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CNN Connie Chung Tonight

Kidnapped California Teens Are Safely Recovered; New Developments Unfold in Anthrax Case; Women at LSU Try to Take Back the Campus

Aired August 01, 2002 - 20:00   ET

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

CONNIE CHUNG, CNN ANCHOR: Good evening, I'm Connie Chung.
Tonight, two kidnapped teenagers safe.

ANNOUNCER: Safe and sound.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ASST. SHERIFF LARRY WALDIE, L.A. COUNTY SHERIFF DEPT.: The good news is the girls have been found. They are safe.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ANNOUNCER: Two teenage girls abducted at gunpoint. Friends and loved ones pray for their return. The prayers are answered.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

NADINE DYER, MARRIS' MOTHER: It's like your heart just went back in your chest to know that your kids are alive.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ANNOUNCER: How this dramatic day unfolded.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They told me he was going to kill me.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ANNOUNCER: And the statewide alert system that worked.

A break in the anthrax case. Investigators search a bioweapons scientist's home again. Who is he and what did they find?

Killer on campus.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There's nothing to indicate that there's more than one person involved.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ANNOUNCER: Women at Louisiana State University trying to take back their campus.

A twist in a Hollywood mystery. Robert Blake charged with murder.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Arrested actor Robert Blake for the murder of Bonny Lee Bakley.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ANNOUNCER: Now, a tape recording has surfaced that may cast doubt on the case.

This is CONNIE CHUNG TONIGHT. Live from the CNN Broadcast Center in New York, Connie Chung.

CHUNG: Good evening.

Tonight, after so many high-profile kidnappings and killings of children, today, it was a different story. Two teenage girls are safe and the man who kidnapped them early this morning is dead from police gunfire. On the story tonight, CNN's Casey Wian.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CASEY WIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): 16-year-old Tamara Brooks and 17-year-old Jackie Marris didn't know each other before early Thursday morning. The two high school students were in separate cars at this California high desert teen hangout, the Quartz Hill water tower.

They were approached by a man, Roy Ratliff. Police say he had carjacked this vehicle two weeks ago in Las Vegas. Police also say tied up the girls' two young male companions at gunpoint, telling one he just wanted his vehicle. Ratliff then allegedly fled with the two girls in this 20-year-old Ford Bronco. Relatives and friends of the girls like Jackie's aunt feared the worst.

JENEEN CARCIONE-TOLLSTRUP, MARRIS' AUNT: Just do whatever you can, honey because the best thing for you is to get away. That's all you can do, no matter he tells you, what he says he's going to do. It doesn't matter. You fight. You fight like hell because you don't know if this is your last chance.

WIAN: Law enforcement quickly deployed the new Amber Alert child abduction warning system. Law enforcement officers throughout California, the FBI, local media and the public began a widespread search that included five law enforcement helicopters and three fixed- wing aircraft. Eventually, the abductor and his victims were spotted from the air and the officers gave chase.

WALDIE: The girls are safe and in the care of the Kern County Sheriff's Department. The suspect is deceased. He's been killed at the scene. But the good news is the girls have been found. They're safe.

WIAN: The news brought tears of joy and relief to family and friends.

DYER: You hear and you see the TV every day about kids every day being taken and abducted, and a lot of them don't make it home. I really feel for their parents.

SAMMIE BROOKS, BROOKS' FATHER: I never lost hope, and when I found out some things about the situation and who the people were that was working on it, I felt confident that it would turn out the best that could possibly turn out. And it did turn out well.

WIAN (on camera): Ratliff was shot and killed by law enforcement officers in nearby Kern County, where he had been facing separate rape charges. The girls' families united now by near tragedy vowed to keep closer tabs on their teenagers, strangers no more.

Casey Wian, CNN, Lancaster, California.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHUNG: And joining me now from Lancaster, California, Los Angeles county assistant sheriff Larry Waldie. Congratulations, sir. It's such a great job that everyone did. Tell us, how are the girls?

WALDIE: Well, right now, the girls are at the medical center. They're being treated and we hope they're going to be fine. I don't have any specific details on that, but thank you for that congratulations from the men and women of law enforcement.

CHUNG: Do you know if there are any significant injuries or you have no idea at this point?

WALDIE: No. I listened to the hospital administrator myself on TV. He's waiting for the physician to finish with them. And he said he'd be forthcoming with whatever information that came out after that time.

CHUNG: Sheriff Waldie, take us back to the beginning of this 12- hour ordeal. It's 1:00 a.m. in Lancaster, and one car is at this sort of teenage hangout. What happens when the abductor arrives?

WALDIE: Basically, there was one car there. He arrived. He approached the vehicle with a weapon, told the boy to get out, and began with duct tape to walk them over to an area away from the car, tied them up so they couldn't do anything, and then walked back to the car when the young girl was.

At that moment, another car pulled into the same area, and he moved the Bronco in between him and the first victim that was moved from the car. And then he went in and took that man and tied him to the car, and then removed the second victim and put her in the Bronco with the other girl. CHUNG: Do you believe that the abductor had intended to assault the girls? Because he was...

WALDIE: Well, I...

CHUNG: ... he was a suspected rapist.

WALDIE: Yes, there was a large warrant out for 261. I think there's little doubt that his intent was, at the very least, was to assault the girls. And we have some grave apprehensions about the full well-being and safety of the girls. So, being a wanted man for the original crime, and then having them again in a similar circumstance, who knows who could have happened? So, we just thank God we got to them and found them in a very short time.

CHUNG: All right. Take me a little bit further on into this story, then. Is it your sense -- did the boys tell you whether or not the girls were able to fight off this abductor before he took her -- he took them, forgive me?

WALDIE: Well, I have no information about the battle of the girls with the abductor. That would have to come from the investigators when they interviewed the girls regarding when they left Quartz Hill to when they were eventually captured after the accident in Kern County.

CHUNG: Then take us to the next step. How did authorities find the girls?

WALDIE: They found the girls via an airplane initially -- not initially. It was an animal control officer spotted the vehicle on the freeway. He did call Kern County Sheriff. A fixed-wing aircraft then flew over, saw the vehicle. They attempted to stop the vehicle. The vehicle then fled.

They went in to pursuit, a short pursuit. A collision occurred. He left the girls in the vehicle after the collision and ran into a farm field. They checked on the security of the girls, found them to be OK. And then they went in foot pursuit of the individual, where they, according to my information, they engaged the individual. I don't know what that engagement means. But I know they then shot the individual and killed him.

CHUNG: Any idea if the individual shot back, if there was a gunfire fight?

WALDIE: I do not know that, but when they talk about engagement, that could be inclusive of that.

CHUNG: What part did Amber Alert play? That's this -- perhaps you can explain a little better than I can. But, basically, it's a way to alert everyone throughout the state to look for these two girls.

WALDIE: I think it played a very prominent role in what occurred here. It gave us the ability in a very short time to put notice out of, one, that the crime had occurred; two, a description of the vehicle and the suspect, potentially the suspect from the boys that were there, and then put it out to the media, put it out to the public, put it out to all law enforcement agencies via numerous forms. And I think with the number of sightings we had and the number of calls we had on this, I think it had played an effective part in helping us track him down before he was able to get out of view and sight, and who knows who he would have done.

CHUNG: Sheriff, I don't know if you can answer this question. But I'm sure if you're a parent, I'm a parent, all of us are wondering what is going on with all of these kidnappings?

WALDIE: Well, I'm a parent also and my kids are now grown. And that was always a concern on my mind. I can't answer that question. Recently, you know, it's been happening from Orange County to Texas to St. Louis. It's rather tragic. I wish I knew, Ms. Chung, for that answer. All we can do is try, as we did here, and prevent it from happening.

CHUNG: All right. Again, congratulations. Good job. Thank you, Sheriff Waldie.

WALDIE: Thank you.

CHUNG: Also, joining us now from Lancaster, two teenagers who spent much of today not knowing whether their friend Tamara was alive or dead.

Desiree Lemos and Erica Bermudez, thank you so much for being with us tonight.

DESIREE LEMOS, FRIEND OF ABDUCTED TEEN: Thank you.

ERICA BERMUDEZ, FRIEND OF ABDUCTED TEEN: Thank you for having us.

CHUNG: OK. Desiree, let's start with you.

How long have you known Tamara, and tell me what she's like.

LEMOS: I knew Tamara for about three years. She's a wonderful person. She's very outgoing. She's very smart. She gets along with everybody. And no one would have problems with her or anything like that.

So I don't know why somebody would want to do this.

CHUNG: Erica, she has an impressive sort of, not only grade- point average, but extracurricular activities.

Can you just go through some of them for me?

BERMUDEZ: Yes, she ran in cross country. She was on the track team. She played volleyball. She was in a program at our school called ASB, which is the Associated Student Body. She was a teen helper. She was in sophomore Senate, now in junior Senate. She just all-around does everything.

CHUNG: She was a student who just would never get into trouble, right?

BERMUDEZ: That's exactly it.

CHUNG: And wasn't her grade-point average way up there, something like 4-point-0 or 4.2?

BERMUDEZ: It was a 4.2; 4.2 all the way, yes, ma'am.

CHUNG: Terrific.

All right, how did you all find out that she was kidnapped?

BERMUDEZ: I found out this morning around 6:00 in the morning. A friend, Michael Castille (ph) called me and told me about the news. And I didn't believe it, but it turned out it was true. And then...

CHUNG: Has anything like this ever happened to any of your friends? Have you ever been so close to a kidnapping?

BERMUDEZ: Never. Not this -- this has been the first time anything like this has ever happened. I don't know.

CHUNG: Have you been to that teen hangout?

BERMUDEZ: No, we've actually never even heard of it. We've never even thought that existed. I've -- all this time I've been living here, I never even knew about that place. I can't relate to that no.

CHUNG: Desiree, were you surprised that she was out so late?

LEMOS: Yes I was. I was very surprised that she was out so late.

CHUNG: Does she normally have a curfew?

LEMOS: Yes she does. It's, like, 12:00.

CHUNG: So were you scared? I mean, were you afraid for her?

LEMOS: Yes, I was afraid, but then I was trying to be calm at the same time because I knew everything was going to be OK...

CHUNG: Have you...

LEMOS: ... because Tamara is a strong person.

CHUNG: Have you all ever been to any kind of seminar or lecture about what to do in this kind of situation, either at school or outside of school?

LEMOS: No I haven't.

CHUNG: And has Tamara? Do you know if she's ever been schooled in what to do in case of an assault?

LEMOS: No, I don't know if she does.

CHUNG: Do you think that Tamara would be the type of girl who would fight really hard against someone who was trying to do something to her?

LEMOS: Yes I do. I think she'd fight as much as she can to get her and Jacqueline out of there.

CHUNG: All right.

And finally, Erica, what are you going to say to her when you see her?

BERMUDEZ: I'm going to tell her that we were so worried about her, that we missed her, that we were just tripping about everything, and we love her so much. We're glad everything's OK, and don't ever scare us like that again. We love her.

Thank you to everybody.

CHUNG: Good, and Desiree, if she happens to be watching now, do you want to give her one quick word?

LEMOS: I love you.

CHUNG: All right.

LEMOS: That's all that can explain it.

CHUNG: Thank you so much for being with us, and I'm sure you'll get to see her pretty darn soon.

OK, bye-bye Desiree and Erica.

LEMOS: Bye.

CHUNG: Early in the investigation, an all-points bulletin went out for the stolen white Bronco. The state's new Amber Alert system, which we mentioned before, was implemented.

Earlier I talked with California Governor Gray Davis in Sacramento about this case and about the new system.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CHUNG: Governor, thank you so much for being with us. We appreciate it.

GOV. GRAY DAVIS, CALIFORNIA: My pleasure. My pleasure.

CHUNG: Can you explain exactly what part did Amber Alert play in rescuing those two teenagers?

DAVIS: Well, we know it helped because at least one Caltrans employee was driving along and saw the portable message signs -- we put up 500 of them -- and made a call because he saw the Bronco vehicle go by him. We know there were other local officials that saw the signs and also got the alerts from the news media.

The bottom line is that word got out very quickly. People responded positively. And the best news is that the children are back safely.

CHUNG: Can you briefly explain what Amber Alert is?

DAVIS: It's a system that allows a police chief or a sheriff to activate three separate alert systems. One the highway patrol runs, one the office of emergency services runs, and one the federal government runs through the emergency alert system.

All these systems have the same purpose: to rapidly disseminate information. In a child abduction case, time is of the essence. The quicker the news gets out about a child, description of the child and his or her abductor, the quicker you can get a good result.

CHUNG: So to explain specifically what it includes, is it a little crawl of words, as we put it in television, on television screens. And as I understand it, portable signs, but is it also stationary signs?

DAVIS: It's both stationary and portable signs. The portable sign said: call this number if you've see a white Bronco, and gave the license plate for the white Bronco.

The information that was disseminated through the news media, through the three other alert systems, was a description of the suspect, description of the two children, as well as a description of the Bronco.

CHUNG: Finally, are there any detractors who would say, well, this would confuse drivers and would distract them and cause accidents?

DAVIS: Not yet. I think people all feel they want to do something when a young person is abducted. This is a terrible crime, whether it's an infant or a teenager, and everyone wants to help; but they can't help unless they get information.

So these signs get out. The media's very helpful. And the combination of that does allow more people to help solve the problem. And there were a number of people who called in to authorities with tips, saying they'd seen this white Bronco.

So we're doing something right. We want to improve the system even further, but we're just thrilled with the result.

CHUNG: I think everybody is.

Thank you so much, Governor Davis. We appreciate it.

DAVIS: Thank you Connie. Nice to talk to you. DAVIS: Likewise. Good night.

DAVIS: Good night.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHUNG: And still ahead, there's a chance that Jackie and Tamara, the two teenagers, may come out and talk to reporters at the Kern County Medical Center, which is in Kern County, California. They're being evaluated there. And if they do come out and talk to reporters, we'll certainly bring that to you live.

Still ahead: the FBI executes a search warrant in the anthrax investigation. Where were they looking, and what were they looking for?

ANNOUNCER: Next: Does a serial killer lurk on the LSU campus?

CONNIE CHUNG TONIGHT will be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ANNOUNCER: Steven Stayner was 7 years old in 1972 when two drifters, Irving Murphy and Kenneth Parnell grabbed him off the street in Merced, California. Parnell, a convicted pedophile, sexually abused Steven that night and continued for seven more years.

Parnell told Steven his parents no longer wanted him. He had been taught that adults don't lie, so Steven accepted his new life, and even his new name, Dennis.

But when Steven was 14, Parnell struck again, kidnapping 5-year- old Timmy White.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

STEVEN STAYNER: I didn't like what was happening. And it happened to me, and I just didn't want to see it happen to somebody else.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ANNOUNCER: Steven took Timmy's hand and the two fled on foot 40 miles and went to police. Steven's story was a TV miniseries, "I Know My First Name is Steven."

But what happened to Steven after he grew up?

The answer when we return.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ANNOUNCER: What happened to Steven Stayner after a kidnapper kept him for seven years? He got $30,000 from the 1989 miniseries made of his ordeal and bought a new motorcycle. Later that year he was killed in a traffic accident at the age of 24. His brother, Cary Stayner, is now on trial for a grizzly 1999 triple murder, kidnapping and sexual assault in Yosemite National Park. His lawyers claim that his brother Steven's ordeal years before had exacerbated their client's mental illness.

CHUNG: A new development in the anthrax investigation. FBI agents today searched the home of a former government researcher. Steven Hatfill is a specialist in infectious diseases who's done research for the government since the '80s.

As CNN's justice correspondent Kelli Arena reports, this not the first time the Feds have paid him a visit.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KELLI ARENA, CNN JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): FBI agents working the anthrax investigation once again descended on these apartments in central Maryland. It's where Steven Hatfill lives. He's a researcher who used to work at Fort Detrick, which houses a U.S. Army bioweapons defense lab. Witnesses to the search say FBI agents confiscated a Camaro, among other items.

JOEY DI LAURA, ANTHRAX SEARCH WITNESS: I don't know. I just know it's heavy. When you see that many cars rolling in Washington plates and Virginia plates, I know it's very, very heavy.

ARENA: It's thee second time investigators have searched his home, which happens to be close to Fort Detrick, where workers have experimented with anthrax. The first search was consensual. This time, investigators came armed with a warrant. It's not clear what brought investigators back, but Hatfill, who sources say was being called a person of interest, is now a potential suspect in the anthrax investigation.

The FBI would not comment. When asked, director Robert Mueller had only this to say.

ROBERT MUELLER, FBI DIRECTOR: As I said, I can't get on to the -- what is being undertaken in the course of the investigation, but I do believe we're making progress.

ARENA: Sources say Hatfill has previously been interviewed by the FBI and polygraphed. He's just one of dozens of scientists who have agreed to cooperate with investigators who, from the beginning, have said they were focusing on the scientific community.

VAN HARP, ASST. FBI DIRECTOR: Whoever produced that had significant technical ability. We feel they had some experience and they had access to some pretty sophisticated equipment.

ARENA: Hatfill has drawn the most attention. He's even been the subject of Web site gossip among scientists about possible domestic suspects.

(END VIDEOTAPE) ARENA: Now one of the reasons for that is a study Hatfill commissioned in 1999 that described a fictional terrorist attack in which an envelope containing anthrax is opened in an office.

CNN has made repeated efforts to contact Hatfill and his lawyer, but so far, Connie, we've gotten no response.

Back to you.

CHUNG: Kelli, do you have any idea why FBI agents came back to his apartment today?

ARENA: Well, Connie, it's interesting because sources say that nothing incriminating was found in the first consensual search, but obviously some new information was made available that made them go back. But sources are not disclosing what that information was.

CHUNG: All right.

They had gone -- I think the investigators had gone to another location, something like a storage facility in Florida the last time.

Did they go to any other locations this time besides his apartment?

ARENA: Yes they did. In the Washington area they searched a friend's residence, and a car were (sic) searched. One source described the friend as a girlfriend. And we don't know what was yielded from that search at this point.

CHUNG: Authorities are being so careful in how they characterize him, aren't they, this person?

ARENA: They are. Yes, and that's because there has been a revolving list of so-called "people of interest." And the investigation does continue, Connie, into other individuals.

But sources say investigators keep going back to Hatfill. Now again, we need to stress here, he is not an official suspect, he is a potential suspect. And sources also say that no arrests are imminent at this time.

CHUNG: Would you feel safe in saying, though, that the focus is narrowing on him?

ARENA: I think it's fair to say at this point. Not to be exclusion, though, of any others. And he is a free man. He's not a suspect; he hasn't been charged with anything.

But obviously, obviously, as one source put it: "very, very interesting to us."

CHUNG: Are they following him, do you know? Have him under surveillance?

ARENA: Well, sources are not commenting about that. Again, I said he is obviously being investigating. But he is free; hasn't been charged with anything. So he can go about his business just as you and I can, Connie.

CHUNG: All right, Kelli Arena, good job. Thank you so much.

ARENA: You're welcome.

CHUNG: For more on this case, stay with CNN for "NEWSNIGHT" with Aaron Brown, because tonight Aaron has an exclusive investigative report on Steven Hatfill. Who is he? Tonight at 10:00 Eastern, 7:00 Pacific.

CHUNG: And still ahead, the women of Baton Rouge, Louisiana try to take their city back from the threat of a serial killer.

Stay with us.

ANNOUNCER: Still ahead: Will new information in the Robert Blake case shed new light on the dark side of Tinsel Town?

CONNIE CHUNG TONIGHT will continue in a moment.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CHUNG: Lawyers for actor Robert Blake are busy trying to build a case. Not just to prove his innocence, but also to get him out on bail.

Blake has pleaded not guilty to killing his wife, the mother of their 2-year-old daughter. Now Blake's attorney has released, exclusively to CNN's Charles Feldman, a secretly taped phone conversation which, according to the lawyer, raises doubts about Blake's alleged guilt.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CHARLES FELDMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): When LAPD detectives arrested Robert Blake for shooting his wife Bonny Lee Bakley to death, the then-chief of police all but said the prosecution of Blake would be a slam dunk.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We're here today to announce that the Bonny Lee Bakley case is solved.

FELDMAN: In various court documents, the case against Blake became clearer. He allegedly tried to hire at least two hit men to kill his wife before settling on doing the job himself.

Although no DNA evidence apparently links Blake to the crime, and it has yet to be established that the murder weapon belonged to him, investigators are hanging much of their case on the testimony of the two Hollywood stuntmen police say Blake tried to hire to murder his wife.

But Robert Blake's high-powered defense attorney has long argued that Bakley's sordid life, pursuing lonely men for money, left a trail of possible other suspects who had motive, and perhaps opportunity, to kill her.

And then, just a few weeks ago, Blake's lawyer, Harland Braun, got a tape of a phone conversation handed over by prosecutors that gave him hope of being able to drive his other suspects theory home.

A tape, one of many, secretly recorded by Bonny Lee Bakley. A tape of a conversation with Christian Brando, son of actor Marlon Brando, whom she thought was the father of her child before DNA tests proved Robert Blake actually was.

(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)

CHRISTIAN BRANDO: It ain't my baby.

BONNY LEE BAKLEY: How do we know that? You never took a test.

BRANDO: It ain't my kid.

BAKLEY: Well, as far as I was concerned, I thought it was.

(END AUDIO CLIP)

FELDMAN: But it was another portion of that recording that made Blake's attorneys eyes widen.

Christian Brando had a history of violence. He was convicted of voluntary manslaughter in the shooting death of his sister's boyfriend back in 1990.

On the tape, Brando warns the woman he had had an affair with that her lifestyle could prove dangerous.

(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)

BRANDO: You have no idea what you do to people with this (EXPLETIVE DELETED). No idea. It -- you know what, it kind of hurts.

You better really, really get a handle on that, and really think about what you're telling -- you know, you're doing besides running around sending letters to guys and embezzling all this (EXPLETIVE DELETED) money from these idiots, you know, that are going to, you know -- send you all the phone cards and all the rest of the (EXPLETIVE DELETED).

Think about it. It gets close. You're lucky, you know, I mean, not on my behalf, but you're lucky somebody isn't out there to put a bullet in your head.

(END AUDIO CLIP)

FELDMAN: Blake's attorney says he hopes to introduce the tape at Blake's murder trial to show people other than Blake were out to get his wife.

HARLAND BRAUN, BLAKE'S ATTORNEY: I mean, if someone said to me that maybe not me but somebody else might put a bullet in my head, and that person had killed before and gone to prison for it, I think you would take it pretty seriously.

FELDMAN: But, at least so far as the young Brando is concerned, Blake's lawyer is likely to have an uphill battle.

Police early on ruled Brando out as a suspect. In the end, arresting Robert Blake for the crime.

CNN has been unable to contact Brando over several days to learn what he thinks of Blake's defense strategy to drag him back into this case.

For his part, CNN legal analyst Jeffrey Toobin says he understands exactly what Blake's attorney is trying to do.

JEFFREY TOOBIN, CNN LEGAL ANALYST: From day one the defense has been trying to show that lots of people, not just Robert Blake, had a motive to kill Bonny. This tape -- the release of it -- is another attempt to show other people with possible motives.

FELDMAN: A lawyer representiong the Bakley family says, despite the release, publicly, of the Brando tape, they have no question who killed Bonny Lee Bakley.

Says the attorney: "We're pretty convinced that Blake did this. The evidence is pretty strong."

(END VIDEOTAPE)

FELDMAN: Robert Blake has pleaded not guilty. In the months ahead, defense and law enforcement sources are likely to leak other tidbits to the media, all in an effort to influence a jury, even before they're actually is one -- Connie.

CHUNG: Charles, why would Bonny Lee Bakley tape this conversation?

FELDMAN: Well, that's a very good question; and one that has mystified investigators for quite some time. She had a habit of tape recording many of her telephone conversations, some with male clients of hers, some with relatives, some with Robert Blake. And also, quite clearly, at least one that we know of with Christian Brando.

Why she was doing it? Perhaps for her own safety. Perhaps for her recordkeeping. Perhaps because she just had a thing about tape recording.

CHUNG: Now, you mentioned that the defense is probably trying to influence a potential jury, but why would the defense lawyer release this tape to you now, because the trial isn't even -- a date isn't even set yet, is it?

FELDMAN: No. That's a good question. The trial probably won't be until maybe January or February, at the earliest, of 2003.

The reason, Connie, is, in cases involving high-profile people such as Robert Blake, good attorneys know that there are really two trials. There's the trial in court, and there's also the trial in the public arena.

And part of his job in this case is, even before the trial begins, to try to, A, rehabilitate his client and, B, as you just mentioned, to reach the potential jury pool.

Every man and woman in L.A. is a potential juror when this trial comes about, and if he could plant -- excuse me -- plant the notion early on that perhaps there's some doubt about whether Robert Blake did this crime, he succeeds in getting the jury to think in a different way than the way, perhaps, prosecutors would like them to think.

CHUNG: And finally, what is the status of the Blake case?

FELDMAN: Well, there's going to be another hearing coming up toward the end of this month. And then a few months later, there will be a hearing that will introduce some of the evidence that prosecutors intend to have at trial. It will be a preliminary hearing.

Blake, as you mentioned earlier, is still trying to get out on bail. Not clear if that is ever going to be successful before the trial. And then, as I just said, as we get to the first few months of 2003, it's expected that this case will finally go to trial -- Connie.

CHUNG: All right, thank you Charles Feldman.

Now to get some perspective on the tapes, we'll bring in our legal analyst Jeffrey Toobin, also in Los Angeles.

Jeffrey, I think the key question is: Will these tapes be admissible in court?

TOOBIN: And I think that's a tough question, Connie. The usual rule is defendants are allowed to point the finger elsewhere. And if they have evidence, they can introduce it.

But it's got to be specific evidence, and prosecutors surely would argue that Brando saying, you know, somebody may want to put a bullet in your head is basically like a figure of speech.

It's not really evidence that someone else had motive to kill. I think a lot of it would depend on what else the evidence was in the case, whether there was something more specific that the defense could point to, that some other identifiable person had a motive to try to kill her.

CHUNG: So how much do you think this tape would help the defense?

TOOBIN: Oh, I think it would help if it came with other evidence. Harlan Braun has admitted that Robert Blake had a motive to kill. They obviously had a very contentious husband-wife relationship. But he's also trying to point the finger at other people. She had this seedy business of apparently ripping off men, sending them photographs, promising them contact with her. Braun has said one of those people may have had a motive and the opportunity to kill, but Braun is very slim in the evidence of actually pointing to a specific person. This is part of that larger project, but he's a long way from finished with it.

CHUNG: I think it does appear obvious that perhaps the defense is trying to focus attention on Christian Brando. And I know you're going to tell me I'm watching too much TV, but in "The Practice," there's this thing called Plan B, which is focus attention on someone else. Is that what they're doing?

TOOBIN: Well, as long as you're watching CNN, you can't be watching too much TV, Connie. But the -- I think it is true that whoever is even a possible suspect, that's who Braun is going to point to. And Braun does make the point -- I mean, Christian Brando, it was a long time ago, but this guy is convicted of having killed someone before, so that's a pretty good start when you're pointing to an alternative suspect.

But I think in fairness to Brando, it needs to be pointed out that he was investigated by the police, he was cleared. He apparently -- he does have an alibi. Of course, he could have gotten involved in hitman two, but I don't want to sound like I've watched too much TV and spin this out too far.

Look, Robert Blake was there the night of the murder. He was the husband, he's the guy with the clearest motive of all. That's why he's been charged, and that's why he's going on trial.

CHUNG: All right. You mentioned what the prosecution might do with this tape. But overall, do you think the prosecution has a difficult time combating this tape that's, you know, obviously out there?

TOOBIN: Well, it's funny. You know, Charles and I listened to a much longer portion of the tape. And if you listen to the whole tape, it's sort of a double edged sword, because you hear Bakley just annoying Brando so much, getting him so angry, sort of harassing him, hawking him, getting -- trying to get money out of him.

What a juror could easily infer from that is, you know, if she did this to Brando, she undoubtedly did it Blake, and Blake was probably just as frustrated, even more frustrated than Brando. So I think the picture it paints of Bonnie is one that could drive -- is one of a woman who could easily drive a man to anger, if not to murder.

So I think it's a little less clearly helpful to the defense than Harlan Braun thinks it is.

CHUNG: All right. Jeffrey, thank you so much. Always good to talk to you.

TOOBIN: OK, Connie.

CHUNG: Tomorrow, Robert Blake's attorney and Bonnie Bakley's sister will join us to respond to this report.

And when we come back, survival training in this city on edge. We'll explain in 90 seconds.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CHUNG: Residents of Baton Rouge, Louisiana are in a state of fear tonight because a serial killer police say stabbed or strangled three women in the last ten months. Two of the women killed lived near Louisiana State University's Baton Rouge campus. And CNN's David Mattingly is on the story near the campus tonight.

Good evening, David. Can you tell me what's going on there tonight?

DAVID MATTINGLY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Connie, while these murders remain unsolved, police are reaching out to the community. This meeting is one of three they've had in the last couple of weeks. They're trying to reassure the public that everything possible is being done to catch this serial killer, this killer who has put fear into the heart of this city.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

(voice-over): The recreational path of this popular Baton Rouge park absent of female joggers. In an entire city rocked by a serial killer, a case that is as baffling as it is frightening.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The longer this goes on, you know, the more frightened I become. What else can you do?

MATTINGLY: Gina Wilson Green, a 41-year-old nurse, was found dead, strangled in her home in September. Charlotte Murray Pace, a 22-year-old former student, was stabbed to death in her home in May. In July, 43 antiques dealer Pam Kinamore was abducted from her home. Her throat was slit and her body dumped off an expressway. The three are linked by the killer's DNA, and investigators worry there could be more.

CRP. DON KELLY: It's very reasonable to assume that we're going to test every piece of DNA we've got on every unsolved homicide.

MATTINGLY: Out of the three dozen unsolved murders in Baton Rouge over the last decade, police are keenly interested in the 1997 murder of Eugenie Boisfontaine, abducted and killed while jogging near the lakes of the Louisiana State University campus. Boisfontaine lived on Stanford Avenue, the same street where two of the recent victims were once neighbors, all three within eight houses of one another.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Definitely because of the other homicides that are taking place on Stanford, you know, yes, it's a strong possibility.

MATTINGLY: But that's where any solid links seem to end, leaving a public to worry who's next and to fear for its safety. UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We are, you know, we're frightened. But the best defense is to be prepared.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Fingers -- we can gouge the eyes out. I know it sounds sick, but if you got to do that to survive, you gouge those eyes out.

MATTINGLY: Self defense classes for women are at an all-time high in Baton Rouge.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (UNINTELLIGIBLE) eight to ten feet in a straight string.

MATTINGLY: Sales of tear gas and pepper sprays up at this store from dozens a week now to 1,200 in a single day.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's cheap peace of mind is basically what it is.

MATTINGLY: In the meantime, concerns are growing in anticipation of the return of thousands of students for fall classes at the LSU campus. University already preparing to step up patrols and personal security classes for co-eds.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: My parents feel very -- about two hours, gave me pepper spray and an air horn to keep on my bed.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MATTINGLY: ...takes to feel more secure, and that is one of the messages that is coming out here tonight. They want people to go home tonight feeling more confident, more secure, but not too confident, Connie, because they want everyone to remain vigilant and remember there is a very dangerous man out there.

CHUNG: And what is your sense, David? Are these women, you know, feeling more secure? When they get assurances from police, do they really feel better about it?

MATTINGLY: That's hard to say. When you look at some of the signs around the city here -- I talked to some of the gun shops. They say that gun sales are up for women in this city.

Also, home security systems, the sales of those have gone way up recently. So much so that some companies have had to call installers in from out of state to take care of the demand.

So a lot of people feeling very insecure. What it's really going to take is for, obviously, this killer to be caught.

CHUNG: All right, you mentioned a bit about security at LSU. There have to be a lot of parents who have sent their kids to LSU and who will be going in the fall. How have they increased security at the campus?

MATTINGLY: Well, they are stepping up security there. They're going to be having more patrols. They're going to be a lot more visible on campus.

They're also going to be teaching the students how to protect themselves. They feel like that is the best way to go: to make sure the students know what to watch for, know what to avoid.

At the same time, they're getting a whole lot of calls from parents right now, obviously, worried about their students coming back to school here. I talked to the police chief, he says they're doing everything they can to reassure the parents that their children will be safe here.

CHUNG: And finally David, are they looking at -- are the investigators looking at those 30 cases that are unsolved over the years?

MATTINGLY: That's right. They're going back and looking at those cases over the last 10 years. They're going to see if there's any sort of DNA evidence that matches those cases to the three cases they have now. They're very -- well, they're fearful that there might have been more cases in the past. They're very fearful there will be another case in the future, and that's what they're trying to prevent with this going on tonight.

CHUNG: All right. CNN's David Mattingly, thank you, David. Appreciate it.

We will be right back with a note about former Congressman James Traficant and a follow-up on the story of the convict who ran because a judge told him to do so.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CHUNG: Before we go, a couple of updates for you.

First, remember the imaginative judge and the jogger, the story of Judge Michael Cicconetti and Michael Logar of Painesville, Ohio?

Well, Logar was drinking beer in a car that was pulled over by the cops. He tried to run away, but police ran after him and caught him. He was convicted of fleeing the law and sentenced to six months in jail, beginning in June.

Then Judge Cicconetti, who's known for his creative sentences, had a proposition for Logar. He could run in a race -- it's a race that police officers also run in -- and his placement would determine the number of days he would remain in jail. Finish first, and the jail sentence would end the next day. Finish second, two more days, and so on.

The race was last Sunday. Logar finished fifth. That should have meant five more days in jail, until today. But Logar was given credit for good behavior, so he actually walked out of jail on Monday. He'll serve the remainder of his time under house arrest.

And coincidentally, the very next day in another part of Ohio, former Congressman James Traficant marched into jail to begin serving an eight year sentence for corruption. He was led off to the slammer in handcuffs, an ignominious moment for the flamboyant ousted Congressman, which brings me to something I asked Traficant about last week.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CHUNG: That is one heck of a haircut.

FORMER REP. JAMES TRAFICANT (D), OHIO: You know what...

CHUNG: Can you tell me about it?

TRAFICANT: I cut my hair with a weed whacker.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHUNG: Did you hear what he said? He said, I cut my hair with a weed whacker.

Now, I bet you've been thinking all along -- and I know I have -- that can't be his real hair. You know what I mean?

Well, you're right. It is exactly what you and I think it is. How do we know? Because the sheriff says Traficant had to remove it, you know, during a routine search when he was booked.

Weed whacker, indeed.

Tomorrow: What does it take to be a jockey? Well after all, size matters. Did I say that? And we'll meet a jockey who thought it mattered so much, he risked his life to stay small.

To get a preview of our program every day, sign up for our daily e-mail by logging onto cnn.com/connie.

And coming up next on "LARRY KING LIVE," the latest on the kidnapping of two California teenagers, and their rescue.

Thank you for joining us. And for all of us at CNN, good night, and see you tomorrow.

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