CSI: Crime Scene Investigation (2000–2015): Season 1, Episode 16 - Too Tough to Die - full transcript

ANNOUNCER:
All right,
Oklahoma has a ten-point lead.

Isaac got it to Hendricks.

He shoots. He scores.

( elevator dings )

( screams )

Give me your keys
and get in the car.

Do you see that?

Is that a body?

Oh, my God, she's alive.

( siren blares )

Here's what
I know so far.



Victim was a well-dressed woman,
young, black.

She's at Desert Palm Hospital

multiple gunshots
to the head

possible sexual assault.

Doctor has her
as "death imminent."

Sara, go to the hospital

and process the victim.

Sexual assault kit, hairs,
fibers, the works.

Right now?

I thought I would help you two
with the scene.

The evidence won't stay
on the body long at the E.R.

Walk in the park, guys.

It looks like a high heel print.

Maybe abducted.



Did she know the guy?

Did he use his car or hers?

Locard's Principle:

he took a piece of her
away with him

and he left a piece
of himself here.

We get to find it.

[Captioning sponsored by
CBS

and CBS PRODUCTIONS/
ALLIANCE ATLANTIS]

¶ Who... are you? ¶

¶ Who, who, who, who? ¶

¶ Who... are you? ¶

¶ Who, who, who, who? ¶

¶ I really wanna know ¶

¶ Who... are you? ¶

¶ Oh-oh-oh ¶
¶ Who... ¶

¶ Come on, tell me who are you,
you, you ¶

¶ Oh, you! ¶

Thank you, my Sherpas.

Surely.

( box thuds )

So, you got our assignments?

You're looking at it.

Murder case.

This mess?

You're not serious.

D.A. is.

Guy named McCall shot
and killed his neighbor

over a motorcycle.

D.A. can't make heads or tails
of the evidence

for the preliminary hearing.

Where's McCall now?
He's being held?

He ran from
the arresting officers

so the judge refused him bail.

And why isn't the case CSI
dealing with this?

Franovich from days?

He quit yesterday.

Burnout.

And what did the D.A. charge?

Murder one.

The case has
changed hands

so many times

that the D.A.
can't make any sense of it.

It gets better.

The prelim's in four days.

Well, no pressure here.

Great.

Cath, can I see you
outside for a sec?

WILLOWS:
Why would my bank

be asking you about
my employment record?

Well, technically,
I'm your supervisor.

They said Eddie
took a second mortgage

out on your house.

They said that you
still own it together

until the divorce
is final.

We didn't want
to sell it

until the market
went back up

then we'd split the profits.

I can't believe he took
a second out on the house.

How could he
without my signature?

It's Eddie.

I just thought you should know.

I gotta get back
out to Nick.

Hey.

Hey.

You get any ID on her?

No, she's a Jane Doe.

She's got two bullets
lodged in her brain.

Docs can't remove them
without killing her.

All right.

Hi.

Thanks.

Make a note

she's married.

Or recently divorced.

She's warm.

Feels different, huh?

Uh, Evans...

We're going to need
a little privacy here.

I never really liked this part
of my yearly exam.

These things
are always freezing.

Okay.

Cartridge casings.

They don't look like
hunters', either.

Nick, get a shot of this.

Looks like a belt loop.

Well, it couldn't
have been there long.

No elements.

GRISSOM:
Brass, was the victim
wearing denim?

Silk or lace,
something like that.

Definitely not denim.

Good chance this is our suspect.

I'm going to use scent pads.

Scent pads?

Canine voodoo.

A dog's sense of smell

is about 40 times more
acute than a human's.

A dog's nose is packed

with dense rolls of membranes
that absorb odor.

Stretched out, these membranes
extend about a third

the length
of a dog's body.

The membranes
of the human nose

about the size
of a postage stamp.

Looks like
a giant Dustbuster.

Similar.

You place absorbent pads
into the chamber

then run the machine
over the suspected item.

Then you take the pad

seal it in an envelope
and freeze it.

Yeah. Yeah, then
we pull them out

when we know enough
about this denim guy

to find a proximal location.

Except there's a caveat.

You want to explain
that caveat?

Later.

Hopefully,
Sara's making some progress.

Hey, are you just going
to ignore my question?

I called Eddie about the loan.
I got his voicemail.

The guy's like ether.

You going to answer my question?

All right, here's what we know
from the arresting officer:

Two 25-year-old guys

Chuckie Hastings and Roy McCall,
lifelong neighbors

one step up
from a trailer park

got into a beef
over a motorcycle

in the owner's backyard.

All right,
here's McCall's statement.

If you can believe a guy
who's looking at murder.

McCall says
that he returned

Hastings' motorcycle to him
with the front end smashed up.

They were standing in
Hastings' back yard...

I told you
I'd pay for it.

Yeah, you said that last time.

Whatever.

Yeah, whatever

you bastard.

Hey, back off,
man, back off.

You're going to pay
for all of it.

WILLOWS:
McCall defends himself

with an automatic
that was down his pants.

All right, now, Hastings' wife

said that McCall
shot Hastings in the back.

Mm-hmm.

And the coroner's report
substantiates that.

( screams )

So what, McCall lied,
said Hastings went after him

with a screwdriver
so he could plead self-defense?

Well, we would need
the screwdriver

with McCall's blood on it
to prove that now, wouldn't we?

All right, which box?

I have been through
all these boxes

twice.

It's not there.

The evidence is lost?

In a murder case?

The gun is here, but
there's no screwdriver.

They even have crime
scene photos of it.

But no tests were run on it
before it was misplaced.

So, we know why Franovich left.

He quit before
we could fire his ass.

Right.

So, you know who the D.A.
will blame for this?

Yeah, the same people
Homicide'll blame.

Well, now that
we've exhausted
all of our options

let's start over.

So this lady's expected to die.
Is that the story?

Somebody raped her, shot her
and left her for dead.

And left two cartridge
casings behind for us.

Thank you very much.

That kind of oversight
tells you he's stupid.

Or true to form.

People are usually meticulous
in planning up to a murder

they rarely plan the aftermath.

Still, you'd think the bad guys
would figure

we'd eventually start a data
base on cartridge casings, huh?

( computer buzzes )

Gentlemen, we've got
ourselves a bull's-eye.

STOKES:
Well, well, well.

Looks like this gun
was used before in a case

we've handled.

North Vegas.

And I gotta do a side-by-side
comparison to be sure.

Well, listen, if you get
a confirmation, page me.

I gotta go see Sara.

Okay.

( clink )

Saint Catherine.

She studied science.

She was tough

and very outspoken.

Went against
the Emperor himself.

Chewed him out
for persecuting Christians.

Took him two
or three tries

to execute her.

She never gave up.
She was brave.

You hold on to this.

This shouldn't have
happened to you.

But, I promise

I will find out
who did this.

I promise.

Hey.

Hey.

Sexual assault kit's
ready to process.

How's it look?

We'll see.

She's, um...

breathing.

She's evidence.

Sara?

Yeah?

If you try and chase two rabbits
you end up losing them both.

( barking )

( knocking )

Hi.

Lauriane Hastings?

We're with the Las
Vegas Crime Lab.

Cops.

I have talked
to enough of you already.

BROWN:
Ma'am, we're
not cops.

We're crime scene
investigators.

We've come to ask you
a few questions

about the day that
your husband was killed.

Maybe acquaint ourselves
with the actual crime scene.

Is this going to let
Roy McCall out of jail

which is where
he belongs?

We're simply reviewing
the evidence for the
preliminary hearing.

McCall was always borrowing
this motorcycle

and Chuckie was mad at him

'cause he returned it
wrecked again.

He was yelling at him

and out of the blue
McCall pulled his gun.

You were home.

Yes, I was.

And you saw the shooting?

I most
certainly did.

I was doing laundry here...

McCALL:
Get your hands off me.

CHUCKIE:
I'm sick of you, man.

McCALL:
Whatever.

LAURIANE:
I went to see and try
to break it up.

CHUCKIE:
Back off, man.
Back off.

Get your sorry ass
off my property.

( gunshots )

( screaming )

Out back here?

Yes.

How long did you say
they had been arguing

before you heard
the first shot?

Couple minutes.

And then you
went out back?

That's right.

Okay, thank you.

This won't take
very long.

( timer beeps )

What's up?

She did a "fill-in" back there
in the garage.

First, she said she saw both
shots, but I just asked her

and she said she heard
the first shot

and then came
running out here.

Heard the first shot

and then came
running out here.

Yeah.

McCall had
a semiautomatic.

I mean, you could
pull off a shot in
two-tenths of a second.

Right.

It took me 3.8 seconds
to get out here.

She didn't see any shot.

So she just filled in
what she thought happened--

that McCall shot
her husband
in cold blood.

Right.

Typical eyewitness.

So, there's a good chance

that McCall
was telling the truth

that he shot Hastings
in self-defense.

Well, if we had
the screwdriver
that someone lost

we'd be able to
check for blood.

Right.

Let's go see McCall.

No one lost him.

All right.

Hey, you guys,
this North Vegas shooting

with the same casings
as our Jane Doe's?

Mm-hmm.

It was gang-related.

And Homicide never found
the shooter.

It's almost impossible
in gang neighborhoods.

Nobody wants to talk.

People are afraid.

Listen, let's see if
we have any evidence

that's not attributed
to the victim.

( paper bag rustling )

Here you go.

GRISSOM:
Snakebacks.

Gang shooters mark their kills
by tossing down their hats.

Some sort of anthropological
quirk of territoriality.

Like cats spraying
on a bush.

Lets the opposition know
who was responsible.

Somebody wore this hat a lot.

This sweatband might give us DNA

and I could compare it
to the samples I collected

off of Jane at the hospital.

Jane?

Our... Jane Doe.

My "death imminent."

First-name basis, Sara?

I'll be in DNA.

Hey.

This is, uh, Detective Sam Vega
from the Gang Detail.

He's here to give us
information on 23rd Street.

This is Gil Grissom
and Nick Stokes
from the Crime Lab.

We're looking for a shooter.

Guy abducted, raped and shot

a young black woman
the other night.

We get a couple
of shootings a week here

from the Snakebacks,
out of a four-block radius

from this point here.

Usually at the
Pepper Street Gang.

Your guy might have left
the neighborhood

as part of a gang initiation.

It means more
when the victim's a civilian.

STOKES:
Our ball cap belongs

to somebody
in this neighborhood.

These houses are full of people
who know the guy who wears it.

Okay, Nick, ready to
burn some shoe leather?

Some old-fashioned police work,
what do you say, huh?

Why can't we just use
those scent pads?

The dogs?

Constitutional issue.

We can't get a warrant
for the evidence we find

off the dogs' search.

Great, great.

Why'd you even suggest it?

You're a grown man, Nick.

Stop whining.

BROWN:
Mr. McCall, according
to your statement

you went over to your
neighbor Hastings' house

to return his motorcycle.

You got into a dispute
over a wrecked fender

and he attacked you
with a screwdriver.

He stabbed me
in the arm.

Hey, back off, man.

( groans )

Can you circle the area
in which the screwdriver

entered your arm when
Hastings attacked you?

May I exam your
client's wound?

Yes, anything
to clear my client.

Thanks.

I think he's telling
the truth.

He's right-handed.

I could tell when
he took the pen.

So you're saying that if he'd
inflicted the wound on himself

he would have stabbed
his left arm.

And even if he'd
tried to fool us

and stabbed
his right arm

the entry scar would
have been upward,
not down.

Mr. McCall, which direction
was Hastings facing

when you shot him?

He was facing my client.

End of story.

Well, the coroner disagrees.

Well, that's
the coroner's problem.

And I after I tell any jury

how your side managed to lose
a piece of evidence

as important as
the screwdriver

really, how much weight

will the Coroner's
findings have?

People don't realize
just how many sets of hands

a piece of evidence
passes through.

Losing evidence isn't
about anything sneaky.

It's just human error.

Yeah, defense attorneys
have made a whole career

off that human error.

Yeah, tell me about it.

( phone rings )

Hello.

Eddie...

I-I'll meet you
at the coroner's.

So, you took a second
out on the house

and, uh, didn't tell me
about it?

No, I would have remembered

you telling me something
as big as...

Oh, a studio.

Are you out of your mind?

So, now I'm going
to be making house payments

which you never had money for
when we lived together

and a second mortgage?

No, we don't have time
to talk about this.

You get that loaned
canceled, and you
do it now, Ed.

Now!

( sighs )

Doc, are you sure
McCall shot Hastings
in the back?

Back to front,
both times.

This guy McCall swears

that he shot him straight
ahead in self-defense.

Look at my notes.

Right here.

"Entry wounds

"piercing the back,
both small, regular

"with evidence of
carbonaceous material

typical of having just
emerged from a gun..."

Right.

"...and they exited
out the front

"with a classic keyhole
effect-- irregular.

"First bullet
entered Hastings'

"lattissimus dorsi

"passed through
the lower intestine

"exited out
the intercostal muscle.

"The second bullet

"passed through Hastings'
C-7 thoracic nerve

exited out
the pectoralis major."

All right, look, I'm not
doubting your findings.

But when guys go at it

they're not like
gingerbread men, you know?

They're, like, bobbing
and weaving.

It's like W.W.F. Smackdown.

You know?

All of these things
could have changed

what went down when
Hastings and McCall tangled.

Anatomically speaking,
it's open-and-shut.

You guys are the ones
to put perspective on it.

No doubt.

When Catherine gets here

can you tell her
I went over to Evidence

to check out
the victim's T-shirt?

Mm-hmm.

( humming softly )

( continues humming )

( singing softly )

Hey.

Any luck on 23rd Street?

I, uh, broke in
my new shoes.

That's about it.

What'd the lab say?

The DNA from the ball cap
is a match to the semen

we found on our Jane Doe.

But... CODIS hasn't
kicked out a name.

So, you're just...
looking at Missing
Persons reports?

We're not having any luck
finding the shooter

from his DNA with a belt loop

so I thought I would
at least try

and identify the poor woman
before she dies.

Sara.

Do you have
any diversions?

Do I what?

You max out on overtime
every month.

You go home and listen
to your police scanner.

You read forensic
textbooks...

Yeah.

Look, every day we meet people
on the worst day of their lives.

It's a lot to deal with.

Everyone who's had any time
on this job

knows that you have
to have a diversion

in order to cope
with what we see.

What do you do for fun?

I chase rabbits.

And...

I read crime books.

And I listen
to the scanner.

You need something outside
of law enforcement.

Catherine has
her kid, you know?

I sometimes...

ride roller coasters.

What do you do?

Nothing.

Okay.

What do you like?

I don't like anything.

You've got to find
something to like.

You can't get too close
to the victims.

She's special... to me.

I can't help it.

If you don't find something

they'll all become special
and you'll burn out.

Sara.

Okay.

I'm almost done.

I just got to log off.

So, this is progress.

The shirt confirms
what the coroner said:

the shots were fired
back to front.

Look at those entry holes.

Yeah, but look
at that gunpowder.

Unburned gunpowder.

Which happens when
a gun is fired

less than three feet
from a victim.

Right.

McCall says that
they were standing

five paces apart.

Mrs. Hastings says

the exact same thing.

So, we got two eyewitnesses
on opposite sides of the case...

saying the same thing.

In direct contradiction
to our evidence.

Well, the DA's
on my beeper.

Would you, uh, explain this
to him because I can't.

Yeah, right.

Hey...

when's the last time
you took target practice?

Figures. I just
had a manicure.

Okay, so we're doing
this reconstruction

and the best way is to
measure the distance

between the victim
and the assailant

during the time of the
altercation, right?

Right.

( snaps chamber shut )

Using the same firearm and ammo

that McCall used in his backyard
on Hastings.

Right.

BROWN:
Circumference of the gunpowder
is the same.

Looks like

two feet for shot number one...

...and one foot for shot

number two.

And according
to Lauriane Hastings' statement

he was running away.

How can the second shot

be closer
than the first?

It can't.
It's not possible.

We just disproved
their statement.

And then we've got
McCall's statement.

Can't happen
when someone's facing you.

( sighs )

The truth is somewhere
in the middle.

How long do we have
till the prelim?

I think I know how
we can figure this out.

I saw this thing
in my forensics catalog.

What kind of "thing"?

STOKES:
Now you want to use

the dogs to track down
the Jane Doe shooter?

K-9 unit's going
to meet us there.

Yeah, but I spoke to Brass.

He said we can't get a warrant
on anything we need

from the suspect's house--
gun, jeans, nothing.

That's if we find him
inside his house.

In which case,
we'll figure
out another way

to get a warrant.

You're rushing this
for Sarah.

My priority is
the case, Nick.

Release the hounds.

You were shopping.

Pamela...

Pamela Adler.

(dogs panting)

Hey, Lady.

You ready for a scent pad?

( barking )

Whoa!
Are we supposed

to be able to keep
up with those guys?

Yeah!

( barking )

Hey, hey, yo, yo.

Back off, Snoop.

What you raggedy mutts
want with me anyway?

Hey, you two,
don't be hassling me.

( footsteps approaching )

Guy's wearing the evidence
in plain sight.

We just got lucky.

WOMAN:
Tony!

What are you doing?!

You got a problem?

Ma'am, is-is this your son?

Yes.
Well, we're
going to have

to talk to him for a minute.

You police-- coming here
with your attack dogs.

Actually, they're scent dogs,
and I'm not a police officer.

I'm a forensics scientist

with the Las Vegas
Police Department.

What do I got to say

to a scientist?

You could say "hello."

This dummy cost
over $500?

Oh, yeah.

He's worth it.

Why?

Well, look at him.

He's lifelike, he doesn't talk,
and he's self-healing.

He's "self-healing"?

Yeah.

We make a mistake
in our calculations

we just start over.

Cool.

Um, the wound track is off.

Do it two centimeters higher.

All right.

How's that?

Good.
All right.

Now, the second shot
was fired like so.

And the coroner says
that Hastings was shot

just like this,
from back to front

and Hastings' wife
says the same thing--

that her husband
was running away.

And McCall says that
Hastings was facing him

shot him in self-defense

and he's got the wound...

to prove it.

Just like I said before,
guys don't go at it

and fight like
gingerbread men,
you know?

Mm-hmm.

Check it out.

What if, um...

he was lunged...

...just kind of like this?

Oh, you are wrong!

( chuckling )

Warrick

I think maybe they were both
telling the truth.

Yeah.

I'm calling the DA.

So, Tony, where were
you two nights ago?

I was nowhere special.

I was just hanging.

Grissom told you

to keep me out,
didn't he?

Yeah.

Were you wearing those pants

the other night?

Oh, these jeans?

What's it to you?

They're missing a belt loop.

I find that interesting.

BRASS:
You mind if we
look at those?

We got some scrubs
for you to wear.

He doesn't have to
do anything unless
a judge says to.

That's why we're asking Tony
to volunteer.

GRISSOM:
With your
permission...

Chill, Moms.

I got nothing to hide.

It's no big thing.

Cop said lady isn't even dead.

That's true, she isn't...

but if she dies within a year
and a day of the shooting...

then it's murder.

SHAUNDA:
Is this some
kind of trick?

No, ma'am,
it's the law.

We're working this case
as a murder.

At least
for the next year and a day

and even then,
I'm still a juvie.

Well, then I guess the law
is on your side, Tony, isn't it?

For now.

( mumbling )

ED:
Hi, Catherine.

Somebody wanted
to see you.

Hey, baby.

Hi, Mommy.

Daddy's taking me
to dinner tonight.

He is?

Main room at the Orpheus.

They have lions and tigers
at the restaurant

and Daddy said
I can go to a show after.

WILLOWS:
Well, uh...

you know, honey,
it's a school night

so I need to discuss
that with Daddy first.

Come on, Mom.
It's just this one night.

Ed...

Hey, Lindsey, I got some games
on my computer.

You want to see?

Sure.
Come on, let's
go play one.

Uh, I'll see you
in a bit, honey.

You set me up.

How, by taking our daughter
to dinner?

Get over here.

Oh, come on now!

What?!

You are so pathetic.
What?! What?!

Just so pathetic.

Watch it, Cath.

Sucking up to our daughter
'cause I caught you robbing me.

The only thing I
ever robbed you of
was good sex.

( scoffing )
No sex is worth you,
and you are not taking

my daughter
to a club with one

of your music whores.

Oh, they're whores?

When I met you

you were taking
your clothes off
in a strip club.

It was a job, Ed

and it supported you,
just like every job I've had

including this one!

Yeah? And who paid
to close up your nose?

You're such a bast...!

Let go of me.
What?!

I'll let go of you
when I'm damn good and...

Let go of her, Ed!

Catherine?

Just get him
out of here.

I don't want
to ever see you

in this building again.

This is our place
of business.

You understand that?

I always knew
you two had a thing.

Go home, Eddie.

Sure.

SARA:
¶ One way or another ¶

¶ I'm going to see you ¶

( hums )

¶ One day, maybe next week ¶

¶ I'm going to meet you,
meet you ¶

¶ I will... ¶

Hey, Sara, did anyone
ever tell you

you have
a pretty good singing voice?

If you like chalk on a board.

Come on.
I've heard you around here.

People never tell you that?

It's a-a habit.

I don't even realize
I'm doing it.

Did you get that belt loop

from the crime scene
lined up yet?

Yeah.

Here, take a look.

SARA:
Fits like a glove.

Okay. Let's go tell the boss.

Uh, you go.

I have something
to do first.

Hey, if you go
near that Thorpe kid...

Excuse me?

I'm just saying...

It's something else.

Promise.

Wait a minute.

Hastings was facing McCall,
and McCall shot him in the back?

You can't have it
both ways, guys.

A judge will laugh me
out of court.

Well... bear with us.

All right. I'm McCall.

I have a gun.

I'm Hastings.

I stab McCall
in the right arm.

WARRICK:
I push him back off.

And Hastings charges again.

This time he lunges
at his midsection.

I shoot.

CATHERINE:
He shoots from two feet

according to our firearms
range test

and the unburned powder
on the victim's clothes.

And the bullet enters
through the back

even though we are
facing each other

and exits...

out the front.

The first shot is fired
in self-defense.

But then McCall
shoots Hastings

a second time.
Now that shot...

Boom.

...was not
in self-defense.

( gunshot )

( screaming )
No!

Chalk it up to adrenaline
or revenge

but Hastings was already
going down.

There was no reason
to shoot him a second time.

I've got to say, I'm impressed.

You two just put on
quite a show.

Think you can do it again
at trial?

That's our job.

We'll see you in court, Sam.

Hey, how's Linds?

Um, well, uh,
she's with my sister.

Hey, thanks for

helping me out there.

I appreciate it. I...

You've got to get
that divorce finalized, huh?

We caught him.

If you hadn't pulled
that belt loop

we might never
have found him, but...

You did good.

You must be Sara.

The CSI who called me?

Hi.

I'm Tom, uh,
Pam's husband.

Thanks, uh, for
all you've done.

Sure.

Oh, I wanted to give you this.

I've been keeping it...
for Jane--

Pam, uh, until I found
her family.

Thanks.

How are you doing?

Okay, uh...

Good.

The doctor says
Pammie's condition
is stabilized.

He was in an hour ago.

He expects her to live.

Says she's not
going to die.

That's great.

That's-that's great.

She's a real fighter, huh?

THOMAS:
Well, we're moving her

to Haven View Center
later this week.

Do-do you know that facility?

Yeah, I do, know people
who've gone there.

They'll take real good care
of her.

That's what the doctor said.

I got to go.

Well, um, uh...

come see us sometime.

Definitely.

Haven View, I'll be there.

Good luck.

Good luck to you.

The husband
doesn't get it.

He's so happy
she's going to live

he doesn't realize

she's going to be
in a vegetative state

for the rest of her life.

And that kid Thorpe

is going to be out
of juvie in 48 months.

It's not fair.

It's the system.

What kind of system
rewards the suspect

when the victim
is too tough to die?

Sara...

you've got to learn
to let this go

or you're going to spend
all your time in hospitals

trying to help
the people you couldn't save.

I wish I was like you, Grissom.

I wish I didn't feel anything.

( sighing )
Oh.

[Captioning sponsored by CBS,
CBS PRODUCTIONS

and ALLIANCE ATLANTIS

Captioned by
The Caption Center
WGBH Educational Foundation]