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Jane Velez-Mitchell
What Happened to Missing N.C. Teacher?; Woman Attacks Teen Flying Remote-Controlled Plane; Online Snooping Reveals Family Murder Plot; Toxic Lead Bullets Poisoning Animals
Aired June 12, 2014 - 19:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
JANE VELEZ-MITCHELL, HOST: Tonight breaking news. A beautiful North Carolina elementary school teacher who`s studying for her Ph.D.
mysteriously vanishes into thin air just four days ago. Desperate searches have turned up no trace of her.
But just moments ago, cops hold a news conference and announce, this is now a homicide investigation. In other words, they think she was murdered.
What makes them so sure without a body?
Tonight, cops believe, as well, that more than one person is involved. Is there a conspiracy to cover up a brutal crime? Or are cops getting way
ahead of themselves? The missing woman`s sister joins me exclusively in just a moment.
Good evening. I`m Jane Velez-Mitchell, coming to you live. Thanks for joining me.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Thirty-one-year-old Bianca Tanner, a school teacher from Greensboro, disappeared.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We have elevated this case from a missing person to an actual homicide investigation.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: People living in this usually quiet north Charlotte community are worried. Some of them are even afraid.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I hope they find her and she`s all right.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Cops say Bianca Tanner was reported missing by her boyfriend last Sunday around noon. That`s just a few days ago.
The beautiful elementary school teacher and mother of a 3-year-old boy had just moved about 90 miles from Greensboro, North Carolina, to Charlotte,
North Carolina, to live with her boyfriend. She tweeted very excitedly last week that she had just landed a new job.
Neighbors say they saw Bianca last going into her boyfriend`s apartment on Saturday. And never laid eyes on her again. Tonight, cops say witnesses
heard a couple arguing inside that apartment that night.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There are early indications that there was some type of argument that Saturday night leading into Sunday morning. We have not been
able to be confirm positively that she did leave that location of her own free will.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Where is Bianca? Cops searched the apartment for five hours, even towing away an old car but still no answers. Cops have not
named any suspects. How many people know the secret of what happened to Bianca Tanner?
Call me 1-877-JVM-SAYS. If you have any thoughts, if you know anything, call me: 1-877-586-7297.
Our Lion`s Den panel is fired up and ready to debate and solve this mystery. But first, straight out to our exclusive guest, Bianca`s sister,
Cerise Richardson.
Cerise, thank you so much for joining us.
CERISE RICHARDSON, BIANCA TANNER`S SISTER (via phone): Thank you, Jane.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: My heart goes out to you. I know this is a surreal nightmare that you`re going through. And we want to help. But we`re
putting your sister`s picture out there so anybody who knows anything can call immediately -- call police immediately.
What do you make, if I may ask -- and I know this is a very difficult question -- of cops announcing already, after just a couple of days, your
sister was last seen this past weekend, essentially announcing it`s a homicide investigation? That that`s essentially saying that they believe
that she was murdered. Have you given up hope or do you still have hope?
RICHARDSON: No, I have not given up hope. And I still believe that we will bring her home. The detectives have been in contact with us and
advised us that this is not a homicide investigation. They`re just all following certain procedures because right now, there are indicators that
case -- that are cause for concern.
The circumstance -- the circumstance of the disappearance and just the natural causes, because this is out of the norm for her. She would never
just walk off and leave her son. So they`re utilizing all resources that they have accessible to them to ensure that...
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Let -- let me jump in. Because we have so much to cover, and we want to get to these important facts.
RICHARDSON: OK.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: So neighbors say they last saw Bianca Saturday afternoon with her 3-year-old son. Listen to be this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: She came, got out of the car and had the little boy and they went in the house. That was the last time I saw them. Friday.
And she was over there Saturday afternoon with the little boy. Went in the house and then I didn`t see her at all Sunday.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Cops say they`ve got about a dozen hours of time that they`ve got to fill in the blanks between when Bianca was last seen and
when her boyfriend calls to report her disappearance. He calls her on noon on Sunday.
The apartment was searched by cops into it the wee hours of the morning. They even towed away a Mustang with a tarp over it.
So I want to go back to you, Cerise. What do you know about this boyfriend? There`s an argument. Then she turns up missing. He`s the one
who reports her missing. How did he meet her? How did she decide to move in with him, leave her hometown of Greensboro, leave Greensboro and move
all the way to Charlotte?
RICHARDSON: They actually went to the same University of North Carolina, as he -- as she met him with her homecoming, and they switched numbers and
began talking. And they didn`t -- she actually ended up moving to -- she wanted to pursue other career opportunities outside of Greensboro and was
looking to move to the Charlotte area. So she had interviewed and had a couple of offers. And that`s what prompted her to move in with him.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Well, what about this -- what about this guy? Who is he? What does he do for a living? I don`t -- I don`t necessarily mean to name
names. At this point, police have no suspects. But you obviously have to look at first who was last with her. What does he do for a living?
RICHARDSON: To my knowledge, he told me that he was an -- he worked for an engineering firm.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: An engineering firm? But apparently, he has a lot of jobs?
RICHARDSON: Right. He is -- told me he was starting his own business helping people find jobs in their field of expertise. So outside of him
working at his company, he also helped others find jobs in the area.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: What was left and what was found? In other words, what did cops tell you happened? Did she walk off on foot? That`s what some
people are saying on Twitter, with her cell phone and her debit card? Did she drive away? Apparently, the -- her car was found there. So she did
not -- her car is not missing. Her car has been found. It was right there at the apartment.
So what`s your understanding of what happened at the very -- the last -- the last moment she was seen?
RICHARDSON: My understanding is that her boyfriend had a disagreement. She was very upset and needed to cool off. So she decided to take a walk,
and she left out of the house. And she never returned.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: I want to ask you to stand by for a second, because we`ve got Lisa Lockwood, investigator, author of "Undercover Angel," one of the
best investigators in the country.
Lisa, you`re hearing some of the details. What do you make of it?
LISA LOCKWOOD, INVESTIGATOR/AUTHOR: It was very common for somebody to have a domestic argument and leave without their vehicle. Very common.
The part that concerns me is that she has a 3-year-old child. If she was angry, she would have taken her child with her. Especially if there was an
altercation. So my concern is why did she leave her child behind who was safe, thank goodness, and go ahead and leave and never return? So that`s
out of her character, from my knowledge.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: All right. So Cerise, we understand that the father of the child, the ex-husband, has the child, talked to police, and that`s a
totally different situation. So is it true that the child was left there at the apartment with the boyfriend, and so when he reports her missing,
police come and pick the child up, the 3-year-old boy, and then give that child to the ex-husband?
RICHARDSON: That is not correct. He was asleep when the argument occurred, so he -- so when she didn`t return, the boyfriend did contact his
father to let him know that Bianca, he filed a missing person`s report. And the dad actually went and got my nephew.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Before police? But basically, in other words, what Lisa`s saying is right, is that the child -- the little boy was let there with the
boyfriend, which she allegedly, purportedly walked out to cool off?
RICHARDSON: Correct.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Do you buy it?
RICHARDSON: Yes, because Bianca`s not the type of person who would do anything to put her child in harm`s way. So I can totally understand that
she would want to go out and cool off, versus continuing to argue about whatever they were arguing about and possibly waking up my nephew.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Well, I was kind of asking you do you buy the whole story, that she left to cool off? Or do you think something else might have
happened?
RICHARDSON: Well, I definitely have questions on what happened. I do think that she may -- that she probably would step outside and cool off...
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Can I jump in, Cerise, and ask you this? Can I ask you? After she went missing and after this boyfriend calls police and says, "Oh,
she`s been missing. She went to cool off but, I guess, late Saturday night. It`s now just around noon Sunday. She hasn`t come back. I`m
reporting her missing," did he call you? Did he say, "Oh, you know, my girlfriend, your sister, is missing. You know, come down here"? Did he
call you?
RICHARDSON: No, he did not.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Does that concern you at all?
RICHARDSON: It did, but he contacted my brother-in-law. And my mother-in- law was the one who contacted me and advised me that he had reported her missing.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: OK. And I want to stress, he`s not considered a suspect or a person of interest in this case. He`s invited on our show any time.
And we haven`t mentioned his name precisely because he`s not considered a suspect or a person of interest.
But I`ll say this. Cops say they`ve interviewed a lot of people and they think multiple people, multiple people -- this is crucial -- are telling
lies. Listen to this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Some of those that we have interviewed, we do not believe that they`ve been forthright with us in providing accurate
information.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: More than one person?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: At this time, it has now blossomed itself out to more than one person.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Let`s go to the Lion`s Den. Simone Bienne, behavior expert, it`s now blossomed into one more than one person lying. What do
you make of it?
SIMONE BIENNE, BEHAVIOR EXPERT: It doesn`t actually make any sense to me. And I do think, look, you know, we know that when women are potentially --
I`m not saying anything bad has happened to her, but when women go missing and there could be some kind of homicide, they`re 14 times more likely to
have been killed by a man or someone they know.
So I think everybody at this point is a suspect. And it`s got to be either ex, the boyfriend or the ex-husband. They have to be considered and
questioned carefully. But it doesn`t make sense. It doesn`t make sense.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: We want to -- we want to stress that they`re not considered suspects, but you`re right. They have to start with whatever
saw her last.
Very quickly, Catherine, California, what do you have to say?
CALLER: Here`s what I want to know. I mean, if they don`t have sufficient evidence like a body, why are they considering it a homicide case? If they
don`t have evidence, what can they rule? They don`t understand that people are waiting for answers.
I have -- I have siblings. Many people do. If this was my family member, I would be outraged. This is ridiculous.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: I think you are raising an incredibly important point. We`re going to debate it on the other side. That`s the first thing I said.
And we`re going to cite a whole bunch of cases where people have been missing for a long time and have turned up alive. Ariel Castro and the
women he kidnapped.
Check out our Facebook page. Hey, by the way, like it while you`re there. OK? That would really -- I`d really appreciate that,
Facebook.com/JaneVelezMitchellHLN. We have behind-the-scenes pictures, exclusive content from me and our incredible panel.
But first, we`re just getting started. Did cops jump the gun by saying this is now a homicide investigation? This is a young woman who`s the
mother of a 3-year-old child, and she is studying for her Ph.D. Was she murdered? Are a lot of people lying? And who are those people? Stay right
there.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Because I just don`t feel as well as talking with the investigators involved, we just don`t feel that this is a simple missing
person case.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Some of those that we have interviewed we do not believe that they`ve been forthright with us in providing accurate
information.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: More than one person?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: At this time it`s now blossomed itself out to more than one person.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: In a very unusual news conference, cops declared just a little while ago that Bianca Tanner`s case is no longer a missing person`s
case but rather a homicide investigation, i.e., a murder case, claiming had that her cell phone and credit cards haven`t been used in five days. So
that points to murder. Really?
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Trying to track her -- her phone, her credit cards. And they`ve just gone dead. I don`t believe that any person could survive
outside of 24 hours without utilization of their phone or trying to seek funds for travel or assistance.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Let`s go to the Lion`s Den. Are you kidding me? Her cell phone and credit cards haven`t been used for a few days, so that means
she`s dead? I mean, let me cite cases like the Ariel Castro case, where he kidnapped women and held them secretly for years, and they were discovered
alive years later. What about little Maddy McCann, who tragically disappeared years ago in Portugal, still considered a missing person with
an ongoing investigation into her disappearance?
So let`s bring the lawyers into this. Brian Silber, criminal defense attorney, are cops jumping the gun? Is this disrespectful to say, "Well,
it`s a homicide. She must be dead"?
BRIAN SILBER, CRIMINAL DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Jane, I have to disagree with you, and I`m going to tell you why. Yes, it`s true that there are many
reasons why people disappear, and we live in a country full of missing people.
But the truth of the matter is, when you`re gone for four days, you`re not using your credit cards, you`re not talking on your cell phone, no one has
heard from you, 90 percent of the time, sadly, it`s because something bad has happened. Now it`s possible she may have driven her car off a cliff.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Look, Sierra Elizabeth, something bad happened to the women Ariel Castro kidnapped, but they were alive.
SIERRA ELIZABETH, ATTORNEY: Jane...
SILBER: Let me say...
(CROSSTALK)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Sierra. Go ahead.
ELIZABETH: From my experience in the Los Angeles district attorney`s office, we get it. When domestic violence -- when we hear about domestic
violence, we automatically assume that it`s a murder.
SILBER: Correct. Correct.
ELIZABETH: That is so inappropriate, however to, prematurely label this as a homicide. Because it not only hurts the family...
SILBER: I disagree with that. I disagree.
ELIZABETH: ... but it puts pressure on those in the criminal justice system so under pressure to point the finger at someone because now it`s a
homicide to get answers, when then that leads to actual innocents and innocent people going to jail.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Well, Lisa Lockwood, you`re an investigator. You`ve covered so many cases. Do you think that the cops jumped the gun on this
or maybe they have information?
LOCKWOOD: It`s such a reckless move to make an announcement like that. so let`s just say the that everything`s circumstantial that he just relayed to
the public was there. Again it`s circumstantial.
However, the only way that they`re going to say it`s a homicide if forensically they have found something. They found some blood and enough
blood to assume that this person is no longer alive.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Yes. But I`ve heard of so many cases where they`ve had -- oh, my gosh, they guess into somebody`s house and they see a giant spot on
the floor that`s wet. And they see all things with a fan blowing on it. You remember that case, right? Oh, well, a woman`s missing. They didn`t
assume that she was murdered. They still treated it as a missing person`s case.
LOCKWOOD: That`s right.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Let`s go out to the phone line. Lisa, Louisiana, what do you have to say? Lisa?
CALLER: Yes, Jane, I`d like to make a comment and say that I`m starting to wonder if the police really have any information, and they`re just not
saying anything yet. I mean, is that a possibility?
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Well, of course. And they never tell us everything they know.
But there`s also an old saying Simone Bienne: no body, no case. And yes, you can see blood, but people have been injured and bled profusely and not
-- and have not been killed. And especially when they talk about several people involved. I mean, you`re -- I think if you`re going to say
something, spell it out. But to make a provocative statement like that without backing it up at all, that concerns me.
BIENNE: Yes, but what I would like to say, Jane, is that what they`re doing is probably protecting like their case in the sense of who -- could
it be the ex-boyfriend; could it be the husband? If police know or these guys the suspect -- they`re not suspects yet -- but if they know that
they`re on to them, then they can act more suspiciously.
And my point, Jane, is why say multiple people? I`ve never heard the police say multiple people are involved. So they must have some crucial
information. Police aren`t done. They would not put the family through this.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: well, I want to say to Cerise Richardson, I pray that in this case they`re wrong and that your sister comes back safe and sound.
And we hope that we`ve been helpful.
Anybody who knows anything, please call police immediately. We`re going to stay on top of this story.
Coming up next, this is wild. A teenage boy is flying his remote- controlled drone at a public beach. A woman calls the cops on him, calls him a pervert. The video of what happens next is unbelievable. And you`ve
just got to see it and see who gets arrested in the end.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ANDREA MEARS, ATTACKED TEENAGE BOY: And that`s when he punches me in the back of the head.
AUSTIN HAUGHWOUT, ATTACKED WHILE FLYING REMOTE-CONTROLLED PLANE: She was the one that attacked me, as you could see in the video.
MEARS: And grabs me by the hair.
HAUGHWOUT: She took a swing at me, and I began falling to the ground.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: A woman accused of attacking a teenager and calling him a pervert.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: He had been using this remote-control aircraft on the beach. A camera mounted on it, but it made Andrea Mears uncomfortable.
That`s when she says she asked him what he was doing, and he began to fumble with his equipment.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The woman and the teen each believe that they`re the victim.
MEARS: And that`s when he punches me in the back of the head and grabs me by the hair.
HAUGHWOUT: She was the one that attacked me as you could see in the video.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Captured on his cell phone.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Tonight, some freaky viral justice. Seventeen-year-old Austin Haughwout was flying his remote-controlled helicopter or drone, you
could call it, with a little GoPro camera attached, over the beach in Connecticut when one beachgoer goes absolutely bonkers. While that woman
23-year-old Andrea Mears, says Austin was using the drone to take pictures. Calls him a pervert. Calls the cops on him and says please come quick.
But here`s what happens next. Check this out from Lively. It`s a doozy.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
HAUGHWOUT: You`re assaulting me.
MEARS: You pervert.
Yes, you want to take pictures?
Yes, you`re going to see how it feels. Let go of me.
HAUGHWOUT: If you weren`t assaulting me, I wouldn`t be touching you.
MEARS: You shouldn`t be taking pictures of people on the beach!
HAUGHWOUT: You want to stop assaulting me? Get off of me.
MEARS: I`m going to kick your (EXPLETIVE DELETED), you little (EXPLETIVE DELETED).
HAUGHWOUT: Call the cops. I`m being assaulted. Help!
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: OK. So cops show up. Guess who they arrest? Andrea, the woman who called 911. Not the teenage boy, Austin. And that`s because he
took out his cell phone and showed them the video that you just saw, which appears to show, according to cops, Andrea attacking him. Talk about viral
justice.
Now Andrea says the teen`s video doesn`t tell the whole story.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MEARS: In the video, you see my arm go out like this, because he has a cell phone in his hand. And that`s when he punches me in the back of the
head and grabs me by the hair.
HAUGHWOUT: She was the one that attacked me, as you could see in the video. She took a swing at me and I began falling to the ground.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: We reach out to Andrea and Austin. Did not hear back. They`re invited on our show anytime.
She was charged with third-degree assault and breach of speech. And looking at this video, I mean, what up with this woman?
I want to go to Sierra Elizabeth, attorney. Is she confused? I mean, why is this...
ELIZABETH: This woman is a mess, Jane. She`s an absolutely mess. This is a 17-year-old kid on a public beach. There`s no -- there`s no expectation
of privacy on a public beach. Of course, he can fly his drone around. He`s 17 years old.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Well, look at the drone. The drone is 50 feet above the air when it`s taking the video. You just saw the video. You can`t
recognize people. It`s not like he`s zooming in on somebody`s breast. Continue on.
ELIZABETH: Absolutely, absolutely. And you can`t. People walk around all the time with their cell phones out, taking pictures. You`re on a public
beach. What is this woman thinking? And then she`s going to assault this 17-year-old kid who`s just like a tech guy just riding around his drone?
This is ridiculous.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Simone Bienne, behavior expert, boy, do we need you. What the heck is -- is this somebody with an anger problem?
BIENNE: OK. She`s got an anger problem, and I think this teenage boy also has his own issue. I think they`re both being antisocial. Why can`t he go
to a park? I think she has a point. We don`t know.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: What?
BIENNE: We don`t know he`s not zooming in. He is being voyeuristic.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: No, he`s not.
BIENNE: Peeping.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: He`s a geeky teenager who is playing with his toys and getting aerial shots of landscapes.
BIENNE: But Jane...
VELEZ-MITCHELL: You cannot see a breast. You can`t see an ass.
BIENNE: USC (ph). USC (ph). I`m taking no risks. These parents need to look at what this boy may or may not be doing. We do not know how he is
relating to women, how he is stepping back. How he is feeling guilty or shameful about his sexuality.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: I`m sorry. I`m sorry. I`m stepping off after that one. It doesn`t make any sense. We should be applauding young people for using
technology and for...
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: That`s right.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: He`s probably the next Bill Gates or Steve Jobs. I mean, my God.
BIENNE: If he was Bill Gates or Steve Jobs, he`d be in his garage. He wouldn`t be on a public beach. He can go to a park. I`m sorry.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Come on.
BIENNE: I love you, but I am going to stand by what I`m saying.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: I would be proud to have a teenager like that as a kid who`s ingenious enough to be sticking a GoPro to a camera and testing it
out. I mean, this is a free country.
BIENNE: He asked her. Well, you know, it is a free country. But we`ve also got to the respect people`s space.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: No!
BIENNE: Absolutely.
(CROSSTALK)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Come on Sierra, he needs a good defense attorney. Help us out here.
Elizabeth: He didn`t do anything, Jane. She needs a great defense attorney because who`s going to get her off for this?
VELEZ-MITCHELL: We`ve covered the stories where a guy goes with his cell phone camera and has it on a record and goes right under a woman`s skirt
when she`s at the -
(CROSSTALK)
SILBER: That`s an invasion, that`s different.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Yes, exactly. Go ahead Brian.
SILBER: That`s a very different situation. If you`re using some kind of ruse to look up someone`s skirt, you have privacy underneath your skirt.
But when you walk out in public weather, you`re in regular clothes, or a bikini, you`re exhibiting yourself to the public sphere. And you know
what? It makes no diferrence if looks at you with their eyeballs or they look at you through a camera, OK? The government can do it, a regular
citizen can do it.
BIENNE: All right. I hear your point. But this is a woman that clearly - - this woman was triggered. This is a PTSD reaction. I`m not saying what she did was right. She had incredible rage issues. However, she asked him
to stop. He did not stop. That is disrespectful.
SILBER: He didn`t have to stop.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: No, that`s wrong. The camera was on the ground. The camera wasn`t in the air when they had this confrontation. Look, this is
from Live Leak by the way.
I think she`s confused, ok, because she calls the police. And she`s really in her mind reporting a crime. There`s only a little tiny problem. It
isn`t a crime. What she did next, cops say is the crime. But listen to her. It`s worth the wait -- seriously.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Stop. Stop.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Is this your property?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Stop. This guy is taking pictures and trying to upload them from a camera. Can you guys get here? (inaudible) at Middle
Beach. He`s taking pictures of people on the beach with a helicopter plane. Yes, can you guys hurry?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: All right. Lisa Lockwood, I`m going to give you the last word. She`s confused. She thinks he`s doing something illegal. But we
have freedom of the press and we have freedom of photography in public areas.
LOCKWOOD: You`d better believe it. He had every right to be there on that beach playing with his drone toy, taping anything that he absolutely wanted
to. Short of what the attorney said earlier is going up somebody`s skirt there was nothing perverted about what he did.
When she took away the remote control, she was the one who became the offender and then taking it a step further in assaulting him and a battery
on top of it. She deserves to be arrested and the police did the right thing.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: All right. What a crazy case.
Coming up, a woman trying to catch her teenage niece -- speaking of crazy; she thought her teenage niece was behaving badly online. So she goes
online herself and you will not believe what transpired. It is something right out of a movie. But I`ll just add a couple of words here as a hint -
twisted murder plot, question mark?
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Shoot her aunt, her aunt`s fiance, cousin and their dogs. Even explained how to do it.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The solicitation for the killing of her family members began to happen.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The aunt started snooping, created a fake Facebook page.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: 19-year-old Marissa Williams thought she was talking to a new friend.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Called herself "Tre Topdog Ellis" and befriended her niece.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Their online and text conversations turned sinister.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: -- a dispute with her aunt over a man she was inviting over.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Solicitation into the killing of her family members began to happen.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Marissa asked Tre to allegedly shoot and kill her aunt.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Tonight a very bizarre and sinister family feud waged on, what else, social media. And it takes a dark twisted turn. We`ve all
heard of catfishing, somebody pretends to be somebody they`re not on the Internet. They meet in real life and it ends badly in heartbroken tears
and maybe a cameo on MTV.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You just don`t look like your pictures at all. You sound like you. But you don`t look like you.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The pictures I sent you, they wasn`t my pictures. They was my cousin`s pictures so.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: No.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: My name is --
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Excuse me?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: -- is Rod.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Your name?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes. It`s not KJ.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What the (EXPLETIVE DELETED) lies about a name for four years?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Oh, boy. Sour -- right? When you think somebody`s somebody and they`re not.
Tonight 19-year-old Marissa Williams is locked away in jail after cops say she was catfished by her own aunt who caught her plotting to murder her
family. Cops say Marissa moved in with her aunt a couple of months ago and it went south quickly. The teen apparently liked to meet random men on
Facebook and invite those strangers back to the family house.
Marissa reported blocked her on the social media after the aunt demanded she quote, "Stop inviting random guys to the house". So her aunt
created this fake Facebook page under the name "Tre Topdog Ellis". Cops say almost immediately the teenager Marissa gave Tre who was really her
aunt undercover her home address and invited him to come over and get drunk and then offered him sex if he would pay her $50 cell phone bill.
And it gets worse. Days later cops say Marissa told Tre she hated her family and asked him to stage a kidnapping and murder.
So Stephen Dethrage (ph) spell it out for us. Tell us about the hit list. Tell us exactly what this young lady allegedly asked Tre who was
really her aunt to do to her family.
STEPHEN DETHRAGE, REPORTER: Well, you`ve got it right, Jane. You know, she -- speaking to this fellow that she knew as "Tre Topdog Ellis", she
asked him you know if he will come kidnap her to get her away from her family and to get her out of Alabama. And at that point, the aunt ends the
conversation but she presses on. And she says if anybody resists you, you can shoot them. You can shoot them and kill them.
And then took it a step further and told him how to get into her aunt`s bedroom where she could kill her aunt, her aunt`s fiance and then on
the way out the door kill her cousin and the family dog.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Lovely. So then what does the aunt do?
DETHRAGE: The aunt at this point when she reads how detailed her plans are, how she`s encouraging this guy to get into her bedroom first and kill
everyone in that house, she finally breaks down and calls the police. She called the Tuscaloosa County Sheriff`s Office and says, you know, I don`t
know what to do here.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: So she ultimately calls cops. Cops say Marissa`s aunt did the exactly the right thing and ultimately saved her life by creating a
fake Facebook account and spying on her niece. Listen to this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You can monitor what your children are accessing on the Internet and what they`re doing. There are limitations on computers.
There`s restrictions that you can have on your cell phones. They just need to take all the precautions that they can.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Now, Marissa`s behind bars tonight charged with solicitation of murder. This 19-year-old could spend the rest of her life
in prison if she`s found guilty. She confessed immediately saying "Yes, I did it, but I didn`t really mean it. I`m so sorry."
Simone Bienne, out to the "Lion`s Den", is this dirty pool? I mean I know what she suggested allegedly was horrifying but does the aunt also --
was she totally pure in the way she handled this situation?
BIENNE: Yes, best use of catfishing ever. I mean, we cannot equate catfishing with murder. And the aunt discovered the plot against, you
know, being murdered -- her own murder case. I mean, she was brilliant -- the aunt.
What were the other alternatives, Jane? You tell me another alternative. And then I will be very happy listening to -- there isn`t another
alternative.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: I would say that pretending to be someone you`re not, saying look, honey, you moved in here, I set the rules. It`s my house.
Now, we`re going to go to counseling and we`re going to talk about what`s upsetting you so much that you`re acting out with promiscuity and drinking,
et cetera, et cetera.
I mean why did this girl leave wherever she was living and move in with her aunt? Is there some kind of back story? Is she emotionally challenged,
psychologically challenged, mentally challenged? I mean there`s got to be more to the story.
We`re going to get to it right on the other side. We want to hear from you. Did the aunt do the right thing?
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The average city dweller spending her time 90 percent indoors. We were designed not to be indoors all the time.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: So you bring nature to you.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I bring nature to me if I can.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: How many plants do you have? And what is the joy of having so many plants?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Well, we are sitting in a house right now with over 200 plants. It really is my zen zone.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Here`s another plant. Everywhere you turn, there`s a plant. You can`t escape.
A NASA scientist found house plants can have a role in reducing toxins inside homes. Summer Rain Oaks (ph) is growing fresh and fighting air
pollution with two living art pieces.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Each one of these drops. Initially the idea for that was actually to create an abstract art piece from like Crusoe`s jungle
painting. It`s really something about seeing an art piece that actually grows and thrives. It`s a real showstopper.
This is a mason jar garden that I built with my father. It was all done with old recycled materials. My dad found the wood in his basement.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: We have to make it easier for people to be environmentally conscious and make it fun. You`re making it fun.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I try to.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They were having some disputes in their living arrangements. And the aunt had befriended her on Facebook. The suspect in
the case initiated the conversation. The solicitation for the killing of her family members began to happen.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: All right. The aunt is mad at the niece for bringing strange guys back to her house. And so she gets online and pretends to be
a guy and the next thing you know, this woman, this young 19-year-old is allegedly telling this guy who is really her aunt "Hey, I want to kill my
aunt and other fiance and her kid and the dogs and everybody else in the house." And now she could go to jail for the rest of her life. She`s a
teenager.
I understand that everybody on my panel thinks the aunt did the right thing. Wrong -- you`re all wrong, wrong, wrong. I mean this woman -- this
young lady is sick. Sierra Elizabeth, you don`t do these things unless you`re acting out and you`ve got some problems that need to be fixed.
SIERRA ELIZABETH, ATTORNEY: I don`t disagree. I disagree, Jane. I`m very, very sorry but listen.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Go ahead.
ELIZABETH: Regardless, no, just listen. Regardless of whether she was catfished or not, if the prosecution can prove the elements of this crime
that she asked somebody to commit murder, that she intended for that person to commit murder and that that person received the request, it doesn`t
matter whether she was catfished or not. It`s for a judge and jury to decide.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Brian Silber, she`s 19 years old. Does anyone remember what they were like when they were teenagers? I wasn`t doing something
like this.
SILBER: I know I didn`t want to kill my aunt. I`ll tell you that -- you know.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: But I`m also happy "Girls Gone Wild" wasn`t around when I was a teenager. You know kids do stupid things.
SILBER: "Girls Gone Wild" don`t want to kill anybody, you know. I think that takes this to a whole another level. You know, it`s one thing to have
a disagreement with a family member, it`s another thing even to hate the family member --
VELEZ-MITCHELL: You really want her to spend the rest of her life behind bars?
SILBER: But she plotted --
VELEZ-MITCHELL: This 19-year-old --
SILBER: She with another person to kill them.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Don`t you think there`s a better solution?
SILBER: Absolutely. No doubt. She`s clearly a youthful offender. This is a classic case of intervention. There`s no doubt this girl`s on the
wrong path. The courts can get involved. As much as I don`t like that because there`s no cookie cutter response, she does need evaluation --
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Let`s just pray that she goes to juvie and she gets out when she`s 21 and she gets some help. I know she did a horrible thing but
I also don`t think she should spend the rest of her life behind bars.
Stay right there. We`ve got an extraordinary story on the other side that you need to see.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Hey little Rico, tonight we`re trying to save millions of birds and other wild animals who are dying slow painful deaths from lead
poisoning like these poor ducks we`re seeing here. The Humane Society of the United States, and many other animal protection and conservation groups
have joined together to demand in a petition that the Department of the Interior ban the use of lead ammunition on federal land. We reached out to
the Secretary of the Interior, Sally Jewel, for comment -- still waiting to hear back from that lady.
Lead can cause brain damage, organ failure, death -- this is the ammo that continues to kill long after it leaves the chamber. Every year -- can you
believe this -- 10 to 20 million birds and other wild animals die from lead poisoning. A lot of animals are shot with lead bullets, they don`t die
immediately, lead leaks into their bodies and they die long, slow painful deaths. The stuff is poison.
As you can see here if you eat it, if you eat an animal that had a lead bullet in it, lead bullets break apart on impact and that lead seeps
into the ground and gets into our food supply. This is dangerous for animals, for humans, for the entire earth.
Straight out to the Humane Society`s Mike Markarian -- Mike why have you filed this petition?
MIKE MARKARIAN, HUMANE SOCIETY OF THE UNITED STATES: Well, Jane, as you said, millions of birds and other animals are dying, suffering terrible
deaths every year because they`re poisoned with these lead fragments. They`re either ingesting the lead ammunition directly, they`re feeding on
prey that`s been contaminated or they`re scavenging on gut piles that are left behind by hunters.
Now, this lead is toxic, it`s poisoning the environment, it`s poisoning millions of animals. This is a terrible death for these animals. They`re
suffering blindness, paralysis, organ failure, seizures -- it`s a horrible way for them to die. And it`s completely unnecessary. There are
alternatives in the marketplace, there are copper and steel and other non- lead ammunition. It`s accessible, it`s affordable and it`s the only responsible choice if you`re a hunter.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Yes, and look -- look at these beautiful, the eagles. All the animals that we spend tax dollars trying to protect. And then this one
stupid thing ends up killing millions, 10 to 20 million of them, so guess what?
Secretary of the Interior, Sally Jewel -- please listen and make this important change. You can go to our Facebook page, my Facebook page and
sign the petition, it`s right there.
Now wild animals aren`t the only ones in danger. We have to protect America`s horses, part of our heritage. This show has been on the
forefront of horse issues, exposing the awful wild horse roundup under the Interior Department, and also fighting horse slaughter.
Right now, horse slaughter doesn`t happen in the United States. The horses are exported to Mexico and Canada for slaughter all the time, and
we`ve been trying to stop that too. One of the reasons horse slaughter plants cannot operate is the government cut funding for inspections.
Well now they`re trying to sneak in something called the Mullen amendment, which would reinstate horse inspections so slaughter would
resume in our country. Very quickly, Mike, what do you want people to do, call their congress members and say oppose the Mullen amendment?
MARKARIAN: Call your congress members, oppose the Mullen amendment, the federal law prohibits spending of our tax dollars to facilitate horse
slaughter, we can`t have Congress undo that. Americans, don`t eat horse meat. We should not kill these companion animals for human consumption.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Call your members of Congress and say we want bills that help animals, don`t kill them.
And my final thoughts with little Rico right on the other side.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Hey, little Rico, we have a message for the Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewel, ban lead emissions on federal lands. It`s
totally unnecessary. There are many other alternatives.
Look at that poor little duck dying a slow death because of lead poisoning. Rico, you wouldn`t like that, I would be devastated if that happened to
you. You know, go to the Humane Society dot-org, HSUS.org and get involved. Animals can`t speak for themselves.
END
