Drew Peterson's Bid to Reduce Bail Rejected

A state appellate court has turned down Drew Peterson's bid to lower his $20 million bail on charges he murdered his third wife, his attorneys said Saturday.

The 3rd District Appellate Court was not persuaded by arguments that Peterson's deep roots in Bolingbrook and lack of a criminal record called for a lower bail. The $20 million bail was set May 7, the day Peterson was arrested for the 2004 murder of Kathleen Savio.

Peterson's fourth wife, Stacy, is missing. On May 22, another Will County judge denied Peterson's attempt to lower his bail to less than $1 million. Peterson's attorneys indicated they may try again. "We are also confident that as the weakness of the state's case is exposed over the following weeks and months we will have another opportunity to ask for a reduction in bond," attorney Joel Brodsky said in a statement. (source)

Peterson Shocker: Pleads Not Guilty

CHICAGO - UPDATE: Drew Peterson formally entered a plea of not guilty this morning on charges that he murdered his third wife, Kathleen Savio.

Meanwhile, prosecutors have asked for a new judge to be assigned to the case. The hearing currently is in recess.

Drew Peterson is scheduled to be arraigned this morning on charges he murdered his third wife five years ago. But the major issue at that hearing is whether he will get his bond reduced.

The arraignment at the Will County Courthouse in Joliet had been delayed because Peterson's lead attorney, Joel Brodsky, was doing a series of media interviews in New York, proclaiming his client's innocence, the day after Peterson was arrested on a Bolingbrook street.

As with all murder defendants at arraignment, the former Bolingbrook police officer will plead not guilty. But the major news to come out of his court appearance will focus on whether a Will County judge will lower Peterson's $20 million bail.

That bail has kept Peterson in jail since his arrest May 7. He has been unable to post the 10 percent--or $2 million--needed to gain his freedom pending trial.

Brodsky has said he will move to get Peterson's bail reduced to somewhere between $100,000 and $500,000. He asserts Peterson isn't a flight risk, saying that if was going to flee, he would have done so long ago.

An attorney representing Savio's estate said he opposes any bail reduction because any assets Peterson may use to post bail are ones that Savio's estate likely has its own claim on. Savio's estate filed a wrongful death suit against Peterson in April.

It's not known if prosecutors today, in opposing bail reduction, will reveal any evidence they have against Peterson. Brodsky has characterized the prosecution's case as "a weak, circumstantial case at best."

At trial, prosecutors are expected to rely on a new Illinois statute -- one that Will County State's Atty. James Glasgow sought for months and that some call Drew's Law -- to allow Peterson's third wife, Kathleen Savio, to "testify from beyond the grave." Peterson's defense team has vowed to challenge the law -- which would allow a judge to admit certain hearsay evidence into court -- as unconstitutional.

Savio, was found drowned in an empty bathtub in her Bolingbrook home five years ago. Her death at that time was ruled accidental, but prosecutors reopened the case following the disappearance of Peterson's fourth wife, Stacy, in October 2007.

Another autopsy ruled Savio's death a homicide. At the time of her death, the couple was in the process of divorcing. The divorce threatened to strip Peterson of substantial assets.

Peterson has denied any involvement in Stacy's disappearance and has not been charged in that case.

Poor Haleigh.. Please Bring Her Home..

Haleigh's father, Ronald Cummings, and his attorney, T. Jerry Snider made a video to thank volunteers and law enforcement in the massive search and media coverage to find the 5-year-old who vanished Feb 10th, 2009.

The halfhearted clip on Snider's web site shows a cleaned-up Cummings fake an emotion that is expected before making a plea for information regarding the whereabouts of his daughter:

"Please, please keep looking, keep calling in the tips," said Cummings.

"And Haleigh, if you're watching, baby I love you, we're still looking for you."

[Click here to watch video]

On Channel 4 News Cummings, and his mother Teresa Neves also Thursday made a plea for the alleged kidnapper to release Haleigh back home.

"Please bring her home. Please bring her home safe. If you're watching, baby, I love you. I'll never give up on you," Cummings said.

"I know that somebody has my little girl, and I know that she's a strong little girl," said Haleigh's grandmother.

If you have any information you are asked to please call Putnam County Sheriff Office at (386) 329-0800 or Crime Stoppers at 1-888-277-TIPS (8477)

Heavy Props To Crimesearchers!

I love their post regarding tomorrow's Larry King Live:

"Cindy Anthony will be on Larry King tomorrow night for what is sure to be another Anthony train wreck.

You can submit questions for Larry King to ask her by clicking here.

We will have an open thread here during the show, and will be playing a drinking game. Every time Cindy blames someone for her problems everyone has to drink.

Go ahead and get a keg. "

Anthony's Scheduled to be on 'On Larry King Live'

CSO: Cindy and George Anthony's along with their lawyer, Brad Conway will be on CNN's "Larry King Live" May 13th at 9pm.

A spokesperson for the show said Jon Whynock, who wrote "Caylee's Song" and performed it at her memorial will be a guest.

King last interviewed the couple on Dec. 10, 2008, the night before Caylee's remains were found. As anticipated, George and Cindy Anthony will face the question if they had any suspicisions or knowledge prior to remains being discovered on nearby lot.

Police Searching For Stacy Peterson Again?

ROMEOVILLE — The state police took to the water Wednesday in what a source said was a search for the remains of missing mom Stacy Peterson.

State police Sgt. Thomas Burek confirmed his agency had undertaken an operation on the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal, but would not say why.

We did some searches," he said. "We're not commenting on what we're searching for."

But a source said she learned from an employee at a nearby business that state police said they were searching the canal as part of the Peterson probe.

Peterson vanished from her Bolingbrook home in October 2007. The state police consider her the victim of a "potential homicide" and have named her husband, Drew Peterson, their sole suspect in the case.

The state police have searched the canal before, beginning soon after Stacy's disappearance.

A police source said cell phone records placed Peterson near the canal only hours before Stacy was reported missing by her sister.

Detectives Soon To Announce 'Very Good Lead'

San Bernardino County police announced they have a 'significant lead' in the kidnapping of a 3-year-old Briant Rodriguez. A news conference is scheduled for sometime Wednesday afternoon.

Sgt. Doug Hubbard said detectives "got a very good lead that the public can help us with." FBI agents are helping in the investigation, along with Mexican border authorities.

3pm ----
A $50,000 reward is being offered for information leading to the arrest and conviction of two men who abducted the child.

The Sun reported FBI and San Bernardino County Board of Supervisors have both donated $25,000.

Mother Believes Her Daughter Is Alive

The Oxford Community Police and the Ontario Provincial Police say they have received more than 2,500 tips since releasing footage of a small to mid-sized, dark coloured station wagon with an approximate 262 centimetre wheel base.

Investigators named the car``a vehicle of interest." Police also confirmed through surveillance video that Stafford and her abductor were walking east across Fyfe Ave. and crossing into the parking lot of Caressant Care Nursing and Retirement home.

The abduction investigation has yielded no leads released to the public of Tori's whereabouts since she disappeared April 8th.

Today the mother, Tara McDonald who missed a press conference yesterday due to 'nightmares' says she believes her eight-year-old daughter is alive and hopes she will be found soon.



A $50,000 reward has been offered for information leading to the whereabouts of Victoria Stafford and arrest of abductor.

Anyone with information is asked to contact Oxford Community Police at 519-537-2323 (Toll Free 1-877-537-6277) or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477.

Defense Scheduled to Depose Universal Employee

Defense lawyer Jose Baez for accused child killer Casey Anthony confirmed via fax to media outlets of depositions scheduled for May 13th.

He will again question corrections officer, Lt. Tammy Uncer about actions at the jail on December 11th, 2008.

On Tuesday, the defense questioned Uncer for 'several hours,' which ended with attorney's wanting to know more said Baez. The notice released stated both deputies with the Orange County Sheriff's Office who responded to the discovery of Caylee's remains would be deposed.

The defense team may have bit off more than they can chew on the 13th with scheduling to also question an employee at Universal Studios.

Joshua Childers Found!!!!

Joshua Childers of Southern MO has been found. His condition has not been released nor the circumstances of his disappearance, but he is home and alive!

Joshua Wandered off Monday from his families home near Arcadia while his mom was on the phone and his father was asleep in bed.

Missing Joshua Childers From Missouri: Bring Him Home!

Volunteers on horseback and all-terrain vehicles joined the search Monday for a 3-year-old boy who slipped out of his home in rural southeast Missouri.

Joshua Childers was reported missing by his parents shortly after noon Monday, Madison County Sheriff David Lewis said. The boy had not been found by late Monday night as the search continued in a rugged area near the Madison-Iron county line between Fredericktown and Ironton.

The blond toddler, about 3 feet tall and weighing 35 pounds, was wearing a dark blue shirt and a pull-up diaper when he left his house near Arcadia through the back door around 11:30 a.m., the sheriff said. His father works nights and was asleep at the time.

Lewis said Joshua had been gone about five minutes when his parents noticed he was missing. The couple searched about 45 minutes in the hilly terrain around their home, then called authorities. Helicopters flew over the area as officers from local police and sheriffs' departments and the Missouri State Highway Patrol searched a half-mile area around the home.

Hundreds of volunteers then joined the effort, and Missouri Department of Corrections bloodhounds from the state prison at Farmington were brought in. The weather was mild, with temperatures around 55 degrees late Monday, but Lewis noted that the sparsely populated area is dotted with ponds and creeks.

Arcadia is about 75 miles southwest of St. Louis. If you have any information, please cal the Madison County, MO Sheriff's Department at (573) 783-2234.
(source)

3 Yr. Old Briant Rodriguez Abducted at Gunpoint- Bring Him Home!

Yesterday afternoon in San Bernardino California, two men carrying handguns broke into a home and tied up Briant Rodriguez, his mother Maria Malana, and 4 other siblings.

After ransacking the home, and stealing some money they fled the scene with 3 year old Briant.

The youngest of the siblings, an 8 year old, managed to free himself and then free the other family members and they were able to call the police.

The father, Raul Rodriguez, was at work. At this point the Police don't believe it was a family abduction of any sort, and the family claims to not know the abductors.

California Highway Patrol issued an Amber Alert Late Sunday evening.

Briant is a Hispanic boy 3 feet tall and weighs 40 pounds, with brown eyes and long, curly brown hair. He was wearing a yellow shirt, blue-striped shorts and black sandals when he was taken.

Psychic Claims Entitlement to Cantu Reward

A psychic, Dani Pedlow from Los Angeles is demanding reward money in the Sandra Cantu case for her predictions.

Police said they had no contact with Pedlow. Tracy Sgt. Tony Sheneman said "we never reviewed or utilized any information from a psychic during this investigation."

Pedlow claims she sent a text message to a client who is a Tracy resident. Psychic said she predicted the location of the body to be found in a ravine and that she was killed in the church detectives searched.

"At the time, I hadn't ever been to Tracy and wasn't even quite sure where it was,'' Pedlow said. "I texted and e-mailed her from Las Vegas. I told her I see a barranca. I talked about a church. I told her I see the church straight across from the park, and I see water, sand and gravel. I had the sense of something being dragged.''

So far an anonymous tipster who found the suitcase has received more than $20,000 of the $30,000 reward offered by the Modesto-based Sund/Carrington Foundation.

Pedlow told reporters that she wrote a letter to the Tracy Police Department explaining her 'entitlement' to a portion of the reward money. She said police were not sure who they would give the reward money to and has since not returned her calls.

"It sounds like subterfuge," Pedlow said. "They put the brakes on. No one would respond. I understand because I live in Los Angeles, but one sentence about not having made up their minds sounds to me like they are trying to distance themselves from me."

Deputy In Anthony Case Files His Own Motion

Deputy Richard Cain was the deputy that responded to the first call from Roy Kronk in August, and was later fired when the sheriff's department deemed his response and investigative effort was "unsatisfactory".

He has now filed a motion to not require him to release his phone records. Caylee friend Amy Huizinga and meter reader Roy Kronk also argued the same that argued that the request by defense was too broad and constituted an invasion of privacy.

Person of Interest In Britanee Drexel Case

Britanee Drexel is the 17-year-old Rochester-area high school student, that just "disappeared" while on spring break in Myrtle Beach, and was given some air time last night on The Nancy Grace show.

What we know:
Britanee was told by her mother that she could not go to Myrtle Beach for spring break but she went anyway. Friday night she went out with friends in Myrtle beach then met up with them again the next day at the beach. Saturday night she was with friends at one hotel then walked to meet Peter Broswick at about 8 p.m.. Peter Broswick claims that she then left his hotel room alone later that night.

What is being reported:
Last night on Nancy Grace we heard from John Hahn, friend of Britanee, that Peter's story changed a couple of times and that it just didn't add up. He reported that Peter claimed to have just left at 2 a.m. in the morning because he said he needed to get back to school. He also left without picking up his 100$ deposit from the hotel.

Let's see here, last to see her, now she's missing, packs up his things in the middle of the night and hightails it home at 2a.m. . Now after changing his story a couple of times he's lawyer'd up and not talking.

Here's a picture of Peter Brozowitz:

New Haleigh Cummings Drama

Father-In-Law says Ronald Cummings Tried to Kill Him
I'm getting very frustrated with the fact that any "updates" on Haleigh's case seem to be revolving around petty drama.. But this may say something for suspicion on the part of Ronald:

[from crimesearchersonline.com:]
"Putnam County detectives are investigating missing Haleigh Cummings father, Ronald Cummings for aledgely supplying prescription drugs to his father-in-law, Hank Thomas Croslin. Hank told deputies at the Putnam Communty Medical Center that "Ronald Cummings was trying to kill" him.

The 40 year old man admits he abused his own prescription drugs. He claims he did not abuse the pills "Ronald pulled" out of his "pocket" to give Hank "one." He said he only asked for medication "when he needs them or when he hurts." (Yeah, hurts from withdrawls? )

In the report obtained by Action News, Hank told officers the pill (xanax) supplied by Cummings "made him very ill" and that "he was in a coma for four days" and Hank believes "Ronald provided the pill to him with the intent to harm him."

Ronald Cummings attorney, Jerry Snider said yesterday that Hank told him he was hospitalized for abusing drugs and also how he does not believe Cummings intended to "hurt" him.

If the family members and friends of Haleigh Cummings could stop taking drugs for a week maybe we'd hear the truth and with some luck what happen to the little girl? "

Caylee's Hair SamplesTested Negative for Drugs

The state attorney's office released more documents in case against Casey Anthony, including FBI Lab reports and a report from the US Fish & Wildlife on "snake" found near the scene where Caylee's remains were discovered.

In one of the reports hair samples taken from Caylee's remains were tested for a various drugs. The results were negative.

"Although the method used in this analysis allows for the detection of very small amounts of the drugs listed, negative results should not be interpreted as proof that the individual was not exposed to the drugs listed," report released stated.

• Click here for US Fish & WildLife report


• Click here for FBI investigative reports


• Click here for transcript of interview with Deputy Keithlin Cutcher, December 18, 2008


• Click here to read transcript of interview with Deputy Keithlin Cutcher, December 19, 2008

Law & Order SVU / Caylee Anthony Case

Last nights Law & Order SVU had some pretty glaring similarities with the Caylee Anthony case as was being reported prior to airing.

1. A grandma (Gail O'Grady of "NYPD Blue") goes to detectives about her missing granddaughter and complains, "The car smells like a dead body."

2. The child's mother (Hilary Duff of "Lizzie McGuire") alleges that a babysitter took the little girl. And that babysitter is named Maria Hernandez or Fernandez. (We meet the young mom as she cleans out her car trunk and blames the stench on spoiled meat.)


3. The detectives' boss asks what kind of mother goes off to party and leaves her kid with a woman she barely knows.

4. The young mother steals and buys a shovel.

5. The young mother has been lying since the day she could talk, and she won't grow up, her mother complains. Grandma O'Grady announces that he has demanded that lazy Duffy find a job -- and even cracked the young woman in the mouth.

6. Pictures of the young mom partying surface. "I'm young. I'm allowed to have fun," Duff says.

Then this "SVU" goes off on a tangent far removed from anything in the Anthony case. The plot shift allows the series to weigh in on a serious issue -- one that has nothing to do with the Anthony case.

But then the episode circles back to the Anthony case in a shocking way that echoes the headlines.

It's an ending that sticks with you -- and one that George and Cindy would do well to miss.

The episode can be seen at 10 p.m. Tuesday on WESH-Channel 2.

Casey Anthony Could Walk Away Free?

Attorney Jose Baez talked about several key parts of his defense of Casey Anthony during an exclusive interview with WESH 2 News.

"There is so much that is unknown, and we have to focus on all of it," Baez said in an interview with WESH 2's Bob Kealing.

Baez and other attorneys interviewed by WESH 2 said the woods where Caylee's remains were discovered are a central place in which much of the case could revolve.

Caylee was missing almost six months before her body was found. And, Baez said, "They don't know how Caylee passed away. They don't know when Caylee passed away."

Baez and other defense attorneys say prosecutors have not definitively tied Casey Anthony to Caylee's remains along Suburban Drive. They have to prove that Casey dumped the body there before entering state custody and that they remained there for almost six months.

"That's going to become one of the major battlegrounds in the case," said defense attorney Richard Hornsby.

Thomas Luka, an attorney for Casey Anthony's brother, Lee, agreed: "That would be one of the first things I would want to pursue."

Baez also questioned the forensic evidence in the case.

He plans to vigorously attack the single hair found in Casey Anthony's car trunk that prosecutors say is proof a decomposing body was in there. He said his own expert Henry Lee found 17 hairs in the trunk that showed no signs of decomposition.

Baez also will raise questions about the air test that a lab said showed evidence of human decomposition.

"It's not science that's fully accepted within the scientific community," Baez said "It's science that's not been verified. There's absolutely nothing to gauge this science by, so, therefore, it should not be used when someone's life is at stake.

Prosecutors plan to seek the death penalty in the case.

A spokeswoman for State Attorney Lawson Lamar said, "We don't respond to anything about this case outside the courtroom." (source)
Click here to watch video

George Anthony: 'Proud of My Daughter'

In the second part of an exclusive interview, George and Cindy Anthony told the CBS "Early Show" that their daughter was full of energy as a child and now spends her time in jail reading law books.

Maggie Rodriguez conducted the interview and asked the Anthonys to describe Casey Anthony as a child.

"Casey was just full of energy. She was very inquisitive. She loved to read. She started reading at a very young age," Cindy Anthony said.

"Very sensitive, very caring - the kind of daughter that any father is proud of," George Anthony said. "I'm proud of my daughter.

Casey Anthony, 23, is charged with first-degree murder in the death of her daughter, Caylee, whose remains were found in a wooded lot near the family's east Orange County home. Caylee was 2 years old when she was reported missing, about a month after she was last seen alive.

The Anthonys were asked about their fondest memory of Caylee.

"I don't think we have enough time to talk about it," George Anthony said.

"Her goal was to make us smile and make us laugh," Cindy Anthony said. "She was very sensitive. If I came home from work and she could tell I had a bad day, she would grab my face and (give me a kiss) and say, 'C.C., I love you,'"

The Anthonys said dealing with Caylee's death is a daily struggle.

"We're dealing with it the best that we can. It's very hard, it's very difficult," Cindy Anthony said.

Rodriguez asked the Anthonys if they've fully dealt with the brutal aspect of the death.

"We don't know what happened to Caylee," Cindy Anthony said.

"But we know that she was murdered," CBS's Maggie Rodriguez said.

"But we don't know what happened to her. That's the thing," Cindy Anthony said.

Cindy Anthony said she has no regrets in how's she handled the situation.

"When I saw Casey (in July), I could tell something was wrong," said Cindy Anthony. "I don't know how I would react any differently. After I made the first 911 call, Casey thanked me in the car because she said I did something that she couldn't do, which was go to the police."

The Anthonys said they want to know what exactly happened to their granddaughter.

"I'd love to know more. I want to know what happened," said Cindy Anthony, who added that she can't fault her daughter. "How can we? We don't know what she's been through. I don't know what that girl has been through..."

Cindy Anthony said her daughter helped her get through the tough times...

The Anthonys said they do not visit Casey Anthony because the conversations are videotaped and made public.

"Unfortunately, we have laws in Florida where anything is up for grabs as far as - media has access to whatever - so if we go in for a normal visit, it's going to be on videotape," Cindy Anthony said. "We go to our hearings and get to see her."

George said it hurts not to be able to let her know that he's there for her.

"She's presumed innocent. The facts will all come out," Cindy Anthony said. "All we can do is stand behind our daughter, that's all we can do."

"That's our daughter. No matter what, that's still our daughter," George Anthony said.

Parts of the interview, in which Cindy Anthony defends here daughter, were not shown.

"No one knows what they would do when something so terrifying happens to you....in a panic or whatever," Cindy Anthony said.

The Anthony's admitted their daughter has shown little emotion since the disappearance of her daughter.

"Everybody reacts differently to tragedy. I am not Casey. I don't know what she was feeling. I can't judge and I'm not going to pre-judge," Cindy Anthony said.

When asked if she wished she had called 911 sooner, Cindy Anthony said she called for help as soon as she could. (source)