http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0807/18/ng.01.html
NANCY GRACE
Aired July 18, 2008 - 20:00:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: (INAUDIBLE) for a North Carolina mother found dead near her home. No suspects have been named in Nancy Cooper`s death but her parents are asking the killer to speak up if the person has, quote, "any shred of decency."
Cooper`s husband told police his wife went jogging Saturday and never came back. But her body was found Monday at a construction site less than three miles from her home in a Raleigh suburb.
And Cooper`s family has been granted temporary custody of her two young daughters. Cooper`s parents claim their son-in-law is emotionally unstable, was having an affair, and poses a danger to the children.
Now her husband Bradley Cooper`s attorneys say he is distraught by his wife`s death and will continue to assist police.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: I`m Jane Velez-Mitchell in for Nancy Grace.
Tonight a tragic mystery deepens. A mother of two, who was also an avid runner, found murdered at a construction site a few miles from her North Carolina home.
Nancy Cooper`s husband told cops she went out for a jog Saturday morning at 7:00 a.m. and simply never came home. But he did not call the cops. It was a worried friend who dialed 911.
Now police are calling it murder. They have no suspects and no person of interest, but the dead woman`s family is claiming her husband had cheated on her and was verbally and emotionally abusive. They also say she was planning on leaving him. Explosive new developments tonight.
Let`s go straight out to Gurnal Scott, a reporter at WPTF radio, who`s been tracking this story from the start.
Gurnal, what is the very latest is?
GURNAL SCOTT, REPORTER, WPTF RADIO: The very latest is, as you`ve said, the family has been very skeptical about what Brad Cooper has been saying. They have said in the custody complaint that they never thought that she did go jogging, that he has been abusive, that he has kept money from her, that he has been abusive to her verbally in front of the children. And she wanted to leave.
He hid passports so she couldn`t take the children with them. They have made several complaints that have allowed them to go to a court and get custody of these children and they are proceeding on from there, hoping that police can catch the person who is behind this killing.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: And there were duel news conferences today, the attorney for Brad Cooper speaking out, saying their client is innocent, wants to grieve in private, is cooperating with investigators. And then the family of Nancy Cooper also speaking out.
Gurnal, exactly what was said by either party? What are the headlines?
SCOTT: Well, the headlines, as far as the family is concerned, once again, Garry Rentz, the father of Nancy Cooper, urged, as you said, the person who is responsible, if they have a shred of decency, come forward, admit what you`ve done.
But in the dueling news conferences, as you just said, the attorney for Brad Cooper, Seth Blum, is saying that Mr. Cooper is a private man, this is why you haven`t seen him at these press briefings that have been held by the Cary Police Department. He wants to grieve in private. And he doesn`t want to mourn, as he said, in front of the hot glare of media -- of the media spotlight. He wants to be left alone so he can mourn his wife.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: I want to go to Nicole Partin, investigative journalist, and ask you about this other woman. What do we know about this claim, which certainly has not been confirmed in any way, shape or form by Brad Cooper? He has admitted they had marital problems but that`s as far as he went.
What do we know about this possible other woman that Nancy Cooper`s family is claiming he had an affair with?
NICOLE PARTIN, INVESTIGATIVE REPORTER: Good evening, Jane. What we know is that in the allegations presented by Nancy`s family yesterday in a court order, the family claims that Brad was having an affair. Those claims were also backed up with his apparent verbal abuse and battering verbally to Nancy.
We don`t know anything about this woman and the affair other than that the father and other family members of Nancy are alleging that, indeed, Brad was having an affair.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: I want to bring in the attorneys, Holly Hughes, former prosecutor, and Alan Ripka, defense attorney.
Let`s start with you, Alan. This man deserves the presumption of innocence. He is not considered a suspect or a person of interest. He says he is innocent but skeptics would point out that this case, at least theoretically, has the hallmarks of a classic estrangement homicide.
It`s the, you know, the wife seeking divorce and she turns up dead. How would you defend Brad Cooper in that scenario?
ALAN RIPKA, DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Well, Jane, there are plenty of people in this country who is seeking divorce and having marital problems and they don`t go around killing people.
In this particular case there`s not one shred of evidence that he did anything of the sort. No witnesses, no forensic evidence, never threatened to kill her in the past. No domestic violence. No police coming to the house. So I don`t see why -- that`s why he`s not being charged and that`s why he`s not a person of interest.
And in this particular case, he`s cooperating with the police. He doesn`t have a lawyer. And I figure he`s going to be fine in this one.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Well, I think he actually does have a lawyer because they held a news conference today. So I don`t think they were just volunteers.
Holly Hughes, what are your thoughts given the claims that we`re hearing from Nancy`s family about an affair, about the belittling, the withholding money, taking the passports?
HOLLY HUGHES, PROSECUTOR: Well, I got to tell you. In response to my esteemed colleague, Mr. Ripka, let me just say this, Mark Hacking, Scott Peterson, Drew Peterson, I could go on and on. I mean, come on, Jane, this is the same scenario we see all the time.
Scott Peterson didn`t have any history of abusing Laci but one day something snaps and these men are killing their wives. As far as saying there`s no evidence, no forensics evidence, we don`t know that. There was a search warrant executed. They hauled six bags of evidence out of that house.
First of all they did a consensual search and after that consensual search they went back and got a search warrant because they thought there was more in there and they certainly had to have probable cause to support that warrant, Jane.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: And, Holly Hughes, you bring up the Scott Peterson case.
In that case, his mistress who had no idea that he was married, thought she was just having a regular relationship, ended up being the smoking gun because she tape recorded her conversations with Scott Peterson and that`s partially why he was convicted.
HUGHES: That`s exactly right, Jane, and I wouldn`t be surprised if we don`t have another star witness come forward once she realities the gravity of the situation just like Amber Frey. She didn`t know she was going out with a murderer. And when these women finally realized what these men are like they`re going to start singing, as they should, and get some justice for Nancy Cooper.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: All right. We have to leave it right there but we want to stress again that
this husband is not a suspect, not even a person of interest, and he does deserve the presumption of innocence in this case.
