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American Morning
Interview with George Parnham, Wendell Odom
Aired June 20, 2002 - 08:18 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.
BILL HEMMER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: About a year ago today, a tragic anniversary, one year ago that Andrea Yates drowned her five children in a bathtub inside of her home. Yates was convicted of murder, sentenced to life in prison after a jury rejected her insanity defense.
Prosecutors have now released tapes presented as evidence at her trial, including a prison interview with a defense psychiatrist just a month after the murders.
Andrea Yates' defense team is trying to block the release of tapes and other evidence there. Her attorneys, George Parnham and Wendell Odom, join us live from Houston this morning.
Good morning to both of you men. Thank you for your time.
GEORGE PARNHAM, YATES DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Good morning.
WENDELL ODOM, YATES DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Good morning, Bill.
HEMMER: George, you've tried to drop this, so far unsuccessful. What's the danger in seeing these go public?
PARNHAM: Well, you know, we're concerned about the sensationalism of the tapes. The last thing that we want to do is to turn Andrea into a sideshow for the public to view. We believe that it's very important, particularly with the release of these last two tapes, Dr. Puryear's interviews, that the mental health issue be placed in proper context. It is obvious from the tapes she is a very sick, mentally ill woman, and we want that issue to come forward so that the public can be educated about mental illness and learn something about this tragic case.
HEMMER: George, I really want to hit on that last topic, education, in a moment. But just for the sake of our viewers, you may not like this, but we're going to roll two pieces of videotape. The first interview done with Dr. Puryear in July, about a month after the murders took place, we will watch and listen right now, Andrea Yates.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DR. LUCY PURYEAR, DEFENSE PSYCHIATRIST: ... might be putting messages in your head?
ANDREA YATES, CONVICTED CHILD KILLER: Maybe Satan.
PURYEAR: Satan is still trying to do that?
YATES: Maybe (UNINTELLIGIBLE) took the radio and they were playing some music in my cell and I heard a voice from the music.
PURYEAR: What did it say?
YATES: I can't remember.
PURYEAR: Do you think it might have been Satan's voice?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HEMMER: Again, that was in July, about a month after her kids were murdered. Now, later that same year in February, notice the difference with this tape.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
YATES: The psychosis has seemed to have left me and the visions and the noises and I'm just a little calmer and a little more aware of what's going on.
PURYEAR: OK. Are your thoughts clearer?
YATES: Yes.
PURYEAR: Yes? Can you tell the difference? Yes?
YATES: Yes. It was like in a fog before and now it's a lot more clearer.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HEMMER: There is an obvious distinction and difference between the character and the behavior of Andrea Yates. George, what is the danger in terms of educating people, especially when you look at these two tapes and see the progress, be it time or medication or perhaps some sort of education for her and counseling behind bars?
PARNHAM: You know, I believe that viewing those tapes in context, as you've done, is extremely beneficial. Once the tapes are out, if we can put it in proper context, here's a woman who has been on medication for five months, as viewed in the February 4 tape. The difference is astounding. I wish we could see the entire tape of Dr. Puryear in February.
But the effect of the medication, the fact that she was so sick a month after the drownings? Can you just imagine her mental state one month earlier on January, on June the 20? It speaks volumes about medication and proper mental health treatment.
HEMMER: Wendell, curious to know from you, perhaps there is more to come forward. What more will be out there in the public domain soon? ODOM: Well, there's the -- there's additional tapes. There's the tapes that the state psychiatrist made and there's also, of course, the autopsy photos of the deceased children. And as George said, if someone were to take a little snippet of these tapes or these photographs, you could get the wrong idea. It's very difficult to show the whole tape and to get the whole interviews in the proper context.
HEMMER: Wendell, given that, though, and knowing that it's part of the public record, has anyone ever been successful at stopping a document dump like this?
ODOM: Well, at least at times they have. There's certainly a freedom of information law in Texas and the country, and there is a right of the public to have information. It's a question of how much information and when. So in answer to your question, at some point these tapes and this information is going to become public.
HEMMER: Do you think you have any chance of being successful, Wendell?
ODOM: Well, yes, to some extent. I mean there are certain things that are rather sensational that we're hoping that does not become public.
HEMMER: Yes, George, how is Andrea Yates doing today?
PARNHAM: Well, I can just imagine how she's doing. This is the one year anniversary...
HEMMER: You haven't spoken with her or talked with her or...
PARNHAM: Not yet. Obviously I have seen her multiple times since the verdict, but I've not yet spoken with her today. I can just imagine that she is going through the throes of personal agony, having lost five children, knowing that those children died as a result of her own hand and the memories of the circumstances of last June 20 have got to be overwhelming, to say the least.
HEMMER: George, on Tuesday of this past week, you announced the establishment of a fund, I believe it's the Women's Mental Health Fund in the Houston area. What will that fund do?
PARNHAM: The Mental Health Association of Houston actually announced the fund and it is in the memory of the Yates children. And it is geared to provide donations and funds for the purposes of the education of the public and the medical profession relative to the issue of postpartum depression and in general women's mental illness.
It's, it can be a wonderful, very, very plus factor in that comes out of that absolute negative and totally tragic situation on June the 20th. I think it will succeed. It's already up to a running start. There will be a full time staffer employed by MHA to assist hospitals in the education of new parents, encourage communication between doctors.
HEMMER: And good luck, OK?
PARNHAM: OK, thank you.
HEMMER: George Parnham and Wendell Odom live with us this morning in Texas.
ODOM: Thank you, Bill.
PARNHAM: Thank you, Bill.
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