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Anderson Cooper 360 Degrees
Possible Break in BTK Case
Aired February 25, 2005 - 19:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
HEIDI COLLINS, HOST: A possible break in the case of a serial killer that has stalked Wichita, Kansas, for three decades.
360 starts right now.
A possible break in the BTK serial killer case, a person of interest being questioned by police. Tonight, after 30 years, have they found their man?
A 9-year-old missing in Florida, her father pleads for your help.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MARK LUNSFORD, FATHER: I really need as much help as I can get right now. I just -- I want my daughter home.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COLLINS: Tonight, where is little Jessica? And why was an Amber Alert not issued?
And it's the odds-on favorite for best picture, but with the controversy growing about the film's ending, can "Million Dollar Baby" lay claim to Oscar?
ANNOUNCER: Live from the CNN Broadcast Center in New York, this is ANDERSON COOPER 360.
COLLINS: Good evening, everybody. I'm Heidi Collins. Anderson is off tonight.
There could be a big break in the case of a serial killer who has terrorized Wichita, Kansas, for the past three decades. He's known as the BTK for bind, torture, kill. That is what he did to his victims.
And today, Wichita police descended on a residential neighborhood and have been questioning somebody in this frustrating case, and say tonight they are increasingly confident they will soon make an arrest.
CNN's David Mattingly joins us live now with the latest on this fast-moving story. David, good evening. What is the latest?
DAVID MATTINGLY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, fast moving indeed, Heidi.
At this hour, sources are confirming to CNN that a news conference will be held tomorrow morning at 10:00 a.m. Central Time in Wichita, Kansas, where the mayor, city council members, and police will be in attendance. Exactly what they're going to tell us, they will not say.
But we can tell you that sources familiar with the case are telling CNN that confidence is continuing to grow that an arrest may soon be announced, and that the break that everyone has been looking for for 30 years may be at hand.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MATTINGLY (voice-over): Wichita police have been cautious, saying only that they were, quote, "questioning a person of interest." Still, local media descended on Wichita City Hall, hungry for a possible break in the case.
The serial killer who gave himself the initials BTK for bind, torture, kill, has successfully eluded law enforcement for three decades, taunting them over the years by sending letters to local television stations.
Officers in nearby Park City searched a neighborhood where local TV stations reported police had taken their person of interest into custody. There was also increased police presence back at city hall, where the person was believed to have been taken for questioning.
All of the flurry, with police saying very little, a strong confirmation of how the BTK fear has gripped this community.
The killer is suspected of eight murders in Wichita in the '70s and '80s, but his trail went cold when he suddenly stopped corresponding. It wasn't until the spring of 2004 that he resumed communications after 25 years of silence.
Earlier this month, TV station KSAS received a package believed to be from the killer.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
MATTINGLY: And in some of those communications, included a mysterious list of possible chapters, as if the killer himself were writing a story about this case, Heidi. Could it be possible that we're witnessing the conclusion to this case unfold, Heidi?
COLLINS: Wow, that would be terrific. All right, David Mattingly, thank you for that.
As we mentioned, BTK has a taste for publicity. He has been sending letters and postcards to our Wichita affiliate KAKE-TV, which in turn has been trying to draw him out, speaking directly to him on its newscasts.
KAKE broke the story of today's developments. Let's go ahead and join their newscast, in progress now.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: ... at any time. But once they do get those results back, you know, whichever way they go, surely they will work and put some sort of release together, and make sure they have all of their ducks in a row. They'll do the search of the home. They have tonight to do that, to gather what, if any more evidence might be out here.
So I don't think we can expect to hear anything more from police this evening.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: But the DNA could in fact be back by before midnight tonight, really.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Absolutely. The DNA could be back 7:00, 8:00. That's, at least, what we heard the last time we were in a situation like this. I was heard, when they put a rush on it, they can get it done in as quickly as six to eight hours, when they put a rush on it.
But again, no one's saying much about it. But they could have it back now, anytime now between now and tomorrow morning, they could of have it back from an hour from now. Certainly that is certainly top priority for both the FBI, the Wichita Police Department, the Forensic Science Center, everyone involved in this. That right now is the priority, and I guarantee you, everyone at the Wichita Police Department is sitting around and waiting for those results as well.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I bet they are. Thank you very much, Janine Kiesling (ph), live from Park City. And from Janine, live at the scene, our tip coverage moves to Wichita and police headquarters.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Kate, Jennifer Vocari (ph) is live there with more on the flurry of activity in downtown Wichita today.
Jennifer, not business as usual.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Definitely not, Jeff, and it appears that new activity Janine is seeing out there on the scenes directly to some new activity we saw out here at city hall just about 20 minutes ago, if we can roll the tape.
Lieutenant Spear (ph), now Captain Spear, and Deputy Chief Lee (ph) walked over across the street from the Epic Center here into city hall, then got in their cars. And it appears where they headed was over to the scene in Park City where Janine is out there live.
While there has been a police presence out in front of city hall throughout the day -- we had police officers standing here on the south side of the building -- it was not nearly as much as we later saw over at the Epic Center. We had a reporter go over there who saw a police officer standing basically in every nook and cranny around the building. She was told to leave the scene.
Security extra tight across the street at the Epic Center there. And while there was some security here at city hall, it definitely was not the magnitude as we saw over at the Epic Center. We had a photographer talk to some people who worked in the Epic Center, and they said there were rumors floating around that police and the FBI indeed were talking to a person of interest there in the building.
Of course, we heard very little coming out of city hall here this evening, and it appears we won't hear much more until tomorrow morning.
We're live here in downtown Wichita. Jennifer Vocari, KAKE News.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: There is a possibility, though, Jennifer, that this police...
COLLINS: You have just been watching the live broadcast of our affiliate KAKE-TV, and you heard them saying they have taken a DNA sample of that person of interest in this case.
Dr. Andrew Hodges has been studying serial killers, including BTK, for years. He is a psychiatrist in Birmingham, Alabama. He's joining us from there tonight.
Dr. Hodges, good evening, and thanks for being with us tonight.
Do you think there is some connection between the recent letters and the news today, doctor?
DR. ANDREW HODGES, PSYCHIATRIST: (UNINTELLIGIBLE).
COLLINS: Unfortunately, it sounds like Dr. Hodges is having some trouble with his earpiece there, which means he cannot hear us.
So what we're going to do is go back to the affiliate once again in Wichita, KAKE, and listen to what they have to say tonight on this BTK killer.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: ... back to Park City.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: KAKE (UNINTELLIGIBLE) live at the scene, where reaction from those who live in the neighborhood is coming in fast and furiously. What are they telling you?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Well, Susan, let me get to that in just a minute. I'm going to step out of the way and show you right behind me, there is a vehicle that's being moved out off the scene. Now, that's a Wichita Police bomb squad agent getting in that vehicle. So still looks like they may be clearing out of the neighborhood. But, of course, the Wichita police still have it all cordoned off, and they're watching very carefully who comes in and out of the neighborhood.
Now, I will say, this has been the hot spot of Park City all...
COLLINS: You can see a lot of activity going on with this story.
But we're going to get back to Dr. Hodges now to find out a little bit more about the very latest in the BTK killer. He is once again joining us from Birmingham, Alabama.
Doctor, I want to ask you if you think there might be some connection now between these recent letters and the news that we're hearing today in this case.
HODGES: Well, Heidi, one thing's for sure. This killer has been telling his story for 30 years. I just recently got involved in the case. All his communications using the unconscious mind is what I use, a breakthrough method called the thought-print method. His thought prints have been there for 30 years. I just got involved in it. You got to know that the -- how the deeper mind works.
I'm basically a clinician. But he's been telling his story, and I can tell you what his story is. That, I'm positive of. If it matches this guy, they've got their man. I can tell you his story, between the lines of his communications, his recent communications are very significant.
COLLINS: Well, why do you think BTK has reemerged? I mean, has there been a change with him or his thought process?
HODGES: Yes, well, I think you got first to understand, he's told his story all along, he's given us major clues how to find him. He was a horrendous -- he was a horrendous victim of sexual abuse, and I think at one point, in protecting himself from a father figure who was abusing him, I think he shot and killed this father figure.
I think he's been trying to tell us this story's in the paper back in the '50s. I think the father figure was in law enforcement, probably his real father.
The reason he's emerged, and I saw a whole new set of thought prints, he's been talking about illness. I think he's ill. I think he's got some type of disease. Helplessness drives these people. And he's putting out a lot of messages between the lines that he's ill.
So I think that his illness is making him feel helpless, putting him on the verge of killing again. That's why I got involved in the case, because I think he's very much on the verge of killing again, looking at his recent communications.
COLLINS: Well, but I have to ask you -- you say that, and yet, there is a psychologist in Wichita, Howard Brodsky, who has also been following this case, and says that you are worrying the public unnecessarily, and doesn't think there is an immediate threat whatsoever.
What's your response to that?
Unfortunately, more trouble with the earpiece. So we are going to continue on tonight with this story.
Now, again talking more about BTK, bind, torture, and kill. It's a case that's been going on a very long time. In fact, this latest news about the BTK case continues to be a huge story on the Internet as well.
And every night, Rudi Bakhtiar scans cyberspace, searching not only for that big story, but some really fascinating information that even Web watchers may miss. Rudi, what did you find tonight?
RUDI BAKHTIAR, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Heidi.
We were looking this BTK killer story, very popular story. And, of course, we were looking for others, you know, just thinking about maybe other serial killers that might be out there that haven't been caught. We found one very interesting one who also has been communicating with police in the past.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BAKHTIAR: Eight years before the BTK killer first struck, another serial murderer was already at work, the Zodiac killer. The Zodiac's first victim was an 18-year-old student named Cheri Jo Bates. Her body was found in Riverside, California.
Six months after her death, anonymous letters were sent to the press and police. They read, "Bates had to die. There will be more."
And there were. During the 1960s and '70s, the Zodiac claimed to have murdered 37 people. So far, authorities have connected six deaths to the Zodiac.
The Zodiac uses guns and knives and calls the police to report his crime. In all, the Zodiac killer sent at least eight letters in which he gave himself that name. He has never been caught.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BAKHTIAR: Interesting, though, Heidi, another thing we found is that a lot of people believe that they knew who the Zodiac killer was. His name was Arthur Allen. He died back in 1992. But they could never actually find the evidence to link him to it. So the mystery remains unsolved.
COLLINS: Yes, like so many. In fact, you know, you hear about so many serial killers in the headlines, but when you actually look at the numbers, I mean, how common is a serial killer?
BAKHTIAR: You know, that's what we found that was so shocking. The U.S. produces more serial killers than any other country in the world. Up to 85 percent of the world's serial killers live right here in our country. So it's a really scary statistic.
COLLINS: (UNINTELLIGIBLE), statistic. That's for sure. All right, Rudi Bakhtiar, thanks so much for that.
360 next now, a 9-year-old girl disappears from her own bed. Tonight, her family appeals to you for help.
Plus, Texas shootout caught on video. An angry father goes on a rampage over child support payments.
Plus, ice rescue. Fishermen stranded after a large chunk goes adrift. But first, your picks, the most popular stories on CNN.com right now.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COLLINS: In Florida tonight, a father, pleading for help. His 9-year-old daughter has vanished without a trace. Jessica Marie Lunsford had come home from church on Wednesday night, eaten a snack, taken a shower, and put on her pink silk nightgown. Her grandmother had tucked her into bed.
The next morning, Jessica was gone.
CNN's Susan Candiotti joins us live now from our Miami bureau with more on the search for Jessica and her family's desperate pleas for help. Susan, good evening to you.
SUSAN CANDIOTTI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hello, Heidi.
In fact, late this afternoon, a tragic scare, everyone holding their breath as police held a news conference to update the search. They announced that the body of a female had been found in a nearby county. However, there are no leads on who that is. Police say they definitely know it is not Jessica.
The search for her continues, so far with no success.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CANDIOTTI: A little girl with a fuzzy pink hat and a brilliant smile. Where did 9-year-old Jessica Lunsford go? Her family, pleading for help.
MARK LUNSFORD, FATHER: And let me just ask you to please help me find my daughter and bring her home.
CANDIOTTI: There's nationwide publicity about her disappearance. The local sheriff's been interviewed by the major networks. But no Amber Alert for Jessica. Why?
SHERIFF JEFF DAWSY, CITRUS COUNTY FLORIDA: It doesn't fit the definition of Amber Alert.
CANDIOTTI: That means no hard evidence she was kidnapped from her rural Citrus County home in the middle of Wednesday night. No description of a car that might be linked to her disappearance.
To compare, an Amber Alert was issued last month when 11-year-old Adam Kirkirt (ph) disappeared from Ocala, Florida. A man living with the boy and his father was seen picking up Adam at school, and he left a phone message for Adam's father. A car's description was put on highway signs. The suspected kidnapper and Adam were found two and a half days later. Adam was unharmed.
In Jessica's case, even without an Amber Alert, every Florida police agency's on the lookout, and calls are coming in from as far away as Montana.
DAWSY: We've got the picture nationwide now, we've got the information nationwide. I just ask everybody to look. That's really what I can ask for, look.
CANDIOTTI: Police say they're looking for all kinds of clues.
Jessica was put to bed Wednesday night by her grandparents. Her father was out all night with a girlfriend. They say his story checks out. And he came home to find her gone at 6:00 a.m.
RUTH LUNSFORD, GRANDMOTHER: We need her home, and she needs us.
CANDIOTTI: Jessica's mother, who lives in Ohio, is being questioned. Police say Jessica's school clothes were laid out. No shoes are missing, but a doll is gone. Investigators are examining a home computer Jessica used for possible clues. A runaway she's not, police say.
DAWSY: Do I like what I see? No. Am I extremely nervous and very upset and concerned? Yes.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CANDIOTTI: Jessica's mother has had little contact with her since birth, and police are now saying they are convinced she probably has absolutely nothing to do with the little girl's disappearance.
And at this hour, that desperate search is called off for the night. Investigators and over 100 volunteers will resume the physical search in the morning, Heidi.
COLLINS: Susan Candiotti live from Miami tonight. Susan, thank you.
Overseas now, just weeks into a cease-fire, a deadly explosion hits a nightclub in Tel Aviv, Israel. That tops our look at global stories in the uplink.
Police say at least three people are dead, 50 are wounded. The blast is said to be the work of a suicide bomber. There are conflicting reports as to who is responsible. It's the first such explosion since Israel and the Palestinian Authority declared a cease- fire on February 8.
Austerberg (ph), Germany, three British soldiers jailed. They were sentenced today for the abuse shown in these images of Iraqi detainees in Basra. The soldiers were also dismissed with disgrace from the military.
Rome, Italy, the pope is breathing on his own. The Vatican says Pope John Paul II is in high spirits and has a good appetite after undergoing a tracheotomy yesterday to clear his windpipe. The 84- year-old pontiff is being advised not to speak a few days, though, so he's communicating by scribbling notes.
And that's tonight's uplink.
360 next, suicide barriers on Golden Gate Bridge. You'll hear the amazing story of one man who jumped and lived, and now wants to help others from jumping off one of the world's most famous landmark.
Also tonight, shootout in Texas. A deadbeat dad goes on a killing rampage at a courthouse. See for yourself how police brought him down. It's all on videotape.
And a little later, rescue on ice. Find out how these fishermen got stuck.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COLLINS: Beautiful images there of one of America's most recognized icons, you know it, San Francisco's Golden Gate Bridge.
For all that splendor, though, there is a long, dark history. Since the bridge opened in 1937, 1,300 people have used it to jump to their deaths, making it the world's top spot for suicides.
That may change, though, with a proposed $4 million barrier. Yesterday, a committee gave tentative approval to the plan, which will be discussed further in a couple of weeks.
Tonight, though, CNN senior medical correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta takes this story beyond the headlines by taking us inside the mind of a man who jumped, but lived.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
KEVIN HINES, SUICIDE JUMP SURVIVOR: I didn't want anybody to stop me. I just wanted to die.
SANJAY GUPTA, CNN SENIOR MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): After struggling with depression for three years, 19-year-old Kevin Hines took a bus to the Golden Gate Bridge, walked a little less than halfway across, and hurtled over the side.
HINES: I just wished I could go back in time. I wish I could just take it all back.
GUPTA: Kevin is part of a horrifying statistic. About every two weeks, someone jumps, right here.
(on camera): Why did you come here? Why the Golden Gate Bridge?
HINES: I was under the impression that it was the easiest way to die.
GUPTA: Easy, because there is a pedestrian walkway with a railing just about four feet high.
(on camera): Suicide is the 11th leading cause of death in the United States, even more common than homicide. There are 25 attempts for every actual suicide. Of course, with leaps from very high places, the fatality rate is much, much higher.
HINES: Well, I hurtled myself over, so, and I started falling headfirst.
GUPTA: Kevin Hines was extremely lucky.
HINES: I hit free fall and I said, I don't want to die. And I said, What am I going to do to survive? And I said, I got to get feet first, which I did.
GUPTA: Despite two shattered vertebrae, Kevin recovered both physically and mentally. He takes college theater classes and dreams of working in films.
Indeed, several long-term studies have found that while survivors of suicide attempts do try again at a higher than normal rate, more 95 percent do not, and go on to live normal lives.
RENEE MILLIGAN, DAUGHTER COMMITTED SUICIDE: I love this picture. This is Marisa and her (UNINTELLIGIBLE)...
GUPTA: Renee Milligan's 14-year-old daughter, Marisa, jumped to her death from the Golden Gate three years ago, leaving a heartbreaking note.
MILLIGAN: "I'm sorry, please forgive me. Don't shut yourselves off from the world. Everyone is better off without this fat, disgusting, boring girl."
GUPTA: Renee thinks it should be much tougher to jump. She sued the Golden Gate Bridge District to force them to install a physical barrier.
MILLIGAN: Well, right now, it's like a loaded gun, I think. In her letter, she says it's the easiest way.
GUPTA: Her lawsuits were dismissed.
(on camera): The bridge directors have said up to now, there's no barrier that would be effective, structurally sound, and pleasing to the eye. But this week, they agreed to take another look. The bridge does have security cameras, callboxes with a hotline to counselors, and a regular bridge control looking for suspicious behavior.
The patrol checked on us after about 20 minutes.
But these days, Kevin Hines is all right. He now gives inspirational talks about overcoming depression, living proof it can be done.
HINES: I'm just so lucky to be alive, so blessed. Every day, I (UNINTELLIGIBLE) -- I just thank God every day, waking up.
GUPTA: Dr. Sanjay Gupta, CNN, the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco. (END VIDEOTAPE)
COLLINS: Terror outside a Texas courthouse. A man shoots and kills his ex-wife. Tonight, see firsthand the deadly shootout, caught on tape.
And it's the odds-on favorite for best picture. But with the controversy growing about the film's ending, can "Million Dollar Baby" lay claim to Oscar?
360 continues.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COLLINS: We want to take a moment to update our top story now. A big break in the case of the BTK serial killer in Wichita, Kansas. Police have a person of interest in custody and say they are confident they are moving toward an arrest.
CNN's David Mattingly has been covering these fast moving developments all day and joins us now live with the latest.
David, good evening again.
MATTINGLY: Hello, Heidi.
Just to recap, Wichita police indeed say that they have a person of interest. That is their words, a person of interest being questioned in connection with the case. But they are releasing no other details.
Police are also searching a suburban Wichita home reportedly on the same block as an unsolved murder there back in 1985. We've been told that a news conference has been called at 10 a.m. in Wichita. That is Central Time tomorrow morning. That will be held by the mayor, city officials and city police. What they're going to say, however, no one is actually saying.
Sources familiar with this case are telling CNN that there is growing confidence that an arrest could be made in this case.
Remember, BTK has been going on, a serial murder case since 1974. BTK standing for bind them, torture them, kill them. His first victims back in '74, they were a woman, her husband and two of her children. The last murder occurring in 1986 for eight victims total.
At one time this killer did send quite a few -- a flurry of messages to local media and police, very cryptic, people saying full of clues but not sure exactly where they were leading. Included in one of the messages was a list of what looked like names of potential chapters suggesting that this killer might be writing his own story about this case.
So, Heidi, a great deal of speculation tonight that the final chapter could be in the works.
COLLINS: Wow, amazing that it would be. Thanks so much, David Mattingly tonight.
In Tyler, Texas, a man armed with and AK-47 went on a deadly rampage. It all unfolded yesterday. But tonight we are learning more about the gunman's mission to kill.
CNN's Ed Lavandera has the following story.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ED LAVANDERA, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): David Arroyo is driving the red pickup truck. Tyler police officers are chasing from behind. What this footage doesn't show is how Ron Martell helped police zero in on Arroyo, making his getaway after a shooting rampage in Tyler's town square.
RON MARTELL, SHOOTING WITNESS: So I put my van in gear, was closing on him so that I could trail him. And as we were driving past a police roadblock they were still looking at the courthouse, and I stopped, slowed down long enough, lowered my window and said, "Guys, he's in this red truck, follow me. That's your shooter right there."
LAVANDERA: A few miles later, Arroyo fires a semiautomatic machine gun at officers. Tyler police fire into the truck. Arroyo steps out, fires once more, then collapses and dies.
Martell saw it all. He was driving past the Tyler courthouse as Arroyo unleashed his attack. Martell is legally allowed to carry a weapon in Texas, so he grabbed his gun and jumped into the action.
MARTELL: I'd already gotten my gun out and charged it, put a couple of mags in my pocket. Had my door open, was getting out to go engage this person. And Mark Wilson, I found out later, came up...
LAVANDERA: Mark Wilson, another citizen, legally armed with a handgun, had already reached a spot to shoot at Arroyo.
MARTELL: Mark came up, shot twice, from what I could tell...
LAVANDERA: But Arroyo was wearing a bulletproof vest and a flak jacket. Martell says he saw Wilson shoot Arroyo several times but the gunman was unfazed.
(on camera) Mark Wilson lived in this apartment right up there, overlooking the town square. Some of his friends think that when he heard the gunshots he grabbed his own gun, made his way down here.
At the time the gunman was shooting from the middle of the street. Mark ran this way, up this sidewalk, and made it up to where you see those officers. That's where he was shot and killed.
(voice-over) Arroyo's gun power was just too much. He shot Wilson several times. Wilson had run to the scene to stop the rampage, instead died helping others escape.
The gunman's ex-wife was shot and killed, his son wounded along with three law enforcement officers. Everyone here agrees Wilson saved lives. He's honored as a hero in Tyler.
BOBBY MIMS, WILSON'S FRIEND: He's a man's man, if you know what I mean. He's not going to sit back and -- when he could do something about it and just let it happen.
LAVANDERA: Bobby Mims and Kris Gardner are Wilson's friends. Every year the three of them would take a guy's only adventure somewhere around the world. Wilson used to own a shooting range, where he taught others how to protect themselves.
Gardner says Wilson would never have thought of himself as a hero.
KRIS GARDNER, WILSON'S FRIEND: I think he would be quite humbled by it. I think -- I felt at times Mark didn't even realize, you know, how many people he knew, you know. We spent a lot of quality time together, so I miss him.
LAVANDERA: Tyler is a place known for the sweet smell of roses, but Ron Martell says behind the piney woods curtain of this east Texas town exists a culture of people willing to do whatever it takes to stay safe.
MARTELL: In situations like this, you have a number of citizens that will take it upon themselves to protect the rest of the citizenry, and that's -- that's probably one of the things about Tyler that I really love.
LAVANDERA: The red brick streets of downtown Tyler have been reopened. But the talk is still of the terror that struck in the heart of the city.
Ed Lavandera, CNN, Tyler, Texas.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COLLINS: From a terrible drama in Texas to a rescue in chilly Ohio. Ice fishing is a bone-chilling sport and might have been much worse than that today for a group trying its luck on the frozen surface of Lake Erie. The question was, which would give out first? Their luck or the breakaway floe they were adrift on?
CNN's Alina Cho has the story.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ALINA CHO, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): After days of northerly winds on Lake Erie, early Friday there was an unexpected shift in the weather, leaving 19 fishermen stranded on the ice.
STEVE SUMMERS, FISHERMAN: We got a south wind and -- got a south wind and took the ice out.
CHO: The Coast Guard says within 30 minutes the ice floe was a mile and a half offshore, at one point four miles away. Steve Summers and his dog, Chewy, were among those stuck. SUMMERS: Well, I mean, you're on, you know, 11 inches of ice out there. You feel pretty safe. But we all stayed together.
CHO: And didn't panic. Just watch as the fishermen wait for help to arrive. They're calmly walking around, even loading up gear.
Once rescuers arrived, they loaded up one by one and made it back to shore. Nine of them had already left on rafts or flotation devices.
Five hours after the operation started, all the fishermen and one dog finally on dry land. A day of ice fishing that could have turned tragic was instead a close call.
JAMES BORDELL, U.S. COAST GUARD: Ice is a clear risk. You don't know what you're getting into. It's best to study it, study the weather and know what you're going to be on.
CHO: Watch the weather, travel with friends and carry nails, experts say. That's in case a fisherman falls into the water, he or she can hold on by puncturing the nail into solid ice, better than trying to hold on with bare hands.
But all of the advice is secondary, say fishermen.
SUMMER: You know, when the walleye are biting, the guys are crazy. You'll risk your life for it.
CHO: The Coast Guard says every time you go out on the ice, it is a risk.
Alina Cho, CNN, New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COLLINS: Nature's wrath is also a factor in California. Red- tagged homes too dangerous to live in, on the brink of sliding down mountains. Coming up, one family grabs their valuables, not wanting to let go.
Plus, big cats, big business, a tiger shot and killed. And now new clues it might have been an exotic pet. A growing business maybe even near your home.
And a little later, "Million Dollar Baby," a top pick for best picture, but with its surprise punch, will it earn an Oscar?
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COLLINS: When you think of red-tagged, you may think a big sale. But in Southern California that's far from the truth.
As the region finally dries out after days of record rain, many people have been told they can't go home, people like this woman, whose home is literally sitting on the edge and could go either way at any moment. But that didn't keep her from going home today for valuables.
We go beyond the headlines now with reporter Donna Tetreault.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ROBERT PROLE, HOME OWNER: Oh, see this cracking. The city thinks the bedrock is gone. They think the whole thing's going to slide off the hill.
DONNA TETREAULT, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It's been four days since the Proles abandoned their home of eight years, and they couldn't wait to get back inside.
R. PROLE: Everything was gutted.
PATRICIA PROLE, HOME OWNER: Sliding cabinets.
R. PROLE: New flooring, new everything.
P. PROLE: New flooring, everything. We just did it a year ago. New fridge, everything.
TETREAULT: Now it's only used storing everything they left behind.
R. PROLE: Here, it just went.
TETREAULT: Since their deck collapsed Tuesday, their dream home has been red-tagged. But despite the danger and the law, needing to hold on to something, anything, they slip past the yellow tape.
R. PROLE: Anything else? You got stuff out of the rooms? Kids -- Barbie laptop. She's been crazy about her Barbie laptop.
P. PROLE: We got a lot of stuff. We got a lot of stuff.
R. PROLE: Come on, let's go.
P. PROLE: Oh, my god.
TETREAULT: Knowing every moment inside is dangerous, instead of grabbing expensive wines, it's the kids' juice that makes the cut.
R. PROLE: That's what they want to drink. That's it, that's it.
P. PROLE: Hold on, hold on.
R. PROLE: My son's favorite hat, "I eat glue." Got to have that. OK, we got to think positive. Maybe Saturday they'll let us in. Maybe on Saturday we can get in for two hours and get everything out of here.
TETREAULT: That positive thinking gives Robert and Patricia the strength to help their neighbors. They're in the same position and facing the same loss. R. PROLE: Get proactive. Call your mortgage company. We called ours this morning. They're going to at least see whether they can stop payment on the mortgage for now, give us a break, pay it off -- who knows what they'll do?
TETREAULT: Still not wanting to leave, Robert and Patricia steal a few last moments, remembering what all this meant to them.
P. PROLE: My daughter and I were out here the other day and we were watching the pretty hawks, and one of them swooped down and had a rabbit in its claws. It's like, "Oh, look."
That swing set is going to...
R. PROLE: It's kind of representative of the whole backyard, I think, that swing set. That's what it's all about.
TETREAULT: And so the Proles stay positive, even when life hands them lemons.
R. PROLE: Grab me a lemon for old-time's sake. Make some lemonade.
TETREAULT: Donna Tetreault for CNN, Los Angeles.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COLLINS: Three sixty next, a tiger shot and killed, and it may have been an exotic pet. A big business maybe even near your home.
Plus, Clint Eastwood's "Million Dollar Baby," Oscar nominated and with a surprise ending. Does the plot twist go too far?
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COLLINS: The sad end of a tiger that should never have been on the loose, shot and killed days ago near the Reagan -- Ronald Reagan Memorial Library in California.
Police in Ventura County have been questioning a man and a woman who have permits for three exotic cats but seem to only have two currently on their property. So that case may perhaps be closing.
And such a thing is unlikely to happen again, isn't it? After all, how many big cats can there be out there in private hands? Many more than you think.
CNN's John Zarrella reports.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JOHN ZARRELLA, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Her name is Nikita. Four years ago, this lion was found at a home during a drug raid in Nashville, Tennessee. No one knows where she came from. Now she is lives here at Big Cat Rescue in Tampa, Florida.
SCOTT LOPE, MANAGER, BIG CAT RESCUE: Hey, Nick. Hey big girl.
ZARRELLA: She may not know it but Scott Lope is her best friend. Lope manages the facility with a couple of paid staffers and several volunteers.
LOPE: I always had a passion for animals so I started volunteering here. Pretty soon you're hooked. Quit the real job, move here. This becomes your life.
ZARRELLA: It has to be. There are 150 cats here. Nikita's next-door neighbor is another female lion, Sirabe (ph). This is Toby, a cougar in heat.
All owned by private citizens who kept them, some legally, some illegally as pets. Like Adonis, an ill-tempered black panther. Nearly every animal here because their owner no longer wanted them.
LOPE: We found carriers at our front gate before, a bobcat, some of the civets.
ZARRELLA: And nearly every animal is a byproduct of a booming U.S. trade in exotic animals.
LOPE: The exotic animal trade is second only to the drug trade in raw dollars. Literally billions of dollars are -- are exchanged in the exotic animal trade.
ZARRELLA: On Internet sites, you can click, point and buy lions and tigers and bears. A chimpanzee for $65,000 or a giraffe to trim your backyard trees, just $40,000 to $50,000. And that's the legal trade. What's impossible to calculate is how many animals are being bought and sold on the black market.
CAPT. JOHN WEST, FLORIDA WILDLIFE COMMISSION: It's a very high dollar business. And we're talking a lot of species out there that people can't access anymore because of restrictions. And they're easy to smuggle, especially reptiles. Reptiles and birds.
ZARRELLA: From the beautiful to the bizarre, there's nothing Americans don't seem to want. Tucked mercilessly in suitcases, inspectors at Miami International Airport have found African gray parrots. They bring $1,100 each at pet stores.
How about this bird-eating tarantula and her 2000 babies? Or these poison arrow frogs from Venezuela, 300 of them.
The smuggling of big cats is less likely, experts say, simply because they don't carry their black market weight.
LOPE: We have sort of a running joke that you play more for a pure bred dog than you do for a lion or tiger.
ZARRELLA: They're easily and legally bought in the U.S., $200 at an exotic pet auction.
WEST: Now, I'm still going to put a hot wire all the way over on top, all the way around.
EUSEBIO VERRIER, TIGER OWNER: A hot wire?
WEST: Just in case, in case, in case.
ZARRELLA: Investigators from Florida's Fish and Wildlife Commission came to Eusebio Verrier's Miami home to inspect the new backyard enclosure for his white Bengal tiger named Harry.
VERRIER: It's something you need to have a tiger. It's something different to have and it's something that the average person can't have.
ZARRELLA: Maybe not. But Harry is one of nearly 1,500 tigers registered in Florida, which has some of the toughest regulations. It took Verrier two years to get his permit.
But in some states, there are no regulations at all against keeping exotic animals. And 29 states will allow you to keep them as pets. And Scott Lope says people find ways around the regulations.
LOPE: If you're going to buy this animal from me, and I say, well, it's $100 for the lion cub, but then it's $500 for me to say you've worked for me two years and you have all the hours that you need to own one.
ZARRELLA: Eventually, Lope says, when that cute cuddly cub grows up it's often no longer wanted. Last year Big Cat Rescue was at capacity and turned away more than 300 cats. Some end up in the crosshairs of a gun.
LOPE: There's places people pay to shoot these animals. You know, that's where a place like Cameron would end up, absolutely, an adult male lion, a nice big man like that, he's going to end up in a canned hunt. And some rich guy is going to pay to shoot him.
ZARRELLA: If anything, experts say, the demand for exotic animals is still growing, no matter what species. If someone wants it and will pay enough for it, someone will get it for them, one way or another.
John Zarrella, CNN, Miami.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COLLINS: Beautiful.
Now let's go ahead and find out what's coming up in just a few minutes on "PAULA ZAHN NOW."
Hi, Paula.
PAULA ZAHN, HOST, "PAULA ZAHN NOW": Hi, Heidi.
Tonight we are also focused on today's breaking news in the BTK serial killer case. We're going to have the very latest from the man who actually tried to open up a dialogue with the killer.
And I'll be talking with the woman who believes she was one of the killer's intended victims but didn't happen to be home at the time he knocked on her door. Here she is more than 25 years later, living in complete fear and has a very strong reaction to law enforcement talking to a person, what they're calling, of interest in this case tonight.
See you at the top of the hour.
COLLINS: All right. It's an amazing story. Paula, thank you.
Three sixty next, "Million Dollar Baby," Oscar nominated and stirring a debate. Could it hurt its chance for an Oscar?
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CLINT EASTWOOD, ACTOR: I know your momma.
HILARY SWANK, ACTRESS: Thought you might be interested in training me.
EASTWOOD: I don't train girls.
SWANK: People say I'm tough.
EASTWOOD: Girlie, tough ain't enough.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COLLINS: This Sunday Clint Eastwood has a chance to walk away with a fistful of Oscars for "Million Dollar Baby." But if you think his movie is just about boxing, think again. It touches on one of the most controversial issues today.
CNN's Sibila Vargas has more on the fight over the film.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SIBILA VARGAS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Clint Eastwood, one of the most popular figures in the feature of film. Some are hailing his latest work, "Million Dollar Baby," as a masterpiece. But why are some Christian conservatives attacking it?
SWANK: Because I know if you train me right I'm going to be a champ.
VARGAS: For all the punches thrown inside the ring it's the film's surprise ending that packs the biggest punch. Raising the specter of assisted suicide, some conservative critics don't like the plot twist.
MICHAEL MEDVED, CONSERVATIVE MOVIE CRITIC: The truth of the matter is that part of what happens in the movie that you see on screen is not simply helping someone to die. It is murder.
VARGAS: Eastwood, once the darling of conservatives with his "Dirty Harry" movies, says he didn't intend to make a political statement through the film.
EASTWOOD: I'm not a pro euthanasia person, but some -- this was a story, and this was a story of a giant dilemma and that person had to face that.
VARGAS: Some national disabled rights activists protested "Million Dollar Baby," saying the movie sends the wrong message.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The stereotype held in popular opinion that severe disability is a fate worse than death. And that is a really bad stereotype to reinforce...
EASTWOOD: What did you learn tonight?
SWANK: Always protect myself.
EASTWOOD: What's the rule?
SWANK: Always protect myself.
VARGAS: But Swank, like Eastwood, says it's not a polemic for or against the right to die.
SWANK: Roles that I play don't necessarily reflect my ideas of the world or my beliefs. You know, they certainly open my mind and make me see life in another way, but, you know, I'm just trying to service the story. You know, I can't say, yes, I agree or disagree.
VARGAS: A story that, despite the protests, could win the Academy Award for best picture.
Sibila Vargas, CNN, Hollywood.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COLLINS: And one other film that could win an Academy Award was co-produced by CNN's documentary unit. Called "Autism is a World," the film is nominated for Best Documentary Short Subject. It will air here on CNN in May. And we are very proud of them and, of course, are cheering for them on Sunday night. Only on CNN, that's for sure.
I'm Heidi Collins in for Anderson Cooper. We thank you for watching. And prime-time coverage continues with Paula Zahn. More on the BTK killer tonight -- Paula.
ZAHN: Thanks so much, Heidi.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
Aired February 25, 2005 - 19:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
HEIDI COLLINS, HOST: A possible break in the case of a serial killer that has stalked Wichita, Kansas, for three decades.
360 starts right now.
A possible break in the BTK serial killer case, a person of interest being questioned by police. Tonight, after 30 years, have they found their man?
A 9-year-old missing in Florida, her father pleads for your help.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MARK LUNSFORD, FATHER: I really need as much help as I can get right now. I just -- I want my daughter home.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COLLINS: Tonight, where is little Jessica? And why was an Amber Alert not issued?
And it's the odds-on favorite for best picture, but with the controversy growing about the film's ending, can "Million Dollar Baby" lay claim to Oscar?
ANNOUNCER: Live from the CNN Broadcast Center in New York, this is ANDERSON COOPER 360.
COLLINS: Good evening, everybody. I'm Heidi Collins. Anderson is off tonight.
There could be a big break in the case of a serial killer who has terrorized Wichita, Kansas, for the past three decades. He's known as the BTK for bind, torture, kill. That is what he did to his victims.
And today, Wichita police descended on a residential neighborhood and have been questioning somebody in this frustrating case, and say tonight they are increasingly confident they will soon make an arrest.
CNN's David Mattingly joins us live now with the latest on this fast-moving story. David, good evening. What is the latest?
DAVID MATTINGLY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, fast moving indeed, Heidi.
At this hour, sources are confirming to CNN that a news conference will be held tomorrow morning at 10:00 a.m. Central Time in Wichita, Kansas, where the mayor, city council members, and police will be in attendance. Exactly what they're going to tell us, they will not say.
But we can tell you that sources familiar with the case are telling CNN that confidence is continuing to grow that an arrest may soon be announced, and that the break that everyone has been looking for for 30 years may be at hand.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MATTINGLY (voice-over): Wichita police have been cautious, saying only that they were, quote, "questioning a person of interest." Still, local media descended on Wichita City Hall, hungry for a possible break in the case.
The serial killer who gave himself the initials BTK for bind, torture, kill, has successfully eluded law enforcement for three decades, taunting them over the years by sending letters to local television stations.
Officers in nearby Park City searched a neighborhood where local TV stations reported police had taken their person of interest into custody. There was also increased police presence back at city hall, where the person was believed to have been taken for questioning.
All of the flurry, with police saying very little, a strong confirmation of how the BTK fear has gripped this community.
The killer is suspected of eight murders in Wichita in the '70s and '80s, but his trail went cold when he suddenly stopped corresponding. It wasn't until the spring of 2004 that he resumed communications after 25 years of silence.
Earlier this month, TV station KSAS received a package believed to be from the killer.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
MATTINGLY: And in some of those communications, included a mysterious list of possible chapters, as if the killer himself were writing a story about this case, Heidi. Could it be possible that we're witnessing the conclusion to this case unfold, Heidi?
COLLINS: Wow, that would be terrific. All right, David Mattingly, thank you for that.
As we mentioned, BTK has a taste for publicity. He has been sending letters and postcards to our Wichita affiliate KAKE-TV, which in turn has been trying to draw him out, speaking directly to him on its newscasts.
KAKE broke the story of today's developments. Let's go ahead and join their newscast, in progress now.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: ... at any time. But once they do get those results back, you know, whichever way they go, surely they will work and put some sort of release together, and make sure they have all of their ducks in a row. They'll do the search of the home. They have tonight to do that, to gather what, if any more evidence might be out here.
So I don't think we can expect to hear anything more from police this evening.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: But the DNA could in fact be back by before midnight tonight, really.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Absolutely. The DNA could be back 7:00, 8:00. That's, at least, what we heard the last time we were in a situation like this. I was heard, when they put a rush on it, they can get it done in as quickly as six to eight hours, when they put a rush on it.
But again, no one's saying much about it. But they could have it back now, anytime now between now and tomorrow morning, they could of have it back from an hour from now. Certainly that is certainly top priority for both the FBI, the Wichita Police Department, the Forensic Science Center, everyone involved in this. That right now is the priority, and I guarantee you, everyone at the Wichita Police Department is sitting around and waiting for those results as well.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I bet they are. Thank you very much, Janine Kiesling (ph), live from Park City. And from Janine, live at the scene, our tip coverage moves to Wichita and police headquarters.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Kate, Jennifer Vocari (ph) is live there with more on the flurry of activity in downtown Wichita today.
Jennifer, not business as usual.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Definitely not, Jeff, and it appears that new activity Janine is seeing out there on the scenes directly to some new activity we saw out here at city hall just about 20 minutes ago, if we can roll the tape.
Lieutenant Spear (ph), now Captain Spear, and Deputy Chief Lee (ph) walked over across the street from the Epic Center here into city hall, then got in their cars. And it appears where they headed was over to the scene in Park City where Janine is out there live.
While there has been a police presence out in front of city hall throughout the day -- we had police officers standing here on the south side of the building -- it was not nearly as much as we later saw over at the Epic Center. We had a reporter go over there who saw a police officer standing basically in every nook and cranny around the building. She was told to leave the scene.
Security extra tight across the street at the Epic Center there. And while there was some security here at city hall, it definitely was not the magnitude as we saw over at the Epic Center. We had a photographer talk to some people who worked in the Epic Center, and they said there were rumors floating around that police and the FBI indeed were talking to a person of interest there in the building.
Of course, we heard very little coming out of city hall here this evening, and it appears we won't hear much more until tomorrow morning.
We're live here in downtown Wichita. Jennifer Vocari, KAKE News.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: There is a possibility, though, Jennifer, that this police...
COLLINS: You have just been watching the live broadcast of our affiliate KAKE-TV, and you heard them saying they have taken a DNA sample of that person of interest in this case.
Dr. Andrew Hodges has been studying serial killers, including BTK, for years. He is a psychiatrist in Birmingham, Alabama. He's joining us from there tonight.
Dr. Hodges, good evening, and thanks for being with us tonight.
Do you think there is some connection between the recent letters and the news today, doctor?
DR. ANDREW HODGES, PSYCHIATRIST: (UNINTELLIGIBLE).
COLLINS: Unfortunately, it sounds like Dr. Hodges is having some trouble with his earpiece there, which means he cannot hear us.
So what we're going to do is go back to the affiliate once again in Wichita, KAKE, and listen to what they have to say tonight on this BTK killer.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: ... back to Park City.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: KAKE (UNINTELLIGIBLE) live at the scene, where reaction from those who live in the neighborhood is coming in fast and furiously. What are they telling you?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Well, Susan, let me get to that in just a minute. I'm going to step out of the way and show you right behind me, there is a vehicle that's being moved out off the scene. Now, that's a Wichita Police bomb squad agent getting in that vehicle. So still looks like they may be clearing out of the neighborhood. But, of course, the Wichita police still have it all cordoned off, and they're watching very carefully who comes in and out of the neighborhood.
Now, I will say, this has been the hot spot of Park City all...
COLLINS: You can see a lot of activity going on with this story.
But we're going to get back to Dr. Hodges now to find out a little bit more about the very latest in the BTK killer. He is once again joining us from Birmingham, Alabama.
Doctor, I want to ask you if you think there might be some connection now between these recent letters and the news that we're hearing today in this case.
HODGES: Well, Heidi, one thing's for sure. This killer has been telling his story for 30 years. I just recently got involved in the case. All his communications using the unconscious mind is what I use, a breakthrough method called the thought-print method. His thought prints have been there for 30 years. I just got involved in it. You got to know that the -- how the deeper mind works.
I'm basically a clinician. But he's been telling his story, and I can tell you what his story is. That, I'm positive of. If it matches this guy, they've got their man. I can tell you his story, between the lines of his communications, his recent communications are very significant.
COLLINS: Well, why do you think BTK has reemerged? I mean, has there been a change with him or his thought process?
HODGES: Yes, well, I think you got first to understand, he's told his story all along, he's given us major clues how to find him. He was a horrendous -- he was a horrendous victim of sexual abuse, and I think at one point, in protecting himself from a father figure who was abusing him, I think he shot and killed this father figure.
I think he's been trying to tell us this story's in the paper back in the '50s. I think the father figure was in law enforcement, probably his real father.
The reason he's emerged, and I saw a whole new set of thought prints, he's been talking about illness. I think he's ill. I think he's got some type of disease. Helplessness drives these people. And he's putting out a lot of messages between the lines that he's ill.
So I think that his illness is making him feel helpless, putting him on the verge of killing again. That's why I got involved in the case, because I think he's very much on the verge of killing again, looking at his recent communications.
COLLINS: Well, but I have to ask you -- you say that, and yet, there is a psychologist in Wichita, Howard Brodsky, who has also been following this case, and says that you are worrying the public unnecessarily, and doesn't think there is an immediate threat whatsoever.
What's your response to that?
Unfortunately, more trouble with the earpiece. So we are going to continue on tonight with this story.
Now, again talking more about BTK, bind, torture, and kill. It's a case that's been going on a very long time. In fact, this latest news about the BTK case continues to be a huge story on the Internet as well.
And every night, Rudi Bakhtiar scans cyberspace, searching not only for that big story, but some really fascinating information that even Web watchers may miss. Rudi, what did you find tonight?
RUDI BAKHTIAR, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Heidi.
We were looking this BTK killer story, very popular story. And, of course, we were looking for others, you know, just thinking about maybe other serial killers that might be out there that haven't been caught. We found one very interesting one who also has been communicating with police in the past.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BAKHTIAR: Eight years before the BTK killer first struck, another serial murderer was already at work, the Zodiac killer. The Zodiac's first victim was an 18-year-old student named Cheri Jo Bates. Her body was found in Riverside, California.
Six months after her death, anonymous letters were sent to the press and police. They read, "Bates had to die. There will be more."
And there were. During the 1960s and '70s, the Zodiac claimed to have murdered 37 people. So far, authorities have connected six deaths to the Zodiac.
The Zodiac uses guns and knives and calls the police to report his crime. In all, the Zodiac killer sent at least eight letters in which he gave himself that name. He has never been caught.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BAKHTIAR: Interesting, though, Heidi, another thing we found is that a lot of people believe that they knew who the Zodiac killer was. His name was Arthur Allen. He died back in 1992. But they could never actually find the evidence to link him to it. So the mystery remains unsolved.
COLLINS: Yes, like so many. In fact, you know, you hear about so many serial killers in the headlines, but when you actually look at the numbers, I mean, how common is a serial killer?
BAKHTIAR: You know, that's what we found that was so shocking. The U.S. produces more serial killers than any other country in the world. Up to 85 percent of the world's serial killers live right here in our country. So it's a really scary statistic.
COLLINS: (UNINTELLIGIBLE), statistic. That's for sure. All right, Rudi Bakhtiar, thanks so much for that.
360 next now, a 9-year-old girl disappears from her own bed. Tonight, her family appeals to you for help.
Plus, Texas shootout caught on video. An angry father goes on a rampage over child support payments.
Plus, ice rescue. Fishermen stranded after a large chunk goes adrift. But first, your picks, the most popular stories on CNN.com right now.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COLLINS: In Florida tonight, a father, pleading for help. His 9-year-old daughter has vanished without a trace. Jessica Marie Lunsford had come home from church on Wednesday night, eaten a snack, taken a shower, and put on her pink silk nightgown. Her grandmother had tucked her into bed.
The next morning, Jessica was gone.
CNN's Susan Candiotti joins us live now from our Miami bureau with more on the search for Jessica and her family's desperate pleas for help. Susan, good evening to you.
SUSAN CANDIOTTI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hello, Heidi.
In fact, late this afternoon, a tragic scare, everyone holding their breath as police held a news conference to update the search. They announced that the body of a female had been found in a nearby county. However, there are no leads on who that is. Police say they definitely know it is not Jessica.
The search for her continues, so far with no success.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CANDIOTTI: A little girl with a fuzzy pink hat and a brilliant smile. Where did 9-year-old Jessica Lunsford go? Her family, pleading for help.
MARK LUNSFORD, FATHER: And let me just ask you to please help me find my daughter and bring her home.
CANDIOTTI: There's nationwide publicity about her disappearance. The local sheriff's been interviewed by the major networks. But no Amber Alert for Jessica. Why?
SHERIFF JEFF DAWSY, CITRUS COUNTY FLORIDA: It doesn't fit the definition of Amber Alert.
CANDIOTTI: That means no hard evidence she was kidnapped from her rural Citrus County home in the middle of Wednesday night. No description of a car that might be linked to her disappearance.
To compare, an Amber Alert was issued last month when 11-year-old Adam Kirkirt (ph) disappeared from Ocala, Florida. A man living with the boy and his father was seen picking up Adam at school, and he left a phone message for Adam's father. A car's description was put on highway signs. The suspected kidnapper and Adam were found two and a half days later. Adam was unharmed.
In Jessica's case, even without an Amber Alert, every Florida police agency's on the lookout, and calls are coming in from as far away as Montana.
DAWSY: We've got the picture nationwide now, we've got the information nationwide. I just ask everybody to look. That's really what I can ask for, look.
CANDIOTTI: Police say they're looking for all kinds of clues.
Jessica was put to bed Wednesday night by her grandparents. Her father was out all night with a girlfriend. They say his story checks out. And he came home to find her gone at 6:00 a.m.
RUTH LUNSFORD, GRANDMOTHER: We need her home, and she needs us.
CANDIOTTI: Jessica's mother, who lives in Ohio, is being questioned. Police say Jessica's school clothes were laid out. No shoes are missing, but a doll is gone. Investigators are examining a home computer Jessica used for possible clues. A runaway she's not, police say.
DAWSY: Do I like what I see? No. Am I extremely nervous and very upset and concerned? Yes.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CANDIOTTI: Jessica's mother has had little contact with her since birth, and police are now saying they are convinced she probably has absolutely nothing to do with the little girl's disappearance.
And at this hour, that desperate search is called off for the night. Investigators and over 100 volunteers will resume the physical search in the morning, Heidi.
COLLINS: Susan Candiotti live from Miami tonight. Susan, thank you.
Overseas now, just weeks into a cease-fire, a deadly explosion hits a nightclub in Tel Aviv, Israel. That tops our look at global stories in the uplink.
Police say at least three people are dead, 50 are wounded. The blast is said to be the work of a suicide bomber. There are conflicting reports as to who is responsible. It's the first such explosion since Israel and the Palestinian Authority declared a cease- fire on February 8.
Austerberg (ph), Germany, three British soldiers jailed. They were sentenced today for the abuse shown in these images of Iraqi detainees in Basra. The soldiers were also dismissed with disgrace from the military.
Rome, Italy, the pope is breathing on his own. The Vatican says Pope John Paul II is in high spirits and has a good appetite after undergoing a tracheotomy yesterday to clear his windpipe. The 84- year-old pontiff is being advised not to speak a few days, though, so he's communicating by scribbling notes.
And that's tonight's uplink.
360 next, suicide barriers on Golden Gate Bridge. You'll hear the amazing story of one man who jumped and lived, and now wants to help others from jumping off one of the world's most famous landmark.
Also tonight, shootout in Texas. A deadbeat dad goes on a killing rampage at a courthouse. See for yourself how police brought him down. It's all on videotape.
And a little later, rescue on ice. Find out how these fishermen got stuck.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COLLINS: Beautiful images there of one of America's most recognized icons, you know it, San Francisco's Golden Gate Bridge.
For all that splendor, though, there is a long, dark history. Since the bridge opened in 1937, 1,300 people have used it to jump to their deaths, making it the world's top spot for suicides.
That may change, though, with a proposed $4 million barrier. Yesterday, a committee gave tentative approval to the plan, which will be discussed further in a couple of weeks.
Tonight, though, CNN senior medical correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta takes this story beyond the headlines by taking us inside the mind of a man who jumped, but lived.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
KEVIN HINES, SUICIDE JUMP SURVIVOR: I didn't want anybody to stop me. I just wanted to die.
SANJAY GUPTA, CNN SENIOR MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): After struggling with depression for three years, 19-year-old Kevin Hines took a bus to the Golden Gate Bridge, walked a little less than halfway across, and hurtled over the side.
HINES: I just wished I could go back in time. I wish I could just take it all back.
GUPTA: Kevin is part of a horrifying statistic. About every two weeks, someone jumps, right here.
(on camera): Why did you come here? Why the Golden Gate Bridge?
HINES: I was under the impression that it was the easiest way to die.
GUPTA: Easy, because there is a pedestrian walkway with a railing just about four feet high.
(on camera): Suicide is the 11th leading cause of death in the United States, even more common than homicide. There are 25 attempts for every actual suicide. Of course, with leaps from very high places, the fatality rate is much, much higher.
HINES: Well, I hurtled myself over, so, and I started falling headfirst.
GUPTA: Kevin Hines was extremely lucky.
HINES: I hit free fall and I said, I don't want to die. And I said, What am I going to do to survive? And I said, I got to get feet first, which I did.
GUPTA: Despite two shattered vertebrae, Kevin recovered both physically and mentally. He takes college theater classes and dreams of working in films.
Indeed, several long-term studies have found that while survivors of suicide attempts do try again at a higher than normal rate, more 95 percent do not, and go on to live normal lives.
RENEE MILLIGAN, DAUGHTER COMMITTED SUICIDE: I love this picture. This is Marisa and her (UNINTELLIGIBLE)...
GUPTA: Renee Milligan's 14-year-old daughter, Marisa, jumped to her death from the Golden Gate three years ago, leaving a heartbreaking note.
MILLIGAN: "I'm sorry, please forgive me. Don't shut yourselves off from the world. Everyone is better off without this fat, disgusting, boring girl."
GUPTA: Renee thinks it should be much tougher to jump. She sued the Golden Gate Bridge District to force them to install a physical barrier.
MILLIGAN: Well, right now, it's like a loaded gun, I think. In her letter, she says it's the easiest way.
GUPTA: Her lawsuits were dismissed.
(on camera): The bridge directors have said up to now, there's no barrier that would be effective, structurally sound, and pleasing to the eye. But this week, they agreed to take another look. The bridge does have security cameras, callboxes with a hotline to counselors, and a regular bridge control looking for suspicious behavior.
The patrol checked on us after about 20 minutes.
But these days, Kevin Hines is all right. He now gives inspirational talks about overcoming depression, living proof it can be done.
HINES: I'm just so lucky to be alive, so blessed. Every day, I (UNINTELLIGIBLE) -- I just thank God every day, waking up.
GUPTA: Dr. Sanjay Gupta, CNN, the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco. (END VIDEOTAPE)
COLLINS: Terror outside a Texas courthouse. A man shoots and kills his ex-wife. Tonight, see firsthand the deadly shootout, caught on tape.
And it's the odds-on favorite for best picture. But with the controversy growing about the film's ending, can "Million Dollar Baby" lay claim to Oscar?
360 continues.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COLLINS: We want to take a moment to update our top story now. A big break in the case of the BTK serial killer in Wichita, Kansas. Police have a person of interest in custody and say they are confident they are moving toward an arrest.
CNN's David Mattingly has been covering these fast moving developments all day and joins us now live with the latest.
David, good evening again.
MATTINGLY: Hello, Heidi.
Just to recap, Wichita police indeed say that they have a person of interest. That is their words, a person of interest being questioned in connection with the case. But they are releasing no other details.
Police are also searching a suburban Wichita home reportedly on the same block as an unsolved murder there back in 1985. We've been told that a news conference has been called at 10 a.m. in Wichita. That is Central Time tomorrow morning. That will be held by the mayor, city officials and city police. What they're going to say, however, no one is actually saying.
Sources familiar with this case are telling CNN that there is growing confidence that an arrest could be made in this case.
Remember, BTK has been going on, a serial murder case since 1974. BTK standing for bind them, torture them, kill them. His first victims back in '74, they were a woman, her husband and two of her children. The last murder occurring in 1986 for eight victims total.
At one time this killer did send quite a few -- a flurry of messages to local media and police, very cryptic, people saying full of clues but not sure exactly where they were leading. Included in one of the messages was a list of what looked like names of potential chapters suggesting that this killer might be writing his own story about this case.
So, Heidi, a great deal of speculation tonight that the final chapter could be in the works.
COLLINS: Wow, amazing that it would be. Thanks so much, David Mattingly tonight.
In Tyler, Texas, a man armed with and AK-47 went on a deadly rampage. It all unfolded yesterday. But tonight we are learning more about the gunman's mission to kill.
CNN's Ed Lavandera has the following story.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ED LAVANDERA, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): David Arroyo is driving the red pickup truck. Tyler police officers are chasing from behind. What this footage doesn't show is how Ron Martell helped police zero in on Arroyo, making his getaway after a shooting rampage in Tyler's town square.
RON MARTELL, SHOOTING WITNESS: So I put my van in gear, was closing on him so that I could trail him. And as we were driving past a police roadblock they were still looking at the courthouse, and I stopped, slowed down long enough, lowered my window and said, "Guys, he's in this red truck, follow me. That's your shooter right there."
LAVANDERA: A few miles later, Arroyo fires a semiautomatic machine gun at officers. Tyler police fire into the truck. Arroyo steps out, fires once more, then collapses and dies.
Martell saw it all. He was driving past the Tyler courthouse as Arroyo unleashed his attack. Martell is legally allowed to carry a weapon in Texas, so he grabbed his gun and jumped into the action.
MARTELL: I'd already gotten my gun out and charged it, put a couple of mags in my pocket. Had my door open, was getting out to go engage this person. And Mark Wilson, I found out later, came up...
LAVANDERA: Mark Wilson, another citizen, legally armed with a handgun, had already reached a spot to shoot at Arroyo.
MARTELL: Mark came up, shot twice, from what I could tell...
LAVANDERA: But Arroyo was wearing a bulletproof vest and a flak jacket. Martell says he saw Wilson shoot Arroyo several times but the gunman was unfazed.
(on camera) Mark Wilson lived in this apartment right up there, overlooking the town square. Some of his friends think that when he heard the gunshots he grabbed his own gun, made his way down here.
At the time the gunman was shooting from the middle of the street. Mark ran this way, up this sidewalk, and made it up to where you see those officers. That's where he was shot and killed.
(voice-over) Arroyo's gun power was just too much. He shot Wilson several times. Wilson had run to the scene to stop the rampage, instead died helping others escape.
The gunman's ex-wife was shot and killed, his son wounded along with three law enforcement officers. Everyone here agrees Wilson saved lives. He's honored as a hero in Tyler.
BOBBY MIMS, WILSON'S FRIEND: He's a man's man, if you know what I mean. He's not going to sit back and -- when he could do something about it and just let it happen.
LAVANDERA: Bobby Mims and Kris Gardner are Wilson's friends. Every year the three of them would take a guy's only adventure somewhere around the world. Wilson used to own a shooting range, where he taught others how to protect themselves.
Gardner says Wilson would never have thought of himself as a hero.
KRIS GARDNER, WILSON'S FRIEND: I think he would be quite humbled by it. I think -- I felt at times Mark didn't even realize, you know, how many people he knew, you know. We spent a lot of quality time together, so I miss him.
LAVANDERA: Tyler is a place known for the sweet smell of roses, but Ron Martell says behind the piney woods curtain of this east Texas town exists a culture of people willing to do whatever it takes to stay safe.
MARTELL: In situations like this, you have a number of citizens that will take it upon themselves to protect the rest of the citizenry, and that's -- that's probably one of the things about Tyler that I really love.
LAVANDERA: The red brick streets of downtown Tyler have been reopened. But the talk is still of the terror that struck in the heart of the city.
Ed Lavandera, CNN, Tyler, Texas.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COLLINS: From a terrible drama in Texas to a rescue in chilly Ohio. Ice fishing is a bone-chilling sport and might have been much worse than that today for a group trying its luck on the frozen surface of Lake Erie. The question was, which would give out first? Their luck or the breakaway floe they were adrift on?
CNN's Alina Cho has the story.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ALINA CHO, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): After days of northerly winds on Lake Erie, early Friday there was an unexpected shift in the weather, leaving 19 fishermen stranded on the ice.
STEVE SUMMERS, FISHERMAN: We got a south wind and -- got a south wind and took the ice out.
CHO: The Coast Guard says within 30 minutes the ice floe was a mile and a half offshore, at one point four miles away. Steve Summers and his dog, Chewy, were among those stuck. SUMMERS: Well, I mean, you're on, you know, 11 inches of ice out there. You feel pretty safe. But we all stayed together.
CHO: And didn't panic. Just watch as the fishermen wait for help to arrive. They're calmly walking around, even loading up gear.
Once rescuers arrived, they loaded up one by one and made it back to shore. Nine of them had already left on rafts or flotation devices.
Five hours after the operation started, all the fishermen and one dog finally on dry land. A day of ice fishing that could have turned tragic was instead a close call.
JAMES BORDELL, U.S. COAST GUARD: Ice is a clear risk. You don't know what you're getting into. It's best to study it, study the weather and know what you're going to be on.
CHO: Watch the weather, travel with friends and carry nails, experts say. That's in case a fisherman falls into the water, he or she can hold on by puncturing the nail into solid ice, better than trying to hold on with bare hands.
But all of the advice is secondary, say fishermen.
SUMMER: You know, when the walleye are biting, the guys are crazy. You'll risk your life for it.
CHO: The Coast Guard says every time you go out on the ice, it is a risk.
Alina Cho, CNN, New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COLLINS: Nature's wrath is also a factor in California. Red- tagged homes too dangerous to live in, on the brink of sliding down mountains. Coming up, one family grabs their valuables, not wanting to let go.
Plus, big cats, big business, a tiger shot and killed. And now new clues it might have been an exotic pet. A growing business maybe even near your home.
And a little later, "Million Dollar Baby," a top pick for best picture, but with its surprise punch, will it earn an Oscar?
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COLLINS: When you think of red-tagged, you may think a big sale. But in Southern California that's far from the truth.
As the region finally dries out after days of record rain, many people have been told they can't go home, people like this woman, whose home is literally sitting on the edge and could go either way at any moment. But that didn't keep her from going home today for valuables.
We go beyond the headlines now with reporter Donna Tetreault.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ROBERT PROLE, HOME OWNER: Oh, see this cracking. The city thinks the bedrock is gone. They think the whole thing's going to slide off the hill.
DONNA TETREAULT, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It's been four days since the Proles abandoned their home of eight years, and they couldn't wait to get back inside.
R. PROLE: Everything was gutted.
PATRICIA PROLE, HOME OWNER: Sliding cabinets.
R. PROLE: New flooring, new everything.
P. PROLE: New flooring, everything. We just did it a year ago. New fridge, everything.
TETREAULT: Now it's only used storing everything they left behind.
R. PROLE: Here, it just went.
TETREAULT: Since their deck collapsed Tuesday, their dream home has been red-tagged. But despite the danger and the law, needing to hold on to something, anything, they slip past the yellow tape.
R. PROLE: Anything else? You got stuff out of the rooms? Kids -- Barbie laptop. She's been crazy about her Barbie laptop.
P. PROLE: We got a lot of stuff. We got a lot of stuff.
R. PROLE: Come on, let's go.
P. PROLE: Oh, my god.
TETREAULT: Knowing every moment inside is dangerous, instead of grabbing expensive wines, it's the kids' juice that makes the cut.
R. PROLE: That's what they want to drink. That's it, that's it.
P. PROLE: Hold on, hold on.
R. PROLE: My son's favorite hat, "I eat glue." Got to have that. OK, we got to think positive. Maybe Saturday they'll let us in. Maybe on Saturday we can get in for two hours and get everything out of here.
TETREAULT: That positive thinking gives Robert and Patricia the strength to help their neighbors. They're in the same position and facing the same loss. R. PROLE: Get proactive. Call your mortgage company. We called ours this morning. They're going to at least see whether they can stop payment on the mortgage for now, give us a break, pay it off -- who knows what they'll do?
TETREAULT: Still not wanting to leave, Robert and Patricia steal a few last moments, remembering what all this meant to them.
P. PROLE: My daughter and I were out here the other day and we were watching the pretty hawks, and one of them swooped down and had a rabbit in its claws. It's like, "Oh, look."
That swing set is going to...
R. PROLE: It's kind of representative of the whole backyard, I think, that swing set. That's what it's all about.
TETREAULT: And so the Proles stay positive, even when life hands them lemons.
R. PROLE: Grab me a lemon for old-time's sake. Make some lemonade.
TETREAULT: Donna Tetreault for CNN, Los Angeles.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COLLINS: Three sixty next, a tiger shot and killed, and it may have been an exotic pet. A big business maybe even near your home.
Plus, Clint Eastwood's "Million Dollar Baby," Oscar nominated and with a surprise ending. Does the plot twist go too far?
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COLLINS: The sad end of a tiger that should never have been on the loose, shot and killed days ago near the Reagan -- Ronald Reagan Memorial Library in California.
Police in Ventura County have been questioning a man and a woman who have permits for three exotic cats but seem to only have two currently on their property. So that case may perhaps be closing.
And such a thing is unlikely to happen again, isn't it? After all, how many big cats can there be out there in private hands? Many more than you think.
CNN's John Zarrella reports.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JOHN ZARRELLA, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Her name is Nikita. Four years ago, this lion was found at a home during a drug raid in Nashville, Tennessee. No one knows where she came from. Now she is lives here at Big Cat Rescue in Tampa, Florida.
SCOTT LOPE, MANAGER, BIG CAT RESCUE: Hey, Nick. Hey big girl.
ZARRELLA: She may not know it but Scott Lope is her best friend. Lope manages the facility with a couple of paid staffers and several volunteers.
LOPE: I always had a passion for animals so I started volunteering here. Pretty soon you're hooked. Quit the real job, move here. This becomes your life.
ZARRELLA: It has to be. There are 150 cats here. Nikita's next-door neighbor is another female lion, Sirabe (ph). This is Toby, a cougar in heat.
All owned by private citizens who kept them, some legally, some illegally as pets. Like Adonis, an ill-tempered black panther. Nearly every animal here because their owner no longer wanted them.
LOPE: We found carriers at our front gate before, a bobcat, some of the civets.
ZARRELLA: And nearly every animal is a byproduct of a booming U.S. trade in exotic animals.
LOPE: The exotic animal trade is second only to the drug trade in raw dollars. Literally billions of dollars are -- are exchanged in the exotic animal trade.
ZARRELLA: On Internet sites, you can click, point and buy lions and tigers and bears. A chimpanzee for $65,000 or a giraffe to trim your backyard trees, just $40,000 to $50,000. And that's the legal trade. What's impossible to calculate is how many animals are being bought and sold on the black market.
CAPT. JOHN WEST, FLORIDA WILDLIFE COMMISSION: It's a very high dollar business. And we're talking a lot of species out there that people can't access anymore because of restrictions. And they're easy to smuggle, especially reptiles. Reptiles and birds.
ZARRELLA: From the beautiful to the bizarre, there's nothing Americans don't seem to want. Tucked mercilessly in suitcases, inspectors at Miami International Airport have found African gray parrots. They bring $1,100 each at pet stores.
How about this bird-eating tarantula and her 2000 babies? Or these poison arrow frogs from Venezuela, 300 of them.
The smuggling of big cats is less likely, experts say, simply because they don't carry their black market weight.
LOPE: We have sort of a running joke that you play more for a pure bred dog than you do for a lion or tiger.
ZARRELLA: They're easily and legally bought in the U.S., $200 at an exotic pet auction.
WEST: Now, I'm still going to put a hot wire all the way over on top, all the way around.
EUSEBIO VERRIER, TIGER OWNER: A hot wire?
WEST: Just in case, in case, in case.
ZARRELLA: Investigators from Florida's Fish and Wildlife Commission came to Eusebio Verrier's Miami home to inspect the new backyard enclosure for his white Bengal tiger named Harry.
VERRIER: It's something you need to have a tiger. It's something different to have and it's something that the average person can't have.
ZARRELLA: Maybe not. But Harry is one of nearly 1,500 tigers registered in Florida, which has some of the toughest regulations. It took Verrier two years to get his permit.
But in some states, there are no regulations at all against keeping exotic animals. And 29 states will allow you to keep them as pets. And Scott Lope says people find ways around the regulations.
LOPE: If you're going to buy this animal from me, and I say, well, it's $100 for the lion cub, but then it's $500 for me to say you've worked for me two years and you have all the hours that you need to own one.
ZARRELLA: Eventually, Lope says, when that cute cuddly cub grows up it's often no longer wanted. Last year Big Cat Rescue was at capacity and turned away more than 300 cats. Some end up in the crosshairs of a gun.
LOPE: There's places people pay to shoot these animals. You know, that's where a place like Cameron would end up, absolutely, an adult male lion, a nice big man like that, he's going to end up in a canned hunt. And some rich guy is going to pay to shoot him.
ZARRELLA: If anything, experts say, the demand for exotic animals is still growing, no matter what species. If someone wants it and will pay enough for it, someone will get it for them, one way or another.
John Zarrella, CNN, Miami.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COLLINS: Beautiful.
Now let's go ahead and find out what's coming up in just a few minutes on "PAULA ZAHN NOW."
Hi, Paula.
PAULA ZAHN, HOST, "PAULA ZAHN NOW": Hi, Heidi.
Tonight we are also focused on today's breaking news in the BTK serial killer case. We're going to have the very latest from the man who actually tried to open up a dialogue with the killer.
And I'll be talking with the woman who believes she was one of the killer's intended victims but didn't happen to be home at the time he knocked on her door. Here she is more than 25 years later, living in complete fear and has a very strong reaction to law enforcement talking to a person, what they're calling, of interest in this case tonight.
See you at the top of the hour.
COLLINS: All right. It's an amazing story. Paula, thank you.
Three sixty next, "Million Dollar Baby," Oscar nominated and stirring a debate. Could it hurt its chance for an Oscar?
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CLINT EASTWOOD, ACTOR: I know your momma.
HILARY SWANK, ACTRESS: Thought you might be interested in training me.
EASTWOOD: I don't train girls.
SWANK: People say I'm tough.
EASTWOOD: Girlie, tough ain't enough.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COLLINS: This Sunday Clint Eastwood has a chance to walk away with a fistful of Oscars for "Million Dollar Baby." But if you think his movie is just about boxing, think again. It touches on one of the most controversial issues today.
CNN's Sibila Vargas has more on the fight over the film.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SIBILA VARGAS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Clint Eastwood, one of the most popular figures in the feature of film. Some are hailing his latest work, "Million Dollar Baby," as a masterpiece. But why are some Christian conservatives attacking it?
SWANK: Because I know if you train me right I'm going to be a champ.
VARGAS: For all the punches thrown inside the ring it's the film's surprise ending that packs the biggest punch. Raising the specter of assisted suicide, some conservative critics don't like the plot twist.
MICHAEL MEDVED, CONSERVATIVE MOVIE CRITIC: The truth of the matter is that part of what happens in the movie that you see on screen is not simply helping someone to die. It is murder.
VARGAS: Eastwood, once the darling of conservatives with his "Dirty Harry" movies, says he didn't intend to make a political statement through the film.
EASTWOOD: I'm not a pro euthanasia person, but some -- this was a story, and this was a story of a giant dilemma and that person had to face that.
VARGAS: Some national disabled rights activists protested "Million Dollar Baby," saying the movie sends the wrong message.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The stereotype held in popular opinion that severe disability is a fate worse than death. And that is a really bad stereotype to reinforce...
EASTWOOD: What did you learn tonight?
SWANK: Always protect myself.
EASTWOOD: What's the rule?
SWANK: Always protect myself.
VARGAS: But Swank, like Eastwood, says it's not a polemic for or against the right to die.
SWANK: Roles that I play don't necessarily reflect my ideas of the world or my beliefs. You know, they certainly open my mind and make me see life in another way, but, you know, I'm just trying to service the story. You know, I can't say, yes, I agree or disagree.
VARGAS: A story that, despite the protests, could win the Academy Award for best picture.
Sibila Vargas, CNN, Hollywood.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COLLINS: And one other film that could win an Academy Award was co-produced by CNN's documentary unit. Called "Autism is a World," the film is nominated for Best Documentary Short Subject. It will air here on CNN in May. And we are very proud of them and, of course, are cheering for them on Sunday night. Only on CNN, that's for sure.
I'm Heidi Collins in for Anderson Cooper. We thank you for watching. And prime-time coverage continues with Paula Zahn. More on the BTK killer tonight -- Paula.
ZAHN: Thanks so much, Heidi.
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