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Jane Velez-Mitchell

Was Kidnapper His Victim`s Biological Dad?; Jodi Arias Back in Court on Monday

Aired August 21, 2013 - 19:00   ET

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


JANE VELEZ-MITCHELL, HOST: Breaking news tonight. There is a bizarre new twist in the murder/kidnapping drama that riveted the country.

Good evening. I`m Jane Velez-Mitchell coming to you live.

James DiMaggio was a beloved family friend of the Andersons until he murdered the wife, killed her 8-year-old son viciously, and then took off with the Andersons` beautiful 16-year-old daughter, Hannah, setting his own house on fire.

Tonight, the killer/kidnapper`s sister is suggesting, well, maybe Hannah`s real father is this guy, this kidnapper/killer, her brother. And she`s demanding a DNA test from the victim. The reaction of Hannah`s actual dad, who is grieving the loss of his wife and son: total and utter disgust.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Hannah sends her love. She`s doing good day by day.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: A painful twist to an already tragic story.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And now her abductor`s family wants her DNA.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We find it very strange that he left all this money without any explanation.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He basically became like part of our family.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Now his family says Hannah is DiMaggio`s daughter.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He really was like Uncle Jim to them.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: They want DNA tests.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There`s a real sort of irony that Hannah looks strikingly like Laura Robinson.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Laura Robinson is DiMaggio`s sister.

Hannah`s family has just reacted to this request for the DNA test, saying they are disgusted. They`re shooting down the theory that DiMaggio could be Hannah`s father, saying the Andersons didn`t even meet this man who turned out to be a complete creep until Tina was six months pregnant with Hannah. There is Tina, the deceased murdered woman.

DiMaggio is dead. The Andersons are devastated. They`re struggling to put their lives back together. What horrible timing to demand a paternity test now.

Critics are saying follow the money. Could the sister`s strange demand have anything to do with her being cut out of her dead brother`s life insurance money?

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

Tonight, in our Lion`s Den, we have a fantastic panel, including America`s most famous hunter of missing children, Marc Klaas. But first, we`ve got a very special guest with us tonight.

Hannah Anderson, the teenager who was kidnapped by this awful human being, Jim DiMaggio; Hannah`s grandfather, Chris.

Sir, thank you so much for joining us tonight. Was this request for a DNA test to determine the paternity of Hannah and her deceased kid brother a slap in the face to you?

CHRIS, GRANDFATHER OF HANNAH (voice-over): Yes, it was.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Tell me your reaction when you first heard this. Because I almost fell out of my chair. I was like, the nerve, the sheer nerve, the audacity to do this to a family that has been shattered, and this is the sister, representatives of the sister of the killer/kidnapper.

CHRIS: It doesn`t surprise me, because I feel she`s been covering up. She`s talked to him and I guess has lied in the past about talking to him. So it`s all about the money.

And, you know, this happened, from what I understand, two years ago when Hannah would have only been 13, 14, and I know there couldn`t have been anything going on. I don`t know why he left it, but you know. And from what I understand, it was -- it was left to supposedly Hannah and Ethan. So if this was a plan, you know, that was back then, it wouldn`t have had Ethan. It would have been just to Hannah.

But I don`t know what her -- her motive is, other than the money.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Well, let`s explain to our viewers, if you could wait one second, sir, while we set it up. And then we`ll come back to you.

We found out that the killer/kidnapper, Jim DiMaggio, who is dead, shot by some great sharp shooters, law enforcement, changed his life- insurance policy, I think you heard just now, a couple of years ago, canceling his sister as the beneficiary and instead giving the more than $100,000 policy to, we thought it was the grandmother of Hannah. But we`re hearing now that some believe maybe it`s to Hannah and her kid brother, who is now deceased, instead.

But listen to this, and then we`re going to discuss it.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ANDREW SPANSWICK, SPOKESMAN FOR DIMAGGIO`S FAMILY (via phone): Expected the grandmother to use the money to use to take care of the two children. He had stated specifically that he didn`t want to give it to either parent, because he didn`t trust them.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: And this, the picture, this is the poor man who is now being insulted in this manner. He`s lost his wife to murder. He`s lost his 8-year-old son to murder, and his daughter, his beautiful 16-year- old daughter was kidnapped. And now the sister of the criminal who did all this is saying, "Hey, man, you might not be the dad." It`s so outrageous, it blows my mind.

And I want to go to Jon Leiberman for a second, because I know you`re as upset about this as I am, before we go back to Chris.

JON LEIBERMAN, HLN CONTRIBUTOR: Yes, I mean, I`ve got to tell you, Jane, if the family really just wanted to know whose DNA this was, they could have done this privately. They didn`t have to come out through a spokesperson, open up all of these wounds.

And the bottom line, Jane, is this: that this man, Mr. DiMaggio, is still a torturer; he`s a killer. There were two innocent victims, three, of course, including Hannah, and nothing can change that.

And if he is, indeed, the father of Hannah -- and there`s absolutely no evidence to suggest that, I might add -- it makes this crime even more heinous that he could kill his own son and kidnap his own daughter. But none of it makes any sense. It could have been done privately. It didn`t have to be done like this.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: First of all, the family has already, I believe, set the record straight.

But the real story is, look at him. There he is, this goofball killer with Hannah, a beautiful 16-year-old girl, and the word was out that he had a crush on Hannah. An inappropriate crush. This is a 40-something-year- old man, and he had a crush on his best friend`s 16-year-old daughter. That tells you everything you need to know about him. A deviant.

I want to go back to Chris. Hannah Anderson, the teenager who was thankfully rescued from the kidnapping, her grandfather. Chris, and we`re protecting your identity. We don`t give out your last name to respect you. But this guy is a goof ball. You can see he`s emotionally immature. In every photograph, there he is with your 16-year-old granddaughter.

This is about as serious as he gets. If you look at his photos, he`s obviously emotionally stunted. And he`s -- that`s why some men want to -- want to hook up with a 16-year-old, because they can`t face a woman of their own age, because they`re emotionally stunted.

Did you ever see any signs of creepiness or an obsession with your beautiful granddaughter before this horror unfolded, sir?

CHRIS: Not at all. If I had suspected anything, I would have stepped in.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: But I want to ask you about this, because there were some communications, and I want to -- I want to explain to our viewers what this is all about, because a lot of people have been talking in social media about the fact that, in the hours before the two vanished on August 4, there were about 13 calls between the two of them.

But here`s what I say. We don`t know who was calling whom. It`s very possible -- the police haven`t told us -- that it was DiMaggio reaching out obsessively and repeatedly to your granddaughter, sir.

CHRIS: This is what I heard, that he was setting this whole thing up with all these phone calls to her, because she was with -- I think it was a cheerleading camp thing. And so I believe all the calls were him setting this up, and making supposed arrangements with my daughter and stating that, you know, he was going to pick her up.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Do you know...

CHRIS: I do not believe Hannah called him at all. I believe it was all his calls.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: And I`d like you to set the record straight on that, because this is an opportunity -- you know, unfortunately when you`re in the center of this kind of media storm, people say things, and a lot of uninformed people say things that are idiotic. But could you set the record straight about all of it?

I mean, that was the pretext that this DiMaggio creep used to get Hannah in his car and get away with her when he had set a timer after killing Tina and Hannah`s -- and her son, Hannah`s kid brother?

CHRIS: Well, the only thing I knew or heard after was that the story he had made up about losing his house, and he was supposedly moving to Texas, and this was the last weekend. And this is what I guess he had convinced my daughter that this was all coming down to come over and visit. Because I had talked to my daughter the Friday before this, and she had never mentioned that she was going over there.

So I think he had it all premeditated, that he was going to do this and, you know, this is how he was going to do it.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Now...

CHRIS: So my daughter didn`t have any -- you know, wouldn`t have suspected a thing from him.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Yes. And now I just want to ask you about the fact that, according to San Diego deputies, in the charred home, there were all sorts of things that I don`t want to mention, but there were some letters from Hannah. Again, this is a great opportunity to clear all those up once and for all, sir.

CHRIS: Yes, and I don`t know anything about the letters. They could have been from years ago. They could have been from birthday, you know, parties or birthday presents and thanking him. I don`t have a clue what was in the letters. But I can guarantee, they weren`t romantic love letters or anything like that. Because I know my granddaughter.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Well, you raise a very important point. And I want to bring in Judy Ho, clinical psychologist. When a man is obsessed with a young woman, he`s going to keep any totem, anything that he can associate with the person he`s obsessed with, like let`s say, a birthday card, something totally innocuous, and then they find it in the charred rubble. Oh, it`s a letter from Hannah, but indeed, it was probably -- it could very well have been like, "Hey, thanks for that gift." Because, you know, people who are obsessed with teenage girls are often giving gifts. And then a nice person will write a thank-you note, not knowing how creepy the whole thing is.

JUDY HO, CLINICAL PSYCHOLOGIST: Absolutely. He may have been a little bit of a hoarder, Jane, you know, keeping these little mementos, things that actually are not significant, as you suggested. But they are significant to him, because he has admittedly said he has a crush on this young girl. And that he wishes he was dating her, if she was younger.

And so anything that would be insignificant to other people would be very significant to him to keep.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: We are just getting started. We are happy to say that this beautiful 16-year-old young lady is safe and sound. But the family, her family, continues to be tormented now. Crazy suggestions and rumors. We`re setting the record straight tonight with Hannah`s grandfather.

Stay right there. We`re just getting started.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SPANSWICK (via phone): There`s been a lot of rumors about whether or not Jim might be the father of either of those children. We find it strange that he left all his money without any explanation.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SPANSWICK (via phone): Jim left it to her to take care of the kids. So, you know, it brings up a lot of questions that have been in my mind for a while about, you know, the children`s real father.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: New controversy in this terrible tragedy, and in an unusual twist, just a week after Hannah`s rescue, Hannah appeared at a fund-raiser car wash. This seems right in line with her sunny, cheerful disposition. She`s popular. She`s a cheerleader, and her friends were there. Check it out.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: She`s really kind, and she`s always that person to go to, like, if you have any problems, and she`ll help you out. And she`s always happy. Like, she didn`t deserve this. She`s -- she`s just an all-around good girl.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: She`s really, like, an outstanding person.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Straight out to the Lion`s Den. Marc Klaas, president and founder of Klaas Kids Foundation, you know this case better than anyone. Some may wonder why Hannah would go to this, given her mother and 8-year-old brother had just been viciously murdered a couple of weeks ago, she was recovering from a kidnapping. You know what I say? Sixteen- year-olds are 16 years old. They have no experience with a horror of this nature.

MARC KLAAS, FOUNDER, KLAAS KIDS FOUNDATION: Well, that`s absolutely right, Jane. And I certainly can`t put myself in the head of the 16-year- old girl.

But what I can do is remind everybody that after she was rescued, that San Diego County Sheriff Bill Gore said that she was a victim in every sense of the word. And in fact, she was victimized by somebody who was insane, a complete madman, who`s every plan went completely awry, destroyed a family, ended lives and certainly ended his own life.

And for his sister now to come forward and make these -- these accusations based upon Internet -- based upon Internet gossip, I think, is absolutely loathsome.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: I mean, it`s such a slap in the face.

Dorothy Lucey, social commentator and my dear friend, we cover so many outrageous cases, and the hallmark always seems to be the audacity. I mean, this is the sister of the killer/kidnapper. OK? He killed this -- the wife. He killed her son, 8 years old. He kidnapped...

DOROTHY LUCEY, SOCIAL COMMENTATOR: And Jane, knowing you, I`m surprised you didn`t mention the family dog, because I know what an animal lover you are.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Yes, and the family dog, as well.

LUCEY: And killed the family dog.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Yes. And not only that, takes this 16-year-old on this hell ride 1,000 miles. And we`ve got a map. A thousand miles from just outside San Diego all the way in Idaho and the wilds of Idaho. They got some horseback riders, discovered them and knew something was off and ended up calling cops. And cops shoot this guy and rescue Hannah.

But then, the killer/kidnapper`s sister has the nerve to say, "Hey, I think this guy might be the real father." And so it`s another slap to the real father, who is grieving the loss of his wife and son, Dorothy.

LUCEY: And also, you know, the hell that this young girl went through for six days.

And you know, I hate to even say this, but I, like other people, did have some questions about Hannah`s relationship with this man, because she was supposedly with him two nights before all this happened, till midnight. And then, you know, the phone calls that the grandfather addressed. So I think a lot of us had some questions.

But the police have said, "Leave it alone. We`re closing this investigation. It`s over. She`s a victim. Let the family grieve."

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Well, I want to go to Loni Coombs, former prosecutor, because you know, when we play detective, we often are wrong and inaccurate. Because -- that`s why we`re not detectives. So people are making a lot of there were 13 calls between the killer/kidnapper and 16- year-old Hannah in the hours before she`s kidnapped by him. Well, it could be him calling her 13 times.

LONI COOMBS, FORMER PROSECUTOR: Right. And Jane, you know, as a prosecutor, what I would do is take the evidence and see if there are different theories that fit. I want to throw out a theory to you, Jane, tonight, based on this new information that actually fits the evidence. I`m going to show you why.

Perhaps, just perhaps this man, DiMaggio, who we know is a killer, at some point in his mind thought he might be the father, because something else that they found in his home was DNA swab kits. OK? So there`s something interesting going on there.

He changes the insurance so that it`s not going to his sister, but it`s going to these two kids, perhaps as -- with the grandmother as the trustee. But it`s for the welfare and the care of these kids.

That would explain, perhaps, why Hannah and he are having all these conversations. What if sometime close to this kidnapping, he told her, "I think I`m your father."

And she`s like, "What are you talking about?" And there`s conversations going on back and forth. It would explain, perhaps, the letters.

And now I also want to point out something else, Jane. What everyone else is talking about, this crush that he had on her. When she was asked in the social media, after she was rescued -- they asked Hannah, did he have this strange crush on you? And she used a very interesting phrase at that time. She said, "It was more like a family crush, like he had a feeling as if he wanted nothing bad to happen to me." And I thought that was very interesting that she used the word "family crush," but under the spirit of perhaps he was telling her "I might be your father," it makes a little more sense.

It is a theory that fits the evidence (ph).

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Well, I -- now you`re -- now you`re putting a whole new twist on this, because I looked at it as he`s a perv who has a crush on a 16-year-old girl.

But you may have something there, because in the rubble of this house that he set on fire, his house, they found a hand-written note, a handcuff box, camping equipment, a DNA swab kit, as you just mentioned, and two used condoms.

Now, Dr. Judy Ho, first, I thought two used condoms, gross. Right? God only knows. But now I`m thinking is it possible that he kept his own DNA, because he was under the misconception -- in other words, I`m not saying it`s true.

HO: Right, right.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: I`m saying that -- take it away.

HO: Maybe there -- well, if we`re going with this hypothesis, maybe there was some suspicion that he was the biological father of Hannah.

And I agree with you, Jane, and when I heard about the two used condoms, I`m thinking why is he keeping those around? And in the light of this particular hypothesis, that may be true. But you know, I really disagree with the way it`s coming out and how the sister is making this a public matter. Hannah has been traumatized so much.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Marc -- Marc Klaas, you wanted to say something?

KLAAS: Well, yes. I mean, the father said that they hadn`t even met DiMaggio until -- until she was pregnant.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Yes, she was six months pregnant.

KLAAS: So I mean, what is this that we`re even talking about here? It just doesn`t even make sense.

LEIBERMAN: And they used Brent`s DNA to identify the 8-year-old.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: No, no, no, Marc. I don`t think anybody is saying that he`s the father. I`m saying -- I think what Loni Coombs, a former prosecutor, is saying is in his sick, demented mind, he had made it into, "I`m the father," because he`s irrational.

Anybody who would do what he did -- brutally kill his best friend`s wife with a crowbar, kill his 8-year-old son, the child, and then kidnap the 16-year-old -- is demented. So maybe in his sick, demented head, he made up a story: "Oh, yes, they`re my kids." Who knows?

But I think that it`s not true. We`re just trying to figure out -- it`s hard to get inside the mind of a murderer. It really is. But we`re trying tonight.

Stay right there. We`ll be right back.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: According to these newly-released search warrants, DiMaggio tortured and killed his best friend`s wife and 8-year-old son and shot and killed the family dog. Police also say they found a crowbar and what appeared to be blood on the ground next to Christina Anderson`s body.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BRETT ANDERSON, FATHER OF KIDNAPPED GIRL: He and I had a very close relationship over the years, and we`ve done many, many things throughout the years together, and he basically became like part of our family. He was always around, and we always did stuff together as a family. Sometimes he took the kids camping. But we were just very good friends.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: And that man, Brett Anderson, experienced the ultimate betrayal. This good friend kidnapped his beautiful 16-year-old daughter, apparently had a crush on her. And murdered Brett`s wife using a crowbar, it`s believed, as well as his 8-year-old son. A very sick crime.

And now to add insult to fatal injury, the killer/kidnapper`s sister is saying, "Oh, I want a DNA test. Maybe Hannah and the little boy, who`s dead, were his children," the killer`s children. It`s unimaginable, the audacity.

Straight out to Stephanie Elam, CNN correspondent, who`s on the ground in San Diego near where this tragedy began.

What have you got? A lot of breaking news tonight.

STEPHANIE ELAM, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Jane, we`re actually here in Boulevard. This is where Jim DiMaggio lived. This is where he burned down the house, where they found the remains of Hannah Anderson`s mother and also her brother.

We`re out here, as we`re pushing to find more information about what is going on here in a story that is taking a very bizarre turn, with this interest in DNA from DiMaggio`s sister, to find out whether or not he was the mother -- the father of both children here.

Now, we did get some interview time with the great uncle of Hannah. He is the brother of her grandmother, of Tina`s mother. And he had some very fiery words to say today about this whole thing. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DAVID BRAUN, TINY ANDERSON`S UNCLE: Not only has this DiMaggio terrorist brutally murdered parts of my family, but now the other part of the family is insinuating that Tina was unfaithful, and that my niece and - - my grand niece and nephew were not Brett`s children. And that alone is - - is like a knife to the heart.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ELAM: And the family also being very upset about the fact these claims are coming out before the memorial service takes place on Saturday and that the focus right now should really be on remembering Tina and Ethan, and focusing on making sure that Hannah is doing OK in her recovery, Jane.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: And Stephanie, I -- I can see that you`re right in front of the rubble, is it, of this crime scene. Can you step aside and let us see what is there? Because this is the horror, this is the very place where -- where Tina Anderson and her precious 8-year-old son were found. This is unimaginable. This is the crime scene.

And Stephanie, I want to thank you for that really, really informative breaking news report. And I just -- I`m just looking at this and taking it in. I mean, what -- what mentality to do something this violent: destroy your own house, kill the wife of your best friend, kill your best friend`s 8-year-old son, kidnap your best friend`s 16-year-old daughter. And then his sister -- he`s shot by authorities. His sister says, "Oh, maybe he was the dad after all."

I want to go to the Lion`s Den. Thank you for that report, Stephanie, and for letting us see the crime scene there. Let`s go straight out to the Lion`s Den, because I`ve got to ask my panelists, this is getting more and more outrageous actually.

Oh, my God, Brian Silber, I`ve got to tell you, the uncle really brought it home where they`re really trashing the family that is the victim here, because the insinuation would be that Tina was not faithful to her husband. And I didn`t even think of that until the uncle just said that.

BRIAN SILBER, ATTORNEY: Jane, first let me tell you, the flashing light in my background is a fire alarm test that`s going on in our building. There`s no actual fire, but it`s kind of driving us crazy.

But anyway, getting back to the issues in our case, you know, one thing that comes to my mind is that all this could be resolved with a simple swab of someone`s inner cheek with a Q-tip, you know. I get all the lack of facts --

VELEZ-MITCHELL: You know -- no, I`m sorry, it can`t.

SILBER: -- and all these things --

(CROSSTALK)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: There`s something called feelings, Dorothy Lucey and --

SILBER: I agree with that. I agree with that. But this could be put to rest in 30 seconds -- plain and simple. And you know what, that would be the best way to fight that.

LUCEY: I think the family -- I think the family`s already --

VELEZ-MITCHELL: I want to hear from -- I want to hear from Dorothy. What did you say?

LUCEY: I think the family has already put it to rest. And you know what, Jane -- I had that same reaction that you did, when we looked at the rubble. I mean I felt bile coming up for a second. An eight-year-old boy, I mean it`s impossible to tell you how cute an eight-year-old boy is, and you think the child and his mother were killed and possibly tortured in that rubble/

VELEZ-MITCHELL: It`s unimaginable. It`s absolutely unimaginable. And now further torture of this devastated family, with this cruel request. Stay right there.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Her mother and brother were tortured, then killed. The same day, Hannah Anderson was abducted. So why were there 13 phone calls between Hannah and the suspect that day?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: James DiMaggio tortured Hannah`s mother and brother before killing them.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The documents say he lifted the tarp and saw the bottom half of a human torso, legs and feet.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The crowbar was next to the mother`s body.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: She is a victim in every sense of the word in this horrific crime.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Sharing details about her kidnapping on social media.

A user asked, "Did you want to go with DiMaggio?" She replied, "No, not at all." "Why didn`t you run?" "He would have killed me."

"Why didn`t you tell your parents he creeped you out?"

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: "In part, he was my dad`s best friend and I didn`t want to ruin anything between them."

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: This family has been through such unimaginable horrific hell. Hannah`s mother and brother both murdered, the house set on fire, a five-day manhunt launched to find 16-year-old beautiful Hannah.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BRETT ANDERSON, FATHER OF HANNAH ANDERSON: Jim, I can`t fathom what you were thinking. The damage is done. I`m begging you to let my daughter go. You`ve taken everything else.

Hannah, we all love you very much. If you have a chance, then take it. You run. You`ll be found.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: It all started when Hannah went missing the same day family friend Jim DiMaggio`s house was set on fire. And then that horrific discovery -- Hannah`s mother and brother`s bodies in the rubble of DiMaggio`s burning house. And then three days later and a thousand miles away, horseback riders spot Jim and Hannah in the Idaho wilderness, DiMaggio`s car found hidden under brush. The FBI ultimately guns DiMaggio down and rescues Hannah.

Straight into "The Lion`s Den" -- and now this family tortured by more questions. I want to show you some photos, panelists, of Hannah after she was rescued going to a fund raiser at a restaurant. Remember she`s 16 years old. She`s a cheerleader. She`s popular. She has a lot of friends.

But some people question this photo and said that maybe it was too soon or even suggested it might be inappropriate. Then people started talking about her answering questions on social media and also suggested that it was an inappropriate response.

Jon Leiberman --

JOHN LEIBERMAN, HLN CONTRIBUTOR: Jane --

VELEZ-MITCHELL: -- is she being victimized again?

LEIBERMAN: Absolutely. She`s being re-victimized again and again. As you well know, I`ve interviewed hundreds of victims of violent crime, and each one handles it differently. Each one acts differently.

This girl -- and she is a girl, she`s 16 years old. She went through hell. We can`t predict now she`s going to act and we can`t put our value system on how we want her to look when she comes out into the public eye, what we want her to say if we want her to look broken and shattered. This is a 16-year-old girl. And yes, I do believe she and her family are being victimized over and over and over again.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Michelle, Canada --

LUCEY: You know Jane, I have a friend --

VELEZ-MITCHELL: -- go ahead. Go ahead. Go ahead.

LUCEY: I`m sorry -- I was going to say Jane, I have a friend who recently passed away, and she has a 15-year-old daughter. And can I tell you what the kids do is act normal -- that is how teenagers survive. They act like everything is ok.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Exactly. And in fact, Judy Ho, clinical psychologist, every study shows that people do not react to tragedy the way they do in the movies. They do not often cry.

I remember when my father died many years ago, I was numb. It took me years to really start crying about it. At first, you`re in a state of -- it`s surreal. You`re in denial. You don`t even accept that it`s happening on some deep level. You`re in complete denial.

Isn`t there a famous book by Elisabeth Kubler-Ross about the five stages that people go through in a trauma that involves death?

JUDY HO, CLINICAL PSYCHOLOGIST: Absolutely Jane -- the five stages of grief. And everybody has a different reaction just like you said. Everyone has a different timeline. Some people process it right away and they`re crying right away. Other people don`t do it for months or years after the fact.

And I think with Hannah trying to tell her story on social media, I think that`s really tough, because she`s subjecting herself to strangers` criticisms and questions that she might not be able to handle and that`s re-traumatizing. But I think that`s showing she on some level wants to process at least a little bit of it right now.

And so this is a crucial point where we might be able to get her some professional intervention, maybe get some family members, trusted friends to talk to her about it. But this whole social media route is just further re-traumatizing her, adding insult to injury.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: But Loni Coombs, do we have to ask questions? Because it pains me to say if there were approximately 13 calls between DiMaggio and Hannah in the hours before this kidnapping or them -- yes, go ahead.

LONI COOMBS, FORMER PROSECUTOR: Yes, I think people are asking questions and they`re trying to figure out what type of relationship this really was between Hannah and DiMaggio. As far as the social media, that is Hannah`s -- that`s every teenager`s way of taking control of their life and that`s where they share their deepest emotions. Not with their parents, not with their families -- with other peers. Whether she thinks that`s going to bring on hostility or not, she`s not worried about that. That`s her way of taking control.

But as far as asking questions, everybody is saying was this some type of inappropriate relationship? What if it was that she thought that maybe this guy was telling her things about, "I`m your dad"? And I don`t think it`s a coincidence that the phone calls that were supposedly going on between DiMaggio and his sister there at the end, and then all of a sudden the sister comes out and says I want to ask this question essentially on my brother`s behalf. I want to know about the paternity, I think there was something going on there. And that could explain all the questions about what was the relationship between Hannah and these phone calls and visits and being with him.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: And remember, Hannah said she had no idea her mother and brother had been murdered until after she was rescued.

COOMBS: Right.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: So maybe that was part of the ruse to get her to go along with him. Maybe he was trying to convince her that she was his daughter, which would make this entire thing even more diabolical and evil. It really crosses the line into some kind of -- well, it already did -- a horror movie.

Stay right there. We`ll be right back.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ANDERSON: As for my daughter, the healing process will be slow. She has been through a tremendous, horrific ordeal.

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(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They just really didn`t fit very well -- the expressions on their face, their demeanor. It just didn`t fit that country. They -- it was out of place, completely. They weren`t dressed for the country or the area.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I did talk to him about why he was there, in this far out place. And he said "She got to pick where we went last year. She wanted to go to Los Angeles and Hollywood. So this year was my turn."

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Straight out to "The Lion`s Den". We`re trying to get inside the mind of a killer/kidnapper and I actually think we`re getting somewhere, because that guy that you just saw there, Jim DiMaggio, who murdered two members of this family and kidnapped a 16-year-old girl, we`d always thought he had a crush on her.

But now we`re -- now we`re reinterpreting this family crush. That was what Hannah said, he had a family crush. And now that we`re hearing all about these requests for DNA, it`s possible, I think -- Judy Ho, but you know, let me throw this to Brian Silber -- that he had no family. He was a loner, he was a loser. He lived in a rooming house for a while until he got a house. But basically he wanted a family, and I think in a kind of borderline personality disorder type way, he picked this family and kind of insinuated himself and said, "They`re mine." And then he wanted to believe that these were his kids, even though biologically, that`s not true. And he concocted a story and told her a lie that he was her dad -- Brian.

SILBER: You know, Jane, that`s a very detailed theory that I feel that maybe there`s some evidence for, maybe some against. But this is what the little voice inside my mind tells me. This guy is one of these symbolism killers. He`s a guy that did death by cop. He is a guy that did a fire. He`s a guy that left the insurance policy, knowing that we would all be here to see it be given to those people and to talk about it.

And I think that should cause us to ask questions, and not just take this on face value. And that little voice in my mind is telling me that there`s more to this story than meets the eye. And that`s what bothers me about this case.

And I think that may be something that that rancher saw on that day when he sat on that horse and saw the two of them together.

(CROSSTALK)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: More on the story. But we don`t know what more.

All I know is, the father, who lost his wife and son and thought he had lost possibly his daughter, is a victim in this case. And my heart goes out to the Anderson family. We`re going to stay on this case as it develops, as more is revealed.

But next, another humdinger -- we all know the Jodi Arias case. A new take on the life of victim Travis Alexander from Travis himself -- we`ve got some breaking news. Stay right there.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JODI ARIAS, CONVICTED KILLER: I feel -- I feel a little betrayed by them. I don`t dislike them, I just was really hoping that they would see things for what they are, and I don`t feel that they did.

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VELEZ-MITCHELL: Time for Pet of the Day, send your pet pics to hlntv.com/jane.

Jillian Rose -- I love your pose. Oh, Gabby -- you are so fabby, Gabby. Oh, my gosh. And Cookie Girl -- she says, "I`m looking for a treat. I want to eat." Castle -- oh, you are regal and royal, an aristocat -- oh no, dog.

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(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ARIAS: Don`t roll the tape yet.

I`d like to start a book club or a reading group.

I wanted to rewind the clock.

I seriously think about having sex with you every day.

JUAN MARTINEZ, PROSECUTOR: I thought you said the relationship with Mr. Alexander was very stressful.

ARIAS: Some of the sex wasn`t.

We didn`t discuss much, we just argued.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: About what?

ARIAS: About whether or not to kill me.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: For what reason?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Breaking news tonight as we barrel toward a new trial for Jodi Arias on life or death. Her defense team files a motion -- are you sitting down -- telling the judge they want to know if any of the new jurors have a Twitter account. We haven`t even picked the new jury yet.

Well, this as the family of victim Travis Alexander is also speaking out. They`ve also come out telling Travis`s story in a new self-help book that he, Travis had been writing since his late 20s before he was brutally murdered by Jodi Arias.

In the prologue the Alexander family talks about numerous hardships they`ve had to endure and they say they want the penalty phase to happen right away in the near future but the defense, well, they`re doing everything they can to push judgment day back to next year.

We`ll try to figure out what it`s going to be -- straight out "The Lion`s Den" but first I have to ask you about this breaking news. What the heck? I`ve never heard of such a thing.

Brian Silber, the defense wants to know if the jurors have Twitter accounts. We haven`t even picked the jurors. What are they up to?

SILBER: Well, my guess is they have some kind of specific concern as it relates to Twitter. For me, the question that bothers me about it is it`s so narrow, why limit it to Twitter. Why not mention Facebook, why not find out what news media they watch? What magazines they subscribe to. Obviously they`re looking for people that have had exposure to information that they would consider prejudicial. And that`s the ultimate issue that they`re getting at.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Ok Loni -- go ahead.

LEIBERMAN: Jodi`s own tweets --

COOMBS: Yes. Look. In the prior case they had a jury questionnaire and it probably covered all of those usual things that we do -- the Facebook, the media, the newspapers, the TV shows. But we know that since then Jodi herself through her friend has a Twitter account. She`s been Twittering.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Of course.

COOMBS: So now they need to say who has been reading Jodi`s words for the last however many months. They`re probably just saying we want to add this question to the jury -- the questionnaire that goes to the jurors this time.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Jon Leiberman what are they saying about -- (CROSSTALK)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: What does that say about how this is going to look, this whole retrial phase?

LEIBERMAN: Well, I was just --

LUCEY: After they`ve read your book, Jane. It shocked me there was something new on this case. I thought we knew everything but I`m reading your book. There`s a lot of new stuff in there. That`s what they should ask these people. Have they read your book?

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Yes. They probably will.

LEIBERMAN: You know, quite frankly, Jane --

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Go ahead.

LEIBERMAN: -- quite frankly, Jane, Jodi`s tweets are prejudicial because they continue to show no remorse at all. They continue to show what a lying, manipulative woman she is. And so I`m sure the defense is worried about any potential jurors reading her tweets.

(CROSSTALK)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: And speaking of my book, I`m happy to say --

SILBER: Has it been proven that she`s actually the source?

VELEZ-MITCHELL: -- my new book "Exposed: the secret life of Jodi Arias", has now hit the Amazon top ten best seller list.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Well criminal trials are one of the very few venues in our culture where we really get to see what happens behind closed door. And so often people present masks to the world. They present us one thing and indeed their lives in private are quite different or if not, 180 degrees different.

So for us to be able to get inside this case and really study the sexual relationship between these two to the point where we`re hearing sex tapes and we`re seeing xxx-rated chats. We`re not getting the whole picture from those because Jodi manipulated all that information. But we are getting to look at what people never see. I mean we`re seeing in this case what people don`t tell their psychiatrist or their lovers or their fathers or their mothers or their sisters. We`re getting to see reality in all of this scariness.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

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VELEZ-MITCHELL: More tomorrow on the Jodi Arias case as we push forward towards Monday`s huge hearing. Join us tomorrow.

Nancy Grace next.

END