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Nancy Grace
Jared Fogle Wants Sentence Reduced/Angry Customer Plows Truck Into Motel Lobby. Aired 8-9:00p ET
Aired December 16, 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. After police raid the mansion of former Subway sandwich superstar pitchman Jared -- Jared
catapulting the multi-million-dollar giant to the stratosphere -- police raid his mansion for child porn, secret recordings of Subway`s Jared trying
to set up child sex, even asking friends if they would let him see their children naked, one of the victims breaks her silence as the pervy
frontman, Jared Fogle, demands the judge give him the minimum sentence.
Subway Jared collides head first with Lady Justice, Subway Jared sentenced after he pleads guilty in a court of law.
Bombshell tonight. After he gets a sweetheart deal, a slap on the wrist, Jared Fogle is actually demanding a lighter sentence. This is after
he pleads guilty in court. Warning, the audio you are about to hear from CBS and Potetsky (ph) Productions is extremely disturbing.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Jared Fogle, Subway pitchman, now child porn convict.
FOGLE: (INAUDIBLE)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The Florida woman says she secretly recorded his every word, listened to him describing how he lured children in.
FOGLE: Girls from broken homes (INAUDIBLE) possibility, you know?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GRACE: And live, Oklahoma. When a customer`s credit card is declined at a Comfort Inn, the hotel clerk asked him to pay in cash. So what does
he do? He heads straight out to his pickup, cranks it up and plows straight through the hotel lobby. It is all caught on video.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Caught on tape, the horrifying moment a man drives his pickup truck into a hotel lobby. He even appears to back up and drive
in again, causing more damage.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GRACE: Breaking news tonight, live to Texas suburbs. A rich kid gets drunk and high on weed and Xanax, then mows down four people dead, leaving
two others paralyzed. After getting straight probation for killing four people, the family still mourning the fiery death of their children --
after that sweetheart plea deal of no jail time whatsoever, the DUI four- time killer allegedly caught on video yucking it up and playing beer pong.
Bombshell tonight. After a warrant is issued for the arrest of Ethan Couch, sources say neither he nor his mother are anywhere to be found.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Four lives lost, many others changed forever.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The 16-year-old was driving three times over the legal limit for an adult when he killed four strangers.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: An arrest warrant has been issued for Ethan Couch. According to WFAA, Couch missed a check-in with his probation
officer earlier this month. Court officers searched for the teen, but have not been able to find him or his mother.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GRACE: That`s from ABC`s "GMA."
And a young mom left a quadriplegic by a hitman hired by her husband. She describes the moment she is shot, her spinal cord severed forever. And
she is with us live.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The mother of three is shot in the neck while stopped at a red light. Heather Grossman (ph) was left a quadriplegic.
The person behind this tragedy? Her abusive ex-husband.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I knew the moment the bullets hit my neck that Ronald (ph) got me.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GRACE: Good evening. I`m Nancy Grace. I want to thank you for being with us.
Bombshell tonight. After police raid the mansion of former Subway sandwich superstar pitchman Jared -- Jared catapulted the multi-million-
dollar giant to the stratosphere -- his home searched for child porn, Subway Jared gets a sweetheart deal.
But believe it or not -- he is charged with multiple counts, including sex with children -- after his sweetheart deal, Subway pitchman, the pervy
pitchman, Jared Fogle, now rejects the deal. He`s trying to worm out of the deal he pled guilty to. Tonight, Subway pitchman Jared Fogle wants
out.
Alan Duke, editor-in-chief of Leadstories.com, please explain to me -- isn`t this the same Jared Fogle that asked his friends, Can I see your
children naked? And now after he pleads guilty under oath in a court of law, he wants out of the deal? He thinks, what, 15 years is too light?
[20:05:11]ALAN DUKE, LEADSTORIES.COM (via telephone): Well, he can`t actually appeal the plea deal, the guilty plea. He`s only pleading or
appealing the 15-year sentence, eight-month sentence that the judge gave because the prosecutors said they wouldn`t ask more than, what, 12-and-a-
half, and he got 15 and 8. So that`s what he`s wanting. He`s saying he was over-punished for the conviction.
GRACE: OK. Let`s refresh our recollection and take a listen to a tiny bit of the evidence that this judge heard before he sentenced Subway
Jared, the former pitchman, the pervy pitchman for Subway sandwich. Listen to what the judge heard before he gave him 15 years behind bars. And
remember, the child sex charges were dropped in exchange for this deal. Listen to this.
(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)
JARED FOGLE, FMR. SUBWAY PITCHMAN: Will you let me see your kids naked?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.
FOGLE: Yes?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Uh-huh.
FOGLE: That would be OK?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes. They`re very comfortable.
FOGLE: How old are your kids again?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: 10 and 11.
FOGLE: Yes?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Uh-huh.
FOGLE: (INAUDIBLE) a boy and a girl?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.
FOGLE: Yes?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.
FOGLE: Then I would love to see them naked. We`re going to have so much fun, baby. We`re going to have so (INAUDIBLE) you have no idea.
(END AUDIO CLIP)
(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)
FOGLE: And I would fly all three of us clear across the world, if we need to.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Really? Like where?
FOGLE: To Thailand, or wherever we want to go.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: (INAUDIBLE) we have to go away somewhere?
FOGLE: Well, we could. It would just make it a lot easier for (INAUDIBLE) try to get some young kids.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GRACE: OK, what, it would make it easier to take underage children from the United States to Thailand so Subway`s Jared, the former pervy
pitchman, could have sex with them? That would be easier?
OK, Kevin Bessler joining me, reporter with WIKY. Kevin, I can`t believe it. This guy, Jared Fogle -- all right, let`s see a Jared
commercial, Liz, while we`re waiting. There he is with a hood pulled over his head. I`d pull it down over my head, too, if I was charged with child
sex.
Kevin, isn`t it true that the main charges -- that`s a Subway commercial from YouTube, guys -- the main charges were actually dropped in
exchange for this plea deal?
KEVIN BESSLER, WIKY (via telephone): Yes, that`s true. It`s basically just traveling to do the conduct, instead of the actual conduct
of having sex with a kid.
GRACE: And Kevin Bessler, what can you tell me about him asking people for roofies? That`s the date rape drug GHB, gamma-Hydroxybutyrate.
Jared Fogle, Subway`s Jared, wanted to drug children with roofies?
BESSLER: That`s what his co-conspirator said. Russel Taylor says he was asked for roofies so he could drug kids so he could touch them while
they were passed out on the drug.
GRACE: Unleash the lawyers. Joining me out of New York is Robert Schalk, out of LA is Troy Slaten. First to you, Troy Slaten. Let`s don`t
argue defense or prosecution just for a moment. Let`s all three put on our legal hats for a moment.
When you actually reject a plea deal you`ve already agreed to -- now, he agreed to 12-and-a-half, the judge gave him 15 -- I get it, gave him
two-and-a-half years extra -- since he wants that...
TROY SLATEN, DEFENSE ATTORNEY: It was 15 years 8 months.
GRACE: ... thrown out...
(CROSSTALK)
GRACE: ... the judge could actually -- I`d like to finish. The judge could actually sentence him to even more.
SLATEN: Nancy, he`s not trying to worm out of the deal. He`s not rejecting the entire plea deal. He`s pled guilty. He just wants the
government to keep their end of the bargain. He agreed to a maximum of 12- and-a-half. His lawyers were arguing for five. And the judge upward- deviated over three years and gave him 15 years, 8 months. The prosecution was only asking for 12-and-a-half.
So what he`s saying is he didn`t get the benefit of the bargain. The purpose of having a plea deal is so that way, there`s some certainty. And
if the government is then going to suddenly prosecute somebody and sentence somebody way worse than the government is even asking, then that`s a
problem.
ROBERT SCHALK, DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Right, Nancy, I mean, he`s going to argue...
GRACE: Well, I really think that if he -- go ahead, dear.
SCHALK: He`s going to argue that the sentence is unduly harsh, but the problem for Jared Fogle at this in time is that in the federal
sentencing, when you get the federal sentencing guidelines, it`s not up to the prosecution or the defense. It`s up to the judge.
[20:10:02]And as you pointed out, he could come back on a motion, if the judge agrees, could sentence him to longer. So he`s rolling the dice
here. I mean, he agreed to the 12-and-a-half, but the prosecution can`t promise you anything in federal court.
GRACE: Yes, you`re right. You know, Troy Slaten said the prosecution should have held to its deal. But the reality is, when you put a plea deal
up to a judge, the judge can accept it or reject it. The judge is not bound by your plea deal. If the judge thinks it`s inappropriate, the judge
doesn`t have to take it.
And Robert Schalk joining me out of New York, Troy Slaten out of LA. Back to you, Schalk. Here`s the deal. It`s what I was arguing to Troy
Slaten. Subway Jared was initially charged with several charges of child sex and trying to take children overseas to have sex with them. Now we
find out he tried to...
SLATEN: He was never convicted of that.
GRACE: ... give them gamma-Hydroxybutyrate. Yes, as part of a deal. That`s not what I said, Troy. I said he was charged with that. Do you
disagree with that, Troy Slaten?
SLATEN: No. I mean, that was one of the original charges, but that`s not what he`s been found guilty of.
GRACE: OK...
SLATEN: He was found guilty of traveling for sex...
GRACE: What I`m saying, Robert Schalk -- what I`m trying to say, Robert Schalk, is that given all the circumstances of what he`s charged
with, it`s -- you know, he`s got a lot of nerve to reject a deal and ask for even less money. (sic)
You know what, guys? Take a listen to this. Let`s refresh our recollection.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You must go crazy in your travels because you get to go into all the different schools (INAUDIBLE) things like that. I
want you to -- I mean, I`m sure you have a lot of stories. I want you to tell me some of them so that -- I don`t know. I just -- I`d like to...
FOGLE: Yes, especially some of the middle schools. I love the middle schools. Girls are starting to (EXPLETIVE DELETED), you know?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.
FOGLE: Because you know how much I love (EXPLETIVE DELETED) (INAUDIBLE) doing a little touchy-feely things with them, you know, make
me feel good and (INAUDIBLE) a little more touchy-feely, a little more touchy-feely and a little more touchy-feely and -- I mean, it`s that kind
of stuff.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes?
FOGLE: Uh-huh.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: OK.
FOGLE: I mean, that would be amazing.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What ages...
FOGLE: Totally amazing.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What ages seems to be the easiest?
FOGLE: You know, I don`t know. (INAUDIBLE) you know, early middle school is probably one of the best.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes?
FOGLE: You know, they don`t know if they`re coming or going. (INAUDIBLE) (EXPLETIVE DELETED) 6th, 7th grader (EXPLETIVE DELETED)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: She has two, you know, two boys and she`s actually -- she`s not going to be there. She said I could use her house.
FOGLE: (INAUDIBLE)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Uh-huh.
FOGLE: (INAUDIBLE)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.
FOGLE: (INAUDIBLE) I want to see your kids naked, too, OK?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: OK.
FOGLE: Is that an OK?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes, that`s what you said.
FOGLE: Uh-huh. I`d like that very much. Yes, we`re going to have so much fun, baby. We`re going to have -- you have no idea.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Well, I know. You`re telling me all these things and it`s...
FOGLE: (INAUDIBLE) if you just -- if you just take the ride with me, baby, you`re going to have -- you have no idea.
(END AUDIO CLIP)
GRACE: That`s from CBS and Potetsky Productions.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[20:18:16]GRACE: Live, Oklahoma. When a customer`s credit card is declined at an Alva (ph) Comfort Inn, the hotel clerk asks him to pay in
cash. So what does he do? He goes out to the parking lot, he cranks up his pickup, he plows it straight through the hotel lobby. And it`s all
caught on video.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: A pickup truck comes crashing into a hotel lobby, and it`s all caught on tape. John Parsley had an argument with a hotel
clerk. He was outside the lobby speaking with a police officer when he put his truck into drive and drove through the hotel entrance into the lobby.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GRACE: OK, let`s go straight to the video, Liz. Could you play that for me? Scott Mitchell, talk show host, KOKC, what happened?
SCOTT MITCHELL, KOKC (via telephone): He gets into an argument with the front desk. And it was his fault. All this was his fault. So he goes
out, the police officer encounters him, tried to defuse the situation. And he says, They think I`m bluffing, he crawls into his truck, rams it into
the lobby there. And he could have killed some people.
GRACE: OK, let`s take that in slo-mo, if you can, Liz. Just crank it back up for me at the very beginning, pardon the pun.
Scott Mitchell joining me, KOKC -- oh! Oh, oh, oh! Did you see the clerks dive down behind the desk? OK, there you go. There`s no way you
can say this is not premeditated. He walks to his car, puts the key in the ignition, cranks it up, and crash!
So Scott Mitchell, KOKC, what is he charged with?
MITCHELL: Well, he`s charged with -- well, assault, and he`s using that truck as a deadly weapon, and he`s charged also with destroying
property. And he`s in jail, about a $100,000 bond. But I would expect these charges to be ramped up some because when you look at that video, he
looks like he`s targeting those people.
[20:20:15]GRACE: You know, he really does look like he`s driving straight for them, Scott Mitchell.
Justin Freiman, what more do we know?
JUSTIN FREIMAN, NANCY GRACE PRODUCER (via telephone): Nancy, this actually happens with police right there! They`d already been called to
the scene because he was fighting with the people inside! And he allegedly warned them, I`m going to run you over! Then as he`s talking to the police
outside, he gets in his truck and you see what happens next!
GRACE: Joining me right now is city business manager Joe Don Dunham. So what exactly happened at the Comfort Inn? And what do you make of it?
JOE DON DUNHAM, CITY BUSINESS MANAGER (via telephone): Well, what I understand it happened is that we had been called out for a -- through 911
for what was initially a civil matter. We were trying to defuse the situation.
The officer was -- had just arrived on scene and spoken with Mr. Parsley and had told him he was going to go inside to discuss the matter
with the clerks at the desk. When he stepped away to walk inside, Mr. Parsley put his truck in gear and went forward.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
[20:25:16]UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Caught on tape, the horrifying moment a man drives his pickup truck into a hotel lobby. He even appears to back up
and drive in again, causing more damage.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GRACE: What if a child had been standing at that hotel desk front? To Scott Mitchell, talk show host KOKC. What caused the feud? What
exactly happened? Did they ask him to pay in cash?
MITCHELL: Well, apparently, Nancy, his card was declined not once but twice, and there was a dispute over the bill. So that`s how we handle
things now, right? Go out and get out in your truck and try to run people over. It`s just preposterous.
GRACE: You know, Justin Freiman, had he stayed overnight there?
FREIMAN: He actually stayed there for two nights. Both nights, the card is declined and he has to pay in cash. And then he gets mad because
he got a notice from his bank saying there was a hold on the card. He took it to mean probably that it was charged. And that`s when all this happens.
GRACE: Unleash the lawyers, Robert Schalk and Troy Slaten. I guess, Troy Slaten, you`re going to argue your usual, that he just snapped, which
isn`t even a defense under the law. But what is your defense?
SLATEN: Well, it`s clear, Nancy, that he is several cards short of a full deck. You know, so who knows what was going on in his mind at that
moment. That`s not something that a sane person does. That`s not something that somebody who`s in control of all their faculties does.
And it`s true that driving through a hotel is not an appropriate response to even an overcharge on your credit card, but we need to figure
out what was going on with this person in the moments leading up to this.
GRACE: You know, Robert Schalk, one card short of a full deck is not a defense under the law.
SCHALK: No.
GRACE: OK? This is not going to be insanity, this is going to be a road rage type of prosecution. And the fact that you`re angry because your
credit card is declined is not going to be a defense.
And also, Robert Schalk, remember, he was talking calmly to the people at the front desk, the clerk, before he got into a rage over his credit
card. So to argue mental defect is not going to work.
SCHALK: I mean, you`re obviously going to look into it, but my plan, if I was defending this individual, would be to try to get the quickest
plea deal I could get because as the reporter who was covering the case astutely pointed out, he`s going to be lucky if they don`t try to charge
him with attempted murder because he came so close to those girls working behind the desk.
They dove down to the ground, and he looked like he was driving straight at them. So this is something where you got to go in there and
try to work out the best possible disposition as quickly as possible before the district attorney`s office ramps up the charges.
GRACE: You know what? You`re right. Let`s see it from the beginning, Liz, because to me, looking at this analytically, if I were
going to take this to trial, when you see him walking to his car, you have all the time in the world to back out of this bad plan.
Matthew Dempsey is joining me, psychotherapist out of LA. Matthew Dempsey, you know, so many times people jokingly say, you know, I`m so glad
I didn`t have a gun or I would have shot him, or, I`m going to kill you, or, I`m so mad at you, I could chew a nail in half. But most people would
never follow through on that. This guy did.
What`s the difference between him and the rest of us?
MATTHEW DEMPSEY, PSYCHOTHERAPIST: Well, the rest of us probably deal with anger in different kind of ways. We might get rageful, but we`re not
going to act that out. You know, this is somebody who probably actually does have some pretty mental health severe issues going on, probably
somebody that I would diagnose with...
GRACE: Wait-wait! Wait-wait!
DEMPSEY: ... anti-social personality disorder.
GRACE: Put him back up. Put him back up. So Mr. Dempsey, you are saying by just watching this video that you have diagnosed him with an
antisocial disorder because in one moment, he flies off the handle and drives through the front of this hotel.
Now, you are, I guess, disregarding his whole lifetime. Let`s see, how old is this guy? He`s 62, and has never had an incident like this
before.
DEMPSEY: Yes. So...
GRACE: So now you`re claiming that you think he has a mental defect.
DEMPSEY: I would probably say so. I wouldn`t diagnose him because I don`t have all the information, but just given some of the things that are
going on, the fact that he`s acting impulsively, he has a complete disregard for the law and...
GRACE: Acting impulsively.
DEMPSEY: ... for other wellbeing that it`s probably going to be something that will probably be a more significant mental health disorder.
GRACE: Hold on.
DEMPSEY: That`s not something that`s just road rage.
GRACE: OK, so acting impulsively in a complete disregard for the law -- that applies to most criminals, Dr. Matthew Dempsey. Mr. Dempsey, what
is your experience with the criminal justice system? I mean, do you think everybody that commits a crime has a mental defect?
DEMPSEY: I don`t. My experience isn`t extensive working specifically with criminal justice, but in terms of just touching base with some of the
more psychological, emotional stuff, these are just some indicators. Some suggestions there could be some kind of more severe mental health stuff. I
wouldn`t diagnose it. I haven`t done an assessment myself.
GRACE: Uh-huh.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[20:35:00]
GRACE: Live, Texas suburbs, a rich kid gets drunk and high on weed and Xanax, then he mows down four people dead, leaving two others
paralyzed. He gets straight probation for killing four people. Those families are still mourning the fiery deaths of their children. After that
sweetheart plea that included no jail time whatsoever, the DUI four-time killer allegedly caught on video yukking it up playing beer pong.
Bombshell tonight. After a warrant is issued for the arrest of Ethan Couch, is he on the lam? Is he on the run with none other than his mother?
Sources say neither he nor his mother are anywhere to be found.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
(CROSSTALK)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We flipped and -- oh, yes.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: On the night of the accident, he not only had three times the legal limit of alcohol in his blood, but Valium as well.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GRACE: Straight out to Robin Walensky, senior news anchor with The Blaze network. Robin, you know what? He just doesn`t go away. Sources
are telling us, and I`m still trying to confirm it, that when police went to go and find him, all of his and his mother`s belongings had been taken
out of the rental home where they were living. For those of you just joining us, this is Ethan Couch, the kid that was so rich after he killed
four people, DUI, paralyzed two others. His defense was he had affluenza. Affluent? He`s so rich, he can`t relate to regular people so he shouldn`t
be punished. And guess what? The judge agreed and gave him straight probation. Now, is he on the run? He and his mother have disappeared.
Robin Walensky, what`s happening?
WALENSKY: Nancy, first of all, these are people who think that the law here in Texas or anywhere doesn`t apply to them. Now the duo is gone,
and I can confirm for you tonight, Nancy, that indeed, when police showed up at the rental house, it was empty. All their stuff is gone. And Ethan
Couch, who is now 19, who killed four people, injuring 11, two that are paralyzed, he is missing. And he missed a mandatory meeting here in
Tarrant County with his probation officer, and now he`s nowhere to be found.
GRACE: Cheryl McCullough, former director of MADD Georgia, Mothers Against Drunk Driving, and now director of the Cold Case Investigative
Research Institute, Cheryl, I am so beside myself on this. First of all, if you have got one vehicular homicide DUI fatality, that`s jail time right
there. That`s 20 years behind bars. This is four people dead because he`s high on weed and Xanax after he partied too much at his parents` second
home. Then he gets out in a souped-up truck and mows these people down dead, leaving two others paralyzed. Do you recall his defense at trial?
Do you remember what it was?
MCCULLOUGH: Affluenza, no doubt about it. He`s the only person I`ve ever heard of who`s gone on the lam with all his crap. Who packs an entire
house, Nancy? Except somebody that knows they`re above the law. They`re going to take all their precious belongings with them to go into hiding.
GRACE: You know what`s so amazing about this? Justin Freiman, what more do we know about the mother being with him?
FREIMAN: That`s right, Nancy. Apparently he`s living right now with the mother, so when they showed up, she`s missing and he`s missing. Nobody
seems to be in contact with them.
GRACE: I want to see the crash. I want to see the victims, and I want to see the crash. I already know what Ethan Couch looks like. I know
what he looks like in his expensive outfit with his mommy and daddy walking him in and out of court. What I don`t think the public remembers are the
victims in this case. Brian Jennings, Holly Boyles, Shelby Boyles, Brianna Mitchell, all dead because Ethan Couch got high on weed and Xanax and went
for a ride. Two other people permanently paralyzed. Robin Walensky, senior news anchor with the Blaze network. Robin, I will never forget his
lawyers arguing at trial that he should not be subjected to the same punishment as other people, because he is so rich and so privileged, he has
affluenza.
WALENSKY: Well, Nancy, people here in Texas are absolutely disgusted, and I can tell you that on both radio and TV on the local level, this is
being mentioned in every newscast.
[20:40:00]
So police are asking anyone who has seen this kid to call in with some sort of a tip. But I can tell you that when he rammed into a car, it was a
lady who had a blown-out tire. She was killed. Another lady and her daughter who came out to help, they were killed. And a pastor who also
came to help, he was killed. There has just not been any justice in this case.
GRACE: You know, to Dr. Tim Gallagher joining me out of Daytona Beach, forensic pathologist. Dr. Gallagher, we know that the deadly
mixture was weed, pot and Xanax. So if you take enough of that, what does that do? How does that impair you if you try to drive?
GALLAGHER: Well, the combination of those two -- of all of those medications or all of those drugs are greater than each individual drug.
So it`s a cumulative effect. So the effects that it would have is excessive sedation. They are central nervous system depressants, so you
will have impairment of balance, speech, your depth perception, your sense of time is going to be very altered. It`s very dangerous to drive under
those conditions, especially when you`re in control of an automobile.
GRACE: I just wonder, Robin Walensky with the Blaze, how the families feel tonight. They`ve lost their mother, their sister, their family
member, their beloved. They`ve lost them in a fiery crash. The guy gets straight probation. His mommy and daddy enable him his whole life. And
now mommy is with him? That`s the question tonight. Is he and his mother actually on the run? Are they on the run? How are those families feeling
tonight, Robin Walensky?
WALENSKY: The families are furious, the public is furious. What`s adding insult to injury at this hour is this video that he was seen on
Twitter, where he`s laughing and jumping and clapping at a beer pong party.
GRACE: Let`s see the video. Robin, how do we get ahold of the video? What is this video? We`re still trying to confirm this was actually him,
playing beer pong after a DUI four-time killer.
WALENSKY: The authorities do believe that it is him. It popped up on Twitter and it belongs to a woman who claims she was not at the party, but
she was so ticked off when she saw it, that she sent it to the Tarrant County authorities. This is apparently him. It looks just like him if you
put this picture up next to the video. To my eye, it`s him. He`s laughing and having a grand old time while these four people are six feet under, and
he murdered them, and he`s drinking, well we don`t know if he`s drinking, he could have been drinking, but that`s really what`s in question, Nancy.
Is he drinking in this video? Because if he is, he`s violating his probation, and he could face up to 10 years in prison. Others in the video
are drinking. We don`t know if he was drinking.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[20:47:00]
GRACE: A young mom left a quadriplegic by a hit man hired by her husband describes that moment she is shot. The moment her spinal cord is
severed forever, and she is with us live.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: A mother of three is in her car when shots are fired at her. A bullet pierced the window, making direct contact.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I felt my body shutting down.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The shooting left Grossman paralyzed from the neck down.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GRACE: To Matt Duran, host of Crime Watch Daily. You can find that in your local listings. Matt Duran, thank you for being with us. Explain
to me what happened.
DURAN: She followed her heart into these two relationships that ended up being so abusive, so terrifying, it`s almost difficult to get your head
around. It started with the first husband, whose name was Ron Samuels. It started as threats, physical abuse, and graduated from there to the point
where she feared for her life. And it would get a lot worse. She went to a judge and said, I fear for my life to the point that if something is not
done, I`m going to be killed.
GRACE: Take a look at this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
HEATHER GROSSMAN: I told him my husband and I are getting death threats. I`m terrified that something is going to happen and he`s going to
kill me.
I felt my body shutting down. I tried to yell out for help. It wouldn`t come out. I knew the moment the bullets hit my neck that Ron got
me.
I`m a survivor. When I look back, I feel proud that I left the situation I was in. Nobody deserves to be a victim of domestic violence.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Heather and John were on their way to lunch when they stopped for a red light. A car pulled up next to them, multiple shots
rang out. A bullet pierced the window, making direct contact. After a lengthy hospital stay, Heather`s new reality was this. She was now a
quadriplegic, paralyzed from the neck down. She would require constant care.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GRACE: That is from Crime Watch Daily, the syndicated show you can find in your local listings. Joining me right now is a very special guest.
With me, Heather Grossman paralyzed after her husband arranged a hit, she is the founder of Heather`s Haven of Hope.
[20:50:00]
Thank you for being with us.
GROSSMAN: Hello.
GRACE: Heather, I know it`s painful for you to do this, but can you relive that moment when you realized you had been shot?
GROSSMAN: Well, we were driving to lunch and I reached down to get something out of my briefcase. When I came up, I knew instantly that
something was wrong. And I tried desperately to yell out for help, and help would not come out. I felt my body shutting down. I felt myself
dying, and I fell over on my husband`s lap and that`s all I remember.
GRACE: Heather Grossman is with us, paralyzed after her husband orders a hit on her. Heather, when you look back, why did he do it? What
was it all about?
GROSSMAN: He was a monster. He never -- he was abusive to me in our relationship, and I left him, but he was almost obsessed with me. I
remarried and I had a wonderful life and was very happy. And he said when I left him, he would destroy me. And I really think he set out to take my
life. He wanted power. He wanted control. He couldn`t believe that I left him and started a wonderful life with my second husband.
GRACE: I have another question for you, Heather. Let me throw this to Chris Spargo of Dailymail.com. Chris, he seemed so handsome and
charming. Were there any signs this guy, Ron Samuels, was actually a monster?
SPARGO: When they began dating, he was nice and charming, and then they got married and the abuse started. She said she would have things
thrown at her, she would be covered in bruises. At one point when she was pregnant with her twins, he held a gun to her head and said he would shoot
her if she ever left. And a year after that, when her twins were a year old, she finally gained the courage to leave and filed for divorce.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[20:57:00]
GRACE: Breaking news out of Baltimore. In the last hours we learned that the Freddie Gray jury has declared a mistrial. For those of you just
joining us, that went down in the last hours in a Baltimore courtroom, where the jury, who had been trying to deliberate since this morning around
9:00 a.m., after announcing yesterday they had a mistrial, they gave it the good old college try. They came back empty-handed yet again. Every time
they came out of the courtroom, they looked furious at each other. The judge has ordered all the lawyers back into the courtroom tomorrow morning
to reschedule a trial. It seems, according to legal eagles, that this case should be moved to another venue. Tempers high right now, and emotions raw
after Officer William G. Porter, the 25-year-old officer, one of several charged in the death of Freddie Gray, recalled Gray was put in the police
transport vehicle. In the video we are showing you, you see that he can clearly stand at the time he is put in that vehicle. Somehow by the end of
the ride in the transport vehicle, his spine is severed.
Now watch carefully. He`s being picked up in the video we continue to show you, and he stands on his own two feet on two occasions before getting
into the vehicle. The jury deadlocked on all four counts. What does it mean? Will there be a domino effect? There are multiple officers to be
tried. Each one is getting their own trial. This throws the state`s case totally out of whack. They`ll probably go back to the drawing board and
retry William G. Porter, but for now, this is what we know. Hung jury.
Everyone, let`s remember American hero, police officer Jesse Tarplin, just 38, Atlanta, Georgia. Jesse remembered for being a lovable gentle
giant, with a huge smile and a huge sense of humor. Leaves behind two sons and three daughters. A beautiful widow, Dominique, with another baby on
the way. Jesse Tarplin, American hero.
And, everybody, bombshell, our signature handcuff necklace and jewelry is available. Special coupon code nancygrace.com. All the proceeds go to
child abuse victims.
I want to thank all of my guests, but especially thank you to you for being with us, inviting all of us into your homes. I`m Nancy Grace signing
off. I`ll see you tomorrow night 8:00 sharp Eastern. And until then, good night, friend.
END
