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Published January 13, 2015
This is a rush transcript from "On the Record ," April 9, 2008. This copy may not be in its final form and may be updated.
GRETA VAN SUSTEREN, HOST: Tonight: You will not believe this, but you will see it with your own eyes, teen girl beating, six teenage girls attacking a 16-year-old girl. She suffered a concussion, bruises, and damage to her left ear and eye. And there is more. Do you know what the girls intended to do with the videotape? Now, police say the girls intended to post the videotape of the beating on the Web.
Here is that video. Now, we warn you it's disturbing.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
(CROSSTALK)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: That's what you get!
(CROSSTALK)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Oh, yes, baby! Oh, yes!
(CROSSTALK)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You're not leaving!
(CROSSTALK)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Don't hit the shelf! Don't hit the shelf! Don't hit the shelf!
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Do something!
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I don't want to do anything!
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Why?
(CROSSTALK)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: ... message on MySpace still!
(CROSSTALK)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You talk (DELETED) on MySpace all the time!
(CROSSTALK)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I thought you were going to fight me!
(CROSSTALK)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: How come you (ph) don't (ph) like April? How come you (ph) don't (ph) like April?
(CROSSTALK)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAN SUSTEREN: Police say the girls lured their victim to a home with the specific intent to beat her on camera. Now, those six teenage girls plus two boys who police say acted as lookouts have all been arrested and face felony charges.
Joining us live in Florida is Christina Garcia, the mother of Mercades Nichols, one of the alleged attackers. And Mercades lived with her grandmother, Mary Nichols, who joins us on the phone. And in a moment, you will hear disturbing threats left on the voice-mail of Christina's phone, the mother of Mercades.
Welcome to both of you.
CHRISTINA GARCIA, MOTHER OF MERCADES NICHOLS: Hi.
VAN SUSTEREN: Christina, you and I spoke earlier today. This is incredibly tough for you, isn't it.
GARCIA: Yes, ma'am.
VAN SUSTEREN: Did you see your daughter today, Christina?
GARCIA: Yes, I did.
VAN SUSTEREN: What time did you see her, and how long did you get to see her?
GARCIA: I only got to see her for about 20 minutes. And I went in about 7:00 o'clock.
VAN SUSTEREN: (INAUDIBLE) she's detained, is that right?
GARCIA: Yes.
VAN SUSTEREN: How is she?
GARCIA: She's very upset.
VAN SUSTEREN: Did you talk to her at all about what happened on the videotape?
GARCIA: Yes, I did.
VAN SUSTEREN: What did she say?
GARCIA: Well, she was crying. And she asked me, what do the people - - what did the people expect her, like, to jump into the fight or try to stop this girl? And I said, Well, Mercades, you know, couldn't you have called the police? And she said that she was very scared of this girl that was at the front door with this girl.
VAN SUSTEREN: Now...
GARCIA: And this is the first time that I actually got to talk to her about -- about this part.
VAN SUSTEREN: The video that you've seen, is your daughter in that video at all? She's one of the arrested ones, but do you see her in the video?
GARCIA: No.
VAN SUSTEREN: All right. Mary, you are the grandmother, is that right, and Mercades was living with you?
MARY NICHOLS, GRANDMOTHER: Yes, ma'am.
VAN SUSTEREN: Have you talked to your granddaughter about this event?
NICHOLS: No, I haven't been able to (INAUDIBLE) I watch Christina's 6-year-old, and I worked the past Sunday. So I haven't been able to see her, but my plans are to visit with her.
VAN SUSTEREN: Mary, how did you hear about this?
NICHOLS: Well, initially, I heard about it when I got home from work. But you know, when kids say there was a fight, you just think, you know, it's a fight. But I have to admit that that was more than a fight, and I'm not pleased at all that it happened in my house.
VAN SUSTEREN: Now, you say it happened in your house. Can we swing the camera -- Christina, you're there, right, where this happened?
GARCIA: Yes. Yes.
VAN SUSTEREN: And maybe we can swing the camera around. Can you point some things out for us, Christina, at all, I mean, where this happened?
GARCIA: This is where the -- where you showed the video, this is actually where it happened here. And this is the front door, where she was standing in front of.
VAN SUSTEREN: And that's...
GARCIA: Can you see it?
VAN SUSTEREN: Yes, I can see it. And that's also where Mercades is staying, is that right?
GARCIA: Where Mercades is living?
VAN SUSTEREN: Yes.
GARCIA: Yes.
VAN SUSTEREN: All right. Do you know the girl who is the victim in this beating?
NICHOLS: Yes, she was living with me.
VAN SUSTEREN: And that's -- Mary, you're talking. What's she like?
NICHOLS: Well, I don't want to say anything bad about anybody. But you know, she's -- came in and out of my house, and you know, I got a little upset with her one time for taking the car without asking me when she didn't have her license. But basically, she's a (INAUDIBLE) girl, you know, as far as -- her and Mercades got along great. Mercades begged me to let her move in here. She told me her (INAUDIBLE) kicked her out. She had no place to live, that there was a conflict between her and her stepmother. And so I let her live here, you know, and for that time, Mercades and her got along well.
VAN SUSTEREN: Now...
NICHOLS: They (INAUDIBLE)
VAN SUSTEREN: There's been so much media attention on this that -- and -- you know, that one of the problems is you've gotten some voice- mails, Christina. And I want to play them for the people because...
(CROSSTALK)
VAN SUSTEREN: Go ahead.
NICHOLS: The voice-mails are my house...
VAN SUSTEREN: All right...
NICHOLS: ... and there's been almost 100 calls from all over the United States.
VAN SUSTEREN: All right. Well, I want to play them because I want the viewers to understand that -- I mean, you two women aren't arrested for anything, but you're getting some of these voice-mails, or at least you are, Mary. Let's play a couple of them so the viewers can hear them.
NICHOLS: OK.
(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Just wanted you let you know (INAUDIBLE) thank you.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I was just curious as to what method of beating you were using. It's not a fighting style that any of us are ever accustoming to.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We know where you live, and we're coming to get you (DELETED)!
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: (INAUDIBLE) we have no reason to want to be (INAUDIBLE) we want to be really cool like you and have my ugly picture (INAUDIBLE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Hi. Is this Mercades Nichols? (INAUDIBLE) quite a bit of trouble. At this moment, there are hundreds, literally thousands of people calling (INAUDIBLE) information (INAUDIBLE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (INAUDIBLE) congratulations (INAUDIBLE) poster child (DELETED)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Hey (DELETED) (INAUDIBLE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (INAUDIBLE) the entire (DELETED) human race.
(END AUDIO CLIP)
VAN SUSTEREN: Christina, when you went to see your daughter tonight, did you tell her about these voice-mail -- these voice messages?
GARCIA: Some of them, yes.
VAN SUSTEREN: And I take it that -- I take it -- I mean, from our conversation, you said they're quite disturbing, and you yourself are upset by at least the phone calls are coming into the house, to your mother's house.
GARCIA: Right. I don't know why the other ones weren't on there, but there's actually death threats, people threatening to kill Mercades when she gets out.
VAN SUSTEREN: Well, we're -- you know, we (INAUDIBLE) play those. I'll have someone get those from you, as well...
GARCIA: OK.
VAN SUSTEREN: ... because I think people should try to get as much as they can. What -- did Mercades tell you, Christina, why this happened?
GARCIA: She told me that -- she is very upset. She asked me -- she's not happy with this situation. She did not want there to be a fight here, OK? She was not...
VAN SUSTEREN: Did she know it was going to happen? Did she know it was going to happen?
GARCIA: No.
VAN SUSTEREN: No?
GARCIA: No.
VAN SUSTEREN: Who had the videocamera?
GARCIA: Oh, I know the person's name. OK, it's Cara or Cara that had the videocamera.
VAN SUSTEREN: Do you know any of the parents of the other girls?
GARCIA: Do I know the parents of them?
VAN SUSTEREN: Yes.
GARCIA: I talked to a few of them this evening.
VAN SUSTEREN: And I take it everybody's pretty disturbed by what the daughters did?
GARCIA: They're very disturbed with the video, very disturbed with the video.
VAN SUSTEREN: Did...
GARCIA: But...
VAN SUSTEREN: Go ahead.
GARCIA: Well, you know, like Mercades -- you know, Mercades told me tonight that she was very, very scared that if she were to call the police that this girl was going to beat her up. I had no idea that my daughter was this scared of this girl.
VAN SUSTEREN: Who's "this girl"? You mean the one who was beaten or the -- or -- or someone...
(CROSSTALK)
GARCIA: ... the one that is beating this girl.
VAN SUSTEREN: Is someone your daughter is afraid of? Your daughter is afraid of her?
GARCIA: Yes.
VAN SUSTEREN: Now, any idea when your daughter's going to -- is she going to get out on any sort of bond or bail? Because she's detained right now.
GARCIA: Right. No, I have no idea when she's going to get out.
VAN SUSTEREN: Does she have a lawyer?
GARCIA: No. Actually, I'm in the process of looking for one.
VAN SUSTEREN: Did -- this other girl, is her name Whitney? Is that what you said her name was, the one she's afraid of?
GARCIA: Brittini, the one that's...
VAN SUSTEREN: Brittini.
GARCIA: ... actually doing the beating. Yes.
VAN SUSTEREN: What -- do you know Brittini?
GARCIA: No. I've met her, like, one time over here for, like, five minutes.
VAN SUSTEREN: Did your daughter say why Brittini did this?
GARCIA: Yes, but you know, I've tried to explain, but...
VAN SUSTEREN: Why was it...
GARCIA: They say it was because Tori actually wanted to fight them and that she had been talking over MySpace and saying that Brittini was running from her, she would not, you know, confront her, she was scared of her. And I was actually told by a reporter today that Tori actually knew about this.
(CROSSTALK)
GARCIA: ... bragging about it at work -- that she was bragging about it at work, that she's coming over here to fight two girls.
VAN SUSTEREN: All right. Christina and Mary, thank you both. And Christina, if you get that tape to us, we have people down there. We'll play it. Thank you, Christina. Good luck.
GARCIA: Thank you.
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