For Life (2020–…): Season 1, Episode 10 - Character and Fitness - full transcript

Almost there now.

Three more days,

and I walk into the courtroom
where they put me away.

With one chance to get my retrial.

It's taken so long to get to this point.

Sometimes I catch myself
wondering how I even got here.

Is any of this real?

Or is it just a nightmare
that never ends?

And as to
the first count of the indictment,

charging a violation
of Penal Law Section 220.77

Operating as a Major Trafficker,
how do you find?



Guilty.

And as to the second count
of the indictment,

charging a violation of
Penal Law Section 220.43

Criminal Sale of a Controlled Substance

in the first degree, how do you find?

Guilty.

Y-Your mother's sorry she can't be here.

I don't think she can stand
seeing you in this place.

It's not gonna get any better.

You have appeals coming.

They're sending me to Bellmore, Pop.

I'm gonna spend
the rest of my life in a cage.

You keep yourself alive, son.

You keep your mind sharp.



You make it till tomorrow enough times,

you will walk out.

Tongue up.

Tongue down.

Close mouth.

Squat.

Deeper.

I said deeper.

What I demand is respect.

Order.

Cleanliness.

Abide by these principles,
and you'll do fine.

You might even thrive in here.

For those of you who want
to walk in your own direction,

I can promise you this...

I will make your lives miserable.

King me.

You know the rules. No games.

It's just a piece of paper.

Close cell four.

Bottom bunk's your space.

See the wall right there?

Right side is yours.

Keep your hands off of
what's on the left side.

That's mine.

And wipe up whatever splashed out.

I do push-ups on that floor.

Hey, baby.

Hey.

Where's Jazz?

Darius is watching her.

I figure I'd get
the lay of the land here first

so I'd know how to prepare her.

Yeah, good idea.

How was the drive up?

Took three hours.

And then an hour to get in.

I can't believe they only allow
one phone call a week here.

I've missed you so much.

I brought photos and some of Jazz's art.

But I left them all with the guards.

They said they'll bring them
to your cell.

My cellmate's given me half a wall, so...

What's he like?

I don't know yet.

Well, what is he in for?

Murder.

Murder.

Who'd he kill?

He didn't tell me. I didn't ask.

Keep moving, inmate.

Let's go.

Hey.

Back of the bus.

Not so fast.

So, you're the new lifer.

The kingpin.

Yeah, that's right.

Bronx boy, huh?

Born and raised.

You?

Queensbridge.

But I got people everywhere.

In here, this is my game.

But I'm sure we could work something out.

Nah, man. No.

I'm not working any of that
until I get through my appeals.

Appeals?

Man, that take years.

Whatever it is.

I'm out of all that for now.

You're not in this crew,
we can't protect you.

I hear that.

Keep good on your word,
or we'll be seeing you.

You still trying to play
that street rep in here?

Yeah, it's the only thing
keeping them off my back.

You know Bellmore's
got its own ecosystem.

I'm still learning it.

Well, we just got to get you out of here.

That's all.

Yeah, that'd be good.

We talked to that appeals lawyer.

She thinks she might have a path.

It's gonna take some time,

but she can attack
some of the lesser offenses.

At least to start.

How much?

- I'm gonna cover it.
- No.

Nah, man. I can't ask you to do that.

Would you do it for me?

You know the one thing
about being in here is

you know who your real friends are.

What's goin' on, Kingpin?

I was thinking.

You and me,

we can do some business in here.

No, man, we're good.

I got all the users in here asking me.

You got a supply.

I'm telling you, man,

you get more bread with me
than with Elijah.

Like I said,
I'm not interested, all right?

I'm coming to you in friendship,

and I don't like the vibe
I'm getting in return.

Yo, why don't you cats
take this some place else, huh?

No need.

We're done.

Man dissing you, yo.

Stop! Let's go! Hey, break it up!

Hey, dang!

Get back!

Hey!

Please!

It's been over a week.

I got to get a message to my wife.

Let her know where I am.

Stay here and shut up.

Prison rep will be here soon.

This whole mess is 'cause of you, bruh.

I didn't ask you to jump into it.

I ain't had no choice.

You're my cellie.

If I fall back, then I'm the mark.

That's the code.

All right.

Which one of you is which?

Bishop. Wallace.

New kingpin, huh?

Can we just get on with this?

Fine.

Good news is that there are no witnesses

that will testify to the fight,
so no assault.

Then why the hell are we still
in the hole, man?

Because, Mr. Bishop,
the warden had your cell tossed,

and the C.O.s found potatoes,

which, as I'm sure you both know,

is a primary ingredient for moonshine.

Those were mine.

Jamal shouldn't even be here.

This is cute, what's going on here.

But cells are shared spaces.

The contraband is chargeable
to both of you.

That even legal?

According to the warden,

it stops the stronger inmate

from forcing a weaker one
to take the fall,

and he's pretty much a dictator here.

All right, so,
how do you plan to fight it?

The only play here

is to take the hit
and do your time in the hole.

I do not advise my clients
to go up against Cyrus Hunt.

Then what good are you?

A hearing will blow back on all of us.

But we have a right to defend ourselves.

You want to fight this?

You can rep yourself.

Now get out of my office.

What, you want to spend
months in the hole?

Man, hell naw.

Inmates Wallace and Bishop are here

because their cell was tossed

and some contraband was found.

See Exhibit A.

Inmate regulations allow for no potatoes

due to it being
a main ingredient for moonshine.

These inmates

had a sophisticated fermenting operation,

so we're recommending

three months in restricted housing.

Ah, let's drop the euphemism.

Call it solitary.

Mr. Wallace,

you're here to represent
yourself and Mr. Bishop?

Yes, sir.

Do you have a response
to his accusations?

Yes, sir, I do.

Um, no yeast or fermenting agent
were found in our cell.

No equipment.

So I'm not sure what kind of
sophisticated operation

Captain Foster is referring to.

All we had was vegetables.

Only vegetables that can
be eaten raw are allowed,

like tomatoes or celery.

Tomatoes are technically a fruit.

But the point is,

these are still against regulations

because they have to be cooked.

Thank you. That's affirmative.

Appendix C of the allowable
items regulation

says that any food that must be cooked

are a contraband.

Now, I looked it up.

"Must" is an absolute term.

Therefore, any items
that can be consumed uncooked,

they're allowed.

This is obviously a ridiculous stunt.

Stunt or no,

it's a clever argument
and highly entertaining.

Entertaining is not a criteria.

Because Mr. Wallace and Mr. Bishop

already spent a week in the hole,

I move to sustain the ticket

and suspend punishment
and call this thing even.

If the administration

doesn't want this to happen again,

I recommend they eliminate
the word "must"

from the regulations.

Well done, Mr. Wallace.

Hold up, inmate.

You got to learn to be more careful.

People talking 'bout you
becoming inmate rep.

But that don't change nothing
between me and you.

This ain't over.

You know, he's in here
for a triple homicide.

If I were you, I would, uh,
take him seriously.

Very seriously.

You know what that's about.

You know that cat Green?

Yeah. Thinks he's a playa.

Well, I think he's after me.

Seems like I might need some protection.

You know, you got balls
to base up the warden,

and everybody knows what
they did to that arm of yours.

But you haven't put any food on my table.

And there ain't no free lunch.

You were a little too late
to kiss the ring.

If I was you,

I'd go after Green before he gets to you.

So, your lawyer's still
combing over the court transcripts,

looking for anything the judge might
have done wrong for the appeals.

Marie's hopeful again. We all are.

Listen, um...

I decided to make you
my emergency contact

for my file in here.

Anything were to happen to me,
I want you to get the call.

What's gonna happen?

You never know.

Don't tell Marie, all right?

This ain't over.

He's in here for a triple homicide.

I would, uh, take him seriously.

You a dead man.

If I was you,

I'd go after Green before he gets to you.

I'm gonna do like you said.

You askin' permission?

I'm gonna need some help.

I can provide the backup,

but you got to do the deed.

Yeah.

I know that, Bobby.

Just get it done, all right?

Hey!

What are you doing?!

Get off! Get off!

Time to meet your maker.

Come on, playa.

I didn't mean you no harm.

I wasn't gonna do nothing.

Shut up!

Put your hands down!

I-I-I won't talk smack about you.

Please don't kill me.

Shut up. I got kids.

- I got kids.
- Get it done!

Get it done!

Did you do it?

Word gets around.

I couldn't.

Taking a man's life, it's not easy,

even if you got a good reason.

You had one?

Dude kept knocking my sister around,

and... I gave him plenty of warnings.

The day she showed up with a broken jaw,

that was...

That was that.

I know you don't really belong in here,

so word to the wise.

Elijah went out on a limb for you,

and you dropped the ball?

You just crossed the King.

Dig in there. I got it.

Got you. Right there.

You were drowning in an ocean,

and I threw you a life raft.

I know.

I'm sorry for wasting your time.

Not as sorry as Green.

You left me with a liability
I had to take care of.

How's the warden gonna react to that?

How you think he keeps
his numbers looking so good

with that Prison Board?

Some piece of paper will say

the man had an accident
or a heart attack.

It all gets swept under the rug.

Listen.

You know I got Jamal and myself
out of solitary, right?

And your boy Shotgun,

he's been in there for months.

I'm prepared to do the same for him.

You ain't even the paralegal.

No, not yet, but...

An inmate can choose whoever they want.

You know that other guy's
in the warden's pocket, right?

All right. Let's hear your plan.

Shotgun got thrown in the hole
for a cellphone battery

after an attorney visit.

Right? So...

Under the directive 4910, subdivision 4C,

if an attorney visit
is non-contact, which it was,

then the search was inappropriate.

That right there,
that reduces the violation

from a... a tier three to a tier one.

That'd get him back into gen-pop.

Come on. I get your man out,
my debt's paid?

Yeah, a'ight.

Come on. Let's get it.

You must be feeling pretty good
about yourself.

You got Elijah's man out
and his protection now.

You know, under my tenure,

violent incidents at Bellmore

have dropped 70%.

Take a guess why.

I got a feeling
you're gonna say solitary.

Without solitary,
we can't have proper order.

It's what will prevent that wife of yours

from driving up here
to identify you in the morgue.

You better know that.

Let's get you back to your cell.

The Court of Appeals has refused
to review

the decision by the Appellate Division.

- What about the Supreme Court?
- They're never gonna take your case,

and the highest court in the
state just ruled against you.

I-I wish there was more I could do.

What about habeas?

Aaron, I know that this is hard to hear,

- but if I or any other attorney...
- I can't give up.

Winning this appeal

would've been a hundred times easier

than getting a retrial via habeas.

- And why is that?
- Because we don't have

an ineffective assistance
of counsel claim,

and the court just reiterated
the judge's decisions were fair,

so unless there's some
newly discovered evidence...

- There has to be.
- Evidence that they hid from us,

then we can't prove that.

T-The D.A. never even
turned over a complete file.

And I doubt that they ever will.

I'm sorry, but the best course of action

is to play nice with the warden,

- level up to minimum security...
- No.

Make it easier for your family

- to visit you.
- That's not an option.

Aaron, it's been over two years.

I can't take any more money from you,

and I can't afford to work pro bono.

Come on, please.

I am sorry.

I can't raise any more money.

I can't raise money. I got a job to do.

And I can't... It's... It's...

I don't care if it's a worthy cause.

I've got a thousand invitations.

Han... Hang...

Yeah?

Senator, I've got a call

from Bellmore Prison on line two.

An inmate named Aaron Wallace.

He says you know him?

Hmm.

All these years in this
hellhole, hitting the books,

and you graduated law school?

Problem is, it's... it's not accredited.

I didn't want to rain on your parade,

but, yeah, correspondence courses

are generally for
education purposes only.

Generally, but not always.

How's that?

California, Oregon, Minnesota, Vermont,

and New Mexico

allow non-accredited degree holders

to sit for the bar.

But Minnesota, Oregon, and New Mexico

require admissions in another state

if your J.D. is unaccredited.

California doesn't have
reciprocity in New York.

But Vermont does.

Exactly.

Okay. That's smart.

You're good. That's g... That's good.

But there's no way
the warden's gonna let you out

to take the bar.

I'm gonna file a claim

under the Americans
With Disabilities Act.

No, you're not.

Get the proctors to come to Bellmore

and have them test me here.

Come on.

For what I need right now,

being confined is a disability.

All right, check out
a Supreme Court case.

Uh, uh, Olmstead versus I.C.

Context is mental health,

but you might be able
to find a precedent.

All right.

Yeah, I'll do that. Thanks.

You know, even if you pass the bar,

there's still character and fitness.

Well, I am gonna need somebody
in a position of authority

to vouch for me.

Maybe a State Senator?

I got to admit, I am impressed.

Abusing the ADA

to force the bar exam to come to you?

That's got to be a first.

Well, if I could've done it another way,

like take a bus, I would have.

Uh-huh.

Well...

You may begin.

Close cell four.

How'd it go?

Now I understand why
only 62% of people pass.

I cleared the wall for you.

Hey, thanks, man.

What you gonna do without your ladies?

Yo, Aaron.

Hey, Bobby. What's up?

Little Christmas present from Elijah.

Thank him for me.

You have no idea
how much this'll change my life.

You got it.

Listen, I know it's been
a long road, Marie.

And I've put a lot on you.

Aaron, I want a divorce.

Why now, Marie?

Why now? Why, damn it?!

Been trying to figure out,
what am I doing?!

- What am I doing?!
- Look, I heard you the other night

when I told you about the burner.

It's not about the burner, Aaron.

You think I'm taking too much of a risk?

It's not about the burner.
You're behind a window.

You giving up on me? You giving up on me?

I can't do this anymore.

We can work this out.
Just a little more time.

Please don't do this.
Come on, baby, it's you and me.

Look at me, Marie.

Come on, look at me.

Just look at me.

I just can't.

I... I'm sorry.

Come on, Marie. Marie!

Come on, please.

Marie. Yo, Marie!

Marie! Come on, Mari...

What's up, man?

♪ I'll make it up to you ♪

♪ I'll make it up ♪

Yo, Wallace, got legal mail here for you,

from the Vermont Bar.

Let's go, man. Open it up.

You do it.

Hmm.

You did it, my man.

Whoo! Hoo-hoo-hoo-hoo!

Not yet.

I still got to pass
character and fitness.

- Come on, man, smile.
- Yo.

We got a lawyer in the house, y'all.

- Whoo!
- Come on!

My man Aaron Wallace
has done the impossible

and passed the bar while in prison!

Aaron Wallace Esquire.

What defines character?

Integrity, courage, resilience.

The decision before you
is not about Aaron Wallace.

It's about our entire
criminal legal system.

Because if we weren't here,

Aaron's accomplishments
would be more than enough

for each of you to recommend him
enthusiastically.

But we are here.

At Bellmore Prison,

facing the simple question...

will you write somebody off
simply because of where they are

or honestly try to determine
who they are?

Easy for me to say,

Aaron Wallace will be a great lawyer.

It's even easier for me to say

that he's a more honorable,
more decent person

than I could ever hope to be.

The reason I'm here is to remind you

that character is not
a product of circumstance.

It's the thing that survives despite it.

Take a minute.

Thanks.

I'm proud of you, son.

Not there yet, Pop.

Oh, no matter what happens,
I'm proud of you.

I always have been.

We got to go.

And I should hear back in the next month

about that character and fitness, so...

Anyway, what's going on with you, man?

There's no easy way to say this,

so I'm just gonna come out with it.

What's wrong?

I'm moving in with Marie.

You...

Hold on. Hold...

So when I asked you to watch out for her,

look in on her,

I put a dog in the hen house.

I'm sure that's what it look like,

but Marie asked for the divorce months...

You're lucky there's a window
between us right now!

I didn't mean for this, Aaron.

Don't tell me that.
I just couldn't fight it.

Don't you tell me that.

You can't control who you love.

How long?

How long has this been going on?

It wasn't till she was
already leaving you, man.

And she has you telling me.

Nah, man, she doesn't even know I'm here.

- But I wanted to tell you myself.
- What?

Man to man?

You been here eight years.

How long do you expect her to wait?

This is not about her.

All right? It's about you.

You a dog.

You're a dog, and you know it.

You're my brother, and I love you.

But it's time for everyone
to move forward.

You think I'm guilty.

I don't ever want to see
your ass in here again!

What happened to your face?

Ah, this?

Got in a fight with my steering wheel.

You okay?

I was arrested for my third D.U.I.

It seems that I-I'm being urged

to resign from my State Senate seat,

or they'll expel me.

I'm so sorry to bring in my dark cloud.

No.

I'm glad you're okay.

Clean and serene for five days.

Good.

But, hey, enough about me.

Don't tell me you got news.

You passed character and fitness.

- Oh, for real?
- It's official.

- I'm a lawyer.
- Yeah.

You can represent clients
and practice in a court of law.

You made this happen for me.

You made it happen yourself.

We do have...
We have one problem, though.

Without my seat,

I can't run interference for you
with the warden.

Interference for what?

Well, he can't technically
prevent you from going to court,

but if he claims that
you're a disciplinary problem

or a security risk,

Aaron, that's it.

There's got to be something I can do.

Well, just so happens
there are some progressives

on the prison board.

And a quiet clamoring for change.

I'm listening.

Cyrus Hunt's a bad guy.

You find a way to prove it,

the Board can be swayed.

Reforms are happening all over.

So why are we sitting around here,

letting Cyrus get medieval on us?

Look, I wouldn't mind
a little extra time in the yard

or a few extra days to make phone calls.

Wonderful.

But a few of us here,
we got a good thing going on.

And you know the devil you know.

See, now, that's just fear talking.

We got a chance to get
some of our rights back.

We got to let the man take his swings.

New warden, huh?

That glass has got to come down
in visitation.

So let's say we make these complaints

that you want us to.

But then Kingpin here,
he doesn't follow through.

Now, I don't know about you guys,

but I don't want to see
any blowback coming.

There's no guarantees in life.

But y'all didn't become
shot-callers by playing it safe.

From a certain drunk senator

who still has friends
on the prison board.

He's got the originals.

C.O.s are permitted
to use force against inmates

in certain circumstances, Jerry, yes.

One guy cheeks his meds.

Guards stomp him in the hole.

Another guy gets caught
with an afro pick.

Week later, his spleen
gets ruptured in a beating.

There's even a letter of concern
from a prison doctor.

My captains will be happy
to dispute all of these,

so... what?

If they subpoenaed medical records

and hearing reports,

would these check out?

What exactly are you asking me, Jerry?

Hey, man.

Thanks for coming.

Aaron Wallace.

This is the rep
who should take your case.

You know that demonio who put you away...

Glen Maskins.

He put me away, too. Set me up.

Sounds familiar.

Ah, good morning.

I'm Safiya Masry,

the new Superintendent at Bellmore.

I wanted to speak to you all personally

to let you know what my intentions are.

My goal is to make sure
that during your time here,

you're treated with respect

and you're given an opportunity
to maintain your relationships

with the people who care
about you in the outside world.

The first thing I'm gonna do
is take down those windows.

From here on out,
it will be contact visits,

and you'll be able to see your families.

There's gonna be
a lot of changes around here.

Daddy!

Oh, I've missed you, sweetheart.

I missed you, too.

Hey.

Hey.

Thanks for coming.

It's good to see you.

Let's go! Clear out!

We got to change out these beds!

Let's go!

These ass-hats should be doing this.

Good behavior, huh?

Guess the statute of limitations
on potatoes is up.

Yeah.

Dah, hey, man.

Don't give me the long face.

I'm just movin' down the pod.

Got my swagger back.

Got my swagger back!

Oh, come in.

You can leave us. Thanks.

I wanted to meet the prisoner rep

who's responsible for my being here.

And I wanted to meet the warden
who let me hug my daughter

for the first time in a lot of years.

Take a seat.

It's been 3,402 days.

And now it comes to this.

I just got to keep my head down
and hang on 68 more hours.

The thing is, in here,

when you never know
what's gonna come at you,

68 hours could be a lifetime.