Trail of Murder and Kidnapping?; Judge Trades Convictions for Cash
JANE VELEZ-MITCHELL, HOST (voice-over): Tonight, a desperate manhunt. A mother cries out in anguish against her boyfriend. Crops say he brutally stabbed her daughter, leaving her half-naked under a wood pile. Now that boyfriend is also suspected of kidnapping an elderly couple who once owned the house they lived in. Why would he kidnap them? And why is the FBI combing an Ohio landfill?</s>SANDY FONZO, MOTHER: My kid`s not here. He`s dead because of him! He ruined my</s>VELEZ-MITCHELL: And a mother rages against a twisted greedy judge convicted of sticking kids in jail in exchange for cash. This mom`s son killed himself after being released from a stint behind bars. Prosecutors say this judge used children as pawns to enrich himself. Will this Mr. Zero Tolerance former judge finally pay for his crimes? We`ll hear from this devastated mother. Also, a grieving mob turns violent against two journalists at the scene of a crime. No, this isn`t a foreign entanglement. It`s happening here in the U.S. of A. What drove this crowd to attack? I`ll have the shocking video. Plus, royal wedding shockers. Before the "I dos," the invitations arrive. Who made the cut for William and Kate`s royal wedding? You will not believe who`s on and off the list. ISSUES starts now.</s>ARTHUR COSTIN, RUSSELLS` DOCTOR: My concern is for their life. I like the Russells very much. We`ve been friends for years and years. I`m very worried about them.</s>VELEZ-MITCHELL: Tonight, breaking news in a bizarre murder mystery. As we speak right now, cops are on a frantic hunt for a suspected killer on the run. Now, cops believe 37-year-old Sam Littleton -- that guy, with the mustache, and the beard, right there -- murdered the daughter, the adult daughter of his live-in girlfriend. But it didn`t stop there. Now an elderly couple from the very same town is missing. Their car missing. Were they his ticket out of town? Are they his hostages right now? Just last Thursday, cops found the body of 26-year-old mother of two Tiffany Brown. There she is. She was found partially clothed, OK, viciously stabbed to death, and shoved under a wood pile in the basement of her own mother`s house. Now, at the time of Tiffany`s murder, her mother`s boyfriend, this guy, this creep, Sam Littleton, was living in the basement of that very house. Cops say they also found bloody clothing at the house. But before cops could do anything, before they could even talk to Sam Littleton, he vanished. And now Tiffany Brown`s friends are begging for him, please, come forward.</s>UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You need to come and just tell them what you know, Sam. There`s a lot of stuff that`s unknown at this point. And we need you here to put it all together. Please just come forward and let us know whether you did have part or you didn`t. We still need to know.</s>VELEZ-MITCHELL: So what is the connection to this elderly missing couple, Gladis and Richard Russell, to this guy? Well, they apparently sold Sam Littleton the house where he was living, where Tiffany`s body was found. And cops found his phone number on the Russells` kitchen table. The Russells, by the way, are in their mid-80s. They need medication desperately tonight. Richard Russell also needs his wheelchair. But it was left at the house. And now Sam Littleton`s ex-wife has come forward with a chilling warning. This guy is dangerous. She says he`s obsessed with knives and repeatedly tried to stab her. So where on earth is this man tonight? And can police find the elderly Russells alive? WE certainly hope so. Straight out to Bill Rinehart, reporter with WLW radio in Cincinnati. Bill, you`re all over this story. What is the very latest?</s>BILL RINEHART, REPORTER, WLW: Well, the latest is they combed a landfill just north of Cincinnati for much of the day, and what exactly they`re looking for they may not know themselves. Going back a little bit, last Wednesday, the Russells` car was found at a rest area in Butler County just north of Cincinnati. An Ohio state trooper noticed it backed up to a Dumpster. He ran a plate check on it. Nothing came back. It wasn`t reported stolen. It wasn`t reported missing. The Russells, as far as anyone knew, were safe and sound. Now, Thursday, the Russells` neighbor in Bellefontaine noticed that the car was gone. Those -- they were gone; hadn`t seen them in a while. Got worried, called the police. The police went in, as you mentioned, found Sam Littleton`s phone number on a piece of paper in the house. So police started a search for the Russells. Once they realized the Ohio state patrol had seen that car Thursday, they contacted the company that picks up the trash from that rest area, found out the trash had been dumped on Friday at the landfill. So they started making arrangements with Rumke (ph), the operators of the landfill, to search it. Now, that landfill is the largest in the state of Ohio. It`s the sixth largest in the entire nation. But there is a bit of luck on investigators` side. The driver who picked up the load from the rest area knew approximately where he put that load. So that narrowed the search down to about a one-acre area. On the other hand, the trash there is 15 feet deep. Searchers went into the landfill today. They got into it. It was raining a lot. And they didn`t find anything. They had to cancel the search about 3 p.m. because it looked like more heavy weather was coming in.</s>VELEZ-MITCHELL: Well, let`s just hope and pray that they don`t find anything that is -- well, tragic. Let`s put it that way. Tonight, the FBI has joined the desperate search for Gladis and Richard Russell, both in their mid-80s, feared kidnapped and in harm`s way. Now, again, as you just heard from the reporter, this is all happening about 100 miles outside of Cincinnati, Ohio, in the small town of Bellefontaine, Ohio. Before the Russells were reported missing, a trooper happened to spot their car, just coincidence, at a rest stop on I-75, which is about 30 miles, at least, from their home. By coincidence, again, he runs a check. Nothing turns up. Well, they hadn`t even been reported missing yet. Today, crews searched the landfall landfill, as you just heard. And at this point, they can`t find anything when it comes to this couple. Now, let`s take a look at their car. It`s a green 2004 Grand Marquis with Ohio plates, PDG-13E. That is the car that we`re looking for. Who is in it? Is it Sam Littleton with the two elderly people? Let`s hope that somebody spots them. Joining me now, Mike and Susan Coder. Susan is the Russells` niece. First of all, thank you for joining us. I know this has got to be so hard on your family. What is going through your mind and your heart right now as you watch this horror unfold, Susan?</s>SUSAN CODER, NIECE OF THE RUSSELLS: Well, Uncle Dick and Aunt Gladis are very much a part of our family. I mean, when we have get-togethers, they`re there, and it`s just they`re not now, and it`s very difficult. I mean, we just want them back. We -- you know, that`s all that matters to us. You know, we need them.</s>VELEZ-MITCHELL: I can`t even imagine what these two people in their mid-80s might be going through. They need their medication. Do they not, Susan?</s>S. CODER: Yes, they do, very, very much.</s>VELEZ-MITCHELL: What would you say to Sam Littleton if he happens to be watching somewhere on the lam right now, holding these people you love so much as hostages, if that`s the case? What would you say to him?</s>S. CODER: Just that we want them back. We -- they`re part of our family. We need them.</s>VELEZ-MITCHELL: Why on earth would he take them? I mean, what is -- what do they have to do with him, except that they sold him the house he was in?</s>S. CODER: That`s a very good question. We haven`t been able to figure that out. You know, there`s -- I suppose money, car, whatever, but we don`t really know.</s>VELEZ-MITCHELL: If you had one thing to say, if your grandparents -- I`m sorry, if your uncle and aunt were watching right now, what would you say to them to keep them strong?</s>S. CODER: Just, we want you back. We miss you. We need you. You know, hang in there. I don`t know. Just we want them back.</s>VELEZ-MITCHELL: Neighbors were the first to alert police that something was very terribly wrong at the Russells` house. Listen to this.</s>UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I am worried about my neighbors. They`re an elderly couple. I walked around the house. A back door was open.</s>VELEZ-MITCHELL: Hank Kies, you are a friend of the missing elderly couple. You spoke to them the morning they went missing. What did they say? Did they indicate that there was anything amiss?</s>HANK KIES, FRIEND OF THE RUSSELLS (via phone): Nothing was amiss when I talked to them. I called to ask if Dick would like to ride along to the Lions district cabinet meeting. And she said his blood sugar was around 4 -- a little over 400 which is dangerous. And -- but she said, "You want to talk to him?" So I did. And we talked, and I asked him how`s come he was gimping around. And he said, "Well, I had to go out and feed the cats." And he fell on the ice and injured his ankle, break still severe.</s>VELEZ-MITCHELL: Oh, my God. So this guy was injured even before.</s>KIES: And I`ve known them approximately 50 years, so...</s>VELEZ-MITCHELL: Oh, my God. Here`s my big issue tonight. Now, was somebody sleeping with the enemy here? Tiffany Brown`s mother, the dead woman`s mother, was actually living with this guy, the suspect, Sam Littleton, even after Tiffany was found dead. Listen to this.</s>DEBORAH NEELEY, TIFFANY BROWN`S MOTHER: Laid down beside me for five nights and knew it. God help him. God help him. They better catch him before we do.</s>VELEZ-MITCHELL: Dr. Robi Ludwig, psychotherapist, imagine her horror to find out that she was sleeping with the person suspected of murdering, viciously stabbing her own adult daughter.</s>ROBI LUDWIG, PSYCHOTHERAPIST: I mean, again, this is so scary that you sometimes don`t really know who you`re with until it`s too late. And we don`t know enough about this woman`s history to know whether there were signs that somehow could have alerted her to this fate. But nobody thinks that their boyfriend would ultimately...</s>VELEZ-MITCHELL: Well, yes there was. Now the ex-wife of this suspect is coming out and saying that he has a history of violence, that he`s obsessed with knives, that he got drunk and tried to stab her once: "He grabbed me and threw me down in the basement and locked me there for two hours." But the ex-wife never filed charges. So there`s another lesson there, Robi Ludwig.</s>LUDWIG: Well, the best way to predict whether you`re with somebody who`s violent is to find out about their past relationships. If they start giving an indication that they hate women, or they were violent towards women at any point in their history, than that`s a -- that`s a dangerous sign you need to take very, very seriously.</s>VELEZ-MITCHELL: All right. Again, the hunt is on. Thank you, fantastic panel. We hope they find this elderly couple OK. Coming up later, shocking video, and I mean shocking. A mob attacks a TV crew. And we`re going to talk to the reporter who was attacked live. But first, a corrupt judge convicted of sending kids to jail in exchange for cash.</s>FONZO: My kid`s not here! He`s dead because of him! He ruined my</s>UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Prescription drugs are making us high. Fast food is making us fat. TV seduces us with glamorized violence. "Addict Nation" is a blueprint for change.</s>VELEZ-MITCHELL: This is an intervention. My new book, "Addict Nation," available online now, Amazon.com. I talk about our culture`s addiction to violence and crime and what we can do about it. Check out "Addict Nation" at AddictNation.org or Amazon.com. Read it and find out how together we can all counteract our nation`s addiction to crime.</s>FONZO: No, you know what you told everybody in court, they need to be held accountable for their actions. You need to be. You remember me? You remember me? You remember my son, an all-star wrestler? He`s gone. He shot himself in the heart. You scumbag!</s>VELEZ-MITCHELL: Rage and anguish boil over as a mother confronts the corrupt judge who put her son away. Sandy Fonzo`s son committed suicide after serving a way-too-harsh sentence for a very minor drug-related offense. It was all part of Judge Mark Ciavarella`s sick scheme to get rich from the bench. Now that mom is so mad. That guy, this greedy judge, now former judge, convicted Friday on 12 charges, including racketeering and money laundering. Now, here`s how his scheme worked. He sent kids to juvenile detention centers in exchange for cold, hard cash, moulah, from friends who owned those facilities. As the cash rolled in, Judge Ciavarella incarcerated juveniles at break-neck speed. We`re not talking about locking up dangerous violent criminals here. We`re not talking about rapists and murderers. In most cases, these were minor crimes by young first-time offenders. Listen to one young man who was blindsided by this judge`s twisted court of corruption.</s>KEVIN WILLIAMSON, SENTENCED BY JUDGE CIAVARELLA: I was honestly expecting, like, some form of, like, simple probation or some type of fine or something like that. The last thing I expected was to get sent away.</s>VELEZ-MITCHELL: Well, tonight, the tables have finally turned as this judge awaits his sentence. What do you think he deserves? I say put him away for good. Straight out to Andy Mehalshick, reporter for WBRE. Andy, you have been tracking this case from the very start. What is the very latest?</s>ANDY MEHALSHICK, REPORTER, WBRE: Well, in fact, I can tell you, Jane -- first of all, thanks for having me on here tonight. This case broke late in 2007, early 2008, with rumors that there was something going on at the private detention facility involving the judges. Whereas you know the FBI, very quiet with their investigation. As it broke in January 2009, the mother`s anger you saw there tonight, really, many would agree epitomizes and is an example of how many people are frustrated, angry, hundreds of families who say their kids were sent away for very minor crimes, creating Web sites making fun of teachers. One son was sent away for breaking the hood ornament off her mother`s car. The mother wanted to be tough love, sent the kid before Ciavarella, and he went away for about 15 months. So what you`re seeing there is cost of the anger that many parents feel pent up. Jane, I can also tell you this much for sure. Many people even more angry after the guilty verdict, because they say former Judge Mark Ciavarella, moments after he was found guilty of extortion, denied and still denies any Kids for Cash scheme. Basically, he says it was a finder`s fee from the builder...</s>VELEZ-MITCHELL: He`s minimizing the whole thing. But he can`t minimize away what I hope is going to be a very long sentence. Now, this mom, Sandy Fonzo`s son, Edward, he was just 17 when he was arrested for possession of drug paraphernalia. It was his first brush with the law. Judge Ciavarella sentenced him to 30 days in juvie, followed by four months of boot camp. Sandy says it sent her son on a downward spiral. He did not get an athletic scholarship he was hoping to get. He developed anger issues. Last June, he shot himself. CNN`s Don Lemon asked Sandy if she could ever forgive this former judge. Listen.</s>FONZO: There is no justice. He`ll never receive my sentence, what I have to live with, every day of my life without my son. He left on that beautiful day yesterday to go back with his family. I have nothing anymore. And he still has no -- nothing -- it was all for nothing. It was all for greed and for more and more. He never had enough. And he took everything from me. And I`ll never, never forgive him, no.</s>VELEZ-MITCHELL: Dr. Drew Pinsky, who is joining us this spring with his own show here on HLN. This case is a reminder of the impact being locked up has on a young person. It often taints them forever, like a scarlet letter, in fact.</s>DREW PINSKY, NIGHTLY SHOW DEBUTS THIS SPRING ON HLN: Well, that`s exactly right. And the fact is, it`s a cautionary tale about being too harsh with punitive measures for people with substance problems particularly. And the state of our treatment of particularly young people under the age of 18. You see these outcomes are not very good. Also, a cautionary tale for any professional of any stripe taking kickbacks. Because, you know, perhaps he does have a clear conscience, and he was just being very tough with the law. Well, he was tough with the law and taking kickbacks. It doesn`t look very good. And he was applying the -- sort of a vigorous application of punishment where it wasn`t clearly indicated and where, clearly, as you hear from these story, the outcomes are not good. God willing, some day these guys...</s>VELEZ-MITCHELL: This guy was getting money, Dr. Drew, almost $1 million.</s>PINSKY: Wow, that`s unbelievable.</s>VELEZ-MITCHELL: And that`s what`s so horrifying, is that, you know...</s>PINSKY: It`s unbelievable.</s>VELEZ-MITCHELL: ... our justice system is screwed up. May I say that?