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Don Lemon Tonight

Lauren Bacall Dies; Robin Williams Remembered; Crisis in Iraq; : Williams' Death Brings Attention to Depression; Answers Sought in Shooting Death of Unarmed Teen

Aired August 12, 2014 - 22:00   ET

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

ANNOUNCER: This is CNN breaking news.

DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR: Good evening, everyone. This is CNN TONIGHT. I'm Don Lemon.

ALISYN CAMEROTA, CNN ANCHOR: And I'm Alisyn Camerota.

Breaking news tonight, 130 additional U.S. military personnel being sent to Iraq to help assess the humanitarian crisis and develop more options for all of the displaced people. Is the U.S. getting further into Iraq than we'd bargained for?

LEMON: Plus, a passing of another Hollywood legend, Lauren Bacall dead at the age of 89. We're going to have more on that.

And also the latest on the tragic suicide of Robin Williams and the deadly depression that overwhelmed him. Could anything have been done to save the life of one of America's best-loved funnymen? We will talk to someone who was a close friend for years. That's Lance Armstrong, Alisyn.

CAMEROTA: And also we will talk to classic TV star Todd Bridges. He, as you know, Don, has had his own struggles with addiction and depression, but he faced a big online backlash when he called Robin Williams' suicide selfish. But tonight he will explain what he meant.

LEMON: Also, outrage over the death of an unarmed 18-year-old named Michael Brown shot by a police officer. You heard his grieving parents right here last night.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Never did think we would be planning a funeral. We was waiting on his first day of school.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: Today, the president called his death heartbreaking. But what will it take to keep this from happening again and again? Should police wear cameras?

CAMEROTA: All right, Don, so we have a lot to get to tonight. But we begin with news of another Hollywood passing. Lauren Bacall,

the sophisticated beauty who shot to fame in 1944 with her first film, "To Have and Have Not," died of a stroke in New York today. She famously starred with Humphrey Bogart, who became her husband.

Nischelle Turner has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

LAUREN BACALL, ACTRESS: You know how to whistle, don't you, Steve? You just put your lips together and blow.

NISCHELLE TURNER, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): With those words in the film "To Have and to Have Not," audience imagination soared and a screen icon was born. The confident, smoldering experience, the down- turned face and upturned eyes earned Lauren Bacall the nickname "The Look."

Ironically, the 19-year-old struck the pose because she felt insecure.

BACALL: I mean, that was what started the look was nerves, just trying to keep my head steady.

TURNER: Bacall was more than a movie legend. She was from Hollywood's golden era and the wife of actor Humphrey Bogart.

"The Big Sleep" was among a handful of films they made together. But their love affair was one of Tinseltown's greatest romances. Bogart died of cancer in 1957, leaving Bacall a widow at 32 with two small children. For a time, she was engaged to family friend and singer Frank Sinatra.

When the romance fizzled, Sinatra headed to Las Vegas. Soon, Bacall fell in love again and married actor Jason Robards, with whom she had a son. She blamed his drinking for their divorce.

BACALL: I don't know if he enjoyed it, but he was hooked on it. And it really almost destroyed him. Fortunately, it did not.

TURNER: Bacall was born Betty Joan Perske on September 16, 1924. Her parents were Jewish immigrants who divorced when she was just 6. As a lanky teen, she modeled to earn extra money, taking her mother's maiden name, Bacall, adding a second L. to make it easier to pronounce.

Film director Howard Hawks saw her photograph on a magazine cover. A screen test later and Hawks changed her name.

BACALL: He felt that Lauren Bacall was better-sounding than Betty Bacall. He had a vision of his own. He was a Svengali. He wanted to mold me. He wanted to control me.

TURNER: Big screen or small, even her fellow actors viewed her as a legend.

ADAM ARKIN, ACTOR: John Huston and Charlie Chaplin. And she just knows or has been around everyone that has formed what we know of this business.

TURNER: Bacall's film co-stars read like the who's-who of Hollywood, but it was on Broadway where she achieved her most critical acclaim.

BACALL: Oh, I loved it. That was my original dream, anyway, to be on stage.

TURNER: She spent nearly 20 years on the stage, starring in "Cactus Flower," "Applause," and "Woman of the Year," earning two Tony Awards. In her later years, her film career saw a renaissance. She starred opposite Barbra Streisand in "The Mirror Has Two Faces," earning her only Oscar nomination.

And she was still acting in her 80s in such films as "Dogville" and "Birth" with Nicole Kidman. A diva, a film star, a Broadway jewel and a classic time of an era gone by.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CAMEROTA: Joining us on the phone now is Krista Smith. She's a CNN entertainment commentator and senior West Coast editor of "Vanity Fair."

Krista, in the ranks of legendary actresses, where would you put Lauren Bacall?

KRISTA SMITH, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: Oh, I would put her right at the top. She defined what it means when people talk about the golden era of Hollywood.

She also created -- part of the huge creation of film noir with her husband, obviously Bogart. And it's just that voice, listening to her voice. No one had ever heard a woman sound like that on film.

CAMEROTA: And, of course, she was almost as famous or I should say just as famous for her romance with Humphrey Bogart as she was for her acting. They had really a classic Hollywood romance.

SMITH: Absolutely. And I think about those famous shots, the pictures of them at home with their kids. I mean, they really were -- they defined the dream Hollywood golden couple.

And also starring in such successful films together I think only solidified that. And her...

(CROSSTALK)

CAMEROTA: Go ahead, Krista.

SMITH: Oh, I'm so sorry.

Are you going to ask me how she will be remembered?

CAMEROTA: Yes. Yes.

SMITH: I think she just -- Lauren Bacall, she is a legend. She was a diva. She had -- she knew everybody. She lived through every era.

It doesn't surprise me that she found her biggest success on Broadway later in her career. But I think she is one of the top beauties of Hollywood as well. I mean, she is gorgeous. And not surprising she started as a model. But she really knew how to work the camera. And there was just so -- so sultry that even when she wasn't talking, you just wanted to know what she was thinking.

CAMEROTA: She was sultry and stylish, and she had that great smoky voice.

LEMON: I love the voice. That's one of the favorite things. She is beautiful and the voice was amazing, everything.

(CROSSTALK)

SMITH: Yes.

(CROSSTALK)

CAMEROTA: True. Krista, thanks so much.

LEMON: All right, we're going to talk about another legend now. There are new details on Robin Williams' tragic death.

CNN's Ted Rowlands in San Rafael, California, with more on that.

Ted, there was news today about the cause of the death. What did we learn?

TED ROWLANDS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Don, we learned that Robin Williams did take his own life. The preliminary autopsy report has concluded that he died of asphyxiation, self-inflicted, using a belt in a closet in his home.

And we also learned that he had some cut marks on his left wrist and a pocketknife which was closed was found next to his body with some substance that they believe is blood that will be tested. We also found out that indeed he was getting treatment for severe depression in the days and weeks leading up to his death.

That will factor into the final report which is due out after the toxicology, which should be between two and five weeks from now. What we don't know is if he left a note of any kind. Officials here say that they're going to reserve that information until the final report is out.

We don't know that, but we also do know, Don, that these details made a very painful event even worse for people who loved Robin Williams. Just hearing the pain that this man must have been in, and juxtaposing it to the joy that he brought so many people has really been difficult for people not only here in the San Francisco Bay area, which he called home for so many years, but around the country and the world.

LEMON: And, Ted, you know, they went into great detail about the way that he died, and then having to -- it seems like the representative there had to clarify himself when it came to a note. Are we absolutely sure there wasn't a note, or they're just not saying now?

ROWLANDS: Not saying now. In fact, the answer to the question was there a note left, his initial reaction -- or his initial answer was, we're not talking about the note. And then he stopped or about any note. We're not mentioning a note, if there was or not.

We don't know if there was a note, but clearly there is a good possibility that there was something left, just judging from his answer, but we don't know for sure.

LEMON: All right. Ted Rowlands, appreciate your reporting. Thank you very much -- Alisyn.

CAMEROTA: All right.

Let's bring in man who was friends with Robin Williams for many years. They bonded over their love of cycling. Lance Armstrong joins us now on the phone.

Lance, thanks for being here.

LANCE ARMSTRONG, FORMER PROFESSIONAL CYCLIST: Absolutely.

CAMEROTA: How did you and Robin become friends?

ARMSTRONG: Well, I don't really remember an exact moment. I had heard over the years that he was a fan of cycling. So when we first started racing the tour and went in the tour, he would send messages or send notes.

Then all of the sudden he started coming to the races and actually coming to the tour to be supportive. And it just evolved over the years.

CAMEROTA: So we understand that you used to ride bikes together. And last year on "The Daily Show," Robin Williams talked about that. Let's listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ROBIN WILLIAMS, COMEDIAN: I used to ride with Lance in the old days.

JON STEWART, HOST, "THE DAILY SHOW WITH JON STEWART": Oh, really?

(LAUGHTER)

WILLIAMS: I used to ride behind the uniballer.

(LAUGHTER)

STEWART: Did you really? You rode with Lance Armstrong?

WILLIAMS: I rode with him, yes, once or twice. But he is like -- he is so good, he would be on the phone. He would be doing other stuff. He is hands-free. I'm like, you bastard.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(LAUGHTER)

CAMEROTA: Was he cracking jokes while you would ride together?

ARMSTRONG: He was always, always cracking jokes.

And he was -- as you guys are probably well aware -- and I have heard many, many stories -- he was a special man. And obviously there was a lot going on there. But, you know, the guy was -- if he was over at our house for dinner with the kids, I mean, he was -- I guess I can say this because he was sitting there talking about the uniballer, but the last great dinner I remember was a few years ago and all my kids were there.

And he had so many fart jokes, and he was just doing these noises, and my kids were just rolling. And he was so loved, so loved by not just myself, but everybody. And we're going to miss him.

CAMEROTA: I can only imagine how much fun a child would have at a dinner party with Robin Williams.

Obviously, we have learned a lot in the past 24 hours about his life challenges, his challenges with addiction and with depression. You, of course, have had your own public challenges. Did you two ever talk than?

ARMSTRONG: Well, his challenges, yes, most people were well aware of. And I sort of lived with him through some of the previous challenges when he was sober and then sort of fell off, and then spent some time back in therapy for that. And I visited him there outside of Portland.

But my own drama, we never -- never had the opportunity to break it down with him and talk about that. But, look, life is messy and we all sort of find our way. And the last -- this last year or so, Robin was in a place that I don't think many people knew. And it's just -- it's terrible.

CAMEROTA: One of the things that keeps coming up about his life is that he had this tremendous philanthropic nature, and he helped with your foundation, Livestrong, among others. Where do you think that came from?

ARMSTRONG: I have no idea, but the guy -- there is two things that stick out for me, is, first of all, any time I ever asked him to do anything for my organization, come to an event, donate something, donate a dinner, donate a bike, come do some comedy and something, he always, and I mean always, said yes.

The second thing, which I sort of got involved alongside with him, was these USO trips overseas. So every -- for a couple years, we did the USO trip over Christmas to Iraq, Afghanistan, Kurdistan, Spain, Italy. I mean, we just traveled the world over the holidays. And to see him in front of those troops, I mean, he was -- he was their hero. And so -- but he never -- and perhaps it was a weakness of his. He

could never say no. If somebody asked for something, if they needed something, you had to be somewhere, he would stretch himself so thin because he couldn't say no. He cared about people. He cared about causes. He wanted to make people happy, whether they're laughing or whether they were appreciative or whatever it was.

He just -- the guy was a giver. That's about as best I can sum it up.

CAMEROTA: We're looking at some great video of him on one of his six us tours in front of just a huge crowd. And, of course, there was a role that made him famous in terms of the military. And that was "Good Morning, Vietnam." Let's just watch a little clip of that.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

WILLIAMS: Where are you going to?

UNIDENTIFIED ACTOR: (INAUDIBLE)

WILLIAMS: You got to be careful, Jack. That's some heavy stuff up there. That's like Newark after dark.

(LAUGHTER)

WILLIAMS: There's some heavy (EXPLETIVE DELETED) going down, baby. It's like George Wallace campaigning in Harlem.

Hi. Have you seen my face?

Get your ass out of here.

You guys be careful. What's your name?

UNIDENTIFIED ACTOR: My name is Louis Striker.

WILLIAMS: Louis Striker. Brother Striker, thank you, Brother Striker.

UNIDENTIFIED ACTOR: Sean Dunham.

WILLIAMS: Sean Dunham.

Feels like the Mouseketeer show, Annette, Toby, Rory.

You guys, you take care of yourselves. I won't forget you.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CAMEROTA: I imagine him being like that on the USO tours. Was he?

ARMSTRONG: He was. And you know what? When you're on the inside and we're traveling so much and we were just -- the travel to get to those extreme places is -- you see when somebody really wants to turn it on when they're in front of a crowd. And then when they retreat or they're in their own space, then you see if they're into it or not. The guy was so into it. I mean, those soldiers and those troops and

the men and women that serve our country, they should know that he was obsessed with them. He loved them. He loved being there. And to be a part of it and just like cruise along and watch his passion and see him interact with people -- and even when we had downtime, and so he is just cracking the rest of us up, whether it be me or Kid Rock or Lewis Black or whoever.

It's some of the best memories of my life.

CAMEROTA: Lance Armstrong, thanks so much for sharing your personal perspective and your personal stories with us tonight. We really appreciate that.

(CROSSTALK)

ARMSTRONG: Yes, we're going to miss him.

LEMON: And our men and women in uniform will miss him. He never forgot about them, whatever he was dealing with. He truly put them above everyone else.

CAMEROTA: Yes, those were great examples of him with them.

LEMON: And when we come right back, he has struggled with addiction and depression. So a lot of people were shocked when Todd Bridges called the suicide of Robin Williams selfish. Well, tonight, he is here to explain.

But first, here is Robin Williams on "Inside the Actors Studio" talking about heaven.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JAMES LIPTON, HOST, "INSIDE THE ACTORS STUDIO": If heaven exists, what would you like to hear God say when you arrive at the pearly gates?

WILLIAMS: There is seating near the front.

(LAUGHTER)

WILLIAMS: The concert begins at 5:00. It will be Mozart, Elvis, and one of your choosing. Or just to nice, if heaven exists, to know that there is laughter. That would be a great thing, just to hear God goes, two Jews walk into a bar.

(LAUGHTER)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: You know, it's hard to believe that someone like Robin Williams, who brought joy to so many, suffered from such demons in his private life. But, tragically, it's not so uncommon in Hollywood, really everywhere

else.

Joining us now exclusively is actor Todd Bridges. He is a former addict who has suffered from depression himself. He has received a lot of criticism for his comments on Robin Williams' suicide being -- quote, unquote -- "selfish."

And when you say former addict, I don't know if you're ever former, because you're always dealing with it, right?

TODD BRIDGES, ACTOR: Yes. You're always still dealing with it on daily basis, and depression on top of that.

LEMON: Yes.

So, listen, you have received some backlash, telling TMZ that it was a -- quote -- "selfish act." And you weren't alone. Others said that it was cowardly.

You have since apologized. Explain your initial reaction and why you said it and what happened after.

BRIDGES: Well, my initial reaction when I first heard it was really about my friend, my best friend who committed suicide about seven months ago, and the exact same way.

And when I tweeted, I wasn't really thinking about Robin Williams. I was thinking about my best friend. So, I was kind of angry about it, because he left us behind. He left me behind. He left all of his friends, his wife, his two kids.

And that's why I was -- what I meant saying by it was a selfish act, I really meant to say that he just wasn't thinking of us. And I know we all have demons and we all have things that we chase and things that we have to deal with. But, you know, we're the ones that are really suffering behind all this now.

LEMON: So, what do you want to say now?

BRIDGES: I'm driving in my car sometimes, and I just start crying.

What I want to say is, I'm sorry to everybody who, you know, took what I said and ran with it to a different direction. And, you know, TMZ took their own direction. And I just want to apologize to Robin's family if they got ahold of it and they heard it the wrong way, because Robin was a friend of mine also.

I knew Robin Williams when I was on "Fish" and they were doing "Mork & Mindy." We hung out. He talked to me all the time when I was a kid. He was always very, very nice to me as a child.

(CROSSTALK)

LEMON: You were on the set of "Mork & Mindy" before that series even launched. BRIDGES: Yes.

LEMON: Tell us what you remember about Robin then.

BRIDGES: Robin was a comedian who was always brilliant. He always had impeccable timing, and he was always, always very nice.

He was one of the people -- you know, there's only one person in Hollywood who wasn't very nice to kids, and Robin was not one of them. He was nice to everyone. And like Lam said, he always gave his 100 percent to everybody. And he would always stop and always talk to me and say, Todd, how are you doing? How is the show going? Those kinds of things.

And I really feel bad that it got misconstrued. And I just want to apologize to everybody and to the world. But I'm still suffering through what my friend did.

(CROSSTALK)

LEMON: Yes. And also on top of that, before -- I want to talk to you more about Robin, but also Dana Plato, who was your co-star in "Diff'rent Strokes" who died.

BRIDGES: Dana Plato, she don't commit suicide, but she ODed. She died.

Gary Coleman, he passed away. And the one that hit me hard too also was Conrad Bain, because he was like a father to me. I have had to deal with a lot of death lately, a lot of tragedies.

LEMON: OK. You said it's always there. So, I'm just going to be honest with you. How are you doing? Are you clean and sober now?

BRIDGES: How am I doing? Yes, I'm clean and sober here, definitely.

LEMON: OK.

BRIDGES: But how am I feeling?

LEMON: Yes.

BRIDGES: You know, I have heard so many mean things about me and mean-spirited things about me. I'm feeling a little angry, a lot of hurt, you know, because I think my timing was off.

I think that, you know, I just said things -- you know, I said it and I should not have said it maybe at that time. So, you know, people took it and just ran with it. And they just -- just shredded me apart.

LEMON: OK, so let me tell you this.

BRIDGES: And anybody that is in this that has addiction, that is dealing with you know, your own recovery, you know, these kind of things can be detrimental. Thank God I'm ahead of that and I'm able to control that, and I'm able

to deal with what I have to deal with.

(CROSSTALK)

LEMON: And I'm glad you're saying that, because as I'm sure, as an addict and someone who has gotten treatment, you should realize that you shouldn't internalize those things, especially something that you...

(CROSSTALK)

BRIDGES: No. I'm not. I did at first. The first couple hours, I internalized it. But then the program kicked in and reminded me that people are going to have opinions.

(CROSSTALK)

LEMON: OK.

BRIDGES: And opinions are like you know what. So, they can say what they want to say about me. But I know who I am. I know I'm a great guy. I help a lot of people.

I have kept a lot of people sober. I have kept a lot of people from themselves doing things to themselves. And I do a lot of work for people, a lot of work for children. I do a lot of work. I do a lot of good. And for that one mistake that I made, for the bad timing, I don't think I should be held completely, all the way responsible.

But here is another thing that I would like to say. You know, when I was going through all of my troubles, everyone made jokes about me. Every single person that was a comedian made a joke about me when I was having my problems.

And, so, you know, I wasn't making a joke. I was serious. I was upset because my friend did this. And it just hurt me.

(CROSSTALK)

LEMON: But, you know, Robin also joked about it himself.

If we can quickly -- I want to show the clip.

(CROSSTALK)

BRIDGES: Yes, he did. Robin did joke about it.

LEMON: I want to show a clip of him in 2009 on "David Letterman."

BRIDGES: Show it. Show it. Show it.

LEMON: And then we will talk about it.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) DAVID LETTERMAN, HOST, "LATE SHOW WITH DAVID LETTERMAN": Hey, congratulations on a tremendous recovery. And I'm glad to see you're in great health.

WILLIAMS: Good to be back, boss.

LETTERMAN: Yes, good to have you here.

WILLIAMS: The whole thing, yes.

LETTERMAN: Yes. How do you feel?

WILLIAMS: I feel good, Dave.

LETTERMAN: Yes? Mentally, physically, everything?

WILLIAMS: Mentally? That's a big question.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: Able to laugh at their own demons. So you think that they are strong enough to carry on. One would assume that.

BRIDGES: Sometimes, when we -- you are able to carry it, but a lot of times, we hide it very well. We're very good hiders.

But my proof is in my 26 years of sobriety. And my proof is in my work, my body of work that I have done to help people. And a lot of times we will hide it. We will fool you, because we're very good at that. We're very good con artists. And we keep it from people as long as we can, until it gets so, so dangerous for us that it just comes out, and then everyone is exposed to it and sees it.

LEMON: And, Todd...

BRIDGES: And people don't realize that drug addiction and depression are -- basically run hand in hand. You know what I mean? When you're depressed, you take drugs to try to get over the depression.

Then you get addicted. And now you're addicted to the drugs and you're depressed, but you don't feel with the depression because you're on the drugs, until the drugs wear off. Then you feel with the depression.

LEMON: Well, Todd, that was one reason I said -- I asked if you are clean and sober, because I know, as you said, you can find a way to fool people.

But, Todd, thank you very much. I really appreciate it. You take care of yourself. And continue to tell people the truth about it, so that the stigma is removed. We appreciate you for coming on.

BRIDGES: You know, I'm trying to definitely keep doing that.

And I just hope that, you know, the people can do what they normally do. They're going to continue to say the mean things they want, but that's OK.

LEMON: All right.

BRIDGES: I love myself. And my family loves me. And they all know who I am.

And, you know, Robin Williams, I love you to death, man. And may God rest your soul. And one day, I will probably see you. And I love you. And I love -- take care of your family.

(CROSSTALK)

LEMON: Thank you very much. We appreciate it.

CAMEROTA: We appreciate your candor, Todd. Thank you.

BRIDGES: Thank you. Thank you.

LEMON: Yes.

CAMEROTA: It's nice when someone who has struggled comes forward and talks about their personal experience.

LEMON: And can be very open about it, because, again, we keep talking about the stigma. That needs to go away, because we need to deal with these issues.

CAMEROTA: Absolutely.

And we're going to talk about that coming up, because Robin Williams' suicide is the latest reminder that depression can be deadly. So, who is most at risk, and what can you do if you're suffering tonight or you know someone who is suffering? We will get you some answers.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CAMEROTA: Robin Williams's tragic death is bringing attention to depression, an illness that all too often can be deadly. Here is a moment from his 2009 film "World's Greatest Dad" that today seems particularly relevant.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

WILLIAMS: If that depressed, reach out to someone. And remember, suicide is a permanent solution to temporary problems.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CAMEROTA: Joining us now to discuss this is Dr. Charles Sophy. He's a medical director of the L.A. County Department of Children and Family Service, and Tanya Brown, author of "Finding Peace Amid the Chaos: My Escape from Depression and Suicide."

It's great to have you both here for this important conversation tonight. Tanya, let me start with you. You've been open about your depression,

and even your thoughts of suicide. Can you share with us what that dark place feels like?

TANYA BROWN, AUTHOR, "FINDING PEACE AMID THE CHAOS": You know, unless you've been there, you really have no clue. And that's why I really want to encourage people not to judge Robin, even for his family at this point, because, you know, when you are in that dark space, people who commit suicide or try to commit suicide don't want to die. They want to end the pain, and they are desperate. And that is -- it's a desperate cry out from a person who's in extreme pain.

CAMEROTA: Yes, of course.

BROWN: Yes, and it's unresolved pain.

CAMEROTA: That's such a great point. When people -- when people outside, and we've heard this, and we heard Todd Bridges just say it, when they say that the person who committed suicide is selfish, it means that they don't realize that the person -- how crushing the depression is, and they think that they're going to be sparing their family of that.

BROWN: Yes, yes.

CAMEROTA: But Dr. Sophy, I want to bring up something that I learned in the past 24 hours that I didn't know before. And that is that middle-aged men from 45 to 64 years old, as Robin Williams was at 63, are in -- at the greatest risk for suicide. Why is that?

DR. SOPHY CHARLES, PSYCHIATRIST, L.A. COUNTY DEPARTMENT OF CHILDREN AND FAMILY SERVICES: Yes. They're at a four-time greater risk of committing suicide. And that's because a lot of times many men do not deal with their feelings like you would think a woman would. They're more closed off. They're more isolated. They tend to be more aggressive, and they tend to be more impulsive. And they get to be compulsive, as well. So they'll act on things in a quiet silence much quicker than a women -- a woman would.

CAMEROTA: Tanya, how did you come out of your dark days? What was it that lifted that veil for you?

BROWN: I got thrown into a psych ward. That's how -- that's how -- that was where my dark space got me.

It was a -- there was a trigger. My wedding was canceled four days before. And for one month I went into full-on destruction mode. I was popping pills, Klonopin. I was drinking my red wine. Over a comment. We had a family friend of ours over on October 9. He said something I didn't like. I snapped, and I lashed out at every member of my family, ruined my relationship with Denise for an entire year, because I called her horrific names.

And -- but you know what? I went willfully. I basically said to my family, "Get me out of here before I hurt myself or someone around me." That's how out of my mind I was. But I was also like in my mind...

CAMEROTA: Yes.

BROWN: ... to be that aware.

CAMEROTA: Yes, and to know that you yourself were hitting rock bottom and that you reached out...

BROWN: Yes.

CAMEROTA: ... and that you needed help.

And Dr. Sophy, I want to bring you in, because if people out there are suffering tonight -- and chances are there are many people who are listening to us are -- because depression is so prevalent, what should they do tonight?

SOPHY: If you are suffering or you know someone, or a loved one is suffering, there are really a lot of great resources. Reach out. The Suicide Prevention Lifeline is an 800 number that you can call. You can talk to somebody. They'll give you a place to go close to your home. They'll give you resources. But reach out for help. There is a ton of resources. But you've got to be able to reach. Don't wait until it's so dark that you're paralyzed.

CAMEROTA: Tanya, how do you keep yourself from going back to that dark place?

BROWN: You know, I'm all about prevention. And you know, sadly, our children today are not taught the coping skills or life skills that are needed to manage their life through the daily stress that we're experiencing today. So when I was in the psych ward, I learned self- care.

And I know for a lot of people it sounds hokey-pokey or pop psychology, but there is truth in science backing up how important meditation is, slowing down your mind.

Arianna Huffington just wrote a book called "Thrive," and in there, she talks about taking a digital detox. Which I so think is so imperative. Because we're more connected to technology than we are to ourselves and to other people around us. So meditation, yoga, Pilates. Exercise that's both -- endorphins are released, and those are free. You know?

CAMEROTA: Yes.

BROWN: So it's just managing -- managing yourself on a daily basis, so then you are able to navigate your way through. It's all about prevention.

CAMEROTA: That's a great, great point. And Dr. Sophy, is it important to tell people tonight that suicidal feelings will pass?

SOPHY: Absolutely. If you catch them earlier, the earlier you get it, the better and quicker it goes away. So there is help, but you've got to learn to self-soothe. And you've got to see the red flags within yourself. And yes, they will pass, as long as you get and reach out for the right kind of help.

CAMEROTA: Thank you both so much for sharing your wisdom and your personal experience. Dr. Sophy, Tanya Brown. And I will tweet out a website for help for anybody who is listening. Thanks so much.

BROWN: Fabulous. Thank you.

LEMON: I think it's interesting that many -- thank you. I think many people who are depressed until after you receive treatment, and you realize, "My gosh. I was really, you know, down. And at that point..."

CAMEROTA: That's a good point. Tanya makes a point in her book, too, that she didn't realize how bad it was until she had a trigger, and then she hit rock bottom.

LEMON: Yes. We'll continue to talk about this. And just ahead, President Obama weighs in on the shooting death of a Missouri teenager. But we still don't know the identity of the police officer who fired the deadly shots. We have the very latest for you.

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LEMON: The St. Louis Medical Examiner confirms now that 18-year-old Michael Brown died of multiple gunshot wounds, but did not specify how many shots. Brown was killed Saturday by a police officer in Ferguson, Missouri. And today President Barack Obama called Brown's death heartbreaking.

CNN's Jason Carroll live for us in Ferguson, Missouri, tonight.

Jason, the Ferguson Police Department is refusing to name the officer involved in Saturday's shooting for fear of violence against him, Jason?

JASON CARROLL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, exactly, Don. It's a problem for the family, because as you know, Michael Brown's family has repeatedly said they believe this officer's name should be made public. The chief of police actually told me that that would happen today.

The department changed their minds after getting word that perhaps releasing his name might jeopardize his safety. His name eventually will be released, but it will not be released today until they're confident when they're able to do that the officer will be safe.

LEMON: Jason, can you tell us about this? There's a sad new video out today from the day of the shooting, and what does this video -- there it is.

CARROLL: Taken by an eyewitness, taken by an eyewitness there in the neighborhood. And, you know, it's heart-wrenching. I mean, you can see Brown's father on the video there. At one point he's held back from approaching his son. What really angered a lot of people there in the neighborhood is that

his body remained there for, one eyewitness said, for more than an hour. Some say up to two hours while police conducted their investigation.

Now police have to do their job, no doubt about that. But for some people saw it as a lack of sensitivity.

And once again, when you have this fractured relationship between the community and the police, they already believe that the police are insensitive to their feelings and their needs. And when you see something like this happen, again, it's that tipping point that we had talked about before.

LEMON: It's awful to see. Thank you very much. Jason Carroll in Ferguson, Missouri for us.

Joining us now is Adolphus Pruitt. He's the first vice president of the Missouri state conference of the NAACP. And he says a second eyewitness to the shooting of Michael Brown has come forward.

Mr. Pruitt, thank you so much for joining us tonight. You are representing a new eyewitness who has come forward in this case. Tell me what the person claims to have seen the night of the -- or the day of the shooting.

ADOLPHUS PRUITT, FIRST VICE PRESIDENT, MISSOURI STATE CONFERENCE OF NAACP: Yes, the -- in essence, the person said that they've seen the incident from the start of an encounter with the police officer, and both Michael Brown and the other individual with him, and that at no time did they see a struggle between Michael Brown and the officer take place within the police car as has been reported.

And in addition, they said they never saw at any point in time where Michael Brown reached into the police car in any -- in any form or fashion to go after the police officer.

LEMON: And Mr. Pruitt, that to a person, almost to a person, that's what the eyewitnesses have said all along. But has this eyewitness spoken to police? And why is this person coming forward now?

PRUITT: Actually, the eyewitness is a relative of a law enforcement officer. And contacted that relative and said that they were a little upset about how the reporting was come -- was coming out because of the incident, how it was being reported was not how they saw it. So they sought advice from their relative. Their relative contacted us, and then we began going about trying to make arrangements to put that witness in front of federal authorities.

LEMON: Oh, relative of a law enforcement officer?

PRUITT: Yes.

LEMON: Was it a Ferguson police officer?

PRUITT: One thing I would say, no, it is not. But I'm not going to -- it's not our intent to do anything that would -- would identify who that witness is.

LEMON: And -- but you believe -- believe it to be a credible witness, and you are representing this person. Correct?

PRUITT: Yes. Again, the witness has a relative that's a law enforcement officer and has spoken with that relative, and the relative put the witness with us; also delivered that witness to federal authorities today for questioning. And so I'm confident that the relative who was in law enforcement is -- very much believes that witness accounts. And I think at the end of the day, the witness is going to prove to be extremely credible as relates to what they saw.

LEMON: OK. Adolphus Pruitt, we will have you back. of the St. Louis chapter of the NAACP, the first vice president there. Appreciate you coming forward.

So this case, man, it just continues to unfold.

CAMEROTA: Eyewitness accounts are going to be critical...

LEMON: Yes.

CAMEROTA: ... because otherwise it's just what the police officer said. So we need to hear what people who watched it said.

LEMON: Right. No dashboard camera, no surveillance video as of yet. But they have been asking for it.

Up next, police officers wear a badge and carry a gun. Here's a question. But should they also wear a camera? We'll explain the pros and the cons, coming up.

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LEMON: Welcome back, everyone.

The deadly shooting of Michael Brown by a police officer has prompted a lot of questions that need to be answered. And we're joined now by Bernard Kerik. He's a former New York City police commissioner who's CEO of Kerik Group; attorney Carl Douglas; and CNN legal analyst Mark O'Mara, a criminal defense attorney.

Mark, I just want to get something out of the way first. Because a lot of people, you know, wonder about having you on to talk about this. Let's just get this out in the open. You successfully defended George Zimmerman.

MARK O'MARA, CNN LEGAL ANALYST/CRIMINAL DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Yes.

LEMON: And some people take issue with you commenting on this case. How does your knowledge of that case affect your perception of this shooting?

O'MARA: Well, first of all, I've done this for 30 years. George Zimmerman is one of literally thousands of people that I've represented. But I was in a unique position to look at what will happen to a case

if it's not handled properly and openly and transparently by law enforcement. So in the first sense, the Zimmerman case taught law enforcement and, quite honestly, taught us in the media. that these cases that have racial overtones to them have got to be done openly, quickly, in the public eye, and properly by a good law enforcement agency like the federal government to do it. And, you know, those lessons were learned by all of us in Zimmerman.

CAMEROTA: Bernie, I want to move on to you, because a lot of people are saying that one way to cut down on cases like this, where it's the police officer's word against the either victim's family or maybe one eyewitness, is for cops to wear cameras. Would that help?

BERNARD KERIK, FORMER NYPD COMMISSIONER: Well, look, I've supported cameras in the cars. In fact, I put them in the highway cars initially in the NYPD. And they turned out to be very successful.

The problem I think that cops would have with wearing cameras on them, think about it this way. If you had to walk around with a camera on you for eight hours a day or ten hours a day, however long you work, during your work day, every single thing you say is going to be recorded, scrutinized, and so forth. And I think that would put a hindrance on cops. It would create a problem with them in dealing with the everyday public.

Could it help? Could it help in some weighs like this? Perhaps. But I think overall I think it would hinder the cops' sensitivity to dealing with the public.

LEMON: But the question is one of justice. And listen, go ahead, Mark. You said you disagree. Why?

O'MARA: I disagree. I agree that we don't listen -- have to listen to every cop having a cup of coffee. But if we had it in place where we said, when you have an interaction that you know could help by being videotaped, you have an affirmative obligation to do so. They do it with cameras in the cars. We don't have them all on all the time. They turn them on when it's necessary. They call in and hit their radio when it's necessary. They take out a tape record when they believe it's necessary.

It's 2014. Use a camera as best you can. I agree not ten hours a day. But in this case, for example, if he had a camera on as he's pulling up to those two guys, turn it on. I think that would have helped a lot.

LEMON: Hang on. Carl, the question, though, one of justice. Because the parents don't feel like they have justice now.

Now, I spoke with the parents of Michael Brown last night. I want to play something that his mom and dad said to me. Listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: Are you OK, Leslie? LESLIE BROWN, MOTHER OF VICTIM: I will be OK, you know? I will be

OK. But right now, I'm not. I'm not OK.

LEMON: Your shirt says "No Justice." I would assume as that -- why are you wearing the shirt?

MICHAEL BROWN SR., FATHER OF VICTIM: Because my son don't have justice. And we don't have no peace. If he has no justice, we won't get no peace.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: So the question is, Carl, if there are cameras, would there be more accountability from police officers, where maybe parents like this, you know -- it still has to be investigated. But maybe parents like this won't be wondering where the justice is.

CARL DOUGLAS, ATTORNEY: Well, Don, I have represented families of police misconduct for over 35 years. And I can't imagine how any fair-minded student of police practices would be against the openness and the transparency that is promoted by having cameras.

Yes, I would not want a camera to be following me around all the time, as well. But with a police officer, they have tremendous responsibilities. And with those responsibilities come obligations.

And for the family of Mr. Brown, for his grieving mother and his grieving father, having the security of that camera would be important.

CAMEROTA: But Carl -- Carl, hold on. Carl, I just want to challenge you on that for a second. Because what Bernie Kerik is saying is that a camera could have a chilling effect on a police officer's judgment. They would be second guessing everything that they did. And you know, obviously in a moment of crisis, you don't want your police officers to have to worry about a lawsuit. You want them to do what's right.

DOUGLAS: Trust me...

O'MARA: Why -- sorry.

CAMEROTA: Go ahead, Carl, just quickly.

DOUGLAS: They should always do what's right, whether there is a camera or not. Initially, there may be some uncomfort [SIC], of course. But eventually, it will become second nature for all of them.

CAMEROTA: OK.

DOUGLAS: And more important, for justice. It's very important for these challenges not only for the citizens, but also for the police. Whenever I'm encountering some police action, there's always going to be two versions of what happens. But the cameras, although they don't tell the whole story...

LEMON: I want to get Mark in here, because we have a short time. Go ahead, Mark.

O'MARA: No. I was just going to say that -- and I think it was just said -- that police should always be doing the right thing, and they should always be doing what they're supposed to be doing.

Now, we do have to understand that, if we're going to look at a day in the life of a cop on a video, we're going to have to understand in traumatic times and stressful times they act like everybody else. They overreact on occasion. They act in traumatic situations and in stressful situations. We're going to have to understand that they're not robots. But let's have the evidence, and then decide to interpret it.

LEMON: yes. I wish we had more time to talk about this. Thank you, guys. We really appreciate it.

CAMEROTA: Yes. Mark, Bernie, Carl, thanks so much for that debate. We'll be right back.

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