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Nancy Grace
Cops Name Missing "People`s Court" Mom`s Ex-Fiance a Suspect
Aired November 28, 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, live, Orlando. A gorgeous mom of three fights it out on "People`s Court" over a luxury diamond engagement ring. Her stormy relationship with her ex plays out in front of millions of people. Just hours later, she`s gone, vanishing without a trace, her black Hummer found at a complex just down from her own home, decals carefully scraped off the SUV windows. Police desperately checking Mommy`s iPhone and fielding tips on a diamond cross necklace she`s wearing the day she disappears.
Bombshell tonight. A body fished out of a nearby lake. Is it related? And in the last hours, an armed SWAT team, CSI and K-9s pull a nighttime raid at the ex`s family home, with the father-in-law put in cuffs. This as reports the young mom caught on surveillance driving just one hour before a mystery text. And Mommy`s final words captured on voicemail to her dad. We have the audio.
And tonight, we uncover the last so-called "ping" on Mommy`s phone 8:00 PM, then Mommy`s cell phone powered down for good. Her family says no way would she ever leave her children behind, including a 3-year-old set of twins, boy and girl. Never! Tonight, where is missing mom Michelle?
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The SWAT team has just raided the home of Dale Smith, Sr., the father of Michelle Parker`s ex-fiance, Dale Smith.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: She had just made an appearance on "The People`s Court" with her former fiance.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: In 2009, Parker asked for a restraining order, claiming Smith broke out her passenger window, cursed at her and threw carseats for their twins into the street.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The final voicemail of missing mom Michelle Parker has been released.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GRACE: Good evening. I`m Nancy Grace. I want to thank you for being with us. Bombshell tonight.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: As you all know, 11 days ago, Michelle Parker was reported missing. The Orlando Police Department immediately involved other law enforcement agencies, media and the public to assist us in locating Ms. Parker. After numerous tips and investigative leads, we are officially naming Dale Smith, the ex-fiance, as the primary suspect in the disappearance of Michelle Parker.
Many questions will be asked why Dale Smith wasn`t considered a suspect prior to today, and the answer is we had to look at every aspect in the case before we could come out publicly and state that Mr. Smith is our primary focus.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You could have avoided this, Dale, if you had cooperated with the police and took a polygraph test when they asked you, you know? You could have -- you could have eliminated a lot of stress. So unfortunately, you brought this on yourself. We`re not going to stop until we find out who did this.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Do you believe Dale Smith has lied to you?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I don`t want to go into that part of the investigation. I will say that we offered him a polygraph and he simply refused the polygraph.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Are you looking at an arrest of Dale Smith?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We`re still in the investigating stage.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You kept saying that, you know, at the beginning, the whole family (INAUDIBLE)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: He was cooperating. He was cooperating. That`s why. And I`m an emotional mom. I`ve never been carjacked. I just figured they saw a beautiful girl, and boom!
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GRACE: Where is missing young mom Michelle Parker? You`re seeing video from YouTube and Warner Brothers of Michelle on "People`s Court." That episode aired just hours before Michelle goes missing there in the Orlando area.
It`s my understanding -- to you, Rory O`Neill, Metro Networks, joining us from Orlando -- that "People`s Court" -- it`s a 30-minute segment, but it plays back-to-back to make an hour program of "People`s Court." And to my understanding, Michelle`s segment aired first at 2:00 PM Orlando time. And on the timeline, she`s taking her children to their dad`s house, her ex, right around that time. She`s dropping the twins over there. He`s the bio dad of the 3-year-old twins, boy/girl.
And at 3:30, she`s gone because her 11-year-old son gets home from school. Mommy`s not home, so he starts calling around, trying to find Mommy. So somewhere between the airing of that episode and her dropping her twins off at her ex`s home by 3:30, we can`t find Mommy. Is that the timeline, Rory?
RORY O`NEILL, METRO NETWORKS: Nancy, that is the timeline. And it`s interesting, too, because she taped that show back in August and admitted to her mom she was humiliated after appearing on that television show and really didn`t even want to see it actually broadcast on television.
So yes, she did vanish after dropping off the twins with their biology father, the man, Dale Smith, that police say is not a suspect in this disappearance. But they`re trying to track any possible movements after she left that condo. They found the SUV that she had, but they haven`t seen her. And more importantly, they haven`t found her iPhone, which may give even more clues about her whereabouts.
GRACE: You know, Alexis Tereszcuk, senior reporter, Radaronline.com, I`ve reviewed her on "People`s Court" and I don`t understand, Alexis, why she`s saying she was humiliated. If anybody should have been embarrassed, it should have been the ex because she outed him for allegedly being physically, verbally and emotionally abusive to her and being a, quote, "mean drunk."
ALEXIS TERESZCUK, RADARONLINE.COM: I completely agree. And not only that, he actually has a history of domestic violence. He was dishonorably discharged from the military for domestic abuse and for drugs. So I agree with you, she`s not sure -- I`m not sure why it says she was humiliated.
She did get called an idiot by the judge. The judge said, Both of you are idiots. That can`t feel good, and this was something that she was embarrassed about. She was ashamed that this had happened. She said she wished she had never, ever done it before.
You know, hindsight`s always 20/20. And it`s a $5,000 ring, so there was lot of money involved, so maybe she thought this was the best way to get the settlement that was fair.
But she does have two kids with this guy, who she does accuse of horrible domestic violence.
GRACE: We are taking your calls. To Ellie Jostad. Ellie, I want to go through the timeline with you very quickly because so much has emerged over the weekend. But I`m hearing in my ear more about that body just found, a body found in a nearby lake. Is it related?
Ellie, hold on. With me right now is Yvonne Stewart, joining us exclusively tonight in primetime. This is Michelle`s mother. Ms. Stewart, thank you for being with us.
YVONNE STEWART, MICHELLE PARKER`S MOTHER (via telephone): Hey, Nancy, thank you for giving us an opportunity to keep Michelle`s face out there.
GRACE: You know, Ms. Stewart, it just breaks my heart to hear you even say that. I`m raising twins right now. They just turned 4 a couple of weekends ago.
STEWART: Yes. I found out that you had twins. Yes, they are a lot of work, aren`t they? But they`re worth it.
GRACE: They are, Ms. Stewart. And I`m just thinking about my little girl, how you raise your children, you pour all of your energy, all of your love, all of your hopes and dreams for them, for them to be happy and get through school, and you know, find happiness. And then to have your daughter just disappear.
STEWART: I know.
GRACE: Your daughter is a real go-getter. I mean, she has these children. She has a job. She has started her own business with her spray tan. And speaking of the spray tan, Ms. Stewart, isn`t it true that on her Hummer, her black Hummer, she had these big decals that advertised her business, did she not?
STEWART: Yes, she did. Very distinctive. Nobody could miss that car.
GRACE: What did the decals say?
STEWART: It said "GLOW" in huge letters. And the letters kind of looked like diamonds. And it said "Mobile airbrush tanning," you know? And then of course, it had her phone number. But she never did anything with anybody she didn`t know. She`s not stupid. She would (INAUDIBLE)
GRACE: Hold on just a moment.
STEWART: Pardon me?
GRACE: You`re saying "GLOW." There we -- that`s what I wanted. We`re showing it right now, "GLOW mobile airbrush tanning." So she would - - would she go to people that wanted the airbrush tanning? She would go to them?
STEWART: If they were somebody that she knew. Like, say, she has a friend that`s getting married, she would go to them. Otherwise, they would come to my salon, where you know, they would be there. She would never go anywhere alone to anybody that she didn`t know.
GRACE: Hey, Liz, take that shot in full, please, because I want to talk to Yvonne Stewart. Everybody, taking your calls is Michelle`s mom.
When the Hummer was found in a condo complex not too far from her home, someone had very carefully removed these decals from the Hummer. I find that very interesting. Is that true, Ms. Stewart?
STEWART: Well, you know, I wasn`t told that the decals were removed. And I`ve heard that, and you would have to, you know, confirm that with OPD and...
GRACE: Well, let me do that right now. To Ellie Jostad. Were they removed?
ELLIE JOSTAD, NANCY GRACE PRODUCER (via telephone): Nancy, we believe that at least one of the decals was removed at the time that the car was found, and police couldn`t tell us much more about it than that.
GRACE: OK. Guys, this is extremely significant. To Pat Brown. Think about it, Pat, when a murder occurs where the killer knows the victim, or typically a serial killer, very often, you`ll see the body hidden, secreted away just like in this case. If this was a random carjack, who would have taken the time to remove that huge decal off the back of the Hummer? Somebody was connected to this and did not want that identifying feature left on the Hummer. Explain, Pat Brown.
PAT BROWN, CRIMINAL PROFILER: Right, Nancy. You know, even a serial killer probably isn`t going to waste his time taking off a decal. The problem a person would have with the decals, if they`re seen in that vehicle driving someplace past a camera, then they -- obviously, it`s that vehicle with the decal and that person. Or when they`re leaving the vehicle someplace, they want the decal off so the vehicle isn`t discovered as quickly. So yes, it usually means that somebody is going to be connected to that victim.
GRACE: OK. Very quickly, back to Ellie Jostad. What can you tell me about a body being fished out of a local lake, Ellie?
JOSTAD: Right, Nancy. Orlando police are checking this out. There`s a body found in a lake. It`s off Park Center Drive near Kirkman (ph) Road in the metrowest area of Orlando. They sent homicide detectives there to the scene, trying to determine ID right now.
GRACE: Breaking now, a body being fished out of a local lake. Is it connected to this beautiful young mom of three, Michelle? She goes missing just hours after she appears on "People`s Court," fighting it out with her ex over a luxury engagement ring. Tonight, where is Michelle?
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Right now, there is a frantic search for another missing mom.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Michelle Parker.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: This is my baby girl! We need to find her.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: A beautiful young woman who vanished without a trace.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: If you`re a fan of "The People`s Court," you might have seen her on a recent episode.
GRACE: She duked it out with the ex over a luxury engagement ring.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: A $5,000 engagement ring.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Michelle`s ex-fiance and father to her twins that you see here was subject to a raid. The Orlando police used a SWAT team to serve out a search warrant at the home of his parents.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Can we talk to you about the raid here, sir?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He had to have a good tip or a lead.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Police want to point this out, that this necklace here, this is what Michelle was wearing, a large cross.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Necklace could be a key piece of evidence.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: She had it on that day. There`ll be a clue there somewhere.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GRACE: In the last hour, so much breaking in the case of the young missing mom of "People`s Court," Michelle Parker. Parker appears on "People`s Court" one afternoon in the Orlando area, and within a couple of hours, she`s gone. We first got alerted to her disappearance when her 9- year-old son comes home from school, no Mommy. He calls Grandmommy and Granddaddy. They contact her brother.
To Alexis Tereszcuk, senior reporter, Radaronline.com, the brother then texts and calls Michelle. She sends back a very unusual text. What did we learn about that text she sends the brother?
TERESZCUK: What we`ve learned is that it`s just one word, and it`s "Waterford." And that was the area where her car was eventually found. This was very upsetting to the family. They said she would never just send a one-word text message. She would have been a lot chattier. And this, at the time, maybe didn`t make sense. But when the car was found there, it was incredibly suspicious and seemed like a really bad coincidence.
GRACE: Everybody, we are taking your calls. Out to Beth in Tennessee. Hi, Beth. What`s your question?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Thank you so much, Nancy. I just want to say you are a warrior for victims of crimes that -- those victims that no longer have voices.
GRACE: Thank you.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It means so much to everyone. Thank you so much.
GRACE: Thank you.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Has there been any (INAUDIBLE) identification on this particular body that was found? Can -- are they questioning anyone, also? That`s the only thing that I can really think of right at this moment.
GRACE: Well, it`s interesting, Ellie Jostad. There`s not a positive ID on the body yet. They can do that through DNA, or much more quickly through dental records or through identifiable tattoos.
To Rory O`Neill, reporter at Metro Networks. Now, Michelle Parker, to my understanding, did not have any tattoos at all, is that correct?
O`NEILL: Yes. None are included in the description the police have put out in trying to find her.
GRACE: Unleash the lawyers. Joining us tonight, Pilar Prinz, defense attorney, Kirby Clements, defense attorney, joining us out of Atlanta.
Pilar, number one, this is what I don`t understand. The SWAT team in the last hours swoops in on the ex`s family home. Number one, why do they have -- give me that video in full, please. Why do they have to have a search warrant? Why didn`t the in-laws allow police in? And number two, why did the family, the father-in-law have to be handcuffed, Pilar? I mean, if cops showed up at your house, Pilar, would you resist? Would you not want them in your home? Would there be a situation where you had to be cuffed and sat down on the curb out in front of your house, Pilar?
PILAR PRINZ, DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Nancy, I`ll answer your question. If it were my house, no. Of course not. I would let them in. But we don`t know that they resisted. We don`t know that they didn`t just go get a search warrant because they were concerned. And this seems like a little bit of overdramatization to me, they show up with a SWAT team, they handcuff everybody, they pull them out? For what? They found nothing.
GRACE: OK, Kirby Clements, did you ever think they needed to cuff them?
KIRBY CLEMENTS, DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Well, if they had a no-knock warrant, they would have cuffed them just for the officers` safety. It`s standard procedure that the police do. (INAUDIBLE) little bit overkill, but probably not necessary in this case.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Whatever problems you two juveniles have, OK, because you act more -- my 14-year-old has a more mature relationship with her boyfriend than you guys do.
(CROSSTALK)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You`re both, like, complete idiots. Please stop, OK? You have to at least -- you have to at least say to yourselves, We brought the twins into the world. We want our -- do you love your children?
DALE SMITH, JR., CONTESTANT: Yes, I love my children.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Do you love your...
(CROSSTALK)
MICHELLE PARKER, CONTESTANT: Absolutely.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: OK. You have to at least, at least effectively co-parent them. That`s the only (INAUDIBLE) you two need to have.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GRACE: You`re seeing video from YouTube and Warner Brothers. That`s Michelle on "People`s Court." The afternoon it aired, just a couple hours later, she goes missing without a trace. The last we know of her, her cell phone powered down around 8:00 PM that evening. That was the last ping on that cell phone. We don`t even know if it was her that powered her cell phone off for good.
Joining me right now a special guest, Andy Lamprey, former LAPD SWAT, B.P. Andrews International Security Consulting.
Andy, thank you for being with us. Question. This was, from what I understand, a search warrant that was executed in a late night raid. And the father-in-law was put in cuffs. Could that be SOP, standard operating procedure?
ANDY LAMPREY, FMR. LAPD SWAT TEAM SGT. (via telephone): Certainly could. Placing handcuffs on a person is not a punitive measure. It`s intended to control. It can be a protective measure. And in this case, I suspect that`s exactly what the handcuffs were placed on the individual for.
And in fact, in many of these situations, if not all of them, the SWAT team that makes entry into a location, they don`t know who`s inside. They don`t know who they`re dealing with. Until all the parties are identified properly and there`s some sense of feeling that that proper identification has been made, the police have to be on guard for any eventuality.
GRACE: With me, former SWAT team sergeant Andy Lamprey. Andy, another question. Is it SOP to execute a search warrant with a SWAT team?
LAMPREY: Quite often it is, Nancy. And again, it depends on the situation. If a search warrant is merely to search for evidence of a crime and there`s no danger of injury of (INAUDIBLE) entry would probably be made by patrolling (ph) detectives. In this case, where they don`t know if they`re dealing with a suspect inside who might attempt some kind of flight, or even worse, to barricade himself inside -- I`m not sure if they had their concern that there might be other people inside that could be taken hostage. So there`s a lot of things that need be considered when a SWAT team decides to make an entry. And I might add, too, SWAT is an acronym, Special Weapons And Tactics. The emphasis is on tactics.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: As you all know 11 days ago Michelle Parker was reported missing. The Orlando Police Department immediately involved other law enforcement agencies, media and the public to assist us in locating Miss Parker.
After numerous tips and investigative leads we are officially naming Dale Smith, the ex-fiance, as the primary suspect in the disappearance of Michelle Parker. Many questions will be asked why Dale Smith wasn`t considered a suspect prior to today and the answer is, we had to look at every aspect in the case before we could come out publicly and state that Mr. Smith is our primary focus.
MICHELLE PARKER, MISSING MOM: I stuffed it in the plastic bag. I remember walking in the bathroom. The officer is leaning up against the door, pulling the door open. He`s standing like right in the middle and then there`s another officer to his right.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: He`s getting inside or outside --
PARKER: He`s just outside the door maybe about a foot. And then he said that he wanted his ring. So I took it off. And I threw it at him.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GRACE: You`re seeing video from YouTube and Warner Brothers. That`s Michelle on "People`s Court." It aired that afternoon between 2:00 and 2:30 in Orlando. Within a couple of hours Michelle Parker is gone. Leaving behind an 11-year-old son who comes home from school, no mommy there. He`s in the home alone. She had dropped her twins off, age 3, at the bio dad. That`s the last time she`s seen alive.
I want to go out to a special guest joining us, Larry Fishelson, telecom expert, founder and CEO of Dynalink Communications.
Larry, thank you for being with us. Larry, what does it mean that that same evening, 8:00 p.m., we get a ping off Michelle`s phone. It`s about seven miles north of where she lives in the vicinity of where the ex lives. The phone is powered down.
LARRY FISHELSON, TELECOMMUNICATION EXPERT, CO-FOUNDER AND COO OF DYNALINK COMMUNICATIONS: Yes, Nancy, pleasure of having me on. What you`re able to tell by that is the cell phone gets triangulated through to the three closest towers. And if you take the three closes towers and do a ping, you`ll be able to track that cell phone within a mile in an urban area, five miles max, and in a rural, remote area, so there was definitely a call made that we can be able to tell within that location for sure.
GRACE: Well, Mr. Fishelson, does it mean -- does your phone ping when you power it down? Could that have resulted in the ping?
FISHELSON: No. That would not have resulted in the ping. The ping was definitely made by a text and it`s 100 percent been able to be tracked by the phone provider carrier. So for sure there was a text placed at that location. Now the only thing is, do we know for sure who placed that text.
GRACE: You`re right. Because I`m going to talk about a mystery text that went -- was sent from her phone earlier that day.
So, Larry, why are you saying it was definitely a text as opposed to a phone call coming in or being placed?
FISHELSON: Well, it could have been a phone call but I believe, you know, what we found out that it was a text message. But it could be also a phone call going out.
GRACE: So you believe she received or sent out --
FISHELSON: There`s will not be a phone call coming in.
GRACE: OK. You wouldn`t get a ping --
FISHELSON: It would be a text message going out or a phone call going out because you`re able to track it through the signals of the towers.
GRACE: Got it.
FISHELSON: So the reason I mention text because I believe the situation.
GRACE: Ah-ha. Ah-ha. She was quite a texter.
Now that was at 8:00 p.m. Then how do we -- how can you tell from a telecommunications viewpoint that her phone was powered down at 8:00 p.m. that evening? How do we know that?
FISHELSON: Well, you never know for sure the time it`s powered down but you got to look at cell phones that normally have five hours of battery time. So you have to just kind of guess on that. There`s no way to exactly know when the phone was powered down.
GRACE: Ellie Jostad on the story.
Ellie, how do we know the phone was powered down at 8:00? Has the phone itself been found? Where was her pocketbook, credit cards and all that?
ELLIE JOSTAD, NANCY GRACE CHIEF EDITORIAL PRODUCER: Yes, Nancy, that`s one thing that the police won`t confirm exactly, is how they were able to determine when the phone was powered down but the family, as you know, has focused their search effort around that area where the phone was pinging.
However, they have not recovered the phone. Family says that they did find her purse and some of her favorite CDs in her vehicle when it was recovered at that condo complex a few miles away but did not find her keys, and like I said did not find that iPhone.
GRACE: Everyone, at this hour we learn a body has been found in a nearby lake. We are waiting to hear more information on that. But this is what we do know.
Rory O`Neill, take me through the timeline very quickly.
RORY O`NEILL, REPORTER, METRO NETWORK, COVERING STORY: When we last heard from Michelle when she dropped off her 3-year-old twins at their father`s home at his condo where he lives. And that that was the last we`ve seen of her.
Now what we`re trying to figure out is where she went from there because she was supposed to be going to work. She works as a bartender at a place up in Sanford which is about 30 miles outside of downtown Orlando. So somewhere -- and she never showed up for work and that`s what all started raising suspicions obviously.
Now that ping is interesting, too, because the text that she sent, the last text was the word "Waterford" which is believed to a reference to Waterford Lakes which is a large neighborhood and shopping center on the east side of Orlando but her SUV was found on the south side of Orlando, and that last ping was also on the south side of the community.
So it`s a bit of a mystery as to why these conflicting pieces of information are there and police are trying to mesh them together.
GRACE: OK. To Alexis Tereszcuk, the ex lives where? Is he anywhere near Waterford?
ALEXIS TERESZCUK, REPORTER, RADAROLINE.COM: I believe he is a few miles away from there but it`s not a neighborhood that she would normally frequent. So there is really no reason for her to go there, I believe. Her family said she didn`t have an appointment there and she doesn`t have friend there. And she wasn`t going the mall there. She was just dropping her babies off.
And then I believe she was actually supposed to go home because her 11-year-old was home and she`s always home when he comes home from school. And then later that evening, as Rory has said, she was supposed to go to work but she never showed up there. So the little boy alerted people first and then she didn`t show up for work.
GRACE: OK, so Ellie, there`s a few more things in the timeline that I think are integral. Number one I`m not sure that everybody knew the episode of "People`s Court" was going to air that day but it did, starting at 2:00 p.m. Eastern there in the Orlando area. It aired for an hour.
Her segment, we believe, was right off the bat at 2:00. At this same time she`s headed over to the ex-fiance`s home, the bio dad of her twins. We have been told, Ellie, that video has emerged of her around 3:15 taking her twins to the ex`s. We haven`t been able to confirm that video yet -- video surveillance. Could be from a home or -- you know, a shopping mall, a gas station, we don`t know.
But we do know at 3:30 she can`t be found. Is that correct, Ellie? And where is Waterford?
JOSTAD: Exactly. That`s exactly correct, Nancy. And the thing is that, as you say 3:30, that`s when the 11-year-old son comes home from school. Mom is supposed to there. She isn`t. He contacts his grandmother. Then we believe the family is looking for her. And that`s when the brother sends her a text message saying, you know, where are you. She writes him back a one word text that her family says is very unusual that just says Waterford.
GRACE: And where is that in relation to the ex`s home, Ellie?
JOSTAD: Well, Nancy, that`s a couple of miles away. I believe it`s a bit to the east of where the ex lives.
GRACE: When you say a couple, do you mean two or 20?
JOSTAD: Two. More like two.
GRACE: So, in that area Waterford is the area where the ex lives.
All right. To tonight`s case alert the search goes on for a Texas teen, a 13-year-old cheerleader Hailey Dunn. She leaves home by foot in broad daylight to a little friend`s home then vanishes. Last seen December 2010 by her mother`s live-in, a person of interest.
FBI still combing evidence including thousands of images of child porn, documents about serial killer seized from the family home.
Where is Hailey? Call Colorado Police, 325-728-222984.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: She`s my daughter. She`s a 13-year-old baby and I want her back. I want her back home more than I`ve ever wanted anything in my life. Come home to me. I need her. I could fix anything for her.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Michelle`s voice, she`s my baby. She`s a human being. She needs to come home.
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: A beautiful young woman who vanished without a trace.
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: The pattern of this case quite unusual.
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: She had just made an appearance on "The People`s Court" with her former fiance the day she disappeared. Her ex is not considered a suspect.
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: And family members say she dropped off the children at his condo on Thursday and that`s the last time anybody heard from Michelle.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: She`s amazing. And she`s beautiful inside and out.
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: The only clue left behind, a cryptic text.
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Organized search near the location of the cell phone tower where Parker`s last phone transmission was received.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I hope we find her and bring her home.
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Trying to remain hopeful that the 33-year-old mother of three will be found safe.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: This isn`t a wallet. This isn`t just a purse. This is my baby girl.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GRACE: We are taking your calls at this hour. A body fished out of a local lake. Is it related to the disappearance of this young mom of three, leaving behind an 11-year-old and a set of 3-year-old twins, boy and girl. She`s been called the "People`s Court" mom because literally, just minutes before she goes missing, her segment on "People`s Court" aired where she fights it out with her ex over a luxury diamond engagement ring.
Out to Steve Kardian, former police detective, self-defense expert, lead instructor at Defend University -- Steve, weigh in.
STEVE KARDIAN, FMR. POLICE DETECTIVE, SELF-DEFENSE EXPERT, LEAD INSTRUCTOR AT DEFEND UNIVERSITY: Nancy, we see that the purse was left behind in the car. So we know it`s not a robbery. We couple that with the violent past that they had. We couple that that men are -- one of the biggest fears that they have is being embarrassed in front of other men. That`s accomplished, too.
And we see that two-thirds of the women that are killed in the United States are killed by their significant others. So I think that`s going to lead us right down the path to find out who kidnapped her and not carjacked her.
GRACE: You know, another interesting part, Steve Kardian, is that whoever did this took the time to scrape those giant decals off -- let`s see them again, Liz -- off the back of her Hummer. What about that, Steve? What carjacker -- what random carjacker would take the time do that?
KARDIAN: No random carjacker would take the time to do that. As Pat Brown said earlier, it likely signifies that, in fact, it is someone she knows.
GRACE: Because, you know, Steve, the reality is you carjack a car and you grab a woman out of the car? Who is going to take time to go over and try to scrape a decal off? Are you kidding me? That`s not a random carjack.
KARDIAN: It`s not a random carjack. It`s a kidnapping, Nancy.
GRACE: To Leslie Seppinni, Dr. Seppinni, clinical psychologist, author of "Who is Casey Anthony?"
Dr. Leslie, weigh in.
LESLIE SEPPINNI, PSY.D., CLINICAL PSYCHOLOGIST: You know, I think this case is, unfortunately, all too familiar. Men that have a history of domestic violence -- this gentleman has a history since 1997 and as it`s been pointed out was discharged dishonorably. And so his violence and his temperament has escalated over the years. And so it`s escalated to a point where we now have the perfect storm of murder.
This is a guy who has low self-esteem, low frustration tolerance, poor coping strategies and only knows violence as a way of dealing with things.
GRACE: Joining us, Dr. Gwen O`Keefe, pediatrician, founder and CEO of PediatricsNow.com.
Dr. Gwen, thank you for being with us. Some local reports have stated that in that search conducted, a nighttime search of the ex`s family included tear gas, the use of tear gas. What effect would tear gas have on an individual?
DR. GWENN O`KEEFE, M.D., PEDIATRICIAN, FOUNDER & CEO, PEDIATRICSNOW.COM: Well, Nancy, in addition to tear gas being, in my opinion, an extreme method for a routine search, it will have a profound effect -- for one thing it`s loud. So it`s -- it could damage your hearing and ears but it`s intended to sort of stun a person. So it`s going to cause temporary blindness, it will irritate all of your mucous membranes. So your eyes, your mouth, your nose. Some people start to wheeze.
If there were kids or small children present I would be worried that they would be frightened to profound degree. So it`s a profound method of stunning people into submission.
GRACE: Now various reports, Rory O`Neill, Metro Networks, that tear gas was actually used in the late-night search of the ex`s family home. What do you know, Rory?
O`NEILL: Well, I haven`t seen the tear gas reports. But I know everyone was cuffed because there were about half a dozen of people in the home at that time. And you were saying before, you know, it is standard operating procedure for police to use these flex cuffs in order to contain the scene.
They found six people, maybe there were seven or eight. So it really was just a measure to try to get through that house methodically, find what they were looking for which police say they didn`t find because they certainly did not find Michelle.
GRACE: Ellie Jostad, weigh in.
JOSTAD: Well, Nancy, the other thing to keep in mind, too, is that even though this was the holiday weekend those volunteers were still out searching, including on Thanksgiving, including black Friday handing out pictures of Michelle to shoppers. So they`re trying to get everybody in the Orlando metro -- area to keep a lookout for her, lookout for any clues that might lead to Michelle.
GRACE: Liz, do we still have Andy Lamfrey?
ANDY LAMFREY, FORMER LAPD SWAT TEAM SERGEANT, VP, ANDREWS INTERNATIONAL SECURITY CONSULTING: Yes.
GRACE: OK, Andy, joining us, former LAPD SWAT sergeant. What about tear gas, Andy? Why would you use that? We`re still trying to confirm it was actually used, but isn`t that a little extreme in a search?
LAMFREY: Well, again, Nancy, without knowing the particulars, right, this is the first I`ve heard that tear gas was employed.
GRACE: Yes.
LAMFREY: But if it was, again, tear gas is -- although it`s very uncomfortable, it`s not lethal, and tactical units do not want to deploy lethal force unless it`s absolutely necessary and in this case it sounds like it certainly was not necessary but if they can induce a surrender by peaceful means then that is certainly the best way to go.
And tear gas has a lasting effect, several minutes to half an hour, so it`s washed out of the eyes with plain water and usually recovery is very quick.
GRACE: OK. We`re still trying to confirm that. We`ve only heard that out of one local report. Other reports have not said anything about tear gas being used.
To Crystal in Kentucky. Hi, Crystal. What`s your question?
CRYSTAL, CALLER FROM KENTUCKY: Hi, Nancy, just quickly. Are we going to see any Christmas pics of the twins? And also --
GRACE: You absolutely are.
CRYSTAL: Great. They look just like you.
Also to her mother, if she`s still there, do they have any idea why the ex fiance dad`s, the family, why the area was searched in the way it was searched, how they went in there?
GRACE: Alexis Tereszcuk, what do we know about why the -- why the home was searched?
TERESZCUK: We understand there are conflicting reports. There might have been a tip but the police have been very tight lipped about this. You know they`ve said constantly that Dale Smith Jr., the father of the twins, is not a suspect but they did go to his father`s home. So the police again have been very quiet but it seems like that they have very credible evidence. They did get a search warrant from a judge to do it.
GRACE: Everybody, we`re going to break. We`re taking your calls. We are live in the Orlando area with the latest on the search for a missing young mom of three.
Very quickly, the "Nancy Grace Family Album" is back. Please share your favorite family photos with us through our iReport Family Album. We`re going to feature them in a special segment on the show. Go to HLNTV.com/NancyGrace and you click on "Nancy`s Family Album."
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: As you all know, 11 days ago, Michelle Parker was reported missing. The Orlando Police Department immediately involved other law enforcement agencies, media, and the public to assist us in locating Miss Parker.
After numerous tips and investigative leads, we are officially naming Dale Smith, the ex-fiance, as the primary suspect in the disappearance of Michelle Parker. Many questions will be asked why Dale Smith wasn`t considered a suspect prior to today, and the answer is we had to look at every aspect in the case before we could come out publicly and state that Mr. Smith is our primary focus.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GRACE: Out to the lines, Taquanda, Florida. Hi, dear. What`s your question?
TAQUANDA, CALLER FROM FLORIDA: Hello?
GRACE: Hi, dear, what`s your question quickly?
TAQUANDA: Yes, ma`am. I wanted to know they found the truck by this lake, why didn`t they search the lake at that time instead of waiting until now to go and search that lake?
GRACE: OK, hold on, Taquanda. They found what by the lake?
TAQUANDA: Didn`t they find her truck near that lake?
GRACE: OK, let`s find out.
Ellie, is the truck -- was the Hummer found near the lake or not?
JOSTAD: Well, not really, Nancy. I mean it`s the same general area, both where the car was found and where this lake is, it`s near the Mall of Millennia, but the car was parked at an apartment complex, not directly next to a lake.
GRACE: But Taquanda has a point because it`s all -- none of it is far away. And a body of water is one of the first places you look, Taquanda. You`re right.
Everybody, tip line, 800-423-8477. There is a reward in the search for Michelle.
Let`s stop and remember Marine Lance Corporal Billy Brixey, Jr., 21, Ferriday, Louisiana, killed Afghanistan. Purple Heart, Afghanistan Campaign medal, National Defense Service medal.
Star football player. Dreamed of being a quarterback for the Saints. High school football award, named after him. Leaves behind father, Billy, stepmother Cassandra, grandparents Joe and Betty. Brothers James, Jerry, and Adam, sisters, Alexandra, Kirsten, and Samantha.
Billy Brixey -- Billy Brixey, Jr. American hero.
Thanks to our guests but especially to you for being with us. And tonight, a special thank you to Air Force Special Ops Combat Control, past and present, putting their lives in harm`s way for our freedom.
Thank you, Special-Ops Combat Control.
And happy birthday to our Alabama friend Doris celebrating her 65th anniversary, also to husband Ferris. Now he must have something special to keep her interested for 65 years.
Mom to three, including one of our stars, Dee. Grandmother of eight.
Happy birthday, Doris, and anniversary.
Everyone, I`ll see you tomorrow night, 8:00 sharp Eastern. And until then, good night, friend.
END
