61st Street (2022–…): Season 1, Episode 8 - Man on Fire - full transcript
Previously, on
"61st Street"...
Her boy was a snitch,
but she keeps making
a big noise about this,
you understand what I'm sayin'?
Hey, what y'all takin' me down
here for, I didn't do nothing...
Is this your service weapon?
- It's my gun.
- I watched you
decide to lie!
You want the truth?
I love you.
What's that? That ain't mine!
Y'all plantin' stuff now?!
How's that goin'? I'm a pro, boss.
What is this? Rufus. He was a problem.
If you use this,
I can't live with you.
Mom? Dad? Wake up.
There's somebody on fire.
There's a man on fire
outside our house.
Where? We got to put him out.
Get up.
We need to put him out.
Okay, baby. Okay, okay.
Oh, my God.
Mom!
I-I need to put him out.
Stay up here! Stay up here!
Stay up here! David! Get in here! No!
- Mom, I...
- No!
No, no, no, no. I want to put him out.
Mom, I...
No!
Stay up there. Got to put him out.
No.I-I want to help Dad.
Stay up there. Got to put him out.
Stop. Stop. Mom! I want
to put him out!
No, no.
Mom!
David, come on.
I don't want to go to school. Just take it.
Take your headphones. I'm taking it.
It's fine.
Mrs. Evans is gonna be there.
I don't care.
It's not the right time
to go to school.
Baby, just come on, please.
It's not the right time
to go to school.
It's the wrong time.
I'm not going.
You know what?
Stay with your father.
Can I help you, Dad?
Franklin, be careful.
Franklin, be careful.
True colors.
Reminds everybody
what we're fighting against.
And it shows
that they're agitated.
So we should leak it
to the press?
Leak it to the press?
- What do you think this is? 1950?
- You know...
Can I trouble you
for a comment?
On what?
The end of your career.
I'm sorry?
We're running the Joshua drug
money story in tomorrow's paper.
You can't do that. Why not?
Halfway through a trial,
no way you run something
as prejudicial as that
if it hasn't been heard
in evidence.
You mean it would have to come
from the witness stand first?
What prompted you to start
surveillance of Joshua Johnson?
We'd found drugs
in the Johnson home
and it matched
what we seized on the streets.
We wanted to find out
how much the family
is involved
in the business.
Do you know where the money
from Joshua's
is involved
in the business.
Drug-dealing earnings
has been going?
There's no evidence of any
obvious increased spending...
No new car,
new clothes or shoes.
From which you conclude
what?
Joshua's out selling drugs
for The Nation street gang,
and the money he earns
all goes to one thing.
Which is?
The Moses Johnson
defense fund.
Created by?
His mother.
To pay for?
Him.
♪ Chicago
♪ Where the dollar and blue
collar go hand in hand ♪
♪ City of Dreams so big
♪ Nightmares
don't stand a chance ♪
♪ A concrete paradise
where roses grow ♪
♪ See the smile from a child
♪ Light up
the magnificent mile ♪
♪ And melt the coldest snow
♪ This is home
♪ Find the brightest minds
on these dark streets ♪
♪ See the heart and soul
on these old blocks ♪
♪ Where we grow,
we call it the go ♪
♪ 'Cause we don't stop
Okay.
I didn't know.
You didn't know.
We're finished, aren't we?
- A part of going big is coming clean.
- What?
We call Joshua,
and he tells it like it is.
Call our witness to confirm
we're funded by a street gang?
Okay. That cop is lying.
I'd have seen them.
In our neighborhood? That kind of surveillance?
Ain't no way we wouldn't have seen them.
Okay, I'm... I'm gonna be
straight with you.
Right now,
Moses is going don.
He needs his brother.
To do what?
Are you a member of
The Nation street gang?
Yes.
Since when?
I just joined.
Why did you do that?
For money.
For my brother.
Pay for this.
Can you earn
the same kind of money
outside
the criminal economy?
No.
Are there jobs out there
for you?
On the South Side? Uh-huh.
You got to be kidding,
Mr. Franklin.
Yesterday, Officer Frater
swore on his mother's life
that when he and his partner
took you out of the station
that day,
it was to revisit
the crime scene.
Is that true?
Joshua?
Is that true?
On his mom's life,
he said that?
Mm-hmm. He did.
Uh, that's not true.
But he did take you out of
the police station that day?
Yes.
Where did he take you?
To the river.
Why?
They...
They needed a name.
Did you give him
a name?
Yeah.
What name
did you give him?
Moses.
Did you give him
your brother's name voluntarily?
Did you give him
your brother's name voluntarily?
Uh, no, I didn't. They...
They would a killed me.
Did you give him
your brother's name voluntarily?
They?
Uh, Officer Frater
and Officer Young.
What did they do?
I didn't do nothing!
Please!
What are y'all doing?!
I-I can't.
I'm sorry.
It's okay.
It's alright.
You've been selling drugs
to support your brother.
No. Yes.
Not for personal gain?
No.
And you know of course that
drugs destroy people's lives?
Yes.
But you put your brother first,
above other people's pain?
Yes.
What wouldn't you do
to help your brother?
- I don't know.
- How about lying?
Would you do that?
Would you lie under oath?
Look, they needed a name,
alright?
I had to give it to them.
You feel bad about that?
Yes.
Guilt was eating you up?
Is that why you invented
that story
about being taken down
to the river?
What? No.
You snitched on
your own brother,
you feel terrible about it,
and now you're playing
the victim
in order
to allay the guilt.
No.
Did you tell your mom
what happened?
No.
Did you tell anybody?
No!
Until now.
That's kind
of convenient.
Oh, did you go see
a doctor?
There wasn't nothing to show.
I don't know. No.
Because it never happened.
What?
Ask them about the river.
They know about it.
Tell everybody the truth.
Yeah, tell them
what you did.
What you looking like that
for,
- Mr. Johnson, control yourself.
- Huh?
- Control myself?
- Yep.
Where was
the control when...
When these savages
tried to violate me, huh?
- Jo.
- I'm warning you, Mr. Johnson.
When these crooked-ass police
tried to destroy my family,
huh?
- That's enough. Deputies, remove
- Cowards,
- this witness from court.
- Both of you.
Y'all cowards!
Y'all cowards!
Y'all hurt my family!
Mom! Mom!
My brother!
My fucking brother!
- Jojo!
Give us a name. Then tell
me something I want to hear then.
- I don't know anything!
- Tell me something.
- Give me a name.
- No, no!
Just tell me something then.
Talk. All you gotta do is
talk. No, let me go! Let me go!
Give us a name.
Get me a name!
That's my son.
No! No!
Stop! Stop!
Please! No!
- Please stop!
- It's me, it's me.
Please, please.
Because Joshua didn't finish
his cross-examination,
I'm afraid everything
he just told us
will be erased
from the record.
I'm afraid everything
he just told us
What they did to Jojo, man...
is foul.
He a kid. I know.
I know.
But it's down to you now.
You smell like smoke.
Everybody saying in trials
like these, the accused
don't normally take
the stand.
How can a jury know
your state of mind
if you don't tell them?
They can't read the mind
of a man who won't talk to them.
You don't get up
on the stand?
I look like a fool
for promising it.
Is this about you,
or is it about me?
Do you know
why I smell like smoke?
They burned an effigy
outside my home this morning.
Swinging from a tree.
Swinging from a tree again.
I-I'm sorry. I...
That's horrible.
You just doing your job.
It wasn't myeffigy
they were burning.
Where is he?
Last stall.
Immunity and protection
for the truth,
the whole truth
and nothing but the truth.
So help you
if you fuck this up.
Thank you.
I'll do it.
Call your witness,
Counselor.
Something's come up,
Your Honor.
Are you gonna tell us
what it is?
Who, not what.
Moses been working
for The Nation.
When?
Now.
In County.
Objection. Hearsay.
Let's hear what the evidence
says first.
Doing what?
Picking up packages
that come over the wall.
Containing what?
Heroin.
L-Like I said, Your
Honor, that... that's hearsay.
This witness hasn't
witnessed anything.
Sure I have. H-How?
You ain't currently
incarcerated in Cook County.
I know what I know. You don't know.
How you know
what you know?
That package...
...that was me.
I threw it over the wall.
I saw Moses collect it.
You okay, Counselor?
Yeah, I-I-I just need
a moment with my client.
Yes, you do.
Counselor?
Okay, Counselor?
Yeah.
I just... Yeah, I'm...
I just... Yeah, I'm...
Deputy, call the medic.
What are we doin' here?
Come on.
Hey, buddy.
Hey, Brannigan.
Good to see ya.
How's retirement?
Ah, good, yeah.
Gentlemen,
what's your pleasure?
We'll have whatever
the Deputy Chief's having.
Gentlemen,
what's your pleasure?
Two Bunnahabhain 25s,
straight up.
Hey.
Hey.
Hey.
Hello.
Hey, there.
Bring it down.
What?
Bring it down. Yeah.
What? You want me to bring it
down a little bit?
Yeah.
Okay.
Alright.
Hey, that's better.
How you doing?
How you...
Oh, um, I'm sorry.
I-I can come back.
Who's there?
Oh, it's fine.
Come on. Come on.
That sounds like
Nicole.
It is Nicole.
What'd the judge say?
He talked to Moses.
What'd he say?
If he wants a new trial...
and new lawyers,
he can have that.
What did Moses say?
He has until morning
to decide.
He has till morning.
Here, put this back on.
Martha?
Would you stay with him?
You're... You're leaving?
I know my husband,
and there's only one thing
that's gonna get him
back on his feet.
Appreciate what you did
on the witness stand...
Thinking on your feet,
seeing the play
without being told what it was.
You had the gun switched?
There's this thing that, uh,
all top sportsmen know.
When you're Roger Federer...
Don't ask why. Mm?
Don't try to understand
why you can do what you can do
because talking about a thing
can fuck with a thing.
Why am I here?
Chief's telling you
how much he loves you.
The swelling in your prostate
caused a backup in your bladder.
Mm.
The fever, nausea?
That was your body
screaming at you.
You're septic, Franklin.
That's not good, is it?
We need to get this infection
under control,
then a urostomy.
The Foley catheter's
only good for so long,
so I'd like to do it
as soon as possible.
But not now.
We want to talk to Dante.
That ain't how it work.
You know who this is?
Yeah, I know who you are.
So show some respect.
That still ain't how it work.
Well, it ain't
for a skinny-ass corner boy
like you to decide.
So you tell Dante
Martha Roberts
needs a face to face.
Appreciate what you did
on the witness stand...
Thinking on your feet,
seeing the play
without being told what it was.
I, uh...
I sh... I should've told you.
I'm sorry.
The judge say the defense
you're running is reckless.
He doesn't see it...
The bigger picture.
I need you to stay with me,
Moses.
Sounds like the wrong way
'round to me...
Lawyer needing the client.
I think we're a long way
past lawyer/client.
It's much, much more
than that.
Hm.
The thing about dying, son...
...it's kind of a freedom.
I'm not scared of nobody.
Nothing can hurt me anymore.
And that's what you need
in your corner right now.
The whole time.
Got a minute?
Pretty sure it's against
the rules, you talking to me.
Pretty sure you don't
follow the rules.
GSR report... Michael Rossi's
clothing the day he died.
Gunshot residue
on the shirt.
Where'd that come from?
I said my piece
on the stand.
Then I'll answer
my own question.
The residue
came from you.
You transferred it to him
while you were giving him CPR
right after you shot
at Moses.
What do you want?
That's when you saw
the wire,
Took it,
didn't tell Brannigan
or anyone else
in your department,
and you've been wrestling
with your conscience ever since.
And right now, your conscience
has gotten the upper hand...
Which is why you left the tape
on my doorstep last night.
See, I think we got this
the wrong way 'round.
I should be asking you
what you want.
It wasn't me.
I didn't leave anything
at your house.
You know there's something
foul about your Lieutenant.
Even your partner knew.
Even your partner knew.
What do you want me to do?
First thing tomorrow morning,
go back up on the stand,
What do you want me to do?
And tell the jury
you lied about your gun.
Michael Rossi was prepared
to follow his conscience.
Are you?
Hello, Mr. Dante.
So...?
So you discover a snitch
in your organization,
and they die.
Has to be.
And if the snitch isn't around,
someone else has to go,
so everybody knows
how you feel about snitching.
That's how it works.
- So?
- I think that's old.
I think that's an old way
of doing things.
Hm.
Yeah.
And you strike me
as a modern man.
Ah.
A leader who leads
with the cool side
of his brain
and not the hot.
What you want?
A life.
I want to save a life.
Who is he?
She.
It's a she.
I think you can win
this election.
Knowing
everything you know about him,
you're sure you want
to keep your attorney?
With everything I know
about him, yes.
I was looking right at Rufus
when he got shot down.
Who shot him?
The cops.
How did that
make you feel?
Scared for my life.
What did you do?
I ran.
What did you think would happen
if you didn't run?
I thought
it would be me next.
How did you feel about
Michael Rossi?
You know, I'm deeply sorry
for his family, honestly,
from the bottom of my heart,
but I just...
I don't know
how we got here.
When you were down
that dead-end street
and he came to arrest you...
We all want to know,
and the jury needs to hear...
What was in your mind?
Wasn't in my mind.
Deeper than that.
In that moment, in my bones,
it's just that thing
that everybody know...
If a cop come for you
and a cop get a hold of you?
You could die.
So what did you do?
There was, like,
cages with these, uh,
Containers at the end,
and, uh, the only way out
I could see
was over the containers.
And he was
between me and that.
And then, uh...
And then I...
I tried to get over there.
Stop!
And, uh...
...he stepped across to...
To block my path.
It's over.And...
It's over.
There was, uh,
some sh-shoulder-to-sh...
There was
some shoulder contact.
Shoulder-to-shoulder contact?
He fell back.
Hit his... Hit his head.
His back of his head hit...
Hit the iron bar in...
In the ground,
and there was...
Breathe!
Come on, breathe!
...there was all this blood
all of a sudden, and...
Yo! Breathe!
Hey, stay with me, man!
Stay with me!
What happened when
the second police officer
arrived on the scene?
He took a shot at me.
Had you shown any aggressive
intent toward him?
No, I-I was running away,
and I had my back turned to him.
He shot at your back?
What did that tell you?
That he was trying to kill me
and that I was right
to run away
and I-I was right
to protect myself.
Thank you.
This won't take long.
When the police arrived
on the corner,
Did you know
they were cops?
Yeah.
Mm-hmm. And when you ran
from the corner,
it was to
escape police officers?
- Yes.
- And down that dead-end street,
nothing had changed?
How do you mean?
You knew Michael Rossi
was a police officer.
You knew he wanted
to arrest you.
Yes.
Did he draw his weapon?
No.
Did he make
any aggressive move toward you?
He was a cop.
What else did you know about
Michael Rossi in that moment?
Nothing.
You didn't know he had
an exemplary service record?
You didn't know he had a wife
and five small children,
or where he was born,
or how much he loved baseball?
No.What does this have to do
with anything?
You made an assumption
based on the one thing
you knew about him.
That he was a cop.
What?
What does that make you?
You... You just don't get it,
lady.
- I mean, how could you?
- Mr. Johnson.
You... You just don't get it,
lady.
No, no, no. She just
gonna ask me a question
and just get to sit down?
No. The way I was raised...
That's called rude.
Mr. Johnson. No, man, that's not right.
Your Honor,
I'm entitled to redirect.
Would you like to continue
with what you were saying?
Yes.
Please continue.
She's talking
about assumptions.
She don't know nothing
about me.
You making assumptions
that I'm one of these
little hood rats
on the corner.
That's not me.
Every day, I train.
Every day, I train my butt off
to get where I'm trying to go.
And you talking about that
I'm making assumptions.
I have never been in trouble
a day in my life.
You can ask everybody.
Everybody know me.
Everybody know
I stay out the way.
And you can ask everybody
where I'm from...
Everybody know we talk
about the same thing about cops.
The world has given cops
the permission to...
To... to... to hurt us,
to kill us,
and there's
no repercussions at all.
And if you... And if you manage
to get out of there alive,
they will always be believed,
they will always be the truth.
We will always be the liars.
Dead or in jail...
Those are our only options.
Unless there's 9 minutes
and 26 seconds of footage
showing a murder
in broad daylight,
there is no good outcome
for us.
And... And what does
that make me?
How does that make me feel?
I'll tell you.
Sad.
Angry.
Tired.
But you... But you think
you can just stand there and...
And call me a bigot or...
Or whatever nonsense
and sit down
and not even have the decency
to look at me
when I'm talking to you.
I'm not gonna take that
from her or anybody.
Not no more.
Your Honor...
No, I don't need to hear
from you, Counselor.
Deputy,
remove the jury, please.
No.
What we just heard from
the defendant is a confession.
- What?"
- I knew he was a cop.
- I ran anyway.
- What did he...
He identified himself
as a cop.
I resisted arrest."What? No.
For self-defense to even be
an option
for the jury to consider... Frank, man.
...the threat the accused
is facing must be unlawful.
We've heard nothing to suggest
that anything...
What?...these police officers
have done was unlawful.
We've heard nothing to suggest
that anything...
So I'm telling you
what Moses Johnson
just said on the stand...
Oh, no, no... is an admission of guilt.
Your Honor, no.Mr. Johnson...
That's not
what just happened.
...I have no choice. No, Your Honor.
I'm going to direct the jury
to find you guilty.
...I have no choice. No, Your Honor.
No, Your Honor, you're
wrong. No, you can't do that.
You can't do that. I've heard everything
I need to hear.
You can't do that, Your Honor.
Franklin, you told I can beat this.
You can't do that. I've heard everything
I need to hear.
The whole trial, I'm just giving
you a word nobody was saying. Mom! No, no.
Come on, man. Hold on. Hold on. One second.
No, no, no, no, no. Hold on.
Counselor, what's going on?
Uh, hold on one second,
Your Honor.
Uh, Your Honor,
I would like to, uh...
A prosecution witness
recalled.
- What?
- Yes, Your Honor.
Who?
You told us
you had no knowledge
of the man you shot dead
on the corner that day.
Correct.
That you didn't know
his name then.
Correct.
And you certainly wouldn't
have known his street name.
No.
Or his relationship
with the CPD.
I don't know what you mean.
I need you to think carefully
about your answers now.
I have.
And I have no idea
what you're talking about.
Look...
I don't care
who we take down.
These people are
all the same to me.
I don't care
who we take down.
But they have got to be
paying for that pass...
The Faction.
Paying who?
It's just where the heat
is now.
His theory...
or yours?
His theory...
Oh, his.
He got a name?
Your man in The Nation.
Yeah.
Tutu.
Which is it, Lieutenant?
Are you suffering
from memory loss
or are you
a shameless liar?
I forgive you.
Excuse me?
You have to do your job...
I understand.
But what you're saying?
Total fiction.
Let me be clear
about something.
Right now,
there's no difference
between me the lawyer
and me the human being.
I'm not a storyteller,
I'm not doing a job, this is me.
I'm calling you out.
What you did to Rufus Porter
was an execution.
When Moses ran, he was running
from a killer
with the letters P-O-L-I-C-E
on his chest.
That's you.
Lieutenant Brannigan.
He told me.
Told me Rufus was a snitch.
Why would he do that?
Told me that, too.
It was to get me
to keep Rufus' mom quiet.
Janet.
Yep, Janet.
One more thing.
Hmm?
On behalf of my son
and my community,
I'd like to answer the question
that he just dodged.
Okay.
I'd like to answer the question
that he just dodged.
Lieutenant Brannigan?
He is a shameless liar.
I used to think
the system was broken.
I don't think that anymore.
The system's not broken.
It works the way it was
supposed to work
by the people
who designed it.
The prosecution says this is
all about the rule of law.
The judge will tell you
when I'm done that what Moses
did was outside the law
and that you have no choice
but to find him
guilty of murder.
But slavery was the law.
Interracial marriage
was against the law.
Apartheid South Africa
was upheld by the law.
And the murder of Black men,
women, and children
by the lynch law was ignored
by the so-called real law.
So the law
is not always right.
So the law
is not always right.
In fact, it took people like
yourselves to change those laws
and to remind us that the law
is supposed to be about
what is for the people,
not to serve the powerful
at the expense of the people.
So, ladies and gentlemen
of the jury,
the moment is with you.
Moses is in your hands.
Today you are the law.
Slavery was lawful,
and it was wrong.
Segregation was wrong.
Apartheid was the law,
and it was straight-up evil.
Segregation was wrong.
Somebody had to say it then.
You are going to have
to say it again today.
Moses was right to run,
he was right to defend himself
and the law is wrong.
And the law is wrong.
Deep down in each of you,
I know there's a sacred part
of being human.
Socrates died for it.
You don't need God or a judge
to tell you what is right
and what is wrong...
Your conscience
does that for you.
Look to your conscience,
look everything else
right in the eye,
and with the strength
your conscience gives you,
bring home a verdict
that sends from this courtroom
a message of hope
for a brighter future...
...and a deep consolation
for the corrupted past
built and protected...
...by the law.
Thank you.
Martha Roberts!
Alright, now.
Martha!
Martha.
Hey, Martha.
Girl.
Black people,
how y'all feeling?
How you feeling?
Thank y'all for bringing
the family out.
- Thank you for coming out to vote.
- Thank you.
You know this important,
right?
- Yeah.
- Thank you.
My condolences.
I scratched your back
twice.
May the best man win.
Really?
Has the jury reached a verdict?
Yes, we have, Your Honor.
Will the defendant please rise?
In the case of The State
of Illinois vs. Moses Johnson,
on the single count of murder
in the first degree...
...the jury hereby
finds the accused...
...not guilty.
Thank you, man.
Mom! Mom! Mom! Mom!
Man.
I love you so much.
I love you so much.
- Oh!
- Moses!
- Who's coming home?!
- Moses!
- Who's coming home?!
- Moses!
- Who's coming home?!
- Moses!
- Who's coming home?!
- Moses!
- Who's coming home?!
- Moses!
- Who's coming home?!
- Moses!
- Who's coming home?!
- Moses!
♪ He saves the day
- Hey! Hey!
- That's right. That's right.
That's you.
You did that.
Thank you.
♪ No greater love
♪ A love like this
♪ Makes my heart beat
♪ And I promise You
♪ All I wanna do
is make You proud of me ♪
♪ That's why
♪ I don't wanna love nobody
but You ♪
Hey, hey, hey, hey.
Everybody.
Martha Roberts' office.
Martha.
You'll get this one.
Yeah.
No matter what...
No matter what, right?
No matter what...
No matter what, I thank y'all.
Yes, this is Martha Roberts.
Right.
Well, I appreciate your call.
Thank you.
You have a good night.
We won.
♪ He saves the day
♪ He will come through Mama! You did it!
I knew you would!
I love you!
♪ He won't bow,
that's not what superheroes do ♪
- ♪ See, I will never find
- You did it!
♪ He won't bow,
that's not what superheroes do ♪
♪ No greater love You did it!
♪ A love like this
♪ No greater love You did it!
♪ Makes my heart beat
♪ Forever an a day
♪ All I wanna do
is make You proud of me ♪
♪ Let me say it again
♪ All I wanna do
is make You proud of me ♪
♪ He saves the day
♪ Woo ♪ He will come through
Where's Dad?
♪ It feels so good
I don't know, baby.
Good job, Mom.
We did it.
♪ No greater love
♪ Hallelujah
♪ Makes my heart beat
♪ For the rest of my life
♪ All I wanna do
is make You proud of me ♪
♪ Everybody sing
Oh! You're home!
Yeah.
I missed you.
- I missed you. Oh, God.
- I missed you.
Daddy! Daddy!
- I missed you. Oh, God.
- I missed you.
You good? Yeah. Daddy!
Hey, that's for you. Thank you.
Hey, hey, hey, hey!
Jessica, I-I...
Don't worry.
I told him.
What?
After the verdict,
I told Brannigan it was me
who gave them
the recording,
that you could never
do a thing like that...
Betray the brotherhood
just for the truth.
I...
So you're good.
Betray the brotherhood
just for the truth.
You can go back to your life.
Just don't look
in the mirror.
Your form's
a little ragged.
You'll get it back.
Let's go again.
Your form's
a little ragged.
Yeah.
Coach, you said
you wanted him back.
Here he is.
Take good care of him.
Will do.
Take good care of him.
- Alright, now.
- Alright.
Looking good.
Thanks, Mr. Franklin.
I appreciate you.
Alright, here we go.
One more time.
"61st Street"...
Her boy was a snitch,
but she keeps making
a big noise about this,
you understand what I'm sayin'?
Hey, what y'all takin' me down
here for, I didn't do nothing...
Is this your service weapon?
- It's my gun.
- I watched you
decide to lie!
You want the truth?
I love you.
What's that? That ain't mine!
Y'all plantin' stuff now?!
How's that goin'? I'm a pro, boss.
What is this? Rufus. He was a problem.
If you use this,
I can't live with you.
Mom? Dad? Wake up.
There's somebody on fire.
There's a man on fire
outside our house.
Where? We got to put him out.
Get up.
We need to put him out.
Okay, baby. Okay, okay.
Oh, my God.
Mom!
I-I need to put him out.
Stay up here! Stay up here!
Stay up here! David! Get in here! No!
- Mom, I...
- No!
No, no, no, no. I want to put him out.
Mom, I...
No!
Stay up there. Got to put him out.
No.I-I want to help Dad.
Stay up there. Got to put him out.
Stop. Stop. Mom! I want
to put him out!
No, no.
Mom!
David, come on.
I don't want to go to school. Just take it.
Take your headphones. I'm taking it.
It's fine.
Mrs. Evans is gonna be there.
I don't care.
It's not the right time
to go to school.
Baby, just come on, please.
It's not the right time
to go to school.
It's the wrong time.
I'm not going.
You know what?
Stay with your father.
Can I help you, Dad?
Franklin, be careful.
Franklin, be careful.
True colors.
Reminds everybody
what we're fighting against.
And it shows
that they're agitated.
So we should leak it
to the press?
Leak it to the press?
- What do you think this is? 1950?
- You know...
Can I trouble you
for a comment?
On what?
The end of your career.
I'm sorry?
We're running the Joshua drug
money story in tomorrow's paper.
You can't do that. Why not?
Halfway through a trial,
no way you run something
as prejudicial as that
if it hasn't been heard
in evidence.
You mean it would have to come
from the witness stand first?
What prompted you to start
surveillance of Joshua Johnson?
We'd found drugs
in the Johnson home
and it matched
what we seized on the streets.
We wanted to find out
how much the family
is involved
in the business.
Do you know where the money
from Joshua's
is involved
in the business.
Drug-dealing earnings
has been going?
There's no evidence of any
obvious increased spending...
No new car,
new clothes or shoes.
From which you conclude
what?
Joshua's out selling drugs
for The Nation street gang,
and the money he earns
all goes to one thing.
Which is?
The Moses Johnson
defense fund.
Created by?
His mother.
To pay for?
Him.
♪ Chicago
♪ Where the dollar and blue
collar go hand in hand ♪
♪ City of Dreams so big
♪ Nightmares
don't stand a chance ♪
♪ A concrete paradise
where roses grow ♪
♪ See the smile from a child
♪ Light up
the magnificent mile ♪
♪ And melt the coldest snow
♪ This is home
♪ Find the brightest minds
on these dark streets ♪
♪ See the heart and soul
on these old blocks ♪
♪ Where we grow,
we call it the go ♪
♪ 'Cause we don't stop
Okay.
I didn't know.
You didn't know.
We're finished, aren't we?
- A part of going big is coming clean.
- What?
We call Joshua,
and he tells it like it is.
Call our witness to confirm
we're funded by a street gang?
Okay. That cop is lying.
I'd have seen them.
In our neighborhood? That kind of surveillance?
Ain't no way we wouldn't have seen them.
Okay, I'm... I'm gonna be
straight with you.
Right now,
Moses is going don.
He needs his brother.
To do what?
Are you a member of
The Nation street gang?
Yes.
Since when?
I just joined.
Why did you do that?
For money.
For my brother.
Pay for this.
Can you earn
the same kind of money
outside
the criminal economy?
No.
Are there jobs out there
for you?
On the South Side? Uh-huh.
You got to be kidding,
Mr. Franklin.
Yesterday, Officer Frater
swore on his mother's life
that when he and his partner
took you out of the station
that day,
it was to revisit
the crime scene.
Is that true?
Joshua?
Is that true?
On his mom's life,
he said that?
Mm-hmm. He did.
Uh, that's not true.
But he did take you out of
the police station that day?
Yes.
Where did he take you?
To the river.
Why?
They...
They needed a name.
Did you give him
a name?
Yeah.
What name
did you give him?
Moses.
Did you give him
your brother's name voluntarily?
Did you give him
your brother's name voluntarily?
Uh, no, I didn't. They...
They would a killed me.
Did you give him
your brother's name voluntarily?
They?
Uh, Officer Frater
and Officer Young.
What did they do?
I didn't do nothing!
Please!
What are y'all doing?!
I-I can't.
I'm sorry.
It's okay.
It's alright.
You've been selling drugs
to support your brother.
No. Yes.
Not for personal gain?
No.
And you know of course that
drugs destroy people's lives?
Yes.
But you put your brother first,
above other people's pain?
Yes.
What wouldn't you do
to help your brother?
- I don't know.
- How about lying?
Would you do that?
Would you lie under oath?
Look, they needed a name,
alright?
I had to give it to them.
You feel bad about that?
Yes.
Guilt was eating you up?
Is that why you invented
that story
about being taken down
to the river?
What? No.
You snitched on
your own brother,
you feel terrible about it,
and now you're playing
the victim
in order
to allay the guilt.
No.
Did you tell your mom
what happened?
No.
Did you tell anybody?
No!
Until now.
That's kind
of convenient.
Oh, did you go see
a doctor?
There wasn't nothing to show.
I don't know. No.
Because it never happened.
What?
Ask them about the river.
They know about it.
Tell everybody the truth.
Yeah, tell them
what you did.
What you looking like that
for,
- Mr. Johnson, control yourself.
- Huh?
- Control myself?
- Yep.
Where was
the control when...
When these savages
tried to violate me, huh?
- Jo.
- I'm warning you, Mr. Johnson.
When these crooked-ass police
tried to destroy my family,
huh?
- That's enough. Deputies, remove
- Cowards,
- this witness from court.
- Both of you.
Y'all cowards!
Y'all cowards!
Y'all hurt my family!
Mom! Mom!
My brother!
My fucking brother!
- Jojo!
Give us a name. Then tell
me something I want to hear then.
- I don't know anything!
- Tell me something.
- Give me a name.
- No, no!
Just tell me something then.
Talk. All you gotta do is
talk. No, let me go! Let me go!
Give us a name.
Get me a name!
That's my son.
No! No!
Stop! Stop!
Please! No!
- Please stop!
- It's me, it's me.
Please, please.
Because Joshua didn't finish
his cross-examination,
I'm afraid everything
he just told us
will be erased
from the record.
I'm afraid everything
he just told us
What they did to Jojo, man...
is foul.
He a kid. I know.
I know.
But it's down to you now.
You smell like smoke.
Everybody saying in trials
like these, the accused
don't normally take
the stand.
How can a jury know
your state of mind
if you don't tell them?
They can't read the mind
of a man who won't talk to them.
You don't get up
on the stand?
I look like a fool
for promising it.
Is this about you,
or is it about me?
Do you know
why I smell like smoke?
They burned an effigy
outside my home this morning.
Swinging from a tree.
Swinging from a tree again.
I-I'm sorry. I...
That's horrible.
You just doing your job.
It wasn't myeffigy
they were burning.
Where is he?
Last stall.
Immunity and protection
for the truth,
the whole truth
and nothing but the truth.
So help you
if you fuck this up.
Thank you.
I'll do it.
Call your witness,
Counselor.
Something's come up,
Your Honor.
Are you gonna tell us
what it is?
Who, not what.
Moses been working
for The Nation.
When?
Now.
In County.
Objection. Hearsay.
Let's hear what the evidence
says first.
Doing what?
Picking up packages
that come over the wall.
Containing what?
Heroin.
L-Like I said, Your
Honor, that... that's hearsay.
This witness hasn't
witnessed anything.
Sure I have. H-How?
You ain't currently
incarcerated in Cook County.
I know what I know. You don't know.
How you know
what you know?
That package...
...that was me.
I threw it over the wall.
I saw Moses collect it.
You okay, Counselor?
Yeah, I-I-I just need
a moment with my client.
Yes, you do.
Counselor?
Okay, Counselor?
Yeah.
I just... Yeah, I'm...
I just... Yeah, I'm...
Deputy, call the medic.
What are we doin' here?
Come on.
Hey, buddy.
Hey, Brannigan.
Good to see ya.
How's retirement?
Ah, good, yeah.
Gentlemen,
what's your pleasure?
We'll have whatever
the Deputy Chief's having.
Gentlemen,
what's your pleasure?
Two Bunnahabhain 25s,
straight up.
Hey.
Hey.
Hey.
Hello.
Hey, there.
Bring it down.
What?
Bring it down. Yeah.
What? You want me to bring it
down a little bit?
Yeah.
Okay.
Alright.
Hey, that's better.
How you doing?
How you...
Oh, um, I'm sorry.
I-I can come back.
Who's there?
Oh, it's fine.
Come on. Come on.
That sounds like
Nicole.
It is Nicole.
What'd the judge say?
He talked to Moses.
What'd he say?
If he wants a new trial...
and new lawyers,
he can have that.
What did Moses say?
He has until morning
to decide.
He has till morning.
Here, put this back on.
Martha?
Would you stay with him?
You're... You're leaving?
I know my husband,
and there's only one thing
that's gonna get him
back on his feet.
Appreciate what you did
on the witness stand...
Thinking on your feet,
seeing the play
without being told what it was.
You had the gun switched?
There's this thing that, uh,
all top sportsmen know.
When you're Roger Federer...
Don't ask why. Mm?
Don't try to understand
why you can do what you can do
because talking about a thing
can fuck with a thing.
Why am I here?
Chief's telling you
how much he loves you.
The swelling in your prostate
caused a backup in your bladder.
Mm.
The fever, nausea?
That was your body
screaming at you.
You're septic, Franklin.
That's not good, is it?
We need to get this infection
under control,
then a urostomy.
The Foley catheter's
only good for so long,
so I'd like to do it
as soon as possible.
But not now.
We want to talk to Dante.
That ain't how it work.
You know who this is?
Yeah, I know who you are.
So show some respect.
That still ain't how it work.
Well, it ain't
for a skinny-ass corner boy
like you to decide.
So you tell Dante
Martha Roberts
needs a face to face.
Appreciate what you did
on the witness stand...
Thinking on your feet,
seeing the play
without being told what it was.
I, uh...
I sh... I should've told you.
I'm sorry.
The judge say the defense
you're running is reckless.
He doesn't see it...
The bigger picture.
I need you to stay with me,
Moses.
Sounds like the wrong way
'round to me...
Lawyer needing the client.
I think we're a long way
past lawyer/client.
It's much, much more
than that.
Hm.
The thing about dying, son...
...it's kind of a freedom.
I'm not scared of nobody.
Nothing can hurt me anymore.
And that's what you need
in your corner right now.
The whole time.
Got a minute?
Pretty sure it's against
the rules, you talking to me.
Pretty sure you don't
follow the rules.
GSR report... Michael Rossi's
clothing the day he died.
Gunshot residue
on the shirt.
Where'd that come from?
I said my piece
on the stand.
Then I'll answer
my own question.
The residue
came from you.
You transferred it to him
while you were giving him CPR
right after you shot
at Moses.
What do you want?
That's when you saw
the wire,
Took it,
didn't tell Brannigan
or anyone else
in your department,
and you've been wrestling
with your conscience ever since.
And right now, your conscience
has gotten the upper hand...
Which is why you left the tape
on my doorstep last night.
See, I think we got this
the wrong way 'round.
I should be asking you
what you want.
It wasn't me.
I didn't leave anything
at your house.
You know there's something
foul about your Lieutenant.
Even your partner knew.
Even your partner knew.
What do you want me to do?
First thing tomorrow morning,
go back up on the stand,
What do you want me to do?
And tell the jury
you lied about your gun.
Michael Rossi was prepared
to follow his conscience.
Are you?
Hello, Mr. Dante.
So...?
So you discover a snitch
in your organization,
and they die.
Has to be.
And if the snitch isn't around,
someone else has to go,
so everybody knows
how you feel about snitching.
That's how it works.
- So?
- I think that's old.
I think that's an old way
of doing things.
Hm.
Yeah.
And you strike me
as a modern man.
Ah.
A leader who leads
with the cool side
of his brain
and not the hot.
What you want?
A life.
I want to save a life.
Who is he?
She.
It's a she.
I think you can win
this election.
Knowing
everything you know about him,
you're sure you want
to keep your attorney?
With everything I know
about him, yes.
I was looking right at Rufus
when he got shot down.
Who shot him?
The cops.
How did that
make you feel?
Scared for my life.
What did you do?
I ran.
What did you think would happen
if you didn't run?
I thought
it would be me next.
How did you feel about
Michael Rossi?
You know, I'm deeply sorry
for his family, honestly,
from the bottom of my heart,
but I just...
I don't know
how we got here.
When you were down
that dead-end street
and he came to arrest you...
We all want to know,
and the jury needs to hear...
What was in your mind?
Wasn't in my mind.
Deeper than that.
In that moment, in my bones,
it's just that thing
that everybody know...
If a cop come for you
and a cop get a hold of you?
You could die.
So what did you do?
There was, like,
cages with these, uh,
Containers at the end,
and, uh, the only way out
I could see
was over the containers.
And he was
between me and that.
And then, uh...
And then I...
I tried to get over there.
Stop!
And, uh...
...he stepped across to...
To block my path.
It's over.And...
It's over.
There was, uh,
some sh-shoulder-to-sh...
There was
some shoulder contact.
Shoulder-to-shoulder contact?
He fell back.
Hit his... Hit his head.
His back of his head hit...
Hit the iron bar in...
In the ground,
and there was...
Breathe!
Come on, breathe!
...there was all this blood
all of a sudden, and...
Yo! Breathe!
Hey, stay with me, man!
Stay with me!
What happened when
the second police officer
arrived on the scene?
He took a shot at me.
Had you shown any aggressive
intent toward him?
No, I-I was running away,
and I had my back turned to him.
He shot at your back?
What did that tell you?
That he was trying to kill me
and that I was right
to run away
and I-I was right
to protect myself.
Thank you.
This won't take long.
When the police arrived
on the corner,
Did you know
they were cops?
Yeah.
Mm-hmm. And when you ran
from the corner,
it was to
escape police officers?
- Yes.
- And down that dead-end street,
nothing had changed?
How do you mean?
You knew Michael Rossi
was a police officer.
You knew he wanted
to arrest you.
Yes.
Did he draw his weapon?
No.
Did he make
any aggressive move toward you?
He was a cop.
What else did you know about
Michael Rossi in that moment?
Nothing.
You didn't know he had
an exemplary service record?
You didn't know he had a wife
and five small children,
or where he was born,
or how much he loved baseball?
No.What does this have to do
with anything?
You made an assumption
based on the one thing
you knew about him.
That he was a cop.
What?
What does that make you?
You... You just don't get it,
lady.
- I mean, how could you?
- Mr. Johnson.
You... You just don't get it,
lady.
No, no, no. She just
gonna ask me a question
and just get to sit down?
No. The way I was raised...
That's called rude.
Mr. Johnson. No, man, that's not right.
Your Honor,
I'm entitled to redirect.
Would you like to continue
with what you were saying?
Yes.
Please continue.
She's talking
about assumptions.
She don't know nothing
about me.
You making assumptions
that I'm one of these
little hood rats
on the corner.
That's not me.
Every day, I train.
Every day, I train my butt off
to get where I'm trying to go.
And you talking about that
I'm making assumptions.
I have never been in trouble
a day in my life.
You can ask everybody.
Everybody know me.
Everybody know
I stay out the way.
And you can ask everybody
where I'm from...
Everybody know we talk
about the same thing about cops.
The world has given cops
the permission to...
To... to... to hurt us,
to kill us,
and there's
no repercussions at all.
And if you... And if you manage
to get out of there alive,
they will always be believed,
they will always be the truth.
We will always be the liars.
Dead or in jail...
Those are our only options.
Unless there's 9 minutes
and 26 seconds of footage
showing a murder
in broad daylight,
there is no good outcome
for us.
And... And what does
that make me?
How does that make me feel?
I'll tell you.
Sad.
Angry.
Tired.
But you... But you think
you can just stand there and...
And call me a bigot or...
Or whatever nonsense
and sit down
and not even have the decency
to look at me
when I'm talking to you.
I'm not gonna take that
from her or anybody.
Not no more.
Your Honor...
No, I don't need to hear
from you, Counselor.
Deputy,
remove the jury, please.
No.
What we just heard from
the defendant is a confession.
- What?"
- I knew he was a cop.
- I ran anyway.
- What did he...
He identified himself
as a cop.
I resisted arrest."What? No.
For self-defense to even be
an option
for the jury to consider... Frank, man.
...the threat the accused
is facing must be unlawful.
We've heard nothing to suggest
that anything...
What?...these police officers
have done was unlawful.
We've heard nothing to suggest
that anything...
So I'm telling you
what Moses Johnson
just said on the stand...
Oh, no, no... is an admission of guilt.
Your Honor, no.Mr. Johnson...
That's not
what just happened.
...I have no choice. No, Your Honor.
I'm going to direct the jury
to find you guilty.
...I have no choice. No, Your Honor.
No, Your Honor, you're
wrong. No, you can't do that.
You can't do that. I've heard everything
I need to hear.
You can't do that, Your Honor.
Franklin, you told I can beat this.
You can't do that. I've heard everything
I need to hear.
The whole trial, I'm just giving
you a word nobody was saying. Mom! No, no.
Come on, man. Hold on. Hold on. One second.
No, no, no, no, no. Hold on.
Counselor, what's going on?
Uh, hold on one second,
Your Honor.
Uh, Your Honor,
I would like to, uh...
A prosecution witness
recalled.
- What?
- Yes, Your Honor.
Who?
You told us
you had no knowledge
of the man you shot dead
on the corner that day.
Correct.
That you didn't know
his name then.
Correct.
And you certainly wouldn't
have known his street name.
No.
Or his relationship
with the CPD.
I don't know what you mean.
I need you to think carefully
about your answers now.
I have.
And I have no idea
what you're talking about.
Look...
I don't care
who we take down.
These people are
all the same to me.
I don't care
who we take down.
But they have got to be
paying for that pass...
The Faction.
Paying who?
It's just where the heat
is now.
His theory...
or yours?
His theory...
Oh, his.
He got a name?
Your man in The Nation.
Yeah.
Tutu.
Which is it, Lieutenant?
Are you suffering
from memory loss
or are you
a shameless liar?
I forgive you.
Excuse me?
You have to do your job...
I understand.
But what you're saying?
Total fiction.
Let me be clear
about something.
Right now,
there's no difference
between me the lawyer
and me the human being.
I'm not a storyteller,
I'm not doing a job, this is me.
I'm calling you out.
What you did to Rufus Porter
was an execution.
When Moses ran, he was running
from a killer
with the letters P-O-L-I-C-E
on his chest.
That's you.
Lieutenant Brannigan.
He told me.
Told me Rufus was a snitch.
Why would he do that?
Told me that, too.
It was to get me
to keep Rufus' mom quiet.
Janet.
Yep, Janet.
One more thing.
Hmm?
On behalf of my son
and my community,
I'd like to answer the question
that he just dodged.
Okay.
I'd like to answer the question
that he just dodged.
Lieutenant Brannigan?
He is a shameless liar.
I used to think
the system was broken.
I don't think that anymore.
The system's not broken.
It works the way it was
supposed to work
by the people
who designed it.
The prosecution says this is
all about the rule of law.
The judge will tell you
when I'm done that what Moses
did was outside the law
and that you have no choice
but to find him
guilty of murder.
But slavery was the law.
Interracial marriage
was against the law.
Apartheid South Africa
was upheld by the law.
And the murder of Black men,
women, and children
by the lynch law was ignored
by the so-called real law.
So the law
is not always right.
So the law
is not always right.
In fact, it took people like
yourselves to change those laws
and to remind us that the law
is supposed to be about
what is for the people,
not to serve the powerful
at the expense of the people.
So, ladies and gentlemen
of the jury,
the moment is with you.
Moses is in your hands.
Today you are the law.
Slavery was lawful,
and it was wrong.
Segregation was wrong.
Apartheid was the law,
and it was straight-up evil.
Segregation was wrong.
Somebody had to say it then.
You are going to have
to say it again today.
Moses was right to run,
he was right to defend himself
and the law is wrong.
And the law is wrong.
Deep down in each of you,
I know there's a sacred part
of being human.
Socrates died for it.
You don't need God or a judge
to tell you what is right
and what is wrong...
Your conscience
does that for you.
Look to your conscience,
look everything else
right in the eye,
and with the strength
your conscience gives you,
bring home a verdict
that sends from this courtroom
a message of hope
for a brighter future...
...and a deep consolation
for the corrupted past
built and protected...
...by the law.
Thank you.
Martha Roberts!
Alright, now.
Martha!
Martha.
Hey, Martha.
Girl.
Black people,
how y'all feeling?
How you feeling?
Thank y'all for bringing
the family out.
- Thank you for coming out to vote.
- Thank you.
You know this important,
right?
- Yeah.
- Thank you.
My condolences.
I scratched your back
twice.
May the best man win.
Really?
Has the jury reached a verdict?
Yes, we have, Your Honor.
Will the defendant please rise?
In the case of The State
of Illinois vs. Moses Johnson,
on the single count of murder
in the first degree...
...the jury hereby
finds the accused...
...not guilty.
Thank you, man.
Mom! Mom! Mom! Mom!
Man.
I love you so much.
I love you so much.
- Oh!
- Moses!
- Who's coming home?!
- Moses!
- Who's coming home?!
- Moses!
- Who's coming home?!
- Moses!
- Who's coming home?!
- Moses!
- Who's coming home?!
- Moses!
- Who's coming home?!
- Moses!
- Who's coming home?!
- Moses!
♪ He saves the day
- Hey! Hey!
- That's right. That's right.
That's you.
You did that.
Thank you.
♪ No greater love
♪ A love like this
♪ Makes my heart beat
♪ And I promise You
♪ All I wanna do
is make You proud of me ♪
♪ That's why
♪ I don't wanna love nobody
but You ♪
Hey, hey, hey, hey.
Everybody.
Martha Roberts' office.
Martha.
You'll get this one.
Yeah.
No matter what...
No matter what, right?
No matter what...
No matter what, I thank y'all.
Yes, this is Martha Roberts.
Right.
Well, I appreciate your call.
Thank you.
You have a good night.
We won.
♪ He saves the day
♪ He will come through Mama! You did it!
I knew you would!
I love you!
♪ He won't bow,
that's not what superheroes do ♪
- ♪ See, I will never find
- You did it!
♪ He won't bow,
that's not what superheroes do ♪
♪ No greater love You did it!
♪ A love like this
♪ No greater love You did it!
♪ Makes my heart beat
♪ Forever an a day
♪ All I wanna do
is make You proud of me ♪
♪ Let me say it again
♪ All I wanna do
is make You proud of me ♪
♪ He saves the day
♪ Woo ♪ He will come through
Where's Dad?
♪ It feels so good
I don't know, baby.
Good job, Mom.
We did it.
♪ No greater love
♪ Hallelujah
♪ Makes my heart beat
♪ For the rest of my life
♪ All I wanna do
is make You proud of me ♪
♪ Everybody sing
Oh! You're home!
Yeah.
I missed you.
- I missed you. Oh, God.
- I missed you.
Daddy! Daddy!
- I missed you. Oh, God.
- I missed you.
You good? Yeah. Daddy!
Hey, that's for you. Thank you.
Hey, hey, hey, hey!
Jessica, I-I...
Don't worry.
I told him.
What?
After the verdict,
I told Brannigan it was me
who gave them
the recording,
that you could never
do a thing like that...
Betray the brotherhood
just for the truth.
I...
So you're good.
Betray the brotherhood
just for the truth.
You can go back to your life.
Just don't look
in the mirror.
Your form's
a little ragged.
You'll get it back.
Let's go again.
Your form's
a little ragged.
Yeah.
Coach, you said
you wanted him back.
Here he is.
Take good care of him.
Will do.
Take good care of him.
- Alright, now.
- Alright.
Looking good.
Thanks, Mr. Franklin.
I appreciate you.
Alright, here we go.
One more time.