Law & Order (1990–2010): Season 1, Episode 5 - Happily Ever After - full transcript

Narrator:. In the criminal justice
system, the people are represented

by two separate yet
equally important groups-

the police
who investigate crime,

and the district attorneys
who prosecute the offenders.

These are their stories.

Attendant: Must've
been a good party.

All parties are good
after 12:00 and before 3:00.

woman: You think
Sara-Louise drinks too much?

You were counting?

Just jealous.

I can't touch a drop if we're
really going to start trying.



You really want to?

Don't you?

As long as I don't have
to do the 2:00 feeding.

Honey, the flowers.

My brother, he said ain't
no woman good enough for him.

Including his wife.

Attendant:
It came from the garage.

Can she talk?
Yeah, at the hospital.

Yeah, the good citizens
outside, they heard screams.

And they fell all over each
other trying to help, right?

Robbery?

Her purse was empty
and his wallet's gone.

It's probably in
a garbage can a block away.

ID?
Car registration.



Ralston, Janet, Alan.

They live a block away.

In the stairwell.
Crack pipe.

Still warm.
witnesses?

32 of them,
all blind.

Car like that?
Should've bought a clunker,

spent the money
on a better neighborhood.

Or one at least
more than a half a block

from a police precinct.

Those people,
how much paper they got?

A couple of hundred grand?

I was them, I'd have me
a driver.

You don't even
have a car.

If I had a car.

And if I did,
it wouldn't be no Lincoln.

Ladies, you see
anybody at all?

No, I ain't hear nothing,
I ain't seen nothing.

That's what she's
good at- nothing.

Man: He was black. A kid.

Came out
that door running.

Max:
You get a look at him?

The designated driver

says he saw a kid.

How many fingers?

Three.

Doctor:. Mrs. Ralston
was very lucky.

Lucky?
She lost her husband.

Let's say her children
were lucky then.

At least she's
still around.

when can we get
a description from her?

As soon as she wakes up,
I would think.

So the wounds
weren't serious then?

A defense wound
to the forearm

one to the left
gluteus maximus.

Last year, Janet was
mugged. Central Park.

Ardsley, Hastings
- she wanted to move somewhere up the Hudson.

Someplace with a backyard.

The city's no place
to raise a family anymore.

Just last week I was
getting their finances in order.

They wanted to move
before the third kid.

Alan's mother.

I called-

I called Denise,
the babysitter.

She's taking care
of the kids.

You were with the children
last night, ma'am?

Those poor babies.

without Alan...

Excuse me.

Mr. Himes,

could you get a list of the
stuff they were carrying?

Jewelry,
credit cards...

I'll have it to you
first thing in the morning.

$50,000-

for information leading to
the arrest and conviction

of whoever killed
Alan Ralston.

I'll have my lawyer notify
the papers in the morning.

50 grand.

If that's what it took
to get a killer,

they'd get rid of us
and use our salaries

as rewards.

Couldn't look worse.

Max: It could've happened
in front of the precinct.

Half a block away.
Two cops.

Logan: They don't issue
telepathy with badges.

Oh really?
well, I'm telepathic,

and this is the message
I'm sending-

I don't like looking
like a freaking incompetent.

The message I'm getting
is that we're at a dead end.

30 people on the street.

The only good citizen
to come forward is a wino.

Then you squeeze him
for everything he's got.

Then you interview everybody
who was on the street that night,

then you interview everybody
who lives on the street-

Are you getting
the picture?

Shelters...

rather sleep
on the street.

Company's better.

No room service, though.

Him. Maybe.

Yup, same guy.
Twice.

Max:
Willie Tivnan.

You want to buy me
a drink?

Mr. Tivnan has
a scar on his thumb.

Cut himself deep once.

Logan: One thing crack
stems are good for-

clear prints.

9mm.

Marks on the shell casing
says it's probably a Beretta.

Fancy gun
for the street.

My guess? He didn't
go to Italy to buy it.

willie got
an armed robbery?

Twice with knives,
Plead down to misdemeanors.

Breaking and entering,
Four hotel burglaries.

Hotels? Nowwe know
where he got the Beretta.

Nothing with guns.

Four juvenile detention
facilities-

Sing Sing, Attica...

Hey, at least willie visits
all the best vacation spots.

The last three busts
popped at the same location.

Let's go book him
another trip.

Did she call?

Oh yeah.
Oh yeah.

Man:
Sully, wait up there!

"Principles
of Eastern Philosophy. "

How much?

Man, I didn't know
cops could read.

I can read
a rap sheet, willie.

Just words, man.
That's all I sell.

Magazines and books.

Law says you can sell them on
the street without a license.

what were you selling
Saturday night, willie?

Man...

Hey, man,
what are you doing?

Man:
Watch out, man!

Hey, you jerk!

Your car, willie.

willie:
A garage?

Man, I ain't got no wheels.
what am I gonna park in there,

except my butt?

Your fingerprints.

The ones you left
on the crack pipe

that you left
in the garage.

Okay, man, look,
I was there, all right?

But see, I was just smoking,
that's all.

where'd you get
the Beretta?

Man, I told-

I hear somebody
coming down, right?

I figure it's the Rican.

But then I hear shots.

You know, one,
then two more. Bam! Bam!

So what, you going
to arrest me?

Better get me a lawyer.

Janet: Alan was coming
around the front of the car

to open my door.

I got out of the car,

I gave him a kiss.

I noticed there were
some flowers in the back seat.

I asked him
to get the flowers.

He opened the back door.

He was looking
for something in his pocket.

He said, " Did you lock it?"

The car, he meant.

I turned to look-

he went towards
the stairwell.

The door opened.

A man came out-

black.

I didn't see a gun.

I heard the shot...

saw the look on Alan's face,
like he'd been punched.

Look at these carefully.

Janet:
Number three.

I don't...

Logan:
Take your time.

Or number five.

Thank you.

Cragen: They're still
crawling out of the woodwork.

Eight mugging victims and the
paper's only been out for four hours.

They all give positive I Ds?

Logan's finishing up
the last one now.

The first seven-
if willie didn't do them,

he's got a twin.

Number eight, same MO.
Six-inch switchblade.

what?

This kid,
he never killed anybody,

and his MO uses a knife.

what, he was in there smoking
crack, but he didn't kill Ralston?

we don't tie him to a gun,
we got no case.

we don't arraign him,
he's out in 48 hours

and we'll never
see him again.

Call the DA.

Judge:
willie Tivnan.

The charges are murder
in the second degree,

attempted murder, and assault
in the first degree.

Does the defendant
wish to enter a plea?

Not guilty.

The defendant is indigent,
Ms. Strickland, is that right?

Yes, Your Honor.
The Public Defender's office

feels strongly that
the facts in the case

do not warrant these charges.
without an indictment-

Your Honor, we feel
there's sufficient evidence.

Also, the defendant has
previous convictions,

and has missed two
previous court appearances.

He has two violent felonies,
Your Honor,

one of them a homicide.

And the defendant has
no known residence.

Bail is set
at $100, 000.

Next case.

Clerk:
Docket number 9462-A...

where's your boss? You think
he shows up for the arraignment

of every two-bit crackhead
who's dead-bang guilty?

No one's dead-bang guilty
until the verdict comes in.

Look, I talked
to Tivnan.

He's copped
to the eight muggings.

He did those,
he admits it.

But he didn't
kill Ralston.

Come on, Elizabeth,
come on.

You don't have a positive ID
from Janet Ralston.

He doesn't use guns.

Stone's not going
to deal on this one.

The public doesn't like
getting killed coming home.

I do this a lot.

This kid's telling
the truth.

I hope for your sake
you're wrong,

'cause everybody else on
Manhattan Island thinks he did it.

wrapped up.

Another killer
off the streets.

Hey, Max,

we'll find the gun.

willie Tivnan's
got a rap sheet

as long as
the "Encyclopedia Britannica. "

And no mention

of him ever j using a gun.

You just think I'm wrong
because I'm sure I'm right.

You think-

I think that he's
a streetwise little kid-

who shot two people for
the price of a couple of grams.

- who knows the difference
between mugging and murder.

when Marie was mugged, you
know on the East Side last year,

what was the first thing
that I did?

You picked up your gun
and went looking.

Think. You been mugged.

Your wallet's gone.
After you call the cops,

the first thing you do
is what?

willie shoots the Ralstons,

cleans out her purse,
takes his wallet...

Sells the credit cards.

It's been three days,

but not word one
from the banks.

Nobody's used
the Ralston cards.

Didn't even try.

An ad in "The Times
Sunday Magazine. "

A 10-room house,

good schools.

Alan always said we weren't
the kind of people

who lived in the suburbs.

what kind of people
live in the suburbs?

The kind that are
still alive.

The night it
happened...

Alan was coming
around the front of the car-

to open my door.

I got out of the car,

I gave him a kiss.

I noticed there were
some flowers in the back seat.

I asked him
to get the flowers.

He opened the door.

He was looking
for something in his pocket.

He said, "Did you lock it?"

I tumed to look,

he went towards
the stairwell.

A man came out-

he was black.

I didn't see a gun.

I heard the shot,

and I saw Alan's face.

He looked like
he'd been punched.

You know,
that's amazing.

She repeated her story
perfectly.

Yeah, word for word.

You know, I took the kids to
Duchess Stables last weekend-

I hate horseback riding.
Scares the hell out of me.

Scary for the horse, too.

You know...

I last in the saddle
maybe two, three minutes.

I get off, I can't
remember one second.

Her husband gets shot,
she gets shot,

she sees the black guy, gets
scared, she remembers every second.

I know cops been
in shooting cases,

lucky if they can
remember their badge number.

willie:
I didn't take no ring.

Logan: And the wallet?
willie: I didn't take no wallet.

Come on, where did you
unload the credit cards?

Look, the light went off
and I ran.

Light?

Yeah, in the stairs. That's
why I couldn't find my stem.

Okay, willie,
one more time, real slow.

You light up a rock
- Right. The lights went off in the stairwell,

and then, you know,
bang, bang- shots.

I ran.

willie, you may just
have bought yourself

a ticket out of here.

The light went out, huh?

where's the switch?

I think willie's
jerking us around.

See if it screws in.

whoa! That's my foot.

How may killers
does it take to screw in-

Take the bulb, huh?

Uh-huh.

Yeah, thanks.

Nothing on Janet.

Mr. Himes, the Ralston's
financial advisor?

Public lewdness.

He a kinko?

Last January he's coming down
the Saw-mill, 00 at night,

stops at the toll booth.

He's half-naked and some
woman's got her head in his lap.

She was probably napping.

He's in the automatic lane,
tosses a token.

Guy in the next booth
looks over, sees him,

he calls a cop.

PO'd because they didn't
drive through his booth.

State trooper stops them,
j j issues a warning,

but makes out a report.

Janet Ralston.

Brenda Smith.

Cop describes Brenda.

Brenda sounds
a lot like Janet.

And guess what?

I can hardly wait.

The car.
The Ralston's?

That big shiny

1989 Lincoln Town Car.

Cragen: Reopen the
case? I love this.

I really love this.

Just before willie ran,
he said the lights went out.

In his brain.

The bulb. we got there
today, it was still unscrewed.

So? willie got a reason
to lie about this?

So?

Logan: Look, there were two
sets of prints on that bulb.

One of them- Gil Himes.

Janet Ralston
was shot twice.

So you're telling me

that Gil Himes
shot her husband,

then shot her twice,
and now she's covering for him?

She's out of the hospital.
I want to put everything on hold

and just stick to her.

On a hunch?

On a hunch that Gil Himes

doesn't change light bulbs
on his day off.

It's not even
Himes' garage.

There's no possible
explanation

for his prints
being on that bulb.

Anybody finds out
we break this case

and then want
to unbreak it-

Somebody wanted
that hallway dark.

Three days, and you
don't tell anybody.

You're going to be happy
you did this, Captain.

No, I'm not.

Good boy.
Good boy.

weather report.

Cloudy. No rain.

Last 24 hours,
she's been to the butcher,

the florist,
the greengrocer.

The dry cleaner's,
the beauty parlor,

and she took
the kids to school.

Leads a rich
and full life, this lady.

Logan: Male visitors?
No visitors. Period.

A regular nun.

And Detective Vitello
should know.

He worships me.

He thinks I might be able
to raise the dead.

You two do this routine
every shift?

Only on stakeouts.

Cragen:
No, Max, no more time.

Two days.

How does this sound?

widow, two kids,
victim of a horrible crime,

and the police department
spends 2000 bucks a day

to find out when
she goes to the can.

You want to read that
in tomorrow's "Post"?

One day.

What's it going to buy?

Maybe it'll buy me
a good night's sleep.

One freakin' day.

Cragen:
What? Hold on.

They're together.
Hamstead Hotel.

what's she doing?
It's four hours.

Serving him Clams Casino?

Looks like he ate well.

Let's pick him up.
No, no, no.

I want to talk
to her first.

Mrs. Ralston.

Excuse me.

Could you help us
out here, Mrs. Ralston?

Mr. Himes was in
the garage that night.

He got home late.

Logan:
You know what I think?

I think you and Mr. Himes
are having an affair.

I think your boyfriend
shot your husband.

I think the DA is going
to charge you

as an accessory
to the crime.

I think you're too smart
not to cooperate.

Oh God.

I was having an affair,

but I broke it off.

Something must...

have happened,
because he got really enraged

and he snapped.

He came after
Alan and I,

and he shot us.

Judge: The charges are
murder in the second degree

and assault
in the first degree.

Does the defendant
wish to enter a plea?

Lawyer:.
Your Honor, if we may,

we question whether
the prosecutor's information

merits our client
being held.

Mr. Shell, you got to the door,
but you didn't knock.

If you're
questioning the merits,

does that mean
you want a hearing?

No. No, Your Honor.

Then let's have
the defendant enter a plea.

Mr. Himes?

Not guilty.

Shell:
Your Honor, Mr. Himes

is a substantial member
of the community,

and has no criminal record.
we ask that he be released on-

If you're suggesting
"own recognizance,"

the answer is no.

This is two felonies,

one of them a homicide.

Mr. Stone?

we'd like to guarantee
Mr. Himes appears, Your Honor.

Bail is set at $200,000.

Cash or bond.

Murder in
the second degree, Stone?

You have to show the public
you go after the rich?

Your client killed
in cold blood-

I don't care if he's homeless
or owns Grand Central Station.

You get murder two from the grand jury
- it's abusive.

Under extreme
emotional disturbance,

you're lucky if you get
manslaughter two, and you know it.

Emotionally disturbed do not
plan as well as Himes did.

It's a crime
of passion, Stone.

Pure and simple.

A crime of passion j is never pure,

and it's certainly
not simple.

Gil was like the...

guys I dated in college.

The ones you didn't marry?

The ones you met

after your respectable dates
dropped you off.

How long had this
been going on?

Do we have to go
into this?

Mrs. Ralston, you're going to
be a witness against Mr. Himes.

Three months.

I loved Alan.

I didn't want
to throw that away.

How did Mr. Himes react
when you told him?

He said he understood.

why did you lie
to the police?

He tried to kill me.

I was afraid.

He was crazy,
irrational.

He looked at me like
he didn't even know who I was.

He was...

a completely
changed person.

The Ralstons?

The night of our party
they were getting along fine.

Until he wanted to leave.
Dorothy.

12:00 he wants
to go home.

Janet says she's having
too good a time.

Milton: Dorothy. Dorothy:
2:30, the queen wants to leave.

Alan's got a second wind.

She dragged him out of here
like she had a plane to catch.

You never liked her.

That's because
she's a bitch, darling.

But I always liked him.

The evening ran
on Janet's schedule.

He wants to go,
she says no.

She wants to go,
they leave.

Stone:
She had an appointment.

Run a gun check
on Himes and Janet.

Registration,
out-of-state sales.

It's still thin. Make
it stronger, make it fit.

I want a conviction
on this. On who?

The only one
on trial here is Himes.

But I'd love
to get her too.

A little blood-lust, Adam?

You ever look
at a calendar?

Oh, next year's
an election year.

It's easy to buy a gun, it means
they don't have a lot of paperwork.

A state requires
a lot of paperwork,

then it's not so easy
to buy a gun.

we need a place,
no waiting time,

but where they still keep
accurate records.

That leaves Kentucky,
Delaware,

Tennessee, Virginia,

North Carolina.

That's it?

Logan: we strike out with
those, we're in trouble.

Maybe we can get
Himes' credit card stubs,

her credit cards stubs,

going back a year,
year and a half.

Business trips, vacations
- did they hit any of those states?

The guy offered
a $50,000 reward.

Crime of passion.

Short of a mob killing,
I'm beginning to think

this is the most dispassionate
murder I've ever seen.

That hump Himes-

acting like
their Dutch uncle,

helping the Ralston's
look for a new house,

checking out the schools
in the suburbs for the kids,

clearing the decks
for their new baby.

One hell
of a financial advisor.

what about
their finances?

This woman, right?
Smart looking broad.

She comes in here
five, six, seven times a day.

Each time
with a different guy.

Turns out she's using the
booth over there to turn tricks.

And when we caught her,
she said,

"Hey, it's a hell of a lot
cheaper than a hotel. "

Find what
you're looking for?

woman:
There are standards,

but it's up to the individual
insurance agent.

Just tell me
about the standards.

Before the new policy
was issued,

the Ralstons already had
$2 million in life insurance.

All on him.

Two million?

Most couples now,
they also insure the wife.

Her role costs money
to replace.

Child care, housekeeping.

Not the Ralstons.

What about the new policy?

An additional three million.

Let's say that's...

borderline excessive.

So the agent shouldn't
have written it?

The agent should've
wondered what was going on.

On top of the personal,

four million more paid for
by the business.

Is that unusual?

Not if the partners
are collecting.

Alan Ralston's beneficiary?

His wife.

This wasn't life insurance,
it was the lottery.

Mrs. Ralston hits
the right number?

She collects
nine million.

what does it
look like to you?

Looks to me like Himes
was interested

in seeing Ralston
overinsured.

After Janet broke his heart,
cut off the affair?

That guy is a positive
humanitarian.

Candidate for Best
Friend of the Year.

what if she didn't
break off the affair?

Nope, got nothing
on the girl. The gun?

we got word from Kentucky,
Tennessee, Delaware

and North Carolina.
No luck.

And that leaves?

we'd better get lucky
with Virginia.

A year ago,
right after Janet was mugged.

Richmond, Virginia.

Tracy's Field
and Sports Shop.

A sporting gun?

If you're hunting people.

Beretta model 94,
blowback semi-automatic. 9mm.

Sold to Himes, Gilbert?

And not to Ralston, Janet,
either.

Ralston, Alan?

They stick to their stories,
the worst we get him for

is maybe man two.

She still gets a walk.

She's already set up a diminished
capacity defense for him.

She said he looked crazy.

Stone: You used Alan's
gun, didn't you, Mr. Himes?

I love Janet Ralston.

Shell:
You want to talk a deal?

I want to talk guns.
How'd you get the Beretta?

Did she give it to you
before the party?

No more questions, Stone,

till you put a proposal
on the table.

He rolls on Mrs. Ralston, comes up
with some evidence, manslaughter one.

That's not a proposal.

That's an insult!

Come on, Gil.

Himes really does
love her.

Maybe he loves
manslaughter two more.

we don't find out
how it went down,

we may have
to offer it to him.

Then let's find out
how it went down.

Max:
Let's start over, Willie.

Look, how many times
I got to tell you?

Max: The lights go out, then what?

I hear a scream,
then a shot.

Right after the lights
went out? Huh-uh, same time.

Run that past me again.

Look, the lights went off.
I hear a shot.

The door opens, what,
a couple seconds later?

I hear two more shots,
I get the hell out of there.

If the light was out,
how do you know the door opened?

'Cause light came in
from the garage.

After the first shot?

Am I talking too fast?
That's what I said.

Lights off, then bang.

Door opens,
bang, bang.

Logan:
willie fires up a rock,

the light goes out.

The first shot came
before the door opened.

Then the door opens,
then there's two more shots.

But if it's Himes coming
down the stairs, and it is,

he goes to the light-

He unscrews it.

Stone: He hasn't
opened the door yet.

A gun goes off.

So who shot Alan Ralston?

Max: Is Willie a
good enough witness?

Good enough for me.

Pick her up.

Janet Ralston,
you're under arrest

for the murder
of Alan Ralston.

You have the right
to remain silent

and refuse
to answer questions.

Anything you do say may be used
against you in a court of law...

Stone:
So you're saying

the first shot came
before the door opened.

Mm-hmm.
Lights out, bang.

Then door opens.

But after the lights went out,
a couple of seconds later,

another two shots.
Bang, bang.

Thank you. No further
questions, Your Honor.

Mr. Tivnan-

what were you doing
on the stairs of the garage?

Smoking crack.

Uh-huh.

Your habit,

how much does it cost?

$200 a day.

Oh.

Do you have a job,
Mr. Tivnan?

Objection, Your Honor,
his employment

has nothing to do
with his testimony.

Mr. Tivnan's state of mind
is at issue here.

Overruled.
The witness will answer.

I sell books, magazines
on the streets.

Does that pay
for your crack habit?

People do a lot
of reading.

Thank you, Mr. Tivnan.

In your autopsy,
you examined

the entrance wound
on Mr. Ralston's body?

Yes, I did.
what were your findings?

Light powder burns
on Mr. Ralston's tux

indicated the gun
had fired at a distance

of approximately
three feet.

The bullet entered Mr. Ralston
at the bottom of the Thorax.

It traveled upward.
It pierced his right lung

and then entered his heart.

From that description,
Mr. Borak,

can you tell the height of
the person who fired the gun?

Yes, I could. From the
angle of the bullet's entry,

The person who shot him
would have to be

no taller than 5'6".

In other words, someone shorter
than Mr. Ralston.

Yes, that's right.

Nothing further,
Your Honor.

If I told you the floor
of that garage slopes,

would that affect
your estimation

of the height of the gunman
you described?

Yes, yes, it would.
Good. It slopes.

So it's possible Mr. Ralston
was shot by a 6' man

standing at the bottom
of a sloping floor?

Yes, that is possible-
Thank you.

Nothing further,
Your Honor.

Mrs. Stark,
this was some months ago.

Do you remember
the Ralstons?

Yes. They were a nice looking
couple on vacation.

Just come
from the mountains.

Did Mr. Ralston knowwhat kind
of gun he wanted to buy?

He didn't know
anything about guns,

so I showed him some
nice personal weapons.

And he picked one out?

The missus, she kept
telling him

that they had to have it.

He told her he did not want
the gun in the house-

that one of the kids
might get his head blown off.

She kept reminding him

that she had been mugged
on the street.

So Mr. Ralston didn't
want to buy a gun?

No, it was Mrs. Ralston

who was all steamed up.

She insisted that he
buy the Beretta.

Thank you.
No further questions.

It's your meeting.

Himes battered Mrs. Ralston
emotionally,

but she never believed him
when he said he would

kill her and her husband.

After he shot you,
Mrs. Ralston,

you didn't
go to the police.

I told you-
I was frightened.

The only thing Mrs. Ralston
might've done wrong

was to mention where
Mr. Ralston kept his gun.

Nevertheless,

we will plead
criminal facilitation four,

conspiracy five,

and she'll testify
against Mr. Himes.

You got to be kidding.

This lady's on trial
for murder.

You're offering us
two misdemeanors?

I don't joke
about plea bargains, Mr. Stone.

If you want to think
about manslaughter one

we might have
something to talk about.

well, I guess we have
nothing to talk about.

They're not biting. She doesn't
think we can j j convince a jury.

Then plea it out at man
two. A slap on the wrist?

Since when's two acquittals
better than one?

Take one more run at
them. Don't blow this.

I'll take man two.

Stone: Mr. Himes, she's
getting ready to burn you.

That testimony about
how tall the gunman was?

Your lover's lawyer
is trying to make it

look like you
pulled the trigger.

Janet's lawyer was
trying to prove

neither of us
did it.

Listen to this.
This is a transcript

from one of the interviews of Mrs.
Ralston after you were arrested.

"I loved Gil Himes, but he turned
out to be weak and pathetic.

The only solution he found
to his unhappiness

was to get a gun. "

That's how
she depicts you.

You're playing a
bad hand, Mr. Himes,

and the dealer's
crooked.

Suppose the murder weapon
should...

happen to turn up?

Mr. Himes,

you are now skirting
obstruction of justice.

Don't push it, Stone.
He said "suppose. "

And he's on trial
for murder.

Suppose we add
obstruction?

Suppose you never
get the gun?

Manslaughter one.

You'll lose.

That jury
will never convict.

True love.

They'd sell each other
for a nickel.

Give Victor Norris a call.

You said you had
something we'd want to hear?

Rumor- Mr. Himes
is thinking

of producing
the murder weapon.

Auction block.
Going, going...

Two misdemeanors, and
she'll take a year in jail.

Manslaughter one,
j j going, going...

No way.

Gone.

You don't scare me,
Mr. Stone.

Oh, yes, I do,
Mrs. Ralston.

I scare you a great deal.
And I should.

There's another offer
on the table from Mrs. Ralston.

This is an idiotic game.

She's up from two
misdemeanors to jail time.

we'll take
manslaughter two.

You'll have to do
better than that.

Manslaughter one,
he produces the weapon,

and he tells the jury
how he planned it.

whoever gets
to my door first.

You knowwhy we're here.

You can't do this, Stone.

Last chance,
ladies and gentlemen.

You've got nothing.

Manslaughter one.

Sold.

You damn fool!

we would've been acquitted.

They've got nothing.

God, you are
a pathetic, limp-

Oh God!

You are a such a gutless-!

Himes: She came to
me with the plan.

Stone: What did
Mrs. Ralston suggest?

Himes: She would tell
Alan she had been mugged-

would force him
to buy a gun.

was there more
to the plan?

Yes.

She told me I would have
to shoot her, too.

I said, "what?"

She said I would
shoot her...

after she shot him.

Stone: On the night
of the shootings,

did the plan go awry?

I was supposed to be there
before she shot Alan.

But he saw the gun
in her hand,

so she had to shoot him...

before he came
into the stairwell.

who shot
Mrs. Ralston?

I did.

Is this gun, marked
"People's Exhibit 26,"

the one you used
the night of the shootings?

Yes.

Now, Mr. Himes,
please tell the jury...

what happened...

after Mrs. Ralston
talked to the police

at the Hamstead Hotel.

She called me
- Janet called me from a payphone.

Told me I was going
to be arrested

and I should
go along with it.

I said she was going
to hang us both.

Stone: What were her exact words?

She said, "You dumb
son of a bitch.

You'll get
manslaughter two.

Minimum sentence.
Out in a third.

Less than two years. "

"we'll have each other, "

she said.

"And the money. "

Has the jury
reached a verdict?

we have, Your Honor.

will the defendant
please rise?

On the first count
of the indictment,

the charge of murder
in the second degree,

how does the jury find?

we find
the defendant guilty.

Judge: On the second
count of the indictment,

j conspiracy in the first degree,

how does the jury find?

we find
the defendant guilty.

Janet Ralston's
planning to sue her lawyer.

She doesn't quit.

You reach any conclusions?

I'm trying
to forget her.

Two men
in love with her.

Kills one, ready to
sell out the other.

what is it?
Greed? Power?

Evil?

I thought you didn't
believe in evil.

I never met
Janet Ralston before.

She's either evil
or she's two years old.

She wants what she wants
when she wants it.

That's cute.