breaking news tonight. a young mother with five little children in her minivan barrels down the wrong way on a packed interstate highway, slamming into another vehicle. tally, eight dead. one child hanging on to life by a thread. tragedy, yes. accident, no. toxicology reports mommy high on booze and pot. daddy admits, mommy's not afraid of a joint. and tonight, is daddy under investigation? with one dui arrest under his

own belt, is he covering for mommy. and tonight, a court battle brewing. eight people killed, four of them children, a crash so severe, so explosive, all that's left, burned wreckage. >> diane schuler had a blood alcohol content of .19%. diane schuler had approximately six grams of alcohol in her stomach, alcohol yet to be metabolized. toxicology reveals diane schuler had a high level of thc in her blood. thc is the active ingredient contained in marijuana. >> i go to bed every night knowing my heart is clear. she did not drink. she was not an alcoholic. >> because we have never known diane to be anything but a responsible and caring mother and aunt, this toxicology report raises more questions than it provides answers for our family. >> i cannot believe that. this current manifested itself all of a sudden on this one

sunday and never before did she imbibe liquor, in any quantity, never before did she use drugs. we intend to pursue any civil. i believe there's a strong fragrance of criminality. i want to find out what did the husband, brother and other people know. >> and tonight a florida beach beauty marries her dream man and the newlyweds all set to live happily ever after, until death does them part. but the 26-year-old beauty didn't plan on was the hit man she hires to murder the new hubby is a cop. that's right. the cops sting the bride on video. breaking down in hysterical tears, crying over her dead husband, just hours after she puts those special final touches on his shooting death. she was the one on the phone with the would-be hit man, says cops.

we have the video. tonight, we uncover motive. not only does she convince hubby to transfer ownership of their $250,000 town home to her name only. in less than 24 hours she goes shopping for a hit man. bombshell. we learn the identity of the secret informant who alerts police is the wife's alleged lover. yes. just six months into the marriage, the thrill is gone. she reportedly gets a lover who saves the husband's life. as we go to air, the hubby files for divorce and files a restraining order. afraid she might make another try. and where is the blushing bride tonight? should she be in jail? enjoying the company of other female inmates like herself. so much in common. so much to talk about. no. she's free on a low bond.

$2,500 at home with her mommy. please. please. please. no. no. >> seemingly breaking down when she encounters police at her boynton beach home. her husband had been killed or so she thought. the honeymoon was clearly over for dalia, who police say had contacted a hit man and offered the man $3,000 to finish michael off. >> i didn't do anything. and i didn't plot anything. >> there is possibly a robber out there. there was an informant, might have been some sort of extramarital affair, beside just being a friend with that person. >> no. >> okay. meryl streep, watch out. there is an oscar winning

performance. all the cops standing by. they've got the yellow crime scene tape up. they claim they saw -- a witness saw an assailant running from the home. she's just come from her workout there on the elliptical at la fitness. and the cops are drinking it all in. oh, scratching the ear. yeah, we feel bad for you. >> please. >> please! no. no. >> good evening. i'm nancy grace. want to thank you for being with us. a young mother with five little children in her minivan barrels down the wrong way on a packed interstate. slamming into another vehicle. tally -- eight dead. one child hanging on to life by a thread. tragedy? yes. accident? no. toxicology reports mommy high on booze and pot.

but tonight, authorities hone in on daddy. >> the nightmare began when 36-year-old diane schuler with five kids in her minivan mistakenly turned on to the te tonic parkway exit. >> schuler was disoriented when she drove on to the parkway. she called her brother saying she didn't feel right. >> the minivan reportedly continued in the wrong direction on the parkway for 1.7 miles before it hit this suv carrying three men who were killed on impact. the minivan with the kids then careened into a third car, rolled down this embankment and burst into flames. >> toxicology reports found schuler was twice over the legal alcohol limit and showed evidence of marijuana use. >> it's difficult for me to believe that nobody knew the propensity of this woman to drink and have drugs. i think it's extremely unusual, extremely suspicious. i think that the family should have immediately notified the state police to stop that vehicle. they knew the license plate. and not let her proceed.

yet, they let her proceed. >> the questions asked -- did she have an alcohol problem? did you know her to go to bars? >> absolutely not. >> did you know her to get drunk? >> i never saw her drunk since the day i met her. >> well, that's all well and good for the family attorney to throw softball questions at the family, his client, the mom's husband, when there's nobody there to cross-examine him. but let's get right down to the real nitty-gritty. out to sophia hall, reporter, wcbs news radio, 880, what can you tell me about possibility authorities are taking a look at daddy tonight, specifically, child protective services. >> cps is looking at daniel schuler. they basically want to know how much he did know that day. did he supply his wife with booze and pot? and it all is because of the -- i call the miracle of this whole

crash, 5-year-old brian schuler, the couple's little boy. he is in the hospital right now. he was critically injured. however, he could get out. he possibly could get out and live back with his father again. but i am being told by authorities that he could lose custody, the father, of this little boy if it's found out that he supplied his wife, if he knew she was going to drive drunk and high on marijuana. and also, even before this happened, did diane schuler always drink and smoke pot in their household? >> out to rupa mikkilineni, our producer standing by in west babylon, new york, there at the schuler home. rupa, welcome. what can you tell me about admissions whether intentionally or unintentionally made that mommy is not afraid of a joint. she is not afraid of a big fat doobie. >> reporter: nancy, it's all very unclear. i'm out here in the neighborhood

where this family resides, and i've been knocking on doors, speaking with neighbors. they're being very quiet. however, what i can tell you is that there's been very little activity in front of the home. nancy, the car, the truck owned by daniel schuler has been parked here. my understanding is that this little boy is doing better and he may or may not very shortly be released from the hospital. >> to michael amon. michael, thank you for being with us. reporter with news day. he's joining us from melville, new york. a pleasure to have you with us. michael, what can you tell me about statements made that the mother did use pot socially, that she did smoke pot. >> well, new york state police have told me that when they interviewed daniel schuler about his wife's medical conditions, they also asked him, did she do drugs recreationally, did she drink at all? and what he told them, according to what they told me later, was

that she was a social drinker and that she occasionally smoked pot. we have spoken to people who have seen her being a social drinker, having a drink here or a drink there. i have not been able to find anyone else who saw her smoking marijuana or knew her to smoke marijuana. however, that is what her husband told police. to dr. william morrone, everyone, we are taking your calls live. dr. maroni, medical examiner, forensic pathologist, joining us from madison heights, michigan. welcome. it's good to see you again, doctor. doctor, if her toxicology reports show marijuana in her system, how shortly before this ill-fated trip barreling down the interstate with a bunch of kids in her car, how shortly before that trip had she smoken pot -- smoked pot? >> it's very specific. in a general sense, when a doctor tests a patient, they

test the marijuana use of chronic users. in the toxicology report they test the active thc. so it would have been within 20, 30 minutes to an hour right before she died that she was smoking. it was the active marijuana that was measured and it was very high. >> become to sophia hall, wcbs news radio, 880, the little boy, brian schuler. do doctors believe he will make it? >> actually, according to a news conference i went to last week with the father, daniel schuler, and his attorney, the father says that he is doing much better. and hopefully he will be coming home. so that's the positive news. the mishl of this tragedy, complete tragedy. >> that level of alcohol is approximately ten drinks are still in here at this time. >> around that level of alcohol you also start to get what is called tunnel vision where you your perception is changed you

can't see peripherally all the time depending on the tolerance she has to alcohol.

a 36-year-old mother diane schuler drove the wrong way for nearly two miles on a new york highway with five children inside her minivan. they struck an suv with three adults head-on. eight people were killed. >> they were just a really normal family. she was polite to everybody. she was very quiet. and -- i have to be honest with you, she has had us all in a state of shock.

>> toxicology reports show her blood alcohol was 0.19, and she had marijuana in her system also. >> there was an absolut bottle of vodka, 1.75 liters, broken bottle, that was found in the driver's passenger's seat, actually, of the floor. the police are not able to determine if she had consumed the alcohol from that particular bottle. >> they said she was traveling south in the northbound lanes and witnesses originally on that highway said that she was actually keeping the car steady for 1.7 miles. >> 30 minutes before the crash, diane called her brother to say that she was disoriented and having trouble seeing. he told her to stay put. that he would come and get her. instead, she kept driving. the brother then called police to alert them about his sister's call. but they couldn't locate her in time to prevent the tragedy. >> it is possible that there was some type of medical condition, but again, we are awaiting the autopsy results.

>> accidents involving drivers going the wrong way on the parkway are rare. i believe six cellular 911 phone calls that were received, reporting her driving the wrong way. >> straight out to rupa mikkilineni standing by at the schuler home. what medical conditions could possibly explain this away? >> the schuler attorney has come out and indicated maybe, some type of diabetes. >> whoa, uh-huh, uh-huh. >> at the onset of pregnancy. >> no, that's gestational diabetes and you only have that when you're pregnant. was she pregnant, rupa? >> she was not. the diabetes, she also suffered from some type of unidentified lump on her leg and also a tooth abscess. these are the theorys put forth by her lawyer, or by her husband's lawyer. >> dr. morrone, please, throw me

a bone. okay, a lump on your leg, an abscess tooth. then later, one of the statements, i believe, given by the family attorney is something happened in her brain. >> the autopsy from the medical examiner was very specific. et looked for stroke, heart attack, and dissecting an an yourism. it was negative on all the counts. only thing would have been a stroke. didn't happen. >> out to the line. chris from california. hi, chris. >> caller: hi, nancy. i watch your show all the time. i have twins that are going to be 18. and just bless you. >> i can use all the advice you can send me in an e-mail. my mind is open. okay, what is your question, dear? >> caller: my question is, if everybody is so sure that this woman didn't drink or have a problem with that, does anybody know what happened, like, the hour or two before she got into that van? >> yeah, back to, you, sophia hall, wcbs news radio 880 didn't she leave around 9:00, 9:30 in

the morning for about, i believe, 90, 150-mile trip. now this is four-something hours later. what did she do during all that time? >> okay. so she left a campground in new york and went to mcdonald's. now, according to the employees at mcdonald's, she seemed fine. no problems. the kids seemed fine. she supposedly got back in her minivan, actually, it was her brother's minivan, and started driving. then there were four phone calls made. one at 11:30. she talked to her brother. said, you know what hit a little bit of traffic, but your girls, who were in the car, three of them, will be home in time for their afternoon activities. another phone call at noon. don't know exactly who she talked to, that hasn't been released yet. apparently it was a relative, an unidentified relative. then at 1:00 she talked to her brother again. and this is where everything went into action sort of here. because the brother said, are you okay? she said no, i'm feeling sick.

things are spinning around. the brother said, look, stay where you are. at the time, she was at a pulloff area near the tappin bridge. apparently she didn't stay there for whatever reason. we don't know. and we also don't know how her cell phone stayed there on the pull-off area. in fact, investigators made that discovery, couple days later after this crash. >> unleash the lawyers. victims' rights advocate out of california jurisdiction, gloria allred, high profile defense attorney, author of "how can you defend those people?" mickey sherman out of new york. and defense attorney, stacy schneider, also out of new york. come on. mickey, i was at mcdonald's yesterday morning. i had been up since about 4:00 a.m. with the twins. they probably thought i was drunk. i could hardly see. i was trying to order us a little hash browns. then i mistook them for burger king and said apple fries. any way, long story short. how much contact do you really have with the clerk at the

counter of mcdonald's? >> well, i agree. >> not much. >> very little. by the same token they obviously made some observations and didn't find this woman was out of her mind drunk, which is what the evidence would suggest. >> mickey, probably knowing you and your high living lifestyle you probably can't remember the last time you were in a mcdonald's. >> yesterday. >> yeah. yeah. gloria? >> i have been to mcdonald's. and i would doubt the interaction between the clerk and the customer is long enough for the clerk to make that observation, or maybe they don't even have the expertise to make an elvis. >> stacy schneider, if he knew that she had had pot shortly before this trip, is he liable? >> you mean the husband, nancy? >> yes. >> no. he's not -- he's not criminally liable. the only thing that they could get him on is if he let his children get into the car with her when she was high or

intoxicated, then he can be charged with reckless endangerment. that could affect his child custody rights as well. but you have to know. >> gloria allred, mickey sherman, stacy schneider. we're all taking your calls. are you guilty of being our show's number one fan. plead your case. send us your story as to why you are that fan. we're looking for standout stories and if your e-mail or i-report makes the air, you win an autographed copy of my new novel, "tlechhe eleventh victimt comes out tomorrow. and fly to new york come to the show live here on the set. get busy with the video-cams and e-mails. go to cnn.com/nannygrace. thank you, friend.

i go to bed every night knowing, my heart is clear. she did not drink. she is not an alcoholic. listen to all that? she is not an alcoholic. my heart rested every night when i go to bed. something medically had to have happened. >> "something medically happened," says her husband. let's go straight to michael amon reporter with "news day" who at this minute is breaking news with a report that the

family, the woman's family, is investigating a stroke-like condition that is not revealed in autopsies. it's called tia, transient ischemic attack. what is it? how do you know they're investigating that? michael? >> well, that is what the attorney for the schuler family told me today. he said that they're looking into tia, as a possible explanation. t.i.a. is like a stroke in that it is an interruption of blood flow into the brain. but it does not cause permanent damage. it only lasts a few minutes. it can last at the most up to an hour. it doesn't leave any permanent damage. and therefore, doesn't show up in an autopsy. it also does not explain why there would be all kinds of alcohol and drugs in her blood either. >> good point. laura dean mooney, madd national president, what do you make of

this defense, transient ischemic attack? how does that jibe with the absolut vodka found at her feet? >> i am not a doctor. i don't think ethanol alcohol shows up in a tia. this problem is a great example of women driving drunk and how increasing that is and driving with their kids in the car like diane schuler did. it is a form of child abuse.

the horrific highway crash that took the lives of 36-year-old diane schuler, her 2-year-old daughter, erin, and her nieces, 8-year-old emma hance, 7-year-old allison, and 5-year-old kate. >> she was fine. had a cup of coffee in the morning. packed the cars up like we always do. and we headed out. just like every other weekend or every weekend we go up there. >> daniel schuler defended his wife disputing a recent medical examiner's report that diane schuler was drunk and high when she drove into oncoming traffic on a new york highway.

>> she is not an alcoholic. and my heart has rested every night when i go to bed. something medically had to have happened. >> her minivan collided head on with another car. new yorkerguy bastardi was killed along with his 81-year-old father and a 74-year-old friend. the bastardi family's tragedy made worse by the possibly that schuler may have been intoxicated. >> how do you put five children in a car when you're a mother and you're drunk? how do you do that? it's incomprehensible. >> i think anybody that knows contributed to this should be brought to justice. in one way or another. >> it's sad. very sad. upset. i lost my daughter. i lost my wife. all i have is my son. >> are you angry at your wife? >> no, i am not angry at her. >> take us through that morning? >> it was normal. she was fine. we had a cup of coffee in the morning.

we packed the cars up like we always do and we headed out. just -- just like every other weekend or every weekend we go up there. >> my investigators have already interviewed people at the campsite, no one saw her that morning with alcohol, drunk, acting strange. >> the opposite. opposite. she was happy, talking to people, gave a kiss good-bye to the owner of the camp. and waved, that person smelled her breath. there was definitely no alcohol when she left that campsite. let's start off with the questions asked did she have an alcohol problem? did you know her to go to bars? >> absolutely not. >> did you know her to get drunk and act in a -- >> i never saw her drunk since the day i met her. >> we are taking your calls live and tonight we learned that authorities are focusing on the daddy.

did he know his wife was drunk and high on marijuana in the car with all of these children? a crash that claims the lives of eight. one child left clinging to life in the hospital tonight. brian schuler. straight back out to the lines. denise, oklahoma. hi, denise? >> caller: hey, nancy. i would look to thank you for being an advocate for victims. i have been the victim of a violent crime. i think you are an angel doing what you do for us. >> i am no angel. but i am grateful for your kind words. thank you. >> caller: god bless you. i would look to say my husband and i have been married 12 years. we know each other like a book. that father, that husband, knew what his wife was doing. and how he could let those children get in that vehicle is just unbelievable. also, if it's in dispute from the husband about her marijuana use or her alcoholic use, will they test the hair to see how

far back she has been smoking marijuana? >> good question, denise in oklahoma. let me tell you something. my husband is known to occasionally enjoy a cigar. and i said, listen, the doctors told me in intensive care when the children were born. they can't be around anybody that has even got second-hand smoke on them because it is linked to sids, sudden infant death syndrome. it is absolutely not okay. i don't to be the big party pooper, but it's not okay. not, not for a long time. much less pot and booze. are you kidding me? what about it, dr. morrone, how long can you trace pot in hair? >> you can go back a number of months. the body tends to hold thc for about 45 days and releases it slowly. in a chronic user, you can test back for a number of months. >> to sherri in washington state. hi, dear, what's your question?

>> caller: hi, i keep hearing the results of the toxicology report. but what does the coroner's autopsy say about the condition of the liver? if she had a chronic alcohol problem, shouldn't there be some evidence there? >> excellent question. what do we know if anything, michael amon? >> i actually asked that question of the district attorney's office today. and they told me that -- they, that there was no sign, that they know of liver damage. you know, any signs of chronic alcohol abuse in the autopsy report. i also called the me's office and they did not get back to me. however, right now authorities are saying there are no signs of that, and no signs of any underlying medical conditions. >> what about it, dr. morrone, how likely is it even with some one that is an alcoholic for it to show up in your liver? >> you know, it depends on their genetics. i have seen livers in young people and they're firm and hard like a rock and yellow that ear very alcoholic. i have seen beefy red livers and

it just, it depends. >> to dr. janet taylor, medical doctor and psychiatrist, dr. taylor, as always, it's wonderful to have you. what do you believe is going through the father's mind? he's dealing with a horrible, horrible loss. but at the same time, he's out there, claiming he knows nothing about the booze, nothing about smoking pot before she gets behind the wheel with his children in the car. >> well, i hope he's thinking about the quality of their relationship and looking at the possibility that maybe she was depressed, was she bipolar, is there something he's missing, in the sense that it's not just medical -- >> what does that have to do with absolut vodka? >> if she's depressed, one way people cope is to drink. we're not looking at the possibility, was this a suicide attempt? was she trying to kill herself and unfortunately these kids? because the fact is we need to look at the underlying psychological problems and if there is something they're missing. she had a child two years ago,

did she have postpartum depression? >> to john lucich, thank you for being with us. how can child protective services, cps, conduct this investigation. is it akin to a criminal investigation? >> absolutely, one of the things they have to do is they have to take a look at the father, because he's the one that's going to get ahold of his son one day after this is all over. there is no way that you can be 0.19 blood alcohol content in 15 minutes or half an hour. i am -- i am a former certified breathalyzer operator, i had to go through all the training. i can tell you this it would take several hours to get where she was. a synergistic effect with the alcohol and drugs. >> taking your calls. i want to tell you the story of a newlywed, the bride orders a hit on hubby. what she didn't plan on is the hit man is -- uh-oh, a cop. take a listen. dalia dippolito was only married to her husband, michael,

for six months before she allegedly wanted him dead. >> the motive, as best we can tell, appears to be money. that's at least, what his attorneys are alleging, that she had done this all to obtain his condo. and the day before she met with the -- what she thought was a hit man, she convinced him to transfer the deed to the con doe into solely her name. >> according to police, a male friend of hers, that's who tipped them off. they say when dalia went to hire a hit man, they had an undercover officer ready to play the part. police say she had an alibi and she gave out photos of her husband, his schedule, the layout of their apartment. they say that they staged a murder scene at the home. then, when she got there, they told her the news that her husband was dead. >> straight out to our chief editorial producer, ellie jostad, ellie, what can you tell me about hubby finally filing for divorce and for a protective order? >> right, nancy. last friday michael dippolito

filed for divorce from his wife. in the petition he lists that the wife allegedly hired a hit man to kill him. also, just before air, he got a restraining order. his lawyer says that michael dippolito fears for his life. he doesn't know what she's capable of and he wanted to make sure there's an order, keeping her away from him. >> and she's out on bond, living with mommy. she's probably propped up on the sofa, having chicken soup right now. very quickly to tonight's safety tips. ps taking your calls. teens getting ready for back to school and back behind the wheel. rules of the road for teen drivers. talk to your teen about safety. set ground rules. they've got to follow before happeneding over the keys. and hey, put the rules in writing. texting, cell phones, ipods while driving, major distractions. it causes fatal crashes. always wear seatbelts. discourage speeding. make your teen responsible for tickets. drinking and driving, a major no-no. get a designated driver in place

or someone your teen can call for more information, please go to kidshealth.org. cock-a-doodle-do.

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if it's 10:50, i should have been dead at like 9:00. >> detectives knocked on his door. they told him his wife was trying to kill him and staged a crime scene. his wife sobbed uncontrollably when she arrived. michael confronted her at the police station. >> we actually didn't break it to her. what we did is when we moved her from the room that she was in back to the cell block or our booking area, the husband was standing in the detective room, which is kind of a wide open space. and as she exited the room, she could see him standing there very much alive. >> chief, what did she do? >> she was, to say the least, very surprised. >> did she really start crying for real? >> no. she was pretty much, at that point, at a loss for words. >> she is like uh-oh. >> that's it.

>> they're breaking the news to her. and of course, all the cops know she set this thing up, according to them. now, according to this cop that she's trying to hug, he barely got the words out, your husband -- and she started wailing. >> oh, my god! >> it's like she anticipated the bad news. another cop says, no matter how much she wailed, she couldn't squeeze out a tear. i love the guy biting his fingernail and looking around. and you've got to scratch the ear. >> go with the detective. >> please! please! >> straight out to hugh nolan, investigative reporter. what can you tell us, what is

the latest? >> well, things certainly have been moving fast. maybe that befits a situation where they went from "i do" to a reported alleged hit in about six months. of course, the video that we were just watching, that sting operation took place only last wednesday. that was the day of dalia dippolito's arrest. by thursday, she was out on $25,000 bond and an attorney had filed an action to try to recover from her the property that she had persuaded her husband to sign over to her, just days before. friday, of course, a petition for disillusion of marriage is filed, on the part of michael. and on monday, we have a junction filed on michael's behalf. >> to john, friend of the intended victim, michael dippolito, the new hubby, john, what can you tell me about the husband filing this protective order. i mean, she is out on bond. >> hi, nancy, how you doing? >> repeat? >> hello?

>> hi, dear, you're a friend who filed a order of protection. is he concerned that she may try again? >> absolutely. >> why. >> absolutely. well, i mean, we're all in shock that she's been put out on bail, number one. somebody like this should really be behind bars. >> and there you see her walking along. she was a workout enthusiast, let me say, and planned her alibi, according to police, to be at the la fitness center, probably bopping along on the elliptical, listening to a little ipod action at the very time her husband was supposed to be murdered. back to you, ellie jostad, what more have we learned about them as a couple, how they met, the whole shebang? >> well, this morning on the "today" show, michael dippolito said that that morning that his wife went to the gym, she even offered to stop and pick up starbucks for him on the way back. they actually met at starbucks -- >> wait, wait, wait. she offered to bring back

starbucks. >> right. >> okay, pause. mickey sherman, stacy schneider, gloria allred, mickey, what did she do, put extra raisins in his cereal for him that morning. what was his last meal? how do you go about this, you're planning your husband's shooting death in the head, what do you do, still sleep with him the night before, as part of a sendoff. fix a special gourmet meal for breakfast, or is it just like, see ya, i'll bring you that coffee when i get home. oh, evidence, evidence! did she stop at starbucks or did she know that he wasn't going to be alive when she got home from starbucks? >> she was hoping that he was -- >> another five bucks for a cup of coffee. >> how come we don't get to see the film of them telling her that he's alive. in florida, they release every other video that's made. >> that's all you've got to say, why didn't they film him? okay, gloria, have at it. >> all i can tell you is that she's not going to need coffee,

she's gotten a wake-up call from the police. what it appears she was trying to do didn't work and now she's in very, very deep trouble. and this is apparently, the conversations were recorded, conversations that she had with the confidential informant, also, the conversation she had with a person that she thought was going to do the hit is recorded. so she's going to have a very, very difficult time, if she decides to not only plead not guilty, but go to trial. >> what i'm interested in is why judge boris has given her such a low bond. but first, special thank you to "gma" host robin roberts for having me on today. it was this morning, not only about the twins, but my first novel, it comes out on august 11th, "the eleventh victim." i wanted to get a shot of her, but my head only came up to her knee. and also a thank you to my friend and competitor bill

o'reilly over at the f-o-x network, we don't say it out loud over here, about interviewing about my show tonight, not only over here on hln, but also the book, "eleventh victim." there is a brand-new book out by a best seller. the message of the book is that justice, the criminal justice system is not pristine. it's kind of like wrestling with a pig. you get dirty and the pig likes it. i think what led me to start writing the book was i suddenly only had one job for the first time since i was about 15, and i was really, really missing the courtroom. i think that this was cathartic, when i wrote it, since at the time that i began working on it,

i still had prosecution running through my blood. the book that i started is very different from the book that i ended up with. greatly influenc by a lot of wonderful, wonderful writers. like, dare i even mention agatha christie. the characters took on their own life. i would never state that this book is anything but fiction. however, there may be some resemblances to episodes that happened in the courtroom when i was a prosecutor and comparisons to certain judges that may have existed during that time. between the time i started writing this book, i went to nyu and got a masters degree in criminal and constitutional law. i wrote another book.

i got married. got pregnant and had twins. a lot happened while i was writing this book. even at the beginning, i knew who did it.

straight out to elie jostad. elie, before i go back to stacy schneider, what more can you tell me about the developments of today? >> nancy, we've learned a little bit more about how that arrest went down. apparently, they -- initially the cops were going to stage some kind of crime scene where they would make up the husband to look like he was dead, take a picture of it, show it to her. they scrapped that plan and instead, staged this fake crime scene. we know that they had planned this pretty elaborately. they followed her to the gym and then staged that crime scene. >> and what happened when they opened up the door to the police station and she saw him alive, fit as a fiddle in the next room. >> apparently, when she saw him, she said, oh, my gosh, come here, come here.

and he looked at her and said, you're not going to fix this one. >> okay, stacy, what's your defense? >> plea bargain. >> this woman, the evidence is overwhelming -- >> come on, stacy. >> i have a defense that we attorneys would use if the circumstances were a little bit different. most of the times, these hired hitmen are convicted felons that someone hooks up with and generally we can pick them apart on the stands, because they have tons of credibility issues. but in this case, this woman makes a deal with an undercover police officer, and it's a done deal. >> well, i think she's going to try to claim that the informant, her alleged lover, that it was his idea and that he pushed her to do it and they're going to be pointing the fingers -- >> it's a point-the-fingers defense, absolutely, if she can even convince anyone of her innocence, the motive here is so strong. everybody, let's stop and

remember army sergeant lance craig springer ii killed, iraq. awarded the combat medic badge, a bronze star and purple heart. proud to be an airborne combat medic. fellow soldiers called him doc springer. he never lost a patient. loved sax phone, offroading, alaska, video games and handing out toys and crayons to iraqi kids. leaves behind parents, sister, michelle, brother, christopher. lance craig springer, american hero. thanks to our guests but especially to you, and a special good night from georgia friends of the show, jordan and immat. jordan is setting off to harold university to study criminal justice. everyone, i'll see you tomorrow night, 8:00 sharp eastern, and until then, good eastern, and until then, good night, friend. -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com

hello. i'm lisa bloom in hollywood and this is a "showbiz tonight" news break. here's some of what we're covering for you on "showbiz tonight" at the top of the hour. kate's confessions. kate gosselin breaks down in tears in her first tv interview since the big "jon & kate plus 8" divorce news. what kate really thinks about jon's 22-year-old girlfriend, the daughter of her plastic surgeon. also, the battle over paula. explosive news that paula abdul may be heading to "dancing with the stars"? and your surprising reaction when we asked if you think "american idol" needs paula. and billy mays cocaine shocker. did cocaine really lead to the death of the tv pitchman? that's your "showbiz tonight" news break. tv's most provocative entertainment news show starts at the top of the hour right here on hln. bbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbb