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Nancy Grace
Man Drives Across Country for Child Sex; Mom Bites Pitbull to Save 2-Year-Old
Aired April 22, 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 tonight, live to Longwood, Florida. He drives around the clock, across the country. Why? To have sex with a little girl, a little girl he says he wants to make his, quote, "bride."
Bombshell tonight. The dwarf traveler with a urine bottle busted in a child sex sting!
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: A 40-year-old man, just 4-foot-10, is accused of driving for 18 hours to have sex with a 14-year-old girl, such a hurry, his car became soiled with human waste! Authorities say the man not only sent a naked picture of himself, but wanted to know if the dress she would be wearing could be removed quickly!
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GRACE: And then League City, Texas, a gorgeous little girl with Mommy when out of nowhere, the child attacked by a family pet. As Mommy struggles to get the beast off the baby, Mommy bites off the dog`s ear to try and save her little girl! We learn tonight the crime scene so horrific, EMTs say it will haunt them the rest of their lives.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Mommy (INAUDIBLE)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: If you look closely, you`ll see scars. They`re from a dog attack.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: She`s a strong little girl and a fighter.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The dog attacked the little girl, so Chelsi was forced to fight, shoving her fist into the dog`s mouth and even biting off its ear, all while telling her daughter to turn over so she didn`t choke on blood.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GRACE: And reality TV superstars in shock tonight to learn Pastor Douglas Phillips (ph) busted on child sex claims, allegedly grooming one little girl out of his own congregation for sex.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: One of the leaders of the Christian Movement, Doug Phillips, a married father of eight, is being sued by a former member. Phillips inappropriately touched and groped her for years, beginning when she was only a teenager.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GRACE: And tonight, a mother desperate to find her little girl. We go live to Oklahoma City. Tonight, where is Annie Jo (ph)?
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: A mom is desperately searching for her 16-year-old daughter.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Anne (ph) had just gotten the keys to her first car. That car was found abandoned.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We know she`s out there somewhere and she wants to come home.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Family and police need your help finding Anne Josette Hill (ph).
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GRACE: Good evening. I`m Nancy Grace. I want to thank you for being with us.
Bombshell tonight. We go to Longwood, California (sic). He drives around the clock -- yes, this guy -- across the country to have sex with a little girl he intends to make his, quote, "bride," the dwarf traveler. Yes, he`s a dwarf with a urine bottle busted in a child sex sting.
Now, this is not the first time that we have seen people travel across the country. Nobody will forget the astronaut Lisa Nowak, who traveled across the country using adult diapers and urine cans to try to kill her love rival with this guy.
Crosses the country, Kansas City, all the way to Florida, the car covered in human feces and urine because he won`t stop, he is so intent on reaching his child bride, a little girl.
To Dave Mack, syndicated talk show host. Dave, this guy travels across the country to have sex with a little girl, seemingly to make her his, quote, "bride." He meets her in a chat room. What chat room is it that predators think they can find children? That`s my first question. What chat room did he meet the girl in?
DAVE MACK, SYNDICATED TALK SHOW HOST (via telephone): Nancy, there are a lot of different chat rooms (INAUDIBLE) where these predators are out there, they`re on line, and they`re looking for this. Thank God we have police that are also patrolling these (INAUDIBLE)
GRACE: Well, it`s my understanding that this chat room -- let me go to you, Clark Goldband. In the chat room, he is talking to, he believes, a 13-year-old little girl. And she says -- he says, Can you send me some money, or he sends her something. She says, I`m sorry, I can`t talk right now. I`m in school. You know, I`m only 13.
He even goes so far to ask the little girl, What are your fantasies? What are your fetishes? What do you like and dislike? Hello! She`s 13! She responds, I don`t know what you`re talking about. I`m only 13.
CLARK GOLDBAND, NANCY GRACE PRODUCER: And Nancy...
GRACE: And he continues on, Clark!
GOLDBAND: Nancy, according to authorities, he also asked the girl if she`s into condoms or not. Now, this is a young teen girl. And Nancy, we`ve obtained the police report, that we can show behind us some of these alleged conversations that occurred.
Take a look at this. It starts off very nonchalantly. How are you doing? We see the conversation progress and progress. But quickly, it starts to turn weird. Take a look at this next screen. I`m good, and you. After that, he starts to say, Not bad, now that the most beautiful lady in existence just hit me up.
Now, keep in mind, according to authorities, he knows this girl is 14. Oh, so you`re OK with me being 14. Cool. And thank you. And guys, it just continues to get stranger, if authorities are to be believed. And quite frankly, there are some screens we...
GRACE: What do you mean, stranger?
GOLDBAND: It turns sexual. It turns aggressively sexual, if authorities are to be believed. And Nancy...
GRACE: Whoa, whoa, whoa! "I would be honored to be your man if you`d let me."
GOLDBAND: Yes. Yes.
GRACE: Did he ask her about her so-called wedding dress, Clark?
GOLDBAND: Nancy, he says he wants the girl to be a teen bride. He wants to know if it would be bad if we got preggo. Also, authorities are claiming that he wanted to know if the dress was expensive or not that she would be wearing at the motel because he wanted to rip it off. Nancy...
GRACE: OK, this is a guy who travels across the country to meet a child bride that he meets in a chat room. Clark, tell me about the condition of the vehicle.
GOLDBAND: Well, Nancy, it was a 1992 Ford F-150. And what authorities are saying is that human waste was found in the vehicle. This was allegedly an 18-hour drive from Kansas City, Missouri, all the way down to the Florida, Orlando area. What they found -- a urine-soaked bottle. They found a female wallet with $6.50 in it. And the truck was soiled with human waste.
GRACE: OK, guys. There he is. He may be a dwarf to us -- oh, that`s video of Christopher Lanning`s perp walk from WOFL. He may be a dwarf to us, but not to a little girl.
Joining me right now is a special guest, Officer Kevin Tuck from the Longwood Police Department. Officer, thank you so much for being with us. This story is bizarre, but true. Tell me how you guys busted the guy.
OFFICER KEVIN TUCK, LONGWOOD POLICE DEPARTMENT (via telephone): Well, first off, I would like to say thank you, Nancy, for bringing light to this story, on behalf of (INAUDIBLE) Longwood Police Department.
This is a dangerous, dangerous situation for our young people. The Internet nowadays is a dangerous, dangerous place. And one of our undercover officers posed as a 14-year-old girl, and she basically had conversations with this gentleman -- or this man. I wouldn`t even want to call him a gentleman. And basically, he wanted to solicit sex with a 14- year-old girl.
GRACE: And you know, Officer Tuck -- with me Kevin Tuck from the Longwood Police Department, who foiled this guy. I mean, she gave every signal that she is a minor. I can`t write right now, I`m in class, at elementary school. She says, I don`t have any fantasies. What are fantasies? I`m just, you know, I`m 14 years old. I don`t know what you`re talking about. What`s a fantasy?
And it goes on and on. He`s talking about, What is your wedding dress, is it expensive because I want to rip it off you it at the hotel.
Officer Kevin Tuck, what was their rendezvous point, where he was going to actually meet his little child bride?
TUCK: Well, the initial takedown location was at a gas station, Daltrek (ph) Road and Ronald Reagan Boulevard. I think he had also mentioned that he wanted to find out the closest hotel and try to find out the prices of that hotel. He couldn`t wait to engage in sexual activity with this supposedly minor.
GRACE: You know what, Officer Tuck? Every time I let one of my twins play with the iPhone, which is rare, I`m always afraid they`re going to accidentally plug something in, and God knows what`s going to come up.
This guy, you managed to stop. But this guy was so intent on raping a little girl -- what asked how mature she was physically, her breasts and periods, had she ever had sex or kissed anybody. What is your style, turn- ons and turn-offs. If we make love, condom or no condom. Would it be bad if we got pregnant? Lanning asked if he needed to buy sex toys and make it easier since she has never had sex before, asked if she was ready to share a bed with him, if she could send bedroom photos. And is she ready for a ring. What menstrual cycle, so they could time it to have a baby the very first time they had sex. All of this to a little girl, in his mind!
So Officer Tuck, amazing to me that this guy has actually made bond. Everybody, he has not been convicted yet. These are just charges. He is actually out on bond, Officer Tuck?
TUCK: No, ma`am. He is still in the Seminole County jail. He did not post bond. And we are -- I just want the parents to know that the police, the Longwood Police Department, the Seminole County sheriff`s office -- we`re conducting an operation called Safe Net, and we are out on the Internet. We are making sure that we provide a safe place for our young people because it is...
GRACE: You know what, Officer Tuck? It`s so hard because no matter how hard you try, teens and children go into, like, one direction, that -- the boy band chat group -- the name of this -- and what was it, Clark, Bad Dude? Was that the -- Baddude.com. I mean, there -- I mean, you cannot monitor every Internet site there is.
Unleash the lawyers, Areva Martin, LA, Robert Schalk, defense attorney out of New York. All right, Robert Schalk, give me your best shot at how the defense is going to attack this charge. Again, he`s not convicted. He didn`t make bond. Thank you, Tuck, for pointing that out. They`ve given him a bond amount, but he hasn`t made bond yet. OK, Schalk, how do you attack it?
ROBERT SCHALK, DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Well, Nancy, there was a statement that scrolled across during the course of your reporting which indicated his mother noted that there were some mental problems he had never been evaluated for, didn`t seek treatment from. So obviously, there`s something else at play here, according to the family, so...
GRACE: So let me get this straight, Schalk. No treatment, no evaluation. He knew enough to try it get a little girl into this hotel/motel bed. So what else do I need to know, Schalk?
SCHALK: Well, you also need to know the devil`s always in the details in these cases. I`m sure not all of the text messages and not all of the e-mails are being turned over by the authorities. The question is going to become, who initiated the contact and where did the conversation go?
GRACE: Put him up. Put him up! Who initiated the contact? OK, Areva Martin, are you trying to say that this is an entrapment defense, that police snared this guy?
AREVA MARTIN, DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Well, clearly, that`s going to be one of the issues that comes into play in terms of his defense, how much was he solicited by this undercover officer...
GRACE: OK...
MARTIN: ... always an important question and something the defense should be looking at. But I can`t underestimate this mental illness point that`s been raised by his own mother.
(CROSSTALK)
GRACE: ... never diagnosed for?
MARTIN: Nancy...
(CROSSTALK)
GRACE: ... and never treated for.
MARTIN: ... he`s defecating in his own car. He`s urinating in the car. That`s not what people who don`t have mental issues do. We can`t underestimate how important that`s going to be in this defense.
GRACE: Listen, let me tell you something, Areva Martin. Just because you or Schalk don`t teetee into A coke bottle, that doesn`t mean the rest of the country won`t do it, if they have to.
And let me remind everybody about Lisa Nowak. This is a NASA-trained female astronaut who does the same thing, except she one-ups him. She actually uses an adult diaper to go across the country to try to murder her love rival.
You see that outfit? That`s a NASA outfit. That`s the astronaut outfit. She`s passed every mental, physical, psychological, emotional exam you can pass to be an astronaut. She still pulls the same similar stunt, crosses the country, urinating, defecating in an adult diaper. This guy at least used a bottle, for Pete`s sake, to try to get to his child bride.
Officer Kevin Tuck, I just want to say thank you to the Longwood Police Department for foiling this guy. Again, he has not been convicted. We`re on the case. We`ll let you know what happens.
When we come back, a gorgeous little girl attacked by the family pet. Mommy struggling to get the beast off the baby. Mommy bites the dog`s ear off to try to save her little girl.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
GRACE: And now to League City, Texas, a gorgeous little girl with Mommy, when out of nowhere, the child attacked by a family pet. Mommy struggles to get the beast off her baby. Mommy bites the dog`s ear off to try and save her little girl. We learn tonight the crime scene so horrific, EMTs say the scene will haunt them the rest of their lives.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Chelsi was dog-sitting a friend`s pitbull, who was friendly until he met Mackenzi.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: When he smelled her, that`s when he just kind of saw (ph) it (ph) flip (ph).
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The dog attacked the little girl, so Chelsi was forced to fight.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GRACE: Joining me right now, Nik Rajkovic from KTRH. It`s amazing to me that this child, minding her own business, in her home, sitting there with Mommy, and the dog, a family pet, comes in, attacks the child. Mommy has to fight the beast off, Nik, fight off -- even biting the beast`s ear off. What happened?
NIK RAJKOVIC, KTRH (via telephone): Well, as you mentioned, Nancy, Chelsi and her 2-year-old daughter, Mackenzi in the bathroom, just minding their own business, as you said. The dog comes in and starts to smell the girl, possibly smelling their dog scent, is what the mom says, just flipped out, grabbed the girl by the back of her head, pulling her hair with his teeth. This heroic mom, as you mentioned, shoves her fist into the dog`s mouth and bit its ear off, all while managing to call 911 for help.
GRACE: You know, and it`s an incredible story. Michael Christian, what I don`t understand -- the dog -- how did the dog get in the house? It belonged to Mommy`s boyfriend? Is that what happened?
MICHAEL CHRISTIAN, NANCY GRACE PRODUCER (via telephone): That`s right, Nancy. She was babysitting or pet sitting for this dog that everybody described as normally very friendly. All of a sudden, as the mother says, this dog flipped and attacked the 2-year-old girl.
GRACE: Wow. Out to the lines. Kelly, Kentucky. Hi, Kelly. What`s your question?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Hey, Nancy. I just want to tell you that I know several people with pitbulls. I have a friend a couple of streets over from me that has a mini-pit. What I mean by mini-pit is it`s a pitbull that is bred with a dog that`s smaller than itself. When I go to her house, she greets me with a toy. She is absolutely the most lovable dog I have ever met. But when it comes to the other dogs in the house, she has put the other dogs in the house in the animal hospital before, being very aggressive and going after them.
GRACE: Oh, my goodness!
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.
GRACE: OK. So Kelly, what is your question?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Well, I really don`t have a question. I just wanted to -- you know, I just wanted to let you know that, you know, I know a lot of people with pitbulls, and they are very unpredictable.
GRACE: Extremely unpredictable. And you`re right, a mini-pini (ph) - - pincer or the smaller variations of these dogs, very, very different.
Grey Stafford, director of conservation, Wildlife World Zoo, author of "Animal Trainer" -- Grey, thanks for being with us. Dr. Stafford, I don`t understand it. I mean, as you just heard the caller, her neighbor has put the dogs, when they became aggressive, in the animal hospital. So why are dog owners just blind to their dogs` aggressive behavior?
And just so you know, Grey, we spoke to the mom of this little girl. And she has actually gotten hate mail and death threats because she spoke out against the dog. This is her child, Grey! And she spoke out against the dog, and now she`s getting hate mail!
GREY STAFFORD, AUTHOR, "ANIMAL TRAINER" (via telephone): That`s absurd, Nancy. I mean, this woman did what she had to do to protect herself and her child, not unlike what you would do with your two children.
And I think what`s missing here is we simply are not preparing our dogs for new situations. And I know that even though the dog was just visiting, it may have been a completely new situation for it. If he smelled the other dog on the child, that may have been enough to scare him, to frighten him or to think there was an intruder.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Mommy (INAUDIBLE)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: If you look closely, you`ll see scars. They`re from a dog attack.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: She`s a strong little girl and a fighter.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The dog attacked the little girl, so Chelsi was forced to fight, shoving her fist into the dog`s mouth and even biting off its ear, all while telling her daughter to turn over so she didn`t choke on blood.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GRACE: Oh! I can`t even imagine! You`re sitting there with your child, and your boyfriend`s dog attacks the baby, nearly killing it. You`re screaming to tell the baby, Turn over, turn over, turn over, so she won`t choke on her own blood.
And this is what I don`t get, Michael Christian. Show me the shot of this little baby in the hospital, please. Mackenzi Plats (ph), just 2 years old, her nickname Kenzi (ph), attacked by a pitbull. Michael, is it true the mother has gotten hate mail because she publicized what happened to her daughter? Hate mail, Michael!
CHRISTIAN: That`s right, Nancy. And this mother is such a hero. You know, there are so many people who would not have been able to think in a situation like that, who certainly wouldn`t have been able to act in a situation like that. The fact that this little girl is alive today is due to her mother. Her mother is a hero in this situation.
GRACE: You know what I`m also praying -- to Dr. John Hong, internal medical physician at Cape Regional. Dr. Hong, thanks for being with us. I`m just praying -- A, I`m grateful the child is alive, OK, number one. But B, can we fix the scars on her face?
DR. JOHN HONG, PHYSICIAN: Well, first of all, my heart out to Mackenzi. And her mother, I agree is a hero. Whether the scars can be fixed -- there are scars on the face, but also, I`m sure there are internal scars, as well. There are over a million dog bites that we see in the emergency departments every year.
And she is lucky to be alive because if a jugular vein or carotid artery had been punctured (INAUDIBLE) blunt trauma because most people who are only 5 years or younger, they`re at the level of the dog. And therefore, 60 to 70 percent of them get mauled in the face or the neck. And that can lead to not only instant death right there, but also infections, rabies, tetanus. So she`s lucky...
GRACE: Well, all I know, Dr. Hong, is if it weren`t for this mother, this child would be dead, the mom actually biting the dog`s ear off to get the beast off her 2-year-old little girl.
Everybody, when we come back, reality superstars in shock tonight to learn their beloved minister busted on child sex claims, allegedly grooming a little girl out of his own congregation for sex.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
GRACE: Reality TV superstars. The Duggars, 19 and counting in shock tonight to learn Pastor Douglas Phillips, busted on child sex claims, allegedly grooming one little girl out of his own congregation for sex.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Quiverful is a conservative Christian movement that preaches that wives and daughters are to be subservient to their husbands and fathers. The Duggars from TLC`s "19 Kids and Counting" are followers of this way of life. One of the leaders of this ministry is being sued by a former member. Her lawsuit accuses Doug Phillips of using her as his personal sex object.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GRACE: The Duggar family is royalty, reality royalty. This is the show where they have 19 -- I believe -- there they are. There are the Duggars, 19 and counting, I think is the name of their show. And it`s all about raising a large family based on Christian principles. Well, tonight the Duggars are in shock to learn Pastor Douglas Phillips has been charged with child sex. Take a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Usually throughout the week, either at lunch or dinners, we`ll have everybody, and then other days there`s some that are gone doing their things. So it`s just a different season of life. It used to be all of us around the table. The older ones now talk about the times of being around the table and their favorite meals. And a lot of times what we would do when they were young, we would make little note cards of praise and we would take turns going around the table, and each person would share a praise report about the other person, about a character quality they might have demonstrated.
We have had groups of many, many people before. We put like two or three picnic tables on the end of it, and just extended it on out. There will be people standing and sitting on the stools over there, outside. This time around the table is a very special time for our family, making memories. You could be eating beans and rice and cornbread and having a very low-cost meal, but the richness of the fellowship and love around the table is what it`s all about.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GRACE: You know, they strike me as being extremely sincere. You`re seeing pictures of video of the Duggar family from TLC`s "19 Kids and Counting." So tonight they`re reeling to learn Pastor Douglas Phillips has been charged with child sex. Now we just got a statement from them. Jim Bob and Michelle have been fortunate enough to have spoken at countless events over the years. Their participation at an event should not be misconstrued as a full endorsement of the teachings of the host, ministry or personal relationship with those who plan the events. The Duggars previously spoke by invitation at some of the Vision Form events for the purpose of encouraging families. Jim Bob and Michelle are grieved to hear what has happened with Vision Forum and are in prayer for all of the affected families.
Straight out to Alexis Tereszcuk, senior reporter, Radaronline.com. You know what, I`ve heard and read so much about the Duggar family, I`m too busy working and raising my own children to watch other people in reality shows, and I`m trying to do my own thing here. But I`ve read a lot about them, Alexis. And what this pastor is charged with is in direct contradiction to everything that they stand for. What happened?
TERESZCUK: You are exactly right, Nancy. I have spoken with the Duggars many times over the years. They are wonderful people. This is nothing that would ever happen in their family. So what happened is, this organization that as they said they have participated in their events, the leader of it, a man named Douglas Phillips, who is married with eight children of his own, has been accused by one of the girls who actually worked as a nanny in his family home, she has accused him of sexually assaulting her multiple times. In fact, in her lawsuit, she gave specific dates of times that he came into her bedroom and inappropriately touched her. She said it was a horrific experience. And she is now being attacked by this man`s wife, who is saying that she is lighting off bombs all over the world, and this is going to come back and haunt her. She is simply trying to get justice for what she says were horrible sexual assaults that happened within the church, the community, and they condoned it, and no one stopped it, nobody helped her at all.
GRACE: Now to producer Mike Duffy. Mike Duffy, what exactly does the alleged victim claim the Duggar pastor did to her?
DUFFY: Well, Nancy, there`s some pretty strong accusations being lobbed in this lawsuit. She says she was groped, rubbed, touched in various places on her body, including her crotch and breasts. And she says that Doug Phillips even went so far as to pleasure himself on her.
GRACE: Okay. Pleasure himself. Pleasure himself. We`re talking about alleged child sex, Mike Duffy. Are you trying to say he masturbated on her?
DUFFY: Yes, that`s correct.
GRACE: All right. That`s her claim. With me is David Gibbs, the attorney for Lourdes Torres, the girl, she is now a lady, and also with me from San Antonio, Jason J. Jakob, attorney for Doug Phillips. First to you, David Gibbs and Jakob, to both of you, thank you for being with us. What is your position, Mr. Gibbs?
DAVID GIBBS, ATTORNEY FOR LOURDES TORRES: Well, my position is that my client was victimized. She was abused by this man who was a minister, he was a counselor, he was a teacher, and he has an ideology, Nancy, where men are totally in control. He believes women are reflected glory from God. And he created it where he was this god in this girl`s life, where she had no choice but to do what he said.
GRACE: I`m going to ask you a tough question, David Gibbs. I know he`s charged with groping her, assaulting her, feeling up all of her private parts, ejaculating on her. Here is a tough question for you, Mr. Gibbs. Why did she wait so long and why isn`t there a criminal claim? This is a civil case, correct?
GIBBS: It is a civil case. And Doug manipulated her. He`s a master manipulator. With the promise that he was going to marry her. What he did --
GRACE: Whoa, whoa. What about his wife and eight children! Doesn`t --
GIBBS: Well, it`s kind of interesting.
GRACE: Yes, what`s going to happen to them?
GIBBS: Well, genetically, he told her that he knew from God that she was going to die. And so basically they needed to wait for her to die, and then at that point, he promised to marry her. It was that ongoing --
GRACE: Crazy -- this story is so crazy, David Gibbs, I`m starting to believe it. Because that`s not the kind of fact or detail you make up. But before I buy in, hook, line and sinker, to Jason Jacob, attorney for Doug Phillips. What is the defense, Mr. Jacob?
JASON J. JAKOB, ATTORNEY FOR DOUG PHILLIPS: The very first thing, Nancy, this case is about poor credibility. From five months ago when the demand letter came, there was charges of sexual assault, molestation, rape, child molestation. You have to realize that even in their own alleged lawsuit, they`re claiming that this is a 23-year-old girl that occurred in 2007, by their own admission. So this is not a child -- there is no child molestation. There is no rape, there is no battery.
GRACE: Okay. How old -- David Gibbs, does your client say she was when this started?
GIBBS: Well, the grooming began, Nancy, when she was 15. And Doug began making overtures towards her, buying gifts for her family, trying to include them. And this was a 14-year process, where he used and manipulated her, and my opposing counsel is correct that it got more sexually exploitive when he thought he could get away with it.
But what we believe is that his position of trust, his leadership as a counselor, or a teacher, a mentor, a pastor, and this total institution, where he was controlling every facet of her life, and having her obey him as obeying god, still holds him accountable in the courts. And I think defense counsel will have to say, Doug has largely admitted to a lot of this, that`s why he`s stepped down, and at this point they`re in the kind of typical trash the victim routine.
GRACE: We`ll see where it goes, everyone. The reality family royalty, the Duggar family, in shock tonight. Pastor Douglas Phillips, charged with child sex. These are civil claims yet to be proved.
When we come back, a mother desperate to find her girl. Tonight, where is Annie Jo?
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: She would be amazed at the number of people that are out there driving streets, walking parks, knocking on doors, taping up flyers.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
GRACE: Tonight, a mother desperate to find her girl. We go live to Oklahoma City, tonight. Where is Annie Jo?
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Family and police are searching for an honor roll student that has vanished.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Driving streets, walking parks, knocking on doors.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Lori Hill`s daughter, Anne, went to a friend`s house to watch a movie.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Never met a stranger. That`s my Annie Jo.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GRACE: This little girl is missing, and joining us tonight is her mother. First to Noam Laden, WABC. What happened?
LADEN: She went missing. We know there might have been some back and forth before she went missing with her mother, where she wanted to stay out late with some friends. But after that, the trail goes sort of cold. They did find her car, this white Monte Carlo, a couple days after she went missing. But she wasn`t there.
GRACE: You know what, let`s just take it from the top. Noam, I want to go through when she was last seen. I know that that evening, she went to a friend`s house to watch a movie. Noam, isn`t that true that after that, that`s when everything gets vague and we don`t know what happened to her?
LADEN: Yes, it gets vague, and we get some conflicting stories. One story from somebody who said they saw her at a McDonald`s, hanging out with some bad people, the way they described it.
GRACE: You know what, that should be easily proved through McDonald`s surveillance. Everybody, joining me right now is Lori Hill, the missing girl`s mom. Everybody, take a look at this girl. Her mother desperate for help, finding Annie Jo. Annie Josette Hill. Lori Hill, thank you for being with us. Lori, tell me about your daughter and what are police telling you tonight?
LORI HILL, MOTHER: My heart is just torn in two. And it`s so hard to try and reserve a piece of sanity in order to talk about it. On one hand, there were a couple of days where the police thought this is just another runaway. There are hundreds -- you could probably get statistics on it. There are a lot of girls that just decide not to go home. And it took a while to convince the police that this was not one of them. Because there are so many. But my daughter is not one of those. She`s in constant contact with me and her brothers. We`re a very tight knit family. Her father died from melanoma before her second birthday. And her brothers have been, you know, the male role models in her life. And she talks to them all of the time.
GRACE: You know, Lori, it`s just -- it`s just hurting me so much to hear that police were convinced she is a runaway. That is not true. And what`s upsetting is that they lost so much lead time while you tried to convince them she has not run away. I mean, you guys, you work your fingers to the bone. She has this car. Let me see a picture of her car. She loves the car. She would never abandon this car. She loved it dearly. She would never have just left it there, abandoned.
With me right now is Lori Hill, Annie Jo`s mother, begging for your help. The tip line is 405-297-1129. Let me ask you this, Ms. Hill. You say she has been in constant contact with you and her brother and family. Extremely close-knit after her father died with melanoma. Why are you so convinced she did not run away?
HILL: Well, the way the communication just stopped. Earlier that day, she sent me a text and then she couldn`t wait for me to text back. And when I had a break she called me. There was -- she knew of a job that she wanted me to apply for so we would be at the same school. And a kid that wants to get away from home is not going to recruit their parent to come to their school.
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UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: My heart`s just torn in two. And it`s so hard to try and reserve a piece of sanity in order to talk about it.
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GRACE: It`s not going to get lost with all the others that the mom is worried about that are runaways. I don`t believe this child is a runaway. Neither does her mother. For those of you that can hear our program tonight, all of you truckers, all of you on the road, listening to your radio, for all of you watching our program tonight, please help this mother find her child. We`re talking about Annie Josette Hill, she just got the keys to this car, a 2004 white Monte Carlo with black racing stripes. She loved it dearly, says the car is her baby, she is so proud, now the car has been found abandoned, and her mother is joining us tonight asking for your help.
Everybody, tip line, 405-297-1129. White female, brown hair, brown eyes. She`s only 5`4, about 120 pounds. She was wearing a blue short set when she was last seen.
With me, in addition to Ms. Hill, who is begging for your help, Darcie Parton-Scoon, private investigator, looking for Annie Jo, at the Center for Search and Investigations. Darcie, I don`t like the sound of what those friends said. There`s no person of interest. But when they say, oh, she`s been hanging out with some bad people, or, I don`t know where she went, that sounds pretty vague to me, Darcy. I don`t like the sound of it.
DARCIE PARTON-SCOON: I`m not a big fan, either. We are very concerned, as an organization, because I work pro bono for an organization that does this. And we`re very concerned.
GRACE: What leads are you getting, Darcie? With me, Darcie Parton- Scoon. Do you have any leads you can tell us about?
PARTON-SCOON: Right now, we are beyond a group of shady people. We have been able to identify most of the people that she encountered in the last 24 hours. Haven`t been able to sort out their role in everything at this point. We hate the fact that we got this case just four days ago, so, you know, that`s when the family requested our assistance, so we started. We spent all day Sunday catching up, so --
GRACE: You know what, right now, Darcie, we`re showing a picture of Annie Jo. Her mom is with us, asking for your help. Please take a look. Tip line, 405-297-1129. Annie Jo. Annie Josette goes missing just before Easter break. Please help us bring her home.
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GRACE: Please help us find Anne Josette Hill. Stacey Newman, what more do we know?
NEWMAN: We know her cell phone actually pings, Nancy, around the area where her car was found, and it may have actually pinged the morning after she was last seen.
GRACE: Now, Lori Hill, the mother of Anne Josette is with us. Quickly, to Ramani Durvasula, why are cops always so convinced, just because somebody is 15 or 16, you`re a runaway. This girl is not a runaway.
DURVASULA: Unfortunately, cops are trying to go on probability, right? Teenagers tend to be a little bit random in their behavior, and yes, there`s more risk they`d run away. But this mom is really noting what a significant departure this was, in about six hours, from her usual behavior. She wasn`t showing this as a kid who had behavior problems, who had acted out before, who had run away before. So it is unfortunate that the cops often will delay these complaints because they`re losing valuable time. And in this case, the mom is on it. And she said this was a big change in her behavior, very, very quickly. To me, that`s something they should have listened to and a lot faster.
GRACE: Dr. Ramani Durvasula, joining me from L.A., very well put. Lori Hill, this is Annie Jo`s mom. If you could speak to her right now, what would you say to her or the people that have her?
HILL: Let me daughter come home. If she could be where she wanted to be, I know she would be with her family. Wherever she is, she`s not there because she wants to be. She was looking forward to getting her braces off on the 21st. Her dog just wanders around the house. She trained him for herself to be a therapy dog, and has spent hours and hours and hours at the hospital, comforting other people when they would come into the emergency room or be in intensive care. She spent -- she wouldn`t be anywhere else. She would be here with her family. She`s got too many things that she cares about and she knows we all care about her. She would be here if she could.
GRACE: Lori, let me give the tip line again, 405-297-1129. Please, help us bring this girl home to her mother.
Let`s stop and remember American hero, Army Specialist Kevin Graham, just 27, Benton, Kentucky. Bronze Star, Purple Heart, loved classic cars and World War II memorabilia. Parents, Sandra and Daniel. Three brothers, widow, Crystal, son, Brian. Kevin Graham, American hero.
Everyone, I hope you had a blessed and wonderful Easter and Passover. There are shots of the twins as we celebrated at multiple Easter egg hunts this weekend. And for more of those photos, go to nancygrace.com. Everybody, Drew up next. I`ll see you tomorrow night, 8:00 sharp, Eastern. And until then, good night, friend.
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