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JANE VELEZ-MITCHELL

Fugitive Adam Mayes on 10 Most Wanted List; Travolta Sued for Sexual Assault; Obama Supports Gay Marriage

Aired May 9, 2012 - 19:00   ET

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


JANE VELEZ-MITCHELL, HOST: I`m Jane Velez-Mitchell, coming to you live from New York City.

Fugitive Adam Mayes still on the run with two young sisters, is now on the FBI`s Ten Most Wanted List. And now we are learning the victim`s mother and oldest sister never made it out of their Tennessee home alive. Adam Mayes and his wife, Teresa, are tonight charged with murder. Where is Adam Mayes? And where are these two young girls?

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

VELEZ-MITCHELL (voice-over): Tonight the frantic manhunt escalates, as the man cops say murdered a mom and daughter and kidnapped her two other girls, makes the FBI`s Ten Most Wanted List. Now this former family friend and his wife are both charged with murder, but how could a mom and her daughter be murdered without anyone else in the house knowing something terrible had happened?

I`ll talk to the convenience store clerk who crossed paths with fugitive Adam Mayes after the murders. And we`re taking your calls on this story.

Plus, superstar John Travolta fires back as scandalous allegations of sexual battery against the legend rock Hollywood. At least two masseurs claim the "Saturday Night Fever" star assaulted them. Will other accusers come forward? And who is really telling the truth?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: In the case involving Adam Mayes, the man suspected of kidnapping a Tennessee family, well now Mayes and his wife Teresa have now been charged with two counts of first-degree murder.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The FBI is also adding Mayes to its most wanted fugitives list.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We firmly believe that Adam Mayes is out here somewhere with these two young children, and it`s going to be up to the public to help us to bring these children back home and place him in custody where he needs to be.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think of those two girls.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Terrifying.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Riding in the vehicle with their mother dead beside them and their older sister.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: That`s too much. That`s too much.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Why would they do that? He killed the mama and kids and stuff. That don`t make sense.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Let us know where the kids are.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He altered the appearances of everything, including himself.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It bothered me, got my stomach all nervous and queasy.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: These are somebody`s daughters.

PAT BROWN, CRIMINAL PROFILER: We`re dealing with a psychopath. We`ve got a guy who`s already murdered two people, so this is a psychopath.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Adam, do the right thing and just let the children go. This has gone on way too far, and we need to figure out what`s going on, and it`s not fair to the children.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Tonight, chilling new revelations about the murder/kidnapping spree in Tennessee. Police thought for days the fugitive, Adam Mayes, abducted a mom and her three daughters from their home, but these new court documents I hold in my hand -- you see there on the screen -- show that Jo Ann Bain and her oldest daughter, Adrienne, were murdered right inside their home. Jo Ann in the garage and 14-year-old Adrienne inside her house.

Mayes and his wife now charged with their murders. Teresa Mayes admits to driving the bodies to Mississippi.

Anderson Cooper asked Teresa`s sister about a possible motive.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ANDERSON COOPER, CNN ANCHOR: What`s in your gut? What do you think went on here?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I think there`s an affair of some type going on. I just don`t know what.

COOPER: So you think he was having an affair with Jo Ann Bain?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Of course, Jo Ann not here to speak for herself, because she is murdered. OK?

Police interviewed Mayes soon after the Bains vanished. They let their alleged killer slip right through their fingers. They let him go.

As this family was being killed and kidnapped, Jo Ann`s husband, daughter and granddaughter supposedly slept under the same roof. So my question, how does anybody sleep through a double murder/kidnapping? That`s three people sleeping through the entire thing.

We`re also getting a vivid picture of the two youngest girls` horrific ordeal. Eight-year-old Kyliyah, and 12-year-old Alexandria, abducted, transported in the very same car that carried their mom and sisters` bodies. Can you imagine that?

Mayes allegedly buried the two females in shallow graves behind his Mississippi family home. It`s no surprise he is considered one of the nation`s most dangerous fugitives tonight.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We`re announcing the addition of Adam Christopher Mayes to the FBI`s Ten Most Wanted Fugitives List. By doing this, we are enlisting one of our most powerful weapons against crime: you, the public.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Want to hear your theories as we search for these two beautiful innocent children, 8 and 12, and this monster, who took them allegedly -- 1-877-JVM-SAYS. That`s 1-877-586-7297.

Straight out to my exclusive guest, Nick Barghouthi, who saw suspect Adam Mayes three days after Jo Ann and Adrienne Bain were murdered, allegedly by him.

So Nick, you interacted with this Adam Mayes. We`re seeing the surveillance video right now, as he is the in the County Line convenience store in Guntown, Mississippi, where you work. Describe your interaction with him to our viewers. What did you talk about, Nick?

Nick, are you there?

All right. We`re going to get to him in a second. But I just want to point out something. As you`re looking at this surveillance video, you are seeing a man who, according to police, according to an affidavit that I am holding in my hand, has already murdered two people, a woman and her daughter, and is currently at that moment in time, holding two young girls ages 8 and 12 hostage. So this is one cool cucumber, one cool customer.

And I want to go out to -- OK, Nick Barghouthi, are you there? Can you hear me, sir?

NICK BARGHOUTHI, CONVENIENCE STORE CLERK (via phone): Yes, I am. I can hear you.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: OK. Tell me what you and Adam Mayes talked about. He was in your store. What did he tell you? Apparently, you guys were talking and joking about the weather, about his hair. Tell us all about it.

BARGHOUTHI: Actually he walked in. He just went in and bought a Coke. And I noticed that he cut his hair. He got rid of his pony. So when I asked him, he said, yes, it was too hot.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: He said it was too hot? Yes, and Nick, I`m going to ask you to speak up. We don`t have the greatest connection. If you could speak up, that would be wonderful. Tell us again, he said what?

BARGHOUTHI: He just bought a Coke, he came in, I noticed that he lost his pony, that he had cut his hair. And when I asked him, what did he do? He said it was too hot, so he kept his hair. But he kept all his facial hair on. And then he took the Coke and walked out. He didn`t talk for long.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Now, did he seem nervous? Did he seem agitated? Because police say at this moment in time, he`d already killed two women, a mother and daughter, and was holding two little girls captive. Did he seem agitated, Nick?

BARGHOUTHI: He was awfully -- very polite, very pleasant. And you couldn`t tell that somebody would commit a crime like that would be that disconnected.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: You`re going to have to speak up, Nick. Say it again?

BARGHOUTHI: I can hardly hear you, ma`am. I`m sorry.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: OK, Nick. You just speak up loud, OK? I would say pretend I`m hard of hearing.

OK. You`re saying that he seemed polite? Is that it?

BARGHOUTHI: Yes, very polite. Very pleasant. Very quiet, actually. That`s why I`m so surprised.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: So you know this guy, because you knew that he normally would have a ponytail, and he didn`t have a ponytail anymore.

BARGHOUTHI: Yes.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Did this guy strike you as somebody capable of killing and kidnapping? What kind of guy is he?

BARGHOUTHI: Very -- like I said, very polite, very pleasant. He wouldn`t -- he wouldn`t even talk for long. That`s why I`m surprised that he would do something like that and be that disconnected, like he didn`t do nothing. That was two days after the kidnapping.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: And -- and he didn`t buy any supplies. Did you see a car that he went into? Because maybe he had these girls in the car.

BARGHOUTHI: No, I didn`t see what car he was into. Because I see that car before. When the cops came in and checked the video, they actually told -- they told me there was a white car that he got into. And I remember he was driving that car a lot. It`s a white Oldsmobile Alero. It had a blue license plate on it. A blue license plate right up front.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: OK, that`s very important information. A white Oldsmobile what? Say it again?

BARGHOUTHI: Alero. Alero, four door.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Alero, OK. Four door. With a blue license plate?

BARGHOUTHI: Yes. Got the front license plate number. It says "OLD MISS" on it.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: "OLD MISS." It says "OLD MISS." Well, you know, I`ve got -- I`ve got to bring in Jon Lieberman. This is big information. We`ve been trying to figure out. They`re looking for this guy, as it were, what car he might be in. This is the first time we are hearing of a vehicle, an Oldsmobile Alero, four door, with a blue license plate that said "OLD MISS."

JON LIEBERMAN, INVESTIGATIVE REPORTER: Right. But investigators aren`t sure if that`s the car that he`s still in, from what I`m hearing. They think that car was linked to the transportation between Mayes and his wife and his mother and the victims to Mississippi.

But keep in mind, too, there was also this trailer that Mayes rented, as well, in which my sources are saying he held the two youngest girls captive in this trailer while he was allegedly burying the two other.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: So what? You`re saying he could still be driving around in the trailer?

LIEBERMAN: No, they have the trailer. They know where the trailer is.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: This is a car that they don`t have. This is not a trailer that they`ve already obtained, but this is an Oldsmobile, the first time we`re hearing it.

LIEBERMAN: That is correct. But the reason why police haven`t put out a vehicle description is because they don`t want him to dump a car and -- for investigative reasons. That`s why they haven`t put out a description of the car.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: I think that`s crazy. I think we should all be hearing what car he`s in so we can keep a look out for that car. To me that`s not brain surgery. He`s driving around in a vehicle, possibly. If he`s now holed up in some cave somewhere. And we should know the vehicle possibly, the possible vehicle, an Oldsmobile Alero. I don`t know that for a fact, but you just heard it from the convenience store workers.

Let`s go out to Ellen Fulghum. This is another exclusive interview. And Ellen, first of all, I want to say that my heart goes out to you and all of the students at your school. You are a counselor at the school where Adrienne attended. Adrienne is the daughter of Jo Ann Bain who was murdered, we`re very sad to say.

Ellen, what has -- first of all, how did you tell the students -- the students who have lost one of their own to murder -- that she is dead and that the whole world is looking for her two younger sisters?

ELLEN FULGHUM, SCHOOL COUNSELOR (via phone): Well, I actually did not have to break the news to students. Most students knew.

There were suspicions. There were suspicions over the weekend, and kids were talking about it. So when we got to school the day after it was actually confirmed, we had grief counselors on staff at our school, ready to counsel those kids. They visited classrooms. They talked to students individually. They were just there providing all the support they could give to these kids.

You knew Adrienne personally. Did she ever say anything about trouble at home? Tell us about Adrienne.

FULGHUM: I knew Adrienne personally in a limited way. She and my daughter did play softball together. And I knew her just from the ball field. And as far as having a personal one-on-one conversation with her, I did not have that many of those. I knew her through school. We had just completed registration for next school year, and I had a brief conversation with her, but never was any -- anything discussed like that with me.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Did she seem well balanced? Happy? Like a girl who was not experiencing a lot of trouble at home?

FULGHUM: She -- I did not pick up on that vibe in our conversations with her at all.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: And just tell us what is in your heart tonight, Ellen?

FULGHUM: We`re just -- you know, it`s -- there`s just a dark cloud over our school and over our community. It`s just -- it`s just a heaviness. Our hearts are heavy. We`re saddened for our loss. And we`re concerned, no doubt, with the uncertainty of what these other two children are experiencing or have experienced.

And you know, it`s one of those situations where, as adults there`s no way we can -- we can wrap our minds around something like this. And it`s very hard to help children through a grieving process when it is something of this nature.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: My heart goes out to everyone at the school. To have lost a classmate and a schoolmate in this manner is beyond description.

Thank you, Ellen Fulghum, for joining us and talking to us as a counselor at Adrienne, one of the murder victim`s, school as we hunt for her two sisters who are with a monster who police say killed Adrienne`s mom, as well.

All right. Next up, our experts will analyze all sorts of questions. How is it possible no adults in the house heard that this guy was allegedly murdering two people and kidnapping two others?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: He likes to drink a lot. He does a lot of drugs. He`s just a loner. He`s never had a legitimate steady job. He`s never lived out on his own. He`s always been with his mom and dad. He didn`t finish school. He`s not trust worthy, but like I said, I just never pictured this.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Well, that says everything. Former prosecutor, Wendy Murphy, this guy likes to drink a lot, does a lot of drugs, never had a legitimate job.

And you know, the idea that he could be and his wife, Teresa, driving two girls in the same individual where the bodies of their mother and older sister are, from Tennessee all the way to Mississippi, can you imagine the trauma of this 8-year-old and 12-year-old girl, Wendy?

WENDY MURPHY, FORMER PROSECUTOR: No, I mean, no matter how he treated these girls, just that visual, that sense, whatever they saw, will have an effect -- a destructive effect on them for the rest of their lives.

You know, Jane, I`m -- I`m hoping you`ll let me speculate a little bit here. Because you said something important in terms of what`s this guy doing, and what`s he doing, where are they likely? I think it`s probably the case that, if he wanted to kill them, he would have killed them all in a cluster. And so it`s a bit of good news that he didn`t kill four people at once, which might have been the more convenient approach if you`re trying to kill people and get away with it.

I suspect that, because you mentioned drugs, there`s at least a possibility -- this guy didn`t have a job, and he was a drug user...

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: More on this nationwide manhunt, but we`re also keeping an eye on what`s trending. Here`s your "Viral Video of the Day."

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

(MUSIC)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Four hundred and ninety-two fugitives have been on the top ten list. And 465 of them have been apprehended or located. We are doing everything that we can possible to make Adam Mayes number 466.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: As the manhunt continues for Adam Mayes, who is believed to be with the two younger children of the woman that he allegedly murdered, as well as her older daughter, Mayes` wife is central to this case. She is also charged with murder and kidnapping. She`s behind bars as we speak.

Why on earth would this Teresa Mayes go along with this sick kidnapping crime spree? Well, here`s what her sister told Anderson Cooper.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Her attorney called me today, and my sister had already made the statement that Adam had threatened to kill her, as well.

COOPER: So you`re saying that`s why -- that`s why she was involved, because she feared for her own life?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Right. Yes, he is a very aggressive -- he has beat her several times. Very aggressive person.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: So Dr. Cheryl Arutt, clinical forensic psychologist, could this woman have been suffering from battered wife syndrome? Stockholm syndrome? What?

DR. CHERYL ARUTT, CLINICAL FORENSIC PSYCHOLOGIST: Actually, all of the above, Jane. This woman, from what her sister has said, she revealed that her sister Teresa, who`s been apprehended, may be mentally challenged, may be slow and highly dependent, which is a perfect kind of partner if a sociopathic kind of batterer wants to have total power and control.

He could terrorize anybody, but he`s going to have an easier time with someone who is not able to fend for herself, who is not very strong and is not able to really activate her own mind but be compliant with him. And I think her family really hasn`t been very realistic about the kind of person that their very vulnerable sister was married to. On the one hand...

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Actually, I do feel like she`s saying -- the sister is saying this guy is a drug addict, he drinks a lot. He ever held a steady job. He`s manipulative. He`s aggressive.

ARUTT: Yes.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: He sounds like a monster to me. I have to wonder why the Bain family would let him into their lives, and I guess the reason is that they had this back story. Tell us the back story about marriage. Because apparently, Adam`s sister was married -- tell me that.

LIEBERMAN: It is a tangled web, Jane, that you can`t even -- I mean, you need a scorecard to keep track of.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Exactly. Here it is. I`ve got it. Adam`s sister used to be married to Gary Bain. Adam, the suspect that we`re all looking for, his sister used to be married to the husband of the woman that he allegedly killed.

LIEBERMAN: Here`s the only positive that comes out of this tangled web, is this. One reason why police believe these two younger girls are possibly still alive is because they believe that Mayes believes that the two youngest are his daughters. And that is key, key.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Absolutely key.

Quickly to the phone lines. Lynn Ann in Arkansas. Your question or thought, Lynn Ann.

CALLER: Hi, Jane. How are you?

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Good.

CALLER: I pray these girls are alive, but I`m thinking he`s keeping them as like a trophy, but if a person wants to hide, the easiest place to hide is in plain sight. So they need to look at what he`s familiar with. I don`t think he`d go to a big...

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It is our belief that Kylilah and Alexandria still with Adam Mayes. Please remember that Mayes is considered to be armed and dangerous. He may have attempted to change his appearance along with the appearance of the girls.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He had been planning this for a while. This was not just an impetuous act of the moment. He had thought about his plan, maybe even saved up money in preparation for this.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The wife here just now coming out says she drove a vehicle containing four victims from Tennessee all the way to Mississippi.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: There are still two girls missing in this case.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: These are somebody`s daughters.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Just when you thought this case wouldn`t get any sadder or any stranger. In that trailer, they found the belongings of the two younger daughters that were kidnapped.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You never dreamed of it around home. It`s always somewhere else.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: If you`ve seen these kids, call the sheriff`s office here.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Never happened here before, and I guess we considered ourselves, you know, not ever having that kind of problem, but it looks like we do.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

JANE VELEZ-MITCHELL, HLN HOST: Somewhere in America, we pray that two young girls, ages 8 and 12, are alive. We are trying to find them tonight. Cops in a massive nationwide manhunt for a man that they have now put on the Top Ten Most Wanted List, asking everybody to be on the lookout for Adam Mayes and the two little girls he has allegedly kidnapped.

One of our producers actually snapped this photo in Atlanta, Georgia that shows Adam Mayes wanted poster on a huge electronic billboard. Investigators say he could be anywhere tonight.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SPECIAL AGENT AARON FORD, FBI: We believe Adam Mayes could be anywhere in the United States and we and are extremely concerned for the safety of the girls.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: A state trooper stopping cars at road blocks, searching trunks, but the truth is Mayes has ties to Arizona, Texas, North Carolina, South Carolina and Florida. Steve Rogers, former member FBI joint terrorism task force, what does putting him on the Ten Most Wanted List do in terms of resources to find this guy?

STEVE ROGERS, FORMER MEMBER, FBI JOINT TERRORISM TASK FORCE: Well, that heightens the awareness of the entire nation and heightens the awareness of every police department across the nation. This is their priority right now. Every police department in every municipality and city are looking for this guy as a result of being on that Ten Most Wanted List.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Yes. And let me tell you something else. You just heard one of the reporters say that this was a well-planned murder/kidnapping plot. So he could have easily created a hiding place, stocked it with all sorts of supplies -- Wendy Murphy, former prosecutor --

WENDY MURPHY, FORMER PROSECUTOR: Yes.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: -- and be living there with these children.

MURPHY: Yes, but I don`t think that`s the story here. Look, this is a guy with no money and no job. The last thing in the world he wants is to have to care for two kids. I don`t see that as the explanation here. And I don`t think he`s the father. I mean maybe he is. He`s also one creepy- looking dude.

And there`s no way he`s going to be able to hide for long. I don`t care how much of his hair he cuts off. They`ll find him. They just might not find the girls.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Yes, but I certainly think that this was all about -- listen, he was obsessed with these girls. These girls were all over his Facebook page. He was telling people he was the father of the youngest. Some say he said he was the father of all of them, but he was certainly obsessed with this youngest child, which is why authorities believe that he hopefully God willing has not done anything to these two youngest children.

But my point, Jon Leiberman, he could be anywhere, but as one caller said, chances are he`s remained relatively close in the Guntown, Mississippi area. And I`m thinking, come on, he`s a guy that lives in a rural area, I wouldn`t put it past him to have gone to a superstore and gotten a tent, and stocked up on some supplies and be holding these kids somewhere in the woods.

JON LEIBERMAN, INVESTIGATIVE REPORTER: Fugitives stay where they`re comfortable. They don`t go out of their comfort zone for fear of being caught. So he is going to be in an area that is known to him, known to his family. He has strong ties to Florida, to Mississippi.

There`s one other key point here too, Jane, which is this. Mayes` wife and mother spoke extensively to investigators before they were charged and arrested. That shows how much information cops are getting out of them. That`s going to be key, too.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Police interviewed Mayes shortly after the Bains vanished April 27th. We`re talking a couple of weeks ago now. JoAnn and Adrienne were already dead when police interview Adam Mayes. He looked them straight in the eye and he gave them some BS story and they let him go.

Here`s Mayes` sister-in-law talking about that.

BOBBI BOOTH, ADAM MAYES` SISTER-IN-LAW: I`ve known Adam for at least 25 years. And he has always been weird and unusual; and when I say weird, like listens to different type of music. He`s just a different type of person altogether from the whole family is. But I never dreamed he would do something like this.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Dr. Cheryl Arutt, forensic psychologist, what does it say about Adam Mayes that he could actually convince police nothing to see here, and they release him, even though he`s already allegedly murdered two people and was currently holding these two children, allegedly?

DR. CHERYL ARUTT, FORENSIC PSYCHOLOGIST: The capacity to remain cool as a cucumber while being questioned by police knowing personally that he was guilty, and that he currently had these girls captive really means that this is a man with ice water in his veins. This is a man without a conscience.

And this is a real indicator of a really sociopathic kind of personality. He just doesn`t feel guilty, caught or ashamed. And it causes him to be very, very good at lying.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Yes. I just have to wonder, though, and I`ve got to ask, Wendy Murphy, did cops drop the ball? I mean, they did not issue an amber alert immediately. They interviewed this guy and let him go on his merry way. And it was only after, I believe, that bodies were found, that they then said an abduction has occurred and we`re going to issue an amber alert.

I wouldn`t want to be cops on this case. I could never be a cop. I know it`s a tremendous -- I have huge respect, but somehow I think two people murdered in their own home, and you talk to the guy who allegedly did it, you let him go because you don`t even know that those murders have occurred, how is that possible?

MURPHY: You know, you`ve got to say, the amber alert thing just is such a pervasive problem that cops underutilize it, because they don`t want to over-excite people or overuse it just in case it`s not what it might be -- bad, bad, bad judgment. I would really like to ask the cops, what are you doing, letting this guy go? Throw a GPS on his truck.

I mean do something to at least keep tabs on the guy -- the one guy you know was there. That doesn`t make any sense to me. I`m sure they have an explanation. I don`t want to beat up on the cops.

I`m persuaded that this guy took the kids for some reason related to money. Maybe he sold them for drugs. I`d like to know the answer to the question. Ok the guy was a drug addict and he had no job. Did he owe drug dealers any money? Because kids get sold to satisfy drug debts all the time in this country.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Yes. But wouldn`t he sell the 14-year-old? If you were going to do that --

MURPHY: She`s not as valuable. She`s not as valuable.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Oh, I don`t know. But to your point, Wendy, investigators were defensive today when they were asked about the amber alert issued for JoAnn Bain`s three daughters too late. Listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MARK GWYN, DIRECTOR, TENNESSEE BUREAU OF INVESTIGATION: There`s a criteria that`s set forth before you can issue an amber alert. As soon as the situation and we received enough information that meet that criteria, we issued that amber alert. We put in the amber alert all the information that we had available to us.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Steve Rogers, I don`t really buy it. I think that they dropped the ball in not -- like you say, putting a tag on somebody`s car.

ROGERS: Well, they`re caught between a rock and hard place, Jane. They`ve got to get accurate information, decisive information before they issue an amber alert or they`ll by issuing them every day for every case they`re on. They`re just caught between a rock and hard place, and I know they must be looking back saying maybe we did drop the ball on this one.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Yes, Jon?

LEIBERMAN: Hindsight is always 20/20 so I have to stick up for the cops here. I mean this guy Mayes was known to be around that house anyway. They had a very brief conversation with him initially lip. And the minute they went back for a more extensive conversation with him, at that point, and they couldn`t find him, at that point they issued the amber alert. So we have -- hindsight is just always 20/20.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Yes, but there`s something also called reactive justice, where you wait for the really bad thing to happen before you pull out all the stops. Now how much money are we spending? And it`s priceless to find these girls, I admit, but you`re talking about huge allocations of resources.

They had this guy. They interviewed. He gave them a phony story. They let him go. He had the children, they believe, at the time they talked to him. So he was keeping those children in another place at that time because they weren`t with him when he was talking to the cops. And so, that is pretty darned scary.

I wish that they had gone to the house and maybe done some forensic testing or something to determine whether or not a crime had occurred in the house, and at least kept their sights on this guy because now they can`t find him. And he`s with these two little girls, and this is a horror.

This is a horror and we are going to stay all over it. Nancy Grace is also all over the story, and she has so much more right at the top of the hour. What do you got, Nancy?

NANCY GRACE, HLN HOST: Jane, grainy video surveillance just released of 35-year-old white male Adam Mayes. And this is just hours after mommy and her 14-year-old little girl murdered, buried by him in two shallow graves -- allegedly. We have the video. What clues does he leave behind tonight? Every minute counts.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Thanks so much Nancy. Of course, we`re going to be watching at 8:00 p.m. right here on HLN.

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VELEZ-MITCHELL: It`s about getting back to baskets. Even the salt is different. Look at this, pink Himalayan sea salt, coarse granulated crystals. Look how beautiful this is.

Now, we sometimes forget what we`re eating, it`s really an art form. And when you`re here at the co-op, you get to experience food as sort of an artistic experience, an adventure in health. It`s not just a chore to go shopping.

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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Two male massage therapists are accusing John Travolta of sexual assault.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: These are allegations from unnamed accusers. At this point, they have only identified themselves as John Doe in the court papers.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The masseuse claims that John Travolta exposed himself, that he inappropriately touched the masseuse, even though the masseuse said "don`t do that".

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: A lawyer for Travolta says the claims are absurd. And he`s going to fight back with a separate lawsuit.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: John Travolta actually picked him up in his own car, drove him to the Beverly Hills Hotel.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Travolta`s lawyers say he wasn`t even on the West Coast on that day.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Travolta was in Atlanta though on the day of the second allegation, and that was widely reported.

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VELEZ-MITCHELL: A Hollywood superstar walloped by allegations of sexual assault. Two male massage therapists have filed a joint lawsuit against John Travolta accusing him of assault and sexual battery during separate massage appointments.

Both men are anonymous for now. But court papers claim Travolta, quote, "Touched plaintiff number one`s blank and seized on to it," end quote. The papers go on to say that Travolta allegedly, quote, "Would maneuver in a way to try to force plaintiff number two to touch his blank," end quote. But Travolta`s lawyers dispute both claims, saying quote, "This second anonymous claims is just as absurd and ridiculous as the first one," end quote. As proof, Travolta`s camp sent us three photos or these photos, you might say. Photos of John Travolta said to be taken in New York City on the exact day that he was allegedly getting this contentious massage in Los Angeles. And Travolta`s lawyers also provided this, a receipt from the famous New York restaurant, Mr. Chow`s. They say Travolta ate there the same day he`s supposedly in Los Angeles.

But the lawyer for the two says well, we have our own witnesses. Listen to what he told "SHOWBIZ TONIGHT".

OKORIE OKOROCHA, ATTORNEY FOR MEN SUING JOHN TRAVOLTA: Travolta will have to get on the stand and answer my questions as to where he was, and I will parade the 100 or so witnesses --

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VELEZ-MITCHELL: All right. Well, straight out to TMZ`s Mike Walters. Mike, I`ve been looking at this lawsuit. The plaintiffs` lawyer says people are lining up that there are other accusers ready to come forward, but Marty Singer, the powerhouse lawyer for John Travolta says it`s absurd and ridiculous. What`s the latest?

MIKE WALTERS, TMZ: Well, Jane, the latest is John Travolta is stacking up the evidence that this is not a true story. The first thing he did was we got ahold of the photographs. Now, the photographs are in a New York City hotel room. They`re taken as a part of costume design for the new movie that he`s doing. He started in New York and then went to Atlanta. The photos are taken at 4:30 p.m. and 5:21 p.m., on the day January 16th that allegedly he was here in Beverly Hills with this masseur.

The problem is there`s no possible way if that happened at 10:00 a.m. he would be able to fly to New York and be able to take these photographs in that hotel.

The second thing is we were able to get a receipt from Mr. Chow in New York showing that he was in New York that day having dinner, $382 bill with $100 tip, so there`s the second piece of evidence.

Now, we don`t really know what happened, Jane, obviously, but what we can do is look at the evidence as we do in all the court cases that we work on together. So far, John Travolta`s got evidence. So far I have not seen anything from the other side showing any proof that John Travolta did any of this. And we`re just going to have to wait and see what happens.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: All right. Well, of course, John Travolta got a start as a legendary sex symbol in the `70s. One of his most famous movies "Grease"; watch this from YouTube and Paramount Pictures.

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(FROM THE MOVIE, "GREASE")

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VELEZ-MITCHELL: Kareen Wynter "SHOWBIZ TONIGHT" could this impact his career even if he successfully get these allegations thrown out.

KAREEN WYNTER, HLN CORRESPONDENT, "SHOWBIZ TONIGHT": Well, you know what; it certainly does not help. His confidant is such a sharp, Marty Singer -- I`m sure you know him, Jane.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Absolutely.

WYNTER: And he says that they`re not backing down. But when you look at a guy who has a big movie coming out in a matter of months, July 6, it`s a huge film called "Savages" with Uma Thurman, Salma Hayek -- granted he`s not in a lead role here -- but he`s still going to have to be promoting. And you never as an actor want to be on that side where you have the reporters sitting in front of you saying, hey, about that lawsuit.

So it doesn`t help in that sense, but against Marty Singer, one of those sharks out there is confident that this will go away and that they will counter-sue, Jane.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Well, thank you for that Kareen. I don`t know a lot but one thing I do know is you can`t be in New York City and Los Angeles at the same time.

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VELEZ-MITCHELL: Huge news next, but first a laugh break. This video taking off on line.

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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Careful, Zach. There could be dinosaurs.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Are you scared?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Run. Run. Run.

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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: By the authority vested in me, I hereby pronounce that they are partners in life.

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VELEZ-MITCHELL: A huge announcement by the President of the United States today. President Obama said in an interview that he is now in favor of gay marriage. This is a big change on the President`s part.

Here is exactly what he told ABC`s Robin Roberts.

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BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: At a certain point I just concluded that for me, personally, it is important for me to go ahead and affirm that I think same-sex couples should be able to get married.

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VELEZ-MITCHELL: The response from celebrities has been extraordinary. A flurry of tweets tonight from Ellen who said, quote, "Thank you, President Barack Obama, for your beautiful and brave words. I am overwhelmed." Meghan McCain, the daughter of former Republican presidential candidate and current Arizona Senator John McCain tweeted, quote, "So Obama is going to introduce legislation in Congress to make gay marriage legal in all 50 states."

Gay marriage, a crucial issue in the upcoming presidential election which is just six months away, Republican opponent Mitt Romney responded quickly.

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MITT ROMNEY (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I have the same view on marriage that I had when I was governor. My view is that marriage itself is a relationship between a man and a woman and that`s my own preference.

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VELEZ-MITCHELL: Yes, this has been a fascinating development. All of this started this past Sunday when Vice President Joe Biden expressed his support of gay marriage on "Meet the Press". Check this out.

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JOE BIDEN, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I am absolutely comfortable with the fact that men marrying men, women marrying women, and heterosexuals -- women marrying men -- are entitled to the same exact rights, all the civil rights, all the civil liberties and, quite frankly, I don`t see much of a distinction beyond that.

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VELEZ-MITCHELL: That immediately set of lots of speculation because the Vice President had gone further than the President, who, up to that point, only supported civil unions.

And speaking of vice presidents, former vice president Dick Cheney who, of course, served under Republican President George W. Bush, also supports gay marriage. Dick Cheney`s daughter is gay.

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DICK CHENEY, FORMER VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Freedom means freedom for everyone. And as many of you know, one of my daughters is gay and something that we`ve lived with for a long time in our family. I think people ought to be free to enter into any kind of union they wish.

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VELEZ-MITCHELL: The latest Gallup poll shows a narrow majority, 50 percent of Americans now support gay marriage with 48 percent opposed. Meanwhile just yesterday North Carolina passed a constitutional amendment banning gay marriage and even striking a blow to domestic unions. Critics say that new law could also hurt unmarried heterosexual couples.

So the big question tonight, how much impact will President Obama`s support of gay marriage really have? The President says he prefers to leave it up to individual states to decide this issue.

Well, North Carolina is now the 30th state to adopt a gay marriage ban. Right now same sex is marriage is only legal in six states and Washington, D.C. which brings us to Prop 8. Remember that huge ongoing battle over in California`s same-sex marriage ban? Many predict that will end up being decided by the U.S. Supreme Court.

So basically the President`s endorsement huge symbolism but it doesn`t really change anything on a practical level.

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VELEZ-MITCHELL: Day one doing "The Lean" with Kathy Freston. Join me on my Facebook page. Kathy says drink eight glasses of water a day. This is glass six for me. It`s only 2:00.

It`s fun. We can do it together.

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VELEZ-MITCHELL: Oh, wow. I also ate my apple a day today, all part of our new adventure to slimness. Instead of getting depressed about that scary new stat that says almost half of us will be obese by 2030, we brought in food advisor to the stars Kathy Freston. We`ve got an overwhelming response from our viewers to "The Lean". Go to my Facebook page, Jane Velez-Mitchell Facebook.

Sign on. This is not a diet. It requires no willpower. It`s a fun daily program: water, apples, you, me, Kathy. All Americans can do it together.

END