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CNN Live Event/Special

No New Developments in Chandra Levy Case

Aired August 31, 2001 - 11:30   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
LEON HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: We're going live now to Washington, where Washington D.C. police Chief Ramsey is addressing the press.

(JOINED IN PROGRESS)

CHIEF CHARLES RAMSEY, WASHINGTON D.C. POLICE: ... had a chance to see that for themselves and make their own judgments. We're still investigating this case. We're going to continue to investigate the case. If we need another interview, we will ask for one. But again, it does nobody any good to keep going back and forth with all he said/she said stuff being serves no purpose.

QUESTION: Mr. Gainer just came out of a meeting. Can you invite him over to give him us the update.

RAMSEY: Would you rather speak with Gainer than me, is that what you're saying? Is that it? Where is he at? He's over there holding court on his set. Actually that's the real information we're giving out now.

QUESTION: Do you feel that they were sort of evasive a little bit, or do you feel like they were helpful to you?

RAMSEY: Again, we've conducted interviews with a variety of people. We're going to continue to conduct interviews. If we need to speak to someone else again, we will do so. You know, this has become a big issue as to who is forthcoming, who's not forthcoming, whether they're withholding information. Part of the problem is, as the investigation continues, we become aware of more information. We have different sets of answers we need answered, and that's part of the problem, especially if that information is not volunteered up front, even though you not have been aware of it. So, again, we interviewed them. If we feel there's a need for another interview, we'll ask. If not, then we will consider their interviews to be complete.

I don't get frustrated with anything, it's my job; it's just the way it is. I'm a person with a high level of tolerance for a lot of things. And it just doesn't bother me personally. It's part of the business.

That's why they make Excedrin, you know what I mean. That's why God created headache remedies, so you can take it whenever you need it. QUESTION: Publicity doing things like this drunk driving, how does this affect the metropolitan police department to have a little...

RAMSEY: Well, I would hope that this get a lot of play, because quite frankly, we've got media that probably not would have been here if it had not been for this other thing. But we're talking about an issue that doesn't affect just the District of Columbia. It affect the entire nation, and just by showing what we're doing here, people say, boy, I bet you my local police department has probably got something up their sleeve. So we're going to a party tonight, we better have a designated driver.

And that's all we're asking people to do, if you're old enough, we don't care if you have something to drink, but if you're going to drink, don't drive, and make preparations for it -- take a cab, get a designated driver, walk, do something, but just don't get behind the wheel of a car, and holidays are a time when it's good to do that sort of thing, but it's also a time when our numbers show us that holidays we tend to have a spike in crashes that are traffic related.

QUESTION: ... press conferences on unrelated issue. We're all here, we're asking you about Chandra. How far is the investigation going to do before it gets to the point it needs to be?

RAMSEY: You are asking the wrong guy. That question, you ought to be asking yourself that. I'm just here. I'm just responding best I can. I enjoy having dialogue with you personally. I hope it never ends, personally.

QUESTION: Waiting for tips to come in, when is the end point?

RAMSEY: The tips are still coming in, and a lot of it is because of the kind of publicity we've gotten. There's been some good to this, because it has kept it alive. The only thing that I'm disappointed in, is that it hasn't really shifted over to some of the other cases that we're equally interested in, that we could like the public to call us on. Chandra Levy is not the only missing person in the District of Columbia, nor is she the only missing person in the United States.

I think it's important that we look at all of these cases. And if anybody has information over any of it, if you think the Levys are going through a lot of anxiety, there are a lot of families going through a lot of anxiety, and we need to do what we can to bring all of it to a conclusion.

So with that, go enjoy our vehicles. We've got a lot of things for you to see, a lot of new state-of-the-art equipment, and thank you very much.

HARRIS: We've been listening to Washington police chief Charles Ramsey there. He's out today speaking to the press on a different issue than the one the press probably came to listen to. He's talking about drunk driving initiatives there, but he also extolled the virtues of the publicity that he has been getting and the department has been getting surrounding the Chandra Levy disappearance case. He says that this has brought more attention to other missing persons' cases, and he hopes that turns up more clues to help solve cases and make families a little more at ease with their own fates.

He says there has not really been any new developments. However, he did explain one reason why a number of people are being reinterviewed, saying that once more information is learned by the chief or by the department, sometimes it creates a need to bring someone back in, to talk about something, whether or not they knew that was an important issue the first time.

So there you are. There we have it.

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