now, over a year later, I just feel like she probably harmed him. We just need to bring him home, and we just need answers. We need her to just tell us what she did with him and where he is.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Now, we reached out to Terri`s attorney, we have not heard back. She has been living in relative seclusion, reportedly with her parents and there are signs outside the yard that say, basically don`t come in, leave us alone.
If Terri is watching, since we did reach out to her attorney and we didn`t hear back, and since she`s not considered a suspect or being called a suspect, but clearly the news reports would indicate that she`s the focus of the investigation, do you have a message for Terri Horman?
YOUNG: I do. Where is Kyron? We want him home, we want answers. We`re tired of waiting. It`s been over a year, you know. You win, we give in. Just tell us where he is.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: And if she does? If she does know? She was the last person with him, seen with him at a science fair. She says she left him at the science fair and left. And obviously you have your doubts about that story, but again I have to emphasize that she`s not been charged with anything, she`s not under arrest, she`s living with her parents in seclusion.
If she knows something that she isn`t telling, what motivation would you give her to come forward, Desiree?
YOUNG: Well, we`re -- above everything, above punishment or justice for what`s been done, we just want answers. We just want Kyron home. So, you know, above everything else, that`s all we want. I know that -- that we`re willing to get what we can. I`m sure that they`re willing to negotiate with her and talk with her about it.
But she just has refused to talk at all. She`s refused to clear herself. She knows what happened that day. I can`t go into any of the details, but she knows what happened and where Kyron is. And she knows exactly where she went and what she did with him.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Now, even though she has moved to live with her parents in Roseburg, and is in seclusion, you have actually put up billboards near where she lives. Tell us about that, and what is your message?
YOUNG: Yes. I have put billboards up. I just want her to see his face every single day. I want her reminded every single day of what she`s done. I want her to suffer. I want her to suffer as much as Kyron has.
And those billboards are a reminder that I will never stop. I won`t stop until we find him. It`s my promise to Kyron that we will never stop. It`s my promise to her that I will be here every single day, reminding her that she needs to talk, and she needs to tell us what happened.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: What have these 13 months been like for you?
YOUNG: A roller coaster of emotions. I`ve said before it`s a nightmare, but I don`t even know if I can put into words exactly what it feels like to just have that constant pull in your soul, because he`s missing.
We went and saw "Harry Potter" the other night. I went with my older son. There was a scene in there, a little baby that`s supposed to be "Harry Potter". He looks just like Kyron at 9 or 10 months old. I started bawling.
It`s things like that. It`s every single day, constantly. Just things that remind you and remind me of everything he is missing out on, and everything that Terri took from us, his whole family, and Kyron. He doesn`t get to experience all the stuff. It`s sad.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: I`m so sorry. I can`t even imagine. I know that everybody who is watching, all of our hearts go out to you. We want to be helpful. We want you to have some kind of -- I know the word "closure" is ridiculous. Everything says who has been through something like this that there is no closure, but answers -- answers.
YOUNG: Yes.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: What happened to the grand jury? I mean, months ago we all saw, we heard Terri Horman, we heard her best friend Didi Spicer (ph), I think that`s her best friend there, Didi Spicer had appeared before the grand jury and showed up at the grand jury location, anyway. And what happened about that?
We heard about gym workers who testified that Terri was upset with her husband, Kyron`s dad, Kaine because allegedly apparently he had insisted Terri`s oldest son move out of the family home, which could have created resentment. That resentment could have -- who knows. Whatever happened to all of that?
YOUNG: Well, it`s my understanding the grand jury is still convened and still working on the case. I heard reports recently that they were still working on it and still making decisions for it. So it`s my understanding it still is being used as a tool and still active.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Now, law enforcement has scaled back their task force, their Kyron Horman task force, apparently just the lead investigator is on it full time and he works in coordination with the prosecutor and the FBI. How does that feel?
YOUNG: You know, um, I know -- I was prepared that eventually that would happen. It`s disappointing, and at times very frustrating. We`ve been waiting for searches to happen since January, because the weather was a factor before, so we are patiently waiting for the weather to warm up. There`s these three key areas they still need to search, and we`re still waiting the on the searches, because the sheriff`s office just doesn`t have the resources.
It`s disappointing. It`s -- those searching are what keeps our hope alive. We, as a family, feel like Kyron`s being forgotten, because we`re not doing the searches. That`s the only way we`re going to bring him home is if we complete those key areas. If nothing else it rules out another area we know Kyron isn`t.
You know, it`s --
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Desiree, more on the other side. We`ll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: That adorable child. Such an adorable child, and he is gone from his mother`s life and his father`s life, and they are heartbroken and devastated. And they need your help to find him and find out what happened.
It is every mother and father`s absolutely worst nightmare, incomprehensible. We have no idea what Desiree Young is going through, but she is here, courageously joining us to talk about her thoughts, her feelings, her theories, in the hopes of somebody out there hearing something. It jogs their memory or somebody who`s hiding information, especially if somebody is hiding information and they know something, please come forward.
Desiree, I have to ask you, how is your relationship with your ex- husband Kaine, Kyron`s father. Do you speak at all? What`s happening there?
YOUNG: Well, I separated myself from some of the stuff that was going on, and I`m not speaking with him outside of anything that involves the case or Kyron. I just have chosen to make a statement, because I was -- well, not just me, my husband as well, we were both extremely disappointed and really upset finding out some of the stuff that was going on in the house that we found out from the media and the court paperwork and all of that stuff. We didn`t find out from Kaine directly, and it was really upsetting.
It was upsetting because there were so many opportunities for him to share that information with us, and he didn`t choose to do that. And so, you know, unfortunately it`s a difficult position to be in, being divorced, and having to go through the situation and try and, you know, be on the same mission to find Kyron. But at the same time we`re completely separate people and separate lives, and we live our lives in two different ways. I just had to make that choice for myself, because I -- I couldn`t do it anymore.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Now, we haven`t spoken to Kaine, but he is always invited to also come on. We`ve had him on in the past. I know you can`t get into any details, but are you basically suggesting that there were things that you weren`t pleased with, lifestyle?
YOUNG: Correct, yes, there were lots of things that we`re finding out now that I would have never allowed.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: I want to go to Bruce McCain. He is a person who is a former county sheriff. He had some pretty tough words about how this investigation has been handled. Let`s listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BRUCE MCCAIN, FORMER COUNTY SHERIFF: Frankly, to borrow the President`s analogy about driving this into the ditch, this investigation has been in the ditch for some time no. The Sauvie Island searches were basically a PR gig in order to get $200,000 in overtime, which worked, by the way.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: These are the searches of Sauvie Island, which Bruce is referring. He`s very critical of this investigation, saying essentially that there were a lot of things that weren`t followed up as effectively as they could be. Do you agree or disagree, Desiree?
YOUNG: I think that some of the stuff probably hasn`t been handled in a timely enough fashion that I would like. But I don`t think that the case has been mishandled in any way.
I`m sure that from the outside Bruce McCain might think that, but I think for the most part they have been really diligent about covering everything possible out there. We`ve ruled out every other person that was even involved at the school that day or not involved at the school that day, so we`ve narrowed all of that down. There`s been tons of electronic correspondence from Terri specifically. And --
(CROSSTALK)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Can I ask you one last question because we have only about ten seconds --
YOUNG: Sure.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: If your son, and I hope God willing, is alive, what would you say right now?
YOUNG: We`re coming to get you, Kyron. I will never stop. And be brave.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: I want to thank you, Desiree for joining us. I know what you`re going through is just unimaginable heartbreak. And just know that we will do everything we can to keep your case alive. We are not going to let it become a cold case. And please come to us with any information you get. Thank you so much.
YOUNG: Thank you.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Up next, Dr. Drew.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BRISTOL PALIN, DAUGHTER OF SARAH PALIN: My life, my teenage years were cut completely short. I was on the fast track to adulthood just in an instant because of that one decision. And Tripp is just the love of my life. He is everything to me.
Do I wish that he had a dad that was involved in his life? Absolutely. And do I wish I had an education and a real career path, absolutely.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Shocking new confessions from Bristol Palin. We have seen Bristol more from the daughter of a former vice presidential candidate into a teen mom and dancing reality TV star.
Tonight she speaks with our very own Dr. Drew in a candid tell-all interview. We`re delighted to have with us tonight Dr. Drew to talk about this explosive conversation.
So I have to ask you, Dr. Drew, what do you think? Do you think she`s really a role model for teen girls or she`s somehow cashing in on her poor decisions?
DR. DREW PINSKY, HLN HOST, "DR. DREW": Well, she`s cashing in. She`ll be the first to admit that having a mother in a public position like her mom has mixed blessings. I mean it takes her mom away; it creates a lot of stress in their family system. But it gives her the opportunity to do things like this.
And I`ve said this all along that I`ve been working with teenagers for years and years, and we fill their heads with information. They get the facts and it often typically does not change their behavior. But you give them a relatable source, another young person who gives them a cautionary tale that cuts right through to them.
So I`m actually very glad that Bristol`s out there talking about this. I think she will have a very significant impact.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Well, this is quite a scoop. And I can`t wait to see the whole interview.
But here is a clip and she`s talking about the night that she got pregnant. Check this out.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PALIN: I was so stupid to lie to my mom and to have those series of bad decisions that I made all in one night. But it was definitely life changing.
PINSKY: But one of them was intoxicated.
PALIN: Yes. Underage drinking.
PINSKY: In California that would be a rape. Is it the same in Alaska?
PALIN: You know, I don`t know the laws on it, but I`m not accusing Levi of rape or anything like that obviously.
PINSKY: Did it feel like a rape?
PALIN: It was consensual because I stayed with him for years on end after that.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: I have to ask you Dr. Drew. Is she still a spokeswoman for abstinence only? Because I would think that she is -- I`d say living proof that abstinence only doesn`t work.
PINSKY: No, she`s -- to my knowledge -- never been an abstinence advocate. In fact she very specifically told me how she hates the messages about teenagers being told not to have sex. Her message is more about the appropriate use of birth control.
But the clip that you played right there was really one of the more interesting moments in the entire interview, which is, you know, I laid out for her, the fact is that what happened to her that night where she was so intoxicated that she blacked out and had sex, in California that would be a rape. That`s just a simple fact.
My legal friends had told me that in Alaska there are similar laws in place. And she had a very adolescent way of thinking about that fact as I presented it to her which was, no, it`s not a rape because we ended up having a sustained relationship and getting engaged. Therefore, that night was not a rape.
And that`s kind of a goofy adolescent way of thinking about something that is really quite, quite serious.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Well, we only have about 10 seconds but overall, on the dysfunctional meter, how dysfunctional or not would you say that Bristol and her family are?
PINSKY: I think people are going to be sorry to hear me say that they`re not terribly dysfunctional. They`re very enmeshed but they`re very -- they`re tightly wound emotionally but they`re not what you would call dysfunctional. As bad things go, it`s amongst the best. So there is not a lot of pathology there.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: All right. Well, Doctor, thanks for joining us, Dr. Drew. I`m going to watch that one-hour special with Bristol Palin tonight. I can`t wait to see it. We`re going to talk more about her mom, her pregnancy and her life as a single parent right here.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I asked if there was anything else we could do for him to make him more comfortable.
JIM ORR, FATHER WITH CANCER: I said well, if you guys aren`t doing anything, after work tonight, you can take me to go see my son`s game.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: That father and Little League coach is enduring a brutal battle with advance cancer. And during an ambulance trip to get radiation treatment, he asked to be taken to his son`s baseball game. He never expected he would be taken seriously but he was.
Paramedics granted his wish and they took this proud dad to see his little boy`s game. Unbelievable, as if the day couldn`t be more memorable. In that game, his surprised son hit a home run, only the second home run of his life, dad was there to see it.
I`m sure this is a day his family will never forget.
Just another reminder for all of us to appreciate what we have and to live life to the fullest and never take a single moment for granted.
"NANCY GRACE" is up next.
END
