Page 39 - Higgins News Today

Theory. certainly tommy skakel was a suspect but what micki did not do was point the finger at home and thats the core of the judges opinion and hes now -- >> you know what, i can tell, jeffrey -- >> im trying to agree with you. >> the first 20 pages -- >> i know. you read the first 20 pages of the decision. you didnt read the sections about higgins and coleman and the other witnesses. >> i certainly did. >> he talks about tommy skakel during the first part of the opinion but its 136-page opinio...

But there were these other suspects. certainly tommy skakel was a suspect. but what mickey sherman did not do was point the finger at him. and thats the core of the judges opinion. and now -- >> you know what? i can tell, jeffrey -- >> im trying to agree with you. >> i know. you read the first 20 pages of the decision. you didnt read the sections about higgins and coleman and the other witnesses. >> i certainly did. >> and yeah, he talks about tommy skakel during the first part of his opinion bu...

Consequences would last 33 years. thats not a plan that i had. i didnt grow up saying i want to be a prostitute for 33 years. >> like most sold for sex, leannas fall into prostitution began with being raped as a child. >> i had two children by the time i was 14 years old. i had been raped so many times i was like easy prey, you know, because it was like no one worried about raping me and getting a charge of raping a child because i had babies. >> like leanna, tammy eventually wound up homeless o...

All of this at no cost to the taxpayer. >> ive gotten so much help, and im much happier being clean and not out there walking aimlessly. >> you look very, very good today. very professional. >> while police focus on arresting criminals who enslave women, every friday judge higgins can be found in court, offering women a genuine shot at getting out. >> how long have you been clean and sober now? >> seven months. >> well, congratulations to that. >> theres no magic pill here. the magic is in them....

Dont take this lifeline, they will not survive. and theyre probably right. >> the illinois supreme court granted msnbc a rare opportunity to bear witness to this problem-solving court, which is the first of its kind in the country. >> normally, id ask to be sentenced. but this time i chose treatment. >> instead of doing time, women like tammy can opt to join a two-year rehabilitation program. >> what do you think brought you back into the street? the drugs or the boyfriend or -- >> the women rec...

>> like most sold for sex, leannas fall into prostitution began with being raped as a child. >> i had two children by the time i was 14 years old. i had been raped so many times i was like easy prey, you know, because it was like no one worried about raping me and getting a charge of raping a child because i had babies. >> like leanna, tammy eventually wound up homeless on the streets county offered an alternative to jail time. >> the judge offered me three years in prison or treatment and task ...

Taxpayer. >> ive gotten so much help, and im much happier being clean and not out there walking aimlessly. >> you look very, very good today. very professional. >> while police focus on arresting criminals who enslave women, every friday judge higgins can be found in court, offering women a genuine shot at getting out. >> how long have you been clean and sober now? >> seven months. >> well, congratulations to that. >> theres no magic pill here. the magic is in them. and, yes, do they have it? i ...

I didnt grow up saying i want to be a prostitute for 33 years. >> like most sold for sex, leannas fall into prostitution began with being raped as a child. >> i had two children by the time i was 14 years old. i had been raped so many times i was like easy prey, you know, because it was like no one worried about raping me and getting a charge of raping a child because i had babies. >> like leanna, tammy eventually wound up homeless on the streets of chicago, where she was caught in a trafficking...

Runs a special court that allows higgins to oversee all prostitution cases in the county. >> they believe that if they dont take this lifeline they will not survive. and theyre probably right. >> the illinois supreme court granted msnbc a rare opportunity to bear witness to this problem-solving court, which is the first of its kind in the country. >> normally, id ask to be sentenced. but this time i chose treatment. >> instead of doing time, women like tammy can opt to join a two-year rehabilita...

because of all the three films, and i know youve heard we did this competition in three different territories. i was look iing for distinctive three different parts in three different movies with different tones that, "a," would give me something to do where a young director could really direct me and i just thought bens script, the idea, was very, very clever. it was funny. and it gave me a chance to in the voice of mr. higgims, as we call him in the film, although his real name is ke...