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Nancy Grace
New Lead in Vanessa Marcotte Murder?; Jodi Arais` Secret Jailhouse Letters; Newlyweds Killed by Drunk Driver
Aired August 11, 2016 - 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. Murder rattles the small town of Princeton when a second jogger, 27-year-old Vanessa Marcotte, found
unclothed, attacked, murdered, her hands, feet and facial features burned, after jogging just a half mile from her mom`s home. Is Vanessa`s murder
connected to Karina Vetrano, a gorgeous 30-year-old who vanishes jogging not far from her own home?
Bombshell tonight. Is a brand-new critical lead set to solve the case?
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: A vicious killer took a life of a brilliant, bright, beautiful young girl.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The sexual assault and murder of jogger Karina Vetrano.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The murder of Vanessa Marcotte, found dead, naked and burned in the woods.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We understand that there are similarities. Nothing has been ruled out.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GRACE: Tonight, we obtain a secret jailhouse letter from convicted killer Jodi Arias that reveals her legal plans to marry a wealthy art collector
that`s been obsessed with Arias since 2012. And we find out Arias, after slaughtering lover Travis Alexander, spends time behind bars lounging,
drawing erotic scenes, scheming for a better room behind bars, tweeting her thousands of fans and watching cable TV.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: "In Touch" magazine reports they`ve obtained a letter allegedly written by Jodi Arias that reveals her plans to get married to a
new love interest and plans to gain her freedom and consummate the marriage.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: (INAUDIBLE)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GRACE: Cops say a 21-year-old bikini-clad killer driving drunk slams into newlyweds, killing the groom and his new wife`s baby boy.
Good evening. I`m Nancy Grace. I want to thank you for being with us tonight.
Bombshell tonight. Murder rattling the small town of Princeton when a second jogger, 27-year-old Vanessa Marcotte, found unclothed, attacked,
murdered, her hands, feet and facial features all burned, after she`s jogging just a half mile from her mom`s home. Is Vanessa`s murder
connected to Karina Vetrano, a young 30-year-old who vanishes while she`s out jogging not far from her home?
Bombshell tonight. Is a brand-new critical lead set to solve the case?
First of all, straight to the police presser. Listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We believe that there was a struggle between Vanessa and her killer that resulted -- may have resulted in her killer receiving
injuries. And her assailant we know was a man. These injuries specifically were scratches, scrapes and/or bruises. Therefore, we would
ask that anyone who`s observed a male with these types of injuries that would have been fresh earlier in the week to contact the Massachusetts
State Police tip line at 508-453-7589.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GRACE: You want to find a killer? Well, tonight we`ve got the right guy to do just that. Joining me right now, John Walsh, host of CNN`s "The
Hunt." John, thank you so much, friend, for being with us again tonight because we need you. We all need you now more than ever.
When I hear the police come out with a presser -- and you know, John, in Vanessa Marcotte`s case, they`ve been very, very tight-lipped. And I`ve
been saying from the get-go, John Walsh, where is her iPhone? Is here iPhone there? Where are her clothes? Did he burn them, as well?
But what I just heard them say is she put up a fight, that the killer is going to be scratched. What does that mean to me? It means DNA, John
Walsh. That`s what it means to me, under her fingernails.
JOHN WALSH, HOST, "THE HUNT": Absolutely. You know, I`ve done a lot of cases, and you and I have talked about them over the years, where these
creeps think that they can destroy the evidence by burning the body.
This guy must be pretty savvy because he burned her face, burned her hands. But he isn`t going to get all that DNA out of her fingernails. I`m
surprised that the Massachusetts State Police and the Princeton police haven`t talked whether or they have DNA or not.
[20:05:00]Now, if these two cases are linked -- and I know you`re going to ask me that question -- NYPD is one of the best police agencies in the
world. They`re saying they have DNA from the murder -- from the body of the girl that was murdered in New York, and that they ran it through CODIS
(ph) and they don`t have a hit, OK? So that guy`s never been arrested.
But I think that these two agencies should be working very close and talking and seeing if they have the same DNA. And I don`t know why the
hell a country that can put a man on the moon and a module on Mars can`t get DNA back, you know, sooner than three days so they might know they have
the same guy on a rampage.
GRACE: John Walsh, that`s what I`m screaming because you know for decades, the U.S. has used field test DNA in battle to get immediate results on who
a fallen soldier is.
And another thing about what you`re saying regarding a possible connection between the two, regarding CODIS, as you correctly state -- you know, when
you`ve been arrested, very often, DNA is put in CODIS, like in APIS (ph) and the fingerprint bank.
But say, for instance, he was arrested on a drug charge or maybe an ag assault shooting charge, where it wasn`t an assault leaving behind DNA.
They may not have taken DNA in some of those cases. So he may have an arrest, but there may not be DNA.
Another thing -- they`re begging for witnesses. Another thing I noticed, John Walsh, is that in Vanessa`s Marcotte`s case, they are asking people in
the neighborhood, in the community, Did you see anyone walking or anyone driving a car. Now, that opens up a whole new avenue of who may have
killed Vanessa, somebody by car, someone that knew about this location.
She was near a restaurant right before she goes missing. Her cell phone pinged off that restaurant. Did somebody follow her? That really hurts,
John, for the killer to have been in a car. Why?
WALSH: Well, you`re absolutely right. And I say whether these cases are related or this is a horrible rapist on a rampage, like an old tiger that`s
decided to kill closely, you know, once they`ve tasted the human flesh, that could be very, very dangerous. But could be a mobile guy, as you
said.
But this one, I truly believe, which I`ve learned for the 25 years I did "America`s Most Wanted" and from doing "The Hunt" now on CNN, the public
will be the one that will break the case. Somebody will have the guts to come forward and say, I think it`s crazy cousin Howard, or I saw somebody,
you know, that I know with these scratches or that I saw this car go by.
And that`s why you and I always talk about how crucial the public is. Lots of people don`t want to call cops. They`re afraid they`re going to be
brought into the trial. They`re afraid an ADA`s going to come to their house and say, You`ve got to testify against your crazy cousin Howard.
Now, you don`t have to. You can call Crimestoppers. You can call -- you can drop that dime, you can make that call, and the cops will take it from
there, and they don`t need to know your name. And nobody`s going to drag you into it, and nobody`s going to exact revenge on you because you`re a
witness. And this is crucial that you talk about this like you are, Nancy.
GRACE: Joining us tonight, in addition to special guest, the host of CNN "The Hunt," John Walsh, with me -- joining me there in Massachusetts,
Lindsay Corcoran with Masslive.com.
Lindsay, a lot of developments tonight in the Vanessa Marcotte case. What can you tell me about that ping they`re talking about that could help crack
her murder?
LINDSAY CORCORAN, MASSLIVE.COM (via telephone): Well, there was a lot of activity today, Nancy, I mean, starting early in the day. (INAUDIBLE)
Mass. (ph) State Police crews were back out on the side of the road, in the woods where Vanessa Marcotte was found. They did search for two hours and
left the woods with a brown paper bag. We have no word yet on what that was, what piece of evidence they found.
Obviously, they`re revealing a small tidbit of new information to us today about the scratches or bruises that Vanessa Marcotte`s killer may have
suffered during the attack, and you know, again, still begging for tips, still looking for people to call in with any information.
GRACE: Take a listen. Let`s go straight back into the presser.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We`re now focusing on a more narrow timeline on Sunday between the hours of 1:00 to 3:00 PM on Brooks Station Road in Princeton,
Mass. We would ask that anyone who observed any type of vehicle moving on the road or parked on the road during the 1:00 PM to 3:00 PM timeline,
contact the state police tip line at 508-453-7589.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GRACE: We are also learning a lot of breaks regarding not only this case but the case of Karina Vetrano. But I want to go back to that ping.
Ben Levitan, telecommunications expert -- Justin, could you please show me the restaurant? This cell phone tower is directly across the street from
this restaurant.
And we`re learning tonight -- quickly to you, Michael Christian. Is it true that Vanessa`s family was spotted at this restaurant, the Mountain
Barn, the day she goes missing? What do we know about that?
MICHAEL CHRISTIAN, NANCY GRACE PRODUCER: Nancy, employees at this restaurant, Mountain Barn restaurant, have said that Vanessa`s family came
there looking to see if possibly she was there because her cell phone had pinged off of the tower that`s literally right across the street.
GRACE: OK. So Ben Levitan, her cell phone pings -- Ben Levitan, telecommunications expert joining me tonight out of Raleigh. Her cell
phone pings off the Mountain Barn restaurant. Now, according to what we can tell -- I`m going to double back to Lindsay in just a moment, with
Masslive -- all of this is within a five to six-mile stretch. You`ve got the restaurant where the family went looking for her. You`ve got the mom`s
house, where she started her jog, and her family -- I mean, her body about a half a mile away.
How much does the ping help me? What is that telling me?
BEN LEVITAN, TELECOMMUNICATIONS EXPERT (via telephone): Nancy, that cell tower probably covers four square miles. The restaurant`s probably the
most popular place. So was she there? Maybe? Did the killer come in before or after? Maybe.
What would be interesting is let`s get a cell tower dump. Let`s get all the phone numbers that used that cell tower. Let`s compare them to all the
telephones that used the New York tower.
Would there possibly be one phone that appeared both in New York and in Massachusetts? There could be a lot. A lot of people probably were in New
York and Massachusetts. But let`s look at it. Maybe there are a couple of numbers that are in common. I`d like to talk to those people.
GRACE: Ben, I think an issue that I`m thinking about -- they still won`t tell us, was her cell phone found on the location with her body? Now, why
won`t police tell us that? You know what does that lead me to believe? In every other case, Ben Levitan, they say her keys, her pocketbook, her
cellphone was recovered. They haven`t said that about her cellphone. They haven`t said that about her clothes.
Could this ping that they have gotten, Ben Levitan, be a ping after she was killed, which would lead us the killer?
LEVITAN: Nancy, they might not be saying that they found the phone because the killer took the phone with him and they are tracking him now. Could be
the case, Nancy.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The murder of Marcotte, a Google account executive.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Brutally attacked murdered as she went for an afternoon jog.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Someone brutally sexually assaulted and killed Karina during an evening jog.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And I will never, ever forget.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GRACE: Tonight, is there a new lead that may crack this case? We are learning about a crucial ping from Vanessa Marcotte`s phone, police still
not revealing if they have the phone or not. And what difference does that make?
Straight out to John Walsh, the host of CNN`s "The Hunt." If they have the phone, all right -- and we know they`ve narrowed down the timeline, John,
between 1:00 and 3:00 o`clock -- we know it`s in a space of about five miles. We have found her body. We`re not looking for that anymore.
So What could be so crucial about that ping, other than the killer has the phone?
WALSH: Well, if the killer`s got the phone, as your specialist said, then maybe they`re being very quiet about that, hoping that he`s dumb enough
that maybe he`s one of those serial killers that keeps the trophies. Over the years, you and I always talk about the incriminating trophies that
these creeps -- if it is a serial killer -- keep.
But if they have the phone, maybe they`re doing something special. Maybe they are comparing what went on on that tower with all the phones around
that area. Maybe they`re working with NYPD.
But I`m very surprised that they haven`t said whether they have DNA or not and whether they have not said, OK, to warn everybody -- I`m all about
warning everybody.
GRACE: Yes.
WALSH: I`ve learned so many times over there years, when there`s a pedophile out tracking kids in the school yard, they never tell people.
They don`t want to scare them. How many cases have you and I talked about where there is a serial killer and they don`t talk about it until he`s
killed five or six -- I`ll never forget the hobo (ph) serial killer, Ramirez Ramendez (ph). He killed nine people around the country, never
made the first page of "USA Today" until he got to nine people.
So if that DNA is the same, then you know you`ve got a rabid dog out there and you`ve got to let everybody in the Northeast say to their beautiful
wives and daughters, Don`t go running at this time.
If it`s two individual guys, they could -- they could just discern that be sharing that DNA. So they may be working on the phone, Nancy. I`m sure
they`re working on the DNA. And I just wish that they would come forward and say, Hey, it`s two different guys. We`re looking for two different
guys, and get busy.
But again, I say it`s the public that`s going to break this case, and those Massachusetts cops are saying, Please, if you saw any kind of vehicle --
might be a mobile serial killer. You know, probably, he could be, you know, a thousand miles away now after that murder.
But if they got the phone, then they`re doing something very special with the phone. If he`s got the phone, God knows what he`s doing with it.
GRACE: To Dr. Imran Ali, resident physician joining us out of New York. Dr. Ali, thanks for being with us. I want to follow up on what Lindsay
Corcoran told us. We know that in Vanessa Marcotte`s case that there was a struggle. We just learned that from the police presser. They said that
the perpetrator was likely bruised and scratched up. That means DNA to me.
[20:00:02]But we also know the killer burned her hands. Can you get DNA out from under Marcotte`s fingernails if her hands have been burned?
DR. IMRAN ALI, PHYSICIAN: They actually found out that sometimes DNA can definitely be degraded, but you can use a method called PCR and amplify the
DNA. And in some cases, they have been able to use, enough DNA, that to identify people, especially people who have died in house fires.
GRACE: Wow. OK, did not know that, PCR. With me, Dr. Imran Ali, and also, news director with WABC, Noam Laden, is joining us right now. Noam,
more breaks in the case regarding Karina Vetrano. Let`s start with the reward.
NOAM LADEN, WABC (via telephone): Yes, well, so the reward was initially $20,000. That was put up by the NYPD. But Karina`s parents, they couldn`t
sit still while this killer was out there, so they set up a GoFundMe page. And within 24 hours, they had raised over $100,000 towards that reward
money.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
GRACE: Unleash the lawyers. Joining me, Robert Schalk out of New York, Randy Kessler out of Atlanta. OK, all of us have handled murder cases
before, me prosecuting, you defending. Randy Kessler, what`s your take on whether these two are actually connected? Is it the same killer?
RANDY KESSLER, DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Well, it might be the same killer. But you know, there might be a problem. If you`re trying so hard to find one
person that did both, somebody might be smiling all the way to freedom.
You want to keep all options open. There`s a good possibility that it`s two people. Killing somebody because they`re beautiful and they`re jogging
and you`re attracted to them or you`re a sexual deviant, that`s not the most unique situation, unfortunately, in America. There could easily be
more than one. Keep our options open.
GRACE: You know, Robert Schalk, I agree that you have to isolate each individual murder. I agree with Kessler. But the more evidence you have,
the more likely you are to find the killer. That`s why I say continue along both paths trying to find the killer of two women and two individual
killers. It only makes sense.
ROBERT SCHALK, DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Right. No, I agree with you. You`re going to have two separate investigations, but they obviously have to keep
the lines of communication open, share information. That`s the whole point of law enforcement and working together. I mean, if they`re going to find
one person, if it was a serial killer, or two, they have to share information with one another because one piece of information from one
investigation could lead to something in another, where, like, Oh, we didn`t think about that. Let`s go back to the drawing board and start from
here.
GRACE: Noam Laden, news director, WABC -- Noam, again, thank you for being with us. What more can you tell me about the updates in this Karina
Vetrano murder?
LADEN: Well, there is DNA. They`ve taken that DNA from the scene. They`ve run it through a DNA data bank. No matches whatsoever. So over
the last couple days, police have been back in the park where she was murdered, taking swabs from some of the homeless in the park and matching
that through the DNA bank. Still no matches.
So there`s a lot of frustration on the part of the NYPD right now. They don`t really know who they`re searching for.
GRACE: Everyone, regarding Karina Vetrano, tip line 1-800-577-TIPS. Regarding Vanessa Marcotte, the tip line there, 508-453-7589. Repeat, tip
line for Vanessa Marcotte, 508-453-7589.
Joining us tonight is John Walsh, back on "The Hunt." Season premier is Sunday night here on HLN. We have a sneak peek. Look.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Pancho (ph) was one of the most violent pimps I`ve come across in the 11 years I`ve worked human trafficking. He did a lot of
brutal things (INAUDIBLE) torture to make the girls do what he wanted.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It`s a game (ph). (SPEAKS IN SPANISH)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: One victim said that he was just beating her. She fell on the ground, and she got hit with the butt of the gun on her head.
She passed out. And when she woke up, he was still beating her. She said, He didn`t really care if I was dead or not. He just kept at it.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: These girls are terrified of what can happen not only to them, but more important, what can happen to their family members.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GRACE: "The Hunt" with John Walsh returns Sunday 9:00 PM on HLN. John, what is in store on the season premiere?
WALSH: That guy that you just saw there, Pancho Diaz Juarez (ph) -- he`s at the top of my most wanted list. In 2010, he kidnapped a girl from
Mexico, a teenage girl, smuggled her across the border, put her in that cantina that he worked out of in Houston.
Houston`s a big entry port, and those cantinas make millions of dollars using underage girls for predominantly Hispanic men that come to have sex
with them. But he beat this girl. He impregnated her. She had the baby. He kidnapped the baby to keep her working in prostitution. He only served
three years in a Texas jail, got out, went right back to the business.
He`s a horrible, horrible, violent guy. And when the cops shut down -- great police work. When they shut down that cantina, they arrested 13
people. The runner -- the person running the cantina was a woman. They all went to prison, but Pancho`s out there. And he goes back and forth
across the border. He kidnaps young girls in Mexico. He brings them into the United States, forces them into prostitution.
This guy`s right at the top of my personal list. So I`m hoping Sunday night, his run is going to be over.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GRACE: Crime-victim-turned-crime-fighter, Hailey Dean, is back in "Murder in the Courthouse."
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The unstoppable prosecutor digs in to track down a killer, but could she wind up the next victim? Find out in the third book
in Nancy`s best-selling series.
GRACE: Portions of proceeds go to Help Find Missing Children.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Pre-order your copy now on Amazon, barnesandnoble.com and more.
GRACE: My proceeds to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, go to murderinthecourthouse.com. Amazon books` Books-A-Million
pre-orders come with an autographed manuscript page from "Murder in the Courthouse".
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GRACE: Tonight, we obtained a secret jailhouse letter from convicted killer Jodi Arias that reveals her legal plans to marry an allegedly wealthy art
collector that has been obsessed with Jodi Arias since 2012.
And we find out that arias, after she slaughters her lover, Travis Alexander, is spending time behind bars lounging, drawing erotic scenes,
scheming to get a better cell, tweeting her thousands of fans, and watching cable T.V.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: According to "In Touch", Arias notes that if she got married and somehow got out of prison, you better believe Ben and I would
get to consummating.
JODI ARIAS, CONVICTED KILLER OF TRAVIS ALEXANDER: You make me feel (BEEP). I seriously think about having sex with you everyday.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Arias allegedly writes in the letter that Ben cannot come visit but if they get married, then he could petition the court for
visitation.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GRACE: To Alexander Hitchen, general editor with "In Touch" magazine, Alexander, thank you for being with us. I am having a hard time taking this
in. What man in his right mind -- of course, now there`s an oxymoron, a man in his right mind. Let me mull that a moment. But who in this guy is
already in a relationship with a mom of two would want to marry Jodi Arias who is behind bars for life? I can only pray.
ALEXANDER HITCHEN, "IN TOUCH" MAGAZINE GENERAL EDITOR: I agree with you, Nancy, and great to -- great to have -- great to be back on the show. I
would just like to say that you`ve read the letter.
(CROSSTALK)
GRACE: Yes, I have.
HITCHEN: And the full content is in this week`s issue of "In Touch". It is Jodi painstakingly points out every possible move in this letter because
basically she`s an evil genius.
GRACE: Guys, let`s see the beginning of the letter. This is reportedly about a wealthy art collector already in a relationship.
"Ben can`t visit, frowny face. Here is what I was told he needs to do, or rather, we need to do." And she is writing to a friend. "If we marry, then
he can petition a court to grant us visitation."
:He has to go to the court ... get the paperwork, have mine sent to me via legal mail (an attorney). I sign it, have it notarized, send it back. He
files it and viola! Spousal rights. It`s official."
"I`m appealing my conviction, which means, as far as Ben is concerned, there is an expectation that I will regain my freedom and he and I will
then live as married couple."
OK, pause right there. OK. Alexander Hitchen, general editor of "In Touch," if this is true, who is she writing to? What friend is arranging her
marriage?
HITCHEN: So she was writing to a lady called Maria De La Rosa and I know you covered the case extensively, Nancy, so you know who this lady is. She
was -- she is a mitigation specialist who was part of Jodi`s defense team, and mitigation specialist is a person who convinces the court not to impose
the death penalty.
Well, since that happened, since Jodi began her life sentence, her natural life sentence, she has stayed in touch with Jodi, and Jodi sends Maria lots
of letters. So, Maria is probably her closest friend.
GRACE: OK, Arias planning to legally marry an art collector. That`s the newest. And to Matt Zarrell story, what can you tell me about her tweets
and how she`s spending her time behind bars? Let`s start with the tweets. Justin, can you roll the tweets? What do you know Matt?
MATT ZARRELL, NANCY GRACE PRODUCER: OK, well, so we have a number of - one very reason Jodi Arias has a roommate. Apparently, she has finally moved.
Another tweet said, she`s finally moved. She`s very glad to be out of the four-pack she was in at that progress.
She`s reading "The Hobbit" by J.R.R Tolkien, also "Mr. Robot." She`s learned that "Mr. Robot" season 2.0 starts in 5.5 hours, and Jodi Arias
will be glued to her T.V. There was also an issue of her hot water, Nancy. She complained for over a week about inmates including herself not getting
hot water.
GRACE: So, Jodi Arias is behind bars whining about zero hot water for three days and, long story short, thanking everybody for all the birthday cards
and money that they are sending, and she is glued to the T.V. watching "Mr. Robot." Take a look.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ELLIOT ANDERSON, PLAYED BY RAMI MALEK ON "MR. ROBOT": A powerful group of people out there that are secretly running the world. The top 1 percent of
the top 1 percent. Higher ups don`t like someone with my power.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GRACE: That`s from "Mr. Robot" from USA Network. Joining me right now, Barrett Marson, the former director of communications for the Arizona
Department of Corrections and CEO of Marson Media Firm. Barrett, is this possible? Can she marry behind bars?
BARRETT MARSON, FORMER DIRECTOR OF COMMUNICATIONS FOR THE ARIZONA DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTIONS: Nancy, thanks a lot for having me on. First, I`d
like to say, you know, we`ve been going through 110 degrees day (ph) weather a year in Arizona. It`s been a little bit clear lately, but hot
water should not be a problem, it comes out of the faucet pretty hot. So I don`t know what she`s complaining about that.
But, yes, indeed, inmates can get married behind bars. There is a process to go through. It is in no way a fantasy, dream-like wedding that every
girl dreams of. There`s no white dress. There`s no exchanging of rings. It`s a pretty Spartan affair.
GRACE: I think we all remember the spectacle Arias made at trial when she was convicted of stabbing her lover, Travis Alexander, dead, after a sex
marathon all day.
To Dr. Tiffany Sanders, psychologist, Tiffany, she`s complaining she didn`t have hot water. Travis Alexander is dead. She left him slumped over dead in
a shower. Remember that?
TIFFANY SANDERS, PSYCHOLOGIST: She`s a very entitled woman. And she seems like she`s only caught up in what she thinks is her reality and is no sense
of reality, who marries behind bars? What is she going to have, the dream wedding? You know, I`m concerned does she have it all together? This is
just sicko. I`m very surprised that they even allow her to go through this.
GRACE: We all remember when Jodi Arias competed on American Idol behind bars. Listen.
ARIAS, SINGING `O HOLY NIGHT`: Oh holy night The stars are brightly shining It is the night of our dear Savior`s birth Long lay the world in sin and error pining `Til He appeared and the soul felt Its worth ...
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ARIAS, SINGING `O HOLY NIGHT`: Oh holy night ...
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: "In Touch" magazine reports they`ve obtained a letter, allegedly written by Jodi Arias that reveals her plans to get married to a
new love interest and plans to gain her freedom and consummate the marriage.
ARIAS: We`d shut and lock the door and we would just have a (BEEP) fest. We`d go at it all night.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GRACE: OK. I thought I`d never hear that again. Those are the sex tapes between Jodi Arias and her murder victim, Travis Alexander.
Tonight, prison bombshell, Arias planning to marry a wealthy art collector. He must be completely out of his mind.
To Alexander Hitchen, the general editor with "In Touch." Alexander, again, thank you for being with us. What makes you believe in this letter that she
is lounging around her jail cell drawing erotic drawings? Where did that come from?
HITCHEN: I have to say, Nancy, they`re not necessarily that pretty but I`ve actually seen these erotic drawings.
GRACE: OK, what are they?
HITCHEN: OK, so the one in question, the one that we actually talk about in "In Touch" this week is of a topless Jodi with this gentleman, Ben, on top
of her. And it`s a pencil drawing that Jodi sent to Ben.
GRACE: I`m reporting this holding my nose, Alexander. And I`m surprised you can stand the stench of it in your studio. Jodi Arias, behind bars,
planning a prenup and a wedding with an art collector to whom she is sending her erotic drawings.
OK. Alexander, I`d like to say thank you for that, but I`m going to hold. Alexander Hitchen, General Editor "In Touch".
Everybody, summer is coming to an end. Students are hanging up their swim suits and reaching for their backpacks. For children south of Boston, this
week`s CNN Hero is ready to help them see their potential using basketball. Meet Marquis Taylor.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MARQUIS TAYLOR, CNN HERO: This program is not about creating the next basketball star. It`s about helping young people develop skills that are
going to prepare them for the next step. It allows you to navigate challenges that are in your face because that`s what`s gonna happen when
they hit life.
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GRACE: And what`s different about this program? Older players become mentors for younger ones and how that could become a pathway to college.
Watch Marquis` story at CNNHeroes.com, and while you`re there, nominate who you think should be a 2016 hero.
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GRACE: Breaking news tonight.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: For breaking news on all our top stories, go to twitter @nancygrace and Facebook.
GRACE: Bombshell tonight.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You`ll find the latest on outrageous crimes, missing persons, fugitives on the run and much more.
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GRACE: Cops say a 21-year-old bikini-clad killer driving drunk, slams into newlyweds, killing the groom and his bride`s baby boy.
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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Cops say the bikini-clad driver was river tubing and drinking before the 21-year-old driver turned the ignition key, veered
across the center line and tore a family apart.
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GRACE: Straight out to Jeff Boney, associate editor with "Houston Forward Times". Jeff Boney, bikini-clad killer? Explain.
JEFFREY BONEY, "HOUSTON FORWARD TIMES" ASSOCIATE EDITOR: Yeah, Nancy. Officials say that around 6:00 p.m., the bikini-clad 21-year-old Texas
State University senior, Shana Lee Elliott, she was driving her Chevy Impala when she veered across the center line on Highway 21 in Texas and
slammed head-on into the Toyota Corolla driven by 24-year-old Kristian Guerrero who was five months pregnant.
Kristian and her husband, Fabian Guerrero-Moreno were immediately impacted by the accident so much so Nancy that Fabian died shortly after the crash,
their unborn child died due to injuries from the crash and Kristian was taken to the hospital for treatment, having suffered several injuries
including minor bleeding of the brain. Of course, she is expected to recover but the family is never the same.
GRACE: You know, Kyle Peltz, we thought -- she thought at the beginning that the baby would survive the fatal crash with the drunk driver, because
at first they had a heartbeat when she got to the hospital, right?
KYLE PELTZ, NANCY GRACE PRODUCER: Yes, Nancy, that`s right. They first had a heartbeat when she got to the hospital and she was very excited because
she thought, or she was hopeful because she thought at least, now that her husband had died, she would still have some part of him. Unfortunately,
Nancy, when they did the second sonogram, they discovered that the heartbeat was no longer there.
GRACE: Look at her writing, `Please be with me the next few days and keep me strong to be the woman who deserved to call you her husband.` Can you
imagine that? In one fell swoop,, because of a drunk driver wearing a bikini, her husband is dead.
This woman, right there, Shana Elliott. Her husband is dead. Her unborn baby is dead, just before she`s set to give birth. And to Jeffrey Boney
from "Houston Forward Times", Jeff, this girl, this Shana Elliott, is no angel. Isn`t it true she already has convictions for possessing marijuana
and, I think, heroin? I`m not sure. What are her priors?
BONEY: Yeah. Previously, Nancy, Elliott was arrested on March the 22nd on three felony charges of possession of controlled substances and marijuana
and then on May the 2nd, Elliott was also arrested again on two felony charges of possession of controlled substances. This is according to county
record.
GRACE: Unleash the lawyers, Robert Schalk and Randy Kessler. OK Kessler, give me your best defense because you know in that jurisdiction, two
bodies. That`s death penalty.
KESSLER: Well, the defense is going to be in question of sentencing. It`s really not a question of causation. The question is, in this society, do we
want throw away the key and just put her away forever, or do we want to help get her back on track and restore her life? That`s what makes us
human, the ability to forgive and move forward and give her a chance ...
(CROSSTALK)
GRACE: I`m fine about forgiving. I can -- hopefully the family can forgive her while she`s still behind bars.
And to you Robert Schalk, you know those license tags on your car? That`s how she can contribute. She can make a couple thousand of those while she`s
behind bars for the rest of her life.
(CROSSTALK)
SCHALK: Well, you`re both right. This is more of a mitigation, plea bargain, try to get the best numbers and she`s going to be doing some
(inaudible) state prison time if the stacks (ph) are ...
(CROSSTALK)
GRACE: Two dead bodies.
SCHALK: This is going to be -- there`s no one saying it`s not going to be a big sentence here, and you`re right, she`s gonna be making license plates.
But, you know, the death penalty on a case like this, probably not warranted. But her lawyer obviously needs to go to a judge and try to get
the best number.
GRACE: Jeff Boney joining us from "Houston Forward Times", is it true that the mom and the grandmother of Baby Fabian -- oh, I can hardly stand to
look at these pictures -- wanted special time so they could hold the little baby`s hand?
BONEY: Absolutely. Nancy, actually she wanted to name the child because prior to this accident, her husband and her baby and Kristian, they were
just beginning their lives.
They got pregnant about five months ago and they were disputing of whether to name the child Fabian Michael or Fabian James, and she wanted that
special time to not only hold the baby but also to name the baby, and she ended up naming the baby Fabian James Guerrero just like the father had
wanted.
GRACE: You know, when all of us think that we have seen sorrow, I think about this lady. Losing her baby and losing her husband and soldiering on.
Let`s stop and remember American hero Elden Arcand, 22, White Bear Lake, Minnesota. Loves sports, dogs, the outdoors. Parents, David and Kelly;
Brother, Michael and Danny; Sister, Taylor. Elden Arcand, American hero.
And happy birthday to California, friend of the show, Jeff. Now, isn`t he handsome? Happy birthday, Jeff.
And tonight, happy birthday to beautiful friend Andrea. Loves Zumba, baking, vacations, her daughters Michelle and Danielle. Happy birthday
beautiful Andrea.
And a heartfelt get-well to our superstar, Stacey. We are continuing our prayers, Stacey. Come back to us.
Thanks for being with us, everybody. Nancy Grace, signing off. I`ll see you tomorrow night 8 o`clock sharp, Eastern. And until then, good night,
friend.
END
