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Nancy Grace
Heather Ciccone`s Cellphone Found. Aired 8-9:00p ET
Aired December 10, 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: Breaking news tonight, live, Fredericksburg. A 21-year-old beauty found dead in her silver Kia about 30 minutes from her
own home. When local home owners come to inquire thinking she`s asleep at the wheel, they realize the girl is dead. We learn in the days leading up
to her death, Heather Ciccone had complained about a female stalker.
Bombshell tonight. Is there a break in the case?
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: She had just pulled into the driveway, placed it into park. We believe that she was shot from inside the vehicle.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: She posted on Facebook that she was being stalked.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Going through all of this evidence, including the threats that she received on social media, as well on as the phone.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Turn yourself in. We`ll find you and we`ll get you.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GRACE: Live, Rahway (ph), a young mother of two mysteriously found dead in the basement of her upscale suburban home. A neighbor gives chase
after a masked intruder seen running near the home. A series of mistakes follow, including police stopping the neighbor, allowing the perp to get
away! What happened to gorgeous young mom Yolanda Vega?
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yolanda Vega, a mother of two, found dead inside her home. A family member found Vega`s body behind a curtain in the
basement.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The body was in the house. There were search dogs. They didn`t find it.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GRACE: And tonight, the Grinch alive and well. Police mugshots shows what happens when Christmas turns sour and you end up in custody in a
festive jumper or even an elf costume.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What`s this world coming to when people busted for an array of alleged crimes are dressed as everyone from Santa to his elves
in mugshots? When you find out what these people were accused of, you won`t be wishing them a merry Christmas and a happy new year!
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GRACE: And Omaha, little Elizabeth Hetrick (ph) steps outside the family home to empty the trash, never seen again.
Good evening. I`m Nancy Grace. I want to thank you for being with us.
Bombshell tonight, live, Fredericksburg, a 21-year-old beauty found dead in her silver Kia 30 about minutes from her own home. When the local
home owners -- she`s parked in their driveway -- came out to inquire, they think she`s asleep at the wheel. Then they realize the girl is dead. In
the days leading up to her death, Heather Ciccone complains about a female stalker, a stalker threatening to kill her.
Now, is there a break in the case? Straight out to Parker Slaybaugh, investigative reporter with CNN affiliate WRIC. Parker, thank you so much
for being with us. This is a real mystery. I`m trying to get the new evidence. You seem to have a bead on something. What can you tell us?
PARKER SLAYBAUGH, WRIC CORRESPONDENT: Nancy, thanks for having me, first off. But yes, police are looking at these Facebook posts that
Heather posted on her Facebook page the days leading up to he disappearance. She clearly references a female stalker. She says things
like -- I`m looking at her Facebook right now. She says, I finally see the big picture. It hurts, but from here out, I`ll only get easier. She says,
I give up. I`m done. I`m playing nice now.
She references this female stalker, seems to have asked people to spy on her Facebook. One post, she says, I hate when a female gets her friend
to spy, requests (ph) lurk on my stuff. So clearly, somebody that the police are looking at.
The most important thing to note here is this person is not a suspect. They`re not being considered a person of interest at this point. Police
are speaking with her, but right now not calling her a suspect or person of interest, but somebody they are talking to.
GRACE: Very quickly, let`s unleash the lawyers. Hold on Parker Slaybaugh. Unleash the lawyers very quickly, Jason Oshins, Darryl Cohen.
Jason Oshins, here`s the deal. Police never call anybody a suspect or a person of interest. And the reason for that is the minute they do,
constitutional rights apply. If you`re a target, you`ve got a right to a lawyer. You`ve got a right to remain silent. You don`t really have to
cooperate. You`ve got a 5th Amendment right that protects you in many ways.
But if you`re just a, let`s say, witness, police can do a lot more that they can`t do under the Constitution if you`re a suspect. Oshins?
JASON OSHINS, DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Nancy, spoken like a well (ph) prosecutor protecting her investigators on a case. Absolutely. You`re not
going to name anybody that way. And one of the things a defense attorney will tell anyone who`s a target, obviously, is not to go into anything
without the representation of counsel. That`s for certain, Nancy.
[20:05:04]GRACE: Absolutely. And Darryl Cohen, very, very quickly because I want to get to the facts of this. The possibility that this is a
female stalker that killed this young girl, highly, highly unlikely statistically. That`s very rare, A, to have a female stalker, but B, for
her to carry out an execution-style killing, shooting this young girl in the back of the head? Very, very rare. Wouldn`t you agree with that?
DARRYL COHEN, DEFENSE ATTORNEY: It is maybe rare, but in this instance, it appears she was a stalker. There doesn`t seem to be anything
done in the car other than our victim being shot in the back of the head.
GRACE: That`s a good point, Darryl Cohen, because with a male, you would expect at least a sex attack, a robbery, some sign of violence, not
necessarily so with a female. You know, that`s a very good point.
I want to go to Ted Schubel now, joining me in addition to Parker Slaybaugh. Let`s keep showing photos, Liz, if you don`t mind. I want to
see the photos of Heather Ciccone, Heather Brianna Ciccone. Her mother is joining us tonight, and she has given us some pictures that may spark
someone, may job somebody`s memory.
Look at Heather, absolutely beautiful 21-year-old girl. She`s working at a local restaurant to make spare money. She leaves that night to go
help a friend with car trouble, and she is found killed execution-style, shot in the back of the head in her own silver Kia Forte.
I`m also going to show you photos of her car. Who saw her or this car between -- after 9:00 o`clock that night? Very, very important. We need
your help.
Ted Schubel, news director, WFVA and WBQB, what more can you tell us?
TED SCHUBEL, WFVA/WBQB (via telephone): Well, Nancy, it is important for people, if they did see that car, to let authorities know because that
will help police establish a timeline of when they saw her, where she was. And maybe there were surveillance cameras around her the last few hours of
her life.
GRACE: Joining me right now is Heather`s mother, Stacy Ciccone. Ms. Ciccone, thank you for being with us.
STACY CICCONE, VICTIM`S MOTHER (via telephone): Thank you.
GRACE: You know, Ms. Ciccone, I often think that I felt the worst grief possible losing both a fiance and my beloved father. But the thought
of losing a child is almost too much for me to even consider. But you are walking that walk tonight, and I want you to know that you are in our
prayers and our thoughts, and we are committed to helping you and Captain Pearce catch this killer.
What happened the night she walked out of that house? What happened leading up to that?
CICCONE: She was home sick all day. She was in her room. I heard her talking on the phone. I heard her get up. She said, I have to go pick
a friend up. Her car broke down. And I asked her, Are you going to be home tonight? Because sometimes, she`ll spend the night with that friend.
And she goes, yes, I`ll be home tonight.
And I knew she wasn`t going out, doing anything, because she didn`t have her makeup on, I don`t think. And I mean, she was- she was a
(INAUDIBLE) She -- anybody knew Heather, she looked good. So -- I mean, she had been sick, and she said, I`ll be home. And I said, OK. I said, Be
careful, I love you, and she said, I love you, too, Mom. And she was gone.
GRACE: I notice you said something, a few words that really, really intrigue me, Stacy Ciccone, because we were under the impression -- and the
captain didn`t tell me this, I assumed this from what we read, and I assumed wrongly that she had gone to help someone fix their car, like
change a flat. And I thought, That doesn`t make any sense.
But what you just said was, a friend, a friend girl, a female friend of hers -- a friend had trouble with a car and she was going to give the
friend a ride. That`s making a lot more sense to me.
CICCONE: That`s -- yes, she said So-and-So broke down. I have to go pick her up.
GRACE: Everyone, with me is Heather`s mother. And in addition to her, Captain Jeff Pearce, the Spotsylvania County sheriff`s -- from the
sheriff`s office. Captain, thank you for being with us.
Something that the mom just said, Stacy Ciccone, that the friend called on a cell phone. Captain, have you guys recovered her cell phone
yet?
CAPT. JEFF PEARCE, SPOTSYLVANIA COUNTY SHERIFF`S OFFICE (via telephone): Yes, we have. I can report that the cell phone is in our
possession, and the techs are working on it as we speak, trying to draw the information out of the phone that we need to further this investigation.
We consider this a very big piece of evidence.
[20:10:15]GRACE: Well, I`m just sitting here, and everybody`s talking in my ear in our New York studio that this is a huge breakthrough in the
case, that you have recovered the cell phone. Can you share with us where you found the phone?
PEARCE: Well, I cannot because it`s actually part of the investigative process. We`ve been in possession of the phone for a little
while. It`s not something that we wanted to put out to the media until now because we wanted to get as much of the information as we could from that
phone and be able to forward our investigation in that manner.
But I can say that the information we`ve gotten is very helpful and that we are moving forward much quicker than we were before. And the
investigation, I believe, still is going to have a successful outcome.
GRACE: Guys, Liz, show me the back of her car one more time, please. This is very, very important. There`s another shot, where you see the back
windshield, and you can see where it was written on there, I Heart You.
Guys, look at this, certainly, somebody -- with a little wink smiley - - somebody had to see this that evening. Her car found in the tip of the driveway nearest the street, a family home. She had no connection to them.
They are not suspects. They go out. They see the car running. The heat`s on. The keys are in the ignition. She`s sitting at the wheel. They call
police when they realize this young, beautiful girl is dead.
Did anybody see this? Tip 1-800 -- let`s get that tip line up again - - 928-5822.
Ben Levitan, telecommunications expert, to get the pings -- we`re learning police have found her cell phone. This is very important to this
case, Ben.
Tell me, even if the perp had turned off her cell phone or that she was not using her cell phone -- let me rephrase, even if the phone was on
and she wasn`t using it, wouldn`t it still ping on these nearby cell towers, Ben Levitan, telecommunications expert joining me out of Raleigh.
Go ahead, Ben.
BEN LEVITAN, TELECOMMUNICATIONS EXPERT (via telephone): Nancy, you`re absolutely right. They know who called -- they know who called, so they
know the perpetrator`s phone number. The phone company and the police are pinging that phone every 15 seconds. They know exactly where that phone
is, Nancy.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[20:16:50]GRACE: Right now, breaking news. There`s a major development in the case of Heather Brianna (ph) Ciccone, a 21-year-old girl
found dead at her wheel. The family that found her there thought that she was asleep in her car, ignition on, motor running, heat on. She was dead.
Joining me, her mother. Also with me, Captain Jeff Pearce, and on the scene, Ted Schubel and Parker Slaybaugh. Parker Slaybaugh, investigative
reporter with WRIC, this is a major, major break because with this cell phone, we`re going to be able to determine exactly where she went, maybe
somebody`s home, maybe it`s where somebody worked. Maybe she met somebody. Maybe somebody was following her and they gave chase.
This is what it appears to me. It appears no sex attack because we have already learned she was fully clothed. With the cell phone now being
accounted for, it doesn`t seem as if it were stolen. That means no sex attack and no theft. That bespeaks of a targeted crime, Parker.
SLAYBAUGH: Well, what you just heard from the captain is the first time that anybody has heard that this cell phone has been recovered. And
you`re exactly right, Nancy. The stuff that can be -- the information that can be gathered from this cell phone is vital.
We have a short window here, between 9:00 and 11:00, where police want to know where was Heather. That phone is going to be vital. Hopefully,
they can track it. Hopefully, they can ping it. Hopefully, they can find out who she was talking to, who she was texting, to find out what went
wrong here.
They are lucky. This is a short window, 9:00 to 11:00, only two hours. A lot of times, we`re looking at 24, 48 hours trying to figure out
where someone was.
GRACE: And now we learn that even if someone had turned off or is not using her phone, it would still ping on these cell towers. And Ben
Levitan, question. How far would the cell tower cover? I know there are five nearby cell towers, but how many miles would that encompass?
LEVITAN: Well, Nancy, you make a good point here. A cell tower can cover about 12 square miles generally in this area. However, they`re going
to be using a different technology. They`re using the same technology that you would use when you dial 911. It will find her within about 50 feet or
so, Nancy.
GRACE: Whoa! Fifty feet, that`s less than a block. I`m very curious also, Captain Jeff Pearce, the captain in the Spotsylvania sheriff`s
department -- what about her job? Was it the Red Robin restaurant where she worked?
PEARCE: That`s correct. She was a waitress there at the restaurant.
GRACE: You know, you come in contact with a lot of people when you`re working at a restaurant. I know. I worked in one. People you wouldn`t
normally meet in your everyday life that just stop there to eat, and then you meet them. You don`t come in contact with them in your neighborhood,
at your grocery store, at your church, your synagogue.
Very interesting that she called in sick that day. She usually didn`t call in sick, Captain.
PEARCE: That`s correct. As we understand it, she was a regular employee that was always there on time and counted on to be there.
[20:20:05]GRACE: Parker Slaybaugh joining me, investigative reporter with WRIC, along with Ted Schubel, WFVA. Parker, what can you tell us
about her calling in sick that day?
SLAYBAUGH: I talked to her sister just about an hour ago, and she says, jut at the captain said -- her sister doesn`t typically call in sick,
so this night she called in sick, they knew she wasn`t feeling well. She didn`t go to work.
And then around 9:00, 10:00 o`clock, she received that phone call saying that a friend of hers needed help, some sort of car issue. She
wasn`t at work. Then she went and helped this friend, allegedly, with her car issues. So she didn`t go to work, but she then left that house later
on to help that friend.
GRACE: OK, you`re telling me...
(CROSSTALK)
GRACE: ... very, very new. Stacy Ciccone, mother of Heather Brianna, so -- and I`m not asking you to give up names. I`m not doing that. But
what I`m hearing now is she did help the friend. She made it that far, is that correct?
CICCONE: No, I don`t know if she made it that far. All she told me was her friend broke down and she needed to go pick her up.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
[20:25:15]UNIDENTIFIED MALE: She had just pulled into the driveway, placed it into park. We believe that she was shot from inside the vehicle.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: She posted on Facebook that she was being stalked.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Going through all of this evidence, including the threats she received on social media, as well as on the phone.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Turn yourself in. We`ll find you, and we`ll get you.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GRACE: Who killed this gorgeous young 21-year-old girl? With me tonight, her mother. Ms. Ciccone, thank you again for being with us.
Captain Jeff Pearce with us, his staff working around the clock to solve the mystery.
Imagine looking out your front window and seeing a car sitting at the end of your driveway, and it sits and sits and sits. So finally, you and
your family go out to check on it, and you see a young girl asleep at the wheel. And then reality sets in. You realize she`s not asleep, she`s
dead. That is the scenario that we are dealing with right now.
Stacy Ciccone, do you recall the last thing she said to you before she walked out that door?
CICCONE: The last thing she said to me was, "Mom, I love you, too."
GRACE: You know, Ms. Ciccone, again, our viewers I know agree that the loss of a child must be the most daunting thing, the most heartbreaking
pain...
CICCONE: It is the hardest thing you will ever, ever go through, and I hope you never go through it. I wouldn`t wish this on my worst enemy.
Heather was such a loving girl. She was a bright star. I just don`t know who would do this to her.
GRACE: Ms. Ciccone, we`re trying to cobble together what we know and help in our own small way, help police. What would you say to the viewers
tonight?
CICCONE: Just hold your children tightly. Anybody that`s fighting with anybody, put those small things away. Just love your children, love
your family because you don`t know when they`ll be taken away from you.
Heather held this family together. She loved just everybody. She was loved by many people. I just -- I just can`t wrap my head around it. And
I don`t know of anybody, aside from what I`m hearing about this person that was allegedly stalking her -- I don`t know who had any kind of beef with
her.
She had so many friends, so many people who loved her, just the outpouring of love that we`re getting.
GRACE: Ms. Ciccone -- with me is Heather`s mom -- when you wake up in the morning, as you go about your day, what is the hardest part of this for
you?
CICCONE: Just waking up is the hardest part. I don`t want to wake up again.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GRACE: Live to Rahway, a young mother of two mysteriously found dead in the basement of her upscale suburban home. A neighbor gives chase after
a masked intruder seen running near the home. Then, a series of mistakes follow, including the police stopping the neighbor, allowing the perp in
mask to get away. What happened to this gorgeous young mom Yolanda Vega?
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: A bizarre crime on Beacon Street. Yolanda Vega, a mother of two, found dead inside her home. Vega`s son Jonathan
came home and found a gunman hiding in a closet.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He apparently saw the guy in the closet and closed the door and went to the neighbor`s house and she called the cops.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GRACE: I look at that house, don`t you know that that will be a scene these children will never forget, with the Christmas decorations up in the
living room, up in the front window. How hard do you think they worked, how hard did mommy work putting up those decorations, to find out your mom
is dead in the home?
Straight out to Bert Baron, morning show host, WCTC. Bert, thank you for being with us. I don`t understand. I mean, it`s very JonBenet Ramsey.
Everybody comes in, they search the house, they don`t find any evidence of wrongdoing. And then hours and hours later, they discover the mother dead?
How did that happen?
BERT BARON, MORNING SHOW HOST, WCTC RADIO: It`s very bizarre, Nancy, that the police were at the scene that night and did what they thought was
a very thorough search of the home, include bringing the canine unit to do a search of the property. And to not discover Miss Vegas` body at all.
They had instructed her fiance to treat this case as a missing person`s case and asked him to fill out the appropriate paperwork, which he did.
[20:35:02] And I guess what anyone else would have done, he just waited for her to come back, but that wasn`t the case at all unfortunately.
GRACE: OK, wait -- whoa, whoa, whoa. Bert Baron, morning show host, WCTC, I don`t doubt that what you`re reporting isn`t the truth but it
doesn`t make any sense. At the time of the incident, wasn`t a masked intruder seen running away from the home?
BARON: Well, there was. Her son, upon examining the house, and sort of taking a look for his mom noticed that her closet door was closed. So
he opened it up and take a look and inside the closet hiding was a gentleman with a gun and a mask.
GRACE: Did you say gentleman wearing a gun and a mask? That doesn`t -- that`s a non sequitur. It doesn`t follow. How can you be a gentleman
with a mask on your face in a lady`s closer with a gun?
BARON: Definitely not a gentleman. That`s probably not the right choice of words.
GRACE: So that doesn`t make sense, Bert Baron. Sorry, you`re the messenger.
Bert, why would police say that she`s missing when there is a masked intruder with a gun in the home and the son runs to the neighbor`s house to
call 911? The neighbor runs out and chases the intruder. How can that be missing?
BARON: Well, the police had made the mistake unfortunately, Nancy, of stopping the neighbor and they allowed this person to flee into the night
unfortunately. And that was the first mistake that was made in this case. The family would discover her body the next morning in the basement.
GRACE: In the basement? Where?
BARON: In a corner, behind a curtain, her body was discovered. Her fiance attempted CPR, to no avail. She was pronounced dead on the scene.
And I just spoke with the Union County Prosecutor`s Office earlier today. This is now being officially treated as a homicide.
GRACE: Well, I guess so.
(CROSSTALK)
GRACE: I guess so, Bert Baron, WCTC.
Joseph Scott Morgan, certified death investigator, professor of forensics at Jacksonville State University.
Joe Scott, help me out. This is so JonBenet Ramsey, when the body is in the home the whole time.
JOSEPH SCOTT MORGAN, CERTIFIED DEATH INVESTIGATOR: Yes, it is, Nancy. Very bizarre case. I have to say I`m not in the least bit interested as to
what the status of the thoughts of the prosecutor are. I want to know what the medical examiner has to say because this is going to be key. They need
to establish a timeline. How long has this lady been down? We need to know what post-mortem changes have taken in the body -- have taken place in
the body that can translate into framing this in context with this person that`s fleeing down the street. Also --
(CROSSTALK)
GRACE: Whoa, whoa, put him up. Joe Scott, Joe Scott, listen.
MORGAN: Yes.
GRACE: I know you`re the certified death investigator. But let me tell you something, there`s no coincidence in criminal law, friend, all
right? You can`t tell me that there was a masked intruder hiding in her closet with a gun and she died of natural causes? I mean, he had a gun.
What more do you want to know?
MORGAN: What I want to know is how --
GRACE: She`s dead, he killed her.
MORGAN: I want to know how long she`s been dead because you`ve got several stories that are floating around here that don`t jive.
GRACE: Such as?
MORGAN: Something that stinks as well. But we need to get down to the rock bottom. What is the post mortem interval in this case? That`s
going to frame this thing so that we know which way the wind is blowing.
GRACE: Hold on. Hold on. Wait a minute.
Bert Baron, "Morning Show" host, WCTC, let me ask you this. Where was the fiance that night?
BARON: The fiance had taken their two sons out, they did have two growing boys. They had gone out to dinner. They did invite Yolanda to
join them. She chose to stay home instead. And they had gone out to dinner on Sunday night.
GRACE: Whoa, stop. Stop. Back it back. Back it up, Bert. Bert. Who said that she declined going with them?
BARON: That`s right.
GRACE: Who said that? Bert Bacon. The fiance?
BARON: Yes.
GRACE: Do the sons back that up? Bert, do the sons --
(CROSSTALK)
BARON: They do. I`m sure that`s part of the investigation.
GRACE: I see. I see. So the fiance, and this is a long-time fiance, because these sons are his biological children, correct?
BARON: Yes.
GRACE: All right. So he`s not a suspect, that`s not what I`m saying. I`m trying to get the timeline down. So he leaves the home with the two
adult sons, and they all see her before they leave the home, so she`s alive when they leave the home, correct?
BARON: That`s right.
GRACE: Did they go anywhere else other than out? Was it pizza you said?
BARON: The restaurant, it was not determined. It was not announced.
GRACE: OK. So did they go anywhere else, like did they go bowling, did they go shopping, did they go to the grocery store? I`m trying to get
a timeline here. How long were they gone, and she was alive before they left? And they all agree on that, right?
BARON: Yes, they do.
GRACE: Unleash the lawyers. Jason Oshins, Darryl Cohen.
[20:40:01] OK. First to you, Cohen, let`s talk about this. What do you make of it?
DARRYL COHEN, DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Well, number one, I want to know how old her son is that found this child -- found her, found this gunman.
Number two, I want to know, is there any evidence of breaking or entering, is there any DNA? Are there any fingerprints? There`s more to this and I
have more questions than I have answers. And until we know whether or not she and her fiance actually were in good shape or were they arguing, is
that a possibility? There are too many questions here.
GRACE: Well, I -- you know, Darryl. You`re right.
COHEN: And I agree with Joe about --
GRACE: And this has nothing to do with the fiance, could be true blue. But what I`m saying is that`s where every investigation starts,
Jason. You start with the husband, the lover, the boyfriend, the ex- boyfriend. That`s where you start, because that`s the person closest to the victim.
COHEN: Sure.
(CROSSTALK)
GRACE: And that`s family. So close --
JASON OSHINS, DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Yes. You work your way inside out, Nancy. You work your way inside out, Nancy.
GRACE: Now something that Cohen just said, and Darryl Cohen, a prosecutor before he became a defense attorney. Oshins, a veteran defense
attorney that practices in multiple jurisdictions.
Jason, I believe the son, and I`ll tell you why, because the neighbors corroborate his story. It`s not like the son had anything to do with this
and then he makes up the whole scenario of a masked man. People always use the masked man.
COHEN: Right.
GRACE: A neighbor saw the masked man. The son was terrified. He runs next door.
COHEN: Sure.
GRACE: And the neighbor gives chase to the masked man.
OSHINS: In all of this, which is incredulous, the fact that the son sees the intruder with a weapon, and somehow the neighbor who he tells is now
chasing the man with the weapon. You know, unless he was armed himself or in law enforcement, that just adds to the mystery, Nancy.
GRACE: Well, and you`ve got another fellow, Tracy Sargent, joining us, search, rescue and recovery expert. They brought in canines. Canines
did not find her. Her dead body is behind a curtain in the basement. How did that happen?
TRACY SARGENT, K9 HANDLER, SEARCH, RESCUE AND RECOVERY SPECIALIST: Well, in these situations, Nancy, we have several things going on.
Apparently a very chaotic situation. When the canine handler arrives on scene in a situation like this, in most cases, buildings, houses, vehicles
are thoroughly checked by law enforcement and other officials. Canines are typically used outside around the perimeter and in other areas. Also, if
this dog was not trained for human remains detection, in most cases the dog would not indicate on her scent, because of that as well as the house being
fully contaminated with her scent.
GRACE: Right.
Michelle Golland is with us, clinical psychologist out of L.A. Michelle, I can`t even imagine how this is going to affect the sons. OK.
You`ve got one that finds a masked intruder and runs for his life. Then you`ve got the others who are out having dinner while their mom is being
murdered.
MICHELLE GOLLAND, CLINICAL PSYCHOLOGIST: The trauma and devastation to these children, Nancy, is going to stay with them for their whole life.
GRACE: Awful.
GOLLAND: And clearly, the one son was so desperate that he tried to get the perpetrator and was really trying to figure out what was going on.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[20:47:29] GRACE: And live, Omaha. Little Elizabeth Hetrick steps outside the family home to empty the trash. She`s never seen again.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Police in Omaha are searching for missing girl Elizabeth Hetrick. Elizabeth left her home to take the trash to a dumpster
outside her home. She was never seen again. Last seen wearing a black jacket and blue jeans. Where is Elizabeth?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GRACE: For those of you just joining us, this little girl Elizabeth Hetrick went outside to empty trash. She`s never seen again. Tonight, her
family is desperate to bring her home.
To Matt Zarrell, where did this happen? Where in Omaha?
MATT ZARRELL, NANCY GRACE PRODUCER: Yes, this is in -- just in a local street in Omaha, Nebraska. It`s an apartment building. Elizabeth
had left her home, this was around 7:20 p.m. on Tuesday night. She`s taking trash to a dumpster. It`s not far from the front of the house. She
never comes back. And the cops are very concerned. They say a combination of her age, the amount of time she`s gone without returning, and
importantly the potential for cold weather overnight this time of year has authorities very concerned for her safety right now.
GRACE: Guys, I want you to take a look at this 13-year-old little girl. 5`4", just 90 pounds, black hair, brown eyes. She was wearing a
black jacket and her favorite blue jeans. She`s missing from Omaha, Nebraska. Tip line, 402-444-5636.
Joe Scott Morgan, what do we do now?
MORGAN: Well, hopefully, Nancy, this area where she was taking the trash out to, hopefully someone, the authorities got to this area and
secured the area, because we very well might have an area where the perpetrator was laying in wait, maybe DNA has been left behind, maybe some
evidence of struggle or something, such as blood, skin, hair, anything --
GRACE: It hurts me to even hear you say that, Joe Scott. I know you`re right. I know that`s what they would be looking for, but I don`t
want to hear it. I do not want to hear blood, DNA, signs of struggle about this little 13-year-old girl.
So, Michelle Golland, clinical psychologist out of L.A., her parents, her family, torn in half. What do you tell them if?
GOLLAND: Well, I think what they have to try to do is actually search even the social media and see if there was also something else going on
because often these situations with these young girls, there can be things happening that the parents aren`t aware of. So either it`s the situation -
-
[20:50:13] GRACE: Yes. The interesting thing is, though, Michelle, you`re right. The parents sent her out. The family sent her out with the
trash. It`s not like she used it as a ruse to get outside. I`m just wondering if she had been talking to somebody online and they knew where
she lived.
Matt Zarrell, the tip line. Give that to me. 402-444-5636. Is that right, Matt?
ZARRELL: Yes, that is. And Nancy, there are 832 registered sex offenders in an 11-mile radius of this home.
GRACE: Oh no. 832 sex offenders in the radius surrounding the home. Please help us bring her home. 402-444-5636.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[20:55:06] GRACE: And tonight the Grinch is alive and well. Police show mugshots of what happened when Christmas turned sour and you end up in
custody in a festive Christmas jumper or even an elf costume.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: They`re wearing Christmas-themed clothing, but these are not holiday pics around the tree. So why these festive getups
for mugshots?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GRACE: Out to Daniel O`Donnell, anchor, WISN. Take a look at these Christmas mugshots. Now this guy is Santa Claus Almeida. What is he in
for?
DANIEL O`DONNELL, ANCHOR WISN: Well, he`s been arrested for domestic assault, accused of choking his wife. And Nancy, his name is legally Santa
Claus Almeida. He changed it some time back.
GRACE: Is that true, Matt Zarrell?
ZARRELL: Nancy, that is true. And he was also a city employee at one point and has impersonated Santa Claus many, many times.
GRACE: I don`t think Santa Claus has bags under his eyes. OK. Let`s see Touche.
OK, Dan O`Donnell, who is this guy dressed as an elf?
O`DONNELL: Well, he`s dressed as Buddy the Elf. His name is Brandon Touche. And when he was arrested for operating under the influence, DUI
arrest, he was dressed pretty festively.
GRACE: OK. Matt Zarrell, and I`m sure the cops had a good laugh taking this mug shot, right?
ZARRELL: Oh, yes, they did. His blood alcohol .124.
GRACE: Ouch. OK. Let`s see, Mark London. Tried to rob a bank dressed as Santa.
Matt Zarrell, what happened?
ZARRELL: Yes, this was two days before Christmas. He escaped with about $8,000, Nancy. He threatened to detonate a gift wrapped package he
had with him but it actually contained a flashlight and some lava rocks.
GRACE: I`m so glad my children are not watching right now. A flashlight and lava rocks.
OK. Dan O`Donnell, Leander Davy Jones, what did he do?
O`DONNELL: Well, he was arrested for sexual exploitation of a minor. And troublingly, he worked as a Santa Claus for hire.
GRACE: Oh, sex exploitation of a minor. A Santa Claus? Then Barnhardt, what -- who was he, Matt Zarrell?
ZARRELL: Yes. It looks like he might have been at a Christmas party because just two days before Christmas he is arrested for DUI. He is
wearing a candy cane themed sweater in his mug shot.
GRACE: OK. Right now, "CNN HEROES."
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ANDERSON COOPER, CNN: Ladies and gentlemen, the 2015 CNN Hero of the Year is Maggie Doyne.
MICHAELA PEREIRA, CNN ANCHOR: When you heard your name said on the stage.
MAGGIE DOYNE, CNN HERO OF THE YEAR: From Anderson Cooper`s mouth.
PEREIRA: From Anderson Cooper`s mouth, what went through your mind?
DOYNE: Just joy. Just pure joy and gratitude.
PEREIRA: What does it feel like?
DOYNE: I`m proud. I`m proud that I took that step and I`m happy for the kids. This is really for them. They`re the ones that have had the
hard stories and the struggles and have overcome so much.
PEREIRA: What do you want people to know about the children of Nepal?
DOYNE: There`s hundreds of thousands of girls who are not enrolled into school. There are many orphan children as a result of civil war and
disease and starvation. And I can`t do it alone. We all have to do it together.
PEREIRA: How will this money help you do that?
DOYNE: I`m building a brand new school, I`m going to take in more kids. It`s gas in the tank. It`s, you know, remembering what this is all
about and why we do it. So I`m taking this back to Nepal and for Nepal and for my kids and I`m just going to keep going.
PEREIRA: We`re terrifically proud of you young lady.
DOYNE: Thank you.
PEREIRA: Keep on doing it, OK.
DOYNE: Thanks, Michaela.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
GRACE: Let`s remember American hero and Army Staff Sergeant Curtis Mitchell, just 28. Connellsville, Ohio. Bronze Star, Purple Heart. Loved
hunting, fishing, video games, father Edward, mother Regina. Oldest of eight siblings. Son Curtis, step-sons Eric, Sean, and Alexander.
Stepdaughter Kiana. Widow Frankie.
Curtis Mitchell, American hero.
Everyone, our signature handcuff jewelry available, NancyGrace.com. Proceeds to child abuse and neglect victims. And good luck to our
superstar intern Talia as she heads out into the great big world. Thanks to our guests and especially to you for being with us. Nancy Grace signing
off. I`ll see you tomorrow night 8:00 sharp Eastern. And until then, good night, friend.
END
