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Nancy Grace

Whitney Cause of Death Drowning, Cocaine, Heart Disease; Police Chief in the Trayvon Martin Case Steps Down

Aired March 22, 2012 - 20:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

RITA COSBY, GUEST HOST: And breaking news tonight in the sudden death of Whitney Houston. As we go to air this evening, Houston`s cause of death has now been revealed, toxicology reports confirm America`s beautiful songbird accidentally drowning from the effects of heart disease and cocaine. And not only that, multiple prescription drugs also found in Houston`s system.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The death of a music legend.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Houston was found dead in the bathtub in her Beverly Hills hotel room.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Her entourage finds her submerged, face below the water line, not breathing.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Breaking news. The LA County coroner has released their findings. The cause of death is drowning and the effects of both heart disease and cocaine use.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Struggled with addiction her whole -- really her whole adult life.

DIANE SAWYER, ABC NEWS: Is it alcohol? Is it marijuana? Is it cocaine? Is it pills?

WHITNEY HOUSTON, SINGER: It has been.

SAWYER: If you had to name the devil for you?

HOUSTON: That would be me.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: She was in and out of rehab.

HOUSTON: I don`t do crack. I don`t do that. Crack is whack.

OPRAH WINFREY, TALK SHOW HOST: Your drug of choice was weed combined with cocaine.

HOUSTON: Cocaine, rock cocaine.

WINFREY: With rock cocaine?

HOUSTON: Yes. You put your marijuana, you lace it, you roll it up and smoke it in your weed. It`s just another form. It`s like -- almost like heroin and cocaine, speedballing, but you level it off with marijuana, OK?

WINFREY: Oh, OK.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Toxicology reports show cocaine metabolites and marijuana were in her system and that cocaine was a part of the cause of her death.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSBY: And you just saw video from ABC News and Harpo Productions.

Also tonight, tensions mounting after the shooting death of an unarmed 17-year-old Florida teenager, Trayvon Martin, by a neighborhood watch volunteer. Rallies spread across the country, demanding an arrest.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We`re not getting any answers.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It`s a full and complete investigation that is fair and will be presented to the state attorney`s office.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We don`t want the buck passed from agency to agency. We want to have George Zimmerman arrested!

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Mr. Zimmerman has made the statement of self- defense.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He had a 9-millimeter gun. Trayvon Martin had a bag of Skittles. Where is the self-defense in that?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Until we can establish probable cause to dispute that, we don`t have the grounds to arrest him.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The police department are our protectors and defenders. When they fail to do their job, there is going to be a lack of trust.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Why the Sanford Police Department is really sitting on their hands on this.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We`re going to turn this over to the Department of Justice and their investigation because the family does not trust the Sanford Police Department in anything to do with the investigation.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We just want answers, and nobody`s giving us anything.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSBY: And good evening, everybody. I`m Rita Cosby, in for Nancy Grace. Thank you for being with us.

Tonight, some big breaking developments at this hour. Music legend Whitney Houston`s death has been ruled an accidental drowning from heart disease and cocaine use.

And for the very latest on this stunning autopsy, which is just in, and also the toxicology report, let`s go to straight to CNN correspondent Kareen Wynter, who`s outside the LA coroner`s office. Kareen, what do we know tonight?

KAREEN WYNTER, CNN ENTERTAINMENT CORRESPONDENT: Well, Rita, we definitely have some new information to fill you in on. According to Los Angeles County coroner, there was acute cocaine use in the time period prior to Whitney Houston`s collapse at the hotel room, meaning it obviously was found in her system and that she consumed cocaine a short time before getting into that bathtub and subsequently drowning.

There are so many questions right now as to whether or not Whitney Houston had an actual heart attack. Sure, she had heart disease, but was there a heart attack that occurred? According to officials, they say they`re not able, Rita, to specifically determine if Houston actually died of a heart attack, but they say something occurred that caused her to slip under that water and drown. They added cocaine can, of course, trigger a heart attack.

Another thing that they added was that Whitney Houston`s well-known drug history over time contributed to her heart disease. Was alcohol a factor here? There were so many reports that Houston consumed alcohol the days leading up to her death, even the day that she died. Well, they say that it was a minimal amount, that it was not a contributing factor here.

The toxicology report, Rita, was ready mid-week this week. Family members were notified today. No reaction from the family. We asked officials that. But the detailed toxicology report that will have the doctor`s findings, more on the autopsy, the level of drugs in her system and where things stood at time of her death -- that will be released, Rita, in the next couple weeks.

COSBY: And Dorothy Cascerceri from "In Touch Weekly," there was also, basically, it seemed like a cauldron in Whitney Houston`s system, according to this toxicology report just in, as we just heard from Kareen, obviously, cocaine in her system, but there was a lot more in her system, too.

DOROTHY CASCERCERI, "IN TOUCH WEEKLY": There absolutely was a lot more in her system, Rita. You`re exactly correct. They found marijuana in her system. They found a muscle relaxer, Benadryl. They found Xanax, which is an anti-anxiety drug.

And all of those things really relax your body and really allow you to go into a peaceful-like state. And so it definitely, you know, makes sense that those things were found.

COSBY: Don Lemon, no cocaine, though, in the hotel room. This is very significant, don`t you think?

DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR: Yes, it is very significant. And people are going to wonder, and of course, investigators are going to wonder where she got the cocaine from because as you heard Kareen say, it was consumed shortly before her death. How much time before her death, we`re not sure.

But here`s what`s interesting to me. And I have to tell you, I spoke with Ed Winter, the assistant chief corner. Here`s what he said to me. And this report specifically says drowning, the effects of arteriosclerotic heart disease and cocaine use.

He said to me -- I said, Which one? Which one, Coroner, was the overriding contributor? What about the other substances found in her system?

He said all of them, Rita. I said, Well, what do you mean? And he said she was taking a bath, she had a heart attack, she was taking cocaine, and she went under the water. So according to Ed Winter, when I spoke to the coroner, he believes that she, in fact, did have a heart attack and that was a contributing factor to her death.

And cocaine is also listed. Listen, she drowned, but had she not had years of abuse on her body from cocaine use, years of abuse on her body, on her heart from cocaine use, she would not have slipped under the water.

So don`t get this mistaken and twisted and saying, you know, Whitney Houston died because she drowned. Yes, that was the cause of death, but the other things contributed to it. Abuse contributed to Whitney Houston`s death, her abuse of a lethal drug, cocaine.

COSBY: Yes, and it sounds like, as you`re pointing out, Don, repeatedly over time.

Let`s go to Sheryl Martin-Schild. She`s a vascular neurologist and an expert at this. You`re hearing all this stuff from Don, from everyone else. What do you interpret from this report just in?

DR. SHERYL MARTIN-SCHILD, NEUROLOGIST (via telephone): Well, she certainly had cocaine in her system. And not only does chronic use predispose to problems with the blood vessels throughout the body, most relevant for the heart and the brain, but even...

COSBY: Sheryl -- explain to us, if you could, Sheryl, what happens with repeated cocaine use? And in fact, we`re hearing some reports that she had cocaine that day, indeed, right before she went into the bathtub. What physically happens? Walk us through sort of from a physical aspect to your arteries with cocaine.

MARTIN-SCHILD: Well, on a chronic basis, it causes acceleration of the formation of blockages in the heart and the brain vessels. And that leads to low blood flow delivery to the heart and to the brain, which can lead to problems with heart function, as well as heart attacks and stroke.

Acutely, when you take it even for the first time, it causes a blood pressure surge. It causes the heart rate to go up. And in somebody who has compromised blood flow to the heart, like they found in Whitney Houston, it reduces the oxygen delivery even to the heart at a time when the cocaine is making the heart have to work harder.

COSBY: And surgeon and pathologist Dr. Bill Lloyd, I have to ask you, if she was not in the bathtub, could she have survived what was happening to her heart, do we know?

DR. BILL LLOYD, SURGEON AND PATHOLOGIST: Well, they said she died from drowning, so I`d have to say the answer is yes, Rita.

But listen to this. The best way to analyze autopsy results is to go through a reverse sequence. Why did she die? She died because she didn`t have enough oxygen to her heart and brain. Why didn`t she have enough oxygen? Because she was under water. Why was she under water? Because her body was unable to resist when submersion occurred.

And why was that? Either because she was unconscious, because of a heart attack, or because of the drugs that she was taking. They all combined to put her under water. She couldn`t come up. She drowned. She died.

COSBY: Don Lemon, I want to ask you, are you hearing that the cocaine use was immediately before she got into the bathtub? I understand the timing, I think, is really critical here.

LEMON: Here`s what -- now, listen, this is what we have been reporting. Her cocaine use appeared to have -- and this is a quote from Craig Harvey (ph), who is the assistant chief coroner. He coroner said in the time period just immediately prior to her collapse in the bathtub at the hotel -- I`m only quoting the assistant chief coroner here. So whether that was minutes, whether that was an hour, I don`t know. But he said, Immediately prior. That`s his quote.

And as you said to me, your first question, it wasn`t found in the room. Investigators are going to want to know where she got it, who was she using it with, if it was herself, if she consumed all of it? If it wasn`t found on her, where is the rest of it? Where are the traces of the cocaine from the room?

COSBY: Yes, absolutely. Who hid it or did she hide it? That`s a lot of questions right there.

Let`s go to Dr. Bill Lloyd again. Doctor, I got to ask you, in light of what we just heard from Don and everybody, this news is just breaking -- you`re getting it just as we are getting it in to us, breaking news about Whitney Houston, the cause of death, the autopsy report just coming in, the toxicology report showing, indeed, an accidental drowning, as we`re hearing, also heart disease and also cocaine in her system, among a number of other drugs, but cocaine being the contributing factor, along with these others, to her death.

Dr. Bill Lloyd, I want to ask you, based on what we just heard from Don, the fact that this apparently happened, this cocaine use, soon before her drowning and her death, how long, normally, or to have that kind of an effect -- I realize it varies probably from patient to patient, but is there any sense of a timeframe you can get from this information we`re just hearing here?

LLOYD: Sure. The effects of cocaine lasts minutes, the toxic effects of cocaine. It`ll be important to know how long was she off of cocaine before she started again the day she died? In fact, had she been clean for a while and then just started up again, she would have been a cocaine virgin.

Rita, that`s like asking somebody to get out and sprint a mile who`s not in good physical conditioning, leading to the heart changes that caused her to stop breathing and to become submerged in the tub.

COSBY: And Dr. Bill Lloyd, do we have a sense of how much cocaine could have had that impact, or again, does it vary from person to person, the amount?

LLOYD: Sadly, it could have just been one single hit, one fatal hit that could have caused those changes that you heard about in the blood vessels, starving the heart, causing an arrhythmia, leading to her being unconscious. Down she goes.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: A sad chapter, a final chapter in her life.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Heart disease and cocaine directly related to the drowning...

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The fame and fortune of Whitney Houston.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Music`s most awarded female artist of all time.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We`ve got the results from the coroner in Los Angeles.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: She struggled with drugs and alcohol.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What may have contributed to her untimely passing.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Manner of death, accident.

SAWYER: Do you think of yourself as an addict?

HOUSTON: I am addicted to a few things. Nobody makes me do anything I don`t want to do.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Drowning and the effects of heart disease and cocaine use.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Drugs don`t care about your level of sophistication. They want your life.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: She was found submerged in a bathtub filled with water and cocaine intake.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSBY: And that was video of Whitney Houston on ABC with Diane Sawyer. If you`re just joining us tonight, this is Rita Cosby, in for Nancy Grace.

The news just coming in to us. These are the autopsy, the toxicology reports in the death of beautiful songbird, 48-year-old Whitney Houston. We`re just getting word it was an accidental drowning deemed by the LA County coroner`s office, and also heart disease and cocaine found in her system, among other things.

Let`s go to CNN producer Natisha Lance. Give us the latest for our folks who are just tuning in, Natisha.

NATISHA LANCE, NANCY GRACE PRODUCER: Well, Rita, we are just hearing the news now that Whitney Houston`s autopsy has been released. Toxicology reports are back. Whitney Houston died of a drowning. She died in that bathtub at the Beverly Hills Hilton.

Now, the cause of death, we are hearing that is a drowning, but in addition to that, there was also heart disease and also cocaine that were contributing factors to that. There were other addictive medications that were in her system at the time. There was Xanax. There was also Flexeril. There was also marijuana that was in her system.

Now, we have heard if earlier interviews with Whitney Houston that her drug of choice was marijuana with cocaine wrapped up in that. We don`t know at this point how she was using those drugs, but we are hearing now that all those drugs were in her system.

And again, the cause of death, drowning, contributing factors, heart disease, as well as cocaine use.

COSBY: And one of the things we were talking also, no cocaine found in the room. And to me, that is a very big story, everybody. Did Whitney Houston hide it herself? Look, she`s an addict. What do they do? What do addicts do to hide that kind of trace evidence? Can they do that good of a job?

The other question is, did somebody in the room hide evidence, and therefore hide evidence to authorities?

Let`s go to Detective Lieutenant Steve Rogers with the Nutley Police Department, who`s with us. I got to ask you, Detective, sounds pretty fishy to me, no trace of cocaine in the room, and yet there`s enough in her system to cause -- partly cause her death?

DET. LT. STEVE ROGERS, NUTLEY, NJ, POLICE DEPARTMENT: Boy, what a huge factor. What a huge development. Rita, two things are going to happen. The police are going to endeavor (ph) where she got the cocaine, but more importantly, where it went, if, in fact, it was in that room.

And I`ve got to tell you, if someone went into that room and took that evidence, they can be charged and they can be very -- in a lot of serious trouble because that may be key evidence to the cause of death.

COSBY: You bet. Joey Jackson, defense attorney -- Joey, this smells pretty bad, indeed, if we`re hearing -- and Don Lemon was just saying -- again, everybody, we`re just getting the word just in -- but the assistant coroner is basically telling Don -- he was saying that it was taken right before she died.

So either she`s a magician and able to suddenly get rid of the evidence or somebody else did. It sounds pretty fishy to me, don`t you think, Joey?

JOEY JACKSON, DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Absolutely, Rita. It really does. And obviously, at some point, it`ll be fully investigated, and a lot will be investigated, not only as to the under-market (ph) drugs like the cocaine and like the marijuana -- where did she get it from? Possession of those substances is illegal. The sale of those substances is illegal. Was there somebody who was conspiring who, you know, got that to her?

COSBY: Yes, who -- Joey, who sold her, right?

JACKSON: Exactly.

COSBY: Who gave it to her? I mean, that`s -- this opens a whole new trail, don`t you think?

JACKSON: It does 100 percent. And now you look to, Rita, the other drugs that she might have had in her system. Were they prescribed? Who were her doctors? Was she doctor shopping? Were they giving her medications that, in effect, they should not have been? And so all that will be determined in time.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

HOUSTON: I just don`t have hit records, I have a career.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Final cause of death has been determined. It`s been ruled drowning.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Her comeback, her career, and her life were cut short.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DIONNE WARWICK, HOUSTON`S COUSIN: She had everything in the world to live for.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Heart disease and cocaine directly related to the drowning.

WARWICK: She had a new film that was her absolute dream to make.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: That`s the bottom line here.

WARWICK: She was getting ready to go back in the studio to record.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Drowning, as well as heart disease and cocaine found in Whitney Houston`s system.

WARWICK: It hasn`t really sunk in yet.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSBY: And that is Whitney Houston`s cousin, the famous Dionne Warwick, on ABC`s "Good Morning America."

If you`re just joining us tonight, this is Rita Cosby, in for Nancy Grace.

In just the last few minutes, the results coming in, some big breaking news. The cause of death has been determined for Whitney Houston, 48-year- old Whitney Houston. She died on February 11th. Now here it is about a month-and-a-half later, and the results just coming in.

Apparently, she died from an accidental drowning determined by the Los Angeles coroner`s department, and also cocaine found in her system and heart disease. Sounds like she had a heart attack from the cocaine and then drowned when she was in the bathtub.

Let`s go to Kareen Wynter from CNN. Kareen, I want to ask you, the days leading up to her death, there were reports in the hotel -- she was there, of course, for the Grammy party with Clive Davis, her long-time friend. There were so many stories about her drinking at the bar and all these other things.

Tell us what you know about those critical days leading up to this moment.

WYNTER: Well, just from sources, people in the entertainment industry, people who`ve worked with her, known Whitney Houston for many years, I was able to confirm with them -- and then there were all the reports that you saw in the media -- that Whitney Houston was partying heavily in the days up to her death, even that pre-Grammy party with Kelly Price (ph), Kenny Latimore (ph). She was there enjoying herself.

What made the story so complicated is that it was so hard to get to the bottom of it because one person you talked to would say, No, she`s been clean for years, she was just hanging out, having fun at the party. Others would say, No, she was drinking, and probably drinking a little too much.

(CROSSTALK)

COSBY: But Kareen, what`s the bottom line?

WYNTER: The bottom line is that she was drinking, even at the Beverly Hilton Hotel.

COSBY: That morning!

(CROSSTALK)

WYNTER: Hotel workers said that she was consuming alcohol.

COSBY: And Kareen, we were hearing even that morning, at the pool, she was drinking, is that correct?

WYNTER: Absolutely. Absolutely. But what kind of factor did it play in this toxicology report in her death? Investigators -- and this is from their lips, Rita, that it did not play a factor here, that whatever alcohol was in her system, there was a minimal amount. It was not a contributing factor here. It`s the cocaine that really, really did her in.

COSBY: And let`s go to surgeon Dr. Bill Lloyd. We also know that when they found her, she was in the room for a long period of time, it seems like some before, and obviously, her body was there a long time after, right?

LLOYD: That`s right, Rita. We know for about eight hours after the time that she expired, she remained in the room. The remains remained in the room for about eight hours until they removed them and took them to the coroner`s office. All the while, the big Clive Davis party was going on downstairs in the Beverly Hills Hilton.

Now, we know also that Whitney Houston had pledged to go back into rehab the week after the Grammys. And we also know that addicts, knowing they`re heading into rehab, tend to binge since this is going to be it until they get out of rehab.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

WOLF BLITZER, ANCHOR, CNN`S "SITUATION ROOM": We now have the coroner`s report here from Los Angeles, California, on the death of Whitney Houston.

UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: The cause of death is drowning and the effects of both heart disease and cocaine use.

UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: There were other drugs they found in her system, marijuana, Xanax, the drug Flexeril, Benadryl, again, identified but did not contribute to Whitney Houston`s death.

DIANE SAWYER, ABC NEWS: Do you think of yourself as an addict?

WHITNEY HOUSTON, SINGER: I am addicted to a few things.

SAWYER: Like?

HOUSTON: Making love. I`m not a person who wants to die. I`m a person who has life, who wants to live.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

RITA COSBY, HLN GUEST HOST: And this is Rita Cosby in for Nancy Grace.

Word just coming in, if you are joining us, and we`re just getting the details just a few minutes ago as well, the cause of death determined for Whitney Houston. What caused her untimely passing at the age of 48 on February 11th? Well, now the word coming down from the Los Angeles County Coroner`s Department that it was an accidental drowning with contributing factors of heart disease, i.e., a heart attack, and cocaine use. Other drugs also found in her system.

Let`s go to Jane Velez-Mitchell. Jane, you know, so sad, when you hear these stories, and hear also what Don Lemon was telling us earlier, is what they`re telling him out there on the scene, that apparently, Jane, that apparently cocaine was taken very soon before she had this heart attack and died in the bathtub, essentially. She clearly was not off cocaine. She was clearly addicted.

JANE VELEZ-MITCHELL, HOST, HLN`S "ISSUES": Yes, and I think that the lesson here, Rita, is that once you`re an addict, you`re always an addict. And so many of the enablers surrounding her said, well, you know, she was no longer addicted to the hard stuff. She was just drinking champagne. And it doesn`t work that way. Either you`re sober or you`re not, and if you`re sober, you do not use any mood-altering substances unless absolutely necessary.

And I really do hope there`s an investigation into the doctor who may have been prescribing these two very, very strong mood-altering meds, the Xanax and the Flexeril, because why would she need a muscle relaxer? Did she have a serious physical injury? And even if she did, one Google search would have pointed out that she was a very well-known addict who had struggled with substance abuse, drugs for years.

You do not give muscle relaxers and anti-anxiety meds to known addicts. I think there should be an investigation into the doctor who prescribed these.

COSBY: Yes, it`s absolutely outrageous. The other thing, Jane, too, I`ve got to ask you, you know, you were an addict, you know, you`ve gone through this where you`ve got to have something. Yours was different, it was alcohol, it was something deferent. But still, where is the cocaine? No trace in the hotel, Jane.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Well, yes, as you so aptly put it. Was it a miracle? A magical disappearing act? Of course, if you`re taking cocaine and then getting into the tub, you`re going to have some trace elements, unless it`s removed. And there has been a lot of scuttle about, wondering, who were the people who had access to Whitney Houston? Because this would appear, possibly, whoever supplied her this drug, and she didn`t just get it out of thin air, she had to get it from somebody, might have been somebody who could have potentially been in her inner circle or had infiltrated her inner circle. I think there should be an investigation into that.

COSBY: You bet. Renee Rockwell, defense attorney, there`s a lot of great questions here I think that Jane raised. They`re going to be looking, who was in the room exactly when and did somebody hide evidence. Don`t you think, Renee?

RENEE ROCKWELL, DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Of course they are. But let me just stop the madness here. What we have is an addict who was going to get drugs from a number of people, a number of enablers, and all we`re doing is really wasting time. We need to focus on the solutions, not the problems. Because you`re never going to stop addicts. If you cut off the drugs, they`re going to be going to alcohol, whatever.

This is an addict and that`s what we need to pay attention to, the fact that people that are surrounding these individuals should never allow them to just drink or she`s just smoking a little bit of pot. If she`s an addict, she`s going to get whatever it`s going to make her feel good, whether it be legal, illegal, pot, Xanax, Benadryl, anything. She was an addict. And her surrounding friends, enemies, whatever you want to call them, allowed her to continue to lose -- to use, I`m sorry, and these losers have to blame themselves. This is not to be homicide --

COSBY: Yes, in fact, in fact, you bring up some great points, Renee, because you know what happened? There was a former bodyguard who`s even come out and said, I didn`t want her to take baths. I was worried about something like this.

Let`s go, if we could, let`s go to Bethany Marshall, psychoanalyst. Bethany, she was an addict. She obviously couldn`t help herself. But clearly some of these hanger honors weren`t doing a good job watching her. If the former bodyguard said, I didn`t want her to take a bath and here she is in the bathtub, looks like doing cocaine right before.

BETHANY MARSHALL, PSYCHOANALYST, AUTHOR OF "DEALBREAKERS": Look, here`s what I think happened. Bill Manion -- Dr. Manion raised a very important point. She was about to go into rehab. Addicts notoriously binge as they`re about to take up a responsibility that will require sobriety. This is what we saw with Michael Jackson.

The other thing addicts do, they ingeniously arrange their lives so that they are able to use without overdosing. A very common trick is as they`re starting to binge, they will check themselves into rehab, telling other people that they`re trying to get sober, but they`re not. They`re just using rehab as a way to slow down so they don`t overdose and kill themselves, so they can go right back out and use again.

So her home environment was probably very set up so that she gave herself a continual dose of drugs. And when she got out of that home environment, all of the other suppliers came out of the woodwork, she lost her bearings, and went out of control.

COSBY: And let`s go to Gary Catona, Whitney Houston`s vocal coach.

Gary, you were quoted as saying, when she passed, her lifestyle may have contributed to this. What`s your reaction to this news about the autopsy? The exact cause of death, cocaine playing a role?

GARY CATONA, WHITNEY HOUSTON`S VOCAL COACH: Not surprising, is it?

COSBY: No, it`s tragic. And you know, you see just this beautiful, incredibly talented woman who had every gift in the world, so many people who loved her, wonderful family, people who cared about her, and you saw the effects on her vocal cords years before, correct?

CATONA: Yes, when I went to see her in 2005, I was shocked at the condition of her voice. But equally surprising is that her voice quickly began to return. So I along with the people in her immediate group thought that perhaps she was on the road to recovery. And there were times I saw her during that period of time, she appeared to be doing better. You know, not to say that she was not abusing herself. I mean she still smoked, I saw no direct evidence of drugs. But, of course, if she were to do drugs, she wouldn`t do that around me anyway.

COSBY: Let`s go to Ken Padowitz, former prosecutor. You know, you just heard from Gary, of course, she would try to hide it from people, but it sounds like, there will now be a look at who gave her the cocaine, maybe some of these other prescriptions as well, right?

KEN PADOWITZ, FORMER PROSECUTOR: Absolutely, Rita. This is not just about someone who is an addict, this should be an open homicide investigation. The fact that the coroner determined that this was an accidental drowning - -

COSBY: Now why do you think it should be -- why do you think it should be a homicide? They`ve all said it`s accidental, and clearly, she -- you know, you don`t see someone injecting cocaine. She took it herself?

PADOWITZ: Well, you know, for instance, in the state of Florida, if you provide a controlled substance such as cocaine and it becomes the proximate cause of the death of the user --

COSBY: Even if you`re an addict? Even if --

PADOWITZ: That is first-degree murder.

COSBY: Ken, even if you`re an addict?

PADOWITZ: Absolutely. Absolutely, Rita, even if you`re an addict, it`s first-degree murder in the state of Florida, the highest crime that you can be charged with. Now every state has its own laws, but under another state`s laws, this can be manslaughter. Clearly they have to determine how much cocaine did she use, who provided that cocaine, how much of that was being used, who got rid of the cocaine, who is partying with her. All these questions need to be answered, because there may be someone who should be indicted for the death of Whitney Houston.

COSBY: And Jane Velez-Mitchell, do you think this opens up anything to homicide and do you think something else is here? I think they will certainly look at least the tapes, look to see who was in and out, who may have been around, maybe not contributing to the death, but in the cover-up. Real quick, Jane.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: I think that they`ve got to look at who was supplying her the drugs. And the sad fact is in America today, the pusher is often the doctor. That`s the dirty little secret in America today that we desperately need to look at. It`s not just Whitney, there are many, many people killing over from prescription drugs as a contributing factor, along with illegal drugs in America today.

COSBY: Absolutely. Very sad story and very sad result. Thanks, everybody.

Well, the "Nancy Grace Family Album" is back and we`re showcasing your photos. Tonight, the Gazboda family from Fort St. Lucy, Florida, Ronnie, Katie and their children Caden, Cameron, Connor and Caleb. They love the Miami Dolphins. Dad, Ronnie, is serving in the 820th at Moody Air Force Base in Georgia.

You can share your favorite family photos through the "Nancy Grace iReport Family Album." Just go to hlnTV.com/Nancygrace, and click on "Nancy`s Family Album."

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRACY MARTIN, TRAYVON MARTIN`S FATHER: We`re not getting any answers.

BILL LEE, SANFORD POLICE DEPARTMENT CHIEF: It`s a full and complete investigation that is fair and will be presented to the state attorney`s office.

BENJAMIN CRUMP, MARTIN FAMILY ATTORNEY: We don`t want the buck passed from agency to agency. We want to have George Zimmerman arrested.

LEE: Mr. Zimmerman has made the statement of self-defense.

CRUMP: He had a 9 millimeter gun. Trayvon Martin had a bag of Skittles. Where is the self-defense in that?

LEE: Until we can establish probable cause to dispute that, we don`t have the grounds to arrest him.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The police officers are our protectors and defenders. When they failed to do their job, there is going to be lack of trust.

MARTIN: Why the Sanford Police Department is really sitting on their hands on this.

CRUMP: We`re beginning to turn this over to the Department of Justice and their investigation, because the family does not trust the Sanford Police Department and anything to do with the investigation.

SYBRINA FULTON, TRAYVON MARTIN`S MOTHER: We just want answers, and nobody`s giving us anything.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSBY: And this is Rita Cosby, in for Nancy Grace. And big developments tonight in the case of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin, who was killed. He was shot by someone with his neighborhood watch and now some big developments with the police chief in the area.

Let`s go straight to Jane Velez-Mitchell for the very latest in this case. Jane?

VELEZ-MITCHELL: The local police chief is stepping down, but the big caveat, Rita, is that he said he`s stepping aside temporarily. And as he made this short statement and then exited, all the reporters were like, what do you mean, temporarily? What does that mean? Now, he said he didn`t want to be a distraction, but in fact, the way in which he stepped down, not taking any questions and then saying it was only temporary, as if maybe he was going to go on vacation or hiatus somewhere only created more questions.

And, in fact, provided a greater distraction. So critics at a massive rally today at ground zero in Sanford, people who had come from all over the country, including the mother of the teen who was slain, asking why? That`s not enough. Why step down temporarily? What does that even mean?

COSBY: Absolutely. Let`s go to Rory O`Neill, reporter with Clear Channel Radio.

Rory, you were at that massive rally that Jane was just talking about. What was the reaction? Again, temporarily leaving? And we`re looking at some incredible pictures. A huge turnout. There is such an uproar over this case, and the police chief just says, oh, I`m temporarily leaving and not answering questions. What`s that about, Rory?

RORY O`NEILL, REPORTER, CLEAR CHANNEL RADIO: It certainly didn`t satisfy anyone, but there was good news for the people who were trying to get arrest in this case. It was just within the past few hours, the governor announced he`s appointing a special prosecutor. The prosecutor who had been handling the case decided to step aside, too. So now a special prosecutor is being brought in from North Florida, in the Jacksonville area, and she is now going to be in charge of determining whether or not George Zimmerman will be arrested.

COSBY: Let`s go to Clark Goldband, NANCY GRACE producer. Clark, this is the same police chief, and the police department right away, and I think, you know, people have been so angry about this case. I mean, first of all, there he is, carrying a box of Skittles and an iced tea, and yet this is the police chief who at first basically -- everyone in the police department said, oh, we stand by the neighborhood watch guy. Sounds like he did the right thing. What`s the big fuss about, Clark?

CLARK GOLDBAND, NANCY GRACE PRODUCER, COVERING STORY: Well, that`s right, Rita. There was a press conference that Chief Lee had on March 13th, and he said that Zimmerman has not been charged because there are no grounds to disprove his story of the events.

Of course, Rita, he`s talking about the "Stand Your Ground" law, which I have some new information on that. Rick Scott there in Florida, Rita, at this hour has said he is now appointing a task force in response to the outcry over this "Stand Your Ground" law. They will be examining what they should do about the "Stand Your Ground" law in Florida, which says you can stand your ground and meet force with force, if you even think you may be in danger.

COSBY: And Joey Jackson, defense lawyer, you know, it is pretty surprising, this law in Florida. How unusual is this, that it is, OK, if you feel you`re in danger? And that`s a little bit of a gray area. You know how do you determine that that`s what he felt?

JOEY JACKSON, DEFENSE ATTORNEY: It is. It really is, Rita. First of all, there are over 30 jurisdictions throughout the country that have this law. But this law does not provide --

COSBY: But you know what happens, Joey, someone can say, you know, after the fact, oh, shoot, I thought I was in danger. In this case, here is this poor young boy, he just had Skittles. Skittles and an Arizona iced tea. And because he had a hoodie on and the looked at the color of the skin, and there was some suspicion, because you could just make up any reason to say, I`m worried, I`m concerned.

JACKSON: Rita --

COSBY: It`s outrageous.

JACKSON: You`re absolutely right and that`s the danger in the law and further why this law may not be applicable is because, remember, George Zimmerman was the one who pursued him. And therefore in order to get the protections it`s used by lawful citizens who are in a position where they have to defend themselves. Not someone who`s pursuing someone because of the fact that they`re wearing a hoodie and may not be appropriate according to him to the neighborhood.

And furthermore, Rita, you know that the 911 operator indicated, look, we`ve got this. You know what, we would not prefer that you pursue this individual, he did, and this is the tragic consequence. There needs to be a full investigation. There will be an investigation, and ultimately, justice will be done, whatever the facts demonstrate.

COSBY: And let`s go to the callers. Let`s go to Felicia from California, who`s on the line. What`s your question, Felicia?

FELICIA, CALLER FROM CALIFORNIA: Well, first, let me just say that I am devastated by this. And I`m here on the West Coast, speaking for us. My question is this. I said, right now Florida is 2-0. First with tot mom, now this situation when it comes to children.

I want to know if we decided as Americans not to tour in Florida, to give them some, you know, put some heat up under them, because apparently their judicial system just don`t work for us, do you think that that could possibly help the situation?

COSBY: Well, I think the press putting a microscope on it, Ken Padowitz, I mean, look, you know, people were shaking their heads over the Casey Anthony case. That, of course, went to trial and that`s what the jury decided. So many people shaking their heads over this one. And here, it`s a police issue, though, where they said, OK, we support this guy and now it took this whole uproar, the whole community to finally bring attention to it?

PADOWITZ: Rita, as a former Florida homicide prosecutor, I can tell you that it appears that this police investigation was a joke. It doesn`t seem like they did their job --

COSBY: Yes. That was like they just -- yes, Ken, it sounds like they`re just, oh, we stand by this guy, it`s OK, it`s fine. And wait a minute, the kid had Arizona iced tea and Skittles and you just take the guy`s word for it?

PADOWITZ: No.

COSBY: And as we just heard, he pursued him. The neighborhood watch guy pursued him. How could he say he was in danger?

PADOWITZ: No. There is absolutely from what I`ve seen probably cause for an arrest here, regardless of the "Stand Your Ground" law in Florida which I`m very, very familiar with. It`s a bad law but they could have made an arrest that night and they chose not to. Shame on them.

COSBY: Absolutely. It took public pressure for it to happen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MARTIN: Trayvon Martin did matter.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.

MARTIN: And I just want New York to know that. We`re not going to stop until we get justice.

FULTON: Our son did not commit any crime.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No.

FULTON: Our son is your son.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes. Yes.

FULTON: We want you guys to stand up for justice.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes, ma`am.

FULTON: Just stand up for what`s right.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED 911 DISPATCHER: 911, do you need police, fire, or medical?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Maybe both. I`m not sure. There`s just someone screaming outside.

UNIDENTIFIED 911 DISPATCHER: So you think he`s yelling help?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.

UNIDENTIFIED 911 DISPATCHER: All right. What is your --

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSBY: And some breaking news tonight, this is Rita Cosby in for Nancy Grace. And in the case of Trayvon Martin, 17-year-old Trayvon Martin, who was shot and killed by the neighborhood watch captain in Florida. The case that is causing tremendous outrage around the country. Big vigil in his area. And now word that the police chief who was originally he and the whole department were standing by George Zimmerman, the neighborhood watch captain, well, now the police chief has decided to step down.

Let`s go to the neighbor of George Zimmerman, the neighborhood watch captain, Frank Taaffe, who`s also with us on the show.

Frank, I understand you know the neighborhood watch guy George Zimmerman. Tell us about him. Is he the kind of guy who`s trigger happy so it seems in this case?

FRANK TAAFFE, NEIGHBOR OF GEORGE ZIMMERMAN: Not at all. Thank you for having me on your show, Rita. George Zimmerman was a concerned citizen and a resident of Twin Lakes. And he was -- he volunteered into a position that -- once again I emphasize volunteered into a position where he was strictly looking out for the welfare and the safety of our community, which had been burglarized before this eight times in the prior 15 months to the shooting of Trayvon Martin.

COSBY: Now, Frank, Frank, Frank, real -- I`ve got to stop you because we have a little bit of time. Real quick. Do you know -- did you talk to him after this case? Did he say, oh, my goodness, I made a horrible, horrible mistake. Have you talked to him since?

TAAFFE: No, Rita, I did not. But George is a caring person, and he wanted everybody to be safe. After all the break-ins and the robberies.

COSBY: Well, everyone, there is still a lot more to this case and we will be following it very closely.

And tonight, let`s stop to remember Army Lieutenant Colonel James Walton, 41 years old from Rockville, Maryland, killed in Afghanistan. He was awarded the Bronze Star, the Purple Heart, and the Joint Service Commendation Medal. A West Point grad, he loved sky diving and animals, especially rescue dogs.

He leaves behind his parents Donald and Mary Jane, his sisters, Kathy, Kylie, and Diane and his brother Donald who`s also a lieutenant colonel and his widow Sarah.

James Walton, a true American hero.

And I want to thank all of you and thank our guests tonight, it was great being with you tonight, we`ll see you tomorrow night at 8:00 Eastern Time. Until then, everybody, have a wonderful evening.

END