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Nancy Grace
Mass Shooting at Oregon Community College. Aired 8-9:00p ET
Aired October 01, 2015 - 20:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
NANCY GRACE, HOST: We are going live and interrupting with breaking news. At least 10 dead, and so far, multiple injured at an Oregon
community college. It is Umpqua Community College of about 3,000 students. Repeat, 10 dead, that we know of, multiple injured. We don`t know a
motive. We don`t know a lot right now. We believe the shooter has been detained.
Straight out to Craig Fronek, host of KCMX. Craig, thank you for being with us. What can you tell us?
CRAIG FRONEK, KCMX (via telephone): Well, Nancy, thanks for having me. About 10:38 Pacific time this morning, Umpqua Community College in
Roseburg, Oregon, about 97 miles north of us, a shooting broke out. The call came in. Oregon State Police, along with Douglas County sheriff and
police, responded.
It`s an active situation right now, somewhere near the science building. And they are saying multiple dead, multiple injuries. There
have been reports of 10. There have been, at some point Douglas County sheriff, upwards of 15, and then upwards of 20 wounded. But all of these
reports are completely unconfirmed. And Ray Schuffler (ph), the fire marshal for Roseburg, was quoted that it`s very -- you know, they`re still
checking to make sure that all students are out of the classrooms.
GRACE: Right now, ATF is on the scene looking for explosives, looking for firearms, looking for ammunition. ATF is covering the campus of Umpqua
Community College there in Oregon.
It`s an extremely rural area. It`s about 180 miles from Eugene, Oregon. It`s about 180 miles from Portland, Oregon. It`s a small campus
of 3,000 students, which leads me to believe, Craig Fronek, that this is someone related to the school, a student, an ex-student, a teacher. We
know that it is a male, or we`ve been told it`s a male.
What more do we know? It`s not like somebody flew into Roseburg, Oregon, and started a mass shooting. This somebody that`s got to be
connected in some way to Umpqua Community College.
FRONEK: Well, Nancy, it`s Umpqua, and the Douglas County sheriff dispatch confirmed, and there is -- the shooter is down and in custody.
They don`t know if he`s alive or dead at this point. They`re not reporting on it. I mean, it`s barely been about an hour and 15 minutes ago.
And it`s -- you can only imagine, like you said, rural Oregon. 3,300 or so full-time students, about 16,000 part-time students. And they just
right now -- they want to make sure that everybody is safe. And they`re saying the shooter is down at this point. No other information. And of
course, you can only imagine all ambulances, all hands on deck.
GRACE: Umpqua Community College, 10 dead that we know of, multiple injuries. There are only 3,000 students in total at Umpqua Community
College. Many of those are community part-time students, of course. There`s a night curriculum there, as well.
Straight out to Justin Freiman. Justin, you have news?
JUSTIN FREIMAN, NANCY GRACE PRODUCER (via telephone): That`s right, Nancy. They`re actually searching this area. And one thing that`s helping
the search is that this college, this community college, that`s in a fairly rural area. It has multiple buildings, but not a lot surrounding the
actual campus. So it should make for the search for evidence a bit easier.
GRACE: With me, Justin Freiman. You say the search for evidence is a bit easier because?
FREIMAN: Because it`s actually a rural area there, so it`s easier to lock down that campus itself and start to search within it. There`s not a
lot of ways to go out there and to get into other places.
GRACE: With me also, Matt Zarrell on the story. Matt, it`s all happening so fast. This all occurred around 10:38 Pacific, 1:38 Eastern,
near the science building there at Umpqua Community College. It`s in Roseburg. It`s 180 miles from Eugene, Oregon, 180 miles from Portland,
Oregon. Ten dead so far. We believe the shooter has been -- they say is down. I don`t know if he`s been arrested. I don`t know if he himself has
been shot.
As it unfolds, Matt Zarrell, what more are you learning?
MATT ZARRELL, NANCY GRACE PRODUCER (via telephone): OK, so the fire marshal has told us that they arrived to find multiple victims in multiple
classrooms and that two of the patients had died while being transported to the hospital. And we know that one female victim was shot in the chest.
[20:05:01]GRACE: Multiple victims in multiple classrooms. Craig Fronek, that sounds to me like the shooter was going classroom to
classroom. It`s very hard to believe that once these victims had been shot, that they`re going to then seek refuge in a classroom, be able to run
and hide in a classroom.
So that defines what happened. It`s not someone out on the quad shooting. It`s someone inside a building, going from classroom to
classroom, or so it sounds right now, Craig.
FRONEK: Well, Nancy, all this is speculation. You wonder if you`re shooting outside because these are multiple buildings that they`re -- that
students are going between classrooms and class buildings. And then as they`re shot, they go into a classroom and lock down, and then they perish
there or what. I don`t know.
I mean, this is just nuts. You don`t know if it could be a sniper from long range. I mean, you don`t know any of these things. All you want
to do is make sure that law enforcement gets in, gets it taken care of, and it looks like they have done that. And then we wait.
And you`re right, Oregon State Police at some point confirmed 10 have past away, but you know with 20 -- as I mentioned, as many as 20 wounded.
But these numbers are -- we have to reconfirm everything, so...
GRACE: We are learning right now, Craig Fronek, that police receive a call of an active shooter in a classroom at the college at 10:30 AM local
time. That is according to the Douglas County sheriff`s office. So someone has gotten into the classroom armed there at Umpqua Community
College, and is shooting in a classroom, 10:30 AM, practically first thing in the morning.
Sarah Madison, (ph) reporter for KVAL on TV, says she sees a female student covered in blood get into a car and leave campus, parents crying,
looking for their children at the campus.
It`s about six miles north of Roseburg, Oregon, normally has 3,000 full-time students and 16,000 part-timers, authorities quickly spreading
the word and calling on residents and students not to go to the campus.
Justin Freiman, it`s developing as the moments go by. What more do we know now? Is the shooter dead?
FREIMAN: They have not confirmed to us whether or not that shooter is dead, but they are continuing to say that they are securing each classroom
and that these victims were found...
GRACE: Hold on.
FREIMAN: ... in multiple classrooms.
GRACE: Justin -- Justin, we`re finding out now. Reports the shooter is a student. Repeat, the Oregon campus shooter is a student. It sounds
as if the shooter is going from class to class, shooting, because you`ve got multiple shooting victims in multiple classrooms, Justin.
FREIMAN: That`s right. It is multiple classrooms. So it`s somebody who knew the campus and could get around easily.
GRACE: We`re just obtaining these photos that you`re seeing right now, mayhem at an Oregon community college campus, Umpqua Community
College, about 16,000 students part-time, 3,000 full-time. So far, 10 have been confirmed dead.
This college, established back in 1964, has just 16 buildings. Now, that leaves me to wonder, Justin, Matt and Craig Fronek, how this whole
thing went down. Craig, with 16 buildings, it should -- it seems to me the ATF should be able to contain this very rapidly.
FRONEK: Oh, yes. I would think with the reports, they would contain it. But you still have a rural setting. You`re talking lots of grass and
sidewalks, trees. These buildings are all separated. So it`s -- from a safety aspect, they`ve got to rush the scene and then lock everything down
from there.
And I`ve got two tweets that we picked up on from a Kayla Marie (ph) at 10:41 AM -- that would have been three minutes -- says, "OMG, there`s
someone shooting on campus." And a minute later, she writes, "Students are running everywhere. Holy God," written at 10:42 this morning, so she was
obviously on campus minutes after the shooting.
GRACE: We are also wondering that there are 100 acres there at Umpqua Community College for the ATF and local police to contain. And there you
are hearing from Craig Fronek at KCMX describing tweets that were coming out of the college during the shootings. Right now, 10 dead in multiple
classrooms.
Back to you, Matt Zarrell. We`re learning that there are 100 acres there. Only one shooter? Do we know that?
[20:10:06]ZARRELL: No, we don`t know that as of now, although they say -- the police are saying this is not an active shooting at this point.
The other thing we`re trying to find out, Nancy, is if multiple weapons were used. We see that very commonly. And also what the
background is once we find out who this potential shooter is. We`re waiting to find out the identity of this person.
GRACE: Now, we have some reports shootings were confined to one classroom, and it`s a very sprawling campus. Other reports, there are
multiple victims in multiple classrooms. We do know this, consistent reports that the shootings were contained in one building, not out in the
open.
Were students or professors in this one classroom targeted? This is a time when classes are ongoing. Did the shooter spring into one of the
classes, a targeted class, a specific student, a specific professor? If so, then why are 10 dead and up to 20 injured?
We`re getting photos in right now of the scene there at Umpqua Community College in Roseburg, Oregon.
Also with me right now, Joseph Scott Morgan, certified death investigator out of Jacksonville State University. How do you contain a
scene like this when you`ve got a sprawling campus, just 16 buildings, but 100 acres?
JOSEPH SCOTT MORGAN, CERTIFIED DEATH INVESTIGATOR: It`s a vast area, Nancy. It`s an area that the police, the authorities -- they`re going to
have to come into and kind of throw a net over this entire area.
The first goal that they`re going to have to reach is total campus safety. They want to clear all of these rooms. They have to do it
methodically. Particularly given this information that they have got so many people shot, I`d be very curious to know if there`s more than one
shooter.
Then they`re going to have to evaluate all of the living. They have to evaluate everyone, triage them at the scene by level of injury, and then
extract them from the scene, and then secure everything. It becomes an active crime scene at that point in time.
GRACE: ATF -- Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives -- has tweets it has special agents at the scene now, sending additional agents, as well
as a K-9 team to the scene now.
We know very well -- to C.W. Jensen, former Portland police captain. We know very well that K-9s are also ammo and explosive dogs, as well.
What do you make of that, C.W.?
C.W. JENSEN, FORMER PORTLAND POLICE CAPTAIN (via telephone): Oh, I think that any more, when these kinds of things happened, maybe 20 years
ago, 30 years ago (INAUDIBLE) basically, maybe the guy got out of his car. (INAUDIBLE) videocameras everywhere, and just walked in.
If that`s the case, then these things happened in a very short amount of time. However, they`re going to be concerned now that an explosive
device or something like that could have been placed somewhere else. So that`s -- it`ll be fairly methodical.
GRACE: Right now, 10 dead, at least 20 wounded in a mass shooting at a small community college in Oregon, Umpqua Community College the scene of
a devastating mass shooting. We are live.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
[20:17:26]UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We are exchanging shots with him. He`s in a classroom.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: An active shooter in one of the classrooms at the college. Officers from around the county immediately responded to the
college, and upon arriving there, they located the shooter in one of the buildings.
Officers engaged that suspect. There was an exchange of gunfire. The shooter threat was neutralized. And officers continued to sweep the
campus, looking for other threats. The shooter was a male. The shooter is deceased.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GRACE: A mass shooting has just gone down at a small community college in Roseburg, Oregon. Joining me there on the scene from "The
Roseburg Beacon" is David Jacques. David, tell us what you see.
DAVID JACQUES, "ROSEBURG BEACON" (via telephone): Well, right now, we`re outside the police perimeter on the college access road. We have
just seen the fifth bus transporting, evacuating students from the campus. We understand the reasoning behind this is that there is possibly another
suspect hiding in a vehicle on campus, so the authorities are doing an exhaustive search of the area.
GRACE: Now, what we know so far, David Jacques -- and you`re on the scene -- is that there are shooting victims in classrooms inside one of the
16 buildings there at Umpqua Community College. Is that correct? What do you know?
JACQUES: Well, what we have heard reports of -- these are unconfirmed yet, but they`re coming from students on the campus that have texted
information to us. We believe that this broke out -- the shooting broke out in the science building. I would have said this was just right before
11:00 AM, somewhere in that vicinity.
And what we`re -- the latest reports we`ve had is that there are 10 confirmed dead. That is not coming from the hospital, but that`s coming
from somebody that intercepted a dispatch. So I don`t know. That`s the number we`re hearing, as many as 25 victims total, and whether that number
is static or increasing, I don`t know.
GRACE: With me is David Jacques of "The Roseburg Beacon" and he is there on the scene.
For those of you just joining us, a mass shooting at a small community college in a very rural area there in Oregon. It`s about 180 miles from
Eugene, Oregon, about 180 miles from Portland, Oregon. There are 3,000 full-time students, about 16,000 part-time students, 16 buildings to
secure, with a sprawling campus of 100 acres.
[20:20:13]We believe the shooting took place inside the building, the science building, we believe. It is not out in an open area, like a quad.
What we are learning, 10 dead so far, 20 to 25 have been injured. We`re also learning that six people were just transported to Mercy Medical Center
and that four more are on the way.
Also, as they are securing the campus, David Jacques, you stated something about a fear there could be a second suspect. Well, if there is
a second suspect, he`s laying low. Haven`t heard anything since the initial rounds of shooting, is that correct, David?
JACQUES: That`s correct. And what the student that sent us the information just moments ago told us, that they think this person may be
hiding in a vehicle. So of course, they`re going through the cars, and they`re doing a thorough check of all of the people that they`re
evacuating. And I assume when they get into the fairgrounds, they`re going to be doing some debriefing.
Another school bus has just arrived (INAUDIBLE) coming into the campus. So we`re assuming that that evacuation`s going to be continuing
for the next several hours.
GRACE: We are hearing reports, David Jacques -- I`m trying to confirm them -- that the shooter was a student?
JACQUES: I`m here. Not now.
GRACE: You what?
JACQUES: No, go ahead. I`m on (ph).
GRACE: I`m losing you a little bit. Everybody, with me, David Jacques is on the scene there at Umpqua Community College, David joining us
from the "Roseburg Beacon."
There`s a lot of confusion happening right now. They`re trying to get everybody off e campus. They`re taking out buses. People are leaving in
cars. The campus is basically still a scene, a crime scene. There are some fears there may be a second shooter possibly hiding in one of the cars
that are still parked there on campus.
David Jacques joining me. David, again, we have heard reports the shooter is a student. Have you heard that report, as well?
JACQUES: We have not heard that report. The only thing that we`ve learned so far, is allegedly, that it is a male that they have in custody.
Earlier reports were they had the shooter down, so we`re not certain whether he`s been shot or just has been detained and placed under arrest.
I don`t know that yet.
GRACE: David Jacques, it has all the markings of a student coming into a particular class. The shooting started at around 10:30 AM,
according to a tweet from a student there on campus. We believe that that`s correct.
What do you know about how the shootings went down? Are there reports the shooter went from room to room? Was it all concentrated in one
classroom?
JACQUES: Well, as soon as this broke out, the campus went on total lockdown. The students were not allowed to leave their classrooms. And as
you pointed out, this is a campus that has a lot of buildings.
One of the students told us that it was eerily silent immediately following the lockdown. In other words, they didn`t hear any shots. And
so it`s unknown if they were just further away and weren`t able to hear them. But that`s what that student reported to us.
GRACE: It`s just amazing to me -- back to Craig Fronek joining us from KCMX -- the psychopathy behind whoever this shooter is.
For those of you joining us, breaking news now, a community college shooting at a rural college in Oregon, Roseburg, Oregon, Umpqua Community
College.
Craig, any idea right now about, if this is a student, the cause of the shooting?
I think I`ve got Craig Fronek with me. Let me know when we get him back up, his satellite back up, Liz.
David Jacques, do we have any idea the motive for mowing down in a hail of bullets...
JACQUES: (INAUDIBLE) have anything new.
GRACE: No, nothing new as to the possibility of a motive?
JACQUES: Well, this is David. No, we have not heard any possibility of a motive. We haven`t even had it confirmed yet that it was a student.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
[20:28:18]UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The suspect is down. We`ve got multiple gunshot wounds (INAUDIBLE) multiple ambulances on scene.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I copy. The suspect down, you have multiple injured (INAUDIBLE) multiple ambulances.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GRACE: For those of you just joining us, breaking news out of Oregon, a mass shooting at a quiet community college campus there in Roseburg,
Oregon. It`s Umpqua Community College, home to 3,000 full-time students, 16,000 part-time students. So far, 10 dead, up to 20 to 25 injured.
We know that people are being transported over and over to Mercy Medical Center. They just sent out a tweet stating that, quote, "We have
received nine patients from the UCC tragedy, three more en route. Please continue to pray."
We all reiterate that at this hour, please continue to pray.
They believe there is one shooter, but according to David Jacques there on the scene, ATF on the scene, FBI en route, are now trying to
secure all 16 buildings and are fast and furiously searching cars to make sure a shooter is not hiding in any of the cars.
Straight out to Craig Fronek with KCMX. What more can you tell us, Craig?
FRONEK: Nancy, what they`re doing right now, very fluid situation. We do have confirmed reports from Oregon State Police, that -- Oregon State
Police lieutenant Bill Fugate (ph), 7 to 10 people dead, at least 20 people wounded in the shooting. That comes out of (INAUDIBLE) Eugene KVAL.
But you know, this is what`s going on. You`ve got the massive area, you`ve got -- it`s a crime scene, you`ve got evidence. These students are not
being allowed to drive away. They`re being bussed away. So obviously, you`ve got 20-something -- you know, 18, 19, 20 and older in a community
college. And they`re trying to get a grip on what`s just happened.
GRACE: Exactly. Matt Zarrell, what are you hearing?
MATT ZARRELL, NANCY GRACE PRODUCER: Well, Nancy, one thing we have to explore here is whether there was a car used as part of the shooting, as
well. We don`t know if police have circled or has a car in question that they`re looking at. It couldn`t contain forensic evidence, possibly a plan
if this person had planned it out. We`re still trying to figure out more information.
GRACE: OK. With me again, David Jaques from the "Roseburg Beacon." At first information went out that the student shooter was, quote, "down."
That was later corrected to the shooter is down. So we have no information for sure this was a student. According to one person, we locked our door,
and I went out to lock up the rest rooms, I heard four shots from the front of campus.
Does the shooting -- many people are running, people running to their cars. They didn`t have any idea what was going on. That was at the time
of the shooting. 1:38 Eastern Standard, 10:38 Pacific.
David Jaques, what are you learning?
JAQUES: Well, we haven`t had a lot of new information. Right now the scene that I`m observing, we`ve just had another school bus, an empty bus
come into the campus, presumably to continue the evacuation. They are taking students down to the fair grounds, and I`m assuming for some
debriefing and getting additional information they can glean from the student witnesses.
We are now seeing another ambulance leaving. It does not appear to have its lights going. I don`t know what to infer from that. But there
have been several ambulances come in the last few minutes as well.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[20:36:03] GRACE: Live, upscale town center mall in Florida. A young mom and her 7-year-old little girl found bound and gagged with duct tape,
plastic ties, handcuffs, goggles, both dead in the family SUV after they are forced to withdraw $500 from an ATM.
Bombshell tonight. In the last hours, that reward is climbing to nearly a half million dollars for anybody who can help crack this case.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: A family searching for answers, hoping the smallest clue can find who killed Nancy and Joey Bochicchio.
JOANN BRUNO, SISTER OF VICTIM NANCY BOCHICCHIO: Knowing that he`s out there. They should have been looking for someone like him.
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: In the grainy video, it is hard to tell, but the floppy hat, sunglasses and ponytail are enough of a sign, close enough
to this sketch of a potential killer.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GRACE: Oh, my stars. Liz, can you run that back? That`s a picture of 7-year-old Joey right there. For those of you just joining us, a mom
and her 7-year-old little girl, Joey, found dead, in their family SUV at a upscale town and mall. It`s right there in Boca Raton.
Oh, don`t you know that if only they had run in the mall. If they had just made a run for it, would it have made a difference.
Joel Malkin, news director, WJNO and WJNO.com, Joel, it seems like a little bit of overkill. You overtake -- there`s their SUV right there. I
just can`t believe all of this evidence, we can`t get the killer, that they get the mom and the 7-year-old little girl, all right, that`s easy prey in
a parking garage. They come prepared, Joel. They`ve got zip ties. Handcuffs, duct tape. They make the two of them put on goggles that are
blacked out. What, all of this for $500? That doesn`t sound right.
JOEL MALKIN, NEWS DIRECTOR, WJNO: Yes. This was -- when this happened, this was an extreme shock to everybody in the area. This mall,
as you said, at the open of this story, upscale. I mean, the very upscale, Boca Town Center Mall. And, you know --
(CROSSTALK)
GRACE: What are the stores in there? Town center. They`re pretty she-she. Bloomingdales, I know. What else?
MALKIN: Yes. All the stuff I can`t afford to shop at, frankly.
(LAUGHTER)
GRACE: Tell us exactly. And so they`re here at this mall in their SUV. But it just seems -- Saks Fifth Avenue. It seems to me like
overkill. But all of that for $500? I mean, the -- the stuff alone, the goggles, blacked out, the zip ties, the handcuffs, the duct tape. All of
that together, $250. And then they get $500? It doesn`t make sense to me, Joel.
MALKIN: You would wonder if there was more of a motive or maybe this is some, you know, sick person that gets some sort of pleasure out of, you
know, murdering a mother and her beautiful child.
GRACE: Also with me, special guest, Chief Dan Alexander with the Boca Raton Police Department, and JoAnn Bruno, the sister of mom, Nancy.
First to you, Chief. It`s just amazing to me that with all of this evidence, we can`t crack the case. You`ve got the video evidence of them
coming in, but the guy is disguised. Listen, I had a bank robbery with footage that we could not identify the robber.
What other clues do we have, Chief Alexander?
CHIEF DAN ALEXANDER, BOCA RATON POLICE: Well, Nancy, thank you for having me, and appreciate you highlighting this case. We remain
steadfastly committed to seeking justice for Nancy and Joey about this case.
[20:40:09] You have reviewed hundreds of investigators, you know, that they`re typically tight-lipped and they don`t like putting out information.
But we`ve put out a lot. We`ve been seeking any information, any clues that we can get. We`ve already processed over 2,000 leads to date. As you
mentioned, we`ve upped the reward. That`s now at $400,000.
GRACE: Wow.
ALEXANDER: Thanks to the FBI stepping in and contributing another $50,000 to this reward so --
GRACE: That`s a huge reward, Chief.
ALEXANDER: We`re here to pick anyone`s interest. We`re here to find out if someone has any information at all to help us solve this case.
GRACE: Chief, that`s quite a reward. It`s almost unheard of. A nearly half a million dollar reward to help crack this case. The case of
Nancy Bochicchio and Joey, her 7-year-old little daughter. Cause of death, gunshot wound to the head, point-blank range. Catch this, the car still
running there in the parking deck.
JoAnn Bruno is joining us, the sister of mom, victim, Nancy.
JoAnn Bruno, thank you for being with us.
BRUNO: Thank you for having us.
GRACE: You know, looking -- I`m a crime victim. And when I look at the time surrounding the murder of my fiance, it seems like a horrible,
horrible blur. What are your thoughts on who could have done this with such planning, with the zip ties, the handcuffs, the goggles blacked out,
the duct tape?
BRUNO: It had to be someone who was just very ill. Someone had to be sick to think -- to do such a thing and plan such a horror. That that`s
just -- I can`t imagine. I can`t even begin to imagine.
GRACE: And for just $500.
BRUNO: What kind of child (INAUDIBLE).
GRACE: Tell me, what do you think was going through her mind when she was at that ATM? She`s got her daughter with her. What do you think she
would not have made a run for it?
BRUNO: Well, my belief is that he was probably sitting in the back seat with Joey, and my sister -- she would have never ran and left Joey
back by herself.
GRACE: I mean when they`re inside.
BRUNO: She was probably trying --
GRACE: At the ATM.
BRUNO: I really don`t know. I think about it day and night. I stay awake nights thinking that. It`s just a horror. I can`t begin to imagine
what my sister went through. She was extremely, extremely protective of Joey. Joey came late in life. And she was her whole life.
GRACE: You know, I`ve been thinking about it, too, JoAnn.
BRUNO: I can`t imagine.
GRACE: Peter Soesin, lawyer for the Bochicchio family, I`ve thought about it so much. Peter, I just wonder if we could show that video one
more time, Liz. If somebody told me, if you make a run for it, if you scream, I`ve got a gun in my hand, and I`m going to shoot your daughter, I
might just go along with it. I don`t know that I would, but I might. For all I know, she may have thought this is the only way to save the life of
her daughter, Joey. Joey came along for her late in her life and was her whole world.
Please help us crack this case. Mother and daughter found in their SUV dead at an upscale town end mall. Tip line, 1-800-458-8477.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[20:48:12] GRACE: Live, upscale gated community, San Diego suburbs. A stay-at-home mom of three, ages 8, 6, and 18 months. All three children
downstairs playing. They hear a thud upstairs. Mommy suddenly takes all three on a spur of the moment play date then surprises her sister with a
visit. She disappears for hours, reemerging only when police show up, to discover the source of that thud was daddy, now barricaded in the couple`s
bedroom shot dead face down on the bedroom floor. We get chilling cell phone video taken by mommy of hubby berating her about her looks before he
is shot dead.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Julie Harper said under oath the verbal and physical abuse by the hands of her husband, Jason Harper --
JULIE HARPER, KILLED HUSBAND: Flailing his arms above me, screaming, spitting at me. Was attacking me and raped me that night. Sex, 11:00
p.m., fight, 10 to 12 hours. Slammed me chest to the wall, face, cheek to the wall.
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: The defense team says the shooting was accidental and out of fear for her own life.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GRACE: Straight out to Jenny Day with CNN affiliate XETV. You know, talk about buried treasure, Jenny Day. Is it true that it comes out in
evidence that the homicide weapon, the murder weapon, the .38 derringer, mommy takes the gun, she puts it in a box and buries it after her shooting
of her husband in self-defense? And when she goes back to get the gun, oh, my goodness, it`s gone, that`s a coincidence, isn`t it? That is buried
treasure for the state that they never found.
[20:50:06] JENNY DAY, REPORTER, CNN AFFILIATE XETV: You know, the court continues to pester her about this and ask questions, where is this
gun? You do not simply lose guns. She testified yesterday that she`s experienced with weapons, has had these since the `90s and she simply
cannot find the weapon that was used to kill her husband.
GRACE: OK --
DAY: And also yesterday in court, she said she never meant to kill her husband, it was all accidental, she says. And she said that he was
coming at her like he was going to kill her.
GRACE: Well --
DAY: She grabbed a --
(CROSSTALK)
GRACE: I understand the forensics, that he`s shot in the side, which totally belies the theory that he was coming at her.
But Pat Lalama, what I`m more intrigued about is her suitcase, Pat Lalama with Crime Watch Daily, that he had it packed with his will, her
will, , passports, cash, his two cell phones with the battery out so nobody could track where she was. That doesn`t sound like an accident to me. She
had a pack for a week.
PAT LALAMA, CRIME WATCH DAILY: Well, but interestingly, if we`re talking about premeditation, the first trial, the jury couldn`t decide on
that. It was a mistrial. So they went at it again on second degree.
This is a woman, Nancy, who claims that she was raped 30 times by her husband in the course of their marriage. That in her journal talks about
how she needed more love from him, wanted more love from him.
GRACE: And more sex. She also put that in her so-called journal. "CNN HEROES."
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It is the driest region in India. In many villages, the ground water is disappearing. Wells have dried up. Women
will have to walk miles to fetch water for their family. They will do their dishes with sand or ash so they don`t use water. The water is so
salty you can hardly drink it. The only time people get relief is during the monsoon season.
I was born Rajashtan and came to the U.S. working with the corporate world. In 2003, after my company went bankrupt, I decided I`m going to
find a solution for the drinking water. Aakash Ganga is a rainwater harvesting system. Rainwater is collected from the rooftop through gutters
and pipes. The rainwater is divided in two parts. One part for the homeowner, another part for the community.
The main pipe which is buried under the street. (INAUDIBLE) come to the community reservoir which is located about 500 meters of it.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We all used to be very worried about water. Now that we have reservoir right here we save a lot of time doing our daily
chores.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The rainwater is pure, clean, safe. Today we are helping 10,000 people live healthier lives. That`s what keeps me going.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
[20:57:21] HARPER: He was attacking me and raped me that night. I just didn`t know what to think. I was so upset and so shocked. Yelling
and screaming at me.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GRACE: Unleash the lawyers. Richard Herman, Las Vergas, Troy Slayton L.A., also with us Bethany Marshal, psychoanalyst, L.A.
OK, Richard Herman, what`s your defense of this woman?
RICHARD HERMAN, DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Well, this physical and mental abuse was overwhelming. It was justified.
GRACE: It was.
HERMAN: It was sort of accidental. She held the gun up to scare him.
GRACE: Sort of accidental.
HERMAN: It went off accidentally.
GRACE: I like that, Richard. Sort of accidental.
HERMAN: Yes.
GRACE: Liz, do you have that picture of her without her clothes on taken right then? Because there`s not a bruise on her, Troy Slayton, not a
scratch.
(CROSSTALK)
HERMAN: Verbal, emotional abuse.
TROY SLATEN, DEFENSE ATTORNEY: This is a classic battered woman syndrome. This is a woman who was so in fear that she had no other
options.
GRACE: She doesn`t have --
SLATEN: And a jury found her not guilty of first-degree murder. She was found not guilty.
GRACE: And they hung on the second one. Bethany Marshall, weigh in.
SLATEN: Nine to three.
BETHANY MARSHALL, PSYCHOANALYST, AUTHOR OF "DEALBREAKERS": Well, sadly, Nancy, some couples just thrive on violence, fighting, aggression,
and they just fight and fight. It enlivens their existence. They enjoy it and then one day they just go too far. And I think sadly that`s what
happened here.
GRACE: OK. Let`s call it, guys. Richard Herman, guilty, not guilty?
HERMAN: Not guilty again, Nancy.
GRACE: Troy Slaten?
SLATEN: Not guilty, Nancy.
GRACE: Bethany Marshall?
SLATEN: And happy birthday, Pat.
MARSHALL: Guilty.
GRACE: Yes. Happy birthday, Pat Lalama. 21 and never been kissed.
OK. Let`s remember, American hero, South Carolina Officer Greg Alia, 32, killed at the line of duty. Forest Acres Police, a University of South
Carolina grad. Worked on movie sets before becoming a cop. Mother Alexis, widow Cassie, new baby boy, Sal.
Greg Alia, American hero.
And, of course, happy birthday to our superstar, Pat Lalama. You know, you`re aging in reverse, girl.
LALAMA: Bless you. You`re the gift, Nancy. You`re a gift.
GRACE: Thanks for being with us, everybody. Inviting us into your homes. Nancy Grace signing off. See you tomorrow night, 8:00 sharp
Eastern. And until then, good night, friend.
END
