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Nancy Grace
2nd Child in Bathtub Drowning Dies; Columbia Dental Student Jiwon Lee Missing; Tot Tied to Tree so Dad Can Smoke Pot
Aired April 07, 2014 - 20:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
NANCY GRACE, HOST: Breaking news, live, suburban McCandless. A young mom runs a bathtub, and instead of playing with a rubber ducky, Mommy actually sits on her two young boys to ensure they drown to death, one clinging to life, but when police ask Mommy, Mommy claims, quote, "crazy voices" made me do it.
Oh, really, Mommy? Who made you try to run your children down with a car last year? Who made you leave your boys locked in a hot car before that? What, the devil made you do it? Tonight, another killer mom.
Bombshell tonight. As we go to air, we learn Mommy`s 6-year-old little boy, fighting for his life in the hospital, in the last hours has gone to heaven. Yes, her second child, her son, 6 years old, also dead. And then we learn Mommy sitting back in the cushy ward in the Allegheny County jail with cable TV, library books, three meals a day, now claiming for the first time in her life she`s crazy!
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: "My two sons, I think that they`ve -- they`ve drowned in our bathtub."
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Two little boys, investigators say Schlemmer held her sons down under water in the bathtub and even sat on top of them.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: "They`re unconscious."
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Everyone got kind of a strange feeling from her.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: "Is there anything in their mouth?"
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: "Just water."
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GRACE: And we go live to find a young dental student co-ed, a brunette beauty who goes missing after her last board exams.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: She was just weeks from graduating Columbia University dental school, and now she`s gone, 29-year-old Jiwon Lee, 5-2, 125 pounds, black hair, dark brown eyes. What happened to the 29-year-old Jiwon Lee?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GRACE: And Salt Lake City, a 29-year-old dad and his weed-loving buddy drag his tot by a leash, then tie the tiny boy to a tree so Daddy can smoke weed!
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Police say Richard Marsh is walking with his 4- year-old son and his friend, Paul Rapp. Rapp, we are told, is holding a child`s safety leash, pulling Marsh`s son behind.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They hooked the leash to a tree as they stood by and began using marijuana.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GRACE: And live, Indianapolis. A 24-year-old young dad-to-be goes out for a morning walk. It turns deadly. While he`s on foot for coffee and a newspaper, waiting at home, his young wife Jennifer, expecting their first baby girl next month, while he`s viciously attacked, mugged and murdered. Tonight, it`s all caught on tape.
Breaking new clues as we go to air. We learn the deadly morning muggers actually take Nathan`s shirt and shoes as, quote, "trophies of the kill." Take a look. Tonight, help us catch the morning muggers.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The 24-year-old was shot and killed near his home in Indianapolis while on his morning walk.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Nathan`s widow is expecting their first and only child.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We need to get these thugs off the street!
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The men in this surveillance video seen in the process of committing the crime.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GRACE: And to Houston. A Little Leaguer in a mini-mart runs for his life as three armed men hold all the mini-mart patrons hostage at gunpoint. Tonight, caught on video.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Look at this dramatic video. Police say the little boy ran back inside and screamed robbery, all while people took cover. The suspects were stealing cash from the clerk at gunpoint.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He`s the first one that sees these guys running at him, running at the door with a gun, and he runs back inside.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GRACE: Good evening. I`m Nancy Grace. I want to thank you for being with us.
Bombshell tonight. Live to suburban McCandless. A young mother runs a bathtub, but instead of playing with a rubber ducky with her children, Mommy actually sits on her two little boys to ensure they drown to death. As we go to air, we learn Mommy`s 6-year-old boy, who was fighting for his life in a hospital bed, in the last hours pronounced dead. And then we learn Mommy`s sitting back in a cushy ward of the Allegheny County jail, with cable TV, library books, three meals a day, now claiming for the first time in her life that she`s crazy?
To Rich Zeoli, host of "The Rich Zeoli Show," WPHT -- Rich, I`m learning a lot about how this story unfolded. But first, I want you to hear the 911 transcript, Rich. I mean, according to everyone that hears it, she is sweet. She is calm. She is polite, saying, "sir" and "thank you." She doesn`t seem upset at all in the 911 call! Take a listen, Rich.
(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: "My two sons, I think that they`ve -- they`ve drowned in our bathtub."
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: "OK, tell me exactly what happened."
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: "I -- I let my 6 and 3-year-old sons play in the bathtub a little bit before their bath this morning. And I was -- and then I went to the restroom and took longer than I should have or planned, and then I came back. They`re unconscious."
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: "Are they breathing?"
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: "It doesn`t look like it, sir. Upstairs, Mom! Is Dad still here? I`ve got an emergency. Upstairs, sir."
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: "Is there anything in their mouth?"
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: "Just water."
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GRACE: "Just water"? Rich Zeoli, that was our reenactment of the 911 call that`s leaked out. "Just water" is in their mouth? And here`s the kicker. Not only was she saying "please" and "thank you," she was extremely polite, coherent, calm with the paramedics that got there. And she took the time to take off her wet clothes and hide them in the trash, in the garbage, change clothes before the paramedics got there. They only found her wet clothes after they did a search of the home, Rich.
RICH ZEOLI, WPHT: That`s right. She hid the wet clothes in a bag under two other garbage bags. This is not a crazy person, Nancy, and this is what the prosecution really is trying to argue here, that she had methodically lied on the call. She was trying to cover her tracks by coming up with an excuse that sounded rational. You don`t hear an insane person on that call, you hear someone deliberately lying.
GRACE: Not at all. Not at all. Unleash the lawyers, Areva Martin, LA, Danny Cevallos, New York.
First of all, to you, Areva Martin. I want to hear your defense in this case because she had the wherewithal to lie on the phone, to make up a story that, first of all, they had been playing and they played too long in the tub, and she came back in there and they were drowned to death.
Then she changed her story to she went to the bathroom. And then her story changed again after that. She`s not keeping her lies consistent. But she had the wherewithal to lie, to change her clothes, to hide her wet clothes, and then while she`s on the phone with 911, she calls up to her mom upstairs and goes, Mom, is Dad there? I need help. I`ve got an emergency. She hadn`t even bothered to call them during this whole episode? I mean, she`s pretending that her two little boys drowned on their own.
AREVA MARTIN, DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Nancy, this woman has been crying out for help forever. And no one`s been listening. And now we have these two little boys who are dead.
GRACE: Really?
(CROSSTALK)
MARTIN: I don`t hear a mom that`s lying, I hear a mom...
GRACE: Excuse me!
MARTIN: ... that`s totally disassociated from the truth. She has lost all concept or...
(CROSSTALK)
GRACE: If you could just answer...
MARTIN: ... of reality.
GRACE: Maybe you know, Danny Cevallos. When was this mom crying out for help? Because I know she tried to run over her children about a year ago, and then before that, she left them locked in a hot car. And she managed to get out of that one, too. But we have no history whatsoever of mental health treatment, of being on medication, nothing.
DANNY CEVALLOS, CNN LEGAL ANALYST: Well, Nancy, you either believe in the insanity defense or you don`t. And you don`t necessarily need a prolonged history of mental illness to be able to plead insanity. Medical science will determine through an evaluation whether or not she lacks the ability to be responsible for her actions. And...
GRACE: Yes, we know. We know, Danny and Areva. We know how it works. You plead insanity or mental incompetence. Then you are examined by a physician for the state, a physician for the defense and a court- appointed physician. And they come up with an answer.
My question to you is this. Areva Martin, defense attorney, LA, you just said this is a mom who`s been crying out for help for a long time. Give me an example of her crying out for help.
MARTIN: Yes, the running over of her two kids. That didn`t just happen out of nowhere. That was a mom...
GRACE: Yes, she tried to kill them!
MARTIN: ... who was in trouble a year ago. And the child protective services stepped in, but apparently, did not do a good job, did not do a thorough job. And this mom needed help even then, Nancy.
GRACE: No! I disagree! I disagree, Areva!
MARTIN: I think the evidence is pretty clear that this mom needed help. She should not have been with these children. There needed to be an intervention that did not occur, and now we have this tragedy.
GRACE: Hold on! Wait a minute! You just brought up a very important fact, and I`m glad you did, because CPS, child protective safety, came in and looked at the mom after she tried to run over her children. They didn`t detect any mental illness or emotional instability whatsoever. So that`s an outside agency looking at her and evaluating her, and they did nothing. They found no evidence she was insane.
Hold on. Out to the lines. Out to Jean. Hi, Jean. What`s your question?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Hi, Nancy. My question is, this woman, if she tried to kill her kids twice, she should either -- they should have taken her kids away from her.
GRACE: Absolutely. Hold on, Jean. Don`t move, because right now, I`m being joined by Tommy Pope, who prosecuted Susan Smith. He`s joining me out of Rotkill (ph), South Carolina. Tommy will never forget Susan Smith, Susan Smith who drove her children into the water claiming a black male, I guess, threw her out of the car and took off with the kids just to drive them in the lake.
You got a conviction on that case. What is the toughest problem when you are prosecuting a mom for the murder of her children, Tom?
TOMMY POPE, PROSECUTED SUSAN SMITH (via telephone): I think what happens is people -- it makes us uncomfortable to think that mothers can do this, so I think they`re always looking for another answer, really, an explanation of why my wife wouldn`t do it or why, you know, your spouse wouldn`t do it. That`s what makes us most uncomfortable.
I think, in this case, initially, from a mental health standpoint, what they`re looking at, was she oriented at the time of the call? Did she understand things (ph)? The hiding the clothes that I just heard about from you is a big deal to me...
GRACE: You know, Tommy...
POPE: ... because she knows enough to know right from wrong enough to need to hide those clothes.
GRACE: With me, the prosecutor who prosecuted Susan Smith. Let`s see a video of Susan Smith to jog everybody`s memory, Liz.
Tommy, here`s more. Her husband is an actuary. He was at work that day. He had no problems leaving her at home with the children. There was no suggestion to him that she was unstable, none whatsoever. Not only did she hide her wet clothes, even when the paramedics got there, she was still vacillating (ph) with her lie. She was saying, "please" and "thank you" to the paramedics. And to me, if you listen to her and you look at her words on that 911 call, she waits until she knows they`re listening, then she goes, Mom, Dad, help, emergency. I mean, it is so staged, Tommy!
POPE: I think from a -- and your -- one of your guests discussed from a medical standpoint, I think it`s going to be very difficult to show insanity. What I was referring to, is when you finally get in front of 12 people, jurors don`t want to accept that mothers would do this, you know what I`m saying? They want to...
GRACE: Yes, because you think of your own mother. Tommy, you`re right, nobody -- I mean, when I think of a mom, I think of my mother, who would do anything to help me, not hurt me. And I think it`s hard for jurors to get over that emotional belief that they hold in their own hearts about their own mother.
And then there`s the old adage, there`s nothing as strong as a mother`s love. But Clark Goldband, you know differently.
CLARK GOLDBAND, NANCY GRACE PRODUCER: Well, Nancy, according to reports, back in 2009, authorities say this mom left a child unattended in a hot car outside a shopping mall. When cops arrive and they open the door -- check this out -- 112 degrees inside that vehicle.
But not only that, Nancy, just last year, authorities say that this mom backed over her 6-year-old and 3-year-old. They both suffered serious injuries. But the thinking at the time was it wasn`t criminal, it was an accident.
GRACE: Yes, you`re right. Both times, she talked her way out of on it. She wasn`t charged. Maybe if she had been charged, her two boys would be alive tonight. One just passed away in the hospital. He was in the hospital because he was in a coma. He was in a coma, because he was deprived of oxygen to his brain. Why? Because he was under water with his own mother sitting on him in the bathtub.
Everybody, switching gears. Scam alert. Scam alert. Viewers have been calling in after being victims of a brand-new scam. First of all, you get a call from someone claiming to be the DEA, the Drug Enforcement Agency, demanding you pay a cash fine right away because you may have bought supplements or prescriptions on line.
Beware. I personally spoke with the DEA. This is a scam, an extortion scheme. Don`t do it. First, no agent would ever contact a target by phone or demand money. If you are a victim of this new scam, go to the DOJ Web site, fill out the extortion scam report.
When we get back, everybody, a young dental student co-ed, a brunette beauty, goes missing after her last board exams. And the later tonight, caught on tape, a Little League boy runs for his life.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
GRACE: Tonight, we go live to find a young dental student, co-ed, a brunette beauty who goes missing after her last board exams.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Police are searching for a missing Columbia University dental school student. Twenty-nine-year-old Jiwon Lee was set to graduate in just a few weeks. But now there`s no sign of the dental student. Investigators are searching surveillance video for any sign of Jiwon Lee.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GRACE: She has just finished her last board exam. Where is she? Take a look at this girl, Jiwon Lee, 29 years old, Columbia dental school.
Straight out to Frank Morano, talk show host, "The Answer." Frank, what do we know? What are friends and family telling us tonight?
FRANK MORANO, RADIO TALK SHOW HOST (via telephone): Well, the family and the friends of Ms. Lee all suspect foul play. They think something foul might be going on here.
GRACE: Well, she`s described as 5 feet, 2 inches, 120 pounds, black hair, dark brown eyes, from Michigan. Family and friends are convinced she`s a victim of foul play. There`s a $25,000 reward in the search for this missing dental student. She was so excited finishing her boards.
Very quickly, Areva Martin, Danny Cevallos, Cheryl Hunter (ph) joining me.
Michael Christian joining us. When you finish your boards, you`re at the very end. That`s like a lawyer taking the bar exam. And once you pass, you`re done. You are going to be a dentist. Right? Is that what we know, Michael Christian?
MICHAEL CHRISTIAN, NANCY GRACE PRODUCER (via telephone): That`s right, Nancy. And this girl is very smart. She`s been the president of Columbia`s American Student Dental Association branch. Now, that`s not easy to do anywhere, but especially at Columbia. This is a very smart woman, and her disappearance has absolutely baffled her family and friends.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Twenty-nine-year-old Jiwon Lee was set to graduate in just a few weeks. But now there`s no sign of the dental student, 5-2, 120 pounds, black hair, dark brown eyes. She was last seen leaving her apartment. What happened to 29-year-old Jiwon Lee?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GRACE: Her family distraught tonight. They`ve been helping this young girl get all the way through college, all the way through dental school. And that is no easy thing. She just finished her last board exam to become a dentist. There she is, getting a scholarly award. You`re seeing 29-year-old Jiwon Lee, Columbia dental school graduate from Michigan, 5 feet, 2 inches, 120 pounds. Black hair, dark brown eyes, missing, last seen leaving her apartment around 8:30 on Tuesday. Take a look. The tip line, 800-577-TIPS -- 800-577-8477.
GRACE: Frank, no known enemies. We don`t know of any boyfriend. We don`t know of any threats against her. It`s seemingly as if she stepped out of her apartment to go to dinner or the workout club and vanished into thin air, Frank.
MORANO: Before she vanished into thin air, though, one of her final calls was to a telephone number in Sacramento. Now, what`s so suspicious, Nancy, is that that phone number has now been disconnected. So it`s clear that she had her phone, she was using it after the last time that she was seen, and she called somebody in Sacramento. We don`t know who it was.
GRACE: You know, it would be interesting to find out how long the call was. For all I know, she called a wrong number to a disconnected line. But you know what, Frank? You`re right. We have to follow every single lead.
Right now, cops looking for this brunette dental student. Take a look, 29-year-old Jiwon Lee. Her family is desperate. Again, tip line, 800-577-TIPS. There`s $25,000 reward.
When we come back, a 29-year-old dad and his weed-loving buddy drag his little tot, a tiny boy, by a leash, drag him by a leash and tie him to a tree so Daddy can smoke weed!
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: How are you?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I`m fine.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: OK. Well, what`s your name?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I`m Jon (ph). Now what`s going on?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He doesn`t like seeing his kids hurt. He cares a lot about his kids.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GRACE: OK , later, caught on tape, a Little League Boy runs for his life.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
GRACE: Welcome back, everybody. Now to Salt Lake City. A 29-year- old dad and his weed-loving buddy drag their tot, a little boy, by a leash, drag him like a dog by a leash, then tie the little baby to a tree so Daddy can smoke weed!
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Police say Richard Marsh is walking with his 4- year-old son and his friend, Paul Rapp.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The child somehow ended up down on the ground and was drug the rest of the way across the street.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We go looking for Richard Marsh. How are you? How are you?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I`m fine.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: OK. Well, what`s your name?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I`m John (ph). Now what`s going on?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Johnny says his brother is a caring dad.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: How are you? How are you?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I`m fine.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: OK. Well, what`s your name?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I`m John. Now what`s going on?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Johnnie says his brother is a caring dad.
(on camera): How are you?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I`m Wyatt.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: OK, what is your name?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I`m John, now, what is going on?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I know why he chained him to the tree already, it`s something he does like when we go fishing and stuff, because the kid has a tendency of going all over the place, last time I almost - I had to save him from going into the Jordan (ph) river. He is a darn good dad. He cares about his kids. Oh, man, the kid gets his finger slammed in the door, he gets like all up, somebody`s accidentally slamming the finger - I`ve seen him go up for doing that, why? Because he doesn`t like to see these kids hurt. He cares a lot about his kids.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
GRACE: OK, why was that man wearing a purple bra and some sort of a black female halter, number one? That is the first question. But let`s just get right down to it, Jim Kirkwood, talks to him as K.T. - that was the dad`s brother. And he said, oh, yeah, I know why he chained him to the tree, obviously he has done it before. So, he drags his four-year-old little boy, just turned four by a dog leash, across the road, some distance and then lashed him to a tree so daddy can smoke pot, and obviously he has done it before based on what the loudmouth Gabby brother just said, the one in the purple bra?
JIM KIRKWOOD, TALK SHOW HOST KIK AM 830: Well, Nancy, this is what is really upsetting about this, this situation is a lot worse than it seems. That street, 3rd West is the major north entrance to downtown Salt Lake, the 6 North is where the freeway gets off, and they feed over the 3rd west to come right down that street they are dragging the kid across. This is a major street with heavy traffic, three lanes. Each way. No wonder they dragged him, because they were probably dodging cars.
GRACE: But wait a minute, so he was so out of his gord (ph) on pot that he actually dragged his kid by a leash across a street in heavy traffic. A, where they could get hit by the traffic and B, where there was witnesses to him doing this? He so didn`t care he was dragging his son by a leash then tied him to a tree, a four-year-old child? What did he do, just stand right there and smoke pot or go somewhere else? How did it go down, Jim Kirkwood?
KIRKWOOD: I think they are so dumb they stood there and smoked pot. That is my opinion on it. I mean this is unbelievable. That area is a very bad area. It`s right surrounded by industrial and we have got some really low income homes. I mean, low, low income homes there. And so, this is a -- frankly a non-desirable area in heavy traffic. I mean everything .
GRACE: Well, listen to this, this just happened in the last hours. Witnesses tell police they saw the child trip and fall on the ground, while they -- the adults continued to drag the boy across the street that you are seeing. With all those cars whizzing by. So, the little boy falls on the asphalt, he hits face first and they continue to drag him across the street. Over a curb and through 20 feet of wood chips. In case you are wondering why we keep showing you those wood chips right there, that is where they dragged the child. And what you are seeing is the path where they drag the child. They tied him to the tree that you are seeing. The boy, according to jail documents, covered in cuts, bruises, scratches all along his waist, his back, where he was dragged. These two stopped walking, tied the boy to a tree, take out a glass pipe and then start smoking weed. OK, right out in public. Brad Lamm, addiction specialist and founder of Breathe Life healing centers.
BRAD LAMM, ADDICTION SPECIALIST: Hey, Nancy.
GRACE: They just know no bounds? They are so out of their mind?
LAMM: Well, it shows it`s a dumb down drug. So, when you get stoned, you do things that you would not do normally. You know, the common sense is anything that .
GRACE: Whoa, Brad, normally I do not interrupt you, because I typically agree with you. But their normal is a lot different from your normal. Because we just heard it from the horse`s mouth. Oh, yeah, he does that all the time. He chains him to a tree. This child is being chained up like a dog, Brad?
LAMM: Don`t you want to know how often mom and dad, and the people that are in the house, the adults are getting high and drinking? That is one of the things I`d like to know. How common is it in that home? I wonder if it`s an everyday occurrence, I sure see it a lot in kids that grow up to be addicted. They come from homes just like that.
GRACE: OK, joining me right now, Dr. Joye Carter, chief forensic pathologist Marion County, author of "I Speak for the Dead." OK, not only was the kid dragged like a dog on a leash, tied up in a tree, dragged through traffic, but we know that this haps happened many, many times. Does that give you a window in to the abuse this child is suffering behind closed doors?
DR. JOYE CARTER: It certainly sounds like abuse and this child could have scars, deep tissue injury, the muscle, the buttocks, the base of the skull, and this is ridiculous.
GRACE: Unleash your lawyers. Areva Martin, Danny Cevallos, OK, Areva, give me your best defense.
AREVA MARTIN, DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Crying out for help, Nancy. This shows .
GRACE: Oh, wait, you said that last time when the mom killed her boys. You said a desperate cry for help.
MARTIN: I say it again, and I say it - I say it with emphasis, Nancy. This man .
GRACE: OK, so now, you really mean it?
MARTIN: This child, he is crying out for help. I`m probably wondering how come the police have not arrested him before now. So, this parent obviously is not fit to care for this child.
GRACE: OK.
(CROSSTALK)
GRACE: Who`s giving the desperate cry for help.
MARTIN: I didn`t know what I was doing as a parent.
GRACE: Question. Who`s giving a desperate .
MARTIN: A desperate cry for help because he needs help in parenting, Nancy. This is not parenting.
GRACE: OK, so you are saying this father now, this father as opposed to the mother who killed her two sons, this father is also issuing a desperate cry for help. OK? You know what? You can only use that one time an hour.
MARTIN: It`s true. Nancy, these parents need help and the system is not helping them.
GRACE: Give me - to call defense please.
DANNY CEVALLOS, DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Yeah, the only desperate cry for help is that purple bra, it`s totally wrong for that guy`s skin color. But I will tell you this, this is a defensible case. Here`s why. You talk about marijuana. I have got news for you, Nancy, marijuana is about to be legal everywhere in the country. So, that view of marijuana .
GRACE: Oh, well, is tying your child to a tree.
CEVALLOS: Hold on.
GRACE: Is that going to be legal, too?
CEVALLOS: Part two is that leashes for children are not only not illegal, they are used all the time.
GRACE: To tie children to the trees?
CEVALLOS: So the fact that the child simply falls while he`s on the leash .
GRACE: I never knew that.
CEVALLOS: Doesn`t necessarily prove that child abuse has occurred. Until you outlaw leashes for children, I don`t know where this case is.
GRACE: Cheryl Hunter, trauma recovery expert, author of "Usage". Cheryl, does it disturb you when you hear the truth completely distorted?
CHERYL HUNTER, TRAUMA RECOVERY EXPERT: It disturbs me deeply. There`s a real difference, Nancy, between three kids, say, at Disneyland, on a happy trip with their parents who are trying to control them, versus a child on a leash who is tied to a tree. I think that the father obviously needs to go to jail, but - and have a child .
GRACE: Well, I just wonder who is taking care of the kid tonight. Jim Kirkwood, K.T. KK (ph), where is the little boy tonight?
KIRKWOOD: I understand that he has been reunited with his mother, which, and I don`t know what that means, I`m concerned frankly.
GRACE: Yeah, I`m concerned if the mom would let him be with this dad.
KIRKWOOD: Yes.
GRACE: Then what shape is he in tonight? That is my concern. I don`t give a fig about these two, I care about what is happening to the little boy. Everyone quickly, to tonight`s case alert, BELO, being on lookout, dangerous child sex predator actually caught on tape, this is rare he is caught on tape, attacking a little boy, sexually attacking a little boy. This is extremely rare that we catch his face, usually we have a sketch. This is the child sex predator, John Doe, 28. The FBI needs your help. He is labeled John Doe 28 by the feds. Please, help us stop him from attacking more children. If you know this man, if you think you know this man, 1-800-call-FBI.
When we come back, a young dad to be goes out for an early morning walk, viciously attacked, mugged, murdered by two thugs, caught on tape. Tonight, we learn the deadly morning muggers actually take the victim`s shirt and shoes as trophies of the kill.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: They had the storybook wedding and they were so in love. And we need to get these thugs off the street.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GRACE: And then later caught on tape, a little league boy runs for his life.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
GRACE: And now, to Indianapolis, a 24-year-old young dad-to-be goes out for an early morning walk. It turns deadly. While he is out on foot for coffee and a newspaper, waiting back at home, his young wife Jennifer who is expecting their first baby girl next month. He is viciously attacked, mugged and killed by two thugs. Tonight, it`s all caught on tape. Breaking new evidence. As we go to air, we learned that the deadly morning muggers actually steal Nathan`s shirt and shoes as quote, trophies of the kill. Take a look, help us catch the morning muggers.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: They had the storybook wedding. They were so in love. And we need to get these these thugs off the street.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GRACE: Straight out to Indianapolis, Liz, please loop that video, I want the viewers to see the muggers. Well, they are murderers, they are not muggers. Steve Simpson joining me, host on WIBC Morning News. Steve, thanks for being with us. I understand now that the killers actually took Nathan`s shoes and shirt?
STEVE SIMPSON: Yes, apparently so, Nancy. Sneakers, a sweater and a t-shirt. Again, he was out for an early morning walk or jog, and that was his normal attire. So apparently, according to a good Samaritan, at least one of them who called the police, and an ambulance when they heard him screaming for help, she went out and saw he did not have a shirt on, and that was the first indication that perhaps they had taken it.
GRACE: It is my understanding that the good Samaritan as we are calling her, she is so afraid that she will not let her face or name be put out there?
SIMPSON: That is true. She is afraid of what she called reprisal. She spoke to one news organiation, but she is not talking to anyone. She - - let`s put it that way, she doesn`t want her name out there, she`s afraid.
GRACE: Also with us, Clark Goldband. Clark, what more have we learned? Everybody, take a look at Nathan Trapizano (ph) and his wife Jennifer. Their first child will be born next month, a baby girl that they are naming Cecilia. She will never have a Christmas with her father, an Easter egg hunt, a father-daughter dance. Nothing, he will never hold her in his arms one time. In fact, here is the funeral footage. That is what she will have, she can go visit his grave. That is it. Why? Because two thugs, mug and murder him as he is out for a morning walk. The waves of pain that they have caused continue to ripple. Clark?
GOLDBAND: Well, Nancy, here is what we know, according to one report, not only were the sneakers of this man taken, but also the sweater and a shirt was taken. But to make it even more confounding, we have learned, Nancy, according to one published report that this man only went out for a walk with like an older used mp3 player. So if someone was trying to rob him or someone was trying to get money or to get something of value, they certainly did not get it. Apparently all they have gotten are some old clothes and sneakers.
GRACE: With me is Father Christopher Roberts. This is a priest and friend of Nathan. He actually married Nathan and Jennifer. Jennifer set to give birth next month to their first child. Father Roberts, thank you for being with us. Tell us, when I saw the video of Jennifer, just crying in anguish at the funeral. It`s almost more than I can stand to look at. Tell me how she is doing tonight?
FATHER CHRISTOPHER ROBERTS: Well, you know, she just needs some space, I think that is what anyone would need. So, that`s, that`s what -- I`m trying to just support through prayer, and I think everyone is for acquaintances and family.
GRACE: Father Roberts, this is rare, the kind of love that they had. It was almost like a storybook, the relationship, the marriage between Nathan and Jennifer.
ROBERTS: Yes, I knew when I met Nathan that he was -- if he did not end up being a priest, he would make a woman very happy.
GRACE: Everyone, you are seeing images of Nathan, and tonight, we ask for your help. This child will grow up never knowing her father. Ever. Just think about it. He will never take her to school. He will never dance with her at a father/daughter dance. No Christmass. No Easter. Nothing.
Tonight, we are trying to set -- to find his killers. One report said his wife spent an hour, an hour alone with his body just stroking his hair before he was buried. What can we do? We can help find his killers. 317- 262-8477, there`s a $10,000 reward. Father, thank you for being with us.
And tonight, everyone, the search for a missing Rice University student vanishing spring break. Panama City, Florida. 21-year-old Reny Jose, last seen leaving a beach house, never seen again. Clothes and personal items in a trash can nearby. Take a look at this young college student. His father besides himself with grief. If you have information call the Bay County sheriffs there in Panama City, 850-747-4700.
And when we come back, caught on tape. A Little League boy runs for his life.
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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The little boy in this case within just a few feet of these suspects. All of this was caught on camera.
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GRACE: Welcome back, everybody. Caught on tape. This Little Leaguer runs for his life after three armed thugs break into a mini mart and hold everybody at gunpoint. With me, Nick Rajkovic, KTRH. What happened, Nick?
NICK RAJKOVIC, KTRH: As you can see on the video, Nancy, and good evening to you, as well. The 7-year-old boy, Austin Travers, he is only in second grade, he is dressed in his baseball uniform, leaving the store with his mother. Robbers coming in from outside. He runs with his mother back into the store. He starts yelling, robbers, robbers, he is warning everybody the place is about to be robbed.
GRACE: We`re seeing the video right now. With me right now I`m hearing in my ear is Amy Counts, the mom of the little boy. Also with me, the Little Leaguer, Austin, is joining us. First to his mom. Amy, thank you so much for being with us. I have a little boy about Austin`s age who`s also a Little Leaguer, and I`m just imagining him going in the store and having thugs like that with Uzis holding everybody hostage. What happened, Amy?
AMY COUNTS, MOTHER: Well, we left Austin`s game and he wanted a little treat for hitting a home run that night, and also they won their game. I had to get some stuff as well. We went into the store, got what we needed, went to the counter, and as we were leaving, they came in.
GRACE: What a little hero he is. With me right now is that little leaguer, Austin. Austin, you`re a very, very brave boy. Did you know that?
AUSTIN: Thank you.
COUNTS: Say it loud.
AUSTIN: Thank you.
GRACE: I can hear you, sweetheart. Tell me, what did you think when you saw these bad guys coming in with a gun?
AUSTIN: I was scared.
GRACE: I know you were. I see you there. Back to Austin`s mom, Amy Counts. How has he been since this incident?
COUNTS: He`s been doing really good. The first and second night, he had a couple nightmares, but he`s been doing really good and been really positive. We`ve been trying to be as positive as possible about the situation, so he`s stronger than I ever thought he was.
GRACE: This Little Leaguer, along with the other patrons there at the minimart, run for their life, many of them crouching on the floor, hiding. Austin goes running into the canned goods and breads as three -- excuse me, two thugs armed, hold the whole kit and kaboodle hostage.
Tonight, we`re on the manhunt.
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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Police say the little boy ran back inside and screamed robbery, all while people took cover, the suspects were stealing cash from the clerk at gunpoint.
GRACE: You know what, I can`t get over the brazen nature of what these two thugs did. Coming in armed with something it looks like one of them had an Uzi. Nick Rajkovic joining us as well as the little leaguer who tried to warn everything, robbers were coming. There you see him. He`s joining us tonight, Austin and his mom. Amy Counts, you said that he`s been extremely brave. I believe you. How did he get out, Amy?
COUNTS: You see him come around the corner of the store, he turned back in, and that`s when he warned us they were coming. And he ran down one of the aisles and he waited for me at the end of the aisle, actually, and then when I came running down the aisle, I grabbed him, we went and hid in a closet until it was okay to come out.
GRACE: Thank God for the way that turned out with our brave little leaguer, Austin. It could have turned out so very differently, as we all know.
Let`s stop and remember American hero, Marine Lance Corporal Alfonso Ochoa, Jr., 20, California. Purple Heart. National Defense Service Medal. Loved sports, history, animals. Parents, Alfonso Sr. and Ramona. Two brothers. Widow, Angie. Alfonso Ochoa Jr. American hero.
The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children marks 30 years of hope April 9th, Washington, D.C.`s National Museum of Crime and Punishment. Since `84, working with police and victims. Congratulations.
Drew up next. A woman stabs a cop. Everyone, I`ll see you tomorrow night, 8:00 sharp Eastern. And until then, good night, friend.
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