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Nancy Grace
Paramedics Testify in Michael Jackson Death Trial
Aired September 30, 2011 - 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 in the sudden death of music icon Michael Jackson. We are live here in L.A., where Jackson`s live-in Caribbean doctor, Dr. Conrad Murray, on trial for manslaughter, accused of shooting Jackson up with a super-powerful surgical anesthetic, propofol, then leaving the superstar to die surrounded by his own urine.
Eerie audio emerges, Jackson dazed, slurring his words. Jackson`s inner circle takes that jury inside the final deadly hours.
In the last 24 hours, evidence of a cover-up! In the very minutes after Michael Jackson dies, Jackson`s doctor launches a clean-up, desperate to remove damning evidence even before calling 911. Hidden evidence? Drug vials, IV bags containing propofol. Jackson`s children screaming "Daddy, Daddy." But Daddy`s dead in front of their own eyes. We obtain the 911 call.
Bombshell tonight. The defense emerges. Jackson, not Dr. Murray, shoots himself up with the drug. Impossible! Hard evidence in court today proving Conrad Murray`s story to police was a lie. One of the married doctor`s three mistresses becomes a star witness.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: His energy was very nervous, frantic. He was shouting.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Conrad Murray telling him to grab vials, not call 911.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He pointed towards the IV staff and he said, you know, Grab that bag and put that in the blue back.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Get help. Get security. Get Prince.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Then it`s finally time to call 911.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Sir, I have a -- we have a gentleman here that needs help. And he`s not breathing.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Dr. Conrad Murray asked if anyone knew CPR. He said, This is the first time I do mouth-to-mouth, but I have to, he`s my friend.
MICHAEL JACKSON: I`ve never seen nothing like this. Go. It`s amazing. He`s the greatest entertainer in the world.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Children are crying and screaming. The energy in the house did not feel good.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: He should be here right now.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: When I first moved the patient, his skin was very cool to the touch. When we -- when I took a first glance at him, his eyes were open. They were dry. And his pupils were dilated. When I hooked up the EKG machine, it was a flat line.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GRACE: And tonight, season 13, "Dancing With the Stars," the second dancing couple vow (ph), partner to Elisabetta, taking your calls, the second couple to be eliminated. Also, "Dancing" semifinalist Lisa Rinna, season 11 finalist Kyle Massey (ph), season 12 semifinalist Ralph Macchio (ph), season 3, former Miss USA, Shayna Mocler (ph), and my dancing partner, Tristan MacManus -- we`re all taking your calls.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Nancy and Tristan, you`re safe!
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You have it. You`re light on your feet. You`ve got timing.
GRACE: I want to say thank you because there is no way I would be back next week if you guys hadn`t voted.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: How is Tristan as a coach?
GRACE: Exactly like that except with a lot of yelling from him.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (INAUDIBLE) we`re back in the (INAUDIBLE)
GRACE: You know, a lot of people have asked me what it felt like standing up on that stage when we were waiting for the results. I will never forget it as long as I live.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Nancy`s still in it.
GRACE: I promise not to let you down Monday night.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GRACE: Good evening. I`m Nancy Grace. I want to thank you for being with us. Bombshell tonight in the sudden death of music icon Michael Jackson. The defense emerges. Jackson, not Dr. Murray, shoots himself up with the drug. That`s impossible! Hard evidence in court proving Dr. Conrad Murray`s story to police was a lie. And one of the married doctor`s three mistresses begins to emerge as a star witness for the state.
We are live here in L.A., camped outside the county courthouse, bringing the latest. And we are all taking your calls.
Straight out to Rupa Mikkilineni, investigative reporter. Rupa, I want to discuss how we now know that Conrad Murray`s story to police was a lie, based on the hard records, the phone records.
RUPA MIKKILINENI, INVESTIGATIVE REPORTER: That`s right, Nancy. So much has emerged from testimony in court in the last two or three days, including today. In fact, the phone records suggest that Conrad Murray may have been aware of Michael Jackson`s death at 11:56 AM and that he didn`t make his first phone call until 15 minutes later, at 12:11 PM, Nancy. And that`s when he called a personal assistant.
And then later the head of security, Michael Jackson`s head of security, Alvarez, who has testified now, came into the room and discovered Michael Jackson already dead, not breathing, laying in his bed, palms face up, eyes wide open, clearly already dead.
GRACE: Another issue, Ellie Jostad, that I`ve identified -- I don`t know if they`re going to identify it in court -- but regarding the defense theory that Michael Jackson shot himself up with the super-powerful surgical anesthetic propofol -- it`s impossible because Michael Jackson was also hooked up to a condom catheter so as he lay there totally knocked out, if he urinated, he wouldn`t wet the bed.
Now, I`ve got the autopsy report right here in front of me. Let me put my hands on it. Clark, find it for me. It`s right -- OK, here it is. And I noticed that he is lying on a blue plastic sheet covered in cotton in case he does get out of the catheter.
But here`s my question. Put Ellie up, please. I`d like to see Ellie Jostad. Here`s my question. The defense is claiming that Michael Jackson shot himself up with propofol. Then who put him in the catheter?
ELLIE JOSTAD, NANCY GRACE PRODUCER: Right.
GRACE: You think Michael Jackson stuck a catheter up his own penis? I don`t think so, Ellie. A doctor did that.
JOSTAD: Well, right, Nancy. And the defense isn`t fighting that part of it. They are admitting that Dr. Murray was giving Michael Jackson propofol almost every night for two months. They claim, though, that he was trying to wean him off of it.
And on the night or the early morning that Michael Jackson died, they say that Murray hooked him up, only gave him other drugs to get him to sleep, the lorazepam, the midazolam, and that it wasn`t until Michael Jackson begged Dr. Murray for propofol that he gave him a very small dose, 25 milligrams, that they say should have worn off...
GRACE: Wa! Wa!
JOSTAD: ... in about 25 minutes.
GRACE: Wa! Wa! Wa! Wa! Right there, that doesn`t make sense! With propofol, the minute you take it -- I`ve had propofol before surgery before. The minute you take the propofol out...
JOSTAD: Right.
GRACE: ... you take out the needle, you wake up.
JOSTAD: Correct.
GRACE: It`s just like that. So what`s the point, if you`re trying to get Michael Jackson to sleep, to give him five minutes of propofol? That doesn`t even make sense, Ellie!
JOSTAD: Well, and that is what the prosecution says, as well, Nancy. But what the defense is going claim is, is that as soon as that small dose of propofol wore off, that Michael Jackson -- and this is when Dr. Murray is out of the room -- that he ingests a bunch of lorazepam tablets, enough to put six regular people to sleep. They also say then he somehow ingested -- and they didn`t specify in their opening whether that means he injected it or if he drank it, but they say that those combination of drugs created this perfect storm in his body that he died so quickly, he couldn`t even shut his eyes. There was no way he could have been revived.
GRACE: Really? OK, so they`re saying it was lorazepam, right?
JOSTAD: Yes, lorazepam with the shot or the drinking of the propofol.
GRACE: OK. Let me talk to the doctor. Joining us tonight, Dr. Cathleen London, physician, New York Presbyterian Hospital, professor, Cornell College. Dr. London, thank you for being us. I want to go through with you, as best as I can as a layperson, the autopsy report, which I have read in depth.
It says found in the urine is propofol. I don`t see any lorazepam. In the liver, propofol and lidocaine. No lorazepam. In vitreous humor, which is the clear gel between the lens and the retina of the eye, there`s propofol, no lorazepam. In the stomach, there`s lidocaine and propofol, no lorazepam.
So what does that say to you, Dr. London?
DR. CATHLEEN LONDON, NEW YORK PRESBYTERIAN HOSPITAL: That he doesn`t have any metabolites of the lorazepam, so that`s clearly not what he was taking. So this "perfect storm" cocktail they`re talking about couldn`t exist. And it doesn`t get into you that quickly if you take it through your stomach, any of these medications. So they don`t work that fast.
So if he was only out of the room for a few minutes, that`s a lot of nonsense. Not to mention that if he`s truly trying to wean Michael off and has this whole -- where`s the protocol in place -- why does he even have -- able to reach any of them, you know? And if you have propofol going in through the I.V., even if you`ve woken up, you`re not so awake that you`re going to be able to go and get it together and to get things out of a bottle or inject them or anything else. So -- No way.
GRACE: You know, another thing, Dr. London, that I want to clear up is, if they`re saying Jackson injected himself -- remember, the needle was in his ankle. So if they are saying when the doctor went to the bathroom, Jackson injected a heavier dose of propofol, how is he going to do that?
(CROSSTALK)
LONDON: Again...
GRACE: ... got on a catheter!
LONDON: Well, the Texas catheter, the condom catheter, you know, it can come off, whatever. It can move, right? That`s not as much of my issue as he wouldn`t be awake enough to do any of those things. I mean, there`s no way...
GRACE: Got it.
LONDON: ... that he`d have the coordination to do it. The only theory that I could even see of anything would be if you were able to increase the rate of the IV. But again, that raises, why wasn`t a proper box (ph) there that would limit how much...
GRACE: Dr. Cathleen London, I got a ton of questions for you after I have combed through this autopsy report.
We are taking your calls live. To Linda in Georgia. Hi, Linda. What`s your question, dear?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Actually, it`s Brenda. But...
GRACE: Brenda. Hi, Brenda.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Hi. And congratulations. I hope you win the dancing thing. You got all my hopes (ph) anyway. But...
GRACE: Hey, Brenda, thank you.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: ... when people...
GRACE: You know, I know we`re the underdog, and I appreciate that. I really do. What`s your question?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You ain`t no underdog, girlfriend.
(LAUGHTER)
GRACE: Thank you!
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Anyway, if a person dies at home and the people get there and it`s very obvious he dies, he`s got this thing down here on his privates, his eyes is open, his mouth is open, he ain`t moving, they know that he`s dead -- this guy is running around trying to put bottles in bags and clean up after himself. The cops are there. People are going in and out of there. And then after the ambulance left, a big truck pulled in. They loaded up all of Michael`s stuff. Where were the cops` tape? Don`t they tape it up so that nobody...
GRACE: They secure the location.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.
GRACE: To Ian Halperin, author of "Unmasked: The Final Years of Michael Jackson" and director of "Gone Too Soon." Ian, did they secure the scene immediately after Michael Jackson`s body -- I mean, he was already dead, I don`t care what they say, because I`ve read it here in the autopsy report. Did they secure the scene? Did they consider it a crime scene?
IAN HALPERIN, AUTHOR, "UNMASKED": Yes. I don`t think initially they did. They just thought something went wrong. And I don`t think it was handled properly, Nancy. And that`s why -- look, Conrad Murray right now is a scapegoat, but there`s a lot of other doctors out there who are equally as guilty and...
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Justice for Michael!
JACKSON: It`s great to be home. It`s a wonderful feeling.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You`re looking at the bedroom where Michael Jackson took his last breath.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We have a gentleman here that needs help. And he`s not breathing.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: His eyes were open. His mouth was slightly open.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The defense is going to try to say all these horrible things.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Michael Jackson had a problem and he knew that he needed help.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: When Dr. Murray left the room, they say he got up and took more pills and also injected more propofol.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He said, No, he`s not taking anything. And then he followed that up with, I just gave him a little bit of lorazepam to sleep. Is there anything else? And, No, that`s it, just a little bit of lorazepam.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GRACE: Everybody, we are live here in L.A., camped outside the county courthouse, bringing you the latest in the trial of the doctor that allegedly killed Michael Jackson. You want to tell me you can walk into a home here in America, shoot somebody up with a powerful surgical anesthetic and leave them to die in a bed surrounded by their own urine then walk scot-free? No! Not going to happen, if this jury renders a true verdict based on the evidence we`ve heard so far.
I want to go back to Rupa Mikkilineni. What did Murray originally tell cops? And what`s still stunning me, Rupa, is when everybody comes in, he goes, Hey, does anybody know CPR? And then almost immediately after Michael Jackson is pronounced dead, he goes, Wow, I`m hungry. Let`s go get something to eat. Who wants to go to Denny`s?
It`s crazy. It`s absolutely crazy! You`ve got his three children, who have seen their father dead -- and I don`t care what anybody says. I`ve got the autopsy report right here. It says he was asystolic when EMTs got there. You know what that means, Rupa, asystolic? It means absence of a heartbeat. That`s what that means. So don`t care what they in court, I know what this report says.
So what did Murray first tell cops happened? What did he says to start with, Rupa?
MIKKILINENI: Well, this whole series of events starts with his lies, Nancy. He begins...
GRACE: No, no, no, no! I want to hear his story to cops. What does he tell cops happened? What`s his story?
MIKKILINENI: He claims that he was treating Michael Jackson for dehydration, Nancy. And he says he only gave him lorazepam. So that was a lie right there.
GRACE: Well, yes, that`s a whopper. What else does he say, Ellie, when they ask him? First of all, he tried to leave the scene, all right? He didn`t want to talk to cops. But when they finally caught up with him, what did he say happened?
JOSTAD: Right. He said that he left the room for just a couple of minutes to use the bathroom. Prosecutors say he did not leave the room for just a couple of minutes. They say that during the point of time that they believe Michael Jackson was given the propofol, Conrad Murray was on the phone for about 45 minutes with three different people. They say he abandoned the patient and did not watch him.
GRACE: What three people, his three mistresses?
JOSTAD: One of them was a mistress, Nancy.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GRACE: Welcome back. We are live in L.A., bringing you the latest in the trial of the man allegedly who killed Michael Jackson.
To Caryn Stark, psychologist. The children see their father lying there dead. How can they possibly get through that?
CARYN STARK, PSYCHOLOGIST: It is so difficult, Nancy. When you talk about something like this, this is trauma. And trauma doesn`t leave children. They have no way to process it. And so either they`re going to block it defensively, which is going to be a problem as they get older, or it`s going to stick very firmly in their mind.
And that is just an awful thing for them to have to live with, to be abandoned, feeling alone, not knowing how to process it. And he`s their only parent. They really don`t have a mother.
GRACE: Caryn, I`m hearing in my ear we`re just being joined by Mark Lester, the three children`s godfather. Mark, thank you for being with us. How are the children holding up during the trial?
MARK LESTER, GODFATHER TO MICHAEL JACKSON`S CHILDREN: Well, I guess they`re holding up as well as they could be. I mean, this is horrendous for their father to have been dead for over two years, and then having to go through the whole thing all over again. You know, my thoughts are with them, and I hope that they`re are being brave. They`re very intelligent and very strong kids, so -- and they have a good family support. So I`m sure they`re doing fine.
GRACE: Unleash the lawyers -- Sue Moss, New York, Darryl Cohen, Atlanta, Christopher Amolsch, D.C. Weigh in, Sue.
SUSAN MOSS, FAMILY LAW ATTORNEY: Do these defense lawyers really think that Murray can just beat it? This guy was paid $150,000 a month for one patient! And that`s because he totally disregarded all medical procedures!
DARRYL COHEN, DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Oh, come on.
GRACE: OK, what`s the defense, Darryl Cohen?
COHEN: Oh, come on, Nancy. Maybe Dr. Murray -- maybe he should be disciplined by the medical board, but for the DA`s office to go after him for this is outrageous and it`s egregious.
GRACE: You know...
COHEN: We all know...
GRACE: ... Darryl...
COHEN: ... that Michael Jackson -- I`m sorry, Nancy. Michael was fighting (ph) -- he has been systematically trying to commit suicide for the last 25 years. It finally happened.
GRACE: Yes. You know what? Bring me evidence of that, Cohen. Joining me now, Brian Oxman, attorney for Joe Jackson. Brian, weigh in. What do you know about the children`s condition?
BRIAN OXMAN, JOE JACKSON`S ATTORNEY IN CIVIL SUIT: Nancy, they`re doing very well. And Mark Lester is someone who is very important in their lives. They miss seeing him. They are very traumatized by this whole trial. And they have not really been subjected to it, and Katherine Jackson doesn`t want that to happen. But if they have to testify, Nancy, they will be there.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
POLITAN: Breaking news out of Orlando. A video has just been released. I haven`t seen it. I`m joined by Natisha Lance, Nancy Grace`s producer and Jean Casarez and Mike Brooks. None of us have seen this video yet. So, we are going to look at them. Let me just set it up for you a little bit.
It`s from inside the jail, it`s the day that remains were reported found in the woods near Casey Anthony`s home. OK. Just remain. No name associated with those remains. The videotape is of Casey Anthony walking into a room in the jail, sitting down. There`s a television that is playing this report that remains were found in the woods near Casey Anthony`s home.
Let`s roll that videotape and watch it with you, folks. Let`s take a look now.
(VIDEO CLIP PLAYING)
POLITAN: There we say Casey Anthony being escorted in. She sits down. Looks like, she`s looking up at the news. We got a zoom in on it. Obviously it`s caught her attention, it seems like it`s caught her attention.
JEAN CASAREZ, CORRESPONDENT, IN SESSION: Vinnie, this is a stationary security camera that`s positioned all of the time.
POLITAN: And that`s what the prosecutors wanted in front of that jury. There you see her doubling over, listening to news that remains were found near her home. Now, many different ways to interpret this, right: You can interpret it one way meaning hey she knew that now they could bring a much stronger case against her because she knew that that was her daughter Caylee`s remains because she was the one that want placed them there. Obviously there are other interpretations as well. But that`s what the prosecutors wanted to do. Natisha Lance, your reactions on this.
NATISHA LANCE, NANCY GRACE`S PRODUCER: I`m just thinking back to the deposition of Lieutenant Hemy (ph), un-circle is there with Casey Anthony during this time. And she said that Casey Anthony had requested sedatives. She doubled over and she broke out in hive. She asked for her restraints to be loosened. But she couldn`t loosen her restraints according to (inaudible) because she knew that they weren`t tight. But she started to go through an anxiety attack according to Lieutenant Hemy (ph).
CASAREZ: We really see that. Did you see her chest right there? She was hyperventilating.
HOST: Absolutely. Mike Brooks in Atlanta, with us tonight, was watching this video. Mike.
MIKE BROOKS, CORRESPONDENT, IN SESSION: I tell you, Vinnie, she is extremely upset. You know, and I think about this video and we talked about back in the past when they allegedly had found possible bones in jay Blanchard Park in the water there when divers may have found something and she was looking at the TV then and just turned around and went back into her cell with no reaction whatsoever. I mean that was the first time they thought they maybe had found remains months earlier with no reaction from Casey Anthony.
POLITAN: Now, they`ve released about 15 minutes of video. We`re showing the part where presumably the news. There`s no audio associated with this tape but this has to be the part where she notices what they are reporting up on the news. And again, this is brand new video being released, local media down there in Orlando fighting to get it released. It was sealed by the judge. It wasn`t permitted at the trial.
Prosecutors wanted to use this as evidence against Casey Anthony, consciousness of guilt that she knew whose remains were found because on that day December 11, 2008, Jean Casarez, it was not clear whose remains were found. It was just remains were found. It wasn`t a report that they had been identified as Caylee Marie.
CASAREZ: There was an amazing amount of legal wrangling with this because the prosecution never made a motion asking to allow this to be as evidence in the case because it didn`t even get that far because the defense made motion after motion to seal it. And I remember I was at the hearing when the prosecution said "your honor we don`t think we`ll use this in the trial."
But they were able to seal it so the public couldn`t see it until now and do you remember, I remember that hearing. What we found out was she requested her lawyer, she requested Jose Baez to get to that jail. She wanted to talk to him. And he said he was at the jail but they wouldn`t let him see her.
LANCE: That`s right.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Dancing the quickstep, Nancy Grace and her partner Tristan MacManus.
(MUSIC PLAYING)
(END VIDEOTAPE)
GRACE: Welcome back, everybody. Tonight an all-star line up from "dancing with the stars" and we are taking your calls live.
Last week my dancing partner Irishman Tristan MacManus and I managed to survive the quickstep and even got an eight from one of the toughest judges Lynn. Now we`re on to our next dance. Last night, we practiced until 9:30 at night.
Straight out to Lisa Rinna, semi-finalist, "dancing with the stars" season two, "New York Times" bestselling author, TV host. Lisa, where`s your shirt number one? You`re not on "dancing with the stars" right now. This is the Nancy Grace show on HLN. Where are your clothes?
LISA RINNA, SEMI FINALIST, DANCING WITH THE STARS SEASON TWO: They are here.
GRACE: Where`s your shirt?
RINNA: Here it is.
GRACE: That`s your dancing tip for me don`t wear a shirt?
RINNA: Well --
GRACE: Stop right there. Stop right there. OK, Lisa. There you are. Are those pants? OK. She`s got pants on in this one. Lisa, give me some tips. I need a new step. You gave me the hop scotch tip last week. Now, I need another tip.
RINNA: Are you doing the Viennese waltz?
GRACE: No, we`re doing the slow waltz.
RINNA: The slow waltz. Oh, even better. OK. This week you need to show your heart. That`s the key. It`s about heat -
(CROSSTALK)
RINNA: The heart inside, you need to show. The waltz really is about feeling, I think. Getting out you really feel and we know you have a lot of heart, Nancy. It`s all about heart.
GRACE: Lisa, I also found out, thanks to Tristan MacManus, that waltz is not walking in a box which is what I thought the whole thing was. I told him immediately I knew what the waltz was. Well yes, that`s not it.
We`re taking your calls. Out to Lucia in New York. Hi Lucia, what`s your question, dear?
LUCIA, CALLER, NEW YORK: hi, Nancy. Just want to let you know that you`re doing great. You look happy dancing. So just have fun. I only have one tip.
GRACE: OK.
LUCIA: If they have a polka week, wear shorter heels.
GRACE: A polka week. Wear shorter heels. Ok, I`m writing that down. Let`s go to the expert here with Lucia`s suggestion. Irishman Tristan MacManus is with me. He`s my partner in "dancing with the stars." Ok, what about that? Any polka coming up?
TRISTAN MACMANUS, NANCY GRACE`S PARTNER, DANCING WITH THE STARS: Not that I`m aware of. I hope not.
GRACE: Now the polka?
MACMANUS: Well I`ve heard it but I haven`t done it. But -
GRACE: Can you ever dance polka?
MACMANUS: Yes.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MACMANUS: If there`s anything we want to come across, we just want to attack this next dance the way you attack any other case.
GRACE: OK to the floor to try to redeem myself from Natasha woody dance. The quick step.
(MUSIC PLAYING)
RINNA: You got to do whatever it takes, baby.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You guys are making an incredible team.
GRACE: I would say that I got the most heart.
(MUSIC PLAYING)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: A proper quickstep. Well done.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Keep doing what you`re doing out there.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: A quickstep scoring a 21.
(END VIDEOTAPE) GRACE: Welcome back, everyone. We`re talking about "dancing with the stars" with an all-star lineup. And I`m getting a question here on twitter. Hey, Nancy, ladies of HLN-TV want to know is Tristan, single?
Not until November. He`s booked every night rehearsing. After that, he`s all yours. But until then he`s all mine. I assume -
MACMANUS: Appreciate that one.
GRACE: Do you disagree?
MACMANUS: No. I`m very focused on what I`m doing but I am single so help me out, please.
GRACE: Call around Christmas time. OK?
Out to Shanna Moakler, contestant in "dancing with the stars" season three. Shanna, thank you for being with us.
SHANNA MOAKLER, CONTESTANT IN "DANCING WITH THE STARS" SEASON THREE: Hi, Nancy, how are you doing?
GRACE: I`m great. Shanna, give us some dancing tips.
MOAKLER: You know I have to disagree with Lisa a little bit. I know she said go out there and have fun, but since I was voted off the second week like my boy bow there, I`m going say take it serious. Those people, those couples are competing and they are competitive and really go out there and give it your all every single westbound. That`s my advice to you.
GRACE: You know what, Shanna truer words were never spoken because Tristan and I practiced all day yesterday and then went back last night. Yes, China was still there. Who else was still there last night? There were a couple of pros around there. China was there. And who we have really bonded during this, she`s incredible. I had no idea what a beautiful singing voice she`s got and same with her feet. So Shanna, do you remember the moment you were eliminated?
MOAKLER: Yes, of course. On the mumbo which I had to dance to a rap so it`s kind of hard.
GRACE: You know what I`m not going on complaining but our first song was "cry baby." I never knew what the guy was even saying. I never heard the song. Basically, I heard him say "girl I didn`t mean it." That`s the only thing I ever knew. Did you know what he was saying?
MACMANUS: I listen to music.
GRACE: OK, what did he say?
MACMANUS: He said a lot of things.
GRACE: OK. I cracked him on cross-examine. Out to the lines, Evan in Texas. Hi, Evan, what`s your question, dear?
EVAN, CALLER, TEXAS: Hi Nancy. I want to ask you, who is your toughest competitor among the women and how are you going beat them?
GRACE: Well, you know, after Ricki Lake tried to push me down the steps I`m ready to resort to practically anything. But all kidding aside a lot of people asked us who is our toughest competition. Let`s get real. We have a professional athlete, professional dancer that danced in a movie, reality stars, TV stars. Frankly I think they are all serious competition.
And Tristan, we really saw the judges numbers vacillates go up and down from week one to week two so it`s really hard to paint anyone as the front-runner.
MACMANUS: Yes, definitely. I think it`s a live show each week so it can be good or you can be bad on any given day. You know everyone is doing great. Everyone is working hard. Everyone has had mixed results in the first and second week. But we`re just concentrating on ourselves and hopefully the rest will look up after itself.
GRACE: I want to go back to Lisa Rinna before I go back to the calls. Lisa, I advised Tristan that if I make a big boo-boo on the dance floor he should just take his shirt off. He refuses. What should I do?
MACMANUS: Don`t make a boo-boo.
RINNA: Oh, gosh. I like the idea of Tristan taking his shirt off. I like that. So I think you should continue to push for it.
GRACE: Well, I was opposed to it until Val, threaten to do, and max does it practically every night. Val, do you believe the judges consider like ripping your shirt off, the use of props, do they consider that I don`t know, a stick. Do they considerate gimmick? Are they opposed to that?
VAL CHMERKOVSKIY, PROFESSIONAL DANCER, DANCING WITH THE STARS SEASON 13: Lynn does for sure. I think there`s a little bit of a jealousy factor here or there.
GRACE: You think lane is jealous of you.
CHMERKOVSKIY: No.
GRACE: This is the first I heard Lynn is jealous of anybody. I want to go back to Kyle Massey, what do you think? You were a runner up season 11. Do you believe the judges consider that to be gimmicks and they don`t like it?
KYLE MASSEY, RUNNER UP, DANCING WITH THE STARS SEASON 11: Yes. Well, definitely. You know, as far as jealousy when I take my shirt off the whole room is just silent in shock and disbelief. But as far as the dancing, I think that, you know, the judges, they are not posed to it. They just really want to see you go out there and really work hard. So, if it fits your choreography and fits what you`re doing, and it doesn`t like look crazy and just out there, I don`t think they will knock you too much. I think that they will back you up.
GRACE: We are taking your calls. To Kathy in New York. Hi, Cathy, what`s your question?
KATHY, CALLER, NEW YORK: Hi. Well, I just wanted to tell you I thought you guys did awesome this week. You really did.
GRACE: You know what? I really have to give the credit to Tristan. So what`s your question, love?
KATHY: Well, I just - my question is what dance do you have to do this week?
GRACE: OK. Explain the difference between a slow waltz and a Viennese waltz.
MACMANUS: Well, I mean this week we`re doing the slow waltz. I think everyone maybe if you haven`t seen the show before, the very first week a lot of the couples have to do a Viennese Waltz but that`s not what we`re going do. We`re doing the slow waltz this week to "Moon River" which was a song chose by Nancy. It`s a competition this week is most memorable year so that`s the year that Nancy chose and the song she chose.
GRACE: Everybody, we are taking your calls.
I want to go back to Ralph Maccho. Ralph, a lot of people don`t really believe it when contestants say they hate to see other contestants get cut. But after all those hours rehearsing together, and working together, you really do form an incredibly strong bond with people you may not have otherwise even ever met.
RALPH MACCHO, SEMI-FINALIST, DANCING WITH THE STARS: Right. Listen, it is definitely like a collective boot camp and, you know, you go into this vacuum world of the rehearsals and the performances and everyone, you know, is pulling for each other as much as the competition is part of it. I mean, to me the most important part was always, you know, the performance, and the thrill of the foot lights. What you can control which is the amount of work you put in. Your character as you tell your story through your performance and the feedback you get from that audience. So, those are the things that everyone is collectively, you know, supporting each other with and that`s, you know, part of the richest part of the experience for me.
GRACE: Here we go with another online question. Tristan MacManus, what made you decide to go into dancing and why. If you were not a dancer, what would you be?
MACMANUS: Initially it wasn`t something that I particularly wanted to go into. I was pushed into it.
GRACE: By your grandparents?
MACMANUS: Well, they put my sister into it, and I suppose they wanted to keep us together, so they put me into it. And then it was just something that I over the years enjoyed more and more kept doing it. And now it`s been paying off. If I wasn`t a dancer, I don`t particularly know. I always wanted to be in the fire brigade, what it is called at home.
GRACE: Fireman.
MACMANUS: Fireman here. But again, wwho knows. Anything could happen.
GRACE: Well, look at that picture of you when you`re young and fresh. Did you see that?
(CROSSTALK)
GRACE: You really aged.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
GRACE: I want to take this chance again to thank you for all of your e-mails, your phone calls, your support for "dancing with the stars." My partner, Tristan and I, managed to survive week two, thanks to you and the judges. We were not held in jeopardy this time. Now, as I promised you last week, we nailed that quick step, and it was hard.
Come Monday night, I promise you I will deliver the perfect waltz, so help me. It`s the single most beautiful ballroom dance, and I`ve learned the hard way, thank you, Tristan. It`s not just a box step. Reminder, 100 percent, 100 percent of my proceeds goes directly to the national center for missing and exploited children. So please vote.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: For that coveted mirror ball trophy. Nancy Grace.
GRACE: I want to say thank you. There is no way I would be back next week if you guys hadn`t voted.
GRACE: If my partner Tristan and I survived a second week.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Dancing the cha-cha-cha, Nancy Grace and her partner Tristan MacManus.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You have it. You`re light on your feet, you`ve got timing.
GRACE: The cha-cha Monday night, I really want to have a perfect quick step.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Aren`t getting very far.
GRACE: Case closed.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Nancy is still in it.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Dancing the quick step, Nancy Grace and her partner, Tristan MacManus.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I have to say I give props to Nancy Grace.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You may be the happiest contestant I`ve ever seen when you`re out there dancing.
GRACE: Lisa Rinna, Kendra Wilkinson, Niecee National, Helio Castroneves, if they can do it, I can.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Nancy and Tristan, you`re safe.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
GRACE: Let`s stop and remember, Marine Corporal Christopher Esckelson, killed in Iraq. Awarded Purple Heart, combat action of the National service defense medal, loved hunting, camping, dreamed of medicine school and becoming a doctor. Remembered as the life of the party always made everyone else laugh.
Leaves behind mother Michelle, Brother Craig, and Sister Carrie. The family also mourning the loss of father, Dave. Christopher Esckelson, American Hero.
Thank you to our guests but especially to you for being with us. And special good night to the New York control room. Good night Liz, Bret, Dana, who is that in the middle? Emily.
And happy birthday to Georgia friend Jaime, leukemia and blood marrow transplant survivor. She served her community on the city council (inaudible) and friends. Happy birthday.
Everyone, I`ll see you tomorrow night. 8:00 sharp Eastern. We will be live in L.A. in our own way seeking justice. And until then, good night, friend.
END
