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Jane Velez-Mitchell

New Lead in Jessica Ridgeway Disappearance?

Aired October 09, 2012 - 19:00   ET

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


KYRA PHILLIPS, HLN ANCHOR: He`s a sick man. That`s for sure. Our Jane Velez-Mitchell will be all over this story. She starts right now.

JANE VELEZ-MITCHELL, HOST: Tonight, outrage over convicted pedophile Jerry Sandusky getting just a 30-year minimum sentence today when he could have been sentenced to centuries behind bars. We`re going to show you why the math should make you mad.

And an ex-con joins us live to explain why the former football coach convicted of molesting boys will have a very rough time in prison.

But first, we`ve got breaking news just in in the search for missing 10-year-old Jessica Ridgeway. Her mom and dad just spoke out for the first time since their child vanished. And just in, word that an 11-year-old girl was abducted and raped just two days after Jessica vanished just a few hours dry from where Jessica disappeared. Are these two awful cases connected?

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

VELEZ-MITCHELL (voice-over): Tonight, breaking news. The family of missing Jessica Ridgeway finally speaks out as the hunt for their precious 10-year-old accelerates. The fifth grader mysteriously vanished walking to school five days ago. Cops report ominous sightings in the weeks leading up to her disappearance. Was a man in a white van trolling the neighborhood? How about a man in a dark blue sedan? We`ll read the warning letters sent to parents. And what have cops found in the girl`s newly-discovered backpack? We`re investigating and taking your calls.

Then outrage as convicted child molester Jerry Sandusky is sentenced in the scandal that rocked Penn State. Facing 400 years behind bars, why was the former football coach only hit with a minimum 30-year sentence? Is this a slap in the face to the victims?

Plus angry reaction to Sandusky`s radio rant from behind bars where he claims there`s a conspiracy to get him. The lawyer for one of Jerry Sandusky`s victims joins me live tonight. And we`ll hear from an ex-con about how fellow prisoners treat a pedophile.

And we`re back with "Rico`s Rescues," our weekly chance to save the life of an innocent dog on Death Row. Who`s tonight`s lucky fella? Check it out as we find him a home.

JESSICA RIDGEWAY, MISSING 10-YEAR-OLD: Oh. Want to see my camera? That`s my camera.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Big development in the case of a missing 10-year- old Colorado girl. Jessica Ridgeway`s backpack is found in the subdivision more than six miles away from her home.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Police were alerted that a resident of Superior had discovered a backpack.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: For Jessica Ridgeway`s neighbors any sign of the 10-year-old girl is better than nothing.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It`s just awful. It`s awful that she`s gone.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Bloodhounds searched again today. Police have constant patrols. And neighbors want everyone to know what happened.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Police say they do not have a person of interest at this time.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Agencies that are assisting us today will be using approximately 125 people to search that area. We still will be searching and conducting canvass, using dogs in and around the neighborhood of Jessica`s home.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Tonight, breaking news in the search for missing 10- year-old Jessica Ridgeway. Could there be a connection to the reported abduction and sexual assault of an 11-year-old girl just seven hours away?

Good evening. Jane Velez-Mitchell coming to you live.

Jessica vanished on Friday walking to school, and now her family is speaking out publicly for the first time, begging for Jessica`s safe return. Here is Jessica`s mom, talking about when she first realized her precious daughter was missing.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SARAH RIDGEWAY, JESSICA`S MOTHER: You don`t hear anything and then you get the pit in your stomach that you don`t want any -- any parent, any parent to ever experience in their whole entire life when you hear your child has just been taken.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Our hearts go out to her and Jessica`s dad.

Jessica`s mom says she watched her daughter leave for school Friday morning. We`re talking five days ago. Jessica would always walk about three blocks to a nearby park where she`d meet up with some friends and then they`d all walk the rest of the way to school, Whit Elementary.

Cops now believe Jessica never made it the three blocks to the park. That means something happened within three blocks of her home. Police have released a new video of Jessica just hours ago so people can get a good look at her and hear her voice, see her in action. Watch carefully. This is the young lady that we are all looking for right now.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

J. RIDGEWAY: Do you want to be on camera? That`s my camera. See. Right there. Look. That`s the camera.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: An innocent child.

Take a look at this. A local homeowner found Jessica`s backpack and water bottle six miles from Jessica`s home over the weekend. Both are being tested for DNA.

Jessica vanished in Colorado Friday. Then Monday seven hours away in Wyoming an 11-year-old girl was lured into a white SUV and raped. That child has, thank God, been found alive. More on that in a moment. But is there a connection?

Tonight we`ve got a new report about a suspicious white van in Jessica`s neighborhood, in her neighborhood the morning she vanished. That is in addition to a man suspected of trying to lure kids to his car, a dark four-door sedan. What is going on here? I mean, this is insane.

Call me: 1-877-JVM-SAYS, 1-877-586-7297.

Straight out to reporter Don Champion with KMGH in Colorado. Dawn, what is the very latest?

DON CHAMPION, REPORTER, KMGH (via phone): Well, Jane, I can tell you I just spoke to our FBI source about that Wyoming case, and he tells me that right now they`re not ruling anything out.

Now, basically what happened was Monday, an 11-year-old girl was walking with some of her friends in Cody, Wyoming, which is about 500 miles away from Denver. The group says the man was in a white SUV and told him that his puppy was missing and that he wanted help finding it.

Well, one of the girls did agree to go with the man, and the girl later told police that the man brandished a gun at -- gun at her and told her to get in the front seat. We do know that she was sexually assaulted after that and was found about an hour and a half or so later wandering on a street.

Now, the FBI says that they are looking into the case, and they`re not ruling it out today. But investigators very careful right now about definitively connecting the Wyoming case to Jessica`s case, as well.

There are some big differences. For one, the girl in Wyoming was later found. Jessica has not been found. So at this point the FBI admitting that they are looking into it but not connecting the case officially.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Well, excellent reporting, Don. Stand by. Now, why is there a possible connection?

Now, you heard in the Wyoming case it was a white SUV. There are now reports tonight of a mysterious white van in Jessica`s neighborhood on the very morning she disappeared.

And just one day earlier, two little girls told police a man in a white van followed them as they walked home from an elementary school that`s about eight miles from Jessica`s house.

Now we`ve also learned that less than three weeks before Jessica disappeared, a man in a dark blue sedan supposedly tried to lure children to his vehicle using candy. This is a sketch that police made based on the description of the kids.

Straight out to producer Selin Darkalstanian. First of all, this is just horrifying, all of these incidents. But the school`s actually sent a letter to the parents about this incident. What have you learned?

SELIN DARKALSTANIAN, PRODUCER: We actually have a copy of the letter that we just got from the school, Jane. And the letter, you know, specifically talks about that the child was approached by a stranger offering candy. It talks about parents letting their kids know not to let their kids get into strangers cars and to be aware.

So we actually got the letter that was sent home with Jessica in her backpack three weeks before she went missing. So the real question is, was this male who was in a blue vehicle trying to lure kids in with candy that Jessica`s parents were also warned about, was this guy related to Jessica`s disappearance three weeks later? It`s in the same area. And it`s very, you know, close to the time that Jessica went missing. So the real question is, was this connected?

VELEZ-MITCHELL: And I`ve got to tell you, it`s horrifying just the sheer number of these incidents. If they`re connected it`s horrifying; if they`re not connected it`s horrifying. What is going on here with men trying to lure young girls into their vehicles?

I`ve got to go to Tom Shamshak. You are one of the top private investigators in the country. You`re a former police chief. How do authorities decide whether something that happened in Wyoming -- and thank God that girl who was lured into a vehicle, raped and then thrown out of the car, is OK, at least physically. She was reunited with her family.

How do they decide if that`s connected to something seven hours and another state away that happened a couple of days before the disappearance of Jessica?

TOM SHAMSHAK, PRIVATE INVESTIGATOR: Jane, good evening.

Law enforcement through the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children shares strategic information on attempted abductions on a weekly basis. And so what they will do is say, "Well juxtapose all of the pertinent facts with both cases and see if there are similarities here. There`s a strong possibility that these cases could be linked."

Let`s go to the Colorado case. Law enforcement will be focusing on the backpack. And they will be searching that crime scene area looking for footwear impressions, tire impressions, any sign of a disturbance there. And they will also go back and, I imagine, be re-interviewing the children there in the neighborhood as well as school teachers and the parents. That letter that prompted this level of surveillance that was increased, that may generate some tips, Jane.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: All right. Well, we`re just getting started. And let`s not leave out the possibility that this little girl who was taken in Wyoming and raped there is DNA and/or fingerprints on her clothing that might match up with something possibly on the backpack.

More on the other side.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

J. RIDGEWAY: Do you want to be on camera? That`s my camera. See, look. There it is. That`s the camera.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Where is that innocent little child who was playing with the family dog in that little video?

Jessica`s father separated from Jessica`s mother. She lives in Colorado with Jessica. He lives in Missouri. He came in from Missouri for the family news conference. And he sobbed the entire time that he and his estranged wife were talking with the reporter. Check this out.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JEREMIAH BRYANT, JESSICA`S FATHER: By far the worst thing I`ve ever been through. Still is. I have nowhere to start, you know? I mean, I don`t know what to do. You know, I just want to find my daughter.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: My heart goes out to these parents. I went through a similar situation. I had a young family member who disappeared about a month ago for a day and a half at a concert. Our entire family, it was surreal. I -- I felt like I was living a nightmare. And everything became unimportant. Everything. Any concerns I had about anything else in life just fell away in the horror of not knowing.

And thank God my little relative teen turned up OK. But I got a new insight into what these parents go through. And it just, it shatters me because it is a horror to experience. And until you`ve experienced it, you don`t know what it`s like. I didn`t know what it was like until I got a taste of it.

Let`s go out to the phone lines. Carol, Indiana, your question or thought, Carol.

CALLER: Hi, Jane. Love you so much. I got two comments. One was, did she have a laptop?

VELEZ-MITCHELL: We don`t know. But good question.

CALLER: OK. No. 2, we have a lot of -- according to the statistics, we have a lot of unemployed people in the United States of America. I say these parents that are not employed, you need to go to the school, get a form. You take your fingerprints down to the police station, and you get on these corners and make sure these kids are getting to school safely.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: OK. Carol, first of all, let me say this, and I want to bring in David Schwartz, criminal defense attorney. The mother works the night shift. That`s why she was asleep when the call came in saying Jessica hadn`t gotten to school. Not because she`s lazy or out of work or any of that. She`s a hard-working woman who works the graveyard shift. So we have to keep that in mind.

Both of these family members, the mother and the father, although they are estranged, they`ve come together to say they`ve had nothing to do with this child`s disappearance. How do police prove that and eliminate them?

DAVID SCHWARTZ, CRIMINAL DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Well, they have to disprove them as suspects in the case, Jane. And they have to analyze and they have to treat the parents. Because obviously, they`re the first people you`re going to look at as the mother and the father. So once that is fully investigated, then it`s disproven at that point, and they could go onto other things.

They need to analyze all the evidence in the case, keeping in mind that these two people are always possible suspects.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Jon Lieberman, what do we know about the father?

JON LIEBERMAN, INVESTIGATIVE REPORTER: Well, Jane, look. We know that he had a criminal history of domestic incidents. We know that there was a custody battle. But I want to point out two things quickly, Jane.

No. 1, if the Wyoming case is linked to Jessica`s case, then it gives me great hope that Jessica is indeed alive, because as you mentioned, that 11-year-old is alive.

And the other thing is we need people to look out for Jessica. She has a gap in between her front teeth. She has a red mark on her nose where her glasses sit. I truly believe, based on all my time in "America`s Most Wanted," that a predator was watching her, knew that she always walked three blocks to meet her friends, and then they and the whole group would walk to school another mile. I believe a predator knew her routine and snatched her. We need everybody to look out for Jessica.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: If you are right, please, please let this child go. Let this child go. Just leave her and leave.

More on the other side.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

S. RIDGEWAY: He showed me the picture. And if I wouldn`t have been sitting down, I probably would have fell down because that`s -- I knew it was hers. It was -- I mean, when he called and said explain what water bottle`s in her backpack, and I explained it to him and then he shows me the picture, and it`s exactly what I explained to him.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Imagine how horrifying parents finding that and being told by cops that your missing child`s backpack turns up six miles away from home.

Jessica`s parents are separated. Jessica`s dad, as we mentioned, lives in Missouri. But the two parents came together to let everyone know they didn`t have anything to do with their daughter`s disappearance.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

S. RIDGEWAY: I know I didn`t do anything. Everybody that`s here knows I didn`t do anything. And nobody in this room did anything to harm her or a little hair on her tiny little head. So, you know, if they have to eliminate me, go right ahead.

BRYANT: When I sat down with the FBI, they asked me if I thought she did it. I told them there`s no way that I would ever believe that. I mean, just the same as she would tell them that I wouldn`t do something like that.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: And David Schwartz, that dad lives in another state. And he was, ironically, at a custody hearing on the same day that the child disappears in another state. So doesn`t that basically rule him out?

SCHWARTZ: Absolutely. Not absolutely, but there is an alibi there. Certainly the timeline has to be analyzed. But -- but it seems to me that that is ruled out.

This is a crime that shocks the conscience of a civilized society. And, Jane, we need to spend all the resources -- I think the FBI has got to put more and more resources into cases like this. They have the resources. They need to help the local authorities.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Tom Shamshak, private investigator, what are you thinking now? We`re hearing about these vans. We`re hearing about another case seven hours away just a couple of days after she disappears. Do you think they`re connected?

SHAMSHAK: Jane, I don`t have enough information at this point in time. What I would want to know is the geographical profile of the area where that bag was found. If it was somebody that was familiar with the area, they would only know that area. And so that`s a starting point for me. But these cases could very well be connected -- Jane.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Jon Lieberman, ten seconds. What should cops do?

LIEBERMAN: Well, they`re doing the right things. The DNA from the backpack is going to be big. Re-canvassing all the neighborhoods now that they have some sketches and some vehicle descriptions. This case will be solved, and hopefully, Jessica will be brought home safely.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Yes. And keep an eye out for these vehicles if you live in that region. And this precious child. We`re all over it. We`ll update you.

Our "Shocking Video of the Day," criminal defendant in South Carolina unhappy with his defense attorney because he got sentenced to 15 years for a crime he committed, turned around and slugged his defense -- boom. Slugged his defense attorney at a court hearing. He`d just gotten 15 years for robbery, and now he`s got -- take a look at this -- another assault case, which I think he`s going to lose, because it`s caught on tape.

Here`s what Nancy`s working on tonight -- Nancy.

NANCY GRACE, HLN ANCHOR: Jane, on the radar tracking crime and justice, to Texas. Police race to a beautiful two-story home. Inside, a loving mom and her little girl gunned down, each sustaining multiple gunshots as they crawled down the stairs begging for mercy. The killer, mommy`s own teen son, the little girl`s big brother.

And to Colorado, 8:30 a.m. Ten-year-old Jessie Ridgeway heads for a three-block walk en route to school. She`s never seen again. Where is 10- year-old Jessica?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Jerry Sandusky headed to prison.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The 68-year-old former Penn State football coach was sentenced this morning on child sex abuse charges. Sandusky will again likely spend the rest of his life behind bars.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We`re talking about a serial child rapist.

JOE AMENDOLA, JERRY SANDUSKY`S ATTORNEY: The bottom line is this: Jerry never flinched from his position that he was innocent.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He displayed deviance, narcissism, a lack of feeling for the pain he caused others and to the end, an unwillingness to accept responsibility.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Victim four took the stand, totally different, had anger, and he looked straight in the eyes of Jerry Sandusky. He said, "I will not forgive you. I will not forgive you."

(END VIDEOTAPE)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Tonight, outrage as former Penn State football coach and convicted pedophile, serial pedophile, Jerry Sandusky is sentenced to only 30 to 60 years behind bars for sexually assaulting ten boys for more than a decade.

A jury found Sandusky guilty of 45 separate counts of child sex abuse felonies amongst them. He could have been sentenced to 400 years. Four centuries behind bars. But the judge handed down a minimum of 30 years. Why? Why doesn`t the punishment fit the crime?

Just last night Sandusky defiantly spoke out from jail in a radio rant blaming his victims claiming he`s the one who`s suffering. Listen to this rant from Penn State com media.

(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)

JERRY SANDUSKY, CONVICTED CHILD RAPIST: They can take away my life. They can make me out as a monster. They can treat me as a monster. But they can`t take away my heart. In my heart I know I did not do these, alleged disgusting acts. My wife has been my only sex partner and that was after marriage. Our love continues.

(END AUDIO CLIP)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: In your heart? How about in your mind? Sandusky`s arrest sent shock waves through the Penn State campus. We watched it all go down. The university fired coach Joe Paterno -- an icon. Students rioted. An entire cover-up was revealed.

So why after all of that, why is Jerry Sandusky only getting 30 years, minimum? And you know in this day and age minimum usually means maximum. Isn`t that re-victimizing these young men all over again? What do you think? 1-877-JVM-SAYS -- call me, 1-877-586-7297.

First, let`s set the stage. Straight out to "In Session" correspondent Jean Casarez -- Jean, you were there in court for the drama. You saw Sandusky walk in With bullet proof vest and then prison red over it, shackles, but was he also wearing his trademark smirk? His little goofy smile when the men he sexually abused as boys looked him in the eye.

JEAN CASAREZ, CORRESPONDENT, "IN SESSION": That`s just what I was going to tell you.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Yes.

CASAREZ: It`s just what I was going to tell you because the smile on his face for most of today`s such serious proceedings was there. The only time it really wasn`t there was when he was speaking to the court, when he was talking about his life, all the hospitals he`s visited, the prisons he visited to visit Second Mile students that were there. And then finally when he broke down talking about his family, his wife, his life, that he celebrated 46 years of marriage and he turned over to hug his wife and it was the cement wall of his cell. He wasn`t smiling then. But for really the entire hearing today he had a smile on his face or a smirk would be more apt.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: So tell me briefly as these boys who are now men look him in the eye, what were some of the key things they said? And how did he react?

CASAREZ: You know, they were all different but all similar at the same time. Victim number six was the first to take the stand, just graduated from college -- bible college. Talked about how you called me -- you told me the tickle monster, that`s what you were when I was in the shower with you at Penn State. I couldn`t process it. I couldn`t understand it and I cried to Jesus for help and he led me finally down the road. And I`m not at the end of the road, but I`m on my way.

And he ended by saying you have to admit what you`ve done because if not there will be a greater punishment for you to come.

The next victim said and this is Victim 5 --

(CROSSTALK)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Let me say this and let me jump in with this, there is no remorse in this man. He went on the radio rant the night before and the judge heard it and he admitted he heard it where he basically said "They did it to me, I`m the victim here."

And after that, after that defiant, defiant radio interview, the judge still gives him this I think ridiculously light sentence. Let`s break it down. You do the math with me. The judge gave Sandusky a minimum of 30 of the possible 400 years behind bars. That means he could be up for parole by the time he`s 98 years old. That is not a life sentence -- correction, everybody`s calling it a life sentence. My mom is 97 soon. She`s doing just fine. And I think she`s going to make it to 98 and 99.

So he`s got hope that he could get out. There are ten victims, ok. So 30 years, you`re basically giving him three years per victim. And since he was convicted on 40 counts, you`re basically giving him less than one year per count.

Brian Claypool, criminal defense attorney, Penn State graduate, that`s not justice in my book. That is a slap on the wrist.

BRIAN CLAYPOOL, CRIMINAL DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Hey, Jane. This was an abomination. You know, today should have been about great triumph because great triumph comes from great tribulations and today should have been all about the victims and validating what the victims went through here and then using this as the first step towards healing and reform in our society.

And this was everything but that because you have a judge in Centre County that did everything that Penn State officials did for ten years. He ignored Jerry Sandusky. He cowered to Jerry Sandusky. And I`m wondering today Jane whether that judge was wearing a Penn State football jersey? Does anybody know in the courtroom? Did he forget his robe? Is he wearing a jersey? Did he ask Jerry for an autograph on the way out of the courtroom? This is preposterous.

I mean this should have been about the kids. I prosecute civil cases for kids who are victims of child abuse. You have no idea the depth and despair they will go through for the rest of their lives.

(CROSSTALK)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Let`s get it from somebody who actually went through it. Adam Rendon, author of "The Valley", sex abuse survivor, what was your reaction to this sentence?

ADAM RENDON, AUTHOR, "THE VALLEY": After hearing it, Jane, I realize that a lot of the victims weren`t going to be provided closure because they would feel that that`s not enough. And I would like to say one thing, innocence never lasts. But it should never be taken away. And that`s what Sandusky did. He took the innocence from these kids growing up with the trust that he instilled in them.

I myself when I was 6 years old my innocence was taken away by two female neighbors. They tied me to a wooden chair and I was nude and they did horrible things to me, Jane. I never had closure with that. But hearing the statements that the victims provided during the sentencing, it was real heartbreaking.

One victim said that --

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Yes.

RENDON: -- they`re life is ending, that they ruined their lives. And for me, myself, Jane, I feel like it was just a new start. And now I`m writing a book -- I wrote a book and now it`s a best seller and it`s awesome to --

(CROSSTALK)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: All right. Well, we`ll get to that. It`s "The Valley" and it`s a very good book. And I suggest people check it out. It`s called "The Valley".

Listen, we`re talking Sandusky tonight. Sandusky is now a designated sexually violent offender -- some good news there.

Listen to his interview with NBC before the trial. Remember this?

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SANDUSKY: I could say that, you know, I have done some of those things. I have horsed around with kids. I have showered after workouts. I have hugged them. And I have touched their leg without intent of sexual contact.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Yes. Well, he`s accused of felony deviant sexual contacts. You know what that means. That`s not a hug. Now, I want to go to Larry Levine. You used to be a federal inmate. Now you`re a prison consultant. I want to know from you what this sicko that we`re seeing right here leaving court finally with the smirk wiped off his face what he faces inside prison.

LARRY LEVINE, PRISON CONSULTANT: Sexual predators, child molesters, they`re below the snitches. They`re the most hated people on the inside. And if somebody can get to them and kill them, they`re going to do it. Everybody has kids, nieces, nephews, children; he`s not going to have any friends and they`re going to have to keep this bastard in protective custody the rest of his life because if somebody can get to him, they will.

I can tell the look in his eyes, I know it because I was locked up with these kind of people. And he`s got the stare that all these molesters have. And you know, 30 to 60 years he probably won`t get out, but I think he should have gotten substantially more.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Well, let me say this, as despicable a human being as it is, I want the justice system to prevail. I don`t want anything to happen to him that is untoward. He is wearing a bullet proof vest. Police decided that was important.

More on the other side.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Your "Viral Video of the Day". A cat has found that he can drink from the water cooler -- this posted online. Now, tell me animals aren`t smart. They are brilliant. And let me tell you, the water cooler conversation here -- well, meow, meow, meow. This is one smart kitty.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)

SANDUSKY: A young man who was dramatic, a veteran accuser and always sought attention started everything. He was joined by a well-orchestrated effort of the media, investigators, the system, Penn State, psychologists, civil attorneys and other accusers. They won. I`ve wondered what they really won.

(END AUDIO CLIP)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Paul Lauricella, you`re the attorney for Victim Number One, thank you so much for joining us tonight. What about this ridiculous conspiracy theory that he pushed -- his attorney was pushing it too that, oh, my gosh, we`re all involved. I must be involved too because I`m a member of the media. And I`ve never heard of this character until this story broke. I don`t know anything about sports. I unfortunately am embarrassed to admit it, know nothing about him.

What do you make of that? Does that offend your client, one of the victims?

PAUL LAURICELLA, ATTORNEY FOR VICTIM NUMBER ONE: Of course, it offends my client. But you have to understand this is the way these pathological, narcissistic, serial pedophiles operate. It`s the way their twisted minds work. It`s about them. It`s not about the victims. It`s about themselves. It`s about Jerry Sandusky, you know.

He`s the victim because people called him out. He`s the victim because, you know, he got the speedy trial that the constitution guarantees him. Yes, he`s the victim because he`s being put in jail. You`ll notice that Jerry Sandusky could not even burden himself to really make an outright declaration of innocence despite all of his rantings. And it was a really incomprehensible rant that we heard today and in that radio interview.

(CROSSTALK)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Yes.

LAURICELLA: But you`ll notice he can`t come out and say it. In his heart he feels he`s innocent. What does that mean?

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Exactly -- in his heart.

Brian Claypool, you`re a Penn State graduate and criminal defense attorney. If I have doubts I would say "You know what; I didn`t do it." I wouldn`t go, "Well, in my heart I know I didn`t do it." What kind of nonsense is that?

These pedophiles, they live in an alternate universe and they have a lot in common with pathological liars, who I`ve studied, and essentially they just redefine the terms. "I only had sex with my wife. I didn`t have sex because now I`m redefining what sex means. And sex means only sex with my wife. So anything else I do, tickle monster, soaping, anything I do in the shower, I`m not going to call that sex."

CLAYPOOL: Jane, you`re exactly right. This man is a monster. He doesn`t live in reality. And if you remember, this is the same guy today saying I didn`t do these alleged acts. This is the same guy that was caught on tape in 2002. He was caught on an audiotape apologizing to one of the kids and his parents saying I could die for what I did to you.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: I want to give Larry Levine, former inmate and prison consultant, the final word briefly describe what his life`s going to be like.

LEVINE: He`s going to be an outcast. He`s not going to have any friends. When people go inside, you interact with others. It`s kind of like a social experience. He`s going to have to watch his back for the rest of his life. And if somebody can get to him, they will.

Like I said, he`s going to be a hated person on the inside. The people that he has exposure to, they`re never getting out either. And if somebody could take him out, put a knife in him, he`s going to be leaving in a box. This is what happens. This is reality.

(CROSSTALK)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: I will say this. I don`t wish that -- I don`t wish that on him. That`s probably why he`s going to have to be in protective custody for most of the 30 years. And that in itself is a hellish experience.

We`ll stay on top of this because you know there will be more to this drama.

Stay there -- more on the other side.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Time for our "Pet o` the Day". Send us your pet pic to hlntv.com/Jane. Mattie you are not a fatty. You`re gorgeous. And let`s see who we got here. Oh, Buster, I love the scarf and you have a fabulous look -- very, very hip. Valeria, you are chic, you are making the scene. And Eileen, we love you. We love you Eileen.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Time now for "Rico`s Rescues". Right little Rico? Let`s save some lives. Huh, Rico? Rico. Rico. Hey Rico. Rico.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: And Rico is my mother`s dog. We found him on the streets in Puerto Rico. And now he has a home.

So many animals in need of a home throughout the United States and Puerto Rico and elsewhere. Rico was one of them. Look how happy he is. He is wearing a raincoat because it is raining here in New York. Now we`re going to introduce you to another pooch in need of a loving family.

Straight out to my dear friend, animal welfare expert, Jane Garrison. Who do you have there and what`s her story?

JANE GARRISON, ANIMAL WELFARE EXPERT: This is gorgeous "Precious" -- another big kiss this week. Precious is a beautiful four-year-old chocolate pitbull mix. And she was dumped in a shelter pregnant and sadly only three of her puppies got out alive. And she did get out alive. The puppies have been adopted. And she is aching for a home.

She is such a good girl. As can you see from the pictures, she`s great with kids. She`s great with people. She`s very smart. She loves to play. She really exemplifies everything that is a pitbull is.

You know, Jane, so many people have this bad feeling about pitbulls but they`re really great dogs.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Look at her. There she is. Precious. Take a look at this video.

Now what`s interesting is that pitbulls -- and I`m sorry if I`m just talking slowly. I love to watch the video of this animal. We`re going to save her life. You know, since we started this segment, "Rico`s Rescues", we saved hundreds of because we showcase one dog but there are pitbulls all over the country, thousands and thousands of them. You can go to adoptapet.com and you can get a pitbull or you can get any other pet that you want. Name it, a poodle, a Pomeranian, they`re out there.

But you`re right, Jane, pitbulls do get a bad rap. What they need is a family who will give them plenty of exercise and just take walks and run and not be cooped up in an apartment. Right?

GARRISON: Well, you know, a great testimony to how great pit bulls are is look at the dogs from Michael Vick. Those dogs went through so much abuse and, yet, they`re now in loving homes and you can see they just want love.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Oh, my gosh. This little one wants love.

GARRISON: She needs a home.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Yes.

GARRISON: This little beast of a lover needs a home. I hope that someone can contact Take Me Home Rescue and let`s get Precious in a home. Go to adoptapet.com. Adopt an adult dog. You`ll know if they`re good with kids. You`ll know if they`re good with animals, Adoptapet.com. Let`s get these dogs out of the shelters. Stop supporting breeders. Stop supporting pet stores. Let`s stop the killing, this needless killing of millions of dogs every year and let`s just -- let`s save a life today.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Yes. You mentioned something about puppies and sadly so many unwanted animals are not spayed and neutered. They`re out there. They`re having puppies. One animal, whether it`s a cat or a dog, can become 1,000, 2,000 -- it`s exponential. So spay and neuter is another component.

And on the other side of the break, we`re going to show you how amazing animals are. And, again, you can go to adoptapet.com. How easy is that to remember?

Anywhere across the United States, you just put your zip code, your area code in and, boom, your pet of your choice will pop-up whether it`s a Chihuahua like little Rico here or whether it`s a pitbull or whether it`s a poodle. More on the other side.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Hey little Rico, why don`t we check out our "Kooky Video of the Day". It`s one of your buddies, Oliver the terrier. And Oliver gets a sneezing attack. The family said there might have been some black pepper from dinner. But the key, Jane Garrison, is that these dogs bring such joy and laughter to our lives.

If I`ve had a hard day, I come home and my dogs never fail to make me laugh and filled with gratitude. And while we talk, let`s put up the Web site where it`s takemehome.tv if you`re in the Santa Monica area and you want to get little Precious -- may not so little Precious. Remember, adoptapet.com any dog across the country, any breed whatsoever. Four million to five million dogs and cats are killed every year because there are no homes.

And this one`s a love. Tell us a little bit more about Precious, Jane.

GARRISON: The nice thing about Precious is that she`s an adult dog so you know what you`re getting. She`s gone through training. She`s great to be an only dog. She`s not destructive. You can leave her alone. She doesn`t mind but she`s always happy to go for a walk as well. She loves kids. She loves to play. And she loves to give kisses. She is a really, really great dog.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: She`s really a love. She`s a love. They all are.

GARRISON: Jane, I met this dog -- I met her an hour ago. So you can imagine once she really gets to know you.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Precious needs a home.

Nancy`s next.

END