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Nancy Grace
Missing Mickey Shunick`s Bike Found
Aired May 28, 2012 - 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, Louisiana. A 21- year-old blond co-ed heads to Taco Bell drive-through Friday night, never seen again, 21-year-old Mickey Shunick and her gold and black Schwinn seemingly vanishing into thin air. And we`ve tried it all -- her school, University of Louisiana, her job, a horse farm, even her pet store, no leads.
Bombshell tonight. Local fishermen find Mickey`s Schwinn bike 30 miles away. This as surveillance video we ID captures Mickey just after Taco Bell.
In a major twist, police now seeking a white male driver looking to pick up women. And they hone in on two models of white trucks, one with a covered truck bed and black tinted windows. Tonight, where is 21-year-old Mickey Shunick?
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: A break in the case. Two fishermen found Mickey`s bike under the Atchafalaya Basin Bridge, 27 miles from her friend`s house in Lafayette, where she left on her bike and vanished. The search now continues for more clues.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The first pictures of her taken just minutes after she left her friend`s house.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Two minutes later, this image just a few blocks away. And then at 1:48, this sighting at the Circle K parking lot.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Police released photos of three vehicles they say were in the area.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We just want to speak to the people or the person that was in that vehicle that night.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: She recognizes that truck. Patterson (ph) was riding her bike when a middle-aged white man in a pickup truck offered her a ride.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: He says he rides around town all the time trying to pick up pretty girls.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: When she got in, she says he offered her money for sex.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Mickey wasn`t afraid. She was strong. And she had what it takes to bike at night.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Police are now trying to connect the dots from the last spot in Lafayette where Mickey was captured on video to here, where her bike was found.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GRACE: Good evening. I`m Nancy Grace. I want to thank you for being with us. Bombshell tonight. Local fishermen find Mickey`s bike 30 miles away. This as surveillance video we ID captures Mickey just after Taco Bell. And tonight, in a major twist, police now seeking a white male driver looking to pick up women, and police hone in on two models of white trucks.
We are live there in Lafayette, Louisiana, and taking your calls. Straight out to Lafayette, standing by from "Mornings With Ken and Bernie" at KPEL, Ken Romero. Ken, thanks for being with us. What can you tell me, number one, about someone trying to pick up white females?
KEN ROMERO, KPEL (via telephone): Well, we heard Tasha Patterson was picked up by someone two months ago. Someone offered her a ride, and he told her that he`d go around town picking up young women in hopes of buying sex for money. And that`s what we heard from Tasha.
GRACE: You know, we`re also hearing this, Ellie Jostad, with what we have learned about the discovery of Mickey`s bicycle 27 miles away from where she was last seen.
For those of you just joining us, this 21-year-old college co-ed anthropology major goes out with her friends that evening, goes to Taco Bell, gets on her bike shortly after and heads home. It`s only four miles away. That`s less than 15 minutes on a bike. She`s never seen again.
After we question local police and sheriffs, we learn that they are right on the money, that they have actually identified her in video surveillance from businesses, homes, and so forth along her bike path.
We`re taking your calls. To you, Ellie. I want to talk about where her bike was discovered.
ELLIE JOSTAD, NANCY GRACE PRODUCER: Right, Nancy. This was found on the Whiskey Bay Bridge. It`s on I-10. It was found underneath that bridge. Now, this flows over the river. They say it`s a very swampy area, very wooded, tall grass. A couple of fishermen were out early yesterday morning. They spotted this bike and called the tip line, reported it to police. And it`s 27 miles east of where Mickey was last seen.
GRACE: Ellie, I`m very interested in the waterways -- the waterways. Now, police are saying point blank they refuse to divulge the condition of the bike. Now, Ellie, that leads me to believe that the bike could be in bad condition or in a condition other than when it was last seen by her friends. It is a black Schwinn bike with gold accents.
And also, I`m trying to determine -- Ellie, was the bike found hidden under this bridge, or was it found washed up in the tall grasses under the bridge? Because that could make a very big difference.
JOSTAD: Right. Agree, Nancy. And that`s the kinds of questions we`ve been asking Lafayette police, but they want to keep some of that close to the vest in the investigation. They say they can`t tell us right now exactly where the bike was found, whether it was in the water, whether it was obscured by trees or brush, or you know, hidden some way.
They also can`t tell us right now if they think the bike was found where it was discarded, or perhaps it flowed down the river to this location. Those are all things that they are not telling us right now. They say those are investigative details.
GRACE: But Ellie, Ellie -- wait! Whoa! Ellie, hold! Liz, give me the map again. Ellie, after I`m looking in this map, is there any way possible it could have floated, quote, "down the river?" What`s the river current there?
JOSTAD: Right.
GRACE: It looks to me that the river current would be going the other way.
JOSTAD: Correct. Right. It flows north to south, so it`s very unlikely that the bike was, you know, dumped somewhere offstream. It`s more likely a scenario, I think at this point, that somebody on I-10 just tossed this bike off or actually went down to the waterway and placed it there. Not very likely that it was placed in the water north of where it was found.
GRACE: OK, hold on. Leave the map up, Liz, please. I-10, Ellie, goes over where the bike was found?
JOSTAD: Correct. Right. That`s I-10 you see there going from Lafayette. It heads east to Baton Rouge. So the bike found about halfway in between those two cities right there.
GRACE: Joining me right now, I`m hearing in my ear, is a special guest from the Lafayette Police Department, Lieutenant Vaughn Burris. Lieutenant, thank you for being with us.
LT. VAUGHN BURRIS, LAFAYETTE POLICE DEPARTMENT: Thank you, Nancy. How are you today?
GRACE: I`m good, Lieutenant. Your people have done some great police work in scouring all of that video. And now what I`m wondering is, since we see that direct path of I-10 going from where she was reported missing, where we think she was anyway, to where the bicycle, the Schwinn was found, there`s a direct path from I-10, pretty much. Is there surveillance video along I-10?
BURRIS: Nancy, I can tell you that we have numerous investigators on the ground right now following up on leads in that area, searching for video, anything that can help us find out what exactly transpired to lead to the bike being dumped in that area.
GRACE: Lieutenant Vaughn Burris with us, joining us live from Lafayette. Lieutenant, another question. Let me focus on this bike because right now, the pervy white dude driving around, trying to pick people up -- that`s an outside chance. It`s extremely coincidental. I mean, how many of them could there be? And you see a white vehicle going by right around the time she`s spotted on her bike in that surveillance video.
But Lieutenant, let me go back to what we know. We know her bike is found under that bridge. Here`s my question, Lieutenant, if you can divulge it. Was the bike hidden up under the bridge, or did it wash up under the bridge?
BURRIS: Nancy, I would -- I can tell you that we feel that the bike was dumped there. We`re trying to withhold the location and how the bike was placed there until we locate a person that we can question regarding their involvement in the bike. So we are keeping it close to -- we`re not showing our cards at that time as far as the bike discovery goes.
GRACE: But what I`m hearing from you or what I`m interpreting is the bike did not wash up under the bridge, it was placed there, correct?
BURRIS: That`s our opinion. We do feel like that somebody exited the interstate and dumped the bike in that location.
GRACE: OK. Liz, I want to see that map again. You know, what`s with you and the map? I don`t know, Liz. Please let me see the map. I appreciate the picture of a bunch of police surveillance vehicles, but I want to see this map. OK, here we go.
With me is Lieutenant Vaughn Burris. We`re taking your calls. It`s very apparent to me, Lieutenant, that the most likely scenario is whoever took her or her bike went I-10 -- you`re saying, I heard you say, that they get off and place the bike under there, as opposed to throwing it off the bridge.
Here`s my next question. Is there surveillance video along that bridge, Lieutenant?
BURRIS: There`s none that we know about at this time, Nancy. The exit is -- when you exit the interstate, it basically puts you right there in the location where the bike was found.
We don`t believe the bike was thrown from the bridge because there is no shoulder on the bridge for a vehicle to pull over. They would actually have to stop in the middle of a heavily traveled interstate to do that.
GRACE: At that time of the night, Lieutenant, is it that heavily traveled?
BURRIS: It`s a major interstate that runs through Louisiana. It`s a major artery.
GRACE: Now, what about the --
(CROSSTALK)
BURRIS: -- as well.
GRACE: -- the roadway that goes under the bridge -- Lieutenant, what about that roadway that goes under the bridge? Is it possible that they were on that roadway?
BURRIS: No. Basically, Nancy, that exit -- the only thing down there is -- there`s a launch to launch boats at a fishing area or camps. From the direction of where we last saw Mickey to that location, we`re comfortable with the fact that she probably -- they traveled from that location to the exit, exited there and dumped the bike where we found it.
GRACE: So I`m interpreting what you`re saying that the reason there`s not surveillance video right there is because it`s an exit. Is there surveillance video along I-10, other than there on the exit?
BURRIS: Well, let me just say that that particular area is -- it`s a remote area. Really, the only reason why people would exit there would be to go fishing or go to their camps. It`s not a very major exit. It`s basically a hunting area. So therefore, we have not found any video in the area of that exit.
GRACE: How about --
(CROSSTALK)
GRACE: Lieutenant, how about approaching that area along I-10?
BURRIS: We are checking the route between Lafayette and that particular area, convenience stores along that route, various other exits, trying to determine if there are video cameras or video of possible vehicles that we could follow up on during our investigation.
GRACE: Lieutenant Burris is with us. Lieutenant, that tells me it`s somebody who knows about that fishing camp and knows about that exit because by the following morning, it was done. The bike was most likely already there, and you`re saying it`s a remote fishing camp area.
Joining me right now, a special guest, Tom Shunick. This is Mickey`s father. Tom, thank you for being with us. Also with us, her sister, Charlie Shunick. Tom and Charlie, thanks for being with us.
Charlie, your father was with us before. This is your first time with us. I want -- if you don`t mind, for our viewers, we`re putting up the tip line right now. There is a reward.
Charlie, can you tell me your recollection when Mickey went missing?
CHARLIE SHUNICK, MICKEY`S SISTER: Well, the night before she went out, she texted me around 11:45, asking me to go to the bar with her where the bands were playing. That was in Baton Rouge. So I wasn`t going to come back that night. I`d had a few drinks, whatever. I didn`t want to drive. And (INAUDIBLE) stayed in Baton Rouge.
So the next morning, I woke up around 8:00 and I called her. (INAUDIBLE) phone wasn`t on. And then I get home and my mom had called her, too, and her phone wasn`t on. Or maybe I just texted her. I don`t really know. So I texted her a few times, saying, Hey, where are you? Blah, blah, blah.
She misses my brother`s graduation. And I thought it was really strange that her phone was off because I have the same phone as her, and it takes them a really, really, really long time to die.
And then about 5:00 o`clock, my mom texted me and said, Hey, you know, have you heard from Mickey? And I was, like, No. So we -- my friend called her friend, Nick (ph), and he gave me Brettly`s number because he`s the last person who saw her.
So I called Brettly. I`m, like, Hey, have you heard from Mickey? We haven`t heard from her, and she missed Zach`s graduation. We`re kind of mad at her. Do you think she`s at the bar and -- I mean, whatever. He`s, like, No. She said that she was going back to your house last night. He`s, like, let me just call everyone real quick and see if they saw her (INAUDIBLE)
So he calls me back, says, No, no one`s heard from her. So then we all immediately freaked out. I called my mom freaking out. I went home. We called the police. They had us call the hospitals. No one had heard from her. So then we called the police again, and it`s pretty much been like this ever since.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Two fishermen found Mickey`s bike under the Atchafalaya Basin Bridge.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Determined to bring Mickey home.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We just want her back. We want her safe!
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There`s quite a large area down there beneath the bridge and as well as the river.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It was Mickey`s family who confirmed the bike is hers.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Mickey wasn`t afraid. She was strong. She had what it takes to bike at night.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GRACE: Welcome back. We are taking your calls. We are live in Lafayette in the search for a 21-year-old college co-ed, an anthropology major, Mickey Shunick.
Joining us tonight live, her father and sister, both desperately joining the search for her. When she missed her little brother`s graduation the following morning, they knew something was amiss. Mickey goes missing after a drive-through at a local Taco Bell. She`s never seen again.
And at this hour, police combing through surveillance video. They have identified her on her bike just exactly when her best friend says she was on her way home, just four miles on a Schwinn bike. That bike has been uncovered underneath a local bridge about 27 miles away. And tonight, cops seem to be honing in on a white male trolling, looking for young women.
Joining me right now is another special guest. This is Joy Patterson. Her daughter was approached by this white male in a white vehicle very similar to that vehicle seen in the Mickey surveillance video.
Ms. Patterson, thank you for being with us. What does your daughter say happened?
JOY PATTERSON, DAUGHTER RODE IN SUSPECT VEHICLE (via telephone): Well, my daughter was going home from a doctor`s appointment at 2:00 o`clock in the afternoon on South College Drive (ph), and the man gave her a ride to Walgreen`s six blocks -- about six blocks down the street.
And during the ride, the man -- she told the man that she was looking for work (INAUDIBLE) When she`s about to exit the vehicle, he tells her (INAUDIBLE) having sex with him for $80. During the course of the ride, he also told her that he likes to go driving around Lafayette, looking for pretty young girls to pick up.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Mickey Shunick --
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Disappeared days before her birthday.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: She reportedly left a friend`s home in Lafayette on her bicycle, headed home.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: She had what it takes to bike at night.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Police are now trying to connect the dots from the last spot in Lafayette where Mickey was captured on video --
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: These images are providing strength (ph) into a search that`s so far come up empty-handed.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (INAUDIBLE) any little shred of evidence.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There just seems to be no trace of her.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GRACE: The search intensifying for 21-year-old co-ed Mickey Shunick. This as we learn Mickey Shunick`s bike, a black Schwinn with gold accents, has been located about 27 miles away, hidden underneath a bridge.
Also, police honing in on a white male trolling the area, and we see a vehicle similar to his in the video that captures Mickey the night she goes missing after visiting a local Taco Bell.
With me is Ms. Joy Patterson, her daughter also approached by this, we believe, possibly the same male. Ms. Patterson, you were just telling me the vehicle he was driving when he approached your daughter. Go ahead.
PATTERSON: It was a white GMC Sierra 2500 series, Texas (ph) edition (ph). It was a white truck with a black cover on the bed. And she said that this man appeared to be in his 50s or 60s.
GRACE: Did the vehicle have tinted windows, or does she recall, Ms. Patterson?
PATTERSON: Yes, it had tinted windows.
GRACE: Did?
PATTERSON: Yes, ma`am.
GRACE: OK. Could you give me your best description of the male?
PATTERSON: Like I said, he was an older male in his 50s or 60s. He did happen to mention that he was retired.
GRACE: Did he have any facial hair?
PATTERSON: Did he have any facial hair? No, no facial hair. Gray hair and balding --
GRACE: And I believe he was heavyset?
PATTERSON: Yes. And he said he was retired.
GRACE: Was there anything else about the vehicle that she could remember? For instance, was there a gun rack? Was there a decal on it? Was it a -- did it have a back seat cab where somebody could also sit in the back?
PATTERSON: No, no. He did not have a gun rack. There`s nothing else, no details or anything else that she could remember about the vehicle. But there was a lot of chrome, she said, a lot of chrome on the vehicle.
GRACE: Was it a four-door truck?
PATTERSON: Yes, it was a four-door vehicle, an extended cab.
GRACE: Did she get a license plate?
PATTERSON: No, she did not. And I know that because --
(CROSSTALK)
PATTERSON: I`m sorry, that was my grandson. I know that because when it happened, she called me immediately after it happened, and I asked her about a license plate number and she did not get his license plate. She was very shooken up when it happened.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: A break in the case, two fishermen found Mickey`s bike under the Atchafalaya Basin bridge.
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Twenty-seven miles from her friend`s house in Lafayette where she left on her bike and vanished.
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: The search now continues for more clues.
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: The first pictures of her taken just minutes after she left her friend`s house.
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Two minutes later this image just a few blocks away and then at 1:48 this sighting at the Circle K parking lot.
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Police released photos of three vehicles they say were in the area.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We just want to speak to the people that -- or the person within that vehicle that night.
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: She recognizes that truck. Patterson was riding her bike when a middle-aged white man in a pickup truck offered her a ride.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: He says he rides around town all the time trying to pick up pretty girls.
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: When she got in he says he offered her money for sex.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Mickey wasn`t afraid. She was strong. She had what it takes to bike at night.
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Police are now trying to connect the dots. From the last spot in Lafayette where Mickey was captured on video to here where her bike was found.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GRACE: Is there a break in the search for 21-year-old anthropology co-ed Mickey Shunick?
Tonight with me her father and her sister.
Unleash the lawyers. Joining us, Jennifer Smetters, Chicago, Anne Bremner, high-profile lawyer out of Seattle, Raymond Giudice, veteran trial lawyer, Atlanta.
First to you, Smetters. Weigh in.
JENNIFER SMETTERS, FAMILY LAW ATTORNEY: Obviously the bicycle is our main clue that we`re looking at right now, along with Miss Patterson`s statements. I hope she can rally and tell the police everything she remembers instead of relaying it through her mother. But, you know, God bless her for at least attempting.
Follow every lead right now, every video, every local convenience store in the area and any other young girls in the area that encountered this mysterious man up to obviously no good.
GRACE: Anne Bremner, joining us out of Seattle, what she`s come forward with already is incredibly valuable --
ANNE BREMNER, DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Yes.
GRACE: -- because if you`re listening to her description it matches up almost identically to the vehicle they spot in that surveillance video. You and Ray -- first you, Ann -- that is right as Mickey goes by on a bicycle. To me there is no coincidence in criminal law, Anne Bremner.
BREMNER: Well, that`s right, Nancy. We`ve talked about that before. That really is. But the fact of the matter is, I mean there`s white guys, white cars, curvy white guys, I mean they can be anywhere in the country and it may well be a coincidence and not enough of a description because what we really need is a license plate and more particulars as to this individual.
So, you know, we don`t want to jump too quickly to conclusion that this is the same guy and we`ve got to have lineups and everything else to figure out who`s the individual, pretty generic description of him. But I do applaud the young woman for being so observant.
GRACE: You know, Ray, you have actually practiced law in many, many jurisdictions including smaller towns. Lafayette is a big small town.
RAY GIUDICE, DEFENSE ATTORNEY: That`s right.
GRACE: And I`m telling you that vehicle, a four-door extended cab white truck, apparently American made, black bed, tinted windows with retiring white male, gray, heavy set, not wearing glasses. Come on. It`s not going to be that difficult. That shot right there, look at your monitor, Ray.
GIUDICE: I am.
GRACE: Come on.
GIUDICE: No, I agree.
GRACE: Wal-Mart, Target, they can outdo NASA for Pete`s sake.
GIUDICE: Yes.
GRACE: We`re going to get a tag number.
GIUDICE: The Motor Vehicle Department can quickly eliminate all nonwhite male owners of that very distinctive vehicle and have a list of a very short list of people to go interview about their whereabouts and the description of the vehicle. Secondly, I agree with all comments about the bicycle and let me add just a twist. We`re all thinking about an abduction. Probably is.
How about a drunk driver who runs --
GRACE: Are you going to say hit and run?
GIUDICE: How about a hit-and-run who panics, throws the vehicle in the bed of his pickup truck.
GRACE: Put him up.
GIUDICE: And dumps the bicycle and the body in two different spots. That`s still a crime, Nancy. It`s vehicular homicide.
GRACE: Ray.
GIUDICE: I`m not saying anybody is not guilty, but look for damage on the front end of this white pickup truck.
GRACE: Ray.
GIUDICE: Yes, Nancy.
GRACE: Already thought about it.
GIUDICE: I know you did.
GRACE: Number one, I`ve gone through your whole scenario regarding is it a hit-and-run? You know what made me think about it? The cops are saying they`re not divulging the condition of the bike.
GIUDICE: Correct.
GRACE: And I thought, why not divulge the condition of the bike? Is there something unusual about the condition of the bike? Was it a hit-and-run? But think about it, Ray, hit-and-run, hit-and-run, random. Number one, random or DUI? DUI, they`re not going to be able to have the wherewithal most likely to get rid of all this evidence in a manner which leaves them undetected.
Just go with me on this.
GIUDICE: OK.
GRACE: And, number two, if it`s a hit-and-run, that`s random. That`s random. Would they go through the drama of hiding Mickey Shunick and her bike as opposed to just taking off? This is somebody that targeted her and picked her up.
GIUDICE: Nancy, this is a case where a woman -- the hit-and-run, the body is inside the windshield, they drove it and parked it in their car thinking it`s out of Texas and --
(CROSSTALK)
GRACE: (INAUDIBLE) --
GRACE: Yes, I know.
GIUDICE: So it happens. It doesn`t have to be a drunk driver. It could be someone speeding, fiddling with their radio or texting, somebody who then said, holy smokes, I`ve got to dispose of the evidence. That person`s a criminal but there`s more evidence out there.
GRACE: We are taking your calls.
I want to go back to the family of Mickey Shunick. Mickey Shunick`s dad is with us, Tom Shunick. Tom was called out around 2:30 a.m. that evening to go to an oil rig, which is part of his profession. He did not realize his daughter was missing until he could get e-mails and get -- make it back it to the home.
To Mr. Shunick, when did you finally learn that Mickey Shunick was missing, and when did you get back home and you guys called police?
TOM SHUNICK, FATHER OF MISSING CO-ED BEAUTY, MICKEY SHUNICK: It was close to noon on Sunday. I had talked to my wife Saturday night and I could tell she was upset but she didn`t tell me anything about it. And apparently she had sent me an e-mail later that night. I didn`t open my computer until after we had a fire drill out on the oil rig probably about 11:30 on Sunday. And it got out all over the rig and they immediately sent a helicopter out to fly me back.
GRACE: Mr. Shunick, what was the thinking behind the delay in calling police? And I really don`t know in this scenario if that would have made any difference in what happened, but what was the delay? Why was there a delay in calling police?
SHUNICK: You mean when my wife called it?
GRACE: Yes.
SHUNICK: Well, they were hoping that she was going to turn up. You know they -- when she didn`t show up for my son`s graduation, they knew something was strange. And when they called around, you know, Brettly said that she left him and was on her way home. And she did that all the time and when they knew the route she was taking. And I think it just took a while to file a missing person`s report, contacted the police. I guess they just -- they didn`t realize for sure that she was missing until like 5:00.
GRACE: You know, another thing, Mr. Shunick, having been a victim of violent crime myself and having interviewed literally thousands of crime victims, you don`t process -- you don`t want to process that something is wrong. And so your mind naturally, I think it`s self-protection, seeks out every alternative scenario other than she`s missing. You know, maybe she spent the night at one of her friend`s house. It could be anything. Your mind doesn`t really let you go there instinctively.
To Dr. Ann Contrucci, physician joining us out of Atlanta. If there have been a hit and run, Dr. Ann, is there a possibility the driver has shown up at a local hospital?
DR. ANN CONTRUCCI, PEDIATRICIAN: It`s a possibility, Nancy. Hit-and-run where a vehicle hitting a biker, there`s not going to be that much damage most likely unless an air bag was deployed. So it`s a possibility. Certainly something to think about. You wonder, you know, if she had a helmet on, that kind of thing. A possibility. Be more -- I`d be thinking, you know, air bag deployment.
GRACE: Dr. Contrucci, when you say unless an air bag was deployed, what difference would that make?
CONTRUCCI: Well, because a lot of times when an air bag is deployed there are some injuries especially to the face, you know, bruising, abrasions, sometimes some injuries to the eyes, that kind of thing. So I could see where somebody would if they hit somebody hard enough or fast enough, air bag deployment, they would go to the E.R., and it`s pretty specific type injuries when it comes to air bags. Air bag injuries.
GRACE: Joining me right now a special guest, the last person to actually speak with her before she took off at the Taco Bell, Brettly Wilson, one of her very dearest friends.
Brettly, we spoke recently about this. What are your reactions to the developments that her bicycle has been found?
BRETTLY WILSON, FRIEND, LAST PERON TO SEE MISSING CO-ED MICKEY SHUNICK: Right now the only way that I can process it is just to take it as a positive. This is our first substantive lead. We found her bike, so I think the next step is just finding her.
GRACE: As the days go on, Brettly, how is this affecting you?
WILSON: I`m dealing with it the best I can. This has been a supportive community. I`ve had a lot of people come out and extend their support and I`ve also tried to return that, making sure that the Shunicks are aware I`m there for them and they`ve done the same for me.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: And search for that one clue which might bring Mickey home.
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Signs of Mickey.
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Sign of a case that`s haunted the community.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We`re going to be out here as long as it takes.
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Two fishermen found Mickey`s bike under the Atchafalaya Basin Bridge.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Until we feel satisfied that we`ve checked everywhere.
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: It was Mickey`s family who confirmed the bike is hers.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: That`s all we`ve been waiting for is like a place to start from.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GRACE: There is a reward in the search for co-ed Mickey Shunick, a 21- year-old anthropology major there in Louisiana.
To Lieutenant Vaughn Burris joining us from the Lafayette Police Department.
Lieutenant, I understand that you are searching water ways at this time?
LT. VAUGHN BURRIS, LAFAYETTE POLICE DEPARTMENT: That`s correct, Nancy. Today we have two to three boats in the water. Yesterday we had probably six to seven boats as well as sonar being utilized, checking under the water as well.
GRACE: Joining me right now from dive search and recovery instructor out of Sarasota, Florida, David Badali.
David, thank you for being with us. Describe what you understand the divers are doing, what river searches entail, and what is side scan sonar.
DAVID BADALI, POLICE DIVING INSTRUCTOR: Well, Nancy, you know, my understanding there was an attempt to get some divers in the water yesterday, but the current was just moving too quickly. Usually when it gets to three or four knots the divers get in and a couple of minutes later they`re a good 100 yards downstream. So with those kind of conditions, it`s going to be very difficult for them to do a search right in the area where they find that bicycle in the tall grass and the entry to the waterway there.
I assume that they`re going to search in the area hopefully doing some grid work when the currents die down. I don`t see them searching in strong current like that. The visibility is very limited and the current`s moving really swiftly so they`re going to have to really start moving downstream if they`re looking for any kind of evidence that might have gone into the water, Nancy.
GRACE: What about the side scan sonar?
BADALI: That will help a great deal. I believe Tim Miller is there from EquuSearch and he might be utilizing the side sonar. That will pick up certain objects but, again, once he decides that there`s something that he sees on the side sonar, he`s going to have to put divers in the water to actually verify what he`s actually seeing on the sonar.
GRACE: Well, a tricky thing with side scan sonar when you`re searching rivers is that there are all sorts of things that you find in a river that you don`t find out in open water. You find clusters of weeds, of underwater growth, you find tires, all sorts of things will show up on side scan sonar and then a diver must go down and typically river water is darker than seawater, so you have another issue with the naked eye of the diver looking for the object.
With us David Badali out of Sarasota.
Woody Tripp, former police detective -- weigh in, Woody.
WOODY TRIPP, FORMER POLICE COMMANDER, POLYGRAPH EXPERT: Nancy, there are so many factors in this. One of the things that hasn`t been brought up with this water way, we`re in Louisiana, we`re talking alligators. Time is of the essence here, depending on the temperature of the water. That body is only going to stay there for so long. And as we know, alligators like decomposing flesh. They`ve got a lot of things working against them. That they`ve got to get in that water and see if she`s there.
GRACE: You know, Woody, you`re right, but the family is working under the assumption that Mickey is still alive.
With me her father and her sister. I want to go to Tom Shunick, her father.
Tom, what is your gut feeling about what has happened to Mickey?
SHUNICK: My gut feeling is that she`s still alive. I -- you know, I can`t think any other way. Sometimes, you know, I`m really upbeat. You know, I just -- you know I just hope and pray that she`s still alive. I just can`t think anything else. You know, we`ve got to hang in there.
GRACE: I agree.
SHUNICK: And hope that --
(CROSSTALK)
GRACE: I agree, Mr. Shunick. And the developments are coming along fast and furious. Out to you, Robyn Walensky, anchor with the Blaze.com. Weigh in, Robyn. What do you know?
ROBYN WALENSKY, REPORTER, WDBO RADIO: You know, I`ll tell you, Nancy. There`s two things that strike me. Number one, they need to take this 21- year-old girl who has an encounter with that heavy set white guy and sit her down with a police sketch artist. It`s been two months since that incident happened, and they need to debrief her and get a sketch going.
And the second thing that comes to mind is there are dozens and dozens of sex offenders living within a 10-mile radius of where this girl was living, and they need to show the book, the photographs of all of those sex offenders to this 21-year-old who has that encounter with that mystery man.
GRACE: To Cheryl Arutt, clinical forensic psychologist joining us out of L.A. tonight.
Cheryl, thanks for being with us. You know, many times the gut feelings of family members and close friends are discounted. I don`t necessarily agree with that. I think that very often family members are right on. I think they have some type of connection with the missing family member. What do you think?
CHERYL ARUTT, CLINICAL & FORENSIC PSYCHOLOGIST: I certainly hope so. I certainly certainly hope that Mickey is fine and is found. You know, when you and Ray were discussing possible scenarios, a third scenario occurred to me which is that it is certainly possible that this may have been a hit- and-run that wasn`t random.
If he were a predator and trying to get her into the car or getting her, it is certainly possible that she got away and that he may have hit her with that car to try to keep her from identifying him. So there is also that possibility. I really want to know more about the bike and the condition of the bike. I think that`s an important possibility as well.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Police have found the bicycle Mickey Shunick was riding when she vanished. Is this surveillance video the key to finding --
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Mickey Shunick.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GRACE: Out to the lines. Dena in Florida. What`s your question, Dena?
DENA, CALLER FROM FLORIDA: The question is, why did Brettly not take Mickey`s bike and put it in her car and drive her home if she was that tired? Late at night?
GRACE: OK. I`m going to ask Brettly that question right now.
Brettly, very often she chose to drive her bike home. That was not uncommon for her, correct?
WILSON: Yes. And Mickey is an avid cyclist, and she`s a strong enough person to do things like that. I think it never crossed any of our minds that she shouldn`t be able to do anything like that or that we should -- we should do those things for her.
GRACE: Back to the lawyers. Smetters, Bremner, Giudice.
Smetters, weigh in.
SMETTERS: Yes, you know what, I -- there`s one ray of hope here is the father saw the bicycle and if he`s still in his heart of hearts believes that his daughter is alive, to me that tells me that maybe that bicycle isn`t as damaged as some of us may be thinking. That`s a positive ray of hope, I think, here.
GRACE: Bremner?
BREMNER: Well, I agree. And I was just thinking to myself, Nancy, if women can`t go out and ride their bikes, you know, at night -- or take back the night I rode one all through college everywhere. Night, day, everything. So it`s upsetting to hear even the issue of whether she should or shouldn`t have.
GRACE: Ray?
GIUDICE: There should be fingerprints on the bike. However, and I agree with Anne, but after midnight, the bad people come out.
GRACE: You remember, Ray, you were practicing against me, you always told a jury, nothing good happens after midnight.
GIUDICE: After midnight.
GRACE: Everyone, the tip line is up on the screen. There is a reward.
And now a salute to men and women who gave their lives for us, all American heroes. This Memorial Day, let`s stop and remember Army Captain Richard Cliff Jr., just 29, Mt. Pleasant, South Carolina, killed Afghanistan. On a third tour. Purple Heart, Bronze Star, five Army Commendations. National Defense Service. Earned the Green Beret.
Loved swimming, surfing, wrestling. Leaves behind parents Richard Sr. and Julie, brother, Eddie, widow, Stacey, son, Richard.
Richard Cliff Jr., American hero.
Thanks to our guests but especially to you. And tonight, happy birthday to Texas friend, Hazel. Nine grandchildren, 20 greats, 10 great-greats. Loves sewing, gardening, crafts.
And happy second birthday to New York friend, Madison.
Tonight our prayers with families of all American heroes.
Stay tuned for "DR. DREW" coming up next, and I`ll see you tomorrow night, 8:00 sharp Eastern, and until then, good night, friend.
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