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ISSUES WITH JANE VELEZ-MITCHELL
Shaniya`s Mother Charged with Human Trafficking; Child Found Wandering Streets; Janet Jackson Speaks Out; Sex Crimes & Murder
Aired November 17, 2009 - 19:00:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JANE VELEZ-MITCHELL, HOST (voice-over): Tonight, incomprehensible horror. A 5-year-old girl allegedly sold as a prostitute, killed and dumped on the side of the road. Stunning, churning new developments in the case of Shaniya Davis. Her body`s just been identified by police. But somehow this case gets even more hellish.
Cops say this little angel was sold as a sex slave by her own mother. Now that mother, tonight behind bars, is reportedly pregnant again. We`ll have her tearful 911 call that cops say is completely fake. Little Shaniya, last seen being carried into a hotel room by a grown man. God only knows what happened next.
And toxic tales in an addict nation. Cops say a 1-year-old child was left home alone, so her mom could smoke crack and get boozed up. This little girl was found wandering the streets. She was found by strangers. But her mom didn`t claim her for 24 long hours. And get this: this woman just got a job working for family and social services? I can`t make this stuff up.
Plus, the nightmare escalates in the Missouri house of horrors. Fast- breaking developments in the sexual abuse case involving at least six family members. A new victim has stepped forward, claiming these men locked her in the basement, repeatedly raped her, and buried her newborn child alive.
And that`s just the beginning. Three of the victims now claim they were forced to kidnap and murder a complete stranger. Of all of the toxic families ever uncovered, is this the worst?
ISSUES starts now.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Tonight, a father`s worst fears confirmed. The body a small child has been positively identified as that of his precious 5- year-old daughter, Shaniya Davis. Devastated dad, Bradley Lockhart, choked back tears just hours ago.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BRADLEY LOCKHART, FATHER OF SHANIYA DAVIS: I`m very appalled and disgusted to that fact that anybody can bring themselves to that. However, with the faith of the Lord that we can cleanse ourselves and ask for forgiveness, and forgive those who have done this disgusting act.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Amid this devastating news, outrage, grief and disbelief has swept the North Carolina community and the nation. Police are accusing this little girl`s mom of the unthinkable. Shaniya`s mom, Antoinette Davis, is accused of selling -- that`s right, selling -- her 5- year-old daughter into sexual slavery.
Police alleged she allowed Shaniya to be carried off to a hotel room by her sister`s ex-boyfriend, Mario McNeill, the trusting little girl, holding onto the man with no idea of what horror likely awaited her. So trusting. Cops say Shaniya and her alleged kidnapper were at that hotel for an hour. Look at that little girl. Police believe the child was alive when they left. Huh, I can`t take looking at that child.
Meantime, another layer of jaw-dropping claims. CNN affiliate WRAL reports that the dead child`s mom, as she sits behind bars tonight, is pregnant again. The reported father of her unborn child -- are you sitting down? -- the very man she allegedly tried to frame in the abduction of her daughter.
As for Shaniya`s disappearance, listen to this mom in her chilling 911 call, police now say, which you`re about to hear, all an act.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: 911, what`s your emergency?
ANTOINETTE DAVIS, MOTHER OF SHANIYA: Yes, ma`am, my name is Antoinette Davis, Sleepy Hollow. I woke up this morning, and my daughter was not in the house. I don`t know if she walked out. I don`t know what`s going on, but she`s not here.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: When did you last see her?
DAVIS: I saw her at 5:30 last night.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Five-thirty last night, is that when you put her to bed?
DAVIS: Yes, ma`am. No, when she went back to bed.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: That was 5 this morning, is that what you`re telling me? What is her name?
DAVIS: Shaniya Davis.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What was she wearing?
DAVIS: She was wearing just a blue shirt with designs on the front but her hair is out.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: OK. Did she have on any pants?
DAVIS: No, she didn`t take no shoes, no pants, no nothing.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Did she have on underwear?
DAVIS: Yes, ma`am.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: OK, do you know what color?
DAVIS: They`re white and got pink -- I guess, I can`t really remember. They`re like white with pink designs on them.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Have you checked the neighborhood?
DAVIS: I checked everywhere. I haven`t checked the back end of the neighborhood, but I checked the front end. I don`t know what else to do. I`m so -- I don`t know what else to do.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Your door was not unlocked, that`s what you`re telling me?
DAVIS: No, it was not unlocked, but I`m telling you, she knows how to unlock it. I`m hoping that she didn`t unlock it and walk out.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Whatever! We`re going to look at all the inconsistencies in that statement in a moment.
Antoinette Davis, charged with human trafficking and providing her 5- year-old daughter for sexual servitude and prostitution.
Tonight`s big issue: is there a child sex crisis in this country? I believe there is. Call me: 1-877-586-7297.
Straight out to my absolutely fantastic expert panel: Susan Filan, defense attorney and former prosecutor. Glad to have you here tonight. Also delighted to have Judge Greg Mathis, host of "The Judge Mathis Show." As well as Jeff Riccio from Tarheel Canine Training Inc. That is the company that discovered this poor child`s body.
Well -- well done, sir.
JEFF RICCIO, TARHEEL CANINE TRAINING INC.: Thank you.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Michelle Sigona, investigative reporter and founder of MichelleSigona.com, we start with you. What is the very latest?
MICHELLE SIGONA, INVESTIGATIVE REPORTER/FOUNDER OF MICHELLESIGONA.COM: The very latest right now, Jane, is that, obviously just a few hours ago Shaniya`s body was positively identified from investigators. There is an autopsy that`s being performed on that body right now, which will tell investigators a lot about if she was sexually assaulted, how long the body was outside exposed to the elements, and a little bit more about how Shaniya`s died.
So that is what we`re waiting for. We`re going to learn more about that tomorrow morning at 10 a.m. at a press conference.
Investigators also came out today and said that they do expect more charges to be filed. Now whether those charges will come down against Antoinette and also Mario McNeill, who`s being held for first-degree kidnapping right now, it is hard to tell. But that is something that we`re waiting to hear about for tomorrow.
As far as Antoinette and Mario, they`re both being held in a special portion of the jail right now, where they`re only allowed to come out once a day, and that is only for a shower and then they are brought back in.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Well, if these allegations are true, they need to reserve a special place in hell for people who do something like this. But they`re only accused. They are not convicted yet.
SIGONA: That`s right.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Here`s what I have to ask you before we go, Michelle Sigona, the child was reportedly found wearing only a T-shirt. Obviously, that would be a sign that would point toward sexual assault, since she was last seen in the photograph dressed up.
And they`re saying that they have caught the two main players. Is that what you`re hearing from police?
SIGONA: That is what I heard from police almost three days ago. They said that they feel at this particular moment that they do have the two key players in this investigation. But that`s not saying, Jane, as you and I both know, that more people could eventually be arrested or more charges could be filed against them.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Well, here`s what I don`t understand. Susan Filan, you`re the former prosecutor. You`ve done so many of these cases. Play detective for a moment. Supposedly, the mother allegedly sells the child into sexual servitude to the ex-boyfriend of her sister, who has had access to the house in the past, presumably, being the ex-boyfriend.
But yet, he decides to take her to a hotel for an hour. Does this indicate to you, because the first thing I thought of is, is he delivering her to somebody else? Is he a middleman in a transaction?
SUSAN FILAN, DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Well, it`s possible. I mean, it sounds to me like there`s absolute desperation for money. And it`s a scheme beyond the normal sale, you know $5, rent a kid for an hour, go into my bedroom and use her. It sounds like it`s a little bit more elaborate than that, which is quite horrifying.
And that goes to your theory, Jane, that there`s a sexual epidemic in this country. Something a little bit more elaborate. Something a little bit more complicated.
And the thing about pedophilia and using a child for your gratification, and actually going to a hotel room, it could be involving video. It could be involving other people, something that gets uploaded onto the Internet. Something that you can actually make more money than your own personal gratification, perhaps videoing the act and then selling it, you know, for commerce, interstate commerce. So there may be even federal charges coming.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: That is absolutely fascinating. And God only knows what went on in that hotel room. But we do know that this child was alive when she left. So she was killed somewhere else. And the question is, who killed her? Because there are no murder charges forthcoming at this time, nor are there rape charges at this moment.
But, again, you heard, there will be a news conference tomorrow. We could learn a lot more. Probably will.
If Antoinette Davis was B.S.`ing the 911 operator, she might had B.S.`ed her way into a corner. Listen very carefully to what she says.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: OK, and you said none of the doors were open?
DAVIS: No, ma`am, they were locked, but she knocks how to unlock the front door.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Was it closed this morning?
DAVIS: Yes, ma`am.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And you said it was around 5:30?
DAVIS: Yes, ma`am.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: OK. And your door was not unlocked, that`s what you`re telling me?
DAVIS: No, it was not unlocked, but I`m telling you, she knows how to unlock it. I`m hoping that she didn`t unlock it and walk out.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Judge Mathis, she seems to be saying that Shaniya unlocked the door to let herself out. Yet, in another breath she tells the 911 operator that the door was not unlocked when she woke up. It doesn`t compute, does it?
JUDGE GREG MATHIS, HOST, "THE JUDGE MATHIS SHOW": Absolutely not. Her statements certainly are conflictive. And that`s perhaps one of the reasons the police thought to arrest her.
You know, what`s so disturbing about this, and I know that they haven`t charged her with any form of murder, but quite frankly, I believe that some form of murder charges might be forthcoming against her, because but for her actions, her and McNeill, but for the actions the child would still be alive.
I know that we haven`t found a direct link to their murder, but certainly, but for the kidnapping, but for the trade in human trafficking, this child would still be alive. And that`s one of the primary issues I think they should take into consideration when determining whether to charge him with some form of murder.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Susan Filan, briefly, do you think she`s going to end up, the mom, being charged with murder?
FILAN: Yes, I do. And along Judge Mathis` reasoning. I think she`s somehow going to be charged as an accomplice or co-conspirator, because she`s responsible for her role in the sexual trafficking, but then she`s also responsible for the ultimate consequences, foreseeable or not, for her actions.
So in other words, if you start a robbery and it ends up in somebody`s death, you`re responsible for that person`s death, whether you intended that as part of the robbery or not. In for a penny, in for a pound.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Absolutely.
All right. More hellish details on the gruesome death of the special angel, as her dad described her. We`re also taking your calls on this: 1- 877-JVM-SAYS. What do you think, what are your theories? 1-877-586-7297.
Plus, cops say a mom left her 1-year-old daughter all alone so that she could go smoke crack? But that`s just the start of the story. Just wait till you hear where this woman works. You will fall off your chair.
But first Shaniya was last seen being carried by a man into a hotel room. God only knows what happened after that. Look at this trusting child, clutching onto this man, apparently, just feeling comfortable there, not knowing what would happen. This is a 5-year-old girl.
Shaniya`s aunt spoke just moments ago. Listen to this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I hold a lot of ill feelings right now differently and my brother. The bond with Shaniya and I, from teaching her how to tie her shoes and how to color within the lines and to write her name, I feel robbed. And I feel Shaniya was robbed. She was very intelligent. And she had such a wonderful, kind soul, and her spirit and smile brightened every day of everyone she touched.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DAVID HASTY, DISTRICT COURT JUDGE: You tell us what`s going on (ph). November the 10th of 2009 with first-degree kidnapping, unlawfully you kidnapped Shaniya Davis, a person under the age of 16.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Tonight, more questions and answers. Mario McNeill, the ex-boyfriend of Shaniya`s mother`s sister, is charged with kidnapping little Shaniya from her mother`s home. The girl`s lifeless body discovered yesterday.
Now look at this mug shot. Is it me, or does he look like he`s got a little smirk his face? No one so far has been charged with murder. A lot of unanswered questions, but they`re going to hold the news conference tomorrow, and I bet they`re going to have a lot more to say, possibly new charges.
Lori, Pennsylvania, your question or thought, ma`am?
CALLER: Yes, for the man who is charged with kidnapping, I was just wondering, why is he not being charged with the murder, since he was the one that was seen carrying with -- carrying her?
And another thing too, people were saying how comfortable she looked in her arms. And I know, like, there`s been shows who have -- where they`ve done -- they`ve looked at how kids are used for sex trafficking. And if it`s a way of life for them, that`s all they know, and they go with that. And I`m just...
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Ma`am, you have raised some very good points. Now let`s do a little back story here. This child was given to the mother by the father in early October, because the mom begged for a second chance to be a mother, which blows my mind right there. Why would you beg for a second chance to be the mother, and then have something like this allegedly happen?
But, Susan Filan, why have they not charged this man with anything beyond kidnapping at this point?
FILAN: Evidence, evidence, evidence. They have to wait and see what the forensics are, what the autopsy reveals. And when you charge somebody, you`ve got to have both probable cause and, ultimately, proof beyond a reasonable of doubt. You want to win in a court of law. So you have to prove your case brick by brick by brick.
So it`s just premature right now, but it doesn`t mean that they don`t ultimately enough and they aren`t going to. But you don`t want to be precipitous. You don`t want to be rash. You don`t want to jump. You don`t want to blow it before you`re ready. Not that it`s not coming. It`s just not ready.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Yes, and again, given the theory that there is always the possibility that he was delivering this child, if the accusation of child trafficking is true, to somebody else. And perhaps that person is somehow involved. But we don`t...
FILAN: It could be a co-conspirator or an accomplice.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: You know, so we`re privileged, by the way, to have with us Jeff Riccio, who was with the canine unit that discovered little Shaniya`s body. Her remains were located in the woods off a North Carolina highway about seven miles from the hotel where this child was last seen, allegedly with Mario McNeill, who is now charged with kidnapping.
Now police say it wasn`t a tip, per se, that led them to Shaniya`s body. The information came from a reliable source. So my question to you, Jeff, first of all, excellent work.
RICCIO: Thank you.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Hats off to you.
RICCIO: Thank you.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Amazing job. Where the body was found, how close to that was where you were sent originally? In other words, go here, and then you find the body. Where was the difference?
RICCIO: Well, we were originally a few miles away, and we had cleared a whole different area. And then we decided to come back and check in with the command post. And when we had pulled into the parking lot, somebody had said that they had heard that the victim had been left by some deer carcasses, and we had known on Walker Road where there were some deer carcasses dumped from driving through there earlier. So that`s when we went out to that area kind of on our own and located the body.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: What -- it must be very depressing to be hunting for a child`s body to begin with.
RICCIO: Oh, it`s horrible.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Yes, you had your dogs. Describe what it was like to get that word that, "Oh, here she is, here she is." I can`t even imagine.
RICCIO: Oh, it -- it was like a mixture of relief and sadness. I mean there`s -- there`s no real way to describe it. You`re relieved that it`s over and that you know, the family can grieve, but at the same time, you just can`t believe that somebody could even do this to a child. It was horrible. Horrible.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Michelle Sigona, give us some background here, in terms of who this tip came from. We were told it`s not some kind of anonymous tip phone called in. A reliable source. What in the heck does that mean?
SIGONA: Well, you know, Jane, it could had been information from Shaniya`s mother Antoinette, or Mario McNeill himself, because if you remember over the weekend, they pulled in Antoinette. And they were questioning her on and off.
And those charges against her came out later Saturday evening. And then -- and then also searchers went out to that area on Sunday and Monday. So it could have possibly been from her. Or it could had been some other information that they uncovered throughout this particular investigation.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Yes, and supposedly, he admitted kidnapping her, according to cops, but then he pleaded or is planning on pleading not guilty. Fascinating.
Fantastic panel, stay right there. We have more.
Plus, one nightmare to another. Six men accused of sexually assaulting young members of their own family could now be facing murder charges? We`ll have the gruesome details, including claims the little kids were in this family and forced to kill with knives.
But first, a poor little angel, allegedly sold into prostitution and dumped on the side of the road. Last night, Nancy Grace talked to Shaniya`s big sister.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LOCKHART: She was just learning how to ride her scooter. She ran into the BMW with it. So I have the aftermath of that.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: That was Shaniya`s dad, holding onto whatever sheds of happy memories he can right now. What must be going through his mind as he ponders the decision that he made to allow Shaniya`s mom to have a second chance at raising the little girl, letting her go there in October, and look what happened.
And by the way, the child was not enrolled in kindergarten. She was in kindergarten when she was with the dad, and then when she went to the mom, reportedly, forgot to enroll her in kindergarten.
Bob, Ontario, your question or thought, sir?
CALLER: Yes, Jane, for you and your panel, obviously, there is video of Mr. McNeill taking Shaniya into the hotel room. You would think there is some video, somebody exiting the hotel room.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Well, Michelle Sigona. We`re saying allegedly, because you know, I can`t certainly identify this blurry image. The cops say that`s him. What do you know about the exit of the hotel?
SIGONA: Well, here`s what I can tell you. Last Wednesday night someone from the hotel contacted investigators to say, "Hey, we think Shaniya may have been here yesterday." Investigators got out there. They had a little bit of problem cracking the surveillance code, but once they were in, they were able to pull out their surveillance and able to show those pictures and some of that video to Shaniya`s father, Bradley.
And Bradley told me just a couple of nights ago. He said, "I was the one who was able to identify that, yes, that was my daughter."
As far as Mario McNeill`s concerned, investigators did their own investigating around to figure out who he was. Now having said all of that, they were able to put out some of those photos to the media to be able to get the word out and to continue to show her picture and that she was alive.
As far as the rest of the surveillance, they are keeping that close to the vest as far as after she left that hotel, and we do know from cops that she was alive at that point.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Last night on ISSUES, the manager of the mobile home park where Shaniya`s mother and mother`s sister lived told me about a drug raid that had gone down at their previous home. Listen to this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BARBARA DAVENPORT, MANAGER, SLEEPY HOLLOW MOBIL HOME PARK (via phone): What was seized was a lot of evidence of manufacturing drugs for sale. Little baggies, razor blades, that type of thing.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: And what kind of drug would that point to? Did you get any indication in...
DAVENPORT: Based on the facts they were using razor blades, I would surmise crack cocaine.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: OK. Now police say there have been, quote, "major departmental social services issues" with this family. And now, Judge Mathis, we learn Antoinette is pregnant and already has a 7-year-old son. What happens to these children, now that mom is behind bars: one unborn child, one 7-year-old and facing serious charges?
MATHIS: Yes, certainly they`ll be removed from the parent, even if she`s bailed out. However, we would hope that she would go to a family relative. If not, she`ll be placed in a foster care home and among strangers, and that would be unfortunate.
You know, Jane, as we`ve seen in so many cases, drugs -- drugs appear to be related here again. And I think it`s either crystal meth or crack cocaine. And that`s probably the motivation for submitting the young girl to prostitution.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: And Michelle, final thoughts on the unborn child that this mother is carrying? We only have a few seconds.
SIGONA: She`ll allow -- she`ll be allowed to carry the child to term in prison, but then the child, again, as the judge said, will be given either to another relative or put into foster care. She won`t be allowed, obviously, to raise the child in prison.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Oh my gosh. Ugh, that is just the depressing, coup de grace on this very, very sad story.
And judge, you`re absolutely right. Drugs at the heart of it.
Thank you so much, fantastic guests.
A one-year-old girl founding roaming the streets. And drugs is also at the heart of this case.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
JANE VELEZ-MITCHELL, HLN HOST: Toxic tales in an addict nation. Cops say a 1-year-old child was left home alone so her mom could smoke crack. This little girl was found wandering the streets and you will not believe where her mom works.
Plus, the nightmare escalates in the Missouri house of horrors. Fast breaking developments in the sexual abuse case involving at least six alleged predators from the very same family; new allegations that children were forced to kidnap and murder a complete stranger. And that`s not the worst of it.
A mother has allegedly admitted she was out drinking and smoking crack when her baby daughter, just wandered away. Even worse, cops say she didn`t realize her little girl was missing for 24 hours.
Police say Tuesday House left her baby at home and went to a party. Late that night her little girl was found wandering alone on a desolate street corner. She was wearing a pink shirt and heart and playing with an ashtray.
Look at her. She`s just a baby. What an adorable little baby. You can tell even with her face blurred.
Cops went door-to-door searching for her family. When they put these photos on TV and aunt finally realized, hey, that`s my niece. Mom didn`t even know her baby daughter was in protective custody until cops knocked on her door the next day.
Now, mom is facing charges of child neglect. But she reportedly told cops that somebody was watching the child. Now, they were apparently smoking a cigarette outside when I left is what she said.
Listen to mom.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Why did you leave your baby home alone.
TUESDAY HOUSE, CHARGED WITH CHILD NEGLECT: I didn`t leave my baby home alone.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Who was she with?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: And that`s the big question.
This precious little girl will now likely be spending her first birthday party in foster care. But that might be the safest place for her.
This is not the first time this mom has been investigated. She`s already lost custody of her other child. And an unbelievable twist -- are you sitting down, people -- she works for the Indiana family and Social Services Agency.
What the heck is wrong with this system of ours?
Straight out to my fantastic expert panel: and also joining me tonight legal analyst for "The Insider" Darren Kavinoky, we call him the voice of reason; and addiction specialist Dr. Reef Karim. Dr. Reef, we need you tonight.
DR. REEF KARIM, ADDICTION SPECIALIST: Yes.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: We begin with Sergeant Paul Thompson from the Indianapolis Metro Police Department.
Sergeant, thanks for joining us. I know that you are quite busy, sir.
The mom said she went out to party and smoke crack and then she came home and then she left again but didn`t check on where her child was. Please explain this twisted timetable, if you can.
SERGEANT PAUL THOMPSON, INDIANAPOLIS METRO POLICE DEPT: Well, apparently the child was dropped off by a friend of the family; and according to that individual, mom was home when he left.
Now, mom stated that there was someone there when she left and however she went out, partied until about 10:30. Came back home; didn`t find anybody around so she thought OK to party around more. That lasted into the next day which was Sunday. She came home. She went to bed. She didn`t get up until Monday when she was awakened by the officers notifying her that her child was in our custody.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: And she admitted, you`re saying, smoking crack?
THOMPSON: She was interviewed by the detective and freely stated that she was out drinking and smoking crack cocaine that evening.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Wow.
OK, we got to just recap and review once again. Detectives say mom got home at around 10:30 at night and saw nobody there was and so she goes back out to party more, not really knowing what`s up with her daughter.
Listen to this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DETECTIVE JULIE DUTRIEUX, INDIANAPOLIS METRO POLICE DEPT: UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: When she left the house, the person she was having take care of her child was outside of the house smoking a cigarette. She left. And when she left, she went out and was at some friends drinking alcohol and smoking crack.
And she said she came back eventually to the house about 10:30 that night and when she came back, the child and the baby-sitter, they were both gone. So she decided to go back out.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: OK, Dr. Reef Karim, you`re the addiction specialist. The operative phrase here, smoking crack; it basically makes everything else irrelevant.
When you are smoking crack you should not be in charge of a child or any human being, or any living creature. You are a zombie.
KARIM: Yes, this story highlights that same old theme that we hear about all of the time -- the desire for consumption of drugs. When you`re an addict or you`re craving, trumps any basic human core needs.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Let me ask you this, Dr. Reef, though, what about crack? Because I`m a recovering alcoholic. OK craving for alcohol but those are those who say crack really takes the cake in terms of really knocking you out very quickly to the point where within instance you don`t care about whether the world blows up or not.
KARIM: Yes if you wanted to create a drug that could cause major, major addictive potential in a lot of people you would create a drug that was cheap, like crack; that could get in your system really quickly when you smoke it, like crack; that was short acting, like crack; and that can cause all crazy of disturbances in your brain, like crack.
So agreed, crack is definitely a dangerous drug and it`s so cheap and it`s so widespread that it`s easy to get addicted to it and to have a lot of problems.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Or in the words of Whitney Houston, crack is whack. And that`s how she put it.
KARIM: Crack is whack.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: The woman`s uncle who said the little girl often stays at his home chalks it all up to a big misunderstanding.
Listen to this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ERIC COSBY, UNCLE OF GIRL: I think she could have had a little bit more responsibility making sure that the baby was still in the other person`s care.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Darren Kavinoky, you are an attorney and you`re also an interventionist of sort. Is this man an enabler, is he in denial? I mean if she`s doing crack she can`t be taking care of her baby. So what`s the explanation that this is a misunderstanding?
DARREN KAVINOKY, LEGAL COUNSEL, "THE INSIDER": Yes, there`s well no good one. Certainly he`s trying to cover for her and perhaps lay the ground work for a legal defense but sadly this is just one more example of a story that we`ve seen play out over and over again. And that is the ability to pro-create and have children is no guarantee whatsoever that people know what to do with them afterwards.
And clearly this person`s decision-making was so poor, so flawed, drug-induced and once that inherently compulsive drug gets a-hold of somebody, all rational, reasonable decision making goes out window. So hopefully there`s going to be something that addresses it very flawed belief system...
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Right. And guess what...
KAVINOKY: That this woman`s operating under.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: ... Darren, it`s not just a flawed belief system it`s a flawed system. That`s my big issue tonight.
We`ve got a broken system here, people. How is this woman allowed to be working at Family and Social Services when she`s being investigated by Child Protective Services?
KAVINOKY: Well, but, Jane...
VELEZ-MITCHELL: She should had been on their radar. You know?
KAVINOKY: But being on the radar, we don`t live in a society where people are forcibly sterilized and certainly she`s had problem in the past.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: No, I`m not talking about that and I would never say or suggest anything like that. There is no correlation between what a child might achieve and the parent who gave birth to her. And that would be, I think, a very, very -- really, awful, awful suggestion.
What I`m saying is, why -- when she`s had problems in the past -- Sergeant Paul Thompson, we understand this woman has had problems in the past vis-a-vis the social services.
THOMPSON: Well, actually it was about 11 years ago and it involved her first child is my understanding. He was just 1-year-old when an incident was investigated where she abandoned the child. Took a friend`s car and was arrested a few days later.
The friend called because she was in custody of this child for the police to come and pick up the child because she could not care for him. As a result an investigation and a situation that`s actually handled outside of a prosecution, she agreed to turn the child over to another person who, to my understanding, still has the boy who`s 12 years old today at this time.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Susan Filan, just briefly we have to do something. If a mother does this once, unless she undergoes a total spiritual transformation and does years of therapy and recovery work, she`s going to do the same thing again. She should be on the radar of the Child Protective Services after that point. She should be drug tested.
SUSAN FILAN, ATTORNEY: Yes, but she`s got to be prosecuted. She`s got to be punished. I think she`s got to be incarcerated. Let the addiction specialists handle her addiction. Let the therapists handle her problems.
But let the system prosecute her, punish her and incarcerate her. Let this child have a chance at a future; let this child have a chance at a childhood. Let her get into a family that`s appropriate. Let her have an education. Let her have a hopeful future.
Let`s just punish the mom. I don`t want to reform her. I don`t want to therapize her. I want to incarcerate her.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: I want to prevent this from happening again and again and again and again and that`s what I`m talking about. It`s like, if we don`t create some kinds of systems to do more than crime and punishment, we`re just going to be locking up a whole lot of people which we do in America, lock up more than any other country in the world and we`re not solving these problems.
Thank you, fantastic panel.
Moving on, Janet Jackson breaks her silence; speaking for first time since her brother`s death. It`s not good news for Michael`s doctor. We`re going to have her explosive comments.
Plus, these are the most horrifying allegations of the day; some too graphic for television. Six men accused of raping children from their own family. Now one man is accused of forcing these same children to stab a stranger to death? What the hell is going on?
Is it me or are things completely out of control when it comes to child against violence? We`re taking your calls on this: 1-877-JVM-SAYS, that`s 1-877-586-7297. Give me a holler.
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VELEZ-MITCHELL: And let`s meet today`s winner, Meredith from Del Ray Beach, Florida who overcame an addiction to shopping. Way to go, girl. She said she hid six credit cards from her husband, racked up $30,000 in secret debt. Boy, he must have loved that.
She finally came clean with her hubby and started going to therapy and learned that shopping was how she self-medicated her depression and anxiety. But she looks good there. She`s working at it every day. She`s been clean since last January.
Way to go, Meredith. For sharing your courageous story you`ll be getting an autographed copy of my new book "I Want," plus a chance to have a trip down here to New York to visit me on the set of ISSUES. We will not be going shopping, my dear.
And by the way, if you`re struggling with addiction or know somebody who is, please check out my new book, "I Want" at CNN.com/Jane. It is my story of recovery; and it could help you.
Well, six members charged with unthinkable crimes, all from the same family: allegedly raping young relatives for years. Could they have also committed murder?
But first, tonight`s "Top of the Block." Janet Jackson -- that`s right -- she`s speaking out. In her very first interview since her brother, Michael`s death, Janet points the finger right at Michael`s personal doctor. She says Dr. Conrad Murray gave Michael the drugs that killed him. Here she is on ABC`s "Good Morning America."
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JANET JACKSON, MICHAEL JACKSON`S SISTER: He was the one that was administering. I think he is responsible.
ROBIN ROBERTS, ABC HOST, "GOOD MORNING AMERICA": What you would like to see happen to him? Do you think he should be practicing based on...
JACKSON: No, I don`t; not at all. So this could happen to someone else? Another family? No.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Now Dr. Murray admits to giving Michael Propofol but denies giving him anything that would kill him. The powerful anesthetic Propofol often used surgery -- it`s a knockout drug -- and the sedative Lorazepam were the primary drugs responsible for Jackson`s death.
Also new, the man accused of molesting his son is dead. Officials say it was suicide. You may remember way back, Evan Chandler claimed the King of Pop molested his son who was just 13 at the time. This was the original case that sparked all of Michael Jackson`s troubles and now the dad who really engineered those accusations, dead. Interesting.
That is tonight`s "Top of the Block."
Turning now to a child sex case that has taken an incredibly ominous turn: Did a family of accused child predators also commit murder? Six men in the Mohler family -- six men are accused raping young relatives.
Now one suspect`s three daughters say they helped their dad kidnap and stab a man to death with knives back in 1988. Evidence dug up at the Mohler farm in Missouri could back up their story.
Why would a family of accused child rapists suddenly force those children to commit murder? I can`t make any sense out of this. Did somebody threaten to expose their evil secrets perhaps?
Here`s what police had to say about the initial charges against the Mohlers.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SHERIFF KERRICK ALUMBAUGH, LAFAYETT COUNTY, MISSOURI: Well, these are Class A felony, forcible rape of a child less than 12 years old and we believe that there are other victims out there. And we believe that people in the public can give us more information on each and every one of these suspects.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: And now -- I hope you are sitting down -- another woman has come forward and claims she too was raped by the Mohler men when she was child. They allegedly held her captive in their basement and got her pregnant twice. The accuser says the Mohlers buried the first child that she had in the basement and then poured cement over it.
How many bodies might be on this family`s property? Oh my gosh. This is really -- it defies words. It leaves you dumb-struck. But we have to talk about it.
I`d like to welcome back my fantastic panel: also joining me clinical psychologist Brenda Wade. Thank you for being here, Brenda. Wow.
BRENDA WADE, CLINICAL PSYCHOLOGIST: Absolutely, Jane.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: And Eric Burke, reporter for WDAF. Eric, I`m actually afraid to ask you what is the very latest?
ERIC BURKE, REPORTER, WDAF: Well, right now the -- all the Mohlers are still in custody. There were some rumors this afternoon -- late this afternoon, early into this evening that that one of them may have had the means to go ahead and get out of jail.
All their bonds are set excessively high, at least $35,000 all the up to $150,000 cash-only bond but so far that has not taken place. Right now the town is really just kind of trying to stop from reeling from all the news that continues to come out each and every minute in the last week or so.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Well, listen, I just want to recap and review very briefly. Tell me if I`ve got anything wrong there, Eric.
The allegations of child rape overall include: sexual performance; mock weddings between children and adults; bestiality, i.e., sex with a dog; raping a child repeatedly and then burying alive the child that she gave birth to; rape with foreign objects; and murder, specifically, one of them accused by the kids of taking them to a mall and kidnapping a man and then forcing the children to kill him with knives and burying him.
Am I leaving anything out, Eric?
BURKE: With the exception of not being -- they haven`t been charged for all of those at of yet. Now there are three victims that have come forward that total 29 sex-related charges. As far as any kidnapping or murder charges, those have not been filed yet. And one of Mohlers in court today said he`s being accused of murder by the local media and various media outlets who are covering this story but no charges have been filed as of yet.
They did spend a couple of days out there last week, gathering up potential evidence. Those search warrants returns came back last night. Early today, we were able to go through those and that`s when the story of a possible kidnapping and then the murder involving three of those Mohler children. Those where the three women that eventually, now 20 years later have, come forward, and said this happened. But no charges filed as of late this afternoon.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Ok. Burrell Mohler Jr. is accused enlisting his own young daughters in a kidnapping and murder in 1988. The three women say they were in a car with their dad when he followed a man home from this shopping center in Independence, Missouri. He allegedly told the kids go get this man and say that I`m having a heart attack.
It allegedly worked.
The man allegedly leaned into the car and Mohler put him in a headlock and, quote, "subdued him very quickly" and then these girls say they all went back to the farm and Mohler allegedly instructed the girls to take part in stabbing the man to death. His daughters say they were then forced to dig a grave and bury this man on the property.
Brenda Wade, take it away. I`m speechless.
WADE: You know, Jane, I`m speechless too because this is one of those cases where if you ever doubt that children can be coerced by a parent and made to do evil because of the parent or, conversely, do good because parents ask them to do good, but in this case we have this hierarchical system. The only word for it -- I don`t have a clinical term for it.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Sick?
WADE: I only have a spiritual term. And that is evil.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Yes.
WADE: This is really evil.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Yes.
WADE: And the way that these children were treated, I only hope that these women are getting help.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: We`ll be back in a moment with more. You won`t believe it -- more.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JEFFREY MOHLER, SUSPECT`S SON: Knowing what I know of him and just the character he has, it`s completely, completely out of his character. You know, so I`m, you know, just -- I`m completely dumbfounded. I mean, this has all been so surreal.
My greatest concern is not my father`s innocence. That`s already been established. It`s that the shock of all this will be too much for him and it will lead to his demise before we can clear his name.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: And that was suspect`s Darrell Mohler`s son. He insists his dad is innocent.
And Eric Burke, reporter, apparently dozens of family members showed up at court to say, "Hey, this has all been fabricated." What do you know?
BURKE: Well there were a couple dozen that were here today. What we`ve realized, or what we`ve come to learn over the last few days in trying to track down some of these family members, a lot of them are distant relatives.
One of the gentlemen we talked to today was Burrell Mohler Sr.`s first wife`s brother.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Yes.
BURKE: So his former brother-in-law. His first wife passing away...
VELEZ-MITCHELL: So how do they know?
BURKE: ... in the early 1990s.
Well, they all came to court today to try and figure out exactly what was going on. They are pledging their support right now for the family. One of the family members saying very adamantly, that he hasn`t seen any evidence to the contrary as of yet.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Michael, Pennsylvania, your question or thought, sir.
MICHAEL, PENNSYLVANIA: Well, Jane, thank you for doing all your work that you`re doing. But children -- this is absolutely ridiculous; it`s the most devastating thing I`ve ever heard. And like the lady said earlier, there is a bunch of evil going on and we really need to do something to protect our children. So this is an epidemic.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Yes, it is. And I mean, the stats are staggering. Look it up. Google it. The Justice Department says this stuff is a lot more common than you`d think even though it seems incomprehensible.
Now, a woman says as a child she was locked up for years in a crawl space at Mohler`s farm. She says the suspects repeatedly raped her and she got pregnant twice. She says after she gave birth to the first child the suspects put the baby in a box and quote, "Burrell Mohler Sr. and Burrell Mohler Jr. buried the infant in the basement."
Now, Susan Filan, the men allegedly poured cement over the dirt floor. The woman told investigators exactly where to look. Using radar equipment they detected something in the ground consistent with a box. It was buried about a foot down. But why not just dig it up and see? Wouldn`t there be bones there? Even if it`s an infant, there should be bones there if it was poured over with cement.
FILAN: Yes, that`s right. And that`s what`s going to distinguish this case from the other cases where you`ve got recovered memory. Sometimes overzealous therapists trigger recovered memories from trauma people.
This is going to have corroboration. You`re going to find the deceased man. You`re going to find these two infants. You`re going to find corroboration. And you`re going to find so many other people that are going to come forward that are part of this previous abuse that these guys aren`t going to be able to exonerate themselves by saying hey, we`re decent guys, we have good moral character...
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Yes.
FILAN: ... we`ve got family members who are going to stick up for us. There`s going to be evidence here, Jane and that`s going to bury them.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Yes.
Well, Brenda Wade, how is this -- if it`s true -- we don`t know for sure it`s true at this point.
WADE: Right.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: How could this happen in a family? What kind of sick family dynamic would create this?
WADE: Well, you know, Jane, we just saw that there are dozens of people from the family in court saying it couldn`t be true, we don`t believe it. We call that denial. The family is in denial.
Nobody was noticing the signs of trauma in these young children. These children had to have been withdrawn, depressed, having school problems, or acting out or had genital trauma that nobody questioned. Nobody took them to a doctor and said something`s going on with these kids.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: I`ve got to say, we`ve got to leave it right there. This is the most astounding group of stories -- I don`t know what to say.
You`re watching ISSUES on HLN.
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