. a 7-year-old girl laid to rest while her killer is on the loose. somer thompson kidnapped while walking home from school murdered. this hour we end the life of an innocent child. we talk to her grieving father as police desperately hunt for the sick person who committed this heinous act. plus this -- a car plows into a house, lands right on top of a couple while they were sleeping. they spent 42 grueling minutes trapped underneath this vehicle, gas blurting. they thought they were going to die but they survived and they're here to tell this story. stick around for that.

you're a hith part of tuge show. call in, 1-877-tell-hln. e-mail us or text us at hln tv. just start your message with the word prime. it's your chance to be heard. welcome once again. this is "prime news." i'm mike galanos. we have breaking news. police have made an arrest in the murder of a college football star. it happened just this morning. jasper howard, 20 years old, stabbed to death outside a school dance. the campus, university of connecticut. he just helped the team win their homecoming game. big win over louisville. he had the game ball. and then hour s later, he's dea. this is a little over a week ago. now the suspect is behind bars. john william lomax, just hours ago police made this announcement. >> uconn police have arrested the following -- john w. lomax iii, age 21 of bloomfield, connecticut, on the charge of murder and the second charge of conspiracy to commit assault in the first degree.

>> all right. joining me to talk about this, we have john louisage, former criminal investigator. also with us, our hln law enforcement analyst mike brooks and david owens, reporter for "the hartford current." david, let's start with you on this one. lomax iii charged with murder. do police believe he's the one who stabbed jasper howard? >> they do. they charged him with murder so he is the one they believe thrust a knife into jasper howard. >> let me say with you, david. are we finding any more details out about that tragic night? >> not a lot of information yet. the warrants in the case, where the law enforcement officials have put down their version of what happened, are sealed at the request of the prosecutors and they won't be available for at least 14 days. >> anything about hakim muhammad's -- his involvement? he's charged with conspiracy to commit assault. so if lomax did the stabbing, if that's what police believe, what about muhammad, what was his role? >> again, we don't know the details but by the charge it would indicate that he and mr.

lomax were somehow together and had talked, planned ahead or were involved in whatever went down that evening. >> okay. and the third arrest, jamal todd. he pulled the fire alarm. is he connected with the other two, do we know? >> they -- he is -- we're not sure. we believe perhaps but we're still chasing those -- chasing those bits of information down. >> okay. all right. so, again, details slow to come out here but we do have an arrest. mike, let's bring you in on this. what does this tell you? obviously, the belief is lomax, he's the one who stabbed jasper howard. >> right. >> but what are you gleaning here, how this all went down? what do you think happened? >> it sounds mike -- again, everything is sealed for right now. but when you have a murder charge and you have a conspiracy to commit assault, okay, were they planning on stabbing someone here, or were they planning to start a fight? we know initially they said there were two groups of students, possibly students and nonstudents. so did this third person, jamal

todd, pull the fire alarm to get everyone to come outside? now, he's charged with basically a false -- reporting a false incident and reckless endangerment. so he put everybody's lives in danger outside. he p ut the cops' life in danger and firefighters responding for a fire alarm and he reported the false incident. so everybody evacuated and then they decided they were going to start this fight outside and the end result was lomax was -- poor jas getting killed. >> we'll take your calls, by the way, 1-877-tell-hln. always love to have your questions on this story. let's bring in john lousage. as we hash out these details, do you think jasper howard was specifically targeted or was he in the midst of the fight and he ended up getting killed? >> there's no doubt. these two guys were charged with conspiracy to commit first degree assault. these charges could be upgraded later on if they found out this other guy, who actually conspired with this guy's assault, was also part of the potential murder, then the

charges could be upgrided for both of them, conspiracy to commit murder. as far as the other third guy, there's not enough facts to bring this guy into it, but he pulled that alarm to create a diversion to allow this fight and murder to take place, all three could be charged as that. >> let's bring back david owens, "hartford current." david, from what you're gathering here and i know details are sparse, was jasper howard specifically targeted, do you know? >> we do not have that information. we do know these guys were not from the university of connecticut. they were going out to party at the student union that night. >> do we know anything about all of the three? they have a long rap street? what do we know about their history? >> they have some involvement with police in the bloomfield area which is just north of hartford where lomax and muhammad live. but they're relatively young men and the law in hartford allows records to be sealed up to age

17. there was an arrest last summer for mr. lomax on relatively minor charges and that's about all. the cops told us they know about these guys but there's not a lot of information they are able to release legally. >> are students talking, students who are there and may have seen something, or is that still a frustration for police? >> police have gotten a lot of information. they've conducted hundreds of interviews. clearly, people are providing information. >> mike, originally they said there could have been up to 300 people outside. and between the connecticut state police and uconn police, campus police there, they interviewed, as you said, at least 200 people here. so last week we talked about the e-mails and all of this, you know, about people saying, if you snitch, we're going to get you. sounds like it didn't work, because now three people are locked up. >> that's a good thing. let take a quick break, guys. when we come back, more on this as we try to figure out motive, why this would go down. we do have three arrests, though, in the tragic murder of jasper howard and we will take your calls at 1-877-tell-hln.

just it whant it would be like for that young child. but as jas looks down on us, i can promise him and his family that son will have -- or daughter -- will have 105 aunts or uncles for the rest of its life. and we will do what it takes to not get through this, but to grow from it. >> that's desi cullen, teammate, friend of jasper howard. as he mentioned there, jasper howard, father to be. big announcement by connecticut

police today. again, three arrests made in his tragic death. howard, stabbed to death outside of a school dance. we have our experts standing by. we'll take your calls, 1-877-tell-hln. john lucich, i think people hear of this, 300 people, school dance. you got to look at school security at this point, don't you, as to who was around to try to keep the peace? >> oh, absolutely. in fact, that's often the job of campus police. they should have organized that a little better. i don't know what they actually did or didn't do. but there was a melee that ensued that led to somebody's death. now, i'm very curious to find out why once more facts come out what these guys are charged with conspiracy for because that's the only thing that leads me to believe it may have been a target of this individual. >> yeah. let's get back david owens, "the hartford courant." david, we have an arrest. how are the students, uconn community, handling this and just reaction to the arrest today? >> oh, like any community. there's a range of reaction and emotion. people who were close to jasper howard are obviously relieved

and happy that these arrests have been made. for others on campus -- uconn's a very large university and it's just like a town. there are people who were personally touched by this and people who just happened to be students who saw the aftermath but didn't know the football player or the members of the team who are still affected by it. they would see the candles on their way to the dining hall and whatnot. just a range, relief an arrest has been made and expectation the police would make an arrest. uconn had a very high-profile case there a while back and police there did an outstanding job and brought them to justice. it was an expectation an arrest would happen. >> were there other football players there, do we know? >> at the press conference? >> no, at the dance itself. >> yeah, there were some there who cared for jasper howard when he was injured, who were holding him in his arms when he died. >> what a picture that is, mike brooks. >> brian parker, 19 years old.

he's also injured in this fight. he is on the practice squad apparently. there were people around there. and that's the whole question, was he specifically targeted? but we haven't heard that from police. but, you know, lomax is now being held on $2 million bond, mike. so that's quite a substantial bond. >> we mentioned that, we hear these words conspiracy. you wonder, why would a jasper howard be targeted when everybody says, great guy, father to be. team captain. i mean, we'll continue to follow this one, guys. we have to leave it there. david, mike, john, we appreciate it. coming up -- hundreds of tips in the horrific death of 7-year-old somer thompson. cops still frustrated. we'll talk about that investigation and also talk about today. the public memorial for a 7-year-old whose life was cut way too short.

so sad. family, friends, complete strangers all gathered today to say good-bye to a 7-year-old girl. somer thompson, kidnapped while walking home from school and murdered. community of orange park, florida, is coming together. that is good to see, but there's still a sense of terror because somer's killer is still out there. police have received more than 1,400 tips but few credible leads. we'll take your calls, 1-877-tell-hln. we expect to speak with somer's father, samuel thompson, in a

moment. just get his feelings, his emotions on a day like this. we also have with us the producer from "the nancy grace show," and our hln law enforcement analyst mike brooks as well. la tisha, first to you as we talk about who could have done this, any new leads in this investigation? >> no new leads at this point, mike. but they are letting us know they have not given up on this investigation. there are 50 investigators who are working full time on this case. as you pointed out, there's about 1,400 leads. well, they up thad number down to about 700 leads and tips that are continuing to come in, and the people in this neighborhood are not giving up hope either. there is a group of women in the neighborhood who have started a group of their own called mothers against predators, so taking this very seriously. they want to keep their children protected and they also want to bring justice for little somer thompson. >> mike, as you -- we continue with this investigation, what's the number one site, is it evidence from the landfill where little somer's body was found or is it this vacant home that's

been searched so thoroughly? >> you know, mike, right now it could be a combination of both places. where the body was found in that landfill in folks ston, georgia, i guarantee you they got a lot of evidence from there. they're not talking about anything at all. you know what, i don't blame them. they're holding their cards very close to the vest in this case. then we go to the house where she was just last seen right out in front of this place, where as natisha was down there just the other day, was watching them with alternate light sources, woging this crime scene there with the mobile crime lab and taking evidence out of there. i think you're going to see a combination of both, because, you know, these could be -- we know there is one crime scene, but where did this happen? was it at this house? was it somewhere else? we don't know yet. >> let's listen now, sheriff rick vesseler, was on the nbc "today" show talking about this being a difficult investigation at least at this point. let's hear him lay things out for us. >> i really anticipate this is going to be a very complex, very

drawn-out process, that's going to be solved not through some computer voodoo but through good, old-fashioned police work. >> natisha, let's get your take on that, long investigation. why so complex? what do you glean from what we're hear something. >> like the sheriff just said, it's good, old-fashioned police work. that is what led to somer thompson in the first place in following that trash. and also digging through the 100 tons of garbage in order to find her little leg sticking out and they were able to make that discovery pretty early on. like the sheriff said, it is a tough investigation for them, even though they found her body early on. it is still this issue of the trash, where did it come from? they now pinned it down to the exact truck that it came from. but now it's trying to find out which residence it actually came from. if it is a residence or if it's a business, and just continuing to reinterview the people that they have already spoken to. >> okay. joining us now, samuel thompson, the father of somer thompson. samuel, thank you for joining us

on this difficult day, and let me start there. how are you doing on a day you celebrate your daughter's life but it's also a day you say good-bye. how are you doing today? >> well, as good as anybody could under these circumstances. if it wasn't for all of the support of everybody across the country and especially here in jacksonville, you know, it would really be tough to handle it. i mean, all that's important, the love and the prayers, it fills your heart so you can go on another day. >> well, you're in our thoughts and prayers, sir. we will tell you that. tell us about today's service, how somer was honored today. >> oh, it was a beautiful service. they had singers on. one of her favorite songs were "you are my sunshine," and everybody just broke down crying when they sang that. all of the people along the streets had purple balloons going up in the air, and it was

just, it was amazing, the love that was shown for somer today. and it fills my heart, and i just want to say god bless everybody, and i love you all. >> i'm sure that's so much appreciated. what goes through your mind on a day like this as you -- is there a memory you cling to of little somer? >> there's lots of memories. we used to go to the lake and go out on the boat and -- and play in the water a lot and the last time i saw her, we went to jack's beach and she -- she headed straight for the waves. you know, she was fearless. and her little brother, he wanted to play in the tide pool, where it was a little safer. so i just remember how spunky she was, and how loving she was, and just a beautiful smile that she had on her face. i just have to hold onto all of the special times that we had together. >> you mentioned her little

brother, twin brother. how is he doing? how is her older sister doing? it must be so difficult for them. they probably just don't understand. >> well, they are doing -- they're doing as well as a child can. i was talking to little sammy today, and we were in the service and everybody had to be real quiet, but i said, how are you doing, sam? and he gave me a thumb's down. you know, abigail, she was crying her eyes out. andrew, her brother, older brother, he was holding strong. she's 13, so he was -- i know he's hurting inside, but he was handling it pretty good. but they're in a lot of pain, you know. they were all very close. they love each other. very loving family. so, you know, just -- i just pray that god will give their hearts peace. >> samuel, thank you again for taking time. our thoughts and prayers are with you at this difficult time. more "prime news" coming up.

this is horrific. police in richmond, california, say a 15-year-old girl was gang raped for more than two hours. this outside the homecoming dance. she's someone's daughter. in many ways still a kid herself. investigators say as many as 15 people, all guys, stood around watching. not one made an anonymous 911 call. police are just as shocked as you and i about this whole situation. >> i remember thinking that this is something out of a hollywood movie. it's so extremely vicious and absolutely unnecessary. >> all right. we'll take your calls, your thoughts on this.

we try to make sense of it. 1-877-tell-hln. joining us now, michelle gallon, clinical psychologist. also back with us, john lucich, former criminal investigator and courtney, former sex crimes prosecutor. michelle, let's start with you. how do teenagers, one as young as 15, get to the place to brutalize a 15-year-old goerl li girl like this? >> well, it's so frightening and it's really bordering on sociopathic. the fact that it went on for two hours and it wasn't until the rumors started flying in the gym, i guess, that anyone went and found her unconscious. it's horrifying. >> you know, that -- that's one of the reasons that this whole thing was found out, that some who were a part of it reportedly began reminiscing about the event, which adds another sick layer to all of this. michelle, let me stay with you. a 15-year-old suspect talks about a mob mentality. how does that dynamic unfold in a case like this? >> well t. do, it does.

what happens in a group situation like that is that instantly the victim becomes "othered." they're no longer human and they're no longer in the group. so that's sort of what happens is people feel like they can do anything to that person. and then they just get carried away feeling like, well, if he thinks it's okay, i guess i think it's okay, and these four other people think it's okay. it would have just taken one person to shift that dynamic, just one person would have shifted that to where it would have stopped and a 911 call would have been made. it's really horrifying. >> it is unconscionable to think this. and as you said, that was the mindset. as others found out what was going on over this two-hour period, they didn't want to help, they wanted to join in, which was -- i can't even fathom. >> disgusting. >> let's bring in our investigator, john lucich. john, how difficult is it going to be to investigate and to nab all of these -- all of the attackers here? >> it's going to take some time, but you're going to talk to the

people, get them interviewed and they're going 20 start caving in on each other. there's no doubt about it. there could be further charges filed. when we take a look at these guys who are standing around, what were they doing? did they try to prevent this woman from leaving? were they blocking the view so nobody could see? that could all lead to conspiracy to help these guys cover up their crimes. so it's going to be interesting. ky tell you this. i interviewed a lot of people and they fold. especially in a crime like this, these people will fold very, very fast on each other. i think you're going to see a lot more arrests. >> that's good to know. let's bring courtney in on this. courtney, as you prosecuted crimes like this, can they get in trouble for just watching and not doing anything when someone should have stepped up? >> not if they're just watching. but john brings up a fantastic point. we call them aiders and abetters. these are people who encourage, insight the act, they conceal the victim from the public or from law enforcement. these people are as guilty, those who are participating, as guilty as the people who are actually committing the crimes. those that are just sitting and

watching, unfortunately, there's not a lot you can do with them. >> no, not -- john did make a good point. michelle, let's get you back in on this. again, with the mindset here, how does someone not make the one phone call, one anonymous 911 call? >> well, i mean, they basically were only interested in self-gratification. that's what they wanted. they were -- they were enjoying the experience. they were caught up in it. and they need to be prosecuted. i mean, i know that one is a 19-year-old. i think we as a society need to look at sex crimes, whether it's against children or adults, in a very harsh way and a very different way than we have been. >> let's talk about prosecution. courtney, there's a 19-year-old in there. obviously, we throw the book at him. what about the 15-year-old or the 16-year-old? how do we prosecute? how tough can we be on them? >> oh, i think we're tough. we throw them all in adult court, the juveniles as well. and we charge them with

everything we can. you know, i have been prosecuting -- or i was a prosecutor of sex crimes in a long, long time. and through ten egregious con ku duct, this is 11. you don't often see a case like this. it's out of control. group them together. you send them to prison. if they want to know what gang rape is all about, they'll find out in prison. this is just unbelievable. >> by the way, we're taking your calls on this. 1-877-tell-hln. this is a facebook comment from mary. my heart goes out to this poor girl who will live with the scars for the rest of her life and all of those involved should be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law, what we're talking about here. michelle, off that, let me ask you how does a 15-year-old recover from something like this that was described by one of the officers as a life-altering experience? >> well, i -- i'm assuming she's going to be getting some counseling. she's going to need to deal with this trauma. i mean, the physical and the emotional ramifications are

huge. and, you know, i think one of the things that we find that can be helpful, too, is sort of becoming an advocate and, so, having her work to deal with other crime victims may be very beneficial to her. >> let's get a call in. christy's with us from florida. christy, your thoughts here. >> yes, i feel that, you know, maybe the girl was part of the gang, and she wanted to get out and maybe that was the way of her getting out. >> interesting point. we haven't heard that. we had -- we know of the details, the few we have, is that she knew somebody in the group, and they invited her over. we believe there was some alcohol consumed. that was the star. but there has not been at least talk yet of gang or her involvement in a gang. but i'm sure more details are going to come out. we'll continue on this topic. we'll take your calls. the number 1-877-tell-hln.

we're back to "prime news" on hln. we're talking about just a brutal crime, a 15-year-old raped, gang raped, and beaten into critical condition. this outside of a homecoming dance. she's 15. as many as six raped her. there's a 15-year-old that's a suspect, as well as a

19-year-old. i'm taking your calls, 1-877-tell-hln. also have facebook comments. this is from vanessa writing, this is just sad. when will kids realize that doing nothing at all is worse than the crime itself. and vanessa again brings up the point that as many as 15 guys watched and did nothing. we're also getting report that's some may have videotaped this on their cell phone. let's go to our investigator, john lucich. john, how are we going to be able to find that out if one of the creeps videotaped this? >> they're going to get search warrants. once they identify these people, they will start checking everybody's cell phones, there's no doubt about it. they will have developed enough probable cause moving forward. this is one of the sickest crime that's could happen. and especially what makes it worse is that a lot of individuals just sat there and just watched this horrific crime by these animals, and it makes them just as bad. like your other expert said, one person shoving somebody and saying, stop this could have ended the whole thing. it could have shift thad ded th dynamic. that didn't happen. everybody deserves to go down on

this. >> let's go to our attorney courtney pilchman. courtney, about somebody videotaping this, what kind of laws are broken there? what kind of punishment do we have with that? >> again, nothing. what you have is evidence gathering for sure. john talked about this earlier. people are all going to fold on each other. those who maybe are not involved will be a little more forthcoming. those who are in a heap of trouble will want to get out of a little bit of trouble and offer information. those just standing there and videotaping, mike, there's nothing you can charge them with. >> wow. let's get a call in. jay's in kentucky. your thoughts here. >> caller: thank you so much for taking the call. >> yeah. >> caller: you know, it's very sad that we have to live in such a place that we live in a land that is to be free and to be enjoyable. and the answer is in front of us at all times that if we allow the media and -- and not yourselves but the media that promotes these types of things

and the video entertainment that promotes these things, such games that these young, young kids are playing now, these boys that did this possibly 15, 16, 17, 18 years of age, you got to think just five years ago they were under teenage but they could have been playing and watching these movies and playing these games that actually promote and install this type of mentality in a young mind. then as that mind develops into a mind that can actually go out and act upon these things, and it's just sad that the answer is just right there in front of us at all times. i have three young children myself. and we totally forbid anything of that manner. >> you're right. jay -- thanks again for the call. we have got to run here. but you're right on that front. i think you bring up a good point. to blame video games specifically, but michelle, let's talk about that. certainly you plant a seed when the video games will scar your soul. some of those m-rated games are just horrific.

about movies will leave a scar as well. again, i'm not blaming it, but certainly as we look big picture, it doesn't help if we're letting our kids watch this. >> it definitely can desensitize children to those things. but i also think we need to have in our public schools and in our schools is a culture that is different in the sense of what do we teach them on how to deal with conflict resolution, how to be respectful to each other, how to treat each other with understanding and respect, and that if you're in a situation like this, what do you do, you stand up, you stop it. so that's also -- you know, it's not just withholding information, it's actually educating our teens. look what happened in chicago. >> exactly. >> and all over our country. but it's about helping them know the right thing to do. giving them the tools to make those choices. >> and look at that. we have to run, but you bring up an excellent point as we go. this no snitching, kids are

against each other. you can't snitch. and that whoever tells the truth and gets justice, that person then becomes the target. so -- just so much going on here. such a sad, sad story. guys, thanks so much. coming up -- >> thank you. >> we're going to talk about a near-death experience. we're going to change the mood a little bit. a couple sleeping, middle of the night. when that joins them in bed. a car on top of both of them.

i'm talking about living a nightmare. picture this. you're sound asleep. next thing you know, a car is on top of new your bed. it actually happened to a couple in sparks, nevada, suburb of reno. here's the aftermath. the engine just inches from their faces, dripping hot motor fluids. isn't it terrifying? joining us to talk about it,

trent wood, he lived to tell the tale. all right, trent, let's go through this. middle of the night, you're sound asleep and then what? car on top of you. take us through it. >> yeah, it was nuts. it was just like an hour before that actually happened, i was actually doing a daily news report for one of my classes, and i went to bed, and the next thing i knew, there was just like a really loud sound just coming out -- so shocked, like coming out of sleep like a dream. you don't even think what's going on until like i realized there's like a car on top of us. it was really hard to get through my head. >> how long did that take? i am picturing that. i have been in that stupor myself, and you wake up and it's like, what? how long did it take before you realized, this is a car on top of us? >> it was -- i have to say that before apparently -- because i had no idea that the guy actually took off from there. i first -- my first reaction was, okay, there's someone either unconscious or dead up there. we were like screaming for help.

and it was like -- i thought the roof caved in. like from an earthquake. we were both talking about it, because it was a real old house. we didn't know if that was the case and i looked up and i could barely see like the light flashing. and to the left of my i could kind of see that it was a radiator grilled to the left of me and kristin was on the other side of my screaming. and i could see the tire on the right side, and i'm like, there's a car on top of us right now. >> okay. what was that conversation? so -- so i take it kristin calmed down enough so where you guys could confer and say -- realize what had happened. take us through that. >> well, first like the fluids and everything was spitting on like our face. it's just shooting out at us. so that first reaction was like, uh-oh, it's going to blow up or there's going to be a fire. kristin, her head was more pinched in between the car, like part of the engine. and the stuff was actually going in her eye. she actually had more burns on her face. so she was screaming really bad. and we both started yelling for

help. and luckily our neighbors right next door called and the police were there real quick. and that's when i'm like, okay, well help is on the way. we need to kind of calm down, save our energy. we don't want to pass out or anything. it was tough not seeing her but i could hear her, so. so we were just making sure both of us were there. just talking to each other. hopefully we don't have any puncture wounds or anything and it's unbelievable that we didn't. >> who was calmer? i imagine you both panicked at first but then you settled in and said, okay -- >> yeah, yeah. oh, yeah, at first, we were both panicking. and she was screaming really bad. because she had more -- i could actually move above my chest, my arms and my neck. but she couldn't move anything. so she was more freaked out abe little b a little bit. after that, as soon as we knew the firefighters were there, we were like just calm down and that's when one of the police officers was really talking to her like the whole way through. >> you mentioned some of these fluids from the engine are

dripping down in your faces. what else is going on as far as the discomfort here? i guess another part of the car is on your legs, is that right? >> yeah, yeah. the bottom half was actually pinching both me and kristin's waist. at first i was like, i can't feel my legs. we thought we were paralyzed. just completely couldn't feel, just a stinging situation, our hips were stinging. but nothing below that. everything was pushed against the bed. if it wasn't for the bed, if it was more stable or hard we would easily have broke our legs. it helped compress it down to where -- yeah, i mean, it was crazy. >> you were under there 40 minutes. >> 42. >> it must have seemed like an eternity. >> for us, yeah. there was a huge process in getting that thing off. it was teeter-tottering.

if it fell over, the tires were nearly on the bed. it was so perfect parallel on to the bed, if it would have fell off one of us would have been crushed if not dead. there was strategy of moving it and getting the debris out. the debris was in the house. they had to cut through the side of the house and have a group take the debris out so they could get on both sides of the car and try to lift it. >> can you hang with me a little bit longer? >> yeah. yeah. >> when we come back, a couple of questions for you. the feeling to go back and see what had happened and also at that point you realize you cheated death and the follow up to that is how has that changed your outlook on life. if you want to call in, the number 1-877-tell-hln. 

a 7-year-old girl laid to rest while her killer is on the loose. somer thompson kidnapped while walking home from school and murdered. this hour, we honor the life of an innocent child, talk to her grieving father as police desperately hunt for the sick person who committed this heinous act. plus this. a cow plows into a home and lands on top of a couple while they are sleeping. they spent 42 minutes underneath this vehicle, gas, fluids spewing in their face. they think they are going to

die. they survive. call in. 1-877-tell-hln. e-mail us cnn.com/primenews or shoot us a text at hlntv. start your message with the word prime. it is your chance to be heard. >> welcome. this is hour number two. jasper howard was just 20 years old stabbed to death outside of a school death at the university of connecticut. howard just helped his team in a big win over louisville. he earned the game ball. described by those as a great friend, a great young man. he was about to be a dad as well. just over a week ago. since then 40 law enforcement officers have been investigating, over 200 interviews have been conducted and three people have been arrested. >> i'd just like to take a moment to recognize the outstanding efforts of the investigators and support personnel that worked on this case. they worked tirelessly.

they worked consistently, they worked constantly. >> all right. the three people arrested, john lomax iii. he is charded with murder and conspiracy to commit assault. also arrested hakim muhammed and jamal todd. he pulled the fire alarm. so was he in on this as well? joining us to talk about it, david owens, reporters for the "hartford current," mike brooks, defense attorney jennifer bonjing. cory bell, the director of football operations for miami university. cory, you were jasper's high school coach. and cory, let's start with you as we want to -- we'll get into the investigation a minute. as we look at that smiling face, just a young man described as a great young man. what can you tell us about him?

what was jasper like? >> jasper was a very reputable young man, very responsible, very coachable. a kid looking for insight, new ideas, to find ways to get better, to better his situation. so any time you get a kid like that you pretty much want to pour your heart into him and give him the information he needs to survive. >> it had to break your heart when you heard of his death. didn't it? >> definitely. just getting back from a football game, traveling back from orlando. i may have been home about an hour before i got the phone call around 4:45, 5 a.m. to get such a phone call and text messages about one of the kids been taken away, such a

tragic moment. >> yeah. you know, when we see the pictures of him, it seems to be accompanied with a smile. was he one of those likable kids, likable teammates everyone wanted to be around? >> very much so. the guys always wanted to be around. he always made them laugh. even the coaches. being around the coaches. we all enjoyed him. we all enjoyed his company because he was that type of kid. like i said before, just a kid when i first got him, he comes to you, 5'9", maybe 135 and then you looking at him wondering what this kid can do. but he had a heart of a lion and we did everything with his teammates and he played the game very well and with a big heart. coach, thanks again, cory bell. heart of a lion. i don't think there are many men

who would turn down that compliment. coach, thanks again. our condolences. real quick, there is going be the jasper t. howard endowment scholarship for student athletes at uconn if you want to contribute we will have information. the jasper howard fund that will help the family with funeral costs as they try to come to grips with this. just a proper goodbye for jasper. let's talk about the investigation now. three arrests. david owens. what do we know about these three guys? do we know any more details about what happened that tragic night? >> we don't have a lot of detail the warpts have been sealed. they will be sealed for at least 14 days. they are three guys who have a friendship it seems. they are from bloomfield, connecticut, a town just north of hartford. we have learned mr. low max, the

accused murderer has the history of threatening a former girlfriend with whom he has a child and ah police record for violating a restraining order. >> they are friends. the third guy who pulled the fire alarm, could have been in on it. >> yeah. lomax and muhammed live on the same street. todd seems to be in their circle as well. >> mike, as we were talking conspiracy to commit assault. what does that tell you? that was a planned attack and jasper howard was the target? >> everything is sealed, but to me that is exactly what it says. was jamal todd -- did he pull this alarm so they could get everyone out to go ahead with the conspiracy to assault someone. as a result of this assault someone was murdered.

why did they, number one, why did he pull the fire alarm and all three of these folks are tied up together. they are not students at the university of connecticut. we heard early on in this investigation, mike, it was basically two groups of people, students and non students alike. 300 people were outside that building when that happened. other 200 people had been interviewed in this case. it was good old-fashioned police work. last week, mike, we were talking about these e-mails, hearing from university of connecticut students that there were some e-mail threats about snitching. it didn't work. >> three arrests. we'll continue this conversation more about why. what happened that night? what about that fight. we'll take your calls at 1-877-tell-hln.

just to think what it would be like for that young child but as jazz looks down on us, i can promise him and his family that son will have -- or daughter, will have 105 uncles for the rest of his life and we will do what it takes to not get through this, but to grow from it. >> a teammate and friend of jasper howard as we continue with breaking news. three arrests have been made in the death of jasper howard. great football player, great young man, father to be.

jennifer, a case like this, where the details are somewhat sparse as we try to figure out, 300 people in this dance, fire alarm pulled, everyone comes out, a fight ensues, young man ends up dead. >> let me say this, for there to be true justice for jasper howard it is important that the investigation reveals the true culprits and they are convicted in a fair proceeding. right now we have so little information about the actual evidence. the fact that they lived on the same block and knew each other and one may have a background in domestic violence is not evidence. it means nothing. you point out something very important it looks, it appears much of the evidence that is going to come in is eyewitness accounts or statements from these individuals turning on each other, that is another possibility. those are the most notoriously

types of unreliable evidence. it is important to see what the corroboration is and whether there is or is not a cohesive motive the show there was, in fact, a conspiracy. there is a lot left to be answered. >> this is investigators where you do your best work where you bear down and get the truth out of them? >> absolutely. to get an arrest warrant for murder you have to have probable cause. apparently they had it and that is why lomax is locked up. >> getting an arrest warrant is easy. >> leave it to a grand jury. >> it is not that hard to get an indictment. >> when we come back, we say goodbye to a beautiful 7-year-old girl, somer thompson.

so sad. family, friends, complete strangers gathered today to say goodbye to a 7-year-old girl. somer thompson, kidnapped while walking home from school and murdered. the community of orange park, florida, is coming together. that is good to see. but there is still a sense of terror because somer's killer is still out there. police have received 1, 400 tips but few credible leads. we'll take your calls, 1-877-tell-hln. we expect to speak with somer's

father, samuel thompson. we have natisha lance and mike brooks as well. natisha, first to you as we talk about who could have done this. any new leads in this investigation. >> no new leads but they are letting us know they have not given up on this investigation. there are 50 investigators working full time on this case. as you pointed out there are about 1,400 leads. they have upped that number to 1,700 leads and tips continuing to come in. the people in this neighborhood have not ginn up. a group in the neighborhood have started a group of their own called mothers against predators. they want to bring justice for little somer thompson. >> mike, what is the number one sight? evidence from the land fill or this vacant home? >> right now i think it could be

a combination of both places. where the body was found at that landfill in georgia, i guarantee you they've got a lot of evidence from there that they are not talking about anything at all. i don't blame them. they are holding their cards very close to the vest in this place. we go to the house on ganos street where she was last seen in front of this place as natisha was down there just the other day was watching them with alternate light sources, working this crime scene and the mobile crime lab and taking evidence out of there. i think you will see a combination of both. we know there is one crime scene, but where did this happen? was it at this house? was it smr else? we don't know. >> the sheriff was on the nbc "today" show. >> i anticipate this is going to be a very complex, very drawn

out process that's going to be solved not through some computer voodoo but through good old-fashioned police work. >> natisha, long investigation. why so complex? what do you glean? >> like the sheriff said good old-fashioned police work. that led to following the trash and digging through the hundred tons of garbage to find her little legs sticking out. like the sheriff said it is a tough investigation for them even though they found her body early on. it is still this issue of the trash. where did it come from. they have pinned it down to the exact truck. now which residence or if it is a business and continuing to reinterview the people they have spoken to. >> okay. joining us now, samuel thompson, the father of somer thompson.

samuel, thanks for joining us on a difficult day. how are you doing on a day you celebrate your daughter's life and a day you say goodbye. how are you doing? >> as good as anybody could under these circumstances. if it wasn't for all the support of everybody across the country and especially here in jacksonville, you know, it would really be tough to handle it. the love and the prayers fills your heart so you can go on another day. >> you are in our thoughts and prayers, sir, we can tell you about that. tell us about today's service, how somer was honored today. >> it was a beautiful service. they had singers. one of her favorite songs was "you are my sunshine." everybody broke down crying when they sang that. all the people along the streets had purple balloons going up in the air.

it was just amazing, the love that was shown for somer today. and it fills my heart. i want to say god bless everybody and i love you all. >> i'm sure that is so much appreciat appreciated. is there a memory you cling to of little somer? >> there's lots of memories. we used to go to the lake and go out on the boat and play in the water a lot and the last time i saw her we went to jack's beach and she headed straight for the waves. she was fearless. her little brother wanted to play in the tide pool where it was safer. i remember how spunky she was and how loving she was and just a beautiful smile that she had on her face. i just have to hold on to all the special times we had together.

>> you mentioned her little brother, twin brother, how is he doing? how is her older sister. it must be so difficult for them. they just don't understand. >> they are doing as well as a child can. i was talking to little sammy today and we were in the service and everybody had to be real quiet. i said how are you doing, sam. he gave me a thumbs down. you know, abigail she was crying her eyes out and andrew, her older brother, he was holding strong. he's 13. so he was -- i know he is hurting inside but he was handling it pretty good. they are in a lot of pain. you know, they were all very close. they love each other. very loving family. so, you know, just -- i just pray that god will give their hearts peace. >> samuel, thank you for taking time. our thoughts and prayers are with you and your family at this difficult time.

this is horrific. police in richmond, california, say a 15-year-old girl was gang raped for more than two hours, this outside the homecoming dance. she is someone's daughter, in many ways a kid herself. 15 people, all guys, stood around watching. not one made an anonymous 911 call. police are shocked about this situation. >> i remember thinking this is something out of a hollywood movie it is so extremely vicious and absolutely unnecessary. >> we'll take your calls, your thoughts on this as we try to

make sense. 1-877-tell-hln. joining us now, michelle golland and john lucich and courtney pilchman, defense attorney and former sex crimes prosecutor. how do teenagers get to the place where they are going to brutalize a 15-year-old girl like this? >> well, it is so frightening and bordering on sociopathic. the fact this went on for two hours and it wasn't until the rumors started flying within the gym that anyone went and found her unconscious. it is horrifying. >> that is one of the reasons that this whole thing was found out. some who were a part of it reportedly began reminiscing about the event which adds another sick layer. michelle, let me stay with you. a 15-year-old suspect talks about a mob mentality. how does that dynamic unfold in a case like this? >> well, it does. what happens in a group

situation is instantly the victim becomes othered. they are no longer human and no longer in the group. so that is sort of what happens. people feel like they can do anything to that person and then they get carried away feeling if he thinks it's okay i think it is okay and these four other people thinks it is okay. it would have taken one person to shift that dynamic. just one person would have shifted that to where it would have stopped and a 911 call would have been made. it is horrifying. >> it is unconscionable. that was the mindset. as others found out over the two-hour period they didn't want to help, they wanted to join in. >> it is disgusting. >> john, how difficult is it going to be to investigate and nab all of these -- all of the attackers here? >> it is going to take some time but you are going to talk to the

people and interviewed and they will cave in. there could be further charges filed. when we look at these guys standing around. did they try to prevent this woman from leaving? were they blocking the view so no one could see? that could lead to conspiracy. i can tell you this, i have interviewed a lot of people and they fold. especially in a crime like this these people will fold fast on each other and i think you will see a lot more arrests. >> courtney, as you've prosecuted crimes like this, can they get in trouble for just watching and not doing anything when someone should have stepped up? >> not for just watching. but john brings up a fantastic point, aiders and abetters, encourage, encite the act, conceal the victim from the public or law enforcement. these people are as guilty, those participating as guilty as the people committing the crimes. those who are sitting and

watching, unfortunately, there is not a lot you can do with them. >> michelle, let's get you back in on this. with the mindset, how does someone not make the one phone call? one anonymous 911 call? >> they are animals. >> basically, they were only interested in self-gratification. they were enjoying the experience. they were caught up in it and they need to be prosecuted. one is a 19-year-old. i think we as a society need to look at sex crimes whether it is against children or adults in a very harsh way and a very different way than we have been. >> let's talk about prosecution. courtney, there is a 19-year-old. we throw the book at him. what about the 15-year-old or 16-year-old? how tough can we be? >> i think we are tough. throw them all in adult court, the juveniles as well and charge

them. i was a prosecute tor of sex crimes for a long, long time. through a ten in egregious conduct this is an 11. it is out of control. you group these kids together and send them to prison. if they want to know what gang rape is all about they'll find out in prison. this is just unbelievable. >> by the way, we are talking your calls, 1-877-tell-hln. a facebook comment from mary, my heart goes out to this poor girl who will now live with these scars for the rest of her life and those involved should be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. what we're talking about here. michelle, off that, let me ask you, how does a 15-year-old recover from something like this that was described by one of the officers as a life-altering experience? >> i'm assuming she is going to be getting some counseling. she is going to need to deal with this trauma. the physical and emotional

ramifications are huge. and, you know, i think one of the things we find that can be helpful is sort of becoming an advocate. so help -- having her work to deal with other crime victims may be very beneficial to her. >> let's get a call in. christy in florida. your thoughts here. >> caller: yes. i feel that, you know, maybe the girl was part of the gang and she wanted to get out and maybe that was the way of her getting out. >> interesting point. we haven't heard that. we know the details, the few we have is that she knew somebody in the group and they invited her over. we believe there was some alcohol consumed but there has not been talk of gang or her involvement in a gang. so but i'm sure more details will come out. we will continue on this topic. 1-877-tell-hln.

welcome back to "prime news" on hln. a brutal crime. a 15-year-old raped, gang raped and beaten into critical condition, this outside of a homecoming dance. she is 15. as many as six raped her. there is a 15-year-old who is a suspect as well as a 19-year-old. we are taking your calls

1-877-tell-hln. facebook comments. this is from vanessa. writing this is just sad. when will kids realize that doing nothing at all is worst than the crime itself. 15 guys watched and did nothing. some may have videotaped this on the cell phone. let's go to john lucich, how do we find that out f one of these creeps videotaped this? >> they are going to get search warrants. they will check everyone's cell phones, no doubt about it. this is one of the sickest crimes that can happen. what makes it worse is a lot of individuals just sat there and watched this horrific crime by these animals and it makes them just as bad. like your other expert said, one person shoving somebody and saying stop this could have ended the whole thing. it could have shifted that dynamic. i agree with that. nobody did the right thing. everybody deserves to go down.

>> courtney, about someone videotaping this. what kind of laws are broken there? what punishment are we looking at? >> again, nothing. you have evidence gathering. john talked about, people will fold on each other. those who are not involved will be forthcoming, those in a heap of trouble want to get out of trouble and offer investigation. the people standing there and videotaping there is nothing you can charge them with. >> let's get a call in. jay in kentucky. your thoughts here. >> caller: thank you so much for taking the call. >> yeah. >> caller: you know it is very sad that we have to live in such a place, we live in land that is to be free and to be enjoyable and the answer is in front of us at all times if we allow the media and the -- not yourselves but the media that promotes these types of things and the

subtle, the video entertainment that promotes these things, these boys that did this, possibly 15, 16, 17, 18 years of age, five years ago they were under teenage but could have been playing and watching movies and games that promotes and stall this type of mentality in a young mind. when that mind develops into a mind that can act upon these things. it is just sad that the answer is in front of us at all times. i have three young children myself. we totally forbid anything of that manner. >> thanks for the call. we have to run here. you are right on that front. you bring up a good point. i'm not going to blame video games specifically, but michelle let's talk about that. you plant a seed when the video games that will scar your soul. some of the "m" rated games are

horrific. i'm not blaming it. when we look big picture it doesn't help. >> it definitely can desensitize children to those things. what we need to have in our public schools and in our schools is a culture that is different in the sense of what do we teach them on how to deal with conflict resolution, how to be respectful to each other, how to treat each other with understanding and respect and if you are in a situation like this, what do you do? you stand up. you stop it. that is also -- it is not just withholding information, it is educating our teens. look what happened in chicago. >> exactly. >> all over our country. it is ability helping them know the right thing to do. giving them the tools to make those choices. >> and look at that. we have to run, but you bring up an excellent point, this no snitching. that kids are against each other. you can't snitch. whoever tells the truth and gets

justice, that person becomes the target. so just so much going on here. such a sad, sad story. guys, thanks so much. coming up, we are going to talk about a near-death experience. we are going to change the mood. a couple sleeping, the middle of the night when that joins them in bed. a car on top of both of them.

talk about living a nightmare. picture this, you are sound asleep, next thing you know a car is on top of you in your bed. here is the aftermath, the engine inches from their faces, dripping hot motor fluids. joining us to talk about it,

trent wood, he's lived to tell the tale. all right, trent. let's go through this. middle of the night you are sound asleep and what? car on top of you. take us through it. >> yeah. it was nuts. an hour before that i was doing a daily news report for one of my classes and i went to bed and the next thing i knew it was like a real loud sound and just coming out of -- i was so shocked, just coming out of sleep, like a dream. you don't know what is going on until i realize there is car on top of us. it is hard to get through my head. >> how long did that take? i have been in that stupor myself and it is like, what. how long did it take before you realized there was a car on top of us? >> apparently i had no idea the guy actually took off from there. my first reaction is there is someone unconscious or dead up

there. we were screaming for help. it was like i thought the roof caved in like from an earthquake. we were talking about it. it is a real old house. i looked up and could barely see the light flashing. to the left of me i could see a radiator grill and kristen was on the other side screaming. i could see the tire on the right side and i was, like, there is a car on top of us right now. >> okay. what was that conversation? kristen calmed down enough you could confer and realize what had happened. take us through that. >> well, first, like, the fluids and everything spitting on our face, just shooting out at us. the first reaction is uh-oh. it is going to blow up or there is going to be a fire. kristen, her head was pinched between the car and the engine. the stuff was going in her eyes. she had burns on her face. she was screaming really bad.

we started yelling for help. our neighbors called and police were there real quick. i was, like, okay, well help is on the way. we need to calm down and save our energy. we don't need to pass out or anything. it was tough not seeing her. i could hear her. we were talking to each other, hopefully we don't have puncture wounds or anything. >> who was calmer? >> me. >> i would imagine you both panicked at first but you settled in and said, okay. >> oh, yeah. we were both panicking. she was screaming really bad because she had more -- i could actually move above my chest, my arms and my neck. she couldn't move anything so she was more freaked out. as soon as we knew the firefighter were there we were like, okay, we need to calm down. one of the police officers was really talking to her the whole way through. >> okay. you mentioned some of these fluids from the engine are

dripping down in your faces. what else is going on as far as the discomfort here? i guess another part of the car is on your legs, is that right? >> yeah. yeah. the bottom half was pinching both me and at first i'm like -- we're like we can't feel our legs. we thought we were paralyzed, just completely couldn't feel. a real stinging sensation. and like our hips were stinging and stuff. but nothing below that. everything was just pushed against the bed down. if it wasn't for the bed, part of the bed, if it was more stabile or hard, we would have easily broke our legs or anything. it kind of helped compress it down a little bit to where -- yeah. i mean it was crazy. >> wow. so you're under there, what, 40 minutes, roughly? >> yeah. >> it must have seemed like eternity, huh? >> oh, yeah, for us, definitely. because you don't know, okay, any minute now. you know? or how are they doing? but there was a huge process in getting that thing off because any way it was like teeter tottering so when it went wrong

one way or fell over because the tires were just nearly on the bed. it was so perfect, like, parallel onto the bed, like if it would have fell off, one of us would have been crushed easily if not both dead. so a lot of strategy behind moving it first and getting all of the debris out. all of the debris was still in the house. they had to cut through the side of the house, chainsaw and have like a group come in and start taking all of the debris out where they could get on both sides of the car and try to lift it from there. >> okay can you hang with me for just a little bit longer. >> yeah. >> okay when we come back couple of questions for you and don't answer them now. we'll get them after the break. the feeling to go back and see what had happened. and also at that point you realize, you cheated death. and the follow-up to that is, how's that change your outlook on life? we'll hit on all of that and if you want to call in, please do. @

tonight a young woman brutally gang raped after a high school dance. cops say this poor girl was waiting for her dad to woman pick her up when she was assaulted, raped and brutalized for 2 1/2 hours. cops say as many as 15 people stood around and watched as this young woman was nearly raped to death. this is beyond horrific. how come something like this happen on school property? and coping with tragedy. la toya jackson says that michael jackson's three children here in therapy as they struggle with their father's death. meanwhile, michael's movie debuts today but is it too soon for his heart broke family? disturbing insight into the david letterman sexual affair. a former female staffer pulls

back the curtain in the late-show atmosphere calling the office a hostile work environment that's demeaning to women and that's just the beginning. rumors of sex, promotions and secret affairs, we'll have all of the sexual details. plus, chilling, new development unless somer thompson murder. could this be the work of a serial child killer? the 7-year-old was kidnapped and murdered while walking home from school. the killer, still on the loose. now, cops believe the person responsible may have attacked before. we'll take a look. "issues" starts now. >> good evening, i'm vinnie politan in for jane velez-mitchell. tonight a hideous crime, just steps away from a crowded high school dance. a 15-year-old girl was gang raped for 2 1/2 hours. she had just left a homecoming dance saturday night when she was lured into a dark courtyard and attacked. >> we discovered a 15-year-old juvenile who had been brutally assaulted and we discovered her just outside of richmond high

school. >> now the victim is expected to recover from her physical injuries, but there's no telling what the psychological toll will be. police say that the girl was being brutally raped and beaten more than ten kids watched and did absolutely nothing to stop it. >> their behavior was either not get involved, not tell us. just sit there and observe it or in some cases to get involved and to commit crimes. >> police have arrested two people, they think, were involved in the attack. a 15-year-old classmate of the victims and a 19-year-old former student, manuel ortega. police say when they got to the scene ortega took off running. now police say the victim drank alcohol before this attack and may have been drugged. investigators think some of the witnesses took pictures of the rape and possibly cell phone video. hopefully some of that evidence will lead to more arrests. this whole thing is truly horrific. now out to my guests

tonight. criminal defense attorney, bradford cohen, psychotherapist, robbie ludwig. criminal defense attorney janey weintraub. don clark, former fbi special agent in charge. and henry lee for the "san francisco chronicle. ." >> what's the latest in this unbelievable investigation in are. >> a horrific incident indeed. police tell me today more arrests of possible. right now we have a 15-year-old boy in custody as well as a 19-year-old man, former student at richmond high school. they expect to have many more arrests in this case. very terrible case indeed. >> now, investigators are saying that people are talking? because this is a whole crowd of kids that are supposed to be at this gang rape, some of them watching, some of them taking part. are people talking? >> what's interesting is they are telling, people are talking but key suspects that they have in custody are showing absolutely no remorse. keep in mind that the police are telling us that these -- these

assailants were taking photos of the victim, laughing, almost not caring about the sheer horor that this girl must have been experiencing at the time and now. >> well, it is hard to understand how no one helped this girl. i'm not just talking about the kids who gathered around and watched the attack. a google street view now of the high school where hundreds of students attended a homecoming dance. they were also teachers, chaperones and four police officers there that night. this whole school is surrounded by homes, there's some small businesses there. and this attack, don't forget, it went on for over two hours. robi ludwig, you shocked, that no one called police until later that night, or is this the kind of thing that people, you know what, i don't want to get involved? >> you know i am shocked. and the only thing that i could say is that perhaps people were so in shock that they were somehow in denial. sometimes when you watch a group engaging in an activity, somehow the brain can say, oh, well, maybe this makes sense. but this is very disturbing.

and i wonder if somehow these kids growing up in having access to the internet and perhaps porn sites, somehow desensitize them to when they see violence going on and that they don't realize hey, this is something serious that is harming somebody, and therefore don't take the necessary steps. >> yeah this is so troubling. don clark, i want to bring you in on the investigation here. police are obviously -- there's tons of witnesses here. tonses -- >> yeah. >> -- tons of witnesses. is that key to this case, or is the key in finding those paragra photographs that may have taken? because fortunately the kids who commit crimes these days are stupid. they post this stuff on the internet. where do you think that the real breaks are going to come from. >> i think the breaks will come right from that scene. you will have forensic evidence that you will develop from the police who have been represented so far as well as this young lady in what she's gone through so that's going to be the immediacy. and this is priority, vinnie, is to really identify the people

who were actively involved in this. bad enough people watching, but people who were actively involved in this, they have enough people around there. and no matter those two, three that they've got arrested are not talking right now, trust me, the law enforcement community has to get out there and identify all of the rest of those people and somebody will eventually talk. >> all right, now police say some of the kids who watched the attack, laughed about it, took pictures with their cell phones. now their behavior, clearly reprehensible, but is it criminal? check out this clip from cnn "newsroom." >> this is something that absolutely shocks people, that you can have bystanders witnessing a crime, they have no legal obligation to call the police. they cannot be prosecuted. >> all right, janey, do you agree, if these kids were cheering, egging on the attacker, saying "go, go, go," could they be prosecuted for that? >> well, you know there is a close line of what is an aider or abetter. certainly, mere presence and just watching somebody does not make you an aider or abetter.

if you're enticing, encouraging, goating on, causing in some way, doing something overtly to cause the act to continue, perhaps you could be looked at as an aider or abetter but no doubt, vinnie, morally culpable, 100%. legally culpable probably not at. probably only the participants. >> what if this 15-year-old girl is now videotaped, being raped? that sounds like a crime to me if you are videotaping this stuff. >> if they desseminate that videotape in any way, if they post is t any way, keep it on their phone or show other kids or show other people now you're getting into an area where definitely it would be a felony offense and i would imagine that the police would absolutely prosecute these kids that would disseminate it on their phone or consider it. when you look at the morality where no one reported it, these cops are going to look to see what they can file on these kids and janey's absolutely right, if they were egging them on, if

they were cheering them on, i think the police are going to look to prosecute these individuals. because morally, if you get this in front of a jury they're going to feel that a jury would convict in terms of egging someone on saying "go, go, go" or doing whatever they are doing, it's really a disgusting thing that happened. >> henry lee from "the san francisco chronicle." what's the reaction been there locally? people have to be outraged but these are the children of the high school who are taking part and cheering on this whole thing. >> that's right and keep in mind as any high school as you can imagine in america, vinnie, you have got clicks of students who are -- the people who really don't do well to the people who excel, who take a.p. classes, you have got the band, you have got people in different walks of life that they are all sharing the horror vinnie. it is working class neighborhood. it's seen its share of crime but this has even shocked the conscience of many veteran police officers, students,

alumni, and certainly administrators and staff. >> all right, don clark, how do you get these kids to talk, you know? because kids, they don't want to be the one who is ratting out their friends. they don't want to be the one of the group of ten or 15 who actually turn state's evidence and is the one who spills the bean on the whole crew. how do you deal with whether it's a 15 or 16-year-old boy and you're interrogating him trying to get him to tell the truth? how do you get through them? >> you may have to try to identify those who likely have the information and get all of them there, but you know, what vinnie, you'll have to go to some of the parents of these 14, 15-year-olds and i don't know what kind of neighborhood in economic level. i will bet that many of those parents would not really support their kids being around this type of thing and certainly if they can cooperate and i've experienced it, vinnie omy own. i've taken kids to parents and parents have said, boy usit down andtuke that man. >> you are looking at it, don. a 15-year-old skid looking to be

prosecuted as an adult you know i don't know if the parents are going to be so willing to tell the kid, you know, spill the beans without a deal. i think the answer is it's a squeeze play. you squeeze the juvenile to testify against the adults, that's what police normally do. >> well, bradford, how about -- bradford, how about if it is someone who is just an onlooker? and you don't have to give them a deal, do you, because you can't prosecute them for anything. someone who just an onlook sernot somebody committing a crime. >> who knows what they did in terms if they were active participants, egging people on. again, i do find that quite it happens in quite a few cases where the parents do say, tell this man the truth. and you are thinking -- >> that's what we need. we need some honesty here. somebody in richmond, please. >> that's what happens. >> more on this horrific gang rape. in just a minute, much more on this and also taking your calls. 1-877-jvm-says. that's 1-877-586-7297. plus, michael jackson's new movie hits theaters today but is

it too soon for his family? we'll take a look at it as his chernomyrdin to cope with michael's death. but first a teenaged girl viciously gang raped outside of a high school band. attack lasted 2 1/2 hours. how could anyone do this? >> it is a waive thinking of something out of a hollywood movie. it's so extremely vicious and absolutely unnecessary.

>> officers then discover ed a 15-year-old female lying beneath

one of the benches. we found her lying there. and she was unconscious. >> i'm vinnie polittan in for jane velez-mitchell. that was an investigator in richmond, california, a community shocked by a horrific school crime. police say a 15-year-old girl was gang raped and beaten outside a school dance, while classmates watched. police have made two arrests and expect to make several more. now back to my expert panel. henry lee, can you describe where the dance was taking place versus where the attack took place. how would you describe the lay of the land there. and did the school have security cameras in place? >> that's right, the gym was the location of this homecoming dance went from 7:00 until 11:00 p.m. saturday. this attack occurred over several hours in a separate part of campus in a secluded part of the campus. there were four police officers and several school sites, supervisors but district sups, the district officials tell me they did two of the supervisors

home because the cops said they can handle it. now clearly the dance was a safe one but beyond that clearly it was anything but safe. >> and all of this was taking place outside of the dance but it did take place on school grounds so the question here is, is the school liable? a spokesman for the school district says once a students leaves a school function they are not responsible for the student's safety. >> our assumption is that when parents bring their kids to school -- to the dance that they also arrange for a safe ride back. if kids wish to leaved in the middle of the dance we assume that they have a safe ride back. there is a limit as to what we can do. >> all right, bradford cohen, does the victim's family have a case against the school? no school cameras, no security cameras being thuds night. what do you think? >> listen, anybody can sue anyone. it's a decision whether or not they can actually succeed in that lawsuit. in this case i think there were statements made that there was poor light failing that area, that they knew it was a troubled area over there. i think that statement are really going to come back to

haunt them. there's no security cameras around. they figure the kid has a safe ride just because they leave the dance early. i think it's definitely riding on the edge. i would imagine they're probably going to file a lawsuit against the school as well. >> janey weintraub, they file a lawsuit, will they be successful? should the school be legally responsible here? she left the dance, was waiting for her dad and then got lured into another part, but still on school grounds. >> absolutely, vinnie. i mean let's remember this is a school event and not even talking in terms of a lawsuit but let's talk as parents and as reasonable people. this spokesperson just said that he assumes that they have a ride, well, i assume when i send my died school they'll be safe on school property. where was the supervision? i know at our high school in our area the kids can't leave before 11:00 and they have to have a signed krrts of where and who is taking them and transporting them. we have to be vigilant together. parents and the school, but as far as a lawsuit, i think it's a no-brainer, unfortunately, because the bigger issue is, as

a community, why is everybody just passing the buck? >> let's find out what the folks at home think, sharon in virginia is on the line. good evening, sharon. >> caller: hi, how are you? >> good, sharon. >> caller: yeah. i was gang raped at gun point at age 16 by seven boys and men. and i think this is outrageous. the main thing what kills me is that there were four police officers there. two of them should had been outside where they were needed and this child, i mean, i have scars, she's going to have them and robi ludwig, the onlookers were so deep and shocked that they said it was okay. honey, we don't need your opinion, okay, because you haven't been there. but dear god you know. >> now i'm not saying -- i'm not saying that that is okay. >> caller: i don't think that the school should be charged that they need to be in on trying to get these students -- >> absolutely, sharon.

sharon, thanks so much for sharing your story with us. robi ludwig we have to let you respond so that you can clarify. >> no, i was not saying it's okay to be an onlooker and doing nothing. when someone secret service me for a psychological explanation it is my role to explain all of the various possibilities. that is not saying that what these kids did were right in any way shape or form and i do think the school should be responsible. this was a school function. so nothing about this was right and i think that we should be concerned just in general that we are seeing more violence amongst younger and younger students and population. that's a serious problem we need to address even as a culture. >> yeah and robi, big difference between explaining the conduct and excusing the conduct and make that clear. >> absolutely. >> to everybody. >> absolutely, thank you. >> i want to go to don clark, don because the security is an issue here. let's say you've got a school dance 400 kids inside. where do you put the security personnel? do you put them all inside?

should there be people patrolling outside? remember this alleged attack went over the course of two hours. >> yeah, yeah, of course now you can't put them all in any one place because you have got kids there. they have to come and whether they go in or out or not and meet their families to be picked up or whatever ucannot allow -- the school cannot allow them to be unsuperviced at any point that they're on that ground unless of course they come on that grounds and not knowing but this was a function. so i think the school should have had much better security there. particularly, somebody should have been watching if a young girl leaves the door and walks out with what may be dim light or no light whatsoever, somebody should had been there to say, "no kid, you will wait until your parent gets here." >> absolutely. >> vinnie, this wasn't a secret. there were ten to 15 kids cheering or yelling it on and nobody noticed? that's the troubling thing. because you know these kids are talking to each other and no one has the hand on the pulse as to what is going on. thanks so much to my fantastic

panel. coming up one former letterman employee is speaking out about her experience working with that famous host. and after the break, the jackson family's agony. how are the kids coping and would the king of pop even want "this is it" released?

now to a look at michael jackson the father and performer like you've never seen him. trust me. >> i love you i really do. >> you're family just know that. ♪ >> "this is it" hitting theaters as we speak. for devoted fans a hugely anticipated event but for michael jackson's immediate family maybe not so much. first, controversy over whether michael would have wanted this rehearsal footage to be seen by the public. sister la toya has said, no. >> i don't agree with it but at the same time i respect la

toya's concerns. michael was a perfectionist. what this is it a great celebration. i mean master of his craft. it's a privileged peek. i mean, genius. >> as for la toy abest known to "issues" viewers for this clip from tmz. >> la toya, do you still believe in a conspiracy. >> murder, i think that someone did it, it's murder. that's my opinion. >> la toya's still mixing it up in the media. still telling the "uk mirror" that his children here in therapy. the status of the kids, little blank wheat reportedly cries nonstop. listen, can you really blame them? joining me now with more behind-the-scenes' scoop about har paris, prince and blanket and of course the movie ken baker executive news editor of "e." michael's kids plan to watch this footage of their dad at their own private screening?

do you think that this will make matters better or worse for these three kids? >> it's hard to say. myself i'll be seeing the movie myself in hours. downtown l.a. there are screenings think all night and more information on that. but from what i been this it is very emotional time for the kids right now. their father is plastered everywhere around los angeles. they live right down the street from this studio i'm in right now and you can't go anywhere in l.a. without seeing a bus or a billboard or something with michael jackson on it. they are fully aware of this. they want to see it. and you know particularly the older children, i mean i are talking 12, 11 years old, they want to see something you know that's of their father. i think it would be hard to say, no. at the same time though, la toya jackson did give an interview to "the mirror" in the uk and it was very touching i have to tell you. she said that paris does cry all of the time that the children are very sad. they miss their dad. they talk about him all of the time and i think it's going to be a really, really difficult time for them. i mean, look, it's a grieving process is hard enough. they're doing it in the glare of the media, there are paparazzi

staked outside of their house every day and i think it's really hard. they're being homeschool now. their caretaker's a 79-year-old grandmother who needs a lot of help from aunts and uncles and like right now the movie's coming out, it's a night of celebration for michael jackson and hopefully the kids may be will get uplifted at least somewhat in a very difficult sometime why is that that we always hear about la toya? she's the one always making the headlines when it comes to michael. what was their relationship at the end? >> well you know la toya was actually very close to michael. she was close to the kids. she would visit the home a lot when he was living in l.a. the last year or so but the thing is that you know i can't prove this to you but rumors always been that la toya does get paid for a lot of interviews. perhaps she was paid for this interview at the "lyndon mirror" newspaper. >> wait a minute are you saying that a member of the jackson family is trying to profit from all of this? breaking news, grab the headlines. we appreciate your time. all right, coming up, a former female letterman writer

spillless the inside secrets on what it was like working for letterman.

disturbing insight into the david letterman sexual affair. a former female staffer pulls back the curtain on the late show atmosphere calling the office a hostile work environment that is demeaning to women and that's just the beginning. plus, chilling new developments in the somer thompson murder. could this be the work of a serial child killer? the 7-year-old was kidnapped and murdered while walking home from school and the killer is still on the loose. now cops believe the person responsible may have attacked before. in the spotlight tonight shocking and scandalous new accusations from inside of the david letterman camp. what's it like to be a female comedy writer in the late-night

man's world? apparently not so great. here's a story that you will only see on "issues." was one the few women ever hired to write jokes for dave's show. now she's spilling all letterman's secrets in the new issue of "vanity fair." nell writes behind-the-scenes of the late-show was a hostile sexually charged male-dominant environment. preferential treatment of certain women, he eventually led nell touity. last months letterman was caught up in a $2 million blackmail plot. here he is on cbs' "the late-show." >> i have had sex with women who work on this show. and -- and would it be embarrassing if it were made public, perhaps it would. perhaps it would. especially for the women. >> nell says dave never hoist

her, but did give her some extra attention, enough for people to start talking a little bit about her. she knew dave had sex with staffers and says those women did get more opportunities just like alleged hook-ups stephanie birkitt. there she is in a photo from the news website "les merras." she writes -- so is this business as usual in the late-night comedy culture? it sounds like a little bit of sexism to me. out to my expert panel also joining us, now amy palmer from "in-touch weekly." first off though janey weintraub, the women involved aren't complaining because you know what they're the ones getting the perks but how about the women who aren't sleeping with dave? do they have some sort of case here? >> well, it it depends on what the complaint is. i mean, are they complaining --

>> the complaint is i work in a place and everybody who sleeps with dave they get to do little bits, they get to go to the olympics, they get all the prime positions and you know what i'm not sleeping with them and i'm not getting them. >> vinnie another, not just restricted to "the dave letterman show." this is an old-age problem that women face ands only way it will change, frankly, is when the men step up to the plate in the workplace and say, hey, cut it out. or, don't advance somebody because of it. that's when it's going to change. it's cultural. and it's not a matter of whether or not somebody is harmed watching it. >> robi ludwig, talking about these sexually charged environment and atmosphere. it's a bunch of guys working, it's like a locker room. how does a woman cope with that? and why do guys do that? >> you know, i think guys sometimes think that they're joking and being funny. in some cases it's because they devalue women. it's a way to feel powerful but in some cases it is innocent.

certain women are able to find a way to joke it off. in other cases it's not so innocent. >> all right how about this though, dr. robi. those are the comments and maybe the jokes that are made amongst writers but how about when the guys up on top are sleeping with the women who work there? that's not so innocent. >> right, no. and you either can say something. but the bottom line is, there does have to be a greater, kind of restructuring. if people at the top are doing it and okaying it then i guess that's when the law comes in. to try to say, hey, this not right. but certainly what you could do if you're a woman in that situation, you could say i'm uncomfortable, do your job as it's supposed to be done and try to find an environment that is better suited for you. but i agree with jayne. this is kind of a culturally entrenched issue that needs to be addressed sometimes legally. >> amy palmer, what sort of repercussions are we going to have for "the late show" and for

the career of david letterman now that we're starting to hear more and more? and if ever a criminal trial for the man alleged of extorting david letterman we're going to hear a lot more detailed. >> yeah, absolutely but thing is this, i don't think that dave's audience is going to stray from him. i think they're pretty loyal. what i do think is this is going to be david letterman's legacy. yes, he is one of the late-night legends, as we would say it, but what he is doing a is he's actually opened a dialogue for people in this country to talk about power in the workplace and that's what's happening. what we're talking about. so while as we know him as i great comedian we're talking about this issue which i think is a great step. yeah but trust me, if dave had his choice we wouldn't be talking about this right now. >> but we are. we are and i think that's a step forward. and listen, this has been happening forever, you're right. but now we're talking about it. and maybe the writer who wrote this in "vanity fair," if this happened now she would feel a little more brave when she went

into letterman's office when he asked her, why you are leaving? she said in the article and said i there to lie and said i miss l.a., she didn't say because it's a hostile environment and i'm uncomfortable. maybe now a young woman will see this and say i will speak up. >> exactly. >> and where is the legal advice to that woman? go to hr, human resources and file some report and go and see dave afterwards. >> what if he were popular back in the day, maybe nothing. how important am i or not important? >> yeah. >> and dave kept asking. and maybe, maybe if she had told dave lettermanaun dave letterman said gehry didn't even realize that, maybe it would have senseittized him or brought his awareness up and maybe she would still be working there. >> jayne, am i sensing a little bit of sympathy for dave letterman? are you a fan? >> i am a fan. but sympathy, no. >> yeah, okay, good. >> i mean i had to -- >> because that's not the jayne i know. >> i do have a question, though,

if dave was asking on a regular basis like why you are leaving, why you are leaving? i wonder why on some level he sensed that maybe something was off and he was really curious because sometimes when you are engaged in a behavior you're not always aware of how it's impacting others. >> that's a possibility too. >> all right now nell says the happiest, the absolute happiest day of her life was the first day working on "the late show" with dave letterman but sexual innuendos quickly pushed things downhill "on my last day on late night dave summoned me to his office and pressed me on why i was quitting the show. i considered telling him the truth but with dave's rumored mistress within ear shot ibalked." she's not looking for a lawsuit she wants to tell her are. >> 20 years later and why. >> but what if other female employees start to come forward with similar stories? could that mean that david letterman and his world wide pants are going to get sued? me it would -- no. first of all she's not going to

sue him and second of all, special limitations is run. but most important issue as amy was saying before is, dave obviously asked about it and it concerned him. he didn't want her to leave and he wanted to know why she was leaving and if he were confronted and was given the opportunity to deal with it then we might not be sitting here today but maybe because women are harder on other women and it's -- >> oh they absolutely are. robi ludwig are women hard or other women and are we soft with a guy who makes us laugh? >> i think that women are harder on other women and i think for some reason we're willing to give dave -- i don't know we're willing to look at him in a different kind of way and i'm not exactly sure why that is. i guess because he admitted he was wrong. he brought awareness. and one know could kind of see -- >> he made joke about it too, sort of. >> yeah he made a joke about it. he's not proud of himself. he's aware he did something wrong and i don't think that a lot of people don't know how to handle power especial we they're successful men.

we see this all the time. this is not a news story at all. >> amy palmer -- >> vinnie, can i just say one thing? >> of course, jayne. >> let's not forget here, dave letterman was the victim and let's make no mistake about it, this was an extortion. >> wait a minute, jayne. what happened to the presumption of innocence? >> dave letterman -- >> for david? >> dave letterman had the right and the courage to say, i may be a celebrity, i may be this, but you know what i'm a person and i have got a son and a wife and i will not let them do this to me. >> true, true. >> he went to the authorities and you have to give him credit. >> absolutely. he did do the right thing by going to the authorities. amy palmer, do you think that the rest of the entertainment world, the talk shows have been giving david a break because wants to be their friend, invited on the show and laugh this whole thing off? >> sure, if you think about it, i think about two weeks ago, jimmy kimmel came out and said i'm dating one of my writers and i also think that what he's done

is he's shown other people in television you can get into a lot of trouble for them thso i think that "late night" krur kind of banding together and saying uh-oh i'm sleeping with my writer too and let me come out and say this and like i said it's start a dialogue that's needed and why not have this trickle down into corporate america, where trust me, this is happening all over the place. >> all right, thank you, ladies. i hope i didn't sexually charge the environment during that segment. now, if you jane on facebook you know that she sent a big shout-out to all of you who helped her catapult her book "iwant" onto the ""the new york times" best-seller's list. please keep that momentum going by ordering a copy for yourself and anyone that you care about, go to cnn.com/jane. or your local bookstore. now we've got new drama in t the sexual soap opera. one day after being released from espn, brooke hunley is

firing back and you won't believe these accusations. plus, who killed somer thompson? the murderer is still on the loose but could this cute little girl be the latest victim of a serial killer? we're taking your calls. 1-877-jvm-says. that's 1-877-586-7297.

somer thompson was kidnapped and murdered on her way home from school. the killer is still on the loose but could this be the work of a serial child killer? that's coming up. but first "top of the block" tonight. the plot thickens in the steve phillips' sexual affair, turned-fatal attraction. the former sports analyst

checked into a sexual rehab center and in the meantime his family is still suffering from his mistakes. the kids air mess and they were extremely scared by brooke hunley's actions. you really have to feel sorry for the family here. they had nothing to do with the affair but now while dad's off in rehab, they're smack-dab in the smot light. meanwhile, espn's now being thrown into the mix. according to the "new york post" brooke hunley filed a restraining order against phillips two months ago claiming phillips pressured her for sex. but when she brought this up to her superiors over at espn she was told "get used to it." i don't think that we've heard the last of this story and that's tonight's "top of the block." tonight, hundreds gather around a tiny coffin strewn with purple flowers to mourn the death of 7-year-old somer thompson. meanwhile,s little girl's killer is still on the loose. and police feerp he could be a serial child predator.

america's most wanted's john walsh warned, he thinks this murder can't and won't stop. here he is on abc's "good morning america." >> the sheriff and i both feel that it was a predator who's probably done it before. i don't know if it's the same guy. but 20 years ago there were four kidnappings in the jacksonville area of small children under same circumstances after school or on their way to the buses that were never solved. so i would hate to think that this is a serial child killer who has raised his ugly head. i've seen this happen before, rapist and child killers come out of retirement because they can't stop. four other unsolved cases in the area, is there some sort of a connection? plus, more mind-boggling new clues. new reports out that police records show just hours before somer was found dead, cops arrested four men for robbery at a home. we're trying to confirm this with police right now.

and cops are still scouring this creepy abandoned house. it's the last place somer was seen alive. brand-new reports, a registered sex offender was working on that site. he's allegedly been interrogated for hours by cops. so many questions tonight. back out to my expert panel. also joining us tonight, special guest, samuel thompson, little somer's father. samuel, thank you so much for taking some time and speaking with us. first of all, how are you doing tonight? how are you coping with all of this? >> all i can say is i'm -- i'm handling it just as any father would whose daughter has been taken from him. it's been really hard. but all the love and support that everybody throughout the country -- and it fills your heart with love. it helps you go on minute by minute. >> and how about somer's twin brother, how's he doing?

>> ah, somer's twin brother, he's -- he's taking it real hard. at the church today i ask him how he was doing, and you know he just gave me a thumbs down. and you know that was his best friend. that was his twin sister. and it's going to be a long healing process for him. >> that's got to break your heart to understand -- let's get to the investigation now. what are detectives telling you now is because we're hearing lots of reports. i got to think and i've got to believe and i've got to hope and pray that they are making a lot of progress here. what are your thoughts, your feelings from your discussions with detectives? what are they saying to you. >> well from the discussions that i've had with the detectives, first i want to tell you that i've asked the lord to lead them and guide them to the man who did this, but when i look at these detectives i see fire in their eyes.

they're mad. they're upset. and they're warriors for crime and they're going to find this guy and i almost get the impression that they know who did it. but you know there's not a lot that they can tell me or tell anyone right now. they're keeping a lid on everything. but let me tell you what, the crew they've got working on this, i would be -- i would not want to be the person that that i were hunting down because these are some serious guys. >> yeah, and how about your plans now because you're not from the area. you live in another state. how long are you going to stay in town? and how much interaction are you going to have with your 7-year-old son? >> well, i plan to stay -- i plan to stay here for a few days. we're working on the interaction with the children. there's some issues between my mother and i. >> sure. >> but god bless her and i just

pray and ask god to give her peace. and to help her about her healing, you know? >> do you have a message for the man responsible for this? >> oh, yeah.oh, yeah. first off, i want to tell you that the bible tells me that i have to forgive you. and i forgive you for what you've done. but i'm going to tell you right now, we're going to hunt you down. you can't run. you can't hide. there's not a rock you can get behind. we're going to hunt you down, and you're going to pay. you're going to pay for what you did to my daughter. and god's got a special place for you too in hell. and i just thank everybody who's on this case. >> yeah. i mean, at this -- at this point, though, you are feeling some confidence that police have the fire in their eyes, that they are getting closer to make something sort of breakthrough here? >> yes, sir. i have every bit of confidence

in the detectives in this town. they're a sharp crew, and i wouldn't be surprised if they have him tomorrow. >> all right. everyone, stay right where you are. what we're going to do is move on. poor little somer thompson and the hunt for her killer. we're taking your calls. 1-877-j --

i did her hair for her in the morning, put it up in a ponytail. i can't even remember if i told her i loved her. i went to work and told them to have a good day. she wasn't feeling well, and i told her just try to go to school, if you need me call me. >> that was the mother of 7-year-old somer thompson, brutally murdered by a monster who dumped her body in a pile of trash. her murderer is on the loose, and cops believe her killer may have attacked before. want to bring back in our expert panel. of course, thank samuel thompson, somer's dad, who

joined us previously. you know, a construction worker reportedly renovated the abandoned house where somer was last seen, is a registered sex offender. the house has been vacant for months and is being fixed up by a local construction company. the owner's brother, george vincent, was working on the house. here's his photo from the florida sex offender registry. vinson is listed as committing lewd and lascivious act against a child. that usually means he either fondled or assaulted a child or committed sexual acts on a child or in front of one. vinson's sister spoke to local affiliates and said george was interrogated by police for hours. we still don't know if they're considering him a suspect. don clark, what do you make of this development in the case? >> well, i think it's a good lead for the police, vinny. and they've got to take these leads. i mean, that lead is right there. but i'm sure they're not just solely focusing on that. you know, i have to give this police department, and i agree with the father, a real good applause on what they have done. they've been innovative in their investigation. they've joined with the evidence response team, with the fbi and some of the other law

enforcement. so i think they're really going down the right path. and the leads come out. and knees cases are difficult. and i think the public know by now is that it's not "csi" where it's finished in 60 minutes. they're very, very difficult. i think they've got to develop the evidence. but they've got to follow leads just like the one like you just mentioned about the guy who's a registered sex offender. you can't just brush that off. >> no, you can't. shocking new reports. records from the clay county sheriff's office reportedly show four men were arrested for armed robbery at somer's home just hours before the cops found the little girl's body. now, we don't know if this reported robbery has any relation to the kidnapping and murder. police being very tight-lipped about it. >> you know, we have a suspect out there somewhere who's watching this broadcast right now, and i don't want to tell that suspect what we're doing. >> i understand. >> but i will tell him this. we're coming to get him. and we're going to find who did this and bring him to justice. >> the men are reportedly being held without bond in the clay

county jail. we tried to confirm these details with the sheriff's office, not heard back from them yet. bradford cohen, is this some sort of a connection, do you think it's possible? >> sure. anything's possible. i think what the police are doing which is the most important is that they're keeping tight-lipped about this. this is how an investigation should be done. you don't pick one person and say this is our number one suspect because that's when the defense attorney comes in and says from day one you went after my guy -- >> defense attorney like you. robi ludwig, i want to get back to what happened today. i want to get back to what happened today at the ceremony and the memorial for the young girl. how did the family deal with it? we're a little short on time here, robi. >> listen, the family is in shock, and i'm sure the pain will only get more intense as time goes on. because this is the time when the family gets a lot of support. so they're not alone. and the grieving can be more intense a year, two years down the road, when everybody fades away and you're still living with that loss. >> thanks to my fabulous panel for joining me tonight. remember to click on

cnn.com/jane and please order your copy of her new book "iwant." "iwant." you're watching "issues" on hln. -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com