Crime Story (1986–1988): Season 1, Episode 15 - Torello on Trial - full transcript
Torello testifies in court to prove his innocence, but emotions in the courtroom heat up quickly. Local boss Dominic Tranchita breaks the mob's golden rule and starts dealing drugs. He even clashes with the mob council over the issue.
NARRATOR: Last week
on "Crime Story."
DAVID ABRAMS: And the
cop's your witness.
Wake up.
You saying Bozo's
alive, they expect that.
But you and a clean
cop say it, they'll
laugh the prosecution
out of court.
I gave you free legal advice.
A hypothetical case.
I said put up a cop
as a defense witness.
You didn't tell me the
cop was Mike Torello
and you were the case.
-You gave me good advice
like a good defense attorney.
The only difference was
you didn't take any cash.
Hey, maybe now you'll
take some money, huh?
-Mike, you'll get out of this.
Whole department's behind you.
Breitel doesn't have a chance.
-Yeah.
Well, this isn't
from Breitel, Danny.
-Oh, man.
He's been subpoenaed
as a defense witness.
For Ray Luca.
-David Abrams' gonna
be a state's attorney.
-So what?
-So sooner or later, he's
gonna come after me, all right?
So we're going take him out now.
-Hey, Dad.
Where you going?
-You got no cream cheese.
I'll be right back.
[explosion]
NARRATOR: This week,
on "Crime Story."
[car approaching]
[car doors closing]
-I'm sorry, David.
-You got anything?
-No, nothing.
We'll drop you off.
[music - del shannon, "runaway"]
[music playing]
US ATTY.
HARRY BREITEL: Mr. Holman,
do you know Ray Luca?
-Yeah, I know Ray.
US ATTY.
HARRY BREITEL:
Would you describe
your relationship with Mr. Luca?
-What?
US ATTY.
HARRY BREITEL: Were you and
Mr. Luca bowling partners?
Scoutmasters?
What was your
involvement with him?
-We put down scores.
-Would you please tell
the jury what you mean
when you say you
put down scores?
-Um, we stole stuff.
-Together?
-Yeah.
We went out together, but we
didn't have no relationship.
[laughter]
US ATTY.
HARRY BREITEL:
What did you steal?
-Uh, jewelry, mostly.
That kind of stuff.
-For whom?
-Yeah, Mr. Bartoli.
-Did you ever steal
for anyone else?
-Yeah.
I gave a bunch of
stuff to Mike Torello.
EVERETT STEELE:
Lieutenant Torello,
let's review the facts,
the circumstances
of your contact with Mr. Holman.
What led to your
first confrontation?
-Detective Indelli and
I staked out his place.
He came out, and
we followed him.
He saw us, and he tossed
something out of his car.
This aroused our suspicions,
so we pulled him over.
-And what had he
thrown from his car?
-Tools of the burglar's trade.
Black leather kit containing
screwdrivers and lock picks.
EVERETT STEELE: What
happened next, Lieutenant?
LT.
MIKE TORELLO: We questioned him.
I wanted to establish a
relationship with Holman
so that he would come to
me when he was pressured.
At the same time,
we were tightening
the screws on Phil Bartoli.
EVERETT STEELE: Any
money pass from his hands
to yours at this time?
-I gave him a phony name,
Sergeant Ralph Collins.
He offered me $200 lunch money.
I wanted him to think I
was bought, so I took it.
-And what did you
do with the $200?
-I gave it to the family fund
of a fellow police officer that
was killed in the line of
duty, Detective Wes Connelly.
-Have you ever taken a bribe?
-Never in my life.
-Frank Holman says he gave
you $15,000 worth of jewelry
after that first meeting.
-He's lying.
I never saw him again
until St. Louis.
-What happened in St.
Louis, Lieutenant?
-We arrested him while
working with Sheriff Grady.
-I understand you
actually caught
Holman in the middle
of a burglary.
LT.
MIKE TORELLO: That's correct.
EVERETT STEELE: And then?
-Holman told Grady that he
was going to blow the whistle
on organized crime in St. Louis.
-[chuckles]
-So Grady let him out
on his own recognizance.
-And what did Holman do?
-He was out of St.
Louis like a shot.
-Well, I don't understand.
If he had so much to
trade, why did he run?
-Objection, Your Honor.
Defense is leading the witness.
-Sustained.
-Do you think he had anything
to trade, Lieutenant?
-Holman is strictly small-time.
The only thing he
knows about St. Louis
is what he reads
in the newspaper.
It's a crapshoot that
every two-bit hood
tries when he gets packaged.
Give me a break, and
I'll give you the boss.
-Or a dirty cop.
-Yes.
EVERETT STEELE: Lieutenant,
Holman claims he gave you
$10,000 in cash, taken from
that St. Louis burglary.
-That's another lie.
The minute we came
out of Ganz's house,
I had him spread-eagled
on the trunk of his car.
Grady can testify to that.
-And finally, Lieutenant, where
did you next see Mr. Holman?
LT.
MIKE TORELLO (VOICEOVER):
We tracked him
down to a diner
in Gary, Indiana.
By this time, I had
fugitive warrants
for murder and armed robbery.
Holman was operating the diner
under my name, Michael Torello.
-And where did you take him?
LT.
MIKE TORELLO
(VOICEOVER): Straight
to the US Attorney's
Office in Gary, Indiana.
EVERETT STEELE (VOICEOVER):
And what happened to Holman?
LT.
MIKE TORELLO (VOICEOVER):
He was grabbed by Breitel
and brought to Chicago.
Holman then convinced Breitel
that he'd blow the whistle
on organized crime
in Chicago, that he
would name names, the works.
EVERETT STEELE:
Lieutenant, Holman
claims that he's
given you over $50,000
worth of jewelry over
the past few months.
Now has he ever
given you a thing?
-Only a headache.
[laughter]
The man is a born liar.
EVERETT STEELE: No further
questions, Your Honor.
-You may step down, Lieutenant.
-Thank you.
What are you doing here?
-So, how's it going?
-So far, so good.
-It's gonna be a bitch tomorrow.
I'll be all right.
-Is that so?
You know, Breitel's
not a complete idiot.
What do you think
he's doing tonight?
I think he's going
over the court record.
I think he's going over
every word you said,
and I think if there any
holes in your testimony,
he'll find them.
I also think if there are
no holes in your testimony,
he'll punch a couple.
He's a weasel.
He's got teeth, Mike.
If you're not ready for
him, he'll eat you alive.
Breitel thinks that you would
sell your mother to a colony
of perverted lepers
for two bits.
Your mother.
You're into the Outfit
up to your neck.
-I don't have any
Outfit connection.
DAVID ABRAMS: You were
there to get the book
and send it on to Ganz.
Weren't you?
Weren't you?
-I don't have any
Outfit connections.
-You are not connected with
the Outfit, you're telling me?
Then tell me, why
are you testifying
for Ray Luca and
Phil Bartoli, huh?
-I think you're
out of line, and I
don't have to listen
to this crap from you.
-You're out of order.
You sit down and shut up,
and you answer my questions.
Lieutenant, why did you
use the name Ralph Collins
when you first, uh,
confronted Holman?
-Why?
-It's a common practice
for police officers
to use a phony
name with a suspect
in the early stages
of an investigation.
US ATTY.
HARRY BREITEL: Mhm.
Isn't it common practice for an
officer to use a pseudonym when
he's preparing to hit
on a suspect for money?
-Objection.
-Sustained.
-On your first confrontation
with Frank Holman,
you searched his car without
a warrant or probable cause,
didn't you?
-We asked his permission,
and he gave it.
-That's not what Holman says.
-Well, he wouldn't say that,
because it's the truth.
-Oh, you were pressuring
Holman, weren't you?
-Well, pressure works
with habitual criminals.
It forces them to make mistakes.
-You took over $200
from him, didn't you?
-Well, that's not true, either.
Holman is the liar.
-Hm.
Lieutenant Torello,
yesterday you
called Frank Holman small-time.
"All he knows about St. Louis
is what he reads in the papers.
It's a crapshoot
every two-bit hood
tries to do when
he gets pinched.
Quote, give me a break, and
I'll give you the boss."
Does that accurately reflect
your feeling about Mr. Holman?
LT.
MIKE TORELLO: Yes, it does.
--[sighs heavily]
Lieutenant, why did you
strike your prisoner
in St. Louis?
-He insulted me.
-What was the insult?
-I didn't take notes.
I don't remember.
-Hm.
Huh.
According to Sheriff Grady,
Holman said something like,
"I didn't know mooches
doubled for cops, Torello."
Does that sound like it?
-I don't remember.
-But you attacked him then.
-Yes, I did.
-Hm.
Sheriff Grady called it-- mm,
right here. "Police brutality."
-Oh, I'd call it self defense.
-So you're calling the
sheriff from St. Louis a liar.
-I'm calling it a matter
of interpretation.
-That's not the way Holman
and Sheriff Grady see it.
-Holman would, because
he's a born liar.
-So everyone's a
liar but you, right?
According to Holman,
Lieutenant Torello
was "trying to stack
the deck against me
in order to cover his actions."
-What actions?
US ATTY.
HARRY BREITEL: Why don't
you tell us, Lieutenant?
-Because there is no action.
Because there's nothing to tell.
-Yes, there is.
Tell us about Ted Kehoe.
-What about him?
US ATTY.
HARRY BREITEL: He
was your friend.
-Yes, he was my friend.
US ATTY.
HARRY BREITEL: And
you grew up together.
You fought in Korea
together, correct?
-That's right.
-He was your roommate?
-For a time.
-Until he died.
Lieutenant, were you
aware that Ted Kehoe
was under investigation by the
FBI for his mob connections?
-Objection, Your Honor.
-Overruled.
Counsel, this could be
very germane to the issue
of witness reliability.
Continue.
-Answer the
question, Lieutenant.
-Yes, I knew.
-Did you know that the
Department of Justice
was going to indict Ray Luca
and Phil Bartoli for a money
laundering scheme that
Ted Kehoe, your friend
and roommate, was involved in?
LT.
MIKE TORELLO: Yes, I did.
-Kehoe's girlfriend,
Marilyn Stewart,
informed the United
States Attorney's Office
that she was aware
of this scheme.
You knew her too, didn't you?
-Only in passing.
-She also reported to us
that you were harassing her.
Is that true, Lieutenant?
-No, it's not true.
-Ah.
So Marilyn Stewart
is another liar.
When was the last time
you saw her, Lieutenant?
-The last time I saw Marilyn
Stewart, she was dead.
We dragged her out of the river.
-And you wouldn't let a
United States Attorney, me,
into the scene of the crime.
-I wouldn't let you in because
you had no jurisdiction there,
and you were being disruptive.
US ATTY.
HARRY BREITEL: What are
you trying to hide from me,
Lieutenant.
-(SHOUTING) Nothing!
-Nothing?
Nothing.
Were you living with Ted
Kehoe when someone threw him
out of his window to his death?
-Everybody involved in that
investigation was murdered,
and you know it.
-(SHOUTING) Yes, I do!
And I also know the
central character
that links all these
people together.
Michael Torello!
Do you expect us to believe
that everything somebody says
that you don't agree with
is a lie when your best
friend, your roommate,
is up to his eyeballs
in criminal charges?
-(SHOUTING) No!
-Come on, Lieutenant.
Do you expect us to believe
that if you had nothing
to do with the deaths of Ted
Kehoe and Marilyn Stewart?
-You know what you are, Breitel?
You're a cheap, dirty,
filthy little son-of-a--
-Lieutenant Torello.
-I object.
-(SHOUTING) I object!
This witness connected Ted Kehoe
to a lucrative business scheme
with his organized
crime contact,
and then tried to
help him when he got
into trouble because
of his girlfriend.
And when Torello
couldn't help, he
had knowledge of or
complicity in her death,
and eventually in the
death of Ted Kehoe!
-Mr. Breitel.
-I withdraw the
question, Your Honor.
Violence is commonplace in your
world, isn't it, Lieutenant?
DAVID ABRAMS: Objection.
JUDGE ARCHIBALD
FLYNN: Sustained.
-No more questions, Your Honor.
-Mike's gonna need all
the help he can get.
-What the hell can we do?
-What did he do
with all his stuff
after he moved out of
the apartment with Julie?
-He put in storage, didn't he?
-No, no, no, his personal stuff.
-Oh, I saw him put a
box in the bottom drawer
of his file cabinet.
-Let's go.
-Breitel.
Guy murdered Torello
on the stand today.
I'm getting worried, Manny.
-Steele's a good man, Ray.
He'll find you a
way out of this.
-Yeah, but look, the trial's
not our only problem.
Tranchita's moving
ahead, full steam.
-He continues to violate
my prohibition on drugs?
RAY LUCA (ON PHONE)::
Yeah, with a vengeance.
-How do you know?
You have proof?
-Proof positive.
The guy who was going to be
his partner has been, uh,
been hanging around here lately.
And he decided to
tell us all about it.
-I'll come up to
Chicago this weekend.
Have Max get word
out to the families.
A major council.
We're going to negotiate.
-Manny, look, with
all due respect,
I honestly don't think that's
going to work with Tranchita.
-There are many ways
to negotiate, Ray.
Good night.
-Good night.
[dial tone]
-Well, you heard what he said.
Wants to set up a council
to negotiate with Tranchita.
I admire Manny,
but, uh, I've never
been any good at negotiating.
-Ray, you don't have to
worry about negotiating.
That's what I'm here for.
-That's why we're going
to make a great team.
All three of us.
[laughter]
-What am I, an orphan?
[laughter]
-And Pauli, too.
Come on.
Let's go get something to eat.
-So, Manny wants to
call a council, huh?
Seems to me, Manny wants
a lot of things lately.
Including, maybe, Chicago?
-I can assure you that's
not the case, Mr. Tranchita.
-You can assure me?
-Listen, Manny wants Las Vegas.
You want the heroin trade.
Cut me a small piece of
your action, Mr. Tranchita,
and I'll do my best to
talk Manny into turning
a blind eye to the heroin trade.
Can't do it in
public, of course.
I'll have to arrange
a private meeting.
But if you do it
this way, you won't
have to share with
anyone else in Chicago.
-Can you deliver?
-I'm almost certain.
-You're making a side deal
against Manny Weisbord?
-Manny's an old man.
Who knows how long he's
going to be around?
-All right.
You make good, you'll get 5%.
-10.
-8.
-So we can expect to
see you at the Lakeshore
Club, Mr. Tranchita?
-Dominic.
You call me Dominic.
BYSTANDER: [whistles] Taxi!
-Mike.
Mike.
-What's up?
-You are.
Redirect testimony.
Talked to Steele last night.
Breitel did you some damage.
We're going to put
you back on the stand.
-We?
-Steele's agreed to allow
me to handle the redirect.
-Oh, look, David, I got beat
up pretty good up there.
What the hell you
want me to say?
-I want you to trust me.
Follow my lead.
-Defense requests
permission for David Abrams
to take over the
direct testimony.
-Mr. Abrams.
DAVID ABRAMS: Your
Honor, I've recently
worked as a public defender
for the State of Illinois.
I received my law degree--
-I know your
credentials, Mr. Abrams.
You may proceed.
-Thank you.
Lieutenant Torello, what
single criminal in Chicago
has your unit been working on
over the past, say, six months?
-Ray Luca.
DAVID ABRAMS: You have
any personal feelings
toward Ray Luca?
-I think he's a smart
and dangerous animal
who has no regard
for human life.
I also think he's sick and that
he's the scum of the Earth.
DAVID ABRAMS: Then
tell me, Lieutenant,
why are you testifying
in his defense?
-Because Luca's defense
attorney subpoenaed me here.
And he's smart enough
to know how dumb it is
for the prosecution to
believe Frank Holman about me.
-I object, Your Honor.
-Uh, strike the word
"dumb" from the record.
[laughter]
Continue, Counsel.
-Lieutenant Torello,
you're really not here
to defend Ray Luca
at all, are you?
-Absolutely not.
-Would it be fair to say
that the reason you're here
is because Luca's defense
understands that you are
the best one to prove
the worthlessness
and the utter unreliability
of Frank Holman's testimony?
LT.
MIKE TORELLO: That's right.
-And if Frank Holman's
testimony is proven worthless,
then so is the government's
case against Bartoli and Luca.
-That's exactly right.
DAVID ABRAMS:
Lieutenant, tell us,
what's happened to your
department's case against Luca?
-It's mostly ruined.
-By what?
-By this proceedings,
brought on by Mr. Breitel.
-Is that so?
Lieutenant Torello?
Does this belong to you?
-Yes, it does.
-Would you identify them
for the court, please?
-Bronze Star and a Purple Heart.
DAVID ABRAMS: You
were wounded in combat
and decorated for heroism
serving your country in Korea.
Is that right?
-That's right.
-I believe that Frank Holman
was serving his country
in Juvenile Hall at this time.
[laughter]
Lieutenant Torello,
what are these?
-Commendations from the
Chicago Police Department.
-These are four
commendations for bravery.
He received top marks in every
civil service exam that led him
from uniformed cop to detective,
to sergeant, to lieutenant.
There are commendations
from the mayor's office.
There's a commendation from
the governor himself in there.
And Lieutenant Torello's
Major Crime Unit
has the finest arrest-conviction
record on the force.
Now, Lieutenant
Torello, Ted Kehoe.
When you learned that Ted
Kehoe was tied in with Luca
and Bartoli, what
was your reaction?
LT.
MIKE TORELLO
(VOICEOVER): I was angry.
I encouraged him to
get out and become
a witness for the prosecution.
DAVID ABRAMS
(VOICEOVER): And what
was Kehoe's response to that?
LT.
MIKE TORELLO
(VOICEOVER): He refused.
DAVID ABRAMS (VOICEOVER): Why?
-Because he thought
he was smart.
-In fact, he was
stupid, wasn't he?
Can you tell me,
Lieutenant, can you
tell me who killed Ted Kehoe?
-I don't know for sure.
DAVID ABRAMS: Lieutenant, I'm
going to have to bring you back
to an event I'm sure
you'd rather forget,
the Novak murder.
In that case, it wasn't just
the killing that got to you,
was it?
LT.
MIKE TORELLO (VOICEOVER):
It's never just the killing.
Gone is gone.
Novak is not a soldier.
This is not his war,
yet he was forced
to watch the woman he loved die.
It's watching the
living, their struggle
against madness and loneliness.
That's what get to you.
DAVID ABRAMS (VOICEOVER):
You and Novak became friends.
LT.
MIKE TORELLO (VOICEOVER): Yes.
DAVID ABRAMS (VOICEOVER): And
so finding his wife's killer
took on an emotional
motivation for you?
-Yes.
DAVID ABRAMS: And Frank Holman,
an accomplice to that crime,
did he then go to the
top of your personal,
you personal most-wanted list?
-Second from the top.
DAVID ABRAMS: Who
was at the top?
-Ray Luca.
DAVID ABRAMS:
Lieutenant Torello,
what happened between
you and Frank Holman?
LT.
MIKE TORELLO: I wanted him.
We went after him,
and we got him.
DAVID ABRAMS: Did you
do it for personal gain?
-No.
-Are you a seasoned
professional, motivated
by an understandable outrage?
-Yes, I am.
DAVID ABRAMS: And when
you captured Frank Holman,
what did he ultimately face?
-The electric chair.
US ATTY.
HARRY BREITEL: Objection.
-Sustained.
DAVID ABRAMS: I'll
rephrase that question.
What would Frank
Holman ultimately face,
if convicted of the
crimes for which you
held a warrant for his arrest?
-The electric chair.
DAVID ABRAMS: And so when you
finally captured Frank Holman,
his only defense was to lie.
-Objection!
-At the expense of
a very fine lawman.
JUDGE ARCHIBALD
FLYNN: Sustained.
-You take Frank
Holman and you stand
him next to Lieutenant
Mike Torello.
Who would you believe?
-Objection, Your Honor.
These aren't questions!
JUDGE ARCHIBALD
FLYNN: Sustained!
-I have no further
questions, Your Honor.
[phone buzzes]
-What?
RECEPTIONIST (ON PHONE):
Somebody to see you, Chief.
-I told you not to bother
me unless the bulls were
stampeding from the stockyards.
I gotta think.
RECEPTIONIST (ON PHONE):
The bulls are stampeding.
I got an Assistant
Attorney General out here
with the name of Drew Belzer.
-Send him in.
-Hello, Chief Kramer.
I'm Drew--
-I know who you are.
Sit down.
What do you want?
-I saw Lieutenant Michael
Torello in court today.
-Stand up.
-What?
-Stand up.
You're not gonna want to
take this sitting down.
-Look, Chief, I
think you'd better--
-Everybody in the
Justice Department
wants a piece of
Michael Torello.
What is this, open
season on the guy?
Don't you chumps know
what he means to Chicago?
He's from the Patch one of the
toughest neighborhoods going,
and the man is incorruptible.
He's got courage.
He's got compassion.
He cares about
this city, damn it!
The only thing standing between
the Outfit and City Hall
is Michael Torello's unit.
Do you read me?
-Yeah.
But there's someone else he's
going to have to talk to.
-Lieutenant Torello knows
Frank Holman is a liar.
And by now, ladies and
gentlemen, so do you.
Therefore, it is your duty
to demand the acquittal
of the accused, Ray Luca,
Philip Bartoli, Paul Taglia--
US ATTY.
HARRY BREITEL: He's a product
of the Patch, the Chicago
neighborhood that
has given us most
of our organized crime bosses.
Michael Torello
is the unreliable
witness here in this courtroom.
That is why I am asking you
to disregard his testimony
and deliver a verdict of
guilty as charged to Ray
Luca, Philip Bartoli,
and Paul Taglia.
BAILIFF: Will the
defendants please rise?
-(CRISPLY) Pauli
Taglia, acquittal.
[gasps from audience]
Philip Bartoli, acquittal.
[courtroom murmurs]
Ray Luca, acquittal.
You're dismissed.
-Mr. Bartoli, Mr.
Bartoli, do you
have a comment at this time?
-Not here.
Outside, please.
-What?
-I said we're dropping
the case against Torello.
-You can't be serious.
-I don't want to hear it.
You blew it.
-I can nail these guys.
-No, you-- you got no
chance to nail them.
-Just give me one appeal.
I can nail them!
-Hey!
Listen, you got questions--
-I put a lot of time into this.
-Listen to me.
You call Washington.
-They farming you out, Breitel?
-They dropped your case.
But you'll get buried yet.
Garbage always does.
-Let me tell you
something, smart guy.
I may have one against you
today, but I lost against them.
They got acquitted.
But you, you've got blood
all over your hands.
Every drop of blood that
Ray Luca spills between now
and when I eventually get him
is gonna be on your hands.
Do you understand?
Yours.
Not mine.
[all shouting and laughing]
-Hey, Gordon!
[cheering and laughing]
Go, Joey!
Go, Joey!
Do it, Joey!
Go, go, go!
[laughter]
[thud]
[laughter]
-Michael!
-Michael!
[cheering and applause]
-How low can you go?
-All right, all right.
-Huh?
-All right.
OK.
All right.
All right, all right. (SLURRING
SLIGHTLY) All right, I want you
to know, first of all, that I
have won the limbo contest, OK?
-Oh!
-All right, all right.
Now I'm going to show
you how I did it.
All right?
-All right!
Go.
-Raise the bar.
[laughter]
-Hey, Chief!
How are you?
Thirsty?
-Hey, Chief.
Hey, Mike!
Why don't you take tomorrow off?
You really deserve it, Mike.
-That's a good idea.
-Why don't you slow down
a little, Lieutenant?
-What for?
I got the day off
tomorrow, right?
[laughter]
-Just be sober by 5:00 PM.
It's the Drake Hotel.
Just be there.
It's important.
-We don't care about
running hotels.
They gotta operate
straight up and down.
Hookers and the
bars are freelance.
We throw out the slugs.
Our main action in each joint
is only the casino operation,
where we run a cash skim.
Other than that, we keep
our act as clean as possible
so we don't attract any
unnecessary city, state,
or federal heat to ourselves.
-And with this new 707 jet
airplane, Vegas is gonna boom.
O'Hare is the airport
hub of this country,
and most of the gamblers,
they fly right out of here.
You might say that Vegas is
just an extension of Chicago.
Now Steve Kordo has
something to say.
-OK, we have a 10-year plan.
If we handle Las
Vegas correctly,
we can legitimize our
entire operation by 1973.
We're choosing directors who
are as clean as a baby's bottom
to run the domestic
corporations.
And we're setting up
our offshore holdings
in such a complex
way, it'll take
five federal administrations
to unravel it.
-Five administrations.
20 years?
-By 1983, your children
will be living in Malibu.
[laughter]
Their only connection
to what we do here today
will be their stock
portfolios or the companies
in the New York Board.
[laughter]
-What do you want from us?
-We want Chicago's support
and $10 million, Dominic.
-No, Manny.
I still like the
ghetto drug business.
Big money, right now.
-Gentlemen, we take
a little break.
Good.
-Good?
We're nowhere.
-Now I go to Tranchita and I
give him his deal on the drugs.
Where is he?
-He's in the men's room, Mr.
Weisbord, waiting for you.
-What?
I don't understand.
-Once again, I see why Manny
is who is and what he is.
He knows when to take
a five-minute break.
'Cause you go to relieve
yourself a little,
your attitude brightens.
I think maybe Manny, as
always, makes a lot of sense,
even to a hot-headed
Siciliano like me, huh?
[laughter]
So, I say we raise
a drink to Manny,
and we take a vote in favor
of this big move to Vegas.
[applause]
-Hey, boss, should I
pack my bags for Vegas?
-Yeah, Cori and the
kids are already there.
-When we leaving?
-Tonight.
We'll go tonight.
We'll say our goodbyes
on the way out of town.
[applause]
[elevator muzak playing]
[elevator dings]
How you doing, Dominic?
Thought I'd say goodbye
on my way to Vegas.
DOMINIC TRANCHITA: We'll
sit by the pool, huh?
I'm cooking up a little supper.
What do you think?
Huh?
[chuckles]
-This is nice.
-I'm still doing the
finishing touches on it, eh?
You want to take a swim?
There's some trunks downstairs.
-No, no, another time.
-Hey, I gotta tell
you, I'm really happy,
the way things worked out.
-Yeah, I'm happy, too.
-Sit down.
Sit down, Ray.
Relax, hm?
You want a glass of wine?
-No, thanks.
-Huh?
No?
OK. [chuckles]
Ain't that a kick?
-Yeah.
We got a good government, huh?
-Want some?
-No, not me.
Uh, I ate before I got here.
-Sure?
RAY LUCA: Yeah.
DOMINIC TRANCHITA: Boy.
RAY LUCA: Dominic,
you know that deal
you worked out with
Manny on the drugs?
-Yeah, Ray, what about it?
-Guess what?
He changed his mind.
Yeah.
Neither you nor anybody else
is gonna be selling drugs.
-What?
-Are you deaf?
Your side deal on the
drugs is canceled.
And Dominic, so are you.
[gunshot]
[gasps]
[gunshot]
-Good, that's good.
-Florence, have you
typed up that report?
-I got the Attorney
General's office
on the phone He wants
to know how to--
[interposing voices]
-I sent it down to him.
-Yeah, the one--
[interposing voices]
-Yes, I sent it down--
-He got a good look at it.
-Listen, Torello--
-Hey, what is this?
What's going on?
What are you doing here?
-Just listen to me.
Just behave yourself,
all right, Michael?
Just behave yourself?
[knock]
-Nice to see you, Ray.
-How you doing, Turk?
[ANNOUNCER NARRATING HORSE RACE
ON TELEVISION]
-Hi, Ray.
-How you doing, Phil?
-All right.
How's Dominic?
-Dominic's fine.
-Good.
Good.
Well, take a look at
this number 9 here.
I think I'm gonna buy it.
-Yeah?
No kidding.
-Yeah.
So, uh, I guess this is, uh, bon
voyage, or whatever they say.
-Yeah, well, that's
why I came by.
PHIL BARTOLI: Yeah?
-To say goodbye.
[gunshot]
[coughs]
[gunshot]
-Bye, Phil.
-Enjoy the house, Turk.
-Thanks, Mr. Luca.
I will.
-Mr. Luca, huh?
It was my pleasure.
-Have a nice time in Vegas.
-I will.
I'll send you a postcard.
[laughter]
We're free and easy, Pauli.
-You got it, Boss.
Goodbye, Chicago!
-And goodbye, Mike Torello.
[laughter]
[phones ringing]
MAN: You Lieutenant Torello?
I'm Patrick Hallahan, Assistant
United States Attorney General.
It's nice to meet you.
We're assembling the first
interdepartmental strike force
against organized crime in
the history of this country.
We've got two teams.
One's US attorneys to
prosecute, the other's
an investigation team
to build the cases.
-Is Chicago the center
for this investigation?
-Nope.
We're only doing
preliminary work here.
Our intelligence says Las
Vegas is the big move.
-Well, sure.
Manny Weisbord and
his organization--
-His national operation as it
operates in Vegas and Chicago
is our target.
Now, he's groomed a whole new
generation of young managers
to replace his old partners.
They're tough.
They're lawyers.
They're accountants.
If we don't move
against them, then we'll
have a country within a country.
-What about the New York mob?
-That's a separate
investigation.
We want you to head the
Chicago and Las Vegas
investigation,
Lieutenant Torello.
Your MCU staff,
they'll be temporarily
reassigned to the strike force.
-Why me?
-You come highly recommended
within the bureau.
Special Agent Stan.
And in this new
generation of young Turks,
Ray Luca's the dominant one.
Now pal, you know Ray
Luca better than anyone.
So I want you to
follow him to Vegas,
then take him and his
organization down.
-Just how am I
supposed to do that?
-You'll lead the
investigation that
builds the case
with the attorneys.
-Yeah, well, I
don't work too well
withing bureaucracies,
Mr. Hallahan.
-The only limit on you
is going to be the law.
LT.
MIKE TORELLO: Why should I?
Why the hell should I?
After just what
I've been through,
you guys are not exactly my
favorite government agency.
As a matter of fact,
I don't even like you.
What attorneys would
I be working with?
-Backing you up is IRS,
Customs, Treasury, you name it.
DAVID ABRAMS: Hello, Mike.
I'm the Justice
Department attorney
you'll be working with.
-Is Breitel involved in this?
-Well, that would be
difficult, because he's
just been reassigned
to Anchorage.
-You're not, uh, one
of those dilettantes,
are you, Mr. Hallahan?
-What's that mean?
-Are you going to evaporate
halfway through this?
-No, I'm not.
Are you?
-What does that mean?
-That means you have to
watch Ray Luca rise to power.
The more powerful
he gets, the more
burned you're going to become.
But you can't take Luca
down until you take
his whole organization with him.
Can you go that distance?
-They haven't
invented the distance
I can't go to get Luca.
AAG PATRICK HALLAHAN:
Then what's your answer?
-When do I leave?
[music - del shannon, "runaway"]
on "Crime Story."
DAVID ABRAMS: And the
cop's your witness.
Wake up.
You saying Bozo's
alive, they expect that.
But you and a clean
cop say it, they'll
laugh the prosecution
out of court.
I gave you free legal advice.
A hypothetical case.
I said put up a cop
as a defense witness.
You didn't tell me the
cop was Mike Torello
and you were the case.
-You gave me good advice
like a good defense attorney.
The only difference was
you didn't take any cash.
Hey, maybe now you'll
take some money, huh?
-Mike, you'll get out of this.
Whole department's behind you.
Breitel doesn't have a chance.
-Yeah.
Well, this isn't
from Breitel, Danny.
-Oh, man.
He's been subpoenaed
as a defense witness.
For Ray Luca.
-David Abrams' gonna
be a state's attorney.
-So what?
-So sooner or later, he's
gonna come after me, all right?
So we're going take him out now.
-Hey, Dad.
Where you going?
-You got no cream cheese.
I'll be right back.
[explosion]
NARRATOR: This week,
on "Crime Story."
[car approaching]
[car doors closing]
-I'm sorry, David.
-You got anything?
-No, nothing.
We'll drop you off.
[music - del shannon, "runaway"]
[music playing]
US ATTY.
HARRY BREITEL: Mr. Holman,
do you know Ray Luca?
-Yeah, I know Ray.
US ATTY.
HARRY BREITEL:
Would you describe
your relationship with Mr. Luca?
-What?
US ATTY.
HARRY BREITEL: Were you and
Mr. Luca bowling partners?
Scoutmasters?
What was your
involvement with him?
-We put down scores.
-Would you please tell
the jury what you mean
when you say you
put down scores?
-Um, we stole stuff.
-Together?
-Yeah.
We went out together, but we
didn't have no relationship.
[laughter]
US ATTY.
HARRY BREITEL:
What did you steal?
-Uh, jewelry, mostly.
That kind of stuff.
-For whom?
-Yeah, Mr. Bartoli.
-Did you ever steal
for anyone else?
-Yeah.
I gave a bunch of
stuff to Mike Torello.
EVERETT STEELE:
Lieutenant Torello,
let's review the facts,
the circumstances
of your contact with Mr. Holman.
What led to your
first confrontation?
-Detective Indelli and
I staked out his place.
He came out, and
we followed him.
He saw us, and he tossed
something out of his car.
This aroused our suspicions,
so we pulled him over.
-And what had he
thrown from his car?
-Tools of the burglar's trade.
Black leather kit containing
screwdrivers and lock picks.
EVERETT STEELE: What
happened next, Lieutenant?
LT.
MIKE TORELLO: We questioned him.
I wanted to establish a
relationship with Holman
so that he would come to
me when he was pressured.
At the same time,
we were tightening
the screws on Phil Bartoli.
EVERETT STEELE: Any
money pass from his hands
to yours at this time?
-I gave him a phony name,
Sergeant Ralph Collins.
He offered me $200 lunch money.
I wanted him to think I
was bought, so I took it.
-And what did you
do with the $200?
-I gave it to the family fund
of a fellow police officer that
was killed in the line of
duty, Detective Wes Connelly.
-Have you ever taken a bribe?
-Never in my life.
-Frank Holman says he gave
you $15,000 worth of jewelry
after that first meeting.
-He's lying.
I never saw him again
until St. Louis.
-What happened in St.
Louis, Lieutenant?
-We arrested him while
working with Sheriff Grady.
-I understand you
actually caught
Holman in the middle
of a burglary.
LT.
MIKE TORELLO: That's correct.
EVERETT STEELE: And then?
-Holman told Grady that he
was going to blow the whistle
on organized crime in St. Louis.
-[chuckles]
-So Grady let him out
on his own recognizance.
-And what did Holman do?
-He was out of St.
Louis like a shot.
-Well, I don't understand.
If he had so much to
trade, why did he run?
-Objection, Your Honor.
Defense is leading the witness.
-Sustained.
-Do you think he had anything
to trade, Lieutenant?
-Holman is strictly small-time.
The only thing he
knows about St. Louis
is what he reads
in the newspaper.
It's a crapshoot that
every two-bit hood
tries when he gets packaged.
Give me a break, and
I'll give you the boss.
-Or a dirty cop.
-Yes.
EVERETT STEELE: Lieutenant,
Holman claims he gave you
$10,000 in cash, taken from
that St. Louis burglary.
-That's another lie.
The minute we came
out of Ganz's house,
I had him spread-eagled
on the trunk of his car.
Grady can testify to that.
-And finally, Lieutenant, where
did you next see Mr. Holman?
LT.
MIKE TORELLO (VOICEOVER):
We tracked him
down to a diner
in Gary, Indiana.
By this time, I had
fugitive warrants
for murder and armed robbery.
Holman was operating the diner
under my name, Michael Torello.
-And where did you take him?
LT.
MIKE TORELLO
(VOICEOVER): Straight
to the US Attorney's
Office in Gary, Indiana.
EVERETT STEELE (VOICEOVER):
And what happened to Holman?
LT.
MIKE TORELLO (VOICEOVER):
He was grabbed by Breitel
and brought to Chicago.
Holman then convinced Breitel
that he'd blow the whistle
on organized crime
in Chicago, that he
would name names, the works.
EVERETT STEELE:
Lieutenant, Holman
claims that he's
given you over $50,000
worth of jewelry over
the past few months.
Now has he ever
given you a thing?
-Only a headache.
[laughter]
The man is a born liar.
EVERETT STEELE: No further
questions, Your Honor.
-You may step down, Lieutenant.
-Thank you.
What are you doing here?
-So, how's it going?
-So far, so good.
-It's gonna be a bitch tomorrow.
I'll be all right.
-Is that so?
You know, Breitel's
not a complete idiot.
What do you think
he's doing tonight?
I think he's going
over the court record.
I think he's going over
every word you said,
and I think if there any
holes in your testimony,
he'll find them.
I also think if there are
no holes in your testimony,
he'll punch a couple.
He's a weasel.
He's got teeth, Mike.
If you're not ready for
him, he'll eat you alive.
Breitel thinks that you would
sell your mother to a colony
of perverted lepers
for two bits.
Your mother.
You're into the Outfit
up to your neck.
-I don't have any
Outfit connection.
DAVID ABRAMS: You were
there to get the book
and send it on to Ganz.
Weren't you?
Weren't you?
-I don't have any
Outfit connections.
-You are not connected with
the Outfit, you're telling me?
Then tell me, why
are you testifying
for Ray Luca and
Phil Bartoli, huh?
-I think you're
out of line, and I
don't have to listen
to this crap from you.
-You're out of order.
You sit down and shut up,
and you answer my questions.
Lieutenant, why did you
use the name Ralph Collins
when you first, uh,
confronted Holman?
-Why?
-It's a common practice
for police officers
to use a phony
name with a suspect
in the early stages
of an investigation.
US ATTY.
HARRY BREITEL: Mhm.
Isn't it common practice for an
officer to use a pseudonym when
he's preparing to hit
on a suspect for money?
-Objection.
-Sustained.
-On your first confrontation
with Frank Holman,
you searched his car without
a warrant or probable cause,
didn't you?
-We asked his permission,
and he gave it.
-That's not what Holman says.
-Well, he wouldn't say that,
because it's the truth.
-Oh, you were pressuring
Holman, weren't you?
-Well, pressure works
with habitual criminals.
It forces them to make mistakes.
-You took over $200
from him, didn't you?
-Well, that's not true, either.
Holman is the liar.
-Hm.
Lieutenant Torello,
yesterday you
called Frank Holman small-time.
"All he knows about St. Louis
is what he reads in the papers.
It's a crapshoot
every two-bit hood
tries to do when
he gets pinched.
Quote, give me a break, and
I'll give you the boss."
Does that accurately reflect
your feeling about Mr. Holman?
LT.
MIKE TORELLO: Yes, it does.
--[sighs heavily]
Lieutenant, why did you
strike your prisoner
in St. Louis?
-He insulted me.
-What was the insult?
-I didn't take notes.
I don't remember.
-Hm.
Huh.
According to Sheriff Grady,
Holman said something like,
"I didn't know mooches
doubled for cops, Torello."
Does that sound like it?
-I don't remember.
-But you attacked him then.
-Yes, I did.
-Hm.
Sheriff Grady called it-- mm,
right here. "Police brutality."
-Oh, I'd call it self defense.
-So you're calling the
sheriff from St. Louis a liar.
-I'm calling it a matter
of interpretation.
-That's not the way Holman
and Sheriff Grady see it.
-Holman would, because
he's a born liar.
-So everyone's a
liar but you, right?
According to Holman,
Lieutenant Torello
was "trying to stack
the deck against me
in order to cover his actions."
-What actions?
US ATTY.
HARRY BREITEL: Why don't
you tell us, Lieutenant?
-Because there is no action.
Because there's nothing to tell.
-Yes, there is.
Tell us about Ted Kehoe.
-What about him?
US ATTY.
HARRY BREITEL: He
was your friend.
-Yes, he was my friend.
US ATTY.
HARRY BREITEL: And
you grew up together.
You fought in Korea
together, correct?
-That's right.
-He was your roommate?
-For a time.
-Until he died.
Lieutenant, were you
aware that Ted Kehoe
was under investigation by the
FBI for his mob connections?
-Objection, Your Honor.
-Overruled.
Counsel, this could be
very germane to the issue
of witness reliability.
Continue.
-Answer the
question, Lieutenant.
-Yes, I knew.
-Did you know that the
Department of Justice
was going to indict Ray Luca
and Phil Bartoli for a money
laundering scheme that
Ted Kehoe, your friend
and roommate, was involved in?
LT.
MIKE TORELLO: Yes, I did.
-Kehoe's girlfriend,
Marilyn Stewart,
informed the United
States Attorney's Office
that she was aware
of this scheme.
You knew her too, didn't you?
-Only in passing.
-She also reported to us
that you were harassing her.
Is that true, Lieutenant?
-No, it's not true.
-Ah.
So Marilyn Stewart
is another liar.
When was the last time
you saw her, Lieutenant?
-The last time I saw Marilyn
Stewart, she was dead.
We dragged her out of the river.
-And you wouldn't let a
United States Attorney, me,
into the scene of the crime.
-I wouldn't let you in because
you had no jurisdiction there,
and you were being disruptive.
US ATTY.
HARRY BREITEL: What are
you trying to hide from me,
Lieutenant.
-(SHOUTING) Nothing!
-Nothing?
Nothing.
Were you living with Ted
Kehoe when someone threw him
out of his window to his death?
-Everybody involved in that
investigation was murdered,
and you know it.
-(SHOUTING) Yes, I do!
And I also know the
central character
that links all these
people together.
Michael Torello!
Do you expect us to believe
that everything somebody says
that you don't agree with
is a lie when your best
friend, your roommate,
is up to his eyeballs
in criminal charges?
-(SHOUTING) No!
-Come on, Lieutenant.
Do you expect us to believe
that if you had nothing
to do with the deaths of Ted
Kehoe and Marilyn Stewart?
-You know what you are, Breitel?
You're a cheap, dirty,
filthy little son-of-a--
-Lieutenant Torello.
-I object.
-(SHOUTING) I object!
This witness connected Ted Kehoe
to a lucrative business scheme
with his organized
crime contact,
and then tried to
help him when he got
into trouble because
of his girlfriend.
And when Torello
couldn't help, he
had knowledge of or
complicity in her death,
and eventually in the
death of Ted Kehoe!
-Mr. Breitel.
-I withdraw the
question, Your Honor.
Violence is commonplace in your
world, isn't it, Lieutenant?
DAVID ABRAMS: Objection.
JUDGE ARCHIBALD
FLYNN: Sustained.
-No more questions, Your Honor.
-Mike's gonna need all
the help he can get.
-What the hell can we do?
-What did he do
with all his stuff
after he moved out of
the apartment with Julie?
-He put in storage, didn't he?
-No, no, no, his personal stuff.
-Oh, I saw him put a
box in the bottom drawer
of his file cabinet.
-Let's go.
-Breitel.
Guy murdered Torello
on the stand today.
I'm getting worried, Manny.
-Steele's a good man, Ray.
He'll find you a
way out of this.
-Yeah, but look, the trial's
not our only problem.
Tranchita's moving
ahead, full steam.
-He continues to violate
my prohibition on drugs?
RAY LUCA (ON PHONE)::
Yeah, with a vengeance.
-How do you know?
You have proof?
-Proof positive.
The guy who was going to be
his partner has been, uh,
been hanging around here lately.
And he decided to
tell us all about it.
-I'll come up to
Chicago this weekend.
Have Max get word
out to the families.
A major council.
We're going to negotiate.
-Manny, look, with
all due respect,
I honestly don't think that's
going to work with Tranchita.
-There are many ways
to negotiate, Ray.
Good night.
-Good night.
[dial tone]
-Well, you heard what he said.
Wants to set up a council
to negotiate with Tranchita.
I admire Manny,
but, uh, I've never
been any good at negotiating.
-Ray, you don't have to
worry about negotiating.
That's what I'm here for.
-That's why we're going
to make a great team.
All three of us.
[laughter]
-What am I, an orphan?
[laughter]
-And Pauli, too.
Come on.
Let's go get something to eat.
-So, Manny wants to
call a council, huh?
Seems to me, Manny wants
a lot of things lately.
Including, maybe, Chicago?
-I can assure you that's
not the case, Mr. Tranchita.
-You can assure me?
-Listen, Manny wants Las Vegas.
You want the heroin trade.
Cut me a small piece of
your action, Mr. Tranchita,
and I'll do my best to
talk Manny into turning
a blind eye to the heroin trade.
Can't do it in
public, of course.
I'll have to arrange
a private meeting.
But if you do it
this way, you won't
have to share with
anyone else in Chicago.
-Can you deliver?
-I'm almost certain.
-You're making a side deal
against Manny Weisbord?
-Manny's an old man.
Who knows how long he's
going to be around?
-All right.
You make good, you'll get 5%.
-10.
-8.
-So we can expect to
see you at the Lakeshore
Club, Mr. Tranchita?
-Dominic.
You call me Dominic.
BYSTANDER: [whistles] Taxi!
-Mike.
Mike.
-What's up?
-You are.
Redirect testimony.
Talked to Steele last night.
Breitel did you some damage.
We're going to put
you back on the stand.
-We?
-Steele's agreed to allow
me to handle the redirect.
-Oh, look, David, I got beat
up pretty good up there.
What the hell you
want me to say?
-I want you to trust me.
Follow my lead.
-Defense requests
permission for David Abrams
to take over the
direct testimony.
-Mr. Abrams.
DAVID ABRAMS: Your
Honor, I've recently
worked as a public defender
for the State of Illinois.
I received my law degree--
-I know your
credentials, Mr. Abrams.
You may proceed.
-Thank you.
Lieutenant Torello, what
single criminal in Chicago
has your unit been working on
over the past, say, six months?
-Ray Luca.
DAVID ABRAMS: You have
any personal feelings
toward Ray Luca?
-I think he's a smart
and dangerous animal
who has no regard
for human life.
I also think he's sick and that
he's the scum of the Earth.
DAVID ABRAMS: Then
tell me, Lieutenant,
why are you testifying
in his defense?
-Because Luca's defense
attorney subpoenaed me here.
And he's smart enough
to know how dumb it is
for the prosecution to
believe Frank Holman about me.
-I object, Your Honor.
-Uh, strike the word
"dumb" from the record.
[laughter]
Continue, Counsel.
-Lieutenant Torello,
you're really not here
to defend Ray Luca
at all, are you?
-Absolutely not.
-Would it be fair to say
that the reason you're here
is because Luca's defense
understands that you are
the best one to prove
the worthlessness
and the utter unreliability
of Frank Holman's testimony?
LT.
MIKE TORELLO: That's right.
-And if Frank Holman's
testimony is proven worthless,
then so is the government's
case against Bartoli and Luca.
-That's exactly right.
DAVID ABRAMS:
Lieutenant, tell us,
what's happened to your
department's case against Luca?
-It's mostly ruined.
-By what?
-By this proceedings,
brought on by Mr. Breitel.
-Is that so?
Lieutenant Torello?
Does this belong to you?
-Yes, it does.
-Would you identify them
for the court, please?
-Bronze Star and a Purple Heart.
DAVID ABRAMS: You
were wounded in combat
and decorated for heroism
serving your country in Korea.
Is that right?
-That's right.
-I believe that Frank Holman
was serving his country
in Juvenile Hall at this time.
[laughter]
Lieutenant Torello,
what are these?
-Commendations from the
Chicago Police Department.
-These are four
commendations for bravery.
He received top marks in every
civil service exam that led him
from uniformed cop to detective,
to sergeant, to lieutenant.
There are commendations
from the mayor's office.
There's a commendation from
the governor himself in there.
And Lieutenant Torello's
Major Crime Unit
has the finest arrest-conviction
record on the force.
Now, Lieutenant
Torello, Ted Kehoe.
When you learned that Ted
Kehoe was tied in with Luca
and Bartoli, what
was your reaction?
LT.
MIKE TORELLO
(VOICEOVER): I was angry.
I encouraged him to
get out and become
a witness for the prosecution.
DAVID ABRAMS
(VOICEOVER): And what
was Kehoe's response to that?
LT.
MIKE TORELLO
(VOICEOVER): He refused.
DAVID ABRAMS (VOICEOVER): Why?
-Because he thought
he was smart.
-In fact, he was
stupid, wasn't he?
Can you tell me,
Lieutenant, can you
tell me who killed Ted Kehoe?
-I don't know for sure.
DAVID ABRAMS: Lieutenant, I'm
going to have to bring you back
to an event I'm sure
you'd rather forget,
the Novak murder.
In that case, it wasn't just
the killing that got to you,
was it?
LT.
MIKE TORELLO (VOICEOVER):
It's never just the killing.
Gone is gone.
Novak is not a soldier.
This is not his war,
yet he was forced
to watch the woman he loved die.
It's watching the
living, their struggle
against madness and loneliness.
That's what get to you.
DAVID ABRAMS (VOICEOVER):
You and Novak became friends.
LT.
MIKE TORELLO (VOICEOVER): Yes.
DAVID ABRAMS (VOICEOVER): And
so finding his wife's killer
took on an emotional
motivation for you?
-Yes.
DAVID ABRAMS: And Frank Holman,
an accomplice to that crime,
did he then go to the
top of your personal,
you personal most-wanted list?
-Second from the top.
DAVID ABRAMS: Who
was at the top?
-Ray Luca.
DAVID ABRAMS:
Lieutenant Torello,
what happened between
you and Frank Holman?
LT.
MIKE TORELLO: I wanted him.
We went after him,
and we got him.
DAVID ABRAMS: Did you
do it for personal gain?
-No.
-Are you a seasoned
professional, motivated
by an understandable outrage?
-Yes, I am.
DAVID ABRAMS: And when
you captured Frank Holman,
what did he ultimately face?
-The electric chair.
US ATTY.
HARRY BREITEL: Objection.
-Sustained.
DAVID ABRAMS: I'll
rephrase that question.
What would Frank
Holman ultimately face,
if convicted of the
crimes for which you
held a warrant for his arrest?
-The electric chair.
DAVID ABRAMS: And so when you
finally captured Frank Holman,
his only defense was to lie.
-Objection!
-At the expense of
a very fine lawman.
JUDGE ARCHIBALD
FLYNN: Sustained.
-You take Frank
Holman and you stand
him next to Lieutenant
Mike Torello.
Who would you believe?
-Objection, Your Honor.
These aren't questions!
JUDGE ARCHIBALD
FLYNN: Sustained!
-I have no further
questions, Your Honor.
[phone buzzes]
-What?
RECEPTIONIST (ON PHONE):
Somebody to see you, Chief.
-I told you not to bother
me unless the bulls were
stampeding from the stockyards.
I gotta think.
RECEPTIONIST (ON PHONE):
The bulls are stampeding.
I got an Assistant
Attorney General out here
with the name of Drew Belzer.
-Send him in.
-Hello, Chief Kramer.
I'm Drew--
-I know who you are.
Sit down.
What do you want?
-I saw Lieutenant Michael
Torello in court today.
-Stand up.
-What?
-Stand up.
You're not gonna want to
take this sitting down.
-Look, Chief, I
think you'd better--
-Everybody in the
Justice Department
wants a piece of
Michael Torello.
What is this, open
season on the guy?
Don't you chumps know
what he means to Chicago?
He's from the Patch one of the
toughest neighborhoods going,
and the man is incorruptible.
He's got courage.
He's got compassion.
He cares about
this city, damn it!
The only thing standing between
the Outfit and City Hall
is Michael Torello's unit.
Do you read me?
-Yeah.
But there's someone else he's
going to have to talk to.
-Lieutenant Torello knows
Frank Holman is a liar.
And by now, ladies and
gentlemen, so do you.
Therefore, it is your duty
to demand the acquittal
of the accused, Ray Luca,
Philip Bartoli, Paul Taglia--
US ATTY.
HARRY BREITEL: He's a product
of the Patch, the Chicago
neighborhood that
has given us most
of our organized crime bosses.
Michael Torello
is the unreliable
witness here in this courtroom.
That is why I am asking you
to disregard his testimony
and deliver a verdict of
guilty as charged to Ray
Luca, Philip Bartoli,
and Paul Taglia.
BAILIFF: Will the
defendants please rise?
-(CRISPLY) Pauli
Taglia, acquittal.
[gasps from audience]
Philip Bartoli, acquittal.
[courtroom murmurs]
Ray Luca, acquittal.
You're dismissed.
-Mr. Bartoli, Mr.
Bartoli, do you
have a comment at this time?
-Not here.
Outside, please.
-What?
-I said we're dropping
the case against Torello.
-You can't be serious.
-I don't want to hear it.
You blew it.
-I can nail these guys.
-No, you-- you got no
chance to nail them.
-Just give me one appeal.
I can nail them!
-Hey!
Listen, you got questions--
-I put a lot of time into this.
-Listen to me.
You call Washington.
-They farming you out, Breitel?
-They dropped your case.
But you'll get buried yet.
Garbage always does.
-Let me tell you
something, smart guy.
I may have one against you
today, but I lost against them.
They got acquitted.
But you, you've got blood
all over your hands.
Every drop of blood that
Ray Luca spills between now
and when I eventually get him
is gonna be on your hands.
Do you understand?
Yours.
Not mine.
[all shouting and laughing]
-Hey, Gordon!
[cheering and laughing]
Go, Joey!
Go, Joey!
Do it, Joey!
Go, go, go!
[laughter]
[thud]
[laughter]
-Michael!
-Michael!
[cheering and applause]
-How low can you go?
-All right, all right.
-Huh?
-All right.
OK.
All right.
All right, all right. (SLURRING
SLIGHTLY) All right, I want you
to know, first of all, that I
have won the limbo contest, OK?
-Oh!
-All right, all right.
Now I'm going to show
you how I did it.
All right?
-All right!
Go.
-Raise the bar.
[laughter]
-Hey, Chief!
How are you?
Thirsty?
-Hey, Chief.
Hey, Mike!
Why don't you take tomorrow off?
You really deserve it, Mike.
-That's a good idea.
-Why don't you slow down
a little, Lieutenant?
-What for?
I got the day off
tomorrow, right?
[laughter]
-Just be sober by 5:00 PM.
It's the Drake Hotel.
Just be there.
It's important.
-We don't care about
running hotels.
They gotta operate
straight up and down.
Hookers and the
bars are freelance.
We throw out the slugs.
Our main action in each joint
is only the casino operation,
where we run a cash skim.
Other than that, we keep
our act as clean as possible
so we don't attract any
unnecessary city, state,
or federal heat to ourselves.
-And with this new 707 jet
airplane, Vegas is gonna boom.
O'Hare is the airport
hub of this country,
and most of the gamblers,
they fly right out of here.
You might say that Vegas is
just an extension of Chicago.
Now Steve Kordo has
something to say.
-OK, we have a 10-year plan.
If we handle Las
Vegas correctly,
we can legitimize our
entire operation by 1973.
We're choosing directors who
are as clean as a baby's bottom
to run the domestic
corporations.
And we're setting up
our offshore holdings
in such a complex
way, it'll take
five federal administrations
to unravel it.
-Five administrations.
20 years?
-By 1983, your children
will be living in Malibu.
[laughter]
Their only connection
to what we do here today
will be their stock
portfolios or the companies
in the New York Board.
[laughter]
-What do you want from us?
-We want Chicago's support
and $10 million, Dominic.
-No, Manny.
I still like the
ghetto drug business.
Big money, right now.
-Gentlemen, we take
a little break.
Good.
-Good?
We're nowhere.
-Now I go to Tranchita and I
give him his deal on the drugs.
Where is he?
-He's in the men's room, Mr.
Weisbord, waiting for you.
-What?
I don't understand.
-Once again, I see why Manny
is who is and what he is.
He knows when to take
a five-minute break.
'Cause you go to relieve
yourself a little,
your attitude brightens.
I think maybe Manny, as
always, makes a lot of sense,
even to a hot-headed
Siciliano like me, huh?
[laughter]
So, I say we raise
a drink to Manny,
and we take a vote in favor
of this big move to Vegas.
[applause]
-Hey, boss, should I
pack my bags for Vegas?
-Yeah, Cori and the
kids are already there.
-When we leaving?
-Tonight.
We'll go tonight.
We'll say our goodbyes
on the way out of town.
[applause]
[elevator muzak playing]
[elevator dings]
How you doing, Dominic?
Thought I'd say goodbye
on my way to Vegas.
DOMINIC TRANCHITA: We'll
sit by the pool, huh?
I'm cooking up a little supper.
What do you think?
Huh?
[chuckles]
-This is nice.
-I'm still doing the
finishing touches on it, eh?
You want to take a swim?
There's some trunks downstairs.
-No, no, another time.
-Hey, I gotta tell
you, I'm really happy,
the way things worked out.
-Yeah, I'm happy, too.
-Sit down.
Sit down, Ray.
Relax, hm?
You want a glass of wine?
-No, thanks.
-Huh?
No?
OK. [chuckles]
Ain't that a kick?
-Yeah.
We got a good government, huh?
-Want some?
-No, not me.
Uh, I ate before I got here.
-Sure?
RAY LUCA: Yeah.
DOMINIC TRANCHITA: Boy.
RAY LUCA: Dominic,
you know that deal
you worked out with
Manny on the drugs?
-Yeah, Ray, what about it?
-Guess what?
He changed his mind.
Yeah.
Neither you nor anybody else
is gonna be selling drugs.
-What?
-Are you deaf?
Your side deal on the
drugs is canceled.
And Dominic, so are you.
[gunshot]
[gasps]
[gunshot]
-Good, that's good.
-Florence, have you
typed up that report?
-I got the Attorney
General's office
on the phone He wants
to know how to--
[interposing voices]
-I sent it down to him.
-Yeah, the one--
[interposing voices]
-Yes, I sent it down--
-He got a good look at it.
-Listen, Torello--
-Hey, what is this?
What's going on?
What are you doing here?
-Just listen to me.
Just behave yourself,
all right, Michael?
Just behave yourself?
[knock]
-Nice to see you, Ray.
-How you doing, Turk?
[ANNOUNCER NARRATING HORSE RACE
ON TELEVISION]
-Hi, Ray.
-How you doing, Phil?
-All right.
How's Dominic?
-Dominic's fine.
-Good.
Good.
Well, take a look at
this number 9 here.
I think I'm gonna buy it.
-Yeah?
No kidding.
-Yeah.
So, uh, I guess this is, uh, bon
voyage, or whatever they say.
-Yeah, well, that's
why I came by.
PHIL BARTOLI: Yeah?
-To say goodbye.
[gunshot]
[coughs]
[gunshot]
-Bye, Phil.
-Enjoy the house, Turk.
-Thanks, Mr. Luca.
I will.
-Mr. Luca, huh?
It was my pleasure.
-Have a nice time in Vegas.
-I will.
I'll send you a postcard.
[laughter]
We're free and easy, Pauli.
-You got it, Boss.
Goodbye, Chicago!
-And goodbye, Mike Torello.
[laughter]
[phones ringing]
MAN: You Lieutenant Torello?
I'm Patrick Hallahan, Assistant
United States Attorney General.
It's nice to meet you.
We're assembling the first
interdepartmental strike force
against organized crime in
the history of this country.
We've got two teams.
One's US attorneys to
prosecute, the other's
an investigation team
to build the cases.
-Is Chicago the center
for this investigation?
-Nope.
We're only doing
preliminary work here.
Our intelligence says Las
Vegas is the big move.
-Well, sure.
Manny Weisbord and
his organization--
-His national operation as it
operates in Vegas and Chicago
is our target.
Now, he's groomed a whole new
generation of young managers
to replace his old partners.
They're tough.
They're lawyers.
They're accountants.
If we don't move
against them, then we'll
have a country within a country.
-What about the New York mob?
-That's a separate
investigation.
We want you to head the
Chicago and Las Vegas
investigation,
Lieutenant Torello.
Your MCU staff,
they'll be temporarily
reassigned to the strike force.
-Why me?
-You come highly recommended
within the bureau.
Special Agent Stan.
And in this new
generation of young Turks,
Ray Luca's the dominant one.
Now pal, you know Ray
Luca better than anyone.
So I want you to
follow him to Vegas,
then take him and his
organization down.
-Just how am I
supposed to do that?
-You'll lead the
investigation that
builds the case
with the attorneys.
-Yeah, well, I
don't work too well
withing bureaucracies,
Mr. Hallahan.
-The only limit on you
is going to be the law.
LT.
MIKE TORELLO: Why should I?
Why the hell should I?
After just what
I've been through,
you guys are not exactly my
favorite government agency.
As a matter of fact,
I don't even like you.
What attorneys would
I be working with?
-Backing you up is IRS,
Customs, Treasury, you name it.
DAVID ABRAMS: Hello, Mike.
I'm the Justice
Department attorney
you'll be working with.
-Is Breitel involved in this?
-Well, that would be
difficult, because he's
just been reassigned
to Anchorage.
-You're not, uh, one
of those dilettantes,
are you, Mr. Hallahan?
-What's that mean?
-Are you going to evaporate
halfway through this?
-No, I'm not.
Are you?
-What does that mean?
-That means you have to
watch Ray Luca rise to power.
The more powerful
he gets, the more
burned you're going to become.
But you can't take Luca
down until you take
his whole organization with him.
Can you go that distance?
-They haven't
invented the distance
I can't go to get Luca.
AAG PATRICK HALLAHAN:
Then what's your answer?
-When do I leave?
[music - del shannon, "runaway"]