Cheerleader Beating Video Update: Dr. Phil's Staff Bails Out Ringleader of Mulberry Eight?

Oh, Dr. Phil, how could you? First it was all that crap when Britney Spears went nuts and you showed up unannounced at the hospital to "help" . . . and, reportedly, to get the entire Spears clan on your show. Now comes word that members of your staff paid the bail of 17-year-old Mercades Nichols, one of the six teens accused of videotaping themselves beating a fellow cheerleader in Polk County, Fla. Nichols and her seven co-defendants, best known here as the "Mulberry Eight", received very high bail amounts based on the severity of their crime and apparent lack of remorse. Most were stuck in jail for a while because their parents couldn't raise the money, but apparently some staffers on the Dr. Phil Show came up with the cash. Here's more from Hollywood Today:

Even besides the nastiness of trying for a story by getting people out of jail — it has never led to to happy ending. From Norman Mailer to Truman Capote’s famed escapades, one of which ended in a murder, media figures getting prisoners out of jail has often led to disaster.

“In this case, certain staff members went beyond our guidelines (re the bail being paid),” read an official statement released by a spokeswoman for the “Dr. Phil” show on Saturday. “These staff members have been spoken to and our policies reiterated. In addition, we have decided not to go forward with the story as our guidelines have been compromised.”

It was unclear if one of the employees disciplined was the unidentified male seen escorting Nichols and her family to their vehicle in the jailhouse parking lot after the teen’s bail was paid. At the time, the man refused to give his name to reporters and forbade the gathered media from interviewing Nichols or her kin, citing a signed exclusivity contract.