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Crime and Justice With Ashleigh Banfield
Searching for Teacher With Abducted Student; To Testify From Beyond the Grave; Fighting For Her Life; Hunt for Suspect; Facing A Felony; Caught on Video; Hit and Run Manhunt; Stunning Dash Cam Video. Aired 8-9p ET
Aired March 21, 2017 - 20:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
[20:00:00] UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We`re worried sick.
ASHLEIGH BANFIELD, HLN HOST (voice-over): The family of a teenage girl begging for help tonight.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I`m not asking you to turn yourself in. I`m just saying leave her somewhere safe.
BANFIELD: She vanished more than a week ago. Her alleged kidnapper, her teacher.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Tad, this is not you. Do the right thing.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Do the right thing.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Bring Beth home.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Bring her home.
BANFIELD: Now a new twist in the case.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He groomed her for quite some time.
BANFIELD: Police say Tad Cummins may have studied other child abductions before going on the run.
She was doused with gas and set on fire by her boyfriend.
JUDY MALINOWSKI, BURN VICTIM: It destroyed my life.
BANFIELD: Now a plea from Judy Malinowski`s hospital bed.
MALINOWSKI: My family`s life, the kids` life.
BANFIELD: How Judy is getting justice for other victims who`ve suffered like she has.
MALINOWSKI: The laws of justice are just not there.
BANFIELD: This as her health takes a turn for the worse.
Backlash against a beauty store after a manager tries to stop an alleged shoplifter. Did the worker go too far?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I did not.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You hit me!
BANFIELD: Or are the critics being unfair? We`ve got the video that rolled before the cellphones did. And it just might change your mind.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Kids are still waiting for him to come home.
BANFIELD: A widow`s grief. Her husband, a father of five, killed in a hit-and-run.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I still don`t believe it that it`s true.
BANFIELD: Tonight, the manhunt for the driver who did it as it`s revealed this was meant to be the dad`s last ride.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Please turn yourself in.
BANFIELD: The devil`s in the dashcam. A trooper tries to stop a biker, but the biker calls in his brother for backup.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He crashed. Crashed.
BANFIELD: Surprise, boys. Turns out this cop, he`s got buddies, too.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BANFIELD: Hello, everyone. I`m Ashleigh Banfield. This is PRIMETIME JUSTICE.
When you hear the expression "Your days are numbered," it often means that a bad guy is about to meet his end. But in the case of a 15-year-old
Tennessee girl on the run nine days and counting with her much older teacher, it is really not clear if that expression is going to lead to
anything good.
Elizabeth Thomas vanished and is thought to be traveling deep underground with Tad Cummins. He`s her 50-year-old forensics teacher, who is also a
married father and grandfather. And there`s been virtually no sign of this pair. And with so little to go on, investigators are now creating a
psychological profile, trying to figure out his next moves.
They have just released a new photo. Here`s Tad Cummins and Elizabeth together in what looks to be his office at school. It was taken just days
before he allegedly was caught kissing her and just weeks before they disappeared together.
Police also say they think that Cummins may have been studying another child abduction that happened in that state last year, a 9-year-old
abducted by her uncle. So far, though, they are virtually stumped, or at least they`re not saying if they have a bead on where he is hiding out with
Elizabeth.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Our efforts to locate her and the man believed to have kidnapped her remain active and ongoing, but to this point, have produced
no credible sightings or actionable information about their whereabouts. The individuals could be anywhere.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BANFIELD: Police think tonight that they may have actually crossed into the border with Alabama. And there are some very puzzling questions about
weird clues that were left behind on both of their Instagram accounts. I`m going to have more on that in just a moment.
By way, Tad Cummins is also believed to be armed with two handguns. For that reason and so many other reasons, Elizabeth is considered to be in
extreme danger. Elizabeth`s family is begging for her safe return.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I`m not asking you to turn yourself in. I`m not asking you to go to the police. I`m just saying leave her somewhere safe and let
somebody know so we can have her back. I just want her back home.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BANFIELD: Back with me tonight, Josh Devine, public information officer for Tennessee Bureau of Investigations. Josh, thanks so much for being
with me.
Anything new tonight, anything you can tell us, any leads getting you closer to finding her?
JOSH DEVINE, TENNESSEE BUREAU OF INVESTIGATIONS: Well, unfortunately, no, Ashleigh. And we`re still doing everything we can, it`s just the
information isn`t there. We received about 650 tips to date, but none of those tips has produced any kind of actionable information that might lead
us to these individuals` whereabouts.
[20:05:06]BANFIELD: I want to get you to comment on a report on ABC. They spoke with Elizabeth`s father, and he said that Cummins would often brag to
Elizabeth about being a millionaire and about being a CIA operative. Is there any truth to that?
DEVINE: Not that we`ve been able to substantiate. Of course, we would know if he had a law enforcement background, and we`ve been looking into
his financial records. Of course, he has limited liquid funds with him right now. So we believe those to be statements that he might have made as
part of this overall effort to groom her before all of this happened.
BANFIELD: And can you tell me anything about what Elizabeth purportedly said to one of her siblings? And I believe there are 10, upwards of 10
kids in this family.
DEVINE: You`re right.
BANFIELD: Regarding, If I don`t come back before 6:00 o`clock tonight, please call the police. What do you know about that statement?
DEVINE: We`re working to determine the authenticity of that statement and whether it plays a part in the bigger picture of all of this.
All of this really turns on the relationship between these two individuals, Ashleigh, and that`s something that we`ve been able to determine a little
bit more of in the past couple of days. He actually did a little bit of research before all of this transpired in two of those particular areas we
discussed today.
First and foremost, he had done some research about his vehicle, indicating trying to figure out if the options on his Nissan Rogue could be tracked by
law enforcement. And secondly, we now know that he was doing research before all of this on line on the topic of teen marriage.
So suffice it to say, the totality of the picture right now has us more concerned for Elizabeth than we really have been since the start of this.
BANFIELD: What kind of research was he doing on line about teen marriage? And has it given you any indication of where he might be seeking to do
that?
DEVINE: Well, we`ve only disclosed that general topic, and we don`t want to go into specifics because he might still be using some of that, and
we`re hoping that that might lead us to their location. But suffice it to say, that is an issue that we have some major concerns of because it might
potentially speak to his intentions for her.
The bad news in all of this is, as much as we know about the relationship between these two that troubles us, it still gets us nowhere closer to
understanding where they might be at this point. And that`s why we`re urging people all across this country to be on the lookout for this suspect
vehicle.
BANFIELD: One other question just about his research. And I understand that there`s only so much you can tell us, Josh. I respect that. Did he
do any research about extradition treaties or laws outside of this country, other countries where they may find some kind of refuge?
DEVINE: Not that I`m aware of. However, we have been looking into whatever connections that he might have outside of this country, realizing
that that is very much an option. We would be ignorant to not realize that that`s an option at this point because they have been gone now for eight
days. You can get a lot of places in the span of eight days, and we realize that.
BANFIELD: Especially if you go -- if you go south. You can get a lot more places if you go south. Have you alerted the international authorities?
Are they on board with this investigation?
DEVINE: We have shared information with the U.S. territories. We`re working to, as we can develop information, share information with law
enforcement, wherever it seems relevant to us. So to that end, we`re committed to doing anything and everything that might play a valuable role
in bringing this girl home.
BANFIELD: Tell me about the psychological profile that TBI put together. What exactly are you profiling? What picture are you coming up with? How
does that help you with possible next steps?
DEVINE: Sure. So in trying to understand exactly how we got to this point, we have been conducting interviews with anyone and everyone who
might potentially have information about Tad Cummins or Elizabeth Thomas in an effort to understand not only the relationship between these two
individuals, but also more about who he was.
And suffice it to say, nothing, nothing that we have learned about him calms any of our fears for her. We just keep digging up more and more
information that has us more and more concerned for her wellbeing. As we`ve mentioned since the start...
BANFIELD: Some of that information, Josh? Sorry to interrupt you. Some of that information as I have learned, he -- do you know for a fact if he
was researching last year`s abduction of Carly Trent (ph), that 9-year-old who was abducted by Gary Simpson (ph), her 57-year-old uncle by marriage?
There is a lot of reporting about this today, and I`m trying to get the nexus. How would you know that he might have been studying that case?
DEVINE: We have no specific information that I can speak to at this point that he was researching that Amber Alert that happened here in the state of
Tennessee last year. However, that was widely publicized. So as a resident of this state, it`s completely possible that he would have heard
about the details and known that it had gone on for so long.
[20:10:02]BANFIELD: But you don`t have any forensics on his computer or anything like that to suggest that he was doing recent research on Carly
Trent`s case?
DEVINE: Not that I can confirm at this time, no.
BANFIELD: OK. You can change our information that we had from last night and update it in terms of photographs that we saw of him in a Walmart in
the aisle which sells hair dye, which would have complicated things enormously. You don`t believe that that now is connected, that he could
have been shopping for hair dye to alter his or her appearance for that matter?
DEVINE: We don`t. We`ve been able to do some additional interviewing and some additional research on our end of things, and we`ve determined that
that purchase was fairly innocuous. It was a typical errand run that led him to purchase that hair dye. We don`t believe it to be in any way
connected with the Amber Alert.
But does that mean he`s not changed their appearance? No. We don`t know. Again, he could have cut her hair. He could have dyed her hair. It could
have happened. We just don`t know. We didn`t want that to sit out there as potential evidence that that had happened, so that`s why we felt it
necessary to clarify that today.
BANFIELD: Got it. So we`re still sort of up in the air about this shopping trip we`re looking at right now. While he definitely did an
errand that was expected for the hair dye, hair dye still could have been used to alter either or each of their appearances.
One other question I have for you. As a forensics teacher -- we don`t have a whole lot on the syllabus, but Elizabeth was in his class. He`s I think
a health teacher, possibly teaching kids sex education. I don`t know that.
But you must have gone deep into the kinds of things that he was steeped in, the things he was teaching, forensics. Has that helped you at all in
next steps, looking where he might be going, what he might be doing? What kind of tracks he might be covering?
DEVINE: Certainly. This is one of those pieces that helps us to really round out the entire character. Obviously, he brings a certain science
knowledge to the table, and that might potentially help us. But there again, it doesn`t really provide any sort of specific detail where we can
tell law enforcement in a particular area, Hey, go look right here.
And that`s where we are right now, is still trying to get that one piece of information with which we`re able to dispatch law enforcement to really
swarm the ground and do the boots on the ground kind of work of actually going property by property in an effort to try to locate these individuals.
We just don`t have that at this point.
BANFIELD: Josh, you know as well as I do, Jill, his wife, has made a public plea, very, very effective. You told me last night on this program
she`s been extremely helpful to you. He is a father and a grandfather. It can do wonders to see your child on the air begging for dad to come home.
Is that going to happen?
DEVINE: I have no idea about those plans. We`ve tried to be as gracious with that family, realizing that they are dealing with an unthinkable
situation and we certainly don`t want to press them. I`m unaware of any plans that they might have to further address the media or the public in
regards to this.
BANFIELD: Is there anything you can tell me tonight that you couldn`t tell me last night about what Jill has helped you with?
DEVINE: No, not at this time.
BANFIELD: I respect that. There were some very curious social media transactions, some changes in Elizabeth`s social media. There have been
several reports about this.
And after the break, I need you, if you can, to either knock down or confirm that Elizabeth, as has been reported, before she disappeared, if
not the day she disappeared, changed her media status -- changed her status on her Instagram account to wife and actually added the emoji of a ring.
And when we come back from the break, I want to get your take on that. I also want to ask you what it might mean and what his status and social
media change before the break. Back right after this.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[20:15:45]BANFIELD: Josh Devine is back with me from the Tennessee Bureau of Investigations. Before the break, Josh, I asked you that question, is
it true that she changed her social media status to wife and showed a ring emoji before she disappeared, Elizabeth Thomas?
DEVINE: Well, we are certainly aware of the Instagram post that virtually everyone`s been talking about. It`s important to note, Ashleigh, we`ve not
confirmed those to be authentic. Our agency has not. Bit suffice it to say, the social media activity is all part of our broader desire right now
to understand the relationship.
And you`re right, there are some troubling things that are out there in social media that really speak to the nature of this relationship that has
us really concerned for her wellbeing right now.
BANFIELD: And what about his, Tad Cummins`s, social media posts just before he disappeared?
DEVINE: Same story. You know, I think it just gives us some additional insight into what their relationship looked like, what his intent looked
like. And it further backs up, in our minds, the fact that he had been grooming this child for some time in preparation for all of this now eight
days ago.
BANFIELD: Josh Devine, you have a hell of a case on your hands. And I really appreciate you taking the time to talk with us these two nights.
Let`s hope that you and I don`t have to meet like this much longer. I do appreciate it. Thank you, sir.
DEVINE: Can`t thank you enough for your interest, Ashleigh.
BANFIELD: For the past 18 months, a woman has shown tremendous courage after being burned and left for dead by her boyfriend. But now Judy
Malinowski isn`t just fighting for her life. She`s fighting for other victims of brutal attacks like hers. Why she hopes her legacy will help
balance the scales of justice.
And why is this woman smiling, really smiling, not just a little, a lot, because it`s a mugshot and she probably shouldn`t be so cheerful, given
that she`s facing serious felony charges. Here`s one hint. It involves a kid.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[20:20:00]BANFIELD: If you have ever wished that a crime victim could come back and testify from the grave, that may not be so far-fetched tonight.
And if Judy Malinowski gets her wish, she is going to do exactly that. She`s the beauty pageant winner who was doused with gas and set on fire by
her ex-boyfriend.
A year-and-a-half later, she is still in critical condition in the hospital, but Judy`s condition is slipping and Judy could very well die,
which means that her attacker, Michael Slager (ph), could go from serving 11 years in prison to an eternity in hell if he`s charged with murder and
gets the death penalty.
When Slager tracked Judy down at an Ohio gas station, she looked like this. But that vicious assault changed her forever. And I have to warn you that
her injuries are devastating and very disturbing to look at. Sixty painful surgeries later, as I said, Judy is not doing well. She is worsening.
And it`s because of Judy`s case that lawmakers in Ohio are voting on "Judy`s law." Yes, take a good look because this is what it`s about, a
bill that would add 20 years in prison for violent assault cases that leave people like this, like Judy.
And here`s what is fascinating. They are allowing Judy to testify on videotape from her hospital bed to make the case for them to pass that
bill.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: (INAUDIBLE) House bill 63 passed because it destroyed my life, my family`s life, my kids` life, everyone around us life.
(INAUDIBLE) not fair.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BANFIELD: Judy recorded something else along with that testimony for her state legislators. She recorded testimony just in case she dies and just
in case Michael Slager is charged with her murder. So could this have been a dry run for her voice coming from a potential grave?
Want to bring in Ohio state representative Jim Hughes. He sponsored "Judy`s law." Representative Hughes, thank you so much for being with me.
The effect of Judy testifying from her hospital bed in your state chamber - - what was that like?
JIM HUGHES, OHIO STATE REPRESENTATIVE (via telephone): It was very powerful, Ashleigh, because there`s nothing like a victim, you know,
expressing what she wanted to have happen. And she`s expressing because she understands she has a life sentence, what this man did to her. He`s
only in for 11 years currently. Judy has a life sentence.
But what she is concerned about, as well as her mother, Bonnie, who`s been with her every day, is that she wants to make sure that by her coming
forward and testifying and changing the law that nobody else, no other family, no other children have to go through what her family is going
through. She`s a very caring and wonderful woman who has come forth to do this.
BANFIELD: And you mentioned Judy`s mom, Bonnie Bowes. I actually want to play for you something that she`s just recently said regarding Judy`s most
recent prognosis, her condition, a year-and-a-half in critical condition, a year-and-a-half-plus in critical condition. Have a listen to what Bonnie
Bowes has said just recently.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BONNIE BOWES, JUDY MALINOWSKI`S MOTHER: She has kind of slipped down a spiral hill. We`re trying to see if we can pull her back up from it.
We`re either going to have to make a choice to let God and nature take its choice, or hopefully, she`ll pull out of it and we`ll be able to move
forward. I can`t tell you from a mom`s perspective what that`s like, no matter the outcome!
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BANFIELD: Just unbelievable pain in Bonnie`s voice, talking about her daughter slipping away. I don`t have to tell you, Representative Hughes --
I know you`ve been bedside with Judy -- she is extremely strong. And her mom has said she`s holding it together because she wants that testimony if
she dies to go into a trial, to convict that ex-boyfriend, and she has actually recorded that tape. It is under seal. A judge has it.
I wanted to get your take as -- and understanding I`m not going to ask you to comment on any potential case, but as a state lawmaker, knowing that
that could happen, a voice from the grave could come back to testify against someone, that`s a powerful voice. And you have sat with her. Tell
me what you think might actually happen in a courtroom if they`re able to meet the person you have come to know?
HUGHES: I have -- yes, I have met with her. And for full disclosure, I`m a former prosecutor, too, so I`ve never had a case where we`ve had this.
But it is just so important for her to be able to speak to the jury, if this would go to jury, if additional charges would be warranted.
[20:25:00]Once again, for her taking the time -- you have to understand she`s in tremendous pain. And some of the drugs they`ve been giving her
because of, like her mother said, her worsening condition -- the actual drugs that she`s on doesn`t even start to cover any of the pain she`s
suffering.
And I want to tell you something about this woman. When I went in and she -- when I first met with her, she told me -- and she`s in pain all the time
-- she says, I didn`t take any pain today because I wanted to hear everything you had to say about this bill and I want to make sure you
understand why I want this bill so much to become law. And I just can`t get over how...
BANFIELD: Her strength.
HUGHES: ... moved I was by her and her mother, these God-fearing people, wonderful people still trying to help people even in the condition that
she`s in and the effect this has had upon her, her two children -- I mean, her brothers, her siblings, sisters and her parents. It`s just -- it`s
something I don`t think you can put words to it.
BANFIELD: She`s such a beautiful woman. We`re seeing pictures of her. There was a picture we flashed also with her children...
HUGHES: Yes.
BANFIELD: ... her two beautiful children that she talks about as being victims of all of this, as well. Since you mentioned that pain -- it`s
just hard to look at that picture in happier times, those two daughters having to have gone through the last year-and-a-half, as well.
Since you mentioned that pain and suffering, I`ve asked Bonnie about that. I`ve asked her mom about that in the past. And she is now referencing
exactly what you just mentioned, Representative. I want you to hear how she characterized it. Have a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BOWES: She said not even an ant should endure this. Not even a worm should endure, you know, what I`ve endured. And Mom, we have to save, you
know, someone.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BANFIELD: Representative, since you were a former prosecutor, I want to ask you about the admissibility of any kind of tape because my guess is
that there will be unbelievable heartstrings already, knowing what that woman has suffered for the last year-and-a-half. But to hear her, if it
happens, would be unbelievable, and it would also be precedent-setting. Do you think it could actually happen? Could it pass the admissibility test?
Could her tape that is sitting in a vault ultimately end up in front of a jury if she dies?
HUGHES: I do feel that would be the case. In fact, the defense before filed a motion in court of common pleas here to try to prohibit (INAUDIBLE)
being taken place, Judge Holbrooke (ph) there ruled that it was admissible and he was going to go along with this.
So I do feel if there`s any additional charges that come out of this case, I do think the jury will want to hear that. I also think the jury would
want to hear that. In terms of Judy, what she had to say, in terms of what she had to endure because as I mentioned, if you haven`t seen and sat with
her to understand what she`s going through -- and I`ve only done that a couple times, but my point is, you just can`t put it to words...
BANFIELD: Sure, sure.
HUGHES: ... that that would mean more for the victim to have her side of the story come out so people can hear what she would say if she was there.
BANFIELD: Representative Hughes, thank you so much.
I want to bring in Joey Jackson and Lisa Giovinazzo, because you know, as attorneys, you can`t only imagine the pitched battle that they would fight
if ultimately Judy dies -- her mom says this is definitely a possibility -- if then there is a murder charge, which they have said there would be, and
then there is this tape in the vault.
JOEY JACKSON, CNN LEGAL ANALYST: Yes.
BANFIELD: Your thoughts about whether it would actually see the light of day.
JACKSON: My thoughts are it`s admissible. I mean, the drawback is that she can`t be cross-examined. However, why should we let the person who did
this get the benefit of his criminality because he kills her, and therefore, she`s not available to testify? What they did, Ashleigh, is
they preserved her on tape, indicating exactly what occurred as it occurred, and I don`t think because if she should die, unfortunately, I
don`t think it should be excluded.
BANFIELD: So Lisa, you have a constitutional right to confront your accuser. It`s what -- you know, our freedoms are founded upon this sort of
thing. And when you`re on tape and you are deceased, that goes away. How do you fight that? How do you argue that?
LISA GIOVINAZZO, DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Well, there are exceptions, right? There are exceptions. And justice should prevail. In this case, of
course, he`s going to challenge it and say he would have a right to cross- exam this person. But in this case in particular, I think we have to backtrack just a little bit and wonder why in the first place he wasn`t
charged with attempted murder. I`m a little bit unsure...
BANFIELD: Yes, it was arson, by the way. It was aggravated arson.
GIOVINAZZO: Right. that -- that is...
BANFIELD: Felonious assault, possession of criminal tools, 11 years. And they gave him the max. They gave him everything they could. The
prosecutors were hamstrung and so angry about it.
GIOVINAZZO: But I don`t -- again, I don`t understand why not the attempted murder charge if they had the evidence at that point in time.
JACKSON: Yes.
GIOVINAZZO: And again...
BANFIELD: We asked the same questions. And guess what? If she gets her way with this latest testimony, at least there`d be the 20-year
enhancement. So it would be 31.
GIOVINAZZO: Well, not necessarily because that would be for disfigurement, right?
[20:30:00] And this will be a murder. So he will face the charges on the books for murder, and I don`t know if he`s going to ever face anything for
disfigurement because -- did he take a plea? Did he rely on a plea bargain and...
(CROSSTALK)
JACKSON: A big thank you, Ashleigh, to the representative and that legislation, I think moving forward it would prevent...
BANFIELD: Amen.
JACKSON: . injustices such as this. I think people like him and of like mind who can pass legislation like that.
BANFIELD: Amen.
JACKSON: . will serve out justice.
BANFIELD: State Representative Jim Hughes, I don`t know what party you`re from, and I do not care, I agree with you wholeheartedly.
JACKSON: I don`t care either.
BANFIELD: Don`t care.
JACKSON: What`s right is right.
BANFIELD: You`ve done the right thing. And we are just holding out hope for the family of Judy (ph). God bless her. She`s so incredibly strong. I`m
going to take you now to a California Walmart parking lot last Sunday. An astounding crime was caught on tape. I want you to keep your eyes on the
left hand side of your screen at the silver Honda that is backing out of its parking spot. Take a look at this.
(START VIDEO CLIP)
BANFIELD: There is an entire family walking behind that Honda. Including a child in a shopping cart and they`re almost slammed as she backs out and
police say incredibly this was not an accident. The driver continues to back up hitting numerous people. Luckily, a 3-year-old girl and her mother
narrowly missed. Police say just moments beforehand, the driver had been angry. She had tried to return some batteries, but was denied.
We can show you the woman. There she is walking in. It`s pretty clear what she was wearing. A Batman sweatshirt. Some ugg-like boots and leggings. You
can see she has glasses. If you recognize her, police in Union City, California would really like to hear from you because they`d really like to
hear from her.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BANFIELD: And in Texas, a female teacher accused of having a relationship, a sexual relationship with a 17-year-old student. Well, that isn`t right.
And neither is the photograph of her. The details weren`t just what caught our eye.
(START VIDEO CLIP)
BANFIELD: Her mugshot caught our eye. That is Sarah Fowlkes, smiling ear to ear in her booking photo after turning herself in on a charge of improper
relationship between educator and student. P.S., Sarah, that`s a felony, and most of us wouldn`t be too happy about facing a felony. But Sarah
Fowlkes smiling in both of her pictures. Here`s another one. Police say a report from an administrator at the school tipped them off. An arrest
warrant was issued for her yesterday.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BANFIELD: A beauty shop beat-down caught on video.
(START VIDEO CLIP)
BANFIELD: But that is not why it`s making a story. An alleged shoplifter taken down and choked. It is not the shoplifter, though, who`s in hot
water. It`s the manager of the store and his wife. There`s a big what, you know, what on earth going on there.
And then a manhunt for a driver of a van police say slammed into a man on a motorcycle, killing him, leaving a widow with five children behind. He just
hit and run.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
[20:35:00] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BANFIELD: Sometimes a video that you see is not really the actual story that`s playing out before your eyes. And I have a case in point to tell you
tonight. A violent attack that`s been viewed thousands of times online, an attack on an alleged shoplifter at a beauty supply store. And now people
are going crazy. They are protesting that store. They are calling for a boycott of that store. It`s in Charlotte, North Carolina. And there is a
cell phone video. It`s interesting. It`s good watching. In it, you can see the store manager throwing a suspected shoplifter, a woman, to the floor
and then putting her in a choke hold.
(START VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I`m calling (beep).
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Get off me. You know what (inaudible) I`m a female. Assault on a female. Are you serious?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You hit me.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: No, I did not.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You hit me.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Oh, you`re getting a hold (inaudible) me.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We have a (inaudible). The address is 3400 Wilson Boulevard.
(CROSSTALK)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Get off me.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (inaudible) Boulevard.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I cannot -- I cannot believe.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: One man and one woman.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Get off me. I`m not stealing.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Were you stealing?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: No, I was not. You check my purse. Get off.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BANFIELD: It looks bad, right? That video led to the firing of the manager and his wife.
(START VIDEO CLIP)
BANFIELD: Let`s take a closer look. There he is kicking the woman and then as you notice before, throws her to the ground, chokes her. Later, we see
she grabs for something that actually falls from her bag before ultimately she exits the store. So what happened in the moments before that blowout?
Well, there`s another video.
The store surveillance. You see her jamming something into her pocket. The store says that she took lipstick, and she took expensive eyelashes, and
then when she ultimately got to the counter, a couple of other things they said she took as well weren`t actually purchased.
[20:40:00] There was only a $1 item that she decided to buy at the store. Her bag was checked and cleared at the register because she beeped going
through. Beep, beep, beep, beep. See? Uh-oh. He comes over, takes a look. But when she went back after they cleared her bag, the beep, beeps
continued. The security sensor was not satisfied. So, clearly, it wasn`t what was in the bag that was the problem. We can see the manager tries to
stop her. And that`s when she at the very first outset of this became physical.
She tried to push her way out of the store. Apparently throwing the first two punches at the manager. Two of them. Right to the face, in fact.
Customers started shooting cell phone video after -- after. So the cell phone video is after the manager of the store got decked in the face twice
and shoved by the woman. Watch. Punch. Right there with one open hand. Boom. And there`s the second one. None of this is on the cell phone video,
guys. None of it. None of it.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BANFIELD: I want to bring in Yolanda Trotman. She is the attorney for the woman who is accused of shoplifting. Yolanda, thank you for being with me.
This is not going to be an easy interview on you, my friend, because I am very frustrated that that store manager lost his job and people boycotted
that business having only seen half of the video. But it looks like your client threw the first punches and it`s pretty clear from the surveillance
video that was released after the fact, she is seen stealing.
YOLANDA TROTMAN, ATTORNEY FOR THE WOMAN PUT IN CHOKEHOLD: So, well thank you for having me, first. And because this is an ongoing investigation, I
clearly cannot comment on any details. What I do find interesting is that a number of news outlets have aired this particular video that is silent in
nature, that is subtitled, and is self-serving for the person who actually committed the assault in this case.
BANFIELD: I totally hear you. And if that`s all that were a factor in this, I would agree with you. But there are three issues at play here, Yolanda.
You can clearly see this woman hitting the manager in the very first series of confrontational instances between them. You can also note the sensors go
off twice, which means there`s something on her person that wasn`t in the bag where she purchased. And when she was thrown on the ground, there`s a
lot of stuff that falls out that she grabs and pulls back in. Those are three bad facts.
TROTMAN: So, here`s the issue that we have. So we have a woman who was obviously violently assaulted. The issue that we have here is an issue of
potentially shopkeepers privilege. What is also interesting is that the video, again, that is being focused on is a silent video that includes
subtitles by some unknown person that purports to edit and describe what has happened.
And if you watch the entire video, it is clearly self-serving because even when the violent assault is taking place, if you pay attention to the
subtitles, it`s described as them simply restraining her until the police arrive. More importantly, when you look at the -- look at a side-by-side,
there`s actually people exiting the store.
Now, I don`t want to get into the facts of this case because at this point, like I said, it`s still an ongoing investigation here in Charlotte, as well
as the fact that she`s not been able to have any justice of her own in terms of addressing the violent assault against her.
BANFIELD: Okay. I heard you.
TROTMAN: She was kicked.
BANFIELD: I heard you say violent assault several times so I want to address that.
TROTMAN: Yes.
BANFIELD: I am assuming that, Ms. Trotman, when you say violent assault, you`re looking at your (inaudible) on the ground here as a victim in the
story and not a suspect, because the police (inaudible) to her. Am I correct in that assessment, that she was a victim, not a suspect?
TROTMAN: We consider her a victim, yes. I made that very clear.
BANFIELD: And I understand that. Now, if she is a victim in this case, why did she stand up after this incident we`re seeing right now and casually
then find another exit at the back of the store and leave and never once called the police if she`d been victimized in a violent assault?
TROTMAN: So here`s the thing, and I think this is what is lost here. So when a person is attacked the way that she was attacked by a stranger, I
think what people fail to realize is what that does to a person emotionally and what that does to a person`s psyche. Having been on the bench, myself,
and having had experiences as far as being a judge myself and actually having the opportunity to learn more about what happens to a victim when
they`re assaulted.
What happens to them emotionally, why there is delay in reporting, and all of those things, I think that is lost here because I think that while
you`re looking at a video that has been produced, frankly, and for the purposes of self-serving the alleged store manager which
[20:45:00] frankly has been reported that man is actually the owner and not the store manager, but when you take that movie, if you will, and then you
couple that with.
BANFIELD: Surveillance video, yeah.
TROTMAN: . with the actual Facebook video that actually has the volume, that actually shows what`s happened, I would challenge people to actually
look at the subtitles. Look at how it has been edited because.
BANFIELD: Okay. I have to end it because I`m running out of time. But I do have to say that there were two people hit. So they both are suffering from
some kind of, you know, traumatic, you know, episode after being hit in that video. Yolanda Trotman, great to have you. I hope we have you back.
Thanks so much.
TROTMAN: Thank you. All right. Thank you.
BANFIELD: A hit-and-run motorcycle crash caught on video. A manhunt for the guy that police say brutally ran down a dad and did not stop. And now his
wife and the mother of those five kids he`s leaving behind is stunned.
(START VIDEO CLIP)
ANGELA DE LA RIVA, WIDOW OF EDUARDO ESTRADO: We have five kids together. Kids are still waiting for him to come home.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
[20:50:00] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BANFIELD: Police in Santa Ana, California are leading a manhunt for the driver of a van who slammed his vehicle into a motorcyclist, killing that
father of five before taking off. It was caught on video.
(START VIDEO CLIP)
BANFIELD: And you can see the biker, Eduardo Estrado (ph), collide with the van. After which that driver just kept going. Leaving the motorcyclist`s
entire family in tatters.
DE LA RIVA: He was a loving father. His kids are everything for him. Please turn himself in. I know it won`t change anything, but why he did that? He
left him there.
BANFIELD: The van did this has been recovered but now police are looking for the man driving it. His name, Luis Distancia, and somewhere out there,
he`s getting away with it until he isn`t.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BANFIELD: I want to bring in Corporal Anthony Bertagna. He is the PIO Santa Ana Police Department. Corporal, thank you so much for being with us. How
close are you to finding him?
ANTHONY BERTAGNA, PIO FOR SANTA ANA POLICE DEPARTMENT: Well, we`ve been working diligently through the weekend. We did have a witness that gave us
the license plate which gave us our first lead. We recovered the car and we continue to work. We know who we believe was driving the car, Mr.
Distancia. We`ve reached out to his family. We`ve tried to get him to turn himself in. Today, our investigators went to court and got a warrant issued
for his arrest in the amount of $50,000.
BANFIELD: You know, it`s so upsetting, the victim in this case had literally just sold his motorcycle. This was supposed to be the last ride
that he was going to take on this motorcycle before he was killed. When it comes to looking for Mr. Distancia and bringing him in, did you find any
evidence in that van? Anything that might help you actually track down where he might be?
BERTAGNA: I can`t talk about what we got in the van because this is still an ongoing investigation. But based on witness statements, the videos that
we have, the one we gave you as well as additional video, we believe this is the individual that was driving the van that night.
BANFIELD: What kind of charges and punishment could he face for this if you catch him?
BERTAGNA: Well, obviously, felony hit-and-run. Causing great bodily injury. All the way up to vehicular manslaughter. He is currently driving on a
suspended or revoked license for previous drunk driving cases. Which is something the district attorney will be looking at as well.
BANFIELD: Is his family helpful? Have you been able to talk to them?
BERTAGNA: You know, the detectives have reached out to them, tried to get them to cooperate to date. Originally, they thought he was going to turn
himself in yesterday. He didn`t. They tried again today and to no avail. And that`s why we went to court and got a warrant for his arrest.
BANFIELD: Well, Corporal Bertagna, I really wish you luck in tracking him down. I certainly hope he pays for what he`s done. That mother of the five
children left now without a father. It is devastating to hear her. I don`t think it has begun to sink in for her. Thank you, corporal. Good luck.
BERTAGNA: Appreciate it. Thank you.
BANFIELD: A high-speed chase ends in a crash but the dangerous was not over for the trooper because the biker had a brother and that brother showed up
on the scene.
[20:55:00] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BANFIELD: High-speed police chases usually end one of three ways. Suspect runs off, a spin-out, maybe even gunfire. But you probably have not seen
this one before.
(START VIDEO CLIP)
BANFIELD: Newly released dash cam video shows a Michigan state trooper trying to pull over this motorcyclist who was going way too fast and zip,
nope, not having anything. Trooper Garry Guild got close. Rider speeds off. Chase ensues. After three miles, this guy on the motorcycle tries to get
off an exit. Bam. Loses control. Oh, crashes in the ditch. But he doesn`t stay down. The rider jumps up and charges at the trooper.
While the two are wrestling, another vehicle pulls over and what is this? It`s his brother. Jumping into the fight. Helping the brother beat up the
trooper. Putting the trooper in a choke hold. And what is this? Yet again, more people entering the fray. This time, they`re the good guys because
they stopped to help this officer gain the upper hand. Both of the attackers were taken into custody. As for the trooper, he is going to be
okay.
GARRY GUILD, MICHICAN STATE POLICE: My wife met me at the hospital. She hugged me and told me she loved me.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What did you tell her?
GUILD: I told her I love her.
BANFIELD: Trooper Guild, from all of us here at PRIMETIME JUSTICE, you`re awesome. Thank you for your service. We really sincerely appreciate
everything you do. Plus you`re a superhero. Back after this.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
[21:00:00] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)
END
