this kid apparently could travel for ten years. >> larry: thank you, all. we have not heard the last of this and we shall delve into it more. thank you to all of our guests. dr. sophie's book is "side by side". bill cosby is here tomorrow night. now it's anderson cooper and "ac 360." anderson? >> larry. thanks for much.

not at all.

but we'll try. we'll keep trying, okay. >> so the deal for me is this. this is mystery that people try to unravel all of the time. you just told the story about the agency and the post adoption visit. people can really look great and they can really convince everybody that everything's good because they want to really do this. meet parents all the time who are hiding, who are in denial about their children's issues, who then finally get to a point, a breaking point, their marriage is disintegrating, their personal life is disintegrating, they have lost their jobs, they are depressed and finally, after a very long period of time, come clean about what's happening in their life. >> i don't doubt that this kid had troubles and this mom and then her mother both felt overwhelmed in dealing with her, dealing with the child, but clearly, they did he not go about this the right way. >> yeah, not unusual. many people take things into their own hands and figure out

incredibly ingenious ways to get around the system because they are so embarrassed, humiliated and guilty. let me tell you something, this individual who adopted this child clearly did not access the resources to begin with. there is a magnificent adoption clinic at vanderbilt school of medicine. i was just there two weeks ago. >> in nashville? >> in nashville. i was there. they have a parenting program there for people whose kids may have issues with attachment. i actually witnessed an entire workshop around this, and she could have gone. it is one hour from where she lives. she never went to that clinic. she never had the kid examined. >> lisa, do you think the mom is going to be charged or the grandmother is going to be charged with a crime here? >> this case reminds me of one of my law school classes, choice of laws, because they resided in tennessee. she flew with the child to the washington, d.c., area and then he was on the flight a t russia. the question is if there was child endangerment or abandonment, which most of us think that there was, where did it take place?

it doesn't seem to me it took place in tennessee. she was in charge of the child there. she took the kid to the washington, d.c., airport and then he was then properly put on a united airlines flight as an unaccompanied minor. i've had my kids fly that way, though not internationally at young ages. many parents do that. i don't think that is endangerment or neglect at this point. where it really may have happened was in russia and then the question is, could russia charge her? they are not going to extradite her from the u.s. to russia to face what would probably be misdemeanor charges. there may not be anywhere to charge her. that may be the legal problem that all the local authorities dealing with right now. >> i think it's more of a moral issue. i think she's right. i think spend a lot of time dealing with where we can angle to get her prosecuted is probably the wrong direction to go in. the russian government though needs to see that we're doing something to really help parents and to help this situation not happen again. >> is it possible that -- the grandmother had claimed that the russian orphanage basically lied to the adoptive mom? >> no, that is a silly thing. people always do that. whenever they are in denial, they always blame the other country. the chinese, the russians, the

french, whatever it is they are blaming the other people. >> you don't believe an orphanage would cover up the fact the child had troubles? >> these are unskilled people, they're unprompt, they're untrained. the kids are living in an environment where they are actually feral. it is a society of little animals living in these orphanages. >> anderson -- >> what i'm saying now, a sense that, the people who work there are really part of that society and they don't see that there's that much wrong and they see that the kid falls -- >> maybe a criminal prosecution isn't the answer to everything. >> exactly. >> maybe what this case highlights is people don't know that the resources are out there or they feel that it's almost impossible to access those resource and maybe the solution is to make sure when people adopt children or even have biological children and those children have serious mental issues, which everyone thinks probably did happen here, that they know how to access the resources so they don't get to the point. >> they do. the problem here is i'm not adoption community, these resources are well known, well published. parents are required to have preadoption preparation classes. >> you say it is just denial?

>> denial. we try in new york as professionals to get people to come to postadoption workshops all the time and people disappear. they want to live happily ever after and have a normal life. >> we got to leave it there. lisa bloom, appreciate it. dr. aaronson, always good to see you. we have also been talking about how this should have been handled. when we come back, another little russian boy adopted by another family who says they can't control his violent threats. they didn't send him back, they are seeking help. we will take you to the ranch in montana that is helping deeply troubled russian kids. also tonight, sarah palin and other conservatives slamming barack obama for the arms treaty signed with russia. palin said no administration in america's history would have considered such a step, except, of course, for the administration of ronald reagan. we are keeping them honest. oh sure, we have plenty of employees that... you can label as "different." like janice. uh-huh. yeah. fashion deficient. and tom... copy incapable. it's open kimono time. looking good, dan.

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so, just before the break, we updated you on the story of a little boy who was put on a plane back to russia after the tennessee family who adopted him said they could not take care of him anymore. this evening, authorities in tennessee said an attorney representing the woman won't have anything to say unless charges will be filed against her. that is totally her right. officials said it appears no federal laws have been violated. the fate of the boy remains uncertain. we are going to continue to follow the story for you, but there are also many other boys and girls from the old soviet republics who have been adopted by families in the u.s. now, the great bulk of them are happy living with their new families, but some, some adoptive parents say the kids have been violent and dangerous.

for help, some parents can bring their kids to a ranch that tries to rehabilitate them. we wanted to take you there. so, up close tonight, gary tuchman reports on one family's efforts to reconnect with their adopted son. >> reporter: 11-year-old alec is a precocious, intelligent child, but he has said and done things that would terrify any parent. did you threaten to hurt them? >> yeah. >> reporter: what did you say to them? >> other things like i'm gonna kill you, i'm gonna punch you. >> reporter: beth and bill kohler, alec's mom and dad. >> i adore him. i love him. and i just want him to have a good future, just as normal as can be. [ crying ] >> reporter: but alec's rage is not normal. this is from a videotape alec's parents gave us. they took this video because psychologists, psychiatrists and social workers didn't necessarily believe or understand what alec has done, and now his pained parents have taken drastic measures.

alec is no longer living with them in florida. he lives in montana, on a ranch for deeply troubled adopted children. >> i freedom out almost like every day. >> reporter: alec's parents adopted him from an orphanage in the former soviet republic of belarus when he was a toddler. they also adopted their daughter, lauren, from the same country, who is having a much easier time in his home. the ranch is run by a grandmother who has raised russian orphans of her own, joyce sterkel. >> the purpose is reuniting each other who have had difficulty because of attachment issues or fetal alcohol spectrum disorder. >> reporter: alec has now been at the ranch for kids for more than a year. his parents desperately want to bring him back home to ft. myers, but don't know if his violence is under control yet. do you want to go back to florida? >> it's tropical there. >> oh, i know, especially compared to montana. >> yeah. >> but do you think you are

ready to go back? >> one-fourth of the time. >> reporter: so, alec, it seems, isn't sure either. but he has gotten some big news. his mom, dad and sister are coming to visit and maybe, just maybe, he will be deemed ready to go home. your parents are coming here. how do you feel about that? >> excited. >> reporter: his parents and sister, lauren, are excited, too, as they arrive for their reunion with alec. >> hey, buddy, how are you doing? good to see you. >> reporter: the ranch for kids is a last resort for many parents. do you think because alec is so intelligent that gives him an advantage to somehow figure out how to keep things under wraps? >> yes, it does and it also makes him more dangerous. >> why? >> because he knows how to outsmart you. >> come here.

hugs and kisses, hugs. what is it called, smudges? >> group hug? a smudge? >> reporter: this is the beginning of five days together. they have rented a cabin that is part of a nearby hotel. >> five, six, seven. >> all right. >> reporter: and although they talk to alec on the phone, this the first time they're together as a family in months. >> this is great. we just kind of feel whole when we are all together again. >> reporter: we wish we could tell you during bill and beth's visit, they saw a remarkable transformation, that alec had become a vastly different boy, that it was good, right and safe to bring him back to florida, to live a normal childhood with his loving family. we wish we could tell you that. but we can't. this is what they heard from the woman who runs the ranch. >> there are people that claim there are quick fixes for this. there aren't. >> reporter: joyce believes alec is not yet ready to go home. there was a recent incident. >> he tried to -- or did attack one of the staff members just a couple weeks ago, threatened to

kill her, tried to take a 2x4 to her. and, you know, fortunately, he didn't succeed in any of that, but i just can't allow that possibility to happen in my house. >> reporter: so alec now knows he is not going home. but he is okay with that. can you teach her how to build a snowman? >> oh, my gosh. there's ice out there. >> an iceman? he's okay with that, because he has been told if he continues improving, he might be able to come back home by this summer. what does this boy mean to you, beth? >> it means everything to me. i love my kids. yeah. i just love them and want the best for both of them. >> reporter: gary tuchman, cnn, eureka, montana. >> yeah, it's clear they just want the best for him. obviously, adopting a child is an enormous commitment. you can go to our blog at ac360.com for tips on getting information and support you need if you are planning to adopt.

coming up next the nuclear threat. president obama kicking off a nuclear summit at the white house. 47 nations partis participating. his effort is a lot like former president ronald reagan. so why are so many republicans criticizing him? keeping him honest. plus, senator mccain tries new tactic to beat his conservative challenger, jd hayworth, but is his new ad going to work or backfire? >> i'm j.d. hayworth and i'm running for u.s. senate to take on the most pressing challenges facing arizona, america, and indeed, the entire human race. first, i've committed to exposing the secret kenyan birthplace of the president of the united states. gecko: quite impressive, yeah. boss: come a long way, that's for sure. and so have you since you started working here way back when. gecko: ah, i still have nightmares. anncr: geico. 15 minutes could save you 15% or more on car insurance.

president obama is hosting a two-day nuclear security summit in washington. and hours before it kicked off today, ukraine, which is one of 47 country attending, announced it is going to give up all its weapons-grade uranium within the next two years. now, this follows the nuclear arms reduction treaty that president obama signed with russia last week, which the white house is celebrating as a major accomplishment. but i want to bring you over to the wall. because it's interesting in this hyperpartisan age, nobody is willing to give anybody an inch on the other side. a number of republicans are blasting the president. sarah palin called it

unbelievable, said, "no administration in america's history, i think would ever have considered such a step, ever have considered such a step." lamar alexander said, he's a senator said, "while the treaty with russia may be in the right direction and the nuclear summit coming to town may be an impressive group of people, the nuclear posture statement that the president put out is troublesome to me." but the truth is starting with the 1960s, starting with president kennedy, virtually every administration support nuclear arms reduction. in fact, no one had more success making progress on the issue than ronald reagan, the very same president sarah palin said she reveres. now, reagan didn't just talk about reducing nuclear weapons, he wanted to eliminate them altogether. let's play this. >> we seek the total elimination one day of nuclear weapons from the face of the earth. i don't know of anyone, in or out of government, that is more determinedly seeking peace than i am. and my goal is that total

elimination of nuclear weapons. >> and the whole world would benefit if we could both abandon these weapons altogether and move to nonnuclear defensive systems that threaten no one. >> well, in 1987, after lengthy negotiations, president reagan and then-soviet president mikhail gorbachev signed the historic intermediate forces treaty, it was the first major soviet/u.s. disarmament agreement. so the treaty that president obama signed last week requires approval from two-thirds of the senate to go into effect, and several republicans, including minority leader mitch mcconnell have indicated they are not ready to support the deal. joining me now, democratic contributor james carville and political contributor and republican strategist, ed rollins, who worked for ronald reagan for years. so, james, sarah palin says that no administration in history would have ever considered such a step on nuclear arms. ronald reagan though talked about it many times, a world without nuclear weapons. >> well, rako vick and ed, i'm sure can attest to this. he wanted to get rid of all of

them. was getting i received a third of them. obama is quite to the right of reagan when it comes to nuclear weapon. i don't know many people that like them, they are not the most popular things in the world, it may be necessary but not particularly popular, not sure where she is coming from there. >> ed, factually, what she is saying is not correct, right? >> it's not correct. what james is saying is not totally correct either. we weren't throwing out all of our nuclear weapons. it was a very important meeting, the first time the soviets really sat down in a very serious way. the equivalent would be if india and pakistan sat down today and said how do we get rid of the nuclear weapons? because that is the hot spot. i think it is an important meeting, the most important the president had since franklin delano roosevelt had in '45, he had 47, 48 world leaders. i think it is more important to talk about the world economy and you don't get to call too many of these in the course of a term. >> a couple other topics i want to go over. ed, scott brown, senator from massachusetts, turned out an

invitation to appear at tea party rally in massachusetts that sarah palin will headline. do you make anything of that? there are those who are saying, look, he is trying to distance himself some way from the tea party movement that he has always had, embraced them in one sense, tried remain distant. the same for sarah palin. >> i'm not his political adviser, if i was, you thank those that get you there, the tea party was an important part of it. he is now part of the republican party. sarah palin is part of the republican party. i don't think the gesture would have been -- would had been for naught. i think at this point in time, he can't start running too far to the left and expect the democrats are going to come elect him again. i think he has to remember where his base is and reinforce that base. >> james, do you think that is what he is trying to do here? >> you know, from a distance, and i had some tea party people, actually quite nice and come down and speak to my class at tulane, so you never know who you are dealing with with these people. so, before i judge what senator brown was doing, my sense of the whole kind of tea party movement

is not particularly unified. some of them are kind of well-motivated, decent people. some are some of the most wretched people we have in the country. and i would be curious to see what that outfit was running the thing in massachusetts was. >> also finally, i want to turn to this the saga of the arizona senate race. you know, first you had john mccain saying he never considered himself a maverick, even though, obviously, you know, we've all seen multiple recordings of him calling himself a maverick and i think he even wrote a book with the title, maverick, in the title of the book. but i want to play you part of a web video that john mccain's campaign just released. it's under the guise of being a message from his opponent, j.d. hayworth. >> first, i am committed to exposing the secret kenyan birthplace of the president of the united states. >> the president should come forward with the information. that's all. why must we depend on the governor of hawaii? >> second, i've stood up against the great threat of man/horse marriage. >> if you really have affection

for your horse, i guess you could marry your horse. >> j.d. hayworth says expanding state laws to gay marriage could lead people to marry a horse. >> what do you make of the ad? on the one hand, he seem to be tacking right, and in this, he is making fun of j.d. hayworth on issues which some on the right, you know, take very seriously. >> john, after his long and very distinguished career, needs to talk about that. he was the nominee of this party, whether he wants to call himself a maverick or not. one of the admirable things about him is he's been an independent and stood for what he believes is right and that is what he ought to be talking about. >> james, do you agree, just ignore jd hayworth? >> you know, i don't know. jd hayworth is one of the really truly odious people that ever served in american politics. and john mccain was, you know, some ways, one of the more admirable, but he looks like he is just so anxious to win and so much wants to win this race. he is out -- i don't want to say he is making a fool of himself, because i don't want to say that about senator mccain, but he is doing things that out of character and he looks

ridiculous. >> ed rollins, james carville, i appreciate your perspective. >> thank you very much. still ahead, confederate history month fallout. first, the governor of virginia comes under fire, and then you think the story is over, but now another state leader is being slammed for comments he made on slavery and the civil war. text your comments to "ac 360" or 22360. presidential historian douglas brinkley will join us ahead. also is liz taylor actually engaged again? here's what she is saying about getting married for a ninth time. we have oil on our shores. natural gas can be a part of the solution. i think we need to work on wind resources. they ought to be carefully mapping every conceivable alternative. there is an endless opportunity right here.

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coming up tonight, the mysterious death of an indiana woman. was it an accident or murder and why did the last person to see her alive, who was not a relative, have a $15 million insurance policy on her life payable to his company? first some other important stories. joe johns has more. >> anderson, a "360" follow on the new york subway bomb plot. najibullah zazi, one of the three men accused in the terrorist plot, revealed his plans to the law enforcement officials. zazi and two other men were plotting to explode homemade bombs on crowded subway cars at times square and grand central terminal stations right around last year's 9/11 anniversary.

tonight, recovery crews in west virginia are removing the last bodies from the worst mine disaster in 40 years. 29 men died last week when an explosion ripped through the upper big branch mine. poland's president and first lady, who were killed in a plane crash over the weekend, will be buried saturday. their plane went down while trying to land in russia. investigators are analyzing the flight recorders to determine the cause of the crash. and no ninth marriage for elizabeth taylor, at least for now. the actress posted a message on twitter today denying rumors she is engaged to her manager, but she acknowledged loving 49-year-old jason winters with all her heart. glad to clear that up, anderson. >> yes, i have been worried about it all weekend. time for our beat "360," joe winners, daily challenge to viewers, chance to show up the staffers by coming up with a

better caption for the picture we put on the blog every day. tonight's shot is phil mickelson reacting to the final shot in the masters sunday, won the tournament for the third time. staff winner tonight is ellie. his caption, phil mickelson auditions for the lead in the pga's version of "my fair lady." >> looks like he is about to do a moonwalk. >> exactly. tonight's winner is todd from houston, his caption, tiger, how do you like this victory dance? tiger did not like it very much. todd, beat "360" t-shirt is on the way. congratulations. a new fight over celebrating the confederacy. another republican governor says virginia's decision not to mention slavery was not a mistake and strong words for anyone who thinks it was. a closer look at this heated debate and also taking your questions to historian douglas brinkley. text them to "ac 360" or 22360. also later, was it an accident or something else? a woman found dead. the person who gets millions from a life insurance policy is not a family member. not a family member. details on the story ahead. it was tough news to hear. everything changed. mom. ♪ i didn't know what to do. that's when i asked my doctor about exelon patch.

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tonight, the firestorm over virginia's decision to name april confederate history month has been reignited. in effect, as we told you last week, virginia's governor bob mcdonnell proclaimed this month confederate history month in his state and the proclamation made absolutely no mention of slavery. he backtracked after being called under intense criticism, called the omission a mistake and changed the proclamation, which included the references to slavery, which called it evil and an inhumane practice. when asked about candy crowley, haley barbour came to mcdonnell's side, said leaving slavery out of the proclamation wasn't a mistake at all. here is what he told candy on "state of the union." >> virginia governor -- new virginia governor, bob

mcdonnell, designated april confederate month, something his two democratic predecessors had refrained from doing. this caused quite a stir, particularly because the governor did not even mention slavery in this proclamation. was that a mistake? >> they should talk about democratic legislature, which has -- does exactly the same thing in mississippi for years. and as far as i know, the democratic legislature, where a majority in both houses are democrats, i am unaware of them being criticized for it or them having their supporters feel uncomfortable with it. >> you know what i'm trying to get at. here there is a sort of feeling that it is insensitive, but you clearly don't agree? >> to me, it is the sort of feeling that it is a nit, that it is not significant, that is not -- trying to make a big deal out of something that doesn't amount to diddly. >> doesn't amount to diddly. that's what the governor said. in a moment, we will talk with historian douglas brinkley. but last week on "360," cnn analyst roland martin got into a

sparring match with brag bowling from the sons of confederate veterans, the group that originally lobbied the state of virginia to celebrate the confederacy for the month. here is some of that conversation. >> it was an idiotic mistake for him to sit here and proclaim this. the bottom line is the confederacy was based on this issue of slavery. and so, it was hurtful, it was degrading, it was an oppressive system, and so i don't even see how he can even come up with this whole notion it really wasn't significant enough to mention it and really no big deal, let's celebrate the confederates. makes no sense. like someone sitting here saying let's celebrate nazi soldiers for simply doing their job. ridiculous. >> brag, your group, the sons of confederate veterans, lobbied the governor to make this proclamation. was it a mistake? >> not at all. i applaud the governor for his courage and his insight and i completely disagree with mr. martin. the -- there were a whole lot of issues other than slavery involved in that war.

and actually, he's given a good reason why there should be confederate history month, because he knows only one reason, and that is slavery, but there is a whole lot more. >> but do you think it was a mistake for the governor not to mention slavery in his proclamation? >> the governor -- it was an omission. and the sons of confederate veterans has always wanted a true and accurate history of the war, and that includes slavery. so, we are not at all opposed to the insertion of that clause. no sane person in the 21st century supports slavery. 150 years ago -- >> on your website -- >> there are people that act like it's 1865 now. >> right, on your website though, on your homepage, you don't mention anything about slavery, you say that the civil war, which you call the second american revolution, was about the preservation of liberty and freedom, that that was the motivating factor. >> it was. there's no doubt about it. >> but you make no mention of slavery here. >> we are an organization of confederate descendents, and so

we're naturally going to support the honor and good name of the confederate soldier. he wasn't a politician. he was a soldier. >> but wait -- but wait a minute. here's the reality. the fact of the matter is virginia did not want the federal government telling them what to do. it was dealing with the issue of slavery. now, you sit here and talk about freedom? well, guess what? people who looked like me, they were not free. they were oppressed. >> i hate to give you a history lesson, sir -- >> let him finish. and then i'll let you answer. >> again though, that is the reality. and so when you sit here and say we will celebrate the confederate veterans, these folks committed treason by taking up arms against the united states. you celebrate that? they were domestic terrorists. >> can i speak? >> yeah. go ahead. >> okay. he's incorrect, especially when it comes to virginia. slavery had absolutely nothing to do with virginia leaving the union. as of -- >> oh, come on. >> as of ft. sumpter, virginia

was firmly pro-union. it was when abraham lincoln called up 75,000 troops to invade the lower south that virginia seceded and the governor of virginia, john letcher, said that no virginian would be allowed to fight against fellow americans and be coerced into staying in the union. virginia wouldn't do that. >> let's dig deeper now with presidential historian, douglas brinkley and our own joe johns. doug, what do you make of this? you heard the confederate -- sons of confederate veterans saying slavery had nothing to do with virginia entering the civil war. >> well, it's idiocy. everybody knows the story of slavery and the civil war. what's happening here is politics. the governor of virginia had to have known that that was going to be controversial, to declare it right at the eve of the new orleans gop leadership conference, to declare april confederate month. every time this kind of thing happens, it becomes a great flare-up. now to have governor hayley barbour, who i respect a lot,

but i disagree with him completely, for him to kind of weigh in and say this isn't about much, this is about a southern strategy of the divisive, and roland martin's attitude is one of african-americans in the country. they are outraged. richmond, virginia's, 50% african-american. and to kind of pull this sort stunt is deeply disappointing and governor mcdonnell should be ashamed of himself. >> it's interesting, doug, when you look at the web site, the son of confederate veterans, it makes no mention of slavery and it calls the civil war the second american revolution. and it seems like they are kind of recasting it along very sort of narrow lines about what it was about. it was about fighting for freedom, it was about resisting invasion. >> well, southern poverty law center in montgomery monitors these kind of neoconfederate groups. many of them trade in hate. we do a good job in this country of interpreting on confederate history. the u.s. interior department does. you go to places like atlanta,

you can go to a state facility like stone mountain that have civil war generals on it and learn about it, but at stone mountain, you can either learn about the civil war or you can hold a hate rally there. the confederate flag has become a symbol of not just the civil war battles, but of jim crow's segregation in the deep south, of racism. and so there has to be some sensitivity to our public officials, like governor hayley barbour, governor mcdonnell, to -- when you just embrace the raw confederacy in this kind of fashion, it's going to anger people, it doesn't do anybody in this country any good. it is not educational. it's just bad politics. >> also, to have the governor of virginia tell african-americans in the state of virginia that in this month, they should be celebrating the original proclamation said the sacrifices of confederate leaders, confederate soldiers and confederate citizens, without making any mention of slave people is pretty stunning. joe, we got a text 360 question from lilybeth in edmonds, washington. she asked would governor mcdonnell's reinstatement of confederate history month in his

state strengthen his position with his conservative base? >> well, look, this was a political calculation, obviously. what's done is done. it opens a whole can of worms because the staff either left it out by accident, perhaps, or they did it on purpose. so what does it all mean? in the south, there are going to be people who think it is totally okay to leave it out because, you know, they want to leave it out. on the other hand, there are people who say the mere idea of confederate history month is just wrong in the first place. so -- but it just depends on where you fall, and that's racial politics in the south. you know, anderson, there are a number of states that have these proclamations for confederate history month and these things change from year to year. so, virginia had it for a while, then they didn't. now they've got it again. alabama, for example, also has a proclamation, but they don't say -- they do say something about slavery in it. and mississippi, hayley barbour's state, for example, they don't say anything in their proclamation about slavery. so, it's a sort of a little bit

of this and a little bit of that. >> doug, when you talk to the sons of confederate veterans, they say, well, look, virginia entered because virginia was invaded and it was people in virginia wanting to defend their homes and their property, but the thing they are glossing over is the fact that a lot of people in virginia thought of their property, thought their slaves were their property. >> well, exactly. and you know, there is this confederate flag movement. there are other regimental flags to honor family veterans. there was the donny blue flag, for example. the confederate flag has become a symbol of white supremacy, this overembracing of the confederacy. if you read a lot of these neo confederate sites, abraham lincoln is a marxist. the reason it is playing out right now is because there is a large anti-federal government sentiment, a lot of states' sentiment going on right now. so it gins up this old argument again. and i think because barack obama had won north carolina and virginia, the republicans have no formula to regaining power in 2012 without those two states.

and clearly, the african-americans are going to be backing barack obama in record numbers again for re-election. you are going to see them, they are trying to make a play for those two states. >> doug brinkley, we've got to leave it there. always good to have you on, douglas brinkley and joe johns. coming up next, want to join the live chat at ac360.com. let us know what you think about it. a lot of people talking about it on the blog. coming up though, a story about a woman who drowned. her friend stands to collect $15 million, he took out a life insurance policy on her. he says he did nothing wrong. later, the wife of a reality hollywood tv producer found dead in mexico. could the husband be arrested? i will have the latest on the investigation. when i grow up,

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that could be a sign of serious side effects. while you've been building your life, plaque may have been building in your arteries. ask your doctor if crestor can help and go to crestor.com to get a free trial offer. announcer: if you can't afford your medication, astrazeneca may be able to help. "crime & punishment" tonight a mysterious death triggers the death over life insurance. this was not your average policy. it was value at $15 million. the beneficiary was a much younger friend so did the man believe the woman who was worth dead than alive? tonight he talks to us in an exclusive interview. with that, here's randi kaye. >> reporter: the man is is 36-year-old j.b. carlson. the woman 74-year-old germaine tomlinson. this was one of the last pictures taken of her. she died later that night. the nature of their relationship is what this story is all about. an accident or murder?

her daughter told cnn, "we found broken glass, and she was fully clothed, face-down in her bathtub, drowned. it seemed this was a tragic accident. then months later we learn there was a $15 million insurance policy on her life payable to someone other than a family member. that someone is the man in the photograph, j.b. carlson stands to benefit from the $15 million life insurance policy he had on tomlinson. why would carlson, who wasn't a relative, buy a multimillion dollar insurance policy on her? that's what her family wants to know. her daughter wants the payments stopped. carlson is an entrepreneur, and according to "the wall street journal" court documents say germaine tomlinson told others she was a board member of his company. carlson is believed to be the last person to see her alive. it was september 2008. they'd been out drinking and dancing at the blue martini bar.

carlson told me by phone he brought an intoxicated tomlinson home around 1:00 a.m. and brought her inside. he says he placed her on the loveseat and "walked toward the door" then clapped his hands to get her attention so she could lock the door. he says when he left the house, tomlinson was "alive." the coroner ruled the death an accidental drowning compounding by "acute ethanol intoxication." but her family believes something more sinister is going on. tomlinson's daughter says "this insurance is supposedly based on my mother's position with a company we haven't been able to learn much about. there were loans against the policy that were due within days of my mother's death." carlson told me the insurance policies was a so-called legitimate key man policy. the kind used to protect a company if an executive dies. carlson has not been charged with any crime. cnn legal analyst jeffrey toobin. >> this is a story where there is certainly a very clear motive

for murder but proof of murder is a very different thing. >> reporter: american general, a division of aig, which wrote the policy in january 2006, now wants it declared void. it's suing carlson, alleging he submitted false and misleading information to dupe them into selling the policy. responding to charges by the insurer that tomlinson's assets were inflated, listed at about $46 million, mr. carlson told me that his wildly inaccurately, simply not true. "the wall street journal" says documents show tomlinson's yearly income was actually about $17,000. carlson says the loss of his friend has been "tremendously painful." and claims of foul play, he says "ridiculous." but the insurer says the $15 million policy is what's known as stranger originated life insurance, where strangers pay the premiums on policies often taken out on the elderly. then get a huge payout when the

insurer dies. randi kaye, cnn, new york. >> strange story. up next, new details in the case of the former "survivor" producer suspected of killing his wife, will he face charges? a surprising end to the late-night drama conan o'brien announcing his return to tv. we'll have all of the details ahead. ♪ client comes in and they have a box. and inside that box is their financial life. people wake up and realize i better start doing something. we open up that box. we organize it. and we make decisions. we really are here to help you. they look back and think, "wow. i never thought i could do this." but we've actually done it. [ male announcer ] visit ameriprise.com and put a confident retirement more within reach.

get caught up on other important stories, joe johns has a 360 news and business bulletin. joe? a hollywood television producer may be arrested in the death of his wife with. monica beresford-redman was found dead in a sewer at a mexican resort last week. investigators say they are waiting for forensic test results before deciding whether to charge her husband, bruce, a former "survivor" producer and

creator of "pump my ride." pittsburgh steelers' quarterback ben roethlisberger read a statement tonight, saying, he's happy to put sexual assault allegations behind him. earlier, a georgia district attorney decided not to charge the two-time super bowl champion with raping a woman at a night spot last month, saying the allegation cannot be proven beyond a reasonable doubt. stock market's on a roll. the dow jones closed above 11,000 today, reaching that milestone for the first time in 18 months. and conan o'brien is heading back to late-night tv on tbs. after months of speculation that he would end up on the fox network, news today that the brief "tonight" show host will be on our sister network in november. looking forward to that. >> yeah, that is cool. good for him. for the shot tina fey hosting "saturday night live" over the weekend, appearing on it bringing back her sarah palin impersonation of the former governor and now owns her own cable channel. here's a clip.

>> man in a helicopter with a sniper rifle versus wild. so you think you can make me fill out the census? "dateline" to catch a levi johnston. that's so palin. "dancing with the real stars: america's small business owners." the tonight show with jay leno. so there you have it. all palin all of the time until 2012 when i haven't decided what i'm going to do but i'm probably going to run for president. i'm sarah palin. good night. >> i thought she was going to say "and i'll leave the lights on for you." >> joe, program tonight. we'll have more of "360" right after this. [ tires screech ] ♪ [ sighs ] that's two for doubting. [ chuckles ] you hit like my sister. really? i'd like to meet her.

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good evening, everyone. tonight, keeping them honest. and what about the adoption agent? did they do the kind of checks they were supposed to? we're keeping them honest