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NANCY GRACE

4-Year-Old Texas Girl Found Alive With Kidnapper/Police Say They Know Who Killed Mother and 2 Sons

Aired May 14, 2009 - 20:00:00   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. A quiet, close-knit, upscale Illinois suburb reeling after a beautiful young mom and her two little sons found dead in their white-finish (ph) two-story home, each in their own bedroom, reportedly strangled. In a heartbreaking gesture, 31- year-old Sheri Coleman and the two little boys, Garett and Gavin, ages just 9 and 11, laid to rest side by side.

As we go to air tonight, we learn the heavy-duty police surveillance of husband/daddy, former Marine Chris Coleman, pulled back. That`s right, police say no more focus on Coleman!

But we also learn police focusing on one particular stretch of Interstate 255 running around St. Louis, even begging the public to come forward if they observed anything unusual along that stretch of highway the day of the murders before and around 6:50 AM. But why? What do police know that they are not sharing?

Who -- who -- crept into the family home in the darkened early morning hours to smother and strangle the life out of a stunning young mother and her two boys, leaving them dead in their own beds, and the killer literally leaving the writing on the wall, scrawling a chilling epitaph on the wall of the murder scene?

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We believe one person is actually involved in this homicide.

GRACE: All three murdered in the early morning hours, apparently as they slept in their own beds.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We believe that this was not a random act.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Police said that they do have a person of interest and they do have enough evidence.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He reportedly left his house at around 5:45 AM to go work out at a gym about five miles from the house. And when he returned after calling the police to check on his family, they found the victims inside the bedrooms, all dead.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is easily one of the most cowardly acts imaginable, to go into a little child`s bedroom and choke the life out of them in the middle of the night.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He returned to the police department on Monday under court order to be fingerprinted. He did not answer any questions. He returned to the house of the murders. His attorney said he didn`t want to go in.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Police say a written threat was left on a wall inside the home.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We do know that there were words written on the wall, and the words say, I told you this was going to happen.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GRACE: And tonight: He was drunk, drunk on alcohol over two times the legal limit. Here`s the problem. He is a 6-month-old baby boy. Baby Mason, Pennsylvania, dead from alcohol poisoning, but Mommy says she only gave the infant baby Tylenol. So what`s the defense, the baby went to the liquor store and loaded up? Mommy, come clean. Blood tests don`t lie.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: A baby is dead and a mother is charged with involuntary manslaughter after allegedly giving alcohol to her 6-month-old son, Mason.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Prosecutors say the baby, Mason Miner, was living at this apartment at the time of his death. Lab tests showed he had a blood alcohol contest of .025, nearly three times the legal limit for an adult.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Investigators were so amazed at the blood alcohol level, they actually tested the level a second time. When those results matched, authorities sent the lab work to an independent contractor to triple check.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We`re still trying to figure out what the alcohol was, but clearly, there was alcohol given to this child.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Prosecutors say mom Jessica Miner gave the baby alcohol to stop Mason from crying, but Miner`s attorney maintains she`s innocent and questions why prosecutors have waited until now to bring charges.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GRACE: Also tonight, a 17-year-old high school beauty, a model student, soccer player vanishes into thin air, spring break, Myrtle Beach. After grainy video emerges picturing her, the trail goes cold. But tonight, has there been a sighting of 17-year-old Brittanee Drexel?

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Missing 17-year-old spring breaker Brittanee Drexel was seen leaving her friend`s hotel room. The short visit with a group of guys was supposed to be the start to a fun night, but surveillance video shows Brittanee fading away into the unknown, law enforcement working the case from every angle, taking a fresh look at surveillance video and cell phone evidence. One of the last known men to see Brittanee says he didn`t know where Brittanee went when she left his hotel room because he was on spring break and wasn`t in Myrtle Beach to baby-sit. Police say they have not ruled out any suspects or persons of interest in the case.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The family believes any new information, no matter how small, may be the answer to this mystery.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Not knowing where she is, who she`s with, how she got there -- I mean, it`s heartbreaking. It`s heartbreaking. And we want her home.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GRACE: Good evening. I`m Nancy Grace. I want to thank you for being with us. Who crept into the family home in the darkened early morning hours to smoother and strangle the life out of a stunning young mother and her two little boys, leaving them dead in their own beds?

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Our investigation to me reveals who`s responsible for these deaths.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Illinois police say they have a person of interest in the murders of a mother and her two young sons.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We don`t have a warrant for his arrest at this time, so we don`t feel it`d be prudent to give his name out until the state`s attorney determines whether or not there`s enough to charge him.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Chris Coleman works as a security officer and was not home when the bodies were found.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He actually called the local police department on his way back to the house because he was unable to reach her by phone.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: His behavior is incredibly suspicious. I think they need to, number one, check to see if this was his pattern, to call home at 5:45 every morning to see if his wife was up, getting the kids ready.

GRACE: ... at the crime scene, inside the home, that words were scrawled on the inside of the home.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There were some messages on the walls inside. There`s been some reports that certain words were mentioned, and the statement that has been reported actually isn`t accurate.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It said, quote, "I told you this would happen."

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That is not exactly what was written on the wall. But there were threats on the walls. There was threats towards the family.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GRACE: But first: Last night, we reported little 4-year-old Lesley Perez taken out of her own front yard, her 12-year-old sister trying to save her, trying to fight off the man that stepped out of his white pick-up and dragged the 4-year-old away. He beat the 12-year-old girl about the head to get the 4-year-old, literally chasing her across her own front yard.

Breaking news tonight, Hidalgo, Texas. There is a God, the baby girl found alive. Straight out to Michael Board with WOAI Newsradio. Michael, what happened?

MICHAEL BOARD, WOAI NEWSRADIO (via telephone): Nancy, thank God that the police and the FBI were able to catch this man who brazenly kidnapped this little girl and assaulted her daughter (SIC) last night and then took off with them (SIC). His name is Christian McMillan. He`s 23 years old and he`s a carnival worker from California, and he`s now behind bars, facing aggravated kidnapping charges. Thank goodness they got this guy behind bars.

GRACE: To Matt Zarrell, on the story from the beginning. Matt, where was she found? How was she found?

MATTHEW ZARRELL, NANCY GRACE STAFFER (via telephone): She was found at a rented farmhouse near Mercedes, which is a local township there. Apparently, cops were watching the farm when he came outside, and when he saw them, that`s when they arrested him. He apparently -- this guy McMillan has a history as a sexual predator. They believe he was targeting the child.

GRACE: A sexual predator allowed to travel from city to city to city? That`s what it sounds like on this end. Back to Michael Board with WOAI Newsradio. Michael, what else can you tell me about the discovery of this little girl, a 4-year-old little girl taken around 9:00 PM out of her own front yard, playing with her sister and other little friends, trying her best to play baseball in the front yard? This guy pulls up in a white pick-up, literally goes into the yard, chasing the 4-year-old, pulling her into his pick-up, fighting off the 12-year-old big sister, beating her about the face and head.

How did they find her? Michael Board, what farmhouse? Where was the farmhouse?

BOARD: It was just east of the home where the family lived in Hidalgo. And the real hero here, Nancy, is the 12-year-old sister. After being beaten by this man and almost run over, she was able to give an accurate description to police. She could identify the man. She said, I know what he looks like. I can help you find it (SIC), I will help find my sister. Thank God that her daughter (SIC) is as smart and as brave as she is that she was able to give this description to the FBI. And they used that description to go and find this man and put him behind bars.

GRACE: Very quickly, unleash the lawyers -- Holly Hughes, Paul Battista, Carmen St. George. Holly Hughes, correct me if I`m wrong, but when you`re a registered sex offender, you`re not allowed to travel from city to city to city and attack children all over this country.

HOLLY HUGHES, PROSECUTOR: That`s exactly right, Nancy. You`re not supposed to be able to travel except within a specified area, and furthermore, certainly not out of your local area and not out of state. You`re supposed to be checking in with your probation officer, and you`re supposed to get permission to be able to leave that area, written ahead of time. This is absolutely crazy that this man was not monitored more closely and he was able to snatch this child . As everybody has said, Nancy, thank God.

GRACE: The alleged perpetrator is 23-year-old Christian McMillan. He is apprehended. He is behind bars tonight. Very quickly back to you, Michael Board, before we bring in Battista and St. George. Michael Board, what`s this guy looking at?

BOARD: In Texas, aggravated kidnapping charges? You know, who knows what the prosecutors could throw at this guy. Not only did he grab this girl but he also beat the sister. That could be an also -- an aggravated assault charge. It depends on what they can throw at this guy.

GRACE: Got out. Well, we know about...

BOARD: They can throw a whole bunch of stuff at him.

GRACE: ... kidnapping and ag assault. Michael Board, very quickly, what is the condition of the little 4-year-old girl?

BOARD: Well, she spoke to people here in the neighborhood this morning. She said she`s bumped, she`s bruised, but she`s OK. Amazingly, this little girl, Nancy, she wants to go back to school tomorrow. Can you imagine that, after what she`s been through?

GRACE: The headline out of...

BOARD: Going back to class.

GRACE: ... Hidalgo, Texas: There is a God. This 4-year-old little girl taken by a known sex offender has been found alive, and she`s going back to school tomorrow morning.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Chris Coleman went to the gym, left the house about 5:00 o`clock in the morning, called back about an hour or so later, didn`t get a response, called the police. It was a Gold`s gym in south county. He crossed over into Missouri, I`d say, about 5:30-ish, 5:45-ish.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Major Jeff Connor, the head of the major case squad, won`t reveal who he believes killed Sheri Coleman and her two sons, Gavin and Garrett. That`s because no official charges are being filed yet. Connor says, after a meeting with the Monroe County state attorney, the prosecutor decided that any charges will have to wait until results come back from forensic evidence tests.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Sometimes this takes anywhere from four to six to eight weeks. It just depends on the forensics, when the reports come in.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: At this point, is Chris Coleman considered a suspect in this case?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Our investigation to me reveals who`s responsible for these deaths. I`ll leave it at that.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GRACE: Straight out to McGraw Milhaven, KTRS radio talk show host. McGraw, I understand police are now appealing to the public, asking if they observed anything unusual along a particular stretch of Interstate 255 around 6:50 AM the morning of the three murders. What can you tell me?

MCGRAW MILHAVEN, RADIO TALK SHOW HOST, KTRS: Nancy, that is exactly right. They have been asking for the public`s help all along. The stretch of 255 that we`re talking about is very rural, very farmland, not very highly populated with stores or homes. It`s basically the bluffs of the Mississippi River.

GRACE: To Nick Pistor with "St. Louis Post-Dispatch." Police also announcing they are pulling surveillance off the husband/daddy. Why?

NICK PISTOR, "ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH": They said that investigation -- that the major case squad can only go so long and that they`ve turned over their work to the prosecutor. And if he`s choosing to not prosecute at this moment, they can`t just be out there and be surveilling everyone that they`re looking at.

GRACE: To Major Jeff Connor. He is with the major case squad of greater St. Louis homicide task force. Major, thank you for being with us. Major, first of all, the police say, We`re not tailing him. But even the media, the newspaper, can see three unmarked cars following him everywhere. Now you`re saying you`re pulling surveillance off. So are you following him? Are you not following him?

MAJ. JEFF CONNOR, MAJOR CASE SQUAD OF GREATER ST. LOUIS (via telephone): Well, we are no longer following him. It was obvious we were following him for about a day. That was just -- we were concluding the investigation, and we just wanted to know his whereabouts in case we need to further the investigation with him.

GRACE: Major Connor, I understand that the dad, the father, leaves that morning around 5:40 AM to go work out at a nearby Gold`s gym, about five miles away. You tell me that he begins calling the home very quickly after he leaves, purportedly to find out if everybody`s getting up and getting ready to go to school as scheduled. Major Connor, do you know yet whether Gold`s gym uses a key card to let you in? We`ve done a little of our own investigation and learned that that is the way many Gold`s gyms allows their members in.

CONNOR: I can tell you that we have every reason to believe he was there that morning. Now, the actual way that we know that, I don`t want to get into specifics, but we have every reason to believe that he was at Gold`s gym.

GRACE: McGraw Milhaven, KTRS radio, does the Gold`s gym have surveillance?

MILHAVEN: I don`t believe we know that at this point.

GRACE: Well, all you need to do is drive over there and look up at the ceiling, FYI.

Out to Nick Pistor, "St. Louis Post-Dispatch." What more can you tell me about the developing story that the husband has a girlfriend?

PISTOR: I can tell you that the husband had a long-ranging affair with a woman in Florida. She once worked at a gentlemen`s club or a strip club, as you would call it, and now she`s a cocktail waitress in the Largo, Florida, area.

GRACE: The big break, in my understanding, is that cops now announcing -- back to Major Jeff Connor, he`s keeping his cards close to the vest -- is that you believe you know who did it. If you know who did it, why aren`t you arresting him, Major?

CONNOR: At this time, we don`t have a warrant that`s been issued by the state`s attorney of Monroe County.

GRACE: Everyone, you are seeing photos of a gorgeous young 31-year- old mom, her two little boys, Garett and Gavin, aged 11 and 9, apparently, each methodically suffocated, strangled to death in their own beds in the early morning hours. No forced entry. Apparently, no sex assault, no robbery.

Let`s switch gears. As we go to break, our thoughts and prayers with the families of two great men who passed this way in heaven tonight. Here`s Homer Garrison, an Army veteran, was one of the very first soldiers to land on Normandy on D-Day. He touched so many lives. He loved raising sweet potatoes and butter beans, tomatoes, you name it, always willing to share.

My family and I have tasted many a pea in the fields of Homer Garrison. And when there was no girls` sports, he coached our first church girls` softball team, and we weren`t that bad. He coached me how to pitch. Favorite hymn, "Lord, I want to be a Christian." He leaves behind sister Marie (ph), brother Leon (ph), friend Marie (ph), who devoted years of taking care of him.

With him tonight in heaven, Reginald Broxton, a Navy air force vet who served in World War II, the president of Broxton Construction Company 36 years, a leader who served on multiple boards, including American Cancer Society and Meals on Wheels. He always had a smile and a handshake. He helped build part of our little Methodist church. He loved traveling and gardening. He leaves behind daughters Jo Lynn (ph) and Regina (ph), brother Gerald (ph), five grandchildren, three great-grandchildren. Homer Garrison, Herschel Broxton -- Hershel Reginald Broxton -- good night, friends.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Chris Coleman, Sheri`s husband and the father of the kids, was consoled by his parents at the cemetery as he stood over the caskets. Investigators have had heavy surveillance on Chris Coleman. In fact, they followed him to the cemetery. But later in the day, investigators pulled back and were told Chris Coleman is no longer under surveillance. Sheri`s cousin, Enrico Mirabelli (ph), says he is encouraged by news of a suspect but is still nervous because there`s still no arrest.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And again, we`re waiting to see when will the state`s attorney act. So there`s some anxiety in that waiting process.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Connor tells us evidence was recovered from a stretch of I-255 that authorities searched near the Jefferson Barracks Bridge.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: If there`s somebody out there in the public that thinks they saw something along that area, maybe along the bridge, to call us.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GRACE: Police asking for your help in cracking the case of the murder of a beautiful 31-year-old mother, literally murdered in her own bed. Her two little boys, Garett and Gavin, ages 9 and 11, also strangled to death in their own beds in the early morning hours.

Straight out to Clark Goldband, on the story. Clark, the surveillance -- what was police -- what were police surveilling, and why have they called it off?

CLARK GOLDBAND, NANCY GRACE STAFFER: Exactly right, Nancy. There was extensive surveillance. It happened yesterday starting at 8:00 AM. Coleman is staying at his parents` house. His dad is a preacher. They left the house around 8:00 AM, and three unmarked cop cars followed him, as well as an SUV loaded with law enforcement officials.

GRACE: Oh, good Lord! Major Connor, I have researched you extensively and you have an impeccable record. But three cars following somebody? It`s like a convoy. You had a convoy going!

CONNOR: We didn`t know where the leads were going to take us in that area.

GRACE: Ah. Got it.

CONNOR: We just sent teams down in that area. It`s about an hour from our headquarters, so we wanted to send...

GRACE: OK.

CONNOR: ... enough teams down there in case leads developed while they were there.

GRACE: Major Connor, I stand corrected because you never know who`s going to peel off and go which way. OK, back to you, Goldband.

GOLDBAND: OK. So he left his dad`s house at 8:00 AM. They arrived at the ceremony where they were going to lay these three victims to rest. That was about 9:30 AM. Law enforcement observed from outside the cemetery.

GRACE: Out to Mike Brooks, former fed with the FBI. Mike, weigh in.

MIKE BROOKS, FORMER D.C. POLICE, HLN LAW ENFORCEMENT ANALYST: Well, Nancy, you know, we heard the major talking about the surveillance. Look, you know, a lot of times, you call that a "bumper lock" surveillance. Sometimes you want them to know they`re going to be there. And as he said, as the case developed, they may have gotten some more information on him and would have to take him down right then.

But keep in mind, whether it be Christopher Coleman or someone else who they believe is doing this, you don`t have to have a bumper lock surveillance on them to keep them under surveillance, period.

GRACE: All you have to do is stick a GPS monitor under their back fender, and you`ve got it all. Remember Scott Peterson kept going back to the San Francisco Bay and gazing out into the waters where he dumped his wife and unborn child?

But Mike Brooks, what is crazy is the killer writing, I told you this would happen, or words to that effect on the wall of the murder scene, Brooks!

BROOKS: I tell you, there`s more evidence there than we probably know, Nancy.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Chris Coleman had an affair with a woman who went to high school with Sheri and was Sheri`s friend and that he carried on that affair through the time up to the murders.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Authorities confirm they are investigating his alleged romantic relationship with an exotic dancer in Florida.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We can say that she went to high school with Sheri, that she works down in the Florida area. She`s a cocktail waitress now. Her family, when we went to interview her, had said that they will never comment.

We don`t know what the current status of the affair is. We know that investigators went down to Florida shortly after the murders and began interviewing this woman and many of the people close to her.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The alleged affair assumingly took place down in Florida. He worked for the Joyce Meyer Church. Chris Coleman had a job there. He was in charge of security on the night shift.

We`ve seen reports that say he traveled around a lot for his job, so if we follow the dots on that, the affair probably took place down in Florida.

MAJOR JEFF CONNOR, COLUMBIA POLICE DEPARTMENT, ON THE CASE: We`ve developed information that we believe one person is actually involved in this homicide. We believe that this was not a random act, that it was actually intended to kill the three members of this family.

At this time we are not going to release the name of that individual. This is a very serious case and we don`t want to jump to anything, but to put the public at ease we don`t feel this was a random act. We feel this family was targeted.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

NANCY GRACE, HOST: The killer leaving a mysterious and chilling epitaph, hand scrawled across the wall of the murder scene. He might as well say, who did it? Who did it?

Come on, Holly Hughes, Paul Batista, St. George. Paul Batista, defense attorney, author of "Death`s Witness", joining us out of New York. A handwriting sample is going to nail the killer once they nab him.

PAUL BATISTA, DEFENSE ATTORNEY, AUTHOR OF "DEATH`S WITNESS": He should have -- could have left his name on the wall, Nancy.

GRACE: He might as well have taken out an ad and put it up on a billboard on Third Avenue.

BATISTA: It`s very -- it`s very Charles Manson-like, in fact, and obviously they`ll be able to trace the author of that particular sentence.

GRACE: And, you know, Carmen St. George, of course, when you`re scrawling something in big letters it`s not going exactly match your handwriting, but certain characteristics will remain constant.

How do you get out of that at trial, Carmen?

CARMEN ST. GEORGE, DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Well, you know, Nancy, a lot of times things are going to be different when they`re written up high on the wall and, as you said, in script, many times many people change their handwriting. So it wouldn`t be that difficult to get out of it.

(CROSSTALK)

GRACE: Changing your handwriting. Good luck with that. Changing your handwriting. You can`t hide your handwriting any more than you can hide your fingerprints.

Liz, could you put that video up again? As we are waiting for an arrest to go down in the murder of 31-year-old Sheri Coleman and her two little boys, this image comes to mind. Her body laid to rest, lowered into the ground and beside her two tiny caskets containing her little boys, age 9 and 11.

They will rest in eternity side by side, but not necessarily in peace. Cops saying they believe they know who did it, but yet no arrest has been made.

Back out to Mike Brooks, former fed with the FBI. Mike, what`s the hold up?

MIKE BROOKS, FMR. DC POLICE DETECTIVE SERVED ON FBI TERRORISM TASK FORCE: Well, Nancy, they could be just making sure they have, besides just a circumstantial case, a good forensics case. Now you know.

GRACE: They don`t have to wait for forensics.

BROOKS: No.

GRACE: . before an arrest is made.

BROOKS: There`s a thing called probable cause. Law enforcement may think they have a probable cause, but we heard what the major said, they`re waiting on the prosecution. So, you know, is an arrest warrant imminent? Most likely, but it shouldn`t take eight weeks for forensics to come back.

GRACE: Very quickly, back to Nick Pistor with the "St. Louis Post Dispatch." What can you tell me about the husband`s job? He worked for a ministry?

NICK PISTOR, REPORTER, ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH, COVERING STORY: Yes, he worked for Joyce Meyer which is a worldwide televangelist. He did security for her and he was very close to the family, a good friend to as many of her and her family and he had traveled around the country with her, doing security and setting up surveillance.

GRACE: What did they have to say about this tonight?

PISTOR: They`re not saying much. They`re saying that their heart goes out to Chris and his family for the tragedy and other than that, they`ve said very little.

GRACE: McGraw Milhaven, KTRS Radio, not only did he work for Joyce Meyer`s World Ministry, traveling the world with her as she preached, but his father, a preacher also?

MCGRAW MILHAVEN, TALK SHOW HOST, KTRS RADIO, COVERING STORY: His father is a minister and runs a very successful church called Grace Ministries.

GRACE: What do you mean successful?

MILHAVEN: It`s very popular and very successful about an hour south of where he lives.

GRACE: What denomination is that, Grace Ministries?

MILHAVEN: I believe it`s -- well, it`s Protestant. I don`t know exactly if it`s Baptist or.

GRACE: Like interdenominational?

MILHAVEN: Yes. Yes.

GRACE: When you mean it`s successful, do you mean a lot of people go there?

MILHAVEN: A lot of people go there. It`s been built over a number of years. It`s very well respected in the community.

GRACE: To Dr. Bethany Marshall, psychoanalyst and author of "Deal Breakers." I want to make it very clear, the husband has not been named a suspect or person of interest at this time. The police announcing they believe they know who crept into this family home in the darkened early morning hours to strangle the life out of a gorgeous young mother, 31-year- old Sheri Coleman.

She planned missionary trips to Mexico and India this summer. She once served this country in the Air Force, and her two little boys, age 9 and 11.

You know, Dr. Bethany, I`m having a hard time understanding how someone could murder a 9 and 11-year-old child, methodically going down the halls of that white-finish home in a sleepy suburb, methodically killing one after the next after the next in their own bed.

BETHANY MARSHALL, PSYCHOANALYST, AUTHOR OF "DEALBREAKERS": Someone who has such a complete disorder of attachment that these children and this wife mean nothing, and I know that the husband is not a named suspect, but in cases of domestic homicide usually the man marries the wife with fantasies of power.

He relates on the basis of power, not affection. When the power begins to slip the wife gets a backbone, then he gravitates towards affairs. We know these men especially the sociopaths do not have a nuance to thinking in terms of problem solving. They would never go to marital counseling, seek a divorce, share custody of the children.

It`s you`ve got to die. I`ve got to wipe you out. And then an added extra layer as many kill their wives, usually there`s a big financial incentive. They do not want to divide their assets and when you layer all these things in, plus the fact that they`re cowardly and they do not want to face the wife, think Neil Entwistle, think Drew, think Scott Peterson, think Mark Hacking.

They kill their wives in their sleep because even though they want to have power over the wife they`re little cowards and they do not want to face the wife.

GRACE: Bethany Marshall, what I don`t understand is a killer who`s so relaxed and kicked back. He thinks he can take the time to leave a message on the wall and why do you embellish a murder scene? Is it self- aggrandizement? Why?

MARSHALL: I think whoever did this was trying to stage it, to look like a random act, an act of vengeance, but it`s pretty transparent because that welfare check, it just doesn`t make sense. You won`t do a welfare check if you think someone is like suicidal or something like that and wants the police to break down the door.

GRACE: To Dr. Marty Makary, physician and professor of public health at Johns Hopkins. Dr. Makary, welcome. Sometimes I fear that shows like CSI and others give viewers a false impression about how evidence is really collected.

You know when you go to a murder scene it is -- it will turn your stomach, it will make grown men break down and cry and vomit. Explain.

DR. MARTY MAKARY, PHYSICIAN, PROF. OF PUBLIC HEALTH, JOHNS HOPKINS: Yes. The reality is it`s not like CSI. It`s not like you walk into a very clean crime scene, take one hair, get the DNA and it`s matched within a matter of 24 hours.

We know here they`re expecting a long period of six to eight weeks because when there are something with stakes this high you need to do triple and four times the amount of checking and really what they need to do now is look everywhere for any sign of forensic DNA, not just regular DNA, criminal DNA.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Jessica, is there anything you want to say? Did you love your baby?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Prosecutors say mom Jessica Miner gave her 6- month-old son Mason alcohol to stop him from crying, but baby Mason died. Authorities say the 6-month-old`s blood alcohol level was .205, more than twice the legal limits for adults.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: These are all recklessly-based charges. You know -- we indicate that acted in a grossly negligent reckless manner as far as this child is concerned.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Miner told police she gave her baby liquid acetaminophen the day before, and nurse the baby once during the night. He was fine. The next morning mom told police she found Mason was blue and called police. A neighbor started CPR.

Police found a dozen empty beer cans in the garbage. Miner now faces charges of involuntary manslaughter and child endangerment. The mom denies she ever gave her son alcohol and her attorney claims she`s innocent.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GRACE: Then how did the baby get over twice the legal limit for adults? Alcohol in his little system? This 6-month-old child dead.

To Naomi Goldstein, investigative journalist. Naomi, what happened?

NAOMI GOLDSTEIN, INVESTIGATIVE JOURNALIST, COVERING STORY: Nancy, the story is so, so tragic. According to Jessica Miner, the day before her baby was found dead she gave him just one small dose of liquid Tylenol and throughout the night he was fine. She breast-fed him one time.

According to his father he was fine, but the next day Jessica Miner wakes up, her baby, around his mouth, he`s a little blue and he`s congested and she starts pounding on her neighbor`s wall and she`s saying there`s something wrong with the baby and please come over, the baby is clearly dead and now she is charged with manslaughter.

GRACE: Michael Rudolph, joining us from the "Wyoming County Press Examiner." Mr. Rudolph, thank you. What more can you tell me about the case? What`s your understanding of what happened?

(ON THE PHONE)

MICHAEL RUDOLPH, WYOMING COUNTY PRESS EXAMINER: Well, my understanding, as you just said, the mother had -- the baby had apparently been sick the night before. The mother gave her some liquid acetaminophen, rather, the night before.

The next morning she found the baby in a very bad condition, congested and with blue lips, called for help and called the neighbor and called for the baby`s father who had gone to work and when police arrived they found the child dead and that`s when the investigation started.

GRACE: With me, special guest, the Wyoming County district attorney George Skumanick. Sir, thank you for being with us. He`s joining us from Willksbury. Sir, what are the nature of the charges? What is the possible jail sentence if she is found guilty?

(ON THE PHONE)

GEORGE SKUMANICK, WYOMING COUNTY DISTRICT ATTORNEY, ON THE CASE: Well, she`s charged withy involuntary manslaughter which is assigned in the second degree in Pennsylvania which is punishable up to 10 years in prison. She`s also charged with endangering the welfare of the child which is a misdemeanor in the first degree which is punishable up to five years in prison, and reckless endangerment of a person which is punishable up to two years in prison.

GRACE: Mr. Skumanick, here`s my question. Why isn`t she charged with felony murder? Feeding a child alcohol would clearly be a felony child abuse if not an aggravated assault and a death occurred.

SKUMANICK: That`s why she`s charged with the involuntary manslaughter as a felony because it was a child involved in the crime.

GRACE: OK. She`s charged with involuntary manslaughter, but wouldn`t a felony murder charge carry a much greater sentence?

SKUMANICK: Well, to prove that we`d have to prove that she intentionally tried to kill her child.

GRACE: Well, wouldn`t feeding a child alcohol be felony child abuse?

SKUMANICK: Again, in Pennsylvania, the endangering the welfare charge, if it`s a single act of abuse then it is a misdemeanor, if it`s a course of conduct, then it becomes a felony.

GRACE: Out to another special guest joining us. The attorney for this mother, Jessica Miner, Paul Ackourey. He`s joining us from Scranton.

Mr. Ackourey, what is her defense?

(ON THE PHONE)

PAUL ACKOUREY, ATTORNEY FOR JESSICA MINER, MOM CHARGES IN SON`S DEATH: Well, Nancy, we`re -- she was just arrested this week and we`ve just received a criminal complaint this week and based upon that complaint we are suspect of the entire prosecution to be honest with you. We`re suspect about the blood test results.

GRACE: Why?

ACKOUREY: Well, it`s our understanding that the blood test was sent out on two occasions to two different laboratories. There`s reference to the one test result. We do not have the results from the other test.

(CROSSTALK)

GRACE: Well, maybe we can clear up that right now.

To George Skumanick, with the district attorney`s office, there were two tests? Do you double check the blood tests? What`s wrong with that?

SKUMANICK: Well, actually that the lab, when they tested the first time came up with the first result, were so concerned by it that they retested it.

GRACE: Whoa. So they just couldn`t believe their eyes when they saw the result that a 6-month-old baby had this blood alcohol.

Mr. Ackourey, the defense attorney, I think your client has a problem because you don`t get the alcohol content from baby Tylenol. I know that for a fact and when I give the kids baby Tylenol, it`s few and far between, I measure it out with a dropper. I`m so worried.

So how did the baby get this blood alcohol? They doubled up the test according to Skumanick.

ACKOUREY: Well, Nancy, I`m anxious to see what the results are on the testing on that Tylenol, the liquid Tylenol, if there was testing done.

GRACE: Are you saying baby Tylenol has alcohol in it?

ACKOUREY: I`m saying in the past Tylenol has had problems with their product on occasion. There`s been past instances where there has been.

GRACE: Let`s unleash the lawyers. Holly Hughes, Paul Batista, Carmen St. George.

Holly Hughes, that`s a big leap to try to blame Tylenol.

HOLLY HUGHES, PROSECUTOR: Absolutely, Nancy. What he`s going for here is product tampering and, you know, they`re going to have a really hard time proving that because, number one, if it`s only the bottle that`s in her house who`s to say she didn`t put the alcohol into the Tylenol bottle it use as it a defense later?

GRACE: Batista?

BATISTA: Well, he`s got an obligation to explore every defense, Nancy. And we have to remember that in the `80s, Tylenol was involved in several deaths.

GRACE: Hold on. Did you say `80s?

BATISTA: He`s got an obligation to look into it.

GRACE: You said `80s. Right?

BATISTA: Yes, right.

GRACE: Well, check your BlackBerry. It`s 2009.

Carmen St. George, give me something better.

ST. GEORGE: Well, Nancy, I think you also have to look at what if anything the mother was doing, whether she breast-fed, at what time, and you know, whether there was any connection with what was in her system. But it seems .205 of alcohol in the system in a baby could be -- it`s just minimal in times, one glass of wine could be that.

GRACE: A glass of wine for a baby? Let me see St. George. Did you just say a glass of wine for a baby?

Bethany Marshall, moms using alcohol as a babysitter? That`s what the prosecution is alleging. Weigh in.

MARSHALL: There are so many possibilities. Was she a chronic and habitual drug user and alcohol user? Was she in a blacked out state? Was she in a drug-induced psychosis?

GRACE: Hey, look.

MARSHALL: Because of that, did she imagine that the -- yes?

GRACE: Giving the baby alcohol. I don`t care if you`re lying in a g- string on the courthouse steps with a heroin needle in your arm.

(CROSSTALK)

GRACE: Voluntary drug use is not a defense.

MARSHALL: Right. Right. Explanation is not the same as excuse, but I`m just trying to explain what could have contributed to such a heinous act.

GRACE: OK. Well taken. Well taken, Bethany Marshall.

Everybody, before we run out of time, I quickly want to bring you up to day on the search for a high school soccer star, 17-year-old Brittanee Drexel.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: After I heard it I started crying. I couldn`t even stop. If I were to say a message, sissy, please come home. Me and (INAUDIBLE) miss you, especially the whole family. Everybody knows about this. And just -- I mean, even the dance company has been very great help with keeping -- just want you to come home.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GRACE: Marlaina Schiavo on the story, I understand there was another sighting. What happened?

MARLAINA SCHIAVO, NANCY GRACE PRODUCER, COVERING STORY: This morning at about 8:30 this morning there was a sighting. A girl that matched Brittanee`s description was seen at a gas station and getting into a car that had New York plates. But unfortunately, Nancy, we just found out that this sighting was not Brittanee.

GRACE: Everybody, as we go to break, a very special happy birthday to the New Jersey friend of the show, Gerri. She never misses the show. What a smile.

Happy birthday, Gerri.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DAWN DREXEL, MOTHER OF MISSING 17-YR-OLD BRITTANEE DREXEL: She said, oh I`m just going to hang out with my friend. We`re going to watch a movie. And I told her, I said, well, please give me a call later. And she said, OK, mom. And you know, I told her, I said I love you, Brittanee. And she says I love you, mom. Then we hung up the phone.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GRACE: Out to Ernst Lamothe with the "Democrat and Chronicle", joining us out of Rochester. What can you tell me, Ernst? What`s the latest?

(ON THE PHONE)

ERNST LAMOTHE, REPORTER, DEMOCRAT AND CHRONICLE: Well, Nancy, police said that someone reported that they saw a young woman fitting Brittanee`s description walking into a convenience store about eight miles west of Myrtle Beach today.

And she used an ATM machine and left in a red Dodge Stratus with New York license plates. And so following that tip police interviewed the store clerk, they retrieved video surveillance and reviewed those tapes. They even checked Brittanee`s bank account and even went to talk to the owner of that involved vehicle.

And the "Democrat and Chronicle" has found out that that vehicle spotted at the scene belongs to a 19-year-old woman from Watertown, New York, which is about two hours northeast of Rochester.

But after police did all their investigation, and while they still haven`t ruled anything out, unfortunately, for what I`m hearing there`s nothing to indicate that the woman who walked into that store was Brittanee.

GRACE: To Mike Brooks, former fed with the FBI. Mike, where do we go from here?

BROOKS: Well, Nancy, there have been so many sightings. And you know, and we heard from her mother that law enforcement is taking these seriously. So -- and once you get any kind of lead, any kind of sighting, you`ve got to run it down as -- just like Myrtle Beach Police did with this last one.

GRACE: Everyone, the tip line for Brittanee Drexel 843-9181382. There was a $16,000 reward. Please, let`s don`t give up on finding this girl.

Let`s stop and remember Army Specialist Carla Stewart, 37, Sun Valley, California, killed Iraq. Killed in Iraq. Left a career in mechanical drafting to enlist. Just five feet tall but brave and headstrong. Her fellow soldiers nicknamed her Stewart Little.

She loved ballet, animals, children, nature, mountain hiking. Leaves behind grieving parents, Emmy and Edmund, brother, Richard, five cats and one beloved dog.

Carla Stewart, American hero.

Thanks to our guests but especially to you for being with us. And happy birthday to Philadelphia friend, investigative journalist, Naomi Goldstein. Just want a beautiful smile.

Dear Naomi, happy birthday.

Everyone, I`ll see you tomorrow night. 8:00 sharp Eastern. And until then, good night, friend.

END