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ISSUES WITH JANE VELEZ-MITCHELL

LiLo`s "White Hot" Court Drama; Baby Abandoned in Meth Lab

Aired February 9, 2011 - 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, breaking news. Lindsay Lohan`s courtroom drama. The 24-year-old starlet called back in front of a judge, charged with felony grand theft, accused of stealing a $2,500 necklace from a jewelry store. If convicted, LiLo could do hard time in state prison. What does this say about Lindsay`s sobriety?

Then, a surgery shocker. A 20-year-old woman dies after getting butt injections in a Philadelphia hotel. Cops say the woman and three others traveled all the way from London. And this wasn`t the first time they came here for a hotel-room nip and tuck. Is this the latest in a string of backroom plastic surgery botch jobs?

And are two of the world`s most beautiful people in a vicious war over their daughter`s appearance and racial identity? Halle Berry`s bitter custody battle with her white ex-boyfriend has their gorgeous baby daughter smack in the middle. Halle says she feels her daughter is black. We`re asking, why does she have to choose? We`ll take your calls.

ISSUES starts now.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

JUDGE KEITH L. SCHWARTZ, LOS ANGELES COUNTY: What I`m telling you is you need to follow the laws just like everybody else. Look around this room. Everyone in this room has to follow the law. The court, the D.A., your attorney, the sheriff`s deputies, everybody. You`re no different than anyone else.

So please don`t push your luck, because I`m telling you -- well, your attorney can tell you what I said -- but I`m telling you, things will be different. Do you understand what I`m telling you?

LINDSAY LOHAN, ACTRESS: Yes, sir.

SCHWARTZ: OK.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: "Yes, sir. I understand. Because I`ve been lectured so many times before."

Tonight, a judge lays into Lindsay. We are taking you inside the courtroom where Lindsay Lohan faced felony grand theft charges over allegedly stolen jewelry.

Lindsay pleaded "not guilty, your honor," but she was already on probation for a DUI, so the judge revoked that probation. Did she go to jail? No. He set her bail at $40,000.

Still, you wouldn`t know she was even in any kind of trouble looking at her. Lindsay was so relaxed and even chatty. And she brought her personal bail bondsman with her. So when the actress was taken into custody, he immediately paid that bill. She walked out of court.

A media circus exploded outside the Los Angeles courtroom. Take a look at this. As the starlet arrived emerging from a shiny black Escalade in a -- there she is; va-va-voom -- white-hot skin-tight dress and patent leather heels that might say really showed off her assets.

Helicopters swarmed overhead. The paparazzi went crazy to get a shot. She seemed to be working it, as they say. So what is this, a courthouse or the red carpet? I almost expected Joan Rivers to pop up and ask her, "Hey, darling, who designed your dress?" Could Lindsay actually be enjoying all this publicity?

OK, let`s go backwards to the beginning. Well, not the beginning but just the latest chapter.

A trendy Los Angeles boutique claims Lohan brazenly stole a uniquely designed $2,500 necklace and then got caught on camera walking around the streets of Hollywood wearing it. You`re looking at the incriminating photo. Lindsay`s wearing the necklace in question, a gold choker with green Stones.

Now, LiLo claims, "They loaned it to me."

Lindsay showed up in court today dripping in diamonds. So was she sending a message that she doesn`t need to steal jewelry, because she`s got so much? She will be back on February 23 in court. And they`re going to see if they can just work out some kind of deal in this case so it doesn`t move forward to trial. Fair or another case of superstar justice? I think you know how I feel about this.

I`m taking your calls: 1-877-JVM-SAYS. What do you think: 1-877-586- 7297,

Straight out to Mike Walters, assignment manager for TMZ.

Mike, TMZ was in court today. What is the very latest?

MIKE WALTERS, TMZ ASSIGNMENT MANAGER: Well, Jane, you played the clip where the judge, Schwartz, says, "Don`t push your luck. You`re no different from anyone else in this courtroom."

Let me tell you what that threat is. He told Lindsay, "I will revoke your bail, and you will be remanded, which means you will be in jail till the end of this trial."

What that means is, Lindsay, he`s not kidding around. If you break any law between now and March and going forward, he will put her in jail, and she will not be able to bail out. He even said, "Your attorney can`t get you out of that one, and he`s right. Forty thousand dollars bail. By the way, isn`t it weird to anyone else who`s watching this that Lindsay has her own personal bail bondsman?

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Yes. It`s totally crazy.

WALTERS: I was, like, wait a minute. You`re right, she has her own personal bail bondsman like a stylist, goes in, gets her out, boom, it`s over. The problem is, if she breaks the law, Jane, anything between now and then, that judge is serious. She will end up in jail. And I`m not sure she`s not already going to do jail time.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: You know what, Mike? I`ve got to say this. I`ve been hearing these warnings. I`ve been hearing these lectures from judges for God only knows how long. Every time she goes to court, she gets a lecture from another judge saying, "Watch out, watch out." I mean, come on.

Wendy Murphy, you`re a former -- you`re a former prosecutor.

Now, the judge revoked Lindsay`s probation, because she is still on probation for a DUI case. You know, last time I checked, usually when you get your probation revoked, you get thrown in jail. No. In her case, she gets bail. What`s that about?

WENDY MURPHY, FORMER PROSECUTOR: She`s a superstar cat with nine lives or 12 lives or whatever number she`s up to.

You know, I have some sympathy for her with her addiction issues. I`ve said that before. I am so off that bandwagon when it comes to this kind of stuff, because this is when it becomes all about entitlement. "I`m a superstar. I can take what I want. That`s a $2,500 necklace. I think I`ll just take it, and no one will ever dare accuse me."

I half expected her to jump on top of that Escalade today and start dancing. Oh, that was Michael Jackson, but it`s the same attitude that this is -- that this isn`t real somehow. She thinks this isn`t real.

I would have revoked her bail. I would have put her in the can. I would have sent that message rather than giving her yet another warning. You`re right, Jane. This is the best evidence yet that she is getting special treatment.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Absolutely. And you bring me to my big issue tonight. Is there a double standard here? I`ve offered compassion, too, but what I`m not for is a separate justice system for starlets.

Now Lindsay`s judge told her, "You have to follow the law just like everybody else." But was Lindsay really treated like everybody else today? She certainly didn`t look like everybody else. So let`s show a picture of her while we talk about this. You know, if you at home walked into a jewelry store and left with a $2,500 necklace, do you think they would arrest you? All right?

Now, HLN`s Dr. Drew does warn that, if we throw Lindsay back into the slammer, it could kill her. Let`s listen to this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DR. DREW PINSKY, ADDICTION SPECIALIST: This woman has been in treatment. She`s been engaged in treatment. This is a hiccup. And I`m telling you, if she is taken off the rails and into the legal system at this point, probably she`ll be lost forever.

On the other hand, if the court merely tightens things down and says, "Look, you`re doing good. You`re in your treatment. We`re going to continue to monitor you, but you are required by the legal system to stay engaged in your treatment, and we`ll report -- get reports from professionals that you`re engaged and doing well," that`s what`s going to save Lindsay`s life.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: And by the way, Dr. Drew`s show debuts nightly right here on HLN this coming spring. Can`t wait for it to start.

But I`ve got to say, Howard Samuels, I`m all for compassion and a compassionate approach to Lindsay. But if we`re going to do that, how about showing compassion to the hundreds of thousands of other people locked up for lesser crimes?

And guess what? You at home, if you don`t believe me, just go to Families Against Mandatory Minimums and read the profiles of all the people doing 10 or 20 years for first-time offenses. And this woman has gotten chance after chance after chance, Howard Samuels.

HOWARD SAMUELS, ADDICTION SPECIALIST: Well, I got to tell you, Jane, you`re absolutely right. I mean, there`s a special standard for this woman. And it really is -- it`s horrible to see, because it sends a bad message about the criminal system.

But what`s important here is that this woman`s not in recovery. She`s sober, but she`s not in recovery. It`s like there`s a dry alcoholic that`s occurring here. Now, what I mean by a dry alcoholic is that you have to change your behavior when you get into recovery. That means that you have to have more impulse control over your negative behavior.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Exactly. I want to go back to Mike Walters on that. This happened after she left rehab, this alleged stealing incident, right, Mike?

WALTERS: Yes. I mean, I agree except I think it`s important to say this, and I will. Lindsay Lohan has passed every one of her drug and alcohol tests with the probation department here in Los Angeles in the last few weeks. So since she`s left Betty Ford, according to the tests, she`s been sober. So I`m not sure that sobriety has anything to do with her taking a necklace or whether she did or not.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Well, I think it does, and I understand what Howard Samuels is saying is that there`s emotional sobriety. You could get clear of the drugs, but you can still have the addict mindset, and the addict mindset is "The rules don`t apply to me. I`m special. Anything I justify in my mind I can do because the truth is a dead issue. And anything I say to myself, I automatically believe."

Everybody, stay right there. We`re getting your calls. Greta, Indiana, on the other side, we`re going to take your calls. Give me a holler.

Also, we`re going to talk to Kareen Wynter. She was right outside in the madness with the paparazzi.

And Halle Berry says her baby with her white ex-boyfriend is black. Is their bitter custody battle turning into some kind of race war? Why does their gorgeous little daughter have to choose if she`s black or white if she`s both?

Plus, much more on Lindsay`s brand-new felony grand theft charges. A crazy scene outside court.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MICHAEL LOHAN, LINDSAY`S FATHER: The last thing in the world I want is for my daughter to go to jail.

Any time is jail is harsh, especially for a young lady like Lindsay that doesn`t need jail.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PINSKY: It`s very common in my experience for women that are coming off the kinds of drugs that she has come off of to engage in various kinds of stealing activities when they`re struggling with their sobriety. It`s very interesting.

NANCY GRACE, HLN HOST: Explain that, Dr. Drew.

PINSKY: If they`ve been taking opiates. It`s -- sometimes I think they just kind of aren`t aware of what they`re doing. Then the other time I think it`s sort of a desperate attempt to kind of get a thrill and feel high.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Yes, it`s a new kind of high sometimes, stealing. And Dr. Drew, by the way, premiering right here on HLN this coming spring. We can`t wait.

Lindsay Lohan, everybody`s talking about her white-hot day in court or more specifically, her white-hot dress. We`re going to show it to you right now. Wait till you see her get out of this car. It looks more like she is going to the Oscars and walking the red carpet. Va-va-voom. That is one tight dress. But is it appropriate for court?

Kareen Wynter, you were outside in the madness. Tell us all about the crazy scene outside court today.

KAREEN WYNTER, HLN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Jane, you see the smile on my face. It`s not because I don`t take this story seriously, I do. But you took the words right out of my mouth.

I was going to tell you that, whenever we cover Lindsay Lohan and her legal woes, it feels like you`re covering a red-carpet event. You know, there`s this grand entrance she makes after the buildup of the drama of when she`ll arrive, the crush of media that awaits her.

Photographers were literally falling all over themselves earlier today. There were quite a few bumps and bruises all taking place all around me. And then, you know, she steps out and she waltzes in, and people are yelling at her, "Lindsay, you`re gorgeous!" She`s decked out in diamonds. The pumps, which I don`t know if you got a shot of, they were incredible.

So again, not the appropriate attire for court, but you know, Lindsay Lohan, she always manages to make quite the fashion statement.

And something I wanted to add, as well, Jane. She`d better take this new judge seriously, Judge Schwartz. And that`s because we`ve just learned that Judge Eldon Fox, the judge who was overseeing her other case, the DUI case, is no longer on that case. Judge Schwartz will not only be overseeing the theft case but also her probation case regarding the DUI. So he`ll be -- she won`t have to worry about juggling judges. He`ll be deciding her future here.

And it will be interesting to see what happens February 23 regarding her probation revocation hearing and whether or not she`s sent back to jail for violating the terms of that probation, Jane.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Yes, absolutely. She jumps from judge to judge to judge. Remember, she had the female judge when she was in Cannes partying, and she didn`t make it back, and that judge yelled at her. Then she got Judge Eldon Fox.

And here`s the Sharon Stone look. You`ve got to see this. Woo! Now, I just hope, I really hope that when she was seated in court that Lindsay Lohan didn`t do that leg cross that Sharon Stone is so famous for. And I think we all know why she`s famous for it.

Victoria in Texas, your question or thought, ma`am.

CALLER: My question, Jane, is -- hello, how are you doing? -- when is enough is enough? She`s violated probation on several occasions. All she gets is a slap on the wrist. If it was T.I., Chris Brown or anyone else, they would have gone to prison, not jail for just 20 or 30 days.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Yes, I agree with you, ma`am, and I`ve got to point out, this isn`t the first time that Lindsay Lohan`s been accused of having sticky fingers, although she has never been charged with stealing.

In 2009, Lindsay was accused of taking a $400,000 necklace from an "Elle" magazine photo shoot. Here she is posing on the magazine`s cover. Now, this was a huge scandal. And then back in 2008, she was accused of stealing this $12,000 mink coat from a New York City nightclub. The owner of the coat spotted LiLo wearing the coat in these paparazzi photos, although you know what I would say, I would say the fur was actually originally stolen from the animals from whose back it was skinned.

But let`s get back to LiLo. She was accused also of taking a friend`s $35,000 Rolex watch in 2010. Again, never charged with any of this. But so many accusations.

Wendy Murphy, are they going to be using these as prior bad acts, do you think?

MURPHY: Well, I hope so. As opposed to some new defense tactic that, you know, she`s got addiction to extremely wealthy -- extremely expensive stuff, I read your book, Jane. It`s great. I didn`t see that chapter. You know?

But believe me, as fast as the prosecution is going to say she`s got a history of bad behavior and it shows that she`s a criminal and not somebody with mental health issues, her defense team is going to say, this proves that she`s got mental health issues. She can`t stop herself. Obviously, she`s got plenty of money. She wears diamonds to court. So she doesn`t really need the stuff. Why would someone steal if they don`t need the stuff?

The answer is because they`re entitled. They need to go to jail where they can be brought down to ground zero and get it together. It`s not just about addiction. It`s about entitlement. And she needs to go to jail...

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Whoa, whoa, whoa. Wait a second. In my book, "Addict Nation," I do talk about how addictions jump from one thing to another. So sometimes when you give up drugs, you need another kind of rush. And you heard Dr. Drew. You can`t get addicted to stealing.

Howard Samuels, you`re an addiction expert. Do you think there`s some truth there?

SAMUELS: Well, absolutely, Jane. I mean, there`s a high that occurs when you steal something. It`s a rush. It`s all about the rush. It`s all about getting away with something. That`s what this thing is about. So the addict-alcoholic loves the rush, loves the excitement. There`s a lot of excitement in stealing something. Come on.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Yes. And I`ve just got to say -- go ahead.

MURPHY: All I`m saying is it better not be a defense at trial. It will be laughable. Whether she has it as an addiction problem in her life is a different question than whether her defense team should be allowed to make a mockery of our legal system.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Here`s the problem. Talk about a mockery, they`re already talking about coming up with a plea deal.

Now, if anybody else was caught with videotape of them putting on the jewelry in a store and then ten days later wearing the jewelry, do you think the prosecution would go for a plea deal? They don`t have to. They`ve got the evidence. Why does this girl immediately get negotiation, this young woman, for a plea deal?

Thank you, fantastic panel.

Could it be the latest chapter in a sting of botched plastic surgery? A horror story next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Meth makes healthy people`s teeth fall out within a month. It`s the worst scourge of the earth.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Tonight, shock and outrage after cops raid a meth lab in North Carolina, make a shocking discovery. A 4-month-old baby boy with chemical burns on his tiny little body.

Cops charged the baby`s mom, 23-year-old Ashley Milligan, with child abuse, manufacturing methamphetamine and obstruction of justice. They say her infant son had second- and third-degree burns and that he had been suffering for quite a while.

Ashley was the seventh person busted in the drug den raid. And by the way, the suspected lab was in the grandparents` home. Can you believe that? Unbelievable.

Straight out to Sheriff Hubert Peterkin.

Sheriff, thanks for joining us. Is it true that these people did not report and take the child to the hospital for treatment because they were afraid that their drug den would get exposed?

HUBERT PETERKIN, SHERIFF (via phone): Yes, it is. The investigation shows that they deliberately prolonged getting treatment for the child because they didn`t want it to interfere with the actual drug operation.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: That is sick. Now, I heard the mother claim that, well, I was out of town. And I left the child in the care of my fiance`s mom. And I had no idea she was involved in drugs. What do you know about that?

PETERKIN: Well, the investigation -- the officers that investigated this case can actually put her on the scene, you know, at the house. Not only using but assisting with making the meth as well.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: What kind of condition was this poor little baby in, and how did he receive these injuries vis-a-vis the meth lab?

PETERKIN: Well, right now we believe that the injuries were from some type of chemicals in the house. The 4-month-old, he`s suffering from second-degree and third-degree burns along the chest and arm area on the right side -- on the right side of his body.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Howard Samuels, addiction specialist, you heard Danny Bonaduce talking about crystal meth and how it`s the scourge of the earth. Why is it so often deadly? What can it do in terms of explosions and that kind of thing?

SAMUELS: Well, you know, you mix so many chemicals together in the labs that it can be very dangerous, OK? They can explode. They`re very, you know, exposed to fire and flames. And so there`s a crystal meth epidemic going on in this country, Jane.

And this case doesn`t surprise me. In fact, I hear about these kind of cases all the time. And what it does to the body, what it does to the teeth, I mean, it`s horrific. This is like such an epidemic. And it`s so sick and what it does to people, Jane.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Sheriff, is there an epidemic in your county? In North Carolina?

PETERKIN: Well, actually, we were a little surprised. Now, in my county, we have not experienced a large rash of the meth labs. However, in the state of North Carolina, there are certain parts of our state that it`s actually ongoing. It`s like an epidemic in their communities. We were a little surprised. You know, we had one or two cases a few years ago, but this particular one, it kind of snuck up on us.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Sheriff, we`re so happy that you got to this baby. Well done. Well done, Sheriff. Thank you so much, Howard Samuels.

Top of the hour, Nancy Grace and her team have the story of a South Carolina mom accused of abandoning her newborn baby in a public toilet. Watch Nancy Grace for two hours every night beginning at 8 p.m.

And also, cops say four women flew from London for a botched surgical procedure. One died. We`ll tell you next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: A surgery shocker: a 20-year-old woman dies after getting butt injections at a Philadelphia hotel. Cops say the woman and three others traveled all the way from London. And this wasn`t the first time they came here for a hotel room nip and tuck. Is this the latest in a string of backroom plastic surgery botch jobs?

And are two of the world`s most beautiful people in a vicious war over their daughter`s appearance and racial identity? Halle Berry`s bitter custody battle with her white ex-boyfriend has their gorgeous baby daughter smack in the middle. Halle says she feels her daughter is black. We`re asking, why does she have to choose? We`ll take your calls.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DR. RONALD WARREN, PLASTIC SURGEON: The stuff (ph) basically that they`re using to inject is industrial-grade, not much better than what you would use to caulk your gutters in your house. And this is, of course, toxic to the body.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Oh, my god. Caulking? Injecting it into your butt? Tonight, breaking news, a hunt is on for a woman suspected in a bizarre deadly injection. This is another one of these plastic surgery nightmares.

Police say a 20-year-old woman came all the way from London to get butt injections inside a Philadelphia hotel. Hours later, she was dead. Police say Claudia Arotini (ph) got what she thought was silicone injected into her butt.

Now, this happened Monday afternoon inside a room at -- yes, you`re looking at a hotel -- it`s called the Hampton Inn. About 12 hours later, her friends frantically called 911.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LT. JOHN WALKER, PHILADELPHIA POLICE: Medics responded to the Hampton Inn here that a female experienced some trouble breathing, some chest pains. She was transferred over to Fitzgerald Mercy Hospital where she expired.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: I like the Hampton Inn, but not for surgery. Police think Claudia set up this procedure over the Internet. Investigators are trying to determine whether the woman who injected her is even licensed. I think we probably know the answer to that one.

I`ve got two words for you -- Hampton Inn. It`s a hotel, not a hospital. Plastic surgery is not room service. This is the latest in a slew of plastic surgery horror stories that we`ve covered here on ISSUES in just the last few weeks.

Why are more and more women risking their lives in pursuit of a perfect ten on a budget?

Straight out to Philadelphia Police Lieutenant Raymond Evers; thank you for joining Lieutenant. Have you tracked down the woman who actually administered these injections, sir?

LT. RAYMOND EVERS, PHILADELPHIA POLICE (via telephone): At this time, we have not tracked her down. We have her identified. We know who she is. We also know the identity of the person who was the scheduler or the person that kind of was in communication with the girls from London. So at this time we`re actively working with our district attorney`s office, the ME`s office from Montgomery County to put a case together, and we`ll see where this all falls into place in the next couple days.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: All right. Well, now, we keep seeing this video of a woman with a sheet over her head going into what looks like a police headquarters. And I think what -- my producer`s telling me that`s a friend of the victim? There, that`s a friend? Who`s that?

EVERS: I`m not sure exactly what photo you`re speaking of, but there was four individuals, four younger females that came from London, the UK, into Philadelphia. We know two received some type of cosmetic enhancement and two -- or actually went to New York and did some shopping. But we know two individuals received some type of treatment from this person.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Now -- thank you, sir.

Claudia reportedly got silicone injections from the same woman last fall, and she was back for more. And as you just heard the lieutenant say, she and her three girlfriends made a vacation out of this. Two got injections. The other two came along for fun. They planned to go to New York City together, maybe see a show, who knows?

This whole idea of plastic surgery tourism is a frightening trend. It`s not a holiday. It`s a medical procedure.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

WARREN: If silicone gets in the major arteries and veins, it travels around the body. You can get sick very, very quickly.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Ok. Dr. Kevin Brenner, you are a board-certified plastic surgeon. Now, I understand that silicone implants are legal, but silicone injections are not. And particularly, silicone injections that the cops say are a grade above caulking material.

DR. KEVIN BRENNER, BOARD CERTIFIED PLASTIC SURGEON: Yes. Jane, you know, I think it`s very important to make a distinction between solid silicone implants, silicone breast implants, and free silicone injections.

Free silicone injections are very dangerous. Silicone breast implants that we put in for breast augmentation, for breast reconstruction and cosmetic breast augmentation are FDA-approved devices that have been tested and proven safe for years.

Free silicone injections are a whole different game. And I think it`s, you know, this gets lost in the details of the headlines very often. What this patient probably had injected was exactly what you say, which was nothing more than, you know, industrial grade silicone.

There`s several issues that you really need to pay particular attention to. Not only the type of silicone, but who`s injecting it, where you are when it`s being injected, and what the condition of the facility is.

(CROSSTALK)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: You`re saying that they shouldn`t inject silicone. That if you want a bigger butt -- and frankly, I do not want a bigger butt. I don`t get that whole -- no, seriously, I don`t. I can understand breast implants, but I can`t understand --

BRENNER: Many women do.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Ok. But you`re saying go for the implants. Don`t go for the injections. Those injections are likely to be illegal, correct?

BRENNER: Well, I`m not saying go for the implant necessarily. There are techniques like fat-grafting which are very safe and very effective for augmentation of the butt. But if you are choosing to have silicone implant, you really need to do your research because silicone injections are potentially extraordinarily dangerous, and in this case, deadly.

What happens is the silicone, when it gets injected, whether it`s medical grade or not, if it`s injected in too large of volumes and injected inappropriately can enter the bloodstream and in this case travel to the lungs and cause an overwhelming inflammatory reaction which interferes with your ability to breathe.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Well, that`s a great explanation.

BRENNER: That sounds like what had happened in this case.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Yes. Thank you, doctor. Now, here`s my big issue. Stop looking for medical markdowns. Seriously. Sales are fabulous. But discount plastic surgery, no. Not a good idea.

Ok. Just last month this woman, Walesa Castillo, was charged with running a boob and butt injection clinic inside her Bronx apartment. Cops say she imported silicone from South America and charged a grand for a round of shots. She allegedly used crazy glue to seal up the wounds. What`s shocking to me is that people don`t seem to -- these people doing these crazy injections, they`re finding customers.

Spencer Aronfeld, you`re a board-certified trial attorney, a malpractice attorney. Why would anybody travel all the way from London to go to a hotel and get injections when you could take that plane fare and get first-class treatment, a real doctor, in London?

SPENCER ARONFELD, MALPRACTICE ATTORNEY: Well, I think the more important question that I`d like an answer to is what is happening in our world, in our society, that people are feeling this enormous compulsion to risk their entire life, their entire life to have a bigger butt or bigger breasts? And they`re doing this in light of all the media that`s out there of people dying one after another by these pump parties and these butchers and these folks that aren`t even licensed doctors. Yet they`re traveling across the ocean to come to the United States and have illegal silicone.

(CROSSTALK)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Well, I`ve got an answer for you.

ARONFELD: Why are they feeling this need to risk their lives?

VELEZ-MITCHELL: I`ll tell you why. It`s Hollywood. Hollywood is setting a very dangerous precedent for women. And I`m going to point to the E show "Bridalplasty" as Exhibit A. I`m entering that into evidence. Let`s take a look.

It`s a game show where brides-to-be compete to win plastic surgeries before their big day, before getting married. And, of course, who could forget reality star Heidi Montag who had ten plastic surgeries in one day. And she was left with a whole new body and a lot of regret.

Listen to this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

HEIDI MONTAG, REALITY TV STAR: I don`t want to do that to my body again. I don`t want to get any more botox or any more surgery or any more lip injections. I think that I`m fine the way that I am.

Yes, I feel stuck with them now. I really do. I really, you know, sometimes I want -- I wish I could just go back to the original Heidi with nothing.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Howard Samuels, as a culture, and I talk about this in "Addict Nation", we are bombarded every day with these images of these surgically-enhanced women, and women are getting hooked on trying to be like this.

HOWARD SAMUELS, CEO, THE HILLS TREATMENT CENTER: Well, you know, Jane, I live in Hollywood so I see this all the time. I mean, it`s never enough. It`s never enough facial work.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: That`s addiction.

SAMUELS: There`s never enough breast work. It`s an addiction. And that`s what`s so sad about this.

I mean, these women end up looking horrific because they feel it`s never enough. So the work has to be more spiritual and about what is really going on internally for us as a nation that it`s all about the outside. That is what`s so sad.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: It really is. Lieutenant Evers, if you`re still there, was this woman who did this, did she have any kind of license, or was she just some lady with a needle?

EVERS: At this time, we`re still investigating if she had any proper license to do this but just by the pure fact that she had people travel from the U.K. to Philadelphia to stay at an airport hotel and communicate people through the Internet, I doubt very highly that she had any --

(CROSSTALK)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Could she be charged with this woman`s death? Is it possible?

EVERS: Excuse me?

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Is it possible, yes or no, could she be charged in this woman`s death?

EVERS: Well, right now it`s a suspicious death. It`s a death investigation. The district attorney`s office in Philadelphia will sit down with the investigator, the ME`s office.

(CROSSTALK)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: And you`re going to make a decision. Thank you, lieutenant. Got to leave it right there. Thank you, sir.

Ok. Thank you panel.

Here`s a question. Has Halle Berry`s bitter custody battle with her white ex-boyfriend turned into a war over their daughter`s racial identity? In a new interview, Halle says she feels her daughter is black. But we`re asking tonight, why does this child have to choose? When she`s got a white father and why are we bringing this up? Is this taking a step back? Is this in the best interests of the child?

What do you think? Call me, 1-877-JVM-SAYS, 1-877-586-7297.

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HALLE BERRY, ACTRESS: Every mom in the world will tell you, it`s life changing, you know. It`s profound. It`s given me a greater purpose. I`m like every other mom in the world, I think. She`s the love of my life.

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VELEZ-MITCHELL: Tonight, the epic child custody battle between superstar actress Halle Berry and model Gabriel Aubry might have just hit a new low. Not only are they arguing who gets custody of their precious, beautiful 2-year-old daughter, Nahla, but are they really debating this little girl`s race? Why should that even matter? Who cares?

It`s just the latest salvo in this bitter, ugly fight over this adorable little girl. Halle Berry tells "Ebony" magazine she believes her daughter, Nahla, is black because of the one-drop theory which, by the way, dates back to the days of slavery. More on that in just a moment.

Then last week, TMZ talked to one of Gabriel Aubry`s ex-girlfriends who claims -- claims that Gabriel doesn`t like it when people refer to his daughter as black and believes that she is white. And we have absolutely no confirmation that that`s true. And Gabriel, well, anybody involved in this is invited on our show any time to tell their side.

But if it is true, apparently there`s nothing this couple can agree on, even the race of their own child? Maybe they should have discussed that before they decided to have a baby. What do you think? Give me a call, 1-877-JVM-SAYS.

Straight out to Kim Serafin senior editor with "In Touch Weekly"; Kim, I am so, so outraged by this whole thing. What`s the latest on this front?

KIM SERAFIN, SENIOR EDITOR, "IN TOUCH WEEKLY": Well, as you mentioned, I mean this is getting to be a very nasty custody battle, a very nasty break-up. Their allegations are flying back and forth whether it be about the race issue, as you just mentioned. There`s also -- a source told "In Touch" that Halle was apparently upset that Gabriel was out with Kim Kardashian because she didn`t want their daughter around the reality show cameras. There are charges of jealousy.

There were reports Gabriel didn`t want to go to New York and that`s why Halle had to drop out of this latest film. This is really just getting very nasty. And it`s really being fought out in the press which I think is unfortunate especially because they both seem like nice people. This little daughter, as you mentioned, is adorable, and just people don`t want to see this fought out in the press, unfortunately.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: And also two of the most beautiful people I`ve ever set eyes on. And I can`t imagine these two gorgeous people are arguing over something like this when they probably have -- well, she looks like one of the most beautiful children ever born.

Halle Berry says she believes in the one-drop theory. I`d have to say that that`s the big breaking news, the big bombshell, because that refers to Jim Crow Laws that existed in the U.S. between 1876 and the 1950s that mandated separate facilities based on race. You know, the so-called separate but equal.

It was used to discriminate against African-Americans. If a person had one drop of black blood, they were forbidden to pass as white. Halle Berry is the daughter of a white mom and a black dad. Her ex, Gabriel Aubry, is the son of French-Canadian parents. Of course, he is white. Berry maintains the one-drop theory makes herself and her daughter black.

Now, Fanshen Cox, you`re an actress, and you`re the co-host of -- I want to say this, I don`t want to mix this up -- "Mixed Chicks Chat Podcast". That`s a mouthful. So you`re biracial.

FANSHEN COX, ACTRESS: Yes.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: What is your take on this because I thought we had moved way past this?

COX: Well, I think people have the right to identify however they want to and choose how their children identify. However, my disappointment is with invoking this one-drop rule. The problem with that is it was used to oppress people. And in the same way we buried the N word, we need to bury this concept of the one-drop rule. It does us no good.

If she chooses to identify that way because she`s proud of black culture, we still in this country very much believe in race, which hopefully we`ll stop believing in as well. But while we do, it`s fine to be proud of that culture. But to use these concepts from the 1800s that were used really for negative means; that hopefully we`ll start to do away with.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: My big issue is not why do we have to choose, why does this little girl in this post-racial, multiracial society have to choose? I mean, she`s like so many other kids nowadays. Come on, one in seven --

COX: No, but racism --

(CROSSTALK)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Hold on a second.

COX: Racism still exists.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: One in seven new marriages are between spouses of different races or ethnicities. So a lot of people consider themselves mixed ethnicity, mixed race.

Look, I`m Puerto Rican and Irish. I`m happy to be both. I`m happy to be Puerto Rican; happy to be Irish. I don`t want to have to choose between the two.

K Foxx, weigh in.

K FOXX, RADIO SHOW HOST: Well, basically, I think that she should embrace both cultures; black, white, it`s beautiful in both ways because I have a biracial nephew and a biracial brother. And it makes them that much more beautiful because they can learn so much more from both cultures.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Absolutely.

FOXX: She shouldn`t put her daughter into --

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Come on.

COX: Well, let`s remember that when this young girl goes to school, she may face racism.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: More on the other side. Hang in there, one second.

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(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JENNIFER BRANDT, FAMILY LAW ATTORNEY: Halle just really needs to learn how to share. She made a baby with this guy and now she has to share her with him. He`s just not going to go away clearly. He wants to have time with this child and today in most courts he`s going to get that time.

So she better get used to communicating with him and just -- she better relax. I don`t think she wants to hear from him. I think that`s the problem.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Halle Berry`s ugly child custody battle, getting uglier by the minute; now, new allegations that the former couple are at odds over the race of their 2-year-old daughter.

Cheryl Lynn, Florida, your question or thought, ma`am?

CHERYL LYNN, FLORIDA (via telephone): Yes, Jane -- I love your show.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Thank you.

CHERYL LYNN: I want to ask this question. Why does she have to choose? She has to choose because she is in a country that makes us choose. There`s nowhere we go where we don`t have to fill out applications for an apartment or for whatever and it asks us what our race is. This country isn`t going back; it hasn`t got that far yet. It doesn`t recognize race in the United States of America.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: All right ma`am, excellent point.

K Foxx, your thoughts on that?

K FOXX: Well, unfortunately, society treats us based on our appearance. And Halle Berry appears to be a black woman and that`s who she identifies with. So that`s not something that`s wrong. But to make her daughter choose that, she just needs to raise her as a fun-loving child and then when she gets older, to understand the concept of race and culture and things of that nature. Then she can choose.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: I`m a little concerned that she`s putting her child in the spotlight in this manner. And I have to wonder about her judgment. You know, she has been unlucky in love, that`s putting it mildly. We`re talking about Halle Berry`s love life.

She says her first husband, baseball star David Justice, was physically abusive, something he`s always completely denied. Second husband Eric Benet was a philanderer and alleged sex addict. Halle Berry and Gabriel Aubry broke up after five years and Aubry says Halle`s allegations are completely untrue and irresponsible.

So I got to bring it back to Kim Serafin. Is there something there?

SERAFIN: You know, yes, she obviously has been unlucky in love, but she also is such a great actress and I think so many people even just going back to that Academy award speech that she gave where she was clearly emotional. When she said this moment was bigger than her, she really meant it. She wasn`t just saying that. So she`s obviously very proud of her heritage but also proud of what she`s accomplished in life as an actress, too.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Well, look, I think -- go ahead.

COX: Well, let`s remember that it was -- that was the feat and we all called her, you know, we all called her that this was a black woman winning this Oscar. We call our President a black president -- many of us, our first black president. He chose to identify as black on the census. That`s up to him and there are reasons behind why people choose that. We need to understand that.

And parents need to be honest --

VELEZ-MITCHELL: No, listen. I am totally cool with her choosing to be -- if she identifies with black, that`s fantastic. If I was her, I would just identify as totally gorgeous. You know what I mean.

But if that`s how she wants to identify herself, that`s fine. But I think -- what I`m questioning is bringing her daughter into this and identifying her daughter, who is too young to speak for herself. That`s where I have a problem.

And sort of bringing in this Jim Crow; that is where I have this problem, this one drop theory. That seems to be going backwards.

COX: I agree. And again, these are allegations as far as what we`re hearing about what the husband`s opinion is of all of this. But it`s important to know how he looks at it and she may be preparing her child for a family that is not accepting of her on his side. We don`t know if that`s what she`s doing. That`s what`s important to her.

But I do agree ultimately, hopefully we`ll all get rid of this notion of race in the first place and see one another, you know, for other things.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: You know what I say? Moveon.org on this subject. Thank you.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: I`m Jane Velez-Mitchell and here is my issue.

Lindsey is in court again. A strong warning from a judge, again; this time a judge is saying you`re no different than anyone else. Please don`t push your luck.

Guess what, she`s already pushed her luck many times. And every time she just gets another warning. When she missed a crucial court hearing because she was in France, she was warned. When her SCRAM bracelet went off, she was warned. When are the warnings going to end and real consequences begin?

Now she`s charged with felony grand theft for allegedly stealing a necklace and we hear there`s already talk of a plea bargain.

I`m all for Lindsay staying sober, but if we`re going to take a compassionate view towards her, then let`s take that view towards the hundreds of thousands of people doing hard time right now as we speak for lesser offenses.

I`m Jane Velez-Mitchell and that`s my issue.

Think about it. They`re in jail right now.

Nancy Grace is up next.

END