Beauty and the Beast (1987–1990): Season 2, Episode 17 - Trial - full transcript

Catherine is put in charge of a murder case in court, and to bring justice to a five year old murdered son.

This is where the wealthy
and the powerful rule.

It is her world,

a world apart from mine.

Her name... is Catherine.

From the moment I saw her,
she captured my heart

with her beauty,

her warmth and her courage.

I knew then, as I know now,

she would change my life...

forever.

He comes from a secret place,
far below the city streets,



hiding his face from strangers,

safe from hate and harm.

He brought me there
to save my life.

And now, wherever I go,
he is with me in spirit.

For we have a bond stronger
than friendship or love.

And although
we cannot be together,

we will never, ever be apart.

What is it, Catherine?

What makes you so sad?

Sometimes I see things...

and I can't help but wonder

if there's any hope
left for any of us.

I have known
that feeling.

A father...



beats his child to death.

What does that say
about us?

About our world and the way
we treat each other?

Evil exists, it's real.

We know that.

But when it touches
little children...

...it tells us that no one
anywhere is safe.

We have children
living with us below

who have suffered more
in their young years

than anyone should be
allowed in 100 lifetimes.

Where's the hope?

Within you.

Within us.

We must not
let it die.

We must protect it...

for each other.

She's inside
with her lawyer.

I'll be here, but I don't
think you'll need me.

I'm Peter Rundler,
Mrs. Nolan's lawyer.

Catherine Chandler.

Mrs. Nolan...

You understand the DA's Office
is considering

a grant of immunity for you
to testify against your husband.

Before I decide whether
to recommend that course,

I'll need to ask you
a few questions.

My client doesn't
want to answer
any questions

until she
has immunity.

She doesn't want to
incriminate herself.

Mr. Rundler, I already have
your client's

latest statements
to the police.

I'm only asking her
to illuminate some points

which are likely
to be raised in court.

There are very sensitive
issues with Mrs. Nolan.

It was so quiet.

That's how I knew it was bad.

Usually, there was screaming
or yelling.

Mrs. Nolan,

in what condition
was Jonathan when
you found him?

No.

No.

I'm sorry,
Mrs. Nolan,

but we're
preparing a case

for your husband's
grand jury hearing.

We need to know
what your testimony

will be.

Don't you get it?

Prosecute her,
and we lose her testimony.

Then all we have against Nolan
is circumstantial.

She is an accessory
to her own child's murder.

She should pay for that!

Maybe. Maybe she'll be paying
for it for the rest of her life.

That is not what I meant.

Cathy, you're thinking
with your heart.

So will the jury.

Look, I am not going
to debate the ethics

of granting
Molly Nolan immunity,

because she is the key
to this thing.

That's what Moreno thinks,
that's what I think,

and that's all
there is to it.

How can you be
so reductive, Joe?

It's not that simple.

In a court of law,
and for our purposes,

it is that simple.

As simple as the fact
that you and I both know

Richard Nolan is guilty.

So, I'm just supposed
to put aside my feelings?

If it interferes
with your work, absolutely.

Tell me now-- are you going
to work with me on this or not?

Do you want me
to get somebody else?

I want to do this.

I just...

It's hard for me
to separate myself like that.

I know.

Did the grand
jury indict?

Is the case
going to trial?

- Excuse me, sir.
- Yes, it is.

Is it true Mrs. Nolan lied
to the police several times

before blaming
her husband?

I'm afraid I can't comment
on substantive details

of the prosecution,
gentlemen.

Why was Nolan the
only one accused?

What about
his wife?

Come on, fellas,
you know how it works.

All I can tell you is

the grand jury found
probable cause

to believe a felony
was committed by the defendant.

Richard Nolan will be tried
by a jury of his peers.

Isn't this just
a political ploy

by the D.A., grabbing
after headlines

by going after a
Wall Street celebrity?

The District Attorney works
for the people.

You, me, and everyone else
in this city.

He believes Richard Nolan
committed a crime

against the People.

If the man is guilty,
we intend to make him pay.

That's our job.

What about the culpability
of his wife?

What about
his alibi...?

Wow.

Do I know you?

I don't know.

So what do you think
about them letting cameras

into the courtroom?

The truth?

Yeah.

I think it's intrusive,
voyeuristic,

and completely unnecessary.

I'm sorry you feel that way.

Can I bother you two
a minute?

Sure, boss.
Come on in.

Why don't you have
a seat.

No. I'll just
be a minute.

By the way, you did a great job
with the grand jury.

Thanks.

Uh, I just got word that, uh,

Virginia Sheets
is defending Nolan.

From Boggs and MacMillan?

Who's Virginia Sheets?

One of MacMillan's
pit bull protégés.

She's out of Yale,
an incredible string of wins.

Oh.

Yeah, between Sheets
and this whole media thing,

this case is becoming
very emotional.

This was a tough call for me.

Really a tough
one, but, uh,

I have decided I want Catherine
to head up the prosecution.

What?!

Sorry, Joe.

Sir, I-I'm very flattered,

but... do you think
that's such a good idea?

I mean, Joe's has all
the trial experience...

I know that.

He's been after me for months
to give you more.

Look, you're
going to have

to trust me on this one.

I've been in this game longer

than both of you.

It doesn't hurt matters at all

that the people still identify
with Catherine Chandler.

Because I was a victim?

Well, maybe you don't like
to see that exploited,

but that is strong stuff
to a jury,

and it may be
the one advantage we need

if we really want
to put this guy away.

Which is the bottom line.

Anyway, we got to speak.

Joe, I'm...

I'm really sorry.

I know how much
you wanted this case.

Hey, come on, Radcliffe.

I'm a team player.

But I got to tell you,
I think Moreno's logic stinks.

So do I.
I'm not blaming you.

I'm just wondering what the hell
I've been doing around here

for the past
seven years.

Joe!

Please, Please.

Daddy?!

Help me.

Help me.

Vincent?

Here.

What is it?

Can't you hear it?
A child crying.

Listen.

I must find this child.

I'm sorry, Vincent.

No one knows where
these voices come from.

Where are you?

Where are you?!

By his own admission,

we know that Richard Nolan has,
on a number of occasions,

physically abused
his wife, Molly.

Ladies and gentlemen,
the State will show

that Mr. Nolan also abused
his son Jonathan.

On February the 6th,

Richard Nolan carried
his pattern of abuse too far.

On that night, he beat
his five-year-old son Jonathan

to death.

What makes Mr. Nolan's crime
so reprehensible

is that it was not just
a single act of violence

but rather a sequence of acts,

all of which display

a cold and complete disregard
for human life.

The sequence began

when Mr. Nolan
savagely beat his son

for interrupting
a telephone conversation.

The coroner will testify

that just one
of the many blows

was powerful enough
to snap the child's neck.

Mr. Nolan then ordered his wife

to call for help only after
he'd left the apartment

to establish an alibi.

She was expected to lie,

to claim that
the child had fallen.

But when the police arrived,

Molly Nolan was so distraught
over the death of her son

that she couldn't
keep the story straight.

And when the police
became suspicious,

Mr. Nolan had no choice

but to blame his wife.

Mr. Nolan expects you
to set him free.

He expects you
to recognize him as a man

of prominence
and respectability,

a man who could never
commit a crime like this.

Ladies and gentlemen,
the State will show

that on February the 6th,

Mr. Nolan brutally beat
his five-year-old son to death

then coerced his wife
into lying to the police.

And then, Mr. Nolan
met his daughter, Amy

for a pleasant dinner.

The great irony in this trial

is that my client arrives
here today after having spent

the last five years of his life

helping his desperately
sick wife, Molly.

Mrs. Nolan is a highly
unstable woman

and an admitted alcoholic.

Now... if there were any sense

in these proceedings,

in my opinion, we wouldn't be
trying Richard Nolan

at all for this crime.

But since Richard Nolan is the
one on trial, we must consider

the merits of the prosecution's
case against him.

And our defense is very simple.

Mr. Nolan cannot have
committed this crime,

because he was not there
when it happened.

He was with his teenage daughter

from a previous marriage,
Amy Nolan,

as she will testify.

Look at the facts.

And the facts will indicate...

Mr. Nolan

is an innocent man.

Now we join our
Live At 5:00 news team

with the latest
on the Nolan case.

So how do you think Mr. Nolan

is taking the pressure?

Think you have him on the run?

Nobody is chasing Mr. Nolan.

All we're after
is the truth here.

And another thing,
it would be nice

if you people would stop
treating this case

like a celebrity divorce.

This trial is not about
Wall Street or high society,

it is about the victims--

victims of a crime too many
of us pretend isn't there.

What message is this
sending to the city?

Well, in addition,
he had numerous contusions

on his face and chest,

as well as a cut on his scalp
above the temple.

And the cause
of death?

Fractured spinal column.

It would take
a great deal of force

to break bone like that,

wouldn't it, Doctor?

Oh, yes.

Would a woman of
my size and strength,

let's say,
have trouble doing it?

In my opinion, it would be
very difficult, yes.

Be honest with me, Doctor.

There is no way that you can
estimate with certainty

whether one individual
can or cannot inflict

a certain degree of
bodily injury to another.

Am I right?

Oh, in many cases,
one could possibly say...

But in this case,

can you determine such a thing
with any certainty?

Well... not with
absolute certainty.

No further questions.

When Mrs. Nolan
showed you her son,

was he still alive?

Not as far as I could tell.

I couldn't find a pulse.

And what did you do?

I gave him CPR.

Was no good.

I decided to wait
for the ambulance guys.

And this is when you
questioned Mrs. Nolan?

Right.

Officer Alburg, you have stated

that it was when you
questioned Mrs. Nolan

that you first became
suspicious of her husband.

Was he there at the time?

Not in the beginning.

Then why did you
become suspicious?

All I did was ask her
where he was,

and she got all crazy.

What did she say?

First, she said
she didn't know where he was.

Then, she said
he'd be back soon.

Then, she got all confused,
and finally, she said

I should just
ask him what happened.

You said you found it

suspicious when Mr. Nolan
reacted calmly

when he found out
about his son's death.

It didn't seem to come
as a surprise to him.

If you were responsible for
your child's death, Officer,

would you be calm?

Or would you,
perhaps more likely, be upset,

like Mrs. Nolan?

Objection! Hypothetical.

The witness is
not an expert.

Sustained.

Withdraw the question.

Mrs. Nolan, I
understand it's...

I...

I don't think
I can stand it...

talking about it.

I know.

But we have to get these
details clear in your mind.

Tomorrow, your husband's
attorneys will do

everything they can to make
you contradict yourself.

Do I have to go up there?

There's no other way?

I'm afraid not.

Their best defense is to
make you appear guilty.

Make me appear guilty, hmm?

What if I am guilty?

You're just like everybody else.

You think I should be
up on the stand there with him.

No.

No, of course not.

I should just get used to it.

Nobody will ever understand.

Molly...

I want to understand.

You know how he did it?

He told me he loved me.

When he hit me,

he used to tell me
that it was for my own good

and he did it
because he loved me.

Just to hear him say it
was worth the pain.

So I let him.

And it kept getting worse.

And I just...

kept letting him.

You never fought back?

I couldn't.

You never...

thought you deserved better?

No.

Oh, my...

You do, Molly.

Oh, I don't think so.

I don't think so, Cathy.

It wasn't you.

You didn't hurt him.
You never touched him.

I didn't help him.
I didn't help him.

You were afraid for your life.

Everyone knows that.

Do they?

They will.

I promise.

Molly...

make your husband pay
for what he did.

You can do that tomorrow
when you speak in court.

I'll try.

Okay.

Let's get back to what happened
when the police...

Thank you, Cathy.

Thank you.

Help me.

Help me.

Help me.

Help me.

Help me.

Help me!

Help me.

Help me.

Help me.

Help me.

Help me.

Help me.
Help me.

Help me.
Help me.

Help me.
Help me.

Mrs. Nolan,

when you and your husband
were first taken into custody,

you told the police

that your husband had been
away from the apartment

when your son sustained
injuries in a fall.

Was this true?

Mrs. Nolan, I have
to ask you to speak up.

What is your answer?

No.

No.

Why would you lie
to the police

like this, Molly?

I had already lost
my son Jonathan,

and I was afraid
of losing Richard, too.

You loved your husband
and you wanted to protect him?

Yes.

Was there another reason?

Yes.

And what was that?

He told me that...

He told you what, Molly?

He told me...

that...

Molly.

You said
that the first story was a lie,

but later you went on
to tell the truth.

You did the right thing.

Tell us the truth now.

I can't.

Did your husband
hit Jonathan that night?

Did he?

Your Honor, she's harassing
her own witness.

Ms. Nolan, do you intend
to answer the question?

I can't, I can't.

If you don't answer
the question,

then I'll have to ask you
to step down.

Answer the question, Molly.

Answer
for Jonathan.

I'm sorry.

The witness will have
to step down.

Your Honor, her testimony must
be disallowed.

I can't cross-examine
if she can't speak.

She can speak.

She won't speak for
the same reason she kept quiet

the night her son was killed.

Because she is scared
to death of him!

Your Honor.
Ms. Chandler,

another word and
you'll be in contempt.

Your Honor, if the
witness won't testify,

I move that this case
be dismissed

on the grounds
of insufficient evidence.

Ms. Chandler?

I have to rule on this.

Do you have other
witnesses to call?

Your Honor,
under the circumstances,

I move that my witness be
allowed to testify on videotape.

There have been other
precedents in abuse cases

where the victims
were allowed...

Those precedents were
for testimony by children only.

They don't apply here.

My client deserves the right
to face his accuser.

I'm sorry, Ms. Chandler,
your motion is denied.

Well, then, I... I'll need a...

I-I would like
to request a continuance.

Does defense counsel have
any objection?

My client deserves the right
to a speedy trial.

Motion for dismissal is denied.

A continuation is
granted for 24 hours.

The City Council is
still at a stalemate

on the Battery Park
low income housing development.

Also coming up
on the news at 10:00,

a setback for the prosecution

in the Nolan case as DA's
prosecutor Catherine Chandler

loses control
of her star witness

on the stand.

We'll have more after this.

No, I think Miss Chandler
is doing a fine job.

If the prosecution
is having problems,

it says more about the
strength of their case

than the strength
of their legal help.

I'm glad to see you.

Tell me.

It's not going well.

The helpers bring
glowing reports.

No, not anymore.

We've had a setback.

What happened?

I underestimated the power
of the man we're prosecuting.

I underestimated his control.

He sits
in that courtroom

with the best defense lawyers
money can buy,

listening to the atrocities
that he's committed

with cold, dead eyes.

He's making a mockery of this
trial and of a child's death,

and I can't do anything.

You must continue fighting.

I know.

Even if there is
nothing you can do.

You must do it for the child,

for his memory,

and for all of us who refuse
to accept that child's death

alone in a room.

That child's suffering
must not be forgotten.

It won't, Vincent.

It must not be forgotten!

Because that child stands
in silent judgment of us all.

Got enough
there for two?

You scared me.

Sorry.

I really am
sorry, Cathy.

If you've come
to offer your help,

I think it's a little late.

You don't need my help.

Never did.

Now you're being sarcastic.

I've been watching
you, kiddo.

Every move.

I've been like every
other New Yorker

these past few weeks--
glued to the tube,

and I got to tell you,
I've never felt so proud.

Thank you, Joe.

I never expected that.

So, tomorrow's
the big day.

What's the
new game plan?

The daughter, Amy Nolan.

Sounds good to me.

Go after the credibility
of Nolan's alibi.

What's this?

I'm not sure
the judge will allow it.

You've got to use this.

Yeah, I guess so.

Cathy, the verdict is going
to ride

as much on emotions as facts.

When the dust settles,

you'll realize you did Amy Nolan
the greatest favor of her life.

So just to clarify the facts
one last time.

You were with your father
constantly from the hours

of 7:30 to 9:00 p.m.
on the evening of February 6?

Yes.

And at no time did he
leave your company
for more than

a few minutes, is that right?

Yes.

Thank you, Amy.

I have nothing more,
Your Honor.

The defense... rests.

Ms. Chandler?

Your witness.

Thank you, Your Honor.

Hello, Amy.

My name is Catherine Chandler,

and my job

is to find
the truth.

I just want you to know
that whatever happens,

I don't mean
to hurt you.

On the evening of February 6,

your father took you
out for dinner.

Is this correct?

Yes.

What restaurant did your father

take you
to that night, Amy?

A little Thai place
near my apartment.

Do you go there often?

I guess.

So you would say it's one
of your favorites?

Sure.

How nice that your father
remembers

some of your favorite things.

So you would say you and
your father are very close?

Yes.

Did you know your father

physically abused
your stepmother?

Objection, Your Honor!
She's harassing the witness

for irrelevant information!

Your Honor, I am trying to
establish the credibility

of the most important
witness in this trial.

Objection overruled.

The witness may
answer the question.

No, I didn't know.

Do you know if your father
was physically abusive

to your stepbrother,
Jonathan?

No.

Do you think this kind of
physical abuse is wrong, Amy?

I don't know.

I guess so.

Did your father ever abuse you?

No.

Amy, I have here
your medical records

for the past several years.

Objection, irrelevant.

Overruled.

Two years ago, you were treated
for a fractured wrist.

Do you remember
how that happened, Amy?

I'm not sure.

It says here

that you tripped and fell.

Was that what happened?

I guess.

And one month later,

you were at the hospital again.

This time you needed stitches
in your ear.

Do you remember
how this happened?

I... I think I fell down again.

Are you certain?

Is that how
you recall it?

I'm not positive.

These are serious
accidents, Amy.

Don't you think it's strange

that you don't remember
how they happened?

I remember.

Well, then... can you explain
these injuries to us?

No, I can't.

This file goes on and on.

Would you like me to
read it to the court?

What about this fractured rib?

And this infected bruise
over your right eye?

And this broken finger?

Can you explain
these injuries?

No.

Amy, your father did these
things to you, didn't he?

Yes.

And you also knew also knew
that he beat Molly

and your brother Jonathan.

Isn't that true?

We have to hear
your answer, young lady.

Yes.

Isn't that why you testified

that you were with your father
at 7:30 that night--

because you were afraid
that he would hurt you

if you didn't?

No.

Amy, are you saying that he was
with you that night?

Yes.

Your stepbrother
Jonathan is dead.

Are you certain
that this is your answer?!

Yes.

No more questions, Your Honor.

You may step down.

This case is as simple

as the facts presented
in this courtroom:

Mr. Nolan was not present
at the scene of the crime,

so he must be innocent.

Even if you doubt the testimony
that places him elsewhere,

you must remember

that the prosecution has given
no conclusive evidence

to incriminate him:

no means, no motive,

and most important,
no witness to the crime.

But since the issue
has been raised--

and I'm sure it will be present
in your minds

when you deliberate--

let me address the issue
of Richard Nolan's humanity.

It is true that Mr. Nolan

has abused members
of his family,

and frankly, knowing that he is
a man of education

and great accomplishment,
we must wonder why.

The answer is--

like so many in our society
who abuse others--

Richard Nolan was as a child
abused himself.

It's a tragic reality

that people who are abused
often become abusers themselves.

Whether this is because
they retain some vestige

of aggression
that needs to be vented,

or simply that
they become conditioned

to communicating with violence
we don't know.

All we know is
that these victims

become like carriers
of a deadly disease.

But, ladies and gentlemen...

my client did not kill his son.

Whatever else you may think
of Richard Nolan,

you be sure
when you deliberate this charge,

you remember,

there is far more
than a shadow of a doubt

that he was even present.

Thank you.

We've just heard

that Richard Nolan is a man
suffering from a disease.

He passed that disease
to his wife, we're told.

She passed it to their son,

and the boy died from it.

Very simple.

And the name that's been given
this disease, is abuse.

Well...

I will agree that
there is a disease here,

and I'll agree

that Richard Nolan
suffers from it.

But I won't agree
that it's contagious,

and I won't agree
that it's fatal,

and I won't even agree
to its name.

Ladies and gentlemen,

I would like to tell you
about a place.

It's a special place I know,

where this disease
does not exist.

It is a place
that many people go to

when they've been in pain,

when they've been abused,

so the disease does come
there...

but it never stays.

It is in our hearts,

in that room

where hatred and cruelty
do not belong.

I have told you

that Richard Nolan's disease
needed a different name.

The name that I would give it is
heartlessness.

Only a man with an empty heart

could brutalize and terrorize
the ones

that loved him.

I believe that Richard Nolan
has no heart.

And I believe
that the proof of that is

on Molly Nolan's
lonely face.

And we also know why that woman
could never have hurt her child.

She sat on that stand,

when all of us knew what
Richard Nolan had done to her,

and still she could not speak
against him,

because she knew that to do so
would bring pain

to someone that she loved.

Molly Nolan has a heart.

I am asking you

to go to that place
in your hearts...

to find justice for a brutally
murdered little boy.

That place is
where the truth lives.

That place is where each of us
carries the cure

to this terrible disease.

Have you reached
a verdict?

Yes, we have, Your Honor.

We find the
defendant guilty

of murder
in the second degree.

Let me just make
a brief statement.

We are very happy

that justice was done
in this courtroom today.

A guilty man will pay
for his crime.

But justice will not be served
in thousands of other places

in this city

until we all confront the fact
of a crime

that happens everywhere,
and every day.

It's not just my job to stop it.

It's our job.

Excuse me.

Excuse us.

It's over.

We won.

Good.

It's a beginning.

Where are the voices?

It's all so quiet.

Sometimes when the winds shift,

the voices, the echoes are lost.

Are you sad, Vincent?

More than once I've...

...heard a child's voice
crying out.

There was no way I could reach
it, no way I could even find it.

All I could do was
stand here

and listen to it cry,

and wonder...

how can we begin to love life?

How can we accept its gifts?

How can we forget
even for a moment

when children suffer
the way they do?

We can only start
with ourselves, I guess,

with our own lives...

...to try to touch the ones

that cross our paths.

That's what you did for me

the night you
found me.

It's everything you've given me
from that moment on.

We won today

because we had the truth

and it touched people.

People recognize it
in their hearts.

It can't be denied

and there is a great power
in that.

So we keep fighting.

Yes.

We keep fighting.