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Jane Velez-Mitchell
Arrest at Justin Bieber`s Mansion; Man Shot Dead for Texting in Theater
Aired January 14, 2014 - 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, just moments ago, cops whipping out the handcuffs in an unbelievable raid. And they made an arrest at pop superstar Justin Bieber`s massive Los Angeles mansion. But even with drugs discovered, quote, "in plain view," the Biebster is walking free tonight. Instead, one of his pals is hauled off to jail.
Are we seeing a two-tiered system of justice again? Sure looks like it to me.
Good evening, I`m Jane Velez-Mitchell, coming to you live.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There was a very serious arrest at Justin`s house.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is a felony crime.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The Biebs was accused of egging his neighbor`s house.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Crack down on this kid before something really awful happens.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Bieber`s bad boy behavior. "The Daily Beast" declares it the Bieber`s year of affluenza.
JUSTIN BIEBER, POP STAR: (EXPLETIVE DELETED). What did you say?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He can be a punk all he wants. When you break the law and there`s physical evidence and audio of your voice, when you`re doing $20,000 worth of damage, you could go to jail.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: A couple of hours ago, cops raided Justin Bieber`s $6.5 million mansion, hunting for evidence, like surveillance tape after a neighbor claims the Biebster hurled almost two dozen eggs at his home.
Cops say Bieber has not been cleared or arrested, but they say they found drugs in plain sight. And they arrested a rapper who goes by the name Lil Za.
Now, just moments ago, the cops held a news conference. Let`s listen in.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LT. DAVID THOMPSON, LOS ANGELES COUNTY SHERIFF`S OFFICE: I`ll take any questions you may have regarding the Justin Bieber...
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Who was arrested today at Justin Bieber`s?
THOMPSON: Arrested today was a Mr. Xavier Dominic Smith. He was arrested for felony narcotic possession. His bail is $20,000. I believe he`s bailing out in a short time. That arrest was at -- at the residence, but unrelated to our investigation as to why we were there.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Could you give us any detail about the drugs? Were they on him or near him? Anything like that?
THOMPSON: The drugs, I believe, were in his close proximity with his property. He was staying in a bedroom when we came there. And that`s where the drugs were located in plain view.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (UNINTELLIGIBLE)
THOMPSON: The drugs are going to be analyzed by our lab. I believe it`s Xanax and Ecstasy. But we will wait for the actual results before we can confirm that. But that`s what we believe it is at this time. And the amount was not a significant amount. I`m not sure exactly the weight or anything of that nature.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Was it cocaine?
THOMPSON: It was not. I believe it was what was first reported, but I think it`s Ecstasy.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Ecstasy, and Xanax, they believe, found in Justin Bieber`s home, but he`s not arrested. Why not? Call me: 1-877-JVM-SAYS, 1-877-586-7297. What do you think about this?
Straight out to our fantastic Lion`s Den panel. We begin with TMZ`s Mike Walters. TMZ broke this story. Mike, describe the drama of this raid on Justin Bieber`s mansion and what you know.
MIKE WALTERS, TMZ: Well, Jane, it was crazy this morning. We first got the phone call that over ten L.A. County sheriff`s cars were descending on Justin Bieber`s mansion in Calabasas. Once we heard the press conference, you were told there were over 12 deputies/detectives that went and raided this house. This was not a small deal. This was a bunch of cops.
When we got in some of the video and photos of this raid, you can see, they took this egging very seriously, and you`re seeing the fallout. And we all knew, come on, they`re looking for evidence in a felony vandalism case throwing eggs. What they really were going to find is exactly what they did find, which is drugs. Hard narcotics.
And look, yes, they arrested Lil Za, who`s a rapper/actor who`s a friend of Justin Bieber`s. Justin`s not under arrest. But we all know this. If there`s drugs in Justin Bieber`s house, Justin Bieber knows about it. And this kid is now under arrest...
ANNA YUM, CRIMINAL DEFENSE ATTORNEY: That`s not true. That`s not true at all.
(CROSSTALK)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Wait a second. Hold on a second.
YUM: I disagree with that completely. I disagree with that completely. This is ridiculous, Jane. It takes 10 to 12 officers to go to his house to search for a felony warrant involving egging someone`s house? This is a waste of taxpayer dollars.
You can`t just impute knowledge. You can`t say that, just because drugs were found in Little Za`s room, that Justin Bieber knew about it. In the criminal justice system, you have to be guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. And you have to know, Jane. You have to know.
And if it was in Little Za`s room, how can you necessarily say that he knew about that? And not only that, Jane, but it`s really important what you said yesterday on your show. You said people should be treated equally in the criminal justice system. I agree with that. Justin Bieber is not being treated...
VELEZ-MITCHELL: How is this equal? How is this equal, Kendra G.? Where Little Za takes the rap for Justin, the Biebs. It`s his house. Nothing happens to him.
KENDRA G., RADIO PERSONALITY: OK, first of all, Justin Bieber of course knows what`s going on in his house. It`s his house. He`s participating in the drugs. Right now, Justin Bieber is out of control.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: We don`t know that, but it is his house.
KENDRA G.: It`s his house, Jane. You think he did not know there`s drugs in his house? Come on now.
Let`s -- let`s understand. You have been watching Justin Bieber for the last year and a half, this is a boy who`s 19 years old, worth more than $100 million. He`s out of control. He needs a good shaking from his mother. But she`s probably on vacation living off of his money right now.
So you know what? I`m not surprised about any of this. I`m really not.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Here`s -- here`s...
ROSE NOESI, RADIO PERSONALITY: First of all, I want to know -- I want to know Lil Za...
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Rose Noesi.
NOESI: Let`s say that I`m a driver of a car and the passenger has drugs on his person. Am I automatically guilty because the passenger happens to have drugs?
KENDRA G.: If you have been arrested within the last year -- if you`ve been arrested in the last year, yes, I would say you`re guilty.
(CROSSTALK)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Rosie Noesi, radio personality, 102.3. Go.
NOESI: Order in the court. Order in the court. First of all, I watch "Entourage." Did we know that it was all Vinnie`s money? Justin Bieber paid for everything, OK? Little Za, who has bought his albums? Not me. Who is he? I don`t -- I don`t know who he is. So this guy is selling his soul to Justin Bieber`s devil, because he`s taking the rap for this. He`s loyal.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: I agree.
KENDRA G.: No, I`m sorry...
YUM: But guys, let`s be honest. Justin Bieber should not be placed in a situation where the court needs to make an example out of him just because he is a celebrity. That`s the flip side of this...
VELEZ-MITCHELL: The court has not made any judgment at all. OK? He allegedly -- a neighbor says he spit on him. Somebody else says that they`re -- he`s driving at high speed in the neighborhood, with his fancy cars. He`s got a Contra Fisca (ph). He`s got a Ferrari, reportedly.
He`s now accused of egging a neighbor`s house to the tune of $20,000, because he has to have his plaster removed. They are not -- au contraire, not only are they not picking on him, but they don`t even arrest him when they find drugs in his house.
LILI VALLETTA, FOUNDER, XL ALLIANCE: Exactly, Jane.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Let me tell you something. Let me say this.
YUM: All the things that he`s...
VALLETTA: Now, here`s what`s happening. It`s becoming...
YUM: Jane, you can`t arrest someone for being a spoiled brat.
KENDRA G.: You`re a Bieber fan. She`s a Bieber fan.
YUM: Actually, I`m not really a Bieber fan.
KENDRA G.: You`re a Belieber.
YUM: I`m not a Belieber. But I am a defense attorney, and I would defend him to my last breath, OK?
(CROSSTALK)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: One at a time, one at a time. I want to go to Lili Valletta. Here`s my point.
In poor neighborhoods, when they go in and they raid a house and they find drugs, they quite often do a sweep and they take everybody to jail. That didn`t happen in this case.
And Justin Bieber said, indeed, the cops say that he really didn`t talk to them. That he just answered a few questions regarding the search warrant. But they didn`t do an interview. So if they didn`t really do an interview, how the heck do they know this wasn`t his drug and it wasn`t his drugs -- Lili.
VALLETTA: It`s a double standard. Here`s the problem that we have right now. We`re seeing one data point, and we`re treating it as one. No, it is not. When there`s multiple data points, there is a trend, and when there`s a real issue, there`s an issue. And when there is a real issue, there needs to be consequences for this behavior.
His celebrity status should not be an excuse for misbehavior. He`s done it in the states. He`s done it in my home country, Colombia, where he was graffiti-ing the walls in the streets of Bogota and getting away with it. This needs to have a consequence.
And just as it is, when somebody goes into a house and there`s minors drinking or any other illegal situation going on, the owner of the house is held accountable for what`s happening inside.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Exactly. Exactly. Why isn`t the owner held accountable when drugs are found in plain view? This is not in his pocket.
YUM: This was in plain view in Little Za`s room.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: It`s not his room.
(CROSSTALK)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It doesn`t matter.
YUM: Let me say this. Don`t you think the officers want to arrest him?
VELEZ-MITCHELL: No.
YUM: I think they do. They sent 11 officers there.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: They did that for show. You know why they did that? Because yesterday on this show, I told them to take action against Justin Bieber. I said, take action against Justin Bieber. So that`s a show. They sent 11 cop cars there.
But the proof is in the pudding. If they had arrested him, that would have been taking action.
Let me go to Vanessa, Texas. What have you got to say, Vanessa, Texas?
CALLER: Yes, my niece is a very big fan of Justin Bieber. And for her to sit here and watch this, you know that is so wrong. That he can just sit there and have drugs in his house and we are fans? Come on now. Come on now. That makes my niece look like -- huh-uh. I can`t let my niece...
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Lili -- Lili Valletta, she has a point. What message does this send to the millions of kids, children around the world who are Beliebers?
VALLETTA: Exactly. And here`s what we need to understand. He is a kid. But he`s not just any kid or a rich celebrity. He`s a brand. And when there is a brand that is followed by millions of kids around the world, it`s something that others want to emulate.
And the problem that this is sending is a message of tolerance for misbehavior, which is totally unacceptable. And just as we heard from our caller in Texas, it`s going to happen to the nieces and nephews and daughters and sons all over the country that see this and think it`s OK. That`s the problem here.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: I want to bring in Wendy Murphy, former prosecutor and author of "Justice for Some." We`re talking about our two-tiered system of justice. We all know that when cops do drug raids in poor neighborhoods, they arrest everybody.
I have talked to mothers against mandatory minimums or families against mandatory minimums, where girlfriends are doing hard time because their boyfriends had drugs under the bed. And yet, they break it. They raid Justin Bieber`s mansion. They find -- they originally thought it was cocaine in plain view. Then they revised it to what they believe is Molly, which is a form of Ecstasy and Xanax. And yet Justin Bieber, nothing. Do you think that`s fair?
WENDY MURPHY, FORMER PROSECUTOR: Not fair.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Let Wendy speak.
MURPHY: I`m often on the prosecution`s side, Jane, as you know. But in this case, I want to know two things. I`m going to call it like I see it.
Where were they looking and what did the search warrant allow them to look for? I think you can go to the refrigerator and look for eggs. You can probably look for things that might be related to egg throwing.
KENDRA G.: That`s not what they were looking for.
MURPHY: But you can`t go snooping in drawers, looking for a crime...
VELEZ-MITCHELL: It was in plain view, Wendy. Plain view.
YUM: It`s all about probable cause.
MURPHY: I do not think he should have been arrested. Because it`s a big house, one bedroom. Some pills on somebody`s...
VALLETTA: That`s the point. If it was so easy to spot it in a big giant house, it was obvious and evident and probably laying in the middle of a table that Justin Bieber knew was sitting there loud and clear.
KENDRA G.: At the end of the day, it`s his house.
(CROSSTALK)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: There`s a million news reports that Sweden cops claim that they found pot on his tour bus. There was another thing that happened at an airport. I mean, this -- it`s not like it comes out of the blue. We`re not dealing with Shirley Temple here.
KENDRA G.: Exactly.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: We have to take a break. Callers are lining up, pro, con the Biebster. Stay right there. We`re going to be more -- back with more in a second.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
THOMPSON: None of this has anything to do with him being a celebrity. This is a felony crime that we investigated and determined was a felony crime that had evidence. A judge signed a felony search warrant. And this could be Mr. Bieber; this could be you; this could be me; this could be anybody. We would do the same level of crimes with anybody that committed this crime.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Hey, you (EXPLETIVE DELETED)!
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I`ve got another one for you after these!
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, come right over here, you (EXPLETIVE DELETED)! Call the cops. Come on over. Oh, no, that`s real good, buddy. Yes, you`re a big (EXPLETIVE DELETED) man, aren`t you?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Oh, my God.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You`re a big (EXPLETIVE DELETED) man. Come back over here you little (EXPLETIVE DELETED)!
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Hi, I`d like to place an assault.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: That is Justin Bieber`s neighbor. He videotaped what he said was Justin Bieber vandalizing his house by throwing approximately 20 eggs, destroying his Venetian plaster, which he says is going to take $20,000 to replace. That makes it felony vandalism.
That led to a raid on Justin Bieber`s mansion. But the guy who took the fall tonight, the Biebster`s buddy, rapper Little Za, he`s best known for being friends with the Biebs. But he does make music. Listen to the guy who`s arrested for drugs, even though he was in Justin Bieber`s house.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
(MUSIC)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: TMZ says 20-year-old Little Za and his brother Lil Twist both used to live with Justin Bieber. TMZ says the brothers used to throw parties while Justin wasn`t home. Apparently, they were kicked out. But at least one of them`s back.
So my question, Kendra G., is Little Za the bad guy or the fall guy?
KENDRA G.: He`s totally the fall guy. He is taking the rap for Justin Bieber, without a doubt. I`m not even confused about that at all.
You know what? I don`t know how I feel about this. Because what -- I mean, Justin Bieber probably is taking care of his lifestyle. I`m quite sure the cops said, "Who do these drugs belong to?"
And he said, "Mine." He was probably being a good friend, but it wasn`t a good thing to do for him.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: I`ve got to go out to the phone lines. Because go ahead, who disagrees?
NOESI: It`s very upsetting, not only what`s happening for the guy, Little Za, who`s taking the rap, but a lot of people who live in that community, they work really hard to keep that lifestyle.
Now Justin comes and just poops all over their lifestyle, throwing eggs, disrespectful, not caring about anybody about himself. And it`s like -- you know, it`s upsetting.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Let me ask you -- let me ask you a question, Wendy Murphy. If, let`s say, the landscaper had spit in a neighbor`s face. According to the neighbors, that`s what Justin did. Had driven at high speed and had thrown eggs on a big house, causing $20,000 in damage, do you think that landscaper would be behind bars right now?
KENDRA G.: You know what? He would be in jail yesterday. That`s what would happen to that landscaper.
(CROSSTALK)
MURPHY: I read this story, and I...
KENDRA G.: Jane, Jane. Don`t leave! Don`t leave, Jane! Come back, Jane! Jane, come back! Come back, Jane.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Come on, Wendy, you wrote it. "And Justice for Some." How many times do we have to go through this?
MURPHY: There`s no question. Nine times out of ten, the guy with the money gets a much better form of justice than the guy without money.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Yes.
MURPHY: But -- but we also like our whipping boys and our whipping girls. Look what happened to Martha Stewart. I mean, she got her ass kicked, and a lot of guys that did much worse, in terms of insider trading, never spent a day in jail.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: That`s a different -- that`s a different -- you`re talking about a totally different league. A total different league.
MURPHY: This is more like a "Brady Bunch" episode than a serious crime. I don`t -- I just don`t get all the...
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I disagree. This is felony vandalism we`re talking about. We`re talking about felony vandalism, which is a lower- level crime.
YUM: It`s eggs.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: One at a time.
YUM: ... would not be looking at a felony in this kind of case.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: ... your house that an egg causes $20,000 in damage, you should be suing the guy...
YUM: That`s ridiculous.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: ... unless he`s putting alabaster on your house.
KENDRA G.: Well, let me say this. Let me say this. I agree...
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Kendra, go for it.
KENDRA G.: I do agree this is not a serious crime. I mean, he throws eggs all the time against houses. So I agree with them on that. But this is a serious issue when it comes to Justin Bieber. He is out of control. He needs to go to jail. And that`s the only way he will learn from his actions over the last year and a half.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: First of all, I`ll throw this in as an animal rights activist. You know how much those hens have to suffer to produce one egg? To destroy 20 eggs like that is disrespectful. It`s just arrogant and disrespectful. It`s what 12-year-olds do.
MURPHY: Are you kidding?
VELEZ-MITCHELL: No, I`m not kidding. You go look it up. They have to suffer for a long time to produce one egg in a tiny cage.
MURPHY: Disrespectful to chickens?
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Yes. Yes, it is.
(CROSSTALK)
YUM: Let me say this. I agree -- I agree that Justin Bieber is acting like a spoiled brat, right? And I agree. I mean, egging, that`s ridiculous. That`s something, like you said, 12-year-olds do.
But at the end of the day, he`s not going to jail. No good defense attorney is going to let him go to jail on a lower-level felony that could be reduced to a misdemeanor. He has to pay the restitution. The court considers the fact that he has no criminal history. Now on my watch, I`m a defense attorney, of course you`re not signing him up for jail.
Now, should he be -- should he be taught a lesson? Sure.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: But here`s the thing. If you`re rich and famous, it takes...
MURPHY: Piles of Xanax next to their beds. Miley Cyrus wrote a whole song about Molly. And you know, I don`t get it. I don`t get it. You can`t blame one kid because he`s famous.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: I`ll tell you why it`s a problem, Wendy. Let me tell you why it`s a problem. Because we have more people in prison in this country than any other country in the world. And a lot of them are doing decades of hard time for nonviolent drug offenses.
And we like to believe we live in a country where everybody`s treated the same, when it comes to criminal justice and how much time you do. But that`s not the case.
MURPHY: But just because it`s Justin Bieber, that doesn`t make it better.
(CROSSTALK)
MURPHY: ... and intuitively.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: You should not say that he can`t be locked up because he lives in a big house.
Because he has a mansion, that means the drugs didn`t belong to him? I`m not saying they did, but I`m not saying that he should get a pass because he lives in a mansion.
All right.
On the other side, a husband and father, OK, he`s shot to death because he`s texting to make sure his daughter`s OK during previews at a movie. He`s on date night with his wife. This beautiful couple. And the guy behind him said, "Stop texting" and then shoots him in the chest. I`m not joking. I`m not joking. It`s a horror story. You`ve got to see it, next.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It`s absolutely crazy that it would rise to this level of altercation over somebody just texting in a movie theater.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The suspect has been taken into custody.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: A frightened and fatal afternoon at this Florida movie theater.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I couldn`t believe it. I was shocked.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The suspect told Olson to stop texting, and it just went downhill from there.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The argument between two moviegoers over noise and texting.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The suspect decided to pull out a .380, and he shoots the victim.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Facing a possibility of life in prison.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It`s no bond. You`re remanded to custody.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I thought it can`t be, you know? He just is not that kind of person.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: With a long history, in fact, of being on the other side of the law.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The retired Tampa police officer.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Curtis (ph) is a good guy.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I can`t believe people would bring a gun to a movie. You know?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It`s getting more and more evil.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Tonight, culture of violence, outrage coast to coast. A husband and father shot and killed. Gunned down at the movies with his wife.
The deadly confrontation began -- and I hope you`re sitting down -- because he was texting. Talk about senseless. What is this country coming to?
Forty-three-year-old Chad Olson texting to check up on his 3-year-old daughter, being a good dad. And he was texting, not during the movie itself, but during the trailers before the movie even started.
Well, sitting behind him, a 71-year-old retired cop who was sitting with his wife. There he is, now that he`s been arrested. Well, this guy says Chad -- "Mister, put the phone away, stop texting. An argument erupts. Witnesses say this retired ex-cop, Curtis Reeves, pulls out a semiautomatic handgun and just shoots Chad in the chest, killing him.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ALEX CUMMINGS, WITNESS: I saw the gun go off, heard the altercation. And I asked if the guy was OK. And he started gurgling blood. He said, "Man, I can`t believe that I got shot." Blood started coming out of his mouth. And I just held him. I was trying to hold him up. He just fell down.
CHARLES CUMMINGS, WITNESS: I can`t believe they would argue and fight and shoot one another over popcorn, or a cell phone. Just horrible.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Here is my rant. What the hell`s going on in America? You can`t go to a movie without worrying the person sitting behind you might be packing heat? And a very bad temper?
I say be careful who you argue with, people. And I`m very careful. There`s 300 million guns in the United States, one for about every person. And somebody -- this guy looked like a harmless, respectable senior citizen going to a matinee. Turned out to be anything but.
Both men were at the movies with their wives. One couple sitting right in front of the other to see this military thriller, "Lone Survivor." What an ironic title given what happened. Here`s a clip from Universal.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Going in with a four-man team.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That`s more than ten guys. That`s an army.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Oh, my gosh, we need a shrink. Ramani Durvasula, clinical psychologist, what on earth? I mean, yes, it`s a violent movie; it`s a war movie. I heard it`s a very good movie. I was supposed to go to a screening on Friday.
You know, how does somebody turn around and shoot somebody -- and I have to say that there was popcorn involved. See, what happened was -- and please, call me on this -- this handsome man, who was sitting next to his wife, checks up on his daughter on text.
They have an argument. The old guy goes to complain. And when he comes back, that guy, the guy who was killed said, "Hey, you know, I was just calling my daughter to see if she was OK. I`m checking up on my 3- year-old daughter." The guy doesn`t care.
Then the guy who`s eventually the victim, this guy throws popcorn at the killer. And that`s when the retired cop just shoots him dead. Unbelievable. What is -- what`s wrong with this retired cop, Ramani Durvasula?
RAMANI DURVASULA: Jane, let`s -- let`s be clear. If you are so thin- skinned, that something as small as someone texting in a movie irritates you so much that you`re going to be pushed to the point of killing them, here`s some advice. Don`t leave the house. OK?
This is ridiculous. And the loss of civility in our culture is ridiculous. I mean, people don`t feel safe anywhere anymore. And this plays into those fears.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Well, of course. And I mean, obviously we remember the horror of Aurora, OK? July 2012, James Holmes, you know, the redheaded guy, walked into a midnight screening of "The Dark Knight Rises" in Aurora, Colorado, and just opened fire and killed 12 people and hurt 58 others.
We knew him from his crazy appearance, you know, when he was wearing that -- he was trying to dress up as one of the characters in the movie. You know, the Joker. And -- but this isn`t a joke. This is very serious stuff.
There`s something really sick going on in our culture. I don`t get it.
Look, I want to go over what the suspect, this shooter -- OK, he`s got an incredible resume here. You know, he`s 71. He`s retired, in 1993, as captain of the Tampa Police Department. The captain in the Tampa Bay Police Department. He was a commander for 16 years. A homicide detective. He taught various courses at the police academy.
And after he retired, he became director of security for Busch Gardens, which is a big job.
To his neighbors, he seemed like a really nice guy next door. Listen to this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BILL COSTAS, SUSPECT`S NEIGHBOR: This doesn`t make sense to me at all. Not from what I know of him. You know, it just doesn`t add up. A very nice guy, always smiling; I`ve never seen him angry, very helpful.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Now, here`s what really gets me angry. He was charged with murder two. Why? Why is he being charged with murder two, Wendy Murphy? Because you know premeditation can occur in the blink of an eye. They had a long-running argument where he goes to complain. He comes back, they continue to argue. The other guy throws popcorn at him. And he pulls out a gun and shoots him. Why is that murder two?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: That`s ridiculous. He`s giving --
(CROSSTALK)
WENDY MURPHY, FORMER PROSECUTOR: Clearly the premeditated is not there in my opinion. This was a bit of an argument. Not a big argument. Here`s the thing. So if you meet force with force under the law, and it`s roughly equal, in other words, somebody throws popcorn and you throw milk duds back at them, that`s ok, you can get away with that. You don`t even get charged. But when you meet popcorn with a bullet, that`s second-degree murder and that`s what`s weird about this case.
The text shouldn`t have provoked the rage. And then the rage provokes the popcorn. The popcorn provokes the gun. That is so out of control.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Rosie Noesi, I say murder one. What say you?
(CROSSTALK)
ROSIE NOESI, RADIO PERSONALITY: I`m embarrassed, honestly. Because guess what, Europeans, they think we`re trigger happy, and events like this make the statement true. It`s embarrassing, because this guy had a social responsibility as a police officer.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Who thinks it`s murder one. J. Wyndal, is it murder one?
J. WYNDAL GORDON, CRIMINAL DEFENSE ATTORNEY: No.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: (inaudible)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What? Come on now.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: I`m sorry.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Regardless of human life, pulling a gun, when hit in the face with some unknown object, and the additional information in here is popcorn. It may or may not have been popcorn. But an unknown object doesn`t equal taking out a gun and firing it at somebody`s chest.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: "Straight Talk from the Street". I came out here to find out what average moviegoers, average citizens think about yet another deadly movie theater shooting.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: People are out of control. They have mental illnesses.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: You know, people are out of control. This guy is out of control. Ok? Cops say that he was sitting behind a guy who was texting, just to make sure, during the previews, that his daughter was ok. He`s on like a date with his wife -- so cute. The wife tried to protect her husband. She got shot in the hand.
This guy said put it down, stop texting. He goes to complain. He comes back. All right? Now, they continue arguing. The guy tries to explain, I was just texting to make sure my daughter was ok. She`s 3 years old. He gets angry. Then the victim throws popcorn in this ex-cop`s face. Next thing you know, boom, shot through the heart.
Here`s the thing that I can`t get. J. Wyndal Gordon, I went to the movies the other night. I sat through like nine previews. I got up, went to the bathroom. Then I came back and I said, "You know what; I want popcorn." Then I got up again. I went and got popcorn, I came back with my popcorn and my drink. The people next to me had to get up every time -- everybody was talking. It was the previews.
And you know previews are running longer and longer. Some people even joked like, "When`s the movie coming?" I watched eight bleeping previews, already. Nobody`s quiet as a mouse during the previews, J. Wyndal.
GORDON: I agree with you. I mean going to get popcorn, and doing the things that you said you were doing, is what normal moviegoers do. This case involved ego, testosterone, bravado, wives, and a gun -- and a gun. Basically that`s what this is all about.
This man, this was a chest-beating contest where both men felt disrespected. I think the guy with the popcorn had no business whatsoever -- imagine the gall that it takes to actually throw popcorn on someone in front of his wife, while you`re with your wife. And then imagine what it takes to go out and come back in with a gun and just blow somebody away. I mean they both were wrong.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Ok. Throwing popcorn was not a good move. And I`ll tell you the folks out on the street say they`re going to be very careful. I`m very careful. And you know, I`m obnoxious quite often because I`m a native New Yorker so I say things. Now I`m very, very careful and meek. Anybody -- oh, yes, you want to spill coffee on me? Go right ahead. Go right ahead because I`m terrified.
ANNA YUM, CRIMINAL DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Jane makes a good point.
(CROSSTALK)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Anna Yum.
GORDON: I don`t think you have to be like that. It`s just common courtesy --
YUM: You have to be careful. I live in southern California where everyone drives, and you have to be careful about road rage. I never flip anyone off because I`m scared that someone would pull out a gun.
GORDON: You know, that`s helpful.
YUM: And that`s the reality of the situation is that (inaudible).
(CROSSTALK)
GORDON: I mean in the long run, it`s all going to be more helpful because maybe we will become more civil toward one another.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: No, no. Killing is never a good thing. Killing is never a good thing.
GORDON: You know what; I`ll bet you`ll learn your lesson. I bet you won`t throw popcorn on the next moviegoer.
(CROSSTALK)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: I mean there`s a woman mourning her husband tonight. How can you say that -- this is not funny. This is a horror story.
(CROSSTALK)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Let me tell you something.
(CROSSTALK)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Ramani. Ramani.
RAMANI DURVASALA, PSYCHOLOGIST: We`re letting the bullies run the show. Everybody is so fearful of these people with the short fuse, that bullies now know, "I can get away with anything. They probably think I`m packing heat in a movie."
GORDON: He`s not going to get away with it.
NOESI: I agree. What makes him think that he can get away with it?
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Because -- let me ask you. I want to ask one last question.
Anna Yum, do you believe that because he`s an ex-police officer, he felt that he had the authority to tell this guy, well, stop it, and when he didn`t, did he get confused and think, oh, I`m still a cop? Even a cop would be obviously in serious trouble for doing this. But is this a sense of sort of like, a sense of authority working overtime?
YUM: That may have been a factor -- Jane. Honestly, he may have had a chip on his shoulder. He may not have liked the fact that this person told him, I`m not going to listen to you and he got angry about it.
But let`s think about this. He actually did the right thing in the beginning -- right. He tried to defuse the situation. He went to talk to the manager. He came back. And then this poor victim, he started mouthing off at him and saying "Did you tell on me". And then it just got provoked and provoked to the point where it`s absolutely beyond belief.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: But this is the problem.
YUM: How do you throw popcorn in the face of a 71-year-old man?
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Are you kidding me? Are you -- you know what --
(CROSSTALK)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: You`re all out of your minds. You`re all out of your minds. You`re all out of your mind. There`s no justification for shooting somebody. I don`t care if he`s 71 or 171. You know, he could be a crotchety 71-year-old who thinks -- and we all know these people, that because I`m 71, I wear the pants and you`ve got to do what I say.
BS -- I think it was stupid to throw popcorn. I think it`s stupid to -- you have to assume everybody is armed. That`s the assumption. Assume that.
18-year-old Kanye, punched somebody out -- Kanye`s not 18. An 18- year-old says Kanye punched him out. My head is swimming with all the comments that I just got from those guests. You can`t throw popcorn. If you throw popcorn, you know -- I don`t get it. That was -- ok.
But we`re going to move on to a different kind of insanity. You won`t believe what`s happening with Kanye. Crazy.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Crazy video of the day. Check out a hula hoop with the Dallas Cowboy cheerleader on a Mexican beach. Hard to beat. The hardest part of the task, the heavy hoop to hula. Look at this -- this is hard work. It`s tough being beautiful, isn`t it. Oh, my gosh. Oh, that`s so difficult, such hard work. Wow.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KANYE WEST, SINGER: For me, you know, I`m a creative genius and there`s no other way to word it.
KIM KARDASHIAN, REALITY TV STAR: I look so hot. I am back. I open my eyes and I look up, and we`re like, where are we? We`re in the middle of a baseball field.
WEST: Don`t ask me a question about something you saw in the tabloids.
KARDASHIAN: When you can`t control other people.
WEST: Don`t try to antagonize me.
KARDASHIAN: All we can control is ourselves.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: All right. Tonight`s #hollywoodhotmess. Kanye, hot- headed West -- that`s what we call him around here -- and soon-to-be bride Kim Kardashian -- what a couple, after a quiet start to 2014, Kanye could face another assault charge for totally losing his cool, allegedly punching an 18-year-old kid. All right? That`s the kid.
It all went down inside a Beverly Hills medical building. Kim was going inside. This teenager standing around allegedly started yelling horrific racial slurs at the reality star, calling her a bleep lover, a racist term we will certainly not repeat here. What did Kim do? She called Kanye, of course. TMZ said the rapper showed up and went into the chiropractor`s waiting room, and bam, punched the teenager.
Pretty ironic considering the king of controversy recently vowed to focus on creativity and stop the drama for at least six months. Listen to his resolution for New Year`s.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
WEST: Starting this year off, this is the last time I (EXPLETIVE DELETED) for a long time, probably like six months. I`m not going to be the dude that has all the opportunities in the world and just focus on negative and complains about it or getting into some type of (inaudible). Having to turn up (EXPLETIVE DELETED) all the time. I`m letting you all know this is the last (inaudible) -- that this is last time (inaudible) negative about anything.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: All right. Well, that resolution`s out the window. Straight out to my fantastic "Lion`s Den" panel -- Lili Valletta, XL Alliance, he just said his New Year`s resolution, ok, was to -- look, my New Year`s resolution was to cut down on salt, and I`m still pouring salt all over everything. But I mean his New Year`s resolution was to stop the dramarama. And already he`s allegedly socking a kid for saying something awful. But that`s going to happen. There are morons out there.
LILI VALLETTA, XL ALLIANCE: I think it`s a bad combination of bad temper with bad words combined altogether into a big punch at the end. You know what; he`s a graduate of anger management. Last year he had a similar misdemeanor battery incident where it was probably dismissed after he went to the classes. But clearly he probably needs a refresher in the class.
Did we know that?
KENDRA G, ENTERTAINMENT REPORTER: No way. Hold up. I have to say something quick, Jane.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Sure.
G: First of all, Kim called Kanye -- this is her husband-to-be. What`s he supposed to do? He can`t punch out -- I know he`s Kanye west.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Hold that thought. Wait.
G: If I call my husband, and my husband --
(CROSSTALK)
G: Hold up. You had your moment. Let me finish my sentence. Kanye West has enough money to pay this guy that he punched in the face. I do not condone violence, but you cannot just be screaming anything to his future wife. So I --
VALLETTA: I agree.
G: I agree with him defending his wife in this manner.
NOESI: Let me complete my point.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Complete your point and then we`re going to go to the very well behaved Arielle Nachmani. But complete your point?
VALLETTA: I agree. I do not support racial slurs. We`re in a world of racial inclusion is what we`re looking for, diversity. And clearly race is still an issue in America. These kinds of things are happening out there.
I support the fact that he reacted and he went on the defense. The way he reacted is my problem. Let`s not continue to portray racism by reacting with violence.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Ok. Time out. Arielle Nachmani, SomethingNavy.com, you look in style and fashion. Is punching people in style and fashion now? I hope not but it seems like violence is in.
ARIELLE NACHMANI, SOMETHINGNAVY.COM: Absolutely not, Jane. I think it`s absolutely ridiculous. He`s now a parent. He has a responsibility. He should be setting an example and being a role model to all -- not only to his followers, and his crowd, but to his child now.
To be honest, as a blogger, I get negatives comments all the time. We do not act on them and behave like that. When you acknowledge it, it pushes these kids, these followers to do it even more and to do it even worse. By punching somebody in the face, it leads to worse actions. Who knows what else could happen then.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: You know, you`re absolutely right. If I put my foot down every time somebody insulted me, I would be a flamenco dancer right now.
G: But he called her the "n" word. He called her the "n" word. The "n" is a very sensitive word to people.
NACHMANI: I know, it`s understandable, but that doesn`t deserve --
(CROSSTALK)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: We`ll be back on the other side.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KARDASHIAN: We are a ride or die family. No matter what happens, we`re always here to support you.
We can`t control other people. All we can control is ourselves.
Family united, I agree.
Let it out, sister.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: She`s bringing sexy back.
KRIS JENNER, REALITY TV STAR: Our family has never been stronger. And nothing will tear us apart.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We`re having a wedding, everybody.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Wow, romantic. The new season of "Keeping Up with the Kardashians" starts this Sunday, that`s the premiere. But listen, Kim, after she had her daughter, North West, said, "I`m going to pull it down a notch. I want privacy." Then she proceeds to make this incredibly sexy video with her husband, "Bound 2" where she appears to be simulating sex, naked on top of a motorcycle. She`s also doing the butt selfies.
You know, look, I`m not going to judge, but it`s just the contradiction of saying you want privacy and then doing all this. I mean Rosie Noesi, radio personality, does that have a tendency to bring weirdos out of the woodwork?
NOESI: Of course because they are fame whores. They want the attention. And the thing is that rappers that they use the "n" word in their songs to make it real, real cool. But that carries a lot of pain. The "n" word carries a lot of pain.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: I didn`t know they did that. I didn`t know -- I don`t listen to transcribe every song.
G: Pause, wait, hold on.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Ok, go ahead.
G: Listen, first of all, this guy was being racist when he yelled at Kim Kardashian.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Of course he is. That`s horrible.
G: We won`t bring up rap lyrics right now because they were two totally different scenarios. You would not do that.
NOESI: Of course.
(CROSSTALK)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: This is the guy involved. We can`t reach him but he`s invited on our show any time.
Listen, here`s the thing and this is very serious. He has to go back, Kanye has to go back to court next week, because of the fisticuffs he had with the paparazzi. Actually, this could get very serious, Arielle Nachmani.
NACHMANI: What bothers me about these kind of situations is I feel like the message out there right now is that if you`re rich and famous, you don`t get held accountable for your actions.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Of course. I agree.
NACHMANI: And I feel like something needs to happen to change that message. I really hope that he goes to -- I mean, he`s not going to go to jail, (inaudible) but he needs to pay something.
G: They need to keep their mouths shut. That`s it. They need bodyguards. What Kim and Kanye need is they need --
VELEZ-MITCHELL: They have to do something really, really bad. But even then, it doesn`t happen.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Slice of Happiness tonight. All of us who have dogs know they are very loving and they love to kiss. And here is exhibit "A". Yes, all dogs are loving. And they are wonderful. And they love to kiss.
END
