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ISSUES WITH JANE VELEZ-MITCHELL

Mystery in Aruba: Woman Disappears While Snorkeling; Fugitive Family Sought

Aired August 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, deja vu in the war on women? Another beautiful woman goes missing in Aruba from the same resort town where Natalee Holloway vanished. A man Robyn Gardner was with claims they went snorkeling but she never returned to shore. Now he`s in custody, and her boyfriend back in the states isn`t buying his story. What happened to Robyn?

And cops say two young brothers and a sister on a shoot `em up crime spree across the south. Their mom is pleading for their surrender.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE, MOTHER OF FUGITIVES: Please prove me right and everybody wrong by doing the right thing now and turning yourselves in.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Is this a modern-day Bonnie and Clyde? I`m taking your calls.

Also, polygamist leader Warren Jeffs will never again see the light of day.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Now I can stand ten feet tall and say you are where you belong.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: As Jeffs gets his harsh sentence, I`ll talk live to Jeffs` nephew, who says his uncle sexually assaulted him when he was only 5 years old. Is this the beginning of the end for this cult?

Plus, I`ll talk live with a teenager who says a pimp beat her and forced her to have sex with NFL legend Lawrence Taylor. She`ll tell us how she was turned into a sex slave and why the system failed her.

ISSUES starts now.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Tonight Aruban authorities are once again investigating the disappearance of a beautiful young woman. Thirty-five- year-old Robyn Gardner was reported missing August 2.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I can`t even really explain. It`s been six days. All I can imagine is that, while she was there, whatever was happening to her, she was screaming for me and I wasn`t there.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Blond, beautiful, and missing in Aruba. It`s happened again.

Good evening. I`m Jane Velez Mitchell, coming to you live from New York City. First Natalee Holloway and now another young woman is missing on the resort island of Aruba.

And tonight, police are questioning the man she was vacationing with. Did he have something to do with Robyn`s disappearance?

Now, here she is. And she is beautiful. She`s 35 years old. Her name is Robyn Gardner. She is from Maryland. She traveled to Aruba with a man she met online, a man named Gary Giordano. We`re reaching out to his attorney right now. Haven`t heard back. Although she apparently also has a boyfriend back home in the Washington, D.C., area.

Now Robyn Gardner, last seen in and around an area called Baby Beach. Now, this was exactly one week ago. We are told her companion, Gary Giordano reported her missing after a snorkeling trip. Crews searched that area. They found absolutely nothing. This is a total mystery at this point.

But now Gary Giordano is in police custody. Cops say he tried to leave Aruba four days after Robyn went missing. Now, he is not charged with anything, but another woman who met Giordano online talked to CNN affiliate WJLA off camera, and she claimed this guy was bad news.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: He was, like, following me, or stalking me, and it freaked me out.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Robyn Gardner joins the likes of Natalee Holloway, who of course, as we all know, vanished in Aruba six long years ago. What are the chances? They`re both American, female, blond, beautiful, last seen with a man. The explanations do not add up in either case. It`s a shocking coincidence. Is Aruba turning into some sort of Bermuda Triangle for beautiful blondes?

Straight out to CNN correspondent Martin Savidge, who`s flying out to Aruba tomorrow to cover this breaking story.

Martin, thank you for joining us tonight. What do you know about Robyn`s disappearance?

MARTIN SAVIDGE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Jane, as you point out, a lot of striking similarities to, of course, the Natalee Holloway case. Both of them take place with a young woman going down to what they think is going to be a paradise, a trip maybe of a lifetime, and then never being seen again. And last being seen at the water`s edge. In both cases here, we`re talking about a woman who disappear, this time on what`s supposed to be a snorkeling trip with her traveling companion. Only the authorities are now beginning to wonder if that story really adds up at all.

Reportedly, witnesses did see the two in the area of Baby Beach, but nobody reports that they were snorkeling. And the story that a current supposedly carried her away, at least according to her companion. Baby Beach is named Baby Beach because of the fact that you could take your baby there. It is so calm, so tranquil, and they say it is not an area that is normally plagued. And the weather that day was perfect for snorkeling.

So authorities and those who live on the island say this story just doesn`t ring true at this point, Jane.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: And her boyfriend says she doesn`t like to snorkel. So he doesn`t buy it for a second. And this is her boyfriend who`s back in the D.C. area. And apparently, there was a little bit of conflict over whether she was going to go to Aruba with this other person.

Now, she met that Gary Giordano online and was reportedly seeing him. Now OK, we`re going to show you a photograph. This is Gary Giordano, courtesy of ABC.com. Now, listen to a WJLA reporter talking about this man`s past, the guy who reported Robyn missing.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

STEPHEN TSCHIDA, REPORTER, ABC-7/WJLA-TV: There is no correlation between Giordano`s prior behavior and any involvement in Gardner`s disappearance, however, in the past, he has faced domestic violence charges, a restraining order, and numerous complaints to the online dates services he frequented.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: All right, Steve Moore, former FBI agent, I believe the FBI is getting involved in this case. What do you know and what does that tell you?

STEVE MOORE, FORMER FBI AGENT: Well, what it tells me first is they`re probably looking in the wrong place at the beach. With this guy`s past, my guess is that something happened at the hotel room. I would look at his vehicle. I think you need to do a complete forensic work-up of where they were staying and the vehicle, because I really don`t think he dispatched her at the beach. And I think her body would have been found by then.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Well, wait a second. Before we say dispatched her, we have to point out that this guy is not considered a suspect. He is under arrest, or in custody right now. But there`s a distinction there. And we are reaching out to his attorney. But go ahead. Continue Steve Moore, former FBI.

MOORE: I agree. I made an assumption I probably shouldn`t have made. However, it all points -- all points to him right now, the fact that he was leaving the island without trying to help find this missing woman.

So I think you really have to consider him a No. 1 suspect and pretty much turn everything he had there. There`s going to be evidence. I don`t think this was planned. I think this was an act of spontaneous violence. And I think you`re going to find evidence.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Well, OK. Let`s listen to another woman who claimed she met Gary Giordano online last year and went on a couple of dates with him. Listen to this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: He was erratic. He was a little violent. Like one time I happened to touch his hair by accident, and he, like, literally, like, yanked my arm really hard. And it was, like, really scary. And he was, let`s say, quite physically aggressive, inappropriately. Apparently, he has cameras in his house where he videotapes people. And he has cameras all around his home.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Well, that is very sinister. Cameras all around his home and somebody who was physically aggressive, according to this other woman who met him online, as well, and who dated him.

OK. Want to go to R. Stephanie Good. And she is the co-author with Natalee`s father of an amazing book that I`ve read, "Aruba: The Tragic Untold Story of Natalee Holloway and Corruption in Paradise."

Stephanie, thank you so much for joining us. Now, as I talk to you, I want to show Google Maps showing this area, Oranjestad, in Aruba. This is the same area where Natalee vanished, an area filled with hotels. And we can show you the two hotels -- this is so eerie and creepy -- are very, very close. Natalee stayed at the Holiday Inn. Robyn was at the Renaissance Aruba.

Now, you have talked, Stephanie, about the title of the book you wrote, "Corruption in Paradise." Is it hard for an American who falls victim to a crime, and their family looking for them, to get justice when you`re outside the United States in a place like Aruba?

R. STEPHANIE GOOD, "ARUBA: THE TRAGIC UNTOLD STORY OF NATALEE HOLLOWAY AND CORRUPTION IN PARADISE" (via phone): Oh, it`s almost impossible. And the frustration that people went through, Dave and Beth both went through early on -- and really, it continued for a very long time -- it`s just unbelievable. I`m not sure how the Aruban authorities would handle this situation, because after all, this guy, Giordano, is not from the island. And so...

VELEZ-MITCHELL: He`s an American, presumably. I don`t know, but he came from the U.S. with her.

GOOD: Yes. They might -- they might like to really blame this on an American, take the focus off of Aruba. So I don`t know. But it is a very questionable situation. The guy met her on an online dating site. He lured her to Aruba.

Now you know, there were a lot of stories going around back when Natalee went missing regarding men on boats waiting out there in the water so that they could grab women out of the water and take them into the sex life trade. So...

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Well, you know, what happened is, according to the published reports -- this is just something I read -- is that this guy, Gary Giordano, met her, allegedly, online. Saw her and said, "Oh, I got some tickets to Aruba. You want to go to Aruba?" And she said yes.

And she had an argument, reportedly, with her boyfriend, Richard Forester, who says that he was not too happy about that, which makes sense. He also says that Robyn doesn`t like to snorkel, so he doesn`t believe the story. Listen to this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RICHARD FORESTER, ROBYN GARDNER`S BOYFRIEND: I just don`t think that she was snorkeling. I feel in my heart that something happened at this person`s hand.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: All of this is -- IS really painting a disturbing picture.

And Martin, what do you know about the conflict between the boyfriend in the D.C. area, who didn`t want Robyn to go down there? And apparently, there was something that she texted when she got down there, something to the effect of -- and I think I can say this on TV. We`re only saying it to try to solve this case. "This sucks," she wrote on his Facebook page.

SAVIDGE: Right. And this came at a very early hour. It was something like 2 a.m. in the morning when she posted this on the wall of her boyfriend back in the United States. No explanation, no clarification. He tried to communicate with her and kind of "what do you mean by that?" and he got no response. And then it was later in the day that, apparently, she goes missing. So, you know, you have to wonder.

There was another communication that she did make with her boyfriend back in the states. And as you say, they left on not the best of terms. He was clearly unhappy with the way she was getting down to Aruba, the travel and the plans for the travel. And she later said, "Look, you know, I love you, and we will sort this out when I get back." Only she hasn`t returned.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Martin, thank you so much for joining us.

Stephanie Good, we`re going to stay on top of this story. What a bizarre and tragic coincidence, and we pray that she`s found alive. But very disturbing stuff.

Thank you, sir.

Warren Jeffs, huh. We`re going to talk about that.

And we`re also going to talk about brother and sister robbers. And we`re going to take your calls on this bizarre trio: 1-877-JVM-SAYS.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: So far, no one has been physically harmed. The only safe thing, the only right thing, the only good thing, possible thing to do is for you to turn yourselves in. I love you.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: A manhunt is underway in several states for two brothers and their sister.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The FBI is searching for the Dougherty family, Lee, Ryan and Dylan.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Lee Grace, Dylan and Ryan, I love you very much.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Shots are fired from (UNINTELLIGIBLE) by the vehicle.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We`re going to win. I promise you, we will win, and we`re going to bring you to justice.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The youngest son, Ryan, was upset over the terms of his probation, having just being convicted of sending explicit texts to an 11-year-old girl.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He fired several more shots at me.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Only Mom knows what good people you are inside.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Yes, just -- two brothers and their sister go on a multi-state crime spree while their mom pleads that they turn themselves in. Do these blood bandits have a death wish? It`s possible. Cops in the South are hunting them. Ryan Dougherty, Dylan Dougherty and sister Lee Grace Dougherty, they`re considered dangerous. And armed? That`s an understatement. They have an arsenal of guns with them.

A week ago, this terrible trio allegedly went on a high-speed chase. Cops say they fired 20 rounds at a patrol car in Florida. We`re going to play that for you in a second. They blew out a tire and narrowly missed the officer behind the wheel.

From there, they drove to Valdosta, Georgia, where they`re accused of pulling off a daring bank heist. Bank security camera show them brandishing an AK-47 and a machine pistol.

And before their reckless rampage, Ryan, one of the brothers, texted their mom saying, quote, "There`s a time for all of us to die." I think maybe they`ve been watching too many Bonnie-and-Clyde-type movies.

The mother, who wants to stay anonymous, holds out hope for her kids. Listen to Mom.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Only Mom knows what good people you are inside. Please prove me right and everybody wrong by doing the right thing now and turning yourselves in.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: All right, give me a holler on this: 877-JVM-SAYS, 1- 877-586-7297. Straight out to FBI Special Agent Steven Emmett.

Thank you, sir, for being here. You`re part of this manhunt in Georgia. You`ve got some new breaking information. Give us what you`ve got.

STEVEN EMMETT, FBI SPECIAL AGENT: Well, we have a credible sighting in the Colorado Springs, Colorado, area. We got that just before I came on air with your -- with your show.

We have a Texas license plate that was stolen out of Texarkana, Texas, on the night of August 4, and it is Lima Charlie Sierra 909. That`s LCS- 909, that we now believe is on that white Subaru vehicle.

Law-enforcement authorities are also putting out a BOLO for individuals to be on the lookout for them in camping areas, in wilderness or wildlife areas, other outdoor areas in that region.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: All right. Can you repeat the license plate one more time, sir?

EMMETT: LCS-909 is a stolen license plate that authorities now believe is on that white Subaru Impreza.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Well, they`ve been missing about a week. Let`s check out this chase that began -- well, this is sort of how they kicked off this terrible crime spree. And it`s unbelievable, 20 shots fired. If you listen carefully, you can hear it. Check it out.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Over 100 miles an hour at this time; 394, he just cut through the parking lot at CVS at Morris Bridge.

(GUNFIRE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Holy (EXPLETIVE DELETED)!

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Wow. Take a look at that. A Florida dashboard camera, footage from the patrol car.

Now, listen, I`ve got to talk about this -- we`ve got Lee Grace Dougherty. She`s the oldest of the group. She could be the most reckless. Her Flickr account is filled with a whole bunch of racy photos. She apparently used to be a topless dancer.

She says, "I have a huge crazy family. I love to farm and shoot guys and wreck cars." And these are some of the statements that she`s coming out with. She also was involved in a DUI recently.

Pastor Jon Clanton, you live next to them. Briefly, do you think that substance abuse might be part of this whole thing?

PASTOR JON CLANTON, NEIGHBOR (via phone): It`s a very shocking event from the beginning of the breaking of the news. I first heard about it at lunchtime when I came home from lunch that a school was on lockdown on Morris Bridge Road, County state road 54.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: All right, sir. More on the other side. We`re going to get your plea to them.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: So far, no one has been harmed. The only safe thing, the only right thing, the only good thing, possible thing to do is for you to turn yourselves in. I love you.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: And that is the mother of the three Doughertys, the two brothers and a sister, who seem to be sort of romanticizing their crime spree, which is anything but romantic. But they may be taking a page from Bonnie and Clyde.

Check out this movie. Of course, this is the 1967 classic starring Warren Beatty and Faye Dunaway.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

(MUSIC)

(GUNFIRE)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: You know, you can romanticize it, but crime is not romantic. It`s ugly; it`s stupid and you either end up dead or behind bars, in prison, which is an awful place, for a long, long time.

Pastor Jon Clanton, you live next door to these -- they`re not kids any more. They`re in their 20s. But you`re going to issue a plea. What would you tell them tonight, if they`re listening?

CLANTON: I would tell them to -- I would echo what their mother has said, to turn theirselves [SIC] in, to know that there`s still an opportunity for them to turn this around, rather than to wind up thinking that it`s an adventure or a game or Bonnie and Clyde. This is insanity. And they have a life to live.

No one has been killed. No one has -- it has become very dangerous. The officer`s car was, of course, disabled by the bullet in the fire. The bank has -- was riddled with bullets in the ceiling. But the issue is, thankfully, by the Grace of god, no one has yet been killed. And we don`t want to see that.

Our prayers, the prayers of our church, the prayers of our community, the prayers, even of those men who are in prison where I`m a chaplain, we have prayed they would come to their senses and be willing to turn themselves in peacefully. Lay down their weapons, lay it all down and come out and know that there`s still a purpose in their life and that they can resolve this peacefully.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: All right, but Pastor, these three have a troubled past. This didn`t start a week ago. These guys have been in trouble for a long time. Ryan, for example, was just sentenced to ten years probation for sexual battery. He has 13 felonies on his record. So why the heck did he get probation for sexual battery?

Joe Episcopo, if we -- if we give him some hard time for sending explicit messages to an 11-year-old, he wouldn`t be out there wreaking havoc, Joe.

JOE EPISCOPO, ATTORNEY: Well, there must have been some extenuating circumstances for that to happen, because nobody is easy on sex crimes in Florida.

Now, it`s real important to understand that, whatever any of them do, they`re all responsible for it. Like everyone is saying, this is the last opportunity to save themselves from long prison terms. And you know what? They can`t wait to be captured. They`ve got to turn themselves in, because I don`t think they`re going to survive capture.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Well, I got to tell you, I think that they`re sort of in a temporary insanity, a community insanity. And they think, oh, well, they`re together and nothing can happen. It doesn`t matter how many people are running toward a cliff. You`re all going to go off the cliff, OK? There`s no security in numbers.

And if you have a substance abuse problem, turn yourself in and get help!

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Guilty on both counts.

ERIC NICHOLS, LEAD PROSECUTOR: Justice has arrived for Warren Steve Jeffs who we expect to spend the rest of his life in prison.

CHRISTI PAUL, HOST, "IN SESSION": His own documentation and writing essentially did him in. He went from prophet to rapist in a matter of ten seconds.

ELISSA WALL, FLDS VICTIM: He started to undress me and undress himself. I was crying saying, "Please I don`t know what you`re doing. It doesn`t feel right. Please stop."

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: He`s been murdering the souls of all these children. These kids don`t know whether they`re up or whether they`re down.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: He would come up behind me while I was in a group and seize me by the back of the neck and lean down and whisper in my ear, "Are you keeping sweet or do you need to be punished?"

BRENT JEFFS, WARREN JEFFS VICTIM: This day has come, and I cannot tell you how joyous I am to finally see this man put where he -- where he belongs.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: A mind-blowing sentence for polygamist leader Warren Jeffs.

Good evening again. Jane Velez Mitchell coming to you live from New York City.

The state of Texas has sentenced Jeffs to life behind bars plus 20 years for sexually assaulting two of his so-called spiritual brides, a 12 and a 14-year-old girl.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

NICHOLS: Justice has arrived for Warren Steve Jeffs, who we expect to spend the rest of his life in prison. Rarely, if ever in the criminal justice system in Texas, have we ever encountered a person such as Warren Jeffs whose criminal conduct spans decades, multiple jurisdictions and hundreds of victims.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Well, hallelujah that this sicko is locked away. But the bigger question -- could this be the tipping point for this cult whose prophet was a pedophile?

We heard about the gut wrenching pornographic testimony during the trial and the sentencing phase. Warren Jeffs, graphically instructed his underage wives on how to sexually please him. Saying, quote, "Take your clothes off. Do it right now. Each one who touches me and assists each other will have my holy gift. Just don`t think about the pain. You`re going to heaven."

Honestly? I`m sorry, but this is about a lot more than just Warren Jeffs. This cannot go on any longer. There are more than 10,000, well over 10,000 men, women and children -- emphasis on children -- in these compounds scattered over various states. If Warren Jeffs was allowed to commit these horrific crimes, who knows what else is going on behind those closed doors.

During the final days of the punishment phase, we heard perhaps the most revolting story of all, that Warren Jeffs assaulted his own nephew, sexually assaulted him.

Tonight, we are very honored to have that nephew, Warren Jeffs` nephew, Brent Jeffs with us tonight.

Brent, first of all, I want to applaud your courage; your courage for speaking the truth --

JEFFS: Thank you.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: -- even though it had to be uncomfortable, difficult. A lot of people consider your testimony the key to Warren Jeffs getting the maximum sentence of life plus 20 years. In your own words, whatever you feel comfortable with, can you tell us the story you told the jury?

JEFFS: Yes. Well, when I was around 5 years old, I attended the Jeffs class as usual, just like any other Jeffs class. No big deal. As they would separate, you know, the children would go downstairs and the older, you know, the parents and stuff would stay upstairs. That is where he would come downstairs grab me out of the little classroom where I was being watched, escort me down the hall way into a little blue bathroom and sexual assault me.

And then he would begin to tell me that this was God`s will and this was God`s work and that if I told anyone, I would be turning my back on God and I would be burning in hell for this.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: How did this impact your life? I know it sounds like a silly question; obviously it was devastating. But growing up in this very bizarre -- and I`m going to call it a cult.

JEFFS: Yes.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: When did you have the realization that oh, my god, something horrible, horrible is happening to me. I`m trapped in a living nightmare.

JEFFS: Well, after that had happened to me, my whole life changed. Everything changed. My whole look on everything inside the entire church changed. When I was 5 years old I thought I did something wrong. I thought God was mad at me. I thought all these bad things were happening. Why me?

And growing up I knew that I couldn`t say anything and, you know, it changed everything that I thought inside the church. It put a very, very horrible taste in my mouth, but I was never able to tell anyone or say anything about it, as long as I was a member of this church.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Well, I think part of the problem is that this isn`t just about Warren Jeffs. Adults had to know, Brent. He had a bed that was done in a form of a ritualized setting where there are chairs and audience members would watch him having sex with little girls. These are adults. I don`t care if they were brainwashed, they need to be prosecuted. Do you agree?

JEFFS: Yes. The parents that knew about these young girls in this ranch being sexually assaulted by Warren Jeffs should be held accountable because they are -- the girls were not the age of 18, and able to make these decisions. I completely agree.

But as far as my parents were concerned, they had no clue. They had 100 percent of their trust in the church and their faith in the church. They never knew anything until we were out of this church.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: But didn`t they know he had many wives? How could you not know that?

JEFFS: They -- we never said anything. Growing up, it was all hush- hush. You know, because of what had happened to me at such a young age, I never said a word. I was too afraid to say anything to my parents.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: First of all, I just want to repeat again that your courage is astounding to speak up and to talk about this. I applaud you. I really do. And you may be the reason why this cult goes down because you are speaking the truth which so many of these others are afraid to.

Michael Watkiss, something has got to happen here. This is about way more than Warren Jeffs. And this is the moment. Either the feds seize it or they don`t.

MICHAEL WATKISS, INVESTIGATIVE REPORTER, KTVK-TV: You`re right. Unfortunately law enforcement has dropped in to this story periodically over the decade and nothing -- it had never really gotten any traction. So I`m not holding but breath.

But you`re right. We are at a very crucial moment. The ignorance factor is no longer there. Their people can`t plead ignorance about what`s going on. In many ways, those compounds are probably more locked down and isolated now than they were prior to the raid because they`ve really drawn up the drawbridges. So I`m concerned in the immediate future that things may get worse with Mr. Jeffs being held up as a martyr.

And Jane you`re right to say -- and I`ve been covering this a long -- and I can tell you, it`s people like Brent Jeffs and a handful of women who have gotten out in that community and they have the guts to come out and say it was wrong.

So people should be held accountable. But they`ve made all the difference. Brent Jeffs is a hero. You had some other women on -- Flora Jessop, a young woman named Ruth Stubbs and her sister Penny Peterson, Carolyn Jessup and Elissa Wall and a young woman who testified here named Rebecca Musser. They`ve made all the difference, and anybody else who wants to take credit for it, people are just doing their jobs.

(CROSSTALK)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Yes. They`re being courageous, but let me get to this bigger issue.

WATKISS: They risked everything. They risked their lives and they risked their families.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: They`ve risked their lives.

I know they have, but I asked today, the prosecutor of this case who I applauded, but I said, why haven`t more charges been filed? I want to know. By the way, we call the Justice Department every single here from ISSUES and say when are you going to raid these places.

Listen to this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

NICHOLS: We have a law, a federal law on the books called the Man Act. And the Man Act prohibits and penalizes the transport of young persons across state lines for the purpose of sexual activity. We had testimony in our case, two of the victims in the so-called Quorum of 12 underage wives were from Canada and were moved from Canada for the explicit purpose of being sealed to Warren Jeffs in celestial or spiritual marriages.

Also, my other point to you would be that obviously as you well know, in our criminal justice system, we deal with cases one at a time.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: All right, Beth Karas, there are 10,000 minimum, maybe a lot more than that of these cult members scattered across I don`t know how many states. Take a look at that.

What is it going to take for the feds to take action? These are like mini Jonestowns waiting to explode.

BETH KARAS, CORRESPONDENT, "IN SESSION": Well, it`s going to take a provable case. It`s one thing to have probable cause to arrest and they probably have probable cause to make all kinds of arrests. But you have to have proof beyond a reasonable doubt.

I think they were very cautious in going forward with five I mean, 12 men here, multiple counts with 12 men only where they had airtight cases. They received a conviction on everything they`ve sought here in Texas thus far.

But to have a provable case takes a little work. They have no victims testifying here and I don`t know what it will take. They should have some sort of big takedown of the FLDS though be it really is a corrupt enterprise with business crimes, welfare fraud, tax fraud as well as the child abuse and physical abuse.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Brent Jeffs, you say you didn`t know anything. But these women sit around and they watch Jeffs have sex with an underage girl. We know that they reassign women. We know that most of them are on welfare and the checks go directly to this cult. We know that women are getting pregnant, young girls getting pregnant. All you have to do is go into one of these cults and find a 15-year-old pregnant and you`ve got a case.

JEFFS: Yes, it`s extremely hard to look in from the outside into this compound and wonder why they are not coming forward. But growing up in this society, these people, me growing up in this, you are brainwashed from day one. Everything you are taught is to follow and obey every single thing they say.

So all they`re going to do is obey and do everything they say until one day some of them like me and some of these others --

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Brent, we`re out of time.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CHRISTINA, ALLEGED VICTIM OF LAWRENCE TAYLOR: I just want it to be known that I am not a prostitute.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: My client was in town to work. He was going to play some golf with some friends and he was going to work. And then this nightmare unfolded. Lawrence Taylor did not rape anyone. Am I clear?

CHRISTINA: I am a victim and I am hurting. I do not think the sentence given to Mr. Taylor today was fair.

GLORIA ALLRED, ATTORNEY: We believe that he had many clues that his victim was under 18. And also that she was not in the room voluntarily.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Relieved that this is over, relieved at what happened today and Mr. Taylor just wants to turn that page in his life.

ALLRED: If we hadn`t come here today, you would have all left thinking that she was a prostitute and now you know the truth.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: At just 16 years of age, this woman, now she`s a woman, at that point she was a girl, was beaten and forced by a pimp to have sex with NFL hall-of-famer Lawrence Taylor. The football great -- well, he got really (INAUDIBLE) -- he pleaded guilty to sexual misconduct and patronizing a prostitute. But she wasn`t a prostitute. He was ordered to serve just six years of probation and to register as a six offender.

Now the man accused of trafficking young Christina to Lawrence Taylor will face his judgment day tomorrow. Rasheed Davis (ph) has entered a plea. He`s facing seven to nine years in prison. Authorities say this is the guy who lured Christina in with a promise of a place to stay then pushed drugs on her to try to force her to do these sex acts for money, but not for money that she could keep, money for him.

Unlike a lot of others, Christina was -- well, she escaped because of her own courage and her quick thinking. As this pimp drove away from Taylor`s hotel room, Christina had the presence of mind to send a text message to a relative who then saved her life. The cops showed up while this guy was still in the car and they put him behind bars.

Joining me for her first live interview is Christina and her attorney Gloria Allred. And before we get to you, Christina, I want to start with Gloria. What upsets you most about this case, Gloria?

ALLRED: What upsets me most is that I think it`s important for the public to realize something maybe they don`t realize which is that Christina was a child victim of commercial sex trafficking. And that is against the law. And that is why the trafficker, Rasheed Davis is going to be sentenced tomorrow I hope to a maximum of ten years for trafficking her to Lawrence Taylor. And that Lawrence Taylor should also have been sentenced to time in custody. Because Christina was a child, she was forced to go there. She was beaten. She was punched. She had a swollen eye, and we think Lawrence Taylor should have known that.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Well, Christina, tell us about that awful moment when you are -- you say he -- apparently this guy says you`re going to have to go have sex with somebody who turns out to be Lawrence Taylor and you say I don`t want to. What happened then? What did this guy do to you?

CHRISTINA: After I refused, this guy, like, he was angry. And the first thing I wanted to do was leave his presence. Leave his home. And when I refused, I was beaten. I was kicked when I was down. I was stomped on. I had a bruised eye. It was swollen. I couldn`t tell you if he punched me or if he smacked me, I don`t know. But it was hard and it`s --

VELEZ-MITCHELL: So you agreed to go because you were being beaten up and then you get there and it turns out to be Lawrence Taylor. Did you even know who Lawrence Taylor was?

CHRISTINA: I didn`t know who Lawrence Taylor was and I didn`t really agree. I only went because I was afraid of what happen if I didn`t go.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Now you get into the room, did he ask you, LT, as they call him, did he ask you why is your face all beaten up? Do you have a black eye? Why do you have a swollen face?

CHRISTINA: He couldn`t -- I couldn`t tell you if he seen my face. The only light in the room was the light off the TV. And when I first walked in, my back was towards him, but he couldn`t -- he didn`t ask me any questions or ask me what was wrong with my face. He didn`t ask me any of that.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Well, I think what`s upsetting is that he has justified himself in public interviews saying -- well, I`m not saying it`s right -- but it`s the oldest profession in the world, that`s one thing he said. "I`m not the cause of prostitution"; that`s another thing he said. "This is a working girl that came to my room."

Quickly Gloria, reaction to that?

ALLRED: Well, obviously she wasn`t a working girl. She wasn`t a prostitute. She had her hair in a pony tail. She had no makeup on. There was the light from the television. We think he could have seen her. She indicated that it was her first time and she wasn`t comfortable. All the clues were there.

Lawrence Taylor --

(CROSSTALK)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: More on the other side.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ALLRED: If we hadn`t come here today, you would have all left thinking that she was a prostitute. And now you know the truth, that a young woman who has been beaten and forced to go there and who has cried out for rescue in a text is a victim. And that is all that she is.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: I`m back, talking exclusively with Christina, a young woman who says she was trafficked at the age of 16 and forced to have sex with NFL star Lawrence Taylor. And as well her attorney Gloria Allred, who is her champion.

I have learned a little bit about sex trafficking. I attended a sex trafficking conference and what I learned was that the typical story is a girl runs away from home, for whatever reason. Within 45 minutes of landing at the bus stop or any kind of gathering spot, she`s approached by a pimp because she usually has nowhere to stay. No money. She gets hungry. They offer a place to say, they offer food.

As soon as they get her in their clutches, they beat her, often rape her, they hook her on drugs and they turn her into a sex slave. This is happening all over the world and in the United States. It is not just a problem in foreign countries as we would like to believe. No, sex trafficking is happening here in America.

And, Christina, you are exhibit A of this happened to you. How did you end up in the clutches of this pimp?

CHRISTINA: Well, I was arguing -- I had an argument with my family. And I was leaving and he stopped me at a bus stop on my way to my sister`s. And when I met him, I was on the phone with my mother and, you know, he was trying to get my attention and stuff like that. He was offering me money. He almost followed me on to the bus.

As I got on to the bus and sat by the window, he`s knocking on the window trying to get my attention. And I didn`t -- I didn`t give him my time the first time. I`ve seen him two and three more times. And he seemed like a cool person. But really he was reeling me in.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: So there is two personalities before they get in your clutches and after. In other words, he switches.

This is what I`ve heard. It is like they`re charming, they`re friendly, let me get you something to eat, here is a place to stay. Then the second that you`re in their clutches, the personality changes and they become basically your jailer.

CHRISTINA: Yes, that`s true.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Well, Gloria, I really appreciate you coming on with this story because this is happening to young girls all -- just girls who have an argument with their parents, they leave and they -- this happens. Since time in memorial kids do this. But now in today`s world, they are -- they are literally almost kidnapped and forced to work as prostitutes.

Tell us about it, Gloria.

ALLRED: Well, yes. And Jane, tomorrow she will be able to give a victim impact statement in federal court, right here in New York. And she was not permitted to give a victim impact statement before in state court. The judge didn`t allow it. But tomorrow she will do it in the United States District Court on Pearl Street here. And it is important that a victim have a voice and she be able to speak out and she will do so in the presence of the man who trafficked her, who is facing prison time for it.

So I just commend her on her courage in doing so. I think it is important. She has nothing to be ashamed of. The people who should be ashamed are Lawrence Taylor, who victimized a 16-year-old, and the trafficker, Rasheed Davis.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: I agree with you 100 percent. I wish you the best, Christina, in your life. Move forward. And testify tomorrow. Speak out.

CHRISTINA: Thank you.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEORGE ANTHONY, GRANDFATHER OF CAYLEE ANTHONY: Just that this is for Caylee today. This is Caylee`s day. This has nothing to do with Cindy and I and I`m not taking away from anyone here. I know they`re here to honor her. It is for her birthday. She`s 6 years old today.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: You can see the heart break in his voice and his eyes. That was George Anthony, speaking at a memorial today for his granddaughter, Caylee. Cindy and George led the memorial for little Caylee who would have turned 6 today. Instead of a birthday party, a crowd gathered at the spot where the child`s remains were found. Cindy and George took the lead as a group quietly marched to keep Caylee`s memory alive.

If you want to take your frustrations out in a positive way, go to cnn.com/impactyourworld and help the charities that are saving the lives of other children, because thousands of children, as we speak, are starving to death in Somalia. You can save an innocent life. Do it.

"NANCY GRACE" is next.

END