Defending Jacob (2020): Season 1, Episode 6 - Wishful Thinking - full transcript

You know Ben's cell phone? Derek had it.

There's a chance that Derek
gave that phone to the police.

You still believed your son
was innocent of any crime?

Of course.

Do you think Jacob
was trying to harm this other boy?

What if he was?
Then, in a way, isn't this all my fault?

I wanna dig deeper into Leonard Patz.
I wanna see his case file.

-This is why you can't be on social media.
-I know.

-So you're staying off it?
-Yes.

Hello?

Don't call this number again.



Maybe Mom is right.
Maybe I've got the murder gene.

-That's not who you are.
-How do you know?

-He's innocent.
-Yeah, me too.

Must run in the family.

Do you remember the date
you were given access to it?

Andy?

Andy?

Sorry. What was the question?

Need a break?

No, I was just...

No.

Just wanna get this over with.

We were just getting to the cell phone.

Do you remember the date
you were given access to it?



Yeah. It was ten days before the trial.

Hey, Mr. B. I thought that was you.

Hey, Bobby. How you doing?

Not too bad.
Can I get you something off the truck?

No, I'm okay. Just waiting for somebody.

All right. Well...

stay strong for your family, okay?

Hey, Andy. They're ready for us.

-I'll let him know.
-You better

Ignore him. He can moan all he wants.
The judge already ruled on the phone.

Mr. Barber
has every right to be here, Neal.

Well, technically
I could argue that he doesn't

since he's a possible witness in the case,
but I'm letting it slide.

What a mensch.

You're not going in there with us,
if that's what you think was gonna happen.

Of course not.
I already examined the cell phone.

We are well aware.

I was up here for something else
unrelated. I do have other cases.

Goodbye, Neal.

And the next time you want
to conceal evidence from us, don't.

Oh, I've been meaning to ask.

How's your father, Andy?

What did you say?

I asked about your father.

How's he doing?

You know, I knew criminal law
was a passion of yours,

but I had no idea
it was the family business.

-You think this is a joke? Do you?
-Hey. Hey!

-Jesus.
-Come on, Andy!

-Back up. Back up!
-Jesus.

-Fuck.
-Don't lecture me about concealing things.

Just let it go.

Hey.

I will say this.

It explains a lot, Andy, about you,
about your son.

Damn it.

-Detective, are you ready for us?
-Yeah.

-You okay?
-Sorry.

Right this way.

We knew he'd find out sooner or later.
It's fine.

Andy, we're already ahead of it.

That's the passcode his parents provided.

-Take all the time you need.
-Thank you, Detective.

-Sorry to keep you.
-That's okay.

Hey.

-Same time next week?
-Actually, today was our last session.

I didn't realize. So then--

So then you and Andy are scheduled
to meet me with Joanna

at the end of next week,
the 17th, I believe.

We can go over everything then.

-The 17th?
-That okay?

Yeah, no, it's just...

that's Jacob's birthday.

Well, if you want, we can just--

No, it's fine.

He has his tutor that day, actually, so...

We'll see you then.

-Ready?
-Yeah.

He's probably a little talked out.

-I'll see you next week.
-Right.

Take care, Jacob. Happy early birthday.

Bye.

You're quiet.

How was your session?

-It was fine. Annoying.
-Annoying?

She just asks me the same questions
every week, or different versions of them.

And when I call her out on it,
she just tries to play dumb,

like she didn't realize
she already asked me.

She's only trying to help us.

If you say so.

Who's that?

Jacob, I asked you who you were texting.

Nobody. Dylan.

Dylan Stone?

He's at a sleepaway camp.

This kid doesn't believe he knows me,
so he's trying to prove it.

How's Sarah?
I haven't heard her name in a while.

It's good for you to have someone
your own age to talk to.

We're not talking, so...

-Is that your doing, or--
-Mom, don't. Please.

Thanks.

Anything?

About how many hours would you say

you and Ms. Klein spent
with Ben Rifkin's cell phone?

-I don't know. Maybe five hours.
-Five hours?

So you went through every e-mail,
every text, every photo and video?

-Yeah. Everything.
-Looking for what, exactly?

Answers.

The answers you were looking for,
they weren't on that phone, were they?

-Thanks, Detective.
-Yeah. You got it.

It's my office. Can you give me a minute?

Yeah.

Hi. We're just finishing up.

Hey.

Hey.

Listen, I just want you to know, I think
it was fucked up, what Logiudice did.

Nah. He was being a lawyer.

If I was in his place,
I'd probably try to bury the phone too.

No, I think you would have
thought about it,

but you would have done the right thing.

That's not what I was referring to though.

You mean what he said about my father.

Everybody knows, huh?

Started going around yesterday.
You know how people talk around here.

What have you heard?

That he's serving life at Northern
for rape and murder one.

He went in when I was a kid.

I take it Laurie knows?

She does now. Jacob too.

I have a brother.

I told you about him.

Yeah.

So I know what that's like,
carrying something like that around.

Listen, my hands are mostly tied
on this case, but, you know...

if you need any more of my help,
you know how to reach me.

-Thank you.
-Don't underestimate him.

He sounds real sure he's gonna win.
Too sure.

-Shall we go?
-Let's go.

Thanks, Duff.

That was my assistant Ellen.
She has a niece Jacob's age.

They live in Needham, but you know how
all the kids know each other these days.

It seems Jacob
has been going online again.

Jacob!

-Where's Jake?
-Upstairs.

-How did it go with the phone?
-It was a bust.

Jacob!

Are you Jay Kobbs?

-Answer me, damn it!
-Andy.

-It's not that big of a deal.
-Don't tell me what's not a big deal!

Show your mother.
Show her what you've been up to.

Shit. Jacob!

It's just a dumb joke.

Do you have any idea what this looks like?
Joking about being a murder suspect?

It's not like anyone even knows who it is.

Everybody knows! How do you think I know?

Andy, calm down.

This is damaging. This is evidence,

and you're either too stupid
or too arrogant to know the difference.

-I'm not stupid.
-Then what's wrong with you?

Nothing. You're making
too big of a deal out of this.

Do you have any idea
what they're gonna do with this picture?

They're gonna wave it around
in front of the jury,

and they're gonna say
it shows consciousness of guilt.

That's the phrase they're gonna use.

They're gonna say this is
how Jacob Barber sees himself, a psycho.

And they're gonna use that word
over and over again.

Andy, enough.

Jesus Christ.

Do you know what's at stake? Do you
realize what they want to do to you?

Stop it already. You're scaring him.

Good! He should be scared! I'm scared!

It was just a joke. I can delete it.

That doesn't mean it goes away.

Okay. I'm sorry.

You can't do things like this, Jake.
You just can't.

I said I'm sorry.

I think he should delete it anyway.

You're goddamn right he's gonna delete it.
He's gonna delete it right now.

This can't happen again.

I need to know you understand that.

I do. There. It's gone.

I'm sorry I yelled.

I shouldn't have lost my temper. I just...

I'm trying to look out for you, buddy.
You gotta understand that.

Just leave me alone.

-Jake.
-Please.

Okay.

Okay, so go.

There's nothing wrong with me.

I know exactly
what they're gonna do to me.

I don't need you to tell me that.

An unexpected twist tonight
in the Jacob Barber case.

We have confirmed that the Newton,
Massachusetts teenager is the grandson

of William Barber, a man who earned
the nickname "Bloody Billy"...

Looking good there, Billy Boy!

...after he was convicted of raping
and killing a young Connecticut woman.

He is now serving
a life sentence for those crimes.

Presently awaiting trial,
the younger Barber

is accused of murdering his classmate
Benjamin Rifkin in Cold Spring Park.

Will there be
a family reunion behind bars?

This entire case
has been remarkable from the outset.

You'll recall that the accused's father,
Andrew Barber,

was in fact
the assistant district attorney

initially in charge
of the Rifkin murder investigation,

an investigation that ended
with the arrest of Mr. Barber's own son.

Are you gonna take the garbage out,
or should I?

It's everywhere.

It is what it is.

Have you noticed an old blue car
on the block recently? A Lincoln?

No. I don't think so.

Why? Who is it?

I don't know. I saw him idling in front of
the MacGreeveys' house the other day.

Now he's in front of the Parsons'.

Where?

It's gone.

It's probably nothing. It's okay.

Look, I don't know who this is,
but if you keep calling this number--

Who?

Oh, right, right. Yeah, yeah, yeah,
of course I remember.

When?

Okay.

All right. I'll find it.

Hey.

What's going on?

Look, I'm sorry I called you so late.
It's just--

Yeah, that's okay. It's okay. What's up?

Matt.

You said you had something to tell me.

I do. It's just...

Wait. Are you the one
who's been coming to my house?

What?

Nothing. Nothing. Forget it. Go.

I wasn't gonna say anything,
'cause, I mean, what's it my business?

But I can't fucking sleep.
It's, like, on me--

Matt, I have no idea
what you're talking about.

Your kid...

he didn't do it.

Tell me about Leonard Patz.
Where did you meet him?

I was at C&M. You know, the pizza place.

When was this?

About a year ago. Last summer.

So you were 15 at the time?

Yeah.

This morning is the first I heard
about any of this.

I understand. Please continue.

Anyway, Patz comes up to me
and asked if I wanted something to eat.

He said he'd buy me whatever I wanted
if I'd sit with him,

'cause he hated eating alone.

So I said fine.
What do I care? It's free food.

Hey.

What's up?

Do you need a quarter to play again?

So we're eating, and he's trying
to sound like some tough guy

to impress me or whatever, you know,

and I'm playing along, letting him think
I can't tell what a loser he is.

And after a while, he starts talking
about his sweet apartment,

and how he's got all this beer there, and
if I wanna go back and hang out with him.

-And did you?
-Hell, no. I knew what he wanted.

I told him straight up
I wasn't going anywhere with him...

but maybe if he had some money,
we could work something out.

So, he says he'll give me 50 bucks
if he can touch me over my pants.

So, I told him
I'd let him do it for a hundred.

-And he agreed?
-Yeah, like, right away.

So, after that we'd meet up here and there
whenever he had some cash,

do the same thing, just different places.

He never tried for more?

One time he asked if he could
reach his hand down my pants,

but I told him I'd break his fucking arm.

-How'd he react?
-He backed off quick.

And these meetups,
how many were there in total?

I don't know, six. Maybe seven.

Including the one at the library?

Yeah, that was the last time.

Leonard said
he didn't wanna pay me anymore.

I told him if he didn't,
I'd report him, so I did.

I'm sorry. I don't see
how this relates to our case.

Well, you see, that was
his whole reason for dropping me.

He said there was this new kid
he was into, some kid named Ben.

Just Ben, or did he give a last name?

No, but I know it was the same kid
'cause of the park.

That's where Leonard met him.

So you're saying Patz knew Ben Rifkin?

I don't think he actually knew him.

But he spoke to him a couple times.
Mostly just watched him.

Did he say anything else about Ben?

Just that he was "beautiful."

He used that word.

That's all?

Yeah.

Oh, shit, wait. He also had a knife.

I only saw it once,
but he carried it around sometimes,

you know, in case someone gives him shit.

Anyway, he tried to give it to me
for money one time

and I told him to fuck off.

What did it look like?

A knife, you know?
With those little teeth on the side of it.

It was kind of badass, actually.

Why did it take you this long
to come forward?

Well, I mean,
I got kind of a record, you know,

with the whole possession charge,
and I lied about the whole library thing.

I just kind of wanted to stay out of it,
you know what I mean?

But... I heard that his kid
was getting blamed for it

-and I just kept thinking about--
-Wait a second.

Did Mr. Barber compel you to come forward?

Compel me?

Did you feel pressured in any way
by Mr. Barber?

He called me with this.

Please let him answer, Andy.

No, I mean, he came to me first.

I mean, I didn't tell him anything,

and so I guess, I don't know,
it was a little bit of both.

Yes or no?
Were you coached in any way by Mr. Barber?

No, what I told you is the truth.
I got no reason to lie.

Really? 'Cause you've made it pretty clear
that you'd do a lot of things for money.

-Oh, that's outrageous.
-The fuck?

-That's my kid you're talking about.
-Neal.

-Can I go now?
-Thank you for coming in.

I'm sure this wasn't easy.

Detective Duffy will take down
your information

in case we need to talk with you again.

I don't know what to make
of that boy's story

or how you came to hear of it.

I don't believe a word of it.

It's too convenient.

I can't believe we're entertaining this.

We'll write up a search warrant
for Patz's home.

See if we can turn up a knife.

Thank you.

-This good enough?
-Let me see.

The pants are too short.

The arms too. Shit.

It's a trial, not a fashion show.

I just want you to look your best, okay?

Let people see how handsome you are.
These things are important.

-Hello?
-We're in here.

His suit needs altering again.

Only if there's a trial.

What do you mean?

Lynn approved a search of Patz's house.

-So, they think it's him?
-Well, no. Not yet.

Obviously if they find the knife,
that changes everything,

but at least this puts him
back on the radar.

-Well, that's something, right?
-Yeah.

I know it's him. I know it is.

Sorry, guys.

You go change, honey.

Hello.

There he is.

How'd you get this number?

-Your wife gave it to me.
-Bullshit.

No.

We got our own...

you know, we call it economy in here.

Believe me, there's tougher things to get
than a phone number.

Well, you wasted your money.

Hey, don't hang up. Come on.

I did what you asked, didn't I?

She's a real doll, your wife.

-I mean, even better-looking in person.
-Don't.

What? It's a compliment.

She's my daughter-in-law. Jesus.

What kind of a sick fuck you think I am?

I know exactly what kind.

Look, I appreciate your helping us.

Yeah, well, it's all right.

You see, that was on the news
the other day, how you're my kid.

Yeah, I saw.

I want you to know, I had nothing to do
with that. I said nothing to nobody.

These things get out.

Yeah, these reporters.
They're real fucking vultures, right?

Is this why you called?

Yeah.

I mean, yeah. That and...

I thought we could talk some more.

Talk?

Look, I know I'm a shit father.

I don't have a father.

You don't have-- Huh.

How does that work exactly?
What are you, a fucking tree?

I gotta go.

Yeah, some other time, maybe.

I don't think so.

Maybe, though.

Morning. I want two officers
stationed in front, another two out back.

-The rest of you follow me.
-Yes, ma'am.

You're the super, right?
Detective Duffy. We spoke earlier.

We need to get up to
Leonard Patz's apartment.

217.

Got it.

Becky.

Becky!

Becky?

Becky, where are you?

I'm here, Miles.

-You didn't go to sleep?
-I'm so tired.

They weren't people. It was more of them.

They're growing thousands of pods
in greenhouses. We've got to get away.

Mr. Patz, I'm Detective Duffy.

I'm assigned
to the district attorney's office.

We have a warrant
to search these premises.

Mr. Patz, this is the police. Open up.

Mr. Patz, open up this door right now.

Mr. Patz, open the door
or we will open it for you.

Mr. Patz?

We have a warrant
to search your apartment.

I'm gonna need you to put some clothes on
and wait outside.

Andy?

No knife.

-What?
-They didn't find the knife.

At least not one that matches the weapon.

Doesn't mean they're gonna stop
looking at Patz though.

Honey?

I--

The blue car, the Lincoln,
it was following me.

-Now?
-No, no, no. It's gone.

Did you look at the driver?

No, he was too far away.

Sorry, honey.

Someone's been watching us.
I don't know if it's a reporter

or some psycho trying to scare us or what.

Do you wanna file a report?

What good would that do?

Honestly, not much.

If it happens again, call me immediately.
If I'm in the area...

Okay.

Thanks, Duff.

You are gonna stay on Patz, right?

We'll comb through everything again,
his statement, his movements.

He lied to us that day.
He said he didn't know Ben Rifkin.

According to your boy McGrath.

Look, I'm just saying,
the kid already admitted

to trying to frame Patz
on the whole library thing.

Yeah, I know.
I know, but I believe him on this one.

I'm begging you.
Please do not give up on Patz.

We're running out of time.

I'll do my best.

Did you honestly think
that you could avoid a trial?

Delay one, at least.

If you were willing to admit
that you rushed to judgment.

But you refused to look at anyone else.

I wanna go to those last few days
right before the trial.

Did Laurie share your optimism
that Jacob's trial might be avoided?

Yes and no.

What about you?

As it became clear there was
no 11th-hour reprieve coming...

how were you handling it?

I did the only thing I could do.

I accepted it.

Fuck.

Jesus. Fuck.

Hey, what are you doing?

-I know. I know what you did.
-What?

What are you talking abo-- You just--

-Oh, fuck, you're the father.
-I know you killed him!

Oh, Jesus, you're the father. Okay.
You need to leave me alone.

My son's not gonna go away
because of you. You understand me?

-Stay away from me.
-Hey!

I know what you did.

I know it was you, Leonard!
I know it was you!

What about Jacob?

How was he holding up?

He tried to stay busy with schoolwork,
watched movies.

We were all just waiting
for the hourglass to run out.

He had a 15th birthday that week,
didn't he?

August 17th.

Four days before the trial.

Now, how would you go about
calculating this sum?

-I'd add up the interior angles.
-Good.

We'll be back in a few hours.

Bye, birthday boy.

Now, don't forget there's a trick.

I'm ready for you. Come on in.

As you know, I've been evaluating Jacob
for the last several weeks

using a number of diagnostic tools:

a Basic Personality Inventory,
a Problematic Traits Inventory,

and all the results,
they're in the report.

I also tested his IQ,
which is unusually high,

and his EQ, his empathy quotient.

The report also contains the results
from the genetic testing that I conducted,

and it includes the MAOA mutation,

what's commonly known as
the warrior gene or the murder gene.

And?

Andy's father tested positive
for the mutation, as did Andy.

Jacob did not.

No?

The thing is, that's not...

MAOA wasn't really central
to my evaluation,

since it's actually inherited
from the mother and not the father.

Well then,
what was the purpose of the testing?

Because there are similar genes
that are passed down from father to son.

For instance, GRIN-1,
which is a glutamate receptor subunit.

It's been linked to traits
like impulsivity and recklessness.

All three generations of Barber males

tested positive for the GRIN-1 variant,
including Jacob.

There's also a dopamine gene
linked to a limited capacity for empathy.

Again, all three generations
of Barber males tested positive.

And finally,
there's a form of testosterone receptor

known to induce violent behavior
in adolescents shortly after puberty--

And Jacob-- Jacob has that form?

Jacob does, yes, as do Andy and Billy.

But if a young person
is already capable of moral reasoning,

these genes won't just cause the brain
to flip a switch,

and I will point to Andy as proof.

Still, what Dr. Vogel is saying is,

if we wind up with the worst-case scenario
where Jacob's found guilty,

we would have a genetic basis

to argue mitigation
when it goes to sentencing.

That's not gonna happen, but it's
important to know as much as possible.

Just in case.

Well, now we know.

And is he capable of moral reasoning?

There are things in here...
"antisocial tendencies"--

-Laurie, that's just psychobabble.
-I'm asking Dr. Vogel.

It's not a simple yes or no answer.

I think you should read the entire report,
and then, if you want,

we can have a conversation
on how to best address Jacob's issues.

But obviously right now
the concern isn't therapy, it's the trial.

-So there are issues?
-He's a teenager. They all have issues.

Andy's not wrong.

However, if there was one area of concern,

it would be his capacity for empathy.

Once again,
the report goes into full detail.

How do you mean?

Laurie, this isn't really the time
to have this conversation.

I want to know what she means.

Well, for example, I brought up
Ben Rifkin in one of our sessions,

and Jacob's response was that...

people die every day by the millions.

And when I tried to prod him,

to express some emotion
around Ben's murder...

Jacob's answers felt...

practiced.

That's because you don't know him.

I mean,
he's not a touchy-feely kid, that's--

-He has empathy.
-You think he did it.

I didn't say that.

-You didn't have to.
-Laurie.

I have absolutely no way of knowing
if Jacob did or did not do it.

-And it's also not my job.
-But you think he might have done it.

-Laurie, this isn't productive.
-You do. You think it's possible.

Will you stop? Anything in there you could
say about a million other teenagers.

-Very true.
-Then why won't you answer me?

-Laurie.
-Don't.

You never see these things,
you never saw them then.

You were so desperate to be normal,
for us all to be normal.

-We are normal.
-Oh, my God, Andy,

-do you think this is normal?
-This situation?

Of course not, but Jacob, yes.
I know he is.

And this, this doesn't change anything.
This means nothing.

Just answer me.

Please.

I wish I could.

Look, we can just call this off
and do something at home.

No. He's about to go through hell.
We're doing this.

-How's everything?
-Good. Thank you.

I don't see why you guys won't tell me.

Because it's between us and Dr. Vogel.

What happened to me
being treated like an adult?

This is such bullshit.

Hey, enough with the swearing.
It's like every other word with you.

I have a right to know about my own brain.

I took every one of her tests.

I answered every one
of her stupid questions.

She thought you were a good kid,
which we already knew.

This whole thing's a formality.

Okay?

I don't believe you.

Honey, it's your birthday.
Let's talk about something else.

-What about the murder gene?
-You don't have it.

Really?

Really.

So there's nothing wrong with me?

Happy birthday, bud.

Thank you.

Happy birthday.

Make a wish.

Kind of a no-brainer.

Thank you for tonight.

It was nice being normal again,
even if it was just pretending.

It was your mom's idea.

Glad you had a good time.

I think I'm ready for Monday.

Yeah?

Yeah.

Mrs. Mandel had me write an essay
about it the other day.

I said it was like
sailing towards an iceberg.

This little white peak in the distance,
getting closer and closer...

but really, it's been underneath us
the whole time.

I thought you were anti-metaphor?

Oh, my God. It's that car.

-Andy, don't.
-Wait here.

Dad?

-Andy!
-Take Jacob inside.

-What's going on?
-It's all right. Come on.

-What the hell do you want with us?
-Excuse me?

You've been watching my house
and following my wife.

I don't know
what you're talking about, pal.

I'm not gonna ask you again.

Easy, tough guy.

You don't want to be a tough guy tonight,
believe me.

I don't want to see you
on this street again.

It's a public street.

Not for you, it's not.

You should get back to your family.

It's good to have a family.

Take care of that family of yours,
Mr. Barber.

Yeah, 75K SA2. Yeah.

Damn it.

No, I figured as much.

It's okay. Thanks, Duff.

Okay.

It's registered to a Honda Accord.

So it's stolen?

All it takes is a screwdriver.

So what now?

Duff's gonna have one of her guys
patrol the neighborhood

for the next couple nights.

I doubt he'll come back.
He's probably just a reporter.

I'm tired. I'm going to bed.

Good night, Mom.

Thank you for tonight.

Good night, sweetheart.

Happy birthday.

And that was it?

That was it.

Couple more days and it was over.

We hit the iceberg.