Law & Order (1990–2010): Season 11, Episode 14 - A Losing Season - 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.

Did you see how she
grabbed the centerpiece?

SIDNEY: I saw.

(SCOFFS) Thinks
she owns the world.

It was the same at the buffet.

Like it was a...
A hotel.

It was a hotel.



Oh, but that's his side
of the family, not ours.

(CAR HONKING)

(CRASHING)

(EXCLAIMS) Are you okay?

Check the cake!

(MEN SPEAKING
FOREIGN LANGUAGE)

What the hell's
the matter with you?

It's a red light,
for crying out loud!

(MEN ARGUING
IN FOREIGN LANGUAGE)

Don't you talk English?

Hey... Hey!

There's damage here!

SARA: Oh, my God!

Black female, mid-20s.
Multiple gunshot wounds.



The paramedics had a time
getting her out of the trunk.

Alive?

They were working on her and
the baby when they left.

ED: Oh, God, baby?

EMS medic said
she was pregnant.

Any ID?

Her purse was
in the trunk with her.

Dena Meredith, 112,
Flatbush Avenue, Brooklyn.

Same address on
the insurance card.

Ignition's popped...

There's some stuff
in the back seat.

Shopping bags and auto parts.

BMW rims, Blaupunkt radio.

Boosters.

Yeah, I take it, it
wasn't those two, huh?

Sidney and Sara Rosenberg.
They were in the Cadillac.

ED: Mr. and Mrs. Rosenberg,
we're with the police.

Can you tell us
what happened here?

I hurt my neck.

(STAMMERING) We were coming home
from our nephew's bar mitzvah.

At The Pierre.

I was stopped at the light.

They hit us from behind.

I got out to see what the
damage was, and they ran.

SARA: How's that
poor girl?

We're hoping
she'll be all right.

Can you identify them?

Uh, two white kids.
More, I didn't see.

The older one had a cast here.

Older? How could you tell
in the dark who was older?

The other one looked just like
my cousin's son, Stanley.

Also a wild one.

BRISCOE: Did you see
which way they went?

They ran this way,
right up the street.

Did they say anything?

They didn't talk English.
Sounded like, what?

I should know?

Thanks.

She lost a lot of blood.
She's in a coma.

She gonna make it?

Fifty-fifty, at best.

What about the baby?

Twenty-nine weeks. We were able
to deliver him via C-section.

He's touch and go, too.

Another half hour, they
both would've been dead.

Can you tell us how long she was lying
in the trunk after she got shot?

Oh, it'd be a guess,

but given the nature
of the wounds

and the amount of blood loss,
I'd say two or three hours.

Is there anything else?

Can you give us a call when
she regains consciousness?

If.

Dena's a good girl.
Got a nice job at the bank.

Worked her way up, too.

She's in the loan department.

Who would do this to her?

We're trying to
figure that out, ma'am.

Shoot a pregnant woman
for a car.

I don't understand.

Mrs. Meredith...

Do you have any idea where
your daughter was last night?

(SIGHS)

She called in the afternoon.
4:00.

Said she was going out
to dinner in the city.

I told her she shouldn't
be running around.

Not in her condition.

She just laughed.

Said I worry too much.

MAN: Dorothy...

DOROTHY: Miles!

These men are detectives.

This is Miles Hawthorne,
the baby's father.

Have you found the
person who did this?

We're working on it.

BRISCOE: We were just about
to ask your mother-in-law,

if she knew where Dena
went to dinner last night,

or who she went with.

I thought she was with you.

No.

Mrs. Meredith,
I can take you up

to see your grandson
now if you like.

Yes, please.
If that's okay.

Oh, yeah.
You go ahead.

MILES: I'll be right up.

Actually, she's not
my mother-in-law.

Dena and I were supposed
to get married in June.

You two live together?

Dena's pretty
independent minded.

Wanted to keep her own place
till we tied the knot.

You said she didn't
have dinner with you.

When was the last
time you saw her?

The bank closes
at 1:00 on Saturday.

By the time we got done
with the paperwork,

we didn't leave
until 2:00.

So, you work at the bank, too?

I'm the manager. Uh,
People's Bank of Harlem.

So after the bank
closed, then what?

I went home,

and Dena and Cheryl went
shopping for baby clothes.

Cheryl?

Cheryl Treadwell. She
works in Human Resources.

Just for the record, uh, what
did you do after you got home?

Watched some of
the St. John's game.

Had something to eat.

After that, I went out.

Played some squash
with friends.

And last night?

(SIGHING) Got some
takeout, rented a movie...

Crashed.

So the last time
that you and Dena

spoke to each other
was when you left work?

Dena mentioned she might
have dinner with Cheryl.

I thought that's where she was.

Layettes, baby clothes,
car seats.

There was this
humongous registry list.

We spent the whole afternoon.

Anything unusual about her mood?
Her behavior?

Uh, aside from hormones, no.

Any problems
with her boyfriend?

Miles? He's a saint.

Worships the ground
she walk on.

What time did you
two get done shopping?

Dena dropped me
off around 6:00.

And you were going to
have dinner together?

Uh, she bagged on that.

Said she was wiped out
from all the shopping.

And she didn't mention
any other plans?

No. She just said she was going
to head home to Brooklyn.

Fender-bender
happened around 11:00,

and the doctor puts the
shooting at about 8:00.

Forensics indicates
she was shot

while she was in the trunk.

Slugs were from a .45.

Any prints?
Nothing so far.

They did find scratch marks on
the trunk lock from the inside,

like she was working on
it with something.

Must've been why
it popped open.

So she was forced inside
before she was shot,

then struggled to escape.

Not a pleasant thought.

All right, say
she was nabbed at 7:30,

that still leaves
a one and a half hour gap

from the time Dena
dropped Cheryl Treadwell off.

BRISCOE: We're running down her cell
phone records and credit cards.

Dena told her boyfriend that she was
gonna go have dinner with Cheryl

then she told Cheryl she changed
her mind and she was going home.

But she didn't. Why?

(KNOCKING ON DOOR)
Ed, line three.

Detective Green.

So, what do you have
on the boyfriend?

BRISCOE: His alibi
seems to check out.

From all indications,
he's a stand-up guy.

No priors, steady employment.

And Dena's mother's
his biggest fan.

Well, that says something.

Yeah, all right. Thanks.

That was auto. We got a
hit on the Blaupunkt.

What's this code?

I never heard anything
about a code.

BMW radios are manufactured
with an encoded chip,

which is specific to the
car it's registered to.

Ah! So, you found
my radio, huh?

Great.

If you happen to see a few wheels
and an engine, let me know.

My car was stolen
four months ago.

ED: Four months ago?

Yeah, some cops raided a
chop shop up in the Bronx

back in November.

They showed up with
one of my front doors.

And now you guys
bring me my radio.

At this rate, I figure I ought
to get the whole car back

in about seven years.

Do you remember the cop's name
who brought you the door?

No. Had me fill out
some forms. Uh...

An affidavit for the,
uh, Grand Jury.

BRISCOE: You got a copy of it?
Yeah. Bedroom.

Yeah, in the glove compartment.

(CHUCKLING)

A grand larceny indictment
would cause most people

to reconsider
their line of work.

Yeah, but not you, right, Bob?

You just opened another
chop shop someplace else.

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

Come on, man. We talked
to the Bronx D.A.

We found out you were
running the largest

stolen auto parts operation
on Jerome Avenue.

BRISCOE: Where you
running it out of now?

My client's put
his past behind him.

He's exploring other
business opportunities now.

Oh, yeah?

You mean like attempted murder?

What?

We found a pregnant woman
in the trunk of a car

that was boosted.

She was shot three times.

What makes you think
my client's involved?

There were stolen auto parts
in it that matched vehicles

that were seized
in the chop shop.

But they never found your
warehouse, did they, Bob?

If my client cooperates,
what's in it for him?

If his information is
good, we talk to the D.A.

and we turn this indictment
into a misdemeanor.

Okay.

We're looking for two guys.
Early 20s.

One of 'em had
a cast on his right arm.

Gabor.

Gabor Hartunian.

Hey! Anybody
lose a radio?

Who are you?
The Car Fairy.

Put your hands
behind your back.

Lennie...

ED: Gabor Hartunian,
I presume.

Careful.
Don't hurt his hand.

Where were you Saturday night?
Home.

This is before or after
you took the Camry?

I don't know about Camry.

And you bought this
wholesale, right?

Never see it before.

Sarkisian gave you up, Mark.
How do you think we found you?

BRISCOE: Did you know
that woman was pregnant?

What woman?

(BOTH SPEAKING
FOREIGN LANGUAGE)

No, no woman.
Just car.

Shut up, Gabor.

Yes, woman. You shoot.

Me? No shoot.

What about him?
He shoot?

Whoa, whoa.
Nobody shoot no one.

You should've made
sure she was dead.

Now she's gonna be
able to identify you.

Yeah, not to mention
the couple you rear-ended.

You're gonna be as old as they
are by the time you get out.

No shoot no woman.

(SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE)

Tell the truth.

The car was in a lot
on the west side.

What lot?

Twelfth Avenue and 66th Street.
By the river.

Why that car?

Sarkisian need Camry parts.

You expect us to
believe you two mopes

just happened to pick a Camry

that had a half-dead
woman in the trunk?

I swear on my father's grave.

How do I know
your father's dead?

No shoot no woman.

Well, what time was this?

Around 10:30. We broke into the
car and drive it off the lot.

That's it.

And then he hit that other car.

We never even
looked in the trunk.

(KNOCKING ON DOOR)

You know, as much as I
want to close this case,

my gut tells me
we're wasting our time.

They're just punks.

Forensics turn up anything?

Well, they found their
prints inside the car,

but nowhere near the trunk.

(SIGHING) Well, if it's
not these two guys,

we're looking at a blank wall.

Well, let's just get search warrants
for both their homes just in case.

PEREZ: Lieutenant,
the hospital just called.

Dena Meredith died
30 minutes ago.

(SIGHING) That baby.

What away to enter the world.

How'd it go?

Dumb and Dumber came up clean
on the search of their homes.

Not much here either.

Dena Meredith's utility
bills, address book.

Ed, cell phone IUDs,

log from the day of the murder,

and this is from
the credit card company.

Thanks, Reina.

One-minute call to her
home number at 3:27 p.m.

Probably checking
her answering machine.

Another call at 4:05.

Three minutes to Jersey.

Her mother said she
called at 4:00, right?

You got her mother's
number over there?

Whoa, listen to this.

Credit card charge
for $14 at Lot 61.

Saturday, 7:20 p.m.

That's about an hour
before she got shot.

You know this Lot 61?

Yeah, it's a spot downtown.

One last hurrah.

Yeah, I remember her.

She was wearing some maternity
thing Still pretty cute.

She came in here alone?

Said she was waiting
for someone.

We were packed, so I
made some room for her

at the end of the bar
and got her a snack.

A $14 snack?

So do you know if her
date ever showed up here?

About 10 minutes later.
Two guys.

You ever seen them
in here before?

Nope.

So, what happened next?

Well, they hung out with her
for a few minutes and left.

BRISCOE: She left
with the two guys?

Seemed like she knew 'em.

She in some kind of trouble?

Not anymore.

Did anybody else
see them leave?

Yeah. Uh, check with Dom.

He's like the Pope
of 21st Street.

Yeah, these two brothers rolled up
in this champagne-colored Lexus.

Gave me a C-note
to watch it.

Kind of sticks on a player's
mind, know what I mean?

You catch their names?

One of the cats
I seen around before.

Uh, Henry.

Other dude had
a scar on his face.

I never saw him before.

This Henry have a last name?

I'm sure he does,

but we're not exactly on a
last name basis around here.

Champagne Lexus.
You mean the SUV?

Oh, word to the mother,
man. The whole package,

tricked out from
top to bottom, baby.

ED: Any idea where
he got it from?

Nah. I didn't ask.

It's not exactly in
a player's budget.

But he was all up in my grill
about watching it for him.

I think he said he had just picked
it up somewhere in midtown.

So you say the two men
went in together,

and a few minutes later,
they came out with the girl?

Yeah. When they came out,
the dude with the scar,

went off
with the pregnant lady.

They all came out of the club
together, then they split up?

They might've been
going to the same spot.

'Cause see, what happened
was the dude came out,

then he said something to
Henry about following him.

Any idea where they were going?

You got me there, baby.

Hey, man, thank you.
You got it. Take care.

All right.
Take care of yourself, huh?

You, too.

I think there's only one
Lexus dealership in Midtown.

We need to know how many
you've sold in the past month.

Champagne only.

Oh, that's, uh, 18 units
since New Year's.

All with the full
option package?

Well, let's see.

(CHATTERING ON PA)

That narrows it down to 10.

How about five-star
chrome rims?

Booming system? Leather interior?
Our premium package?

Yeah.

Now we're at four.

You got a list?

Printing.

Either of you gentlemen
in the market?

It's about a year's pay.

Here.

Anybody you recognize?

BOY 1: Ricky, Ricky,
can you sign this?

Hey, Chris, could you
sign my ball?

Yeah, sure, man.
What's up?

Chris, come on, Chris.

Uh, I'll see you guys, I'll see you.
Sorry about that.

See you, kids.

Mr. Cody...

Uh, that's just
for the kids, fellas.

Detectives Green and Briscoe.

We're just here to ask you
a couple of questions.

Questions?
About what?

About a champagne Lexus?

My Lexus?
I just bought it.

What happened to my ride?

Your ride may have been involved
in an incident Saturday night.

An incident?
What, like an accident?

ED: You give somebody named
Henry the keys to it?

Henry Williams.

Henry was seen
driving your Lexus.

I let him drive
my car sometimes.

But I still don't understand
what this is about.

A woman was shot.

Killed with a .45.

Whoa, whoa.
Slow down there.

You say Henry shot some lady?

ED: Her name
is Dena Meredith.

BRISCOE: She was pregnant.

There's no way Henry shot her.
How do you know that?

Because I know Henry.

Don't take this the wrong way,

but where were you Saturday
night around 8:00?

I was at the Excelsior. I had
a party for some friends.

Left around midnight.

That's kind of late. Didn't you
have a game on Sunday afternoon?

I don't need much sleep
to sit on the bench.

I've been having some
problems with my foot.

So, uh, where do we find Henry?

Bed-Stuy.

(UPBEAT MUSIC PLAYING)

ls Henry Williams here?

Talented girl.
You could do worse.

Yeah, Chris called me.

Said y'all was busting about
some girl getting killed.

I don't know
a damn thing about it.

That's not what
we heard, Henry.

Well, you heard wrong.

Oh, so you weren't at Lot
61 on Saturday night?

Me and a hundred other people.

The other 100 didn't drive
away with Dena Meredith.

Neither did I.

Man, I don't even know
who you're talking about.

You know what, Henry?
We believe you.

But you're going to have
to convince our lieutenant.

So, come on. You want
to go with us now.

If that's what it's gonna take.

I'll follow you.

No, not this trip, Henry.

Yeah, Detective Green,
badge number 3472.

We need a vehicle impounded.

ED: Narcotics. Six
arrests, two convictions.

That's just business, man. Ain't
got nothing to do with no murder.

Yeah, but getting in a car
with a woman who ends up dead

has plenty to do with it.

Look, man, I told you, I drove
off from Lot 61 by myself.

Your witness is mistaken,
all right?

You can't hold me on that.

BRISCOE: Yeah?
What about this?

Your license was suspended
two months ago.

What's that got to
do with anything?

Driving without a license
is a parole violation.

Sit down, Henry.

You ain't going nowhere.

(KNOCKING ON DOOR)

SUV's clean, but the Lieutenant
thought you should see this.

What's that, man? My
report card or something?

ED: It's the loan
agreement for the Lexus.

What's that got to do with me?

It's from the
People's Bank of Harlem

BRISCOE: Dena Meredith
was the loan officer.

But I guess you
already knew that.

I want a lawyer.

You're saying this
might be work related?

JACK: We don't
know that yet.

What we do know is that there's a
connection between the car loan

that Dena made to Chris Cody

and a drug dealer
named Henry Williams.

Whatever Dena may have done,
whatever she was involved with,

she certainly got more
than she deserved.

What does he mean, "What
she was involved with"?

What's he talking about?

I tried to tell her
to be careful,

that these people were out of her
league, but she wouldn't listen.

What people?

Chris Cody.

What about Chris Cody?

Dena was writing loans for him.
Him and his friend.

Henry Williams?

She told me she was setting
up businesses for Cody.

That he was putting money
back into the community.

It was drug money.

She started at that bank
right out of high school.

This guy was famous.

She got dragged
into the whole trip.

You know, parties,
clothes, even the drugs.

Dena never did any damn drugs.

Miles, she was my best friend.

Why didn't you come
forward before?

Because I thought
what everyone thought.

That this was
just a freak thing.

You know, a carjacking
or something.

He was famous, Miles.

According to Cheryl Treadwell, Dena Meredith
processed a number of loans for Cody.

But almost all the money ended
up, one way or another,

in the hands of Henry Williams.

To finance what?

A variety
of start-up businesses,

basically cashing in
on Cody's name.

Any of them legit?

Williams has a long sheet
for narcotics convictions.

I'd say legit's a stretch.

What about the boyfriend?
The bank's manager?

He relied on her judgment.

Well, let's suppose Williams
used the money to finance drugs.

The question is, did Chris
Cody know about it?

The loans Chris made
were simply the case

of one friend lending
a helping hand to another.

You're telling me your client was unaware
of the background of Henry Williams?

They're friends.
Boyhood friends.

Chris wanted
to get him started.

If it hadn't been
for basketball,

I might've been
just like Henry.

There are a lot of people
who don't play basketball

who don't wind up
selling drugs, Mr. Cody.

Well, I think the point here is that
my client hasn't done any wrong.

Then why lie to the police
about knowing Dena Meredith?

That was my fault.

I told Chris that
he should tell them

he had no knowledge
of Ms. Meredith's death.

That was a miscommunication.

And for that I take
full responsibility.

Then you did know
Ms. Meredith?

I met her at the bank,
arranging a loan for Henry.

Chris and his business
managers did a number

of substantial transactions
through Ms. Meredith.

And what was all
this money for?

CHRIS: Honestly, I didn't
pay much attention.

I mean, Henry would
pitch some ideas,

I'd run 'em by my managers.

If they were good,
I gave him the money.

I was just trying to put
something back in the community.

Just so we're clear,

so there aren't any
more miscommunications,

you're saying
you have no knowledge

why Henry Williams might
have killed Dena Meredith?

I'm saying I don't
think Henry did it.

Over the last two years, Cody
gave Williams over $300,000.

All that money went through Dena
Meredith as business loans,

which Cody's accountants
then wrote off.

So, he has the taxpayers
footing half the bill.

It gets better.

When the bank came to Cody

to make good on
some of the loans,

he claimed financial hardship.

With his contract?

It's in its last year, and
negotiations for a new one

haven't been going well.

Stress fracture.

According to his
medical records,

the doctor put a pin
in his right foot.

But there's also something
else on the record.

He was in a drug program.

He rehabbed while he was
out with the foot injury.

That's how he and the team
kept if from the league.

Drug use by a star player isn't exactly
the type of PR the team's looking for.

So you didn't report it?

Well, we have to work closely
with the Player's Association,

and the rules allowing us to demand
a drug test are very specific.

Without absolute proof, the union
won't let us near their people.

So why did Cody agree
to a drug program

if you couldn't
prove he was using?

Well, A, if he didn't participate,
we would have gone to the league.

And B, we showed him reports about
the people he was hanging out with.

People we considered to be less
than, uh, savory characters.

Henry Williams.

After his foot surgery, the GM
told him that if he didn't rehab,

he'd be a salary
cap casualty next season.

These people were throwing, uh, late
night parties, providing hookers.

Then we got word about a
banger named Marcus Cole.

When he showed up,
we really got scared.

Scared of what?

That's his sheet.

Twelve years for homicide.
Six for drug possession.

Currently on parole.

Certainly be my first choice
for an invite to a party.

Maybe not enough
for a conviction,

but certainly enough
for a conversation.

(BASKETBALL GAME
PLAYING ON TV)

He's in the living room.

What you watching, Marcus?

Don't get up on our account.
Come on.

Hey, what's all
this about, huh?

We're from the Neilsen ratings.

Look, man, I don't know
nothing about nothing.

See, we already know that. 'Cause if
you did know anything about anything,

you'd know not to keep a
semi-automatic .45 caliber pistol

in a shoe box under your bed.

My office is running the gun
through ballistics as we speak.

Now, this is just a wild guess,

but we think that's the gun that
was used to murder Dena Meredith.

Now, see, y'all ain't
got no probable cause

to be searching
my stuff like that.

That's poison
from the fruit tree.

Remember Sing Sing,
Mr. Cole?

Specifically the day
you got out?

That's your signature
on a release form

consenting to searches of your
person and your residence

at the request
of your parole officer.

And guess who me and my partner

spoke to before we dropped by.

Game's over, Mr. Cole. And once
that ballistic report comes in,

I don't need you anymore.

It's as simple as that.

(SIGHS)

So what you gonna
do for me, huh?

I mean, it's four letters no
matter how you look at it.

There's a difference
between life

and life with no
possibility of parole.

In another 25 years,
don't you at least

want the chance to sign
a piece of paper like that?

Twenty.

It depends on how good
the information is.

Oh, it's good.
It's real good.

According to Cole, the murder
was orchestrated by Chris Cody.

Why, in God's name?

Claims not to know.
What he will say is,

that he was approached
by Henry Williams

and paid $18,000
on Cody's behalf.

Do we have any corroboration?

There was an $18,000 withdrawal
from one of Cody's bank accounts

two days before the murder.

Let's bring him in.

I've already
telephoned his lawyer

and the team's general counsel
to arrange a surrender.

Good.

I'd like him processed with as
little fanfare as possible.

(KNOCKING ON DOOR)

I just spoke to the
team's practice facility.

Cody didn't show up
this morning.

Briscoe and Green are
checking his apartment.

LEWIN: Notify the airlines.

They're already on it.

(SIGHS)

So much for lack of fanfare.

The morning doorman at his building
saw him leave around 6:30.

The police checked
with the garage

where Cody keeps his cars.

He ordered his Jaguar
around the same time.

The attendant saw him
get in and drive away.

They put out his plates,
make and model.

I'm asking for your
cooperation, Mr. Garnett.

I can't vouch for his safety if he doesn't
peaceably surrender to authorities.

I told you, I spoke
with him last night.

Now, obviously, I can't divulge
the substance of our discussions,

but he seemed fine.

And you have no idea
where he'd go?

None.

I'm telling you that as
an officer of the court.

I have...
Yes, I'm here.

Mmm-hmm.

Mmm, okay.
All right, thanks.

He's at his mother's house.

Well, uh, at least I think so.

He picked up a girlfriend,
a Charlene Bettie,

at her home in Brooklyn
around 7:30 this morning.

Where's his mother live?

Riverdale.

Is he still inside? Yeah. Two
of my men knocked on the door.

Saw an upstairs window
curtain move, then nothing.

Couple of minutes later,
we heard woman scream.

We were about to go in,
when she came out.

Charlene?
Yeah.

What happened?

(SOBBING) He's just...
He's freaking out.

I thought we were going for a
ride in the country or something.

But then he drove here.

The cops showed up, and he...
ED: It's okay.

Do you know where
he is in the house?

In the upstairs
bedroom, I think.

Or at least he was...

And he's got a gun.

I think he's going to kill himself.
I really do.

Thanks.
It's gonna be okay.

Has anybody tried
to contact him?

Yeah, I tried to call him.
He didn't pick up.

Neighbor says his
mother's down south.

All right, look, we don't want
to step on anybody's toes here,

but we know this guy. You mind if
we try to start a conversation?

Hey, if you're volunteering,
I'm all for happy endings.

Now, come on,
I'll take you inside.

ED: Chris?

Chris?

It's Detectives Green and Briscoe.
You remember us?

CHRIS: Don't come up here.

You all right, Chris?

Hey, Chris, we're coming
up to talk, all right?

CHRIS: I said don't!

Just to talk, that's all.

Chris?

Chris...

You okay?

(SOBBING) Stay away from me.

Easy, easy.

I never meant
for any of it to happen.

We know you didn't.

Just put the gun down, Chris,
and nobody'll get hurt.

Has anybody talked to Henry?

'Cause he can
set this straight.

We can do that, man.
We can talk to Henry.

But first, we gotta
take care of this.

Look, you don't
understand, man.

I gotta set this
straight! I gotta!

I tried...

I tried to tell her.

Don't! Don't!
Don't do that, Chris.

You got a lot of people
cheering for you every night.

You got a lot
of fans out there.

You don't want to
go out like this.

Think about the kids, Chris.
The ones who wear your number.

(SIGHING)

All right.
I'm sorry, man.

My client wants to
set the record straight.

He had a chance once before.
He knows that.

I won't promise anything.

Have you talked to Henry?

JACK: He's being
produced for arraignment.

He hasn't been interviewed yet.

Look, this is hard, man.
Henry and me...

He owed some people money.

Money for what?

Drugs.

Now, I don't know their names,

but they fronted him
for some coke.

And I was supposed to give him
the money, only I couldn't.

Dena said the bank wouldn't
give me any more loans.

What about your cars?
Your co-op?

Look, it's all borrowed.

Borrowed time, my mom said.

Look, anyway,
Henry didn't believe me.

He thought I was trying
to back out on the deal.

So he said he would make
Dena give him the loan.

Marcus Cole says it was you who
wanted Dena Meredith killed.

I had no reason to kill Dena.

Unless it was to silence
her about the drug money.

$18,000 was withdrawn
from your account

two days before her murder.

Henry said the dealers would
wait for the rest of their money

if he could give them
the 18 grand,

so that's what I did.

But that's all I did.

You believe him?
Who knows?

The drug dealers have no names,

and Dena Meredith
certainly isn't around

to help us figure it all out.

Briscoe and Green
talked to Williams.

He had nothing to say.

That was before his best friend
sold him down the river.

I already told you, I
ain't got nothing to say.

That's too bad,

because Marcus Cole and Chris
Cody have a lot to say.

Cody claims that you killed Dena
Meredith over some drug money.

I assume this is
all off the record?

Chris is my brother.

JACK: He rolled on you,
Mr. Williams.

He said he refused
to give you money

you needed to
pay off a drug buy.

That's a lie.

We also have a witness that
puts you with Cole and Dena

just hours before her death.

Are you being straight with me?

Chris told you that this was
about me and some drugs?

He's letting you take the fall.

He's counting on a jury not
believing a word you say.

Chris wouldn't do that.

He already has.

Damn. Chris, he's got
no kind of character, man.

All he could ever
do was play ball.

If I, um...

If I tell you the truth,
what happens?

Twenty-to-life,
same as Cole.

And Chris, he... He gonna
be up in there with me?

You'll be waving goodbye
to him when you get out.

This ain't got nothing
to do with no drugs.

Chris is the father
of that girl's baby.

According to Williams, Cody
didn't want to pay child support.

Professional athlete
making millions.

In his mind, murder
was a viable option.

It's all part of the Chris
Cody entitlement program.

He's gotten by on
talent his whole life.

As long as he performed
on the court,

he always had people ready
to clean up his mess.

Now, I don't think the
responsibility for this

rests entirely
on his shoulders.

I think that's exactly
where it belongs.

You know, the fact is, a ghetto
kid turned pro sells tickets.

The thug life image, that's
what gets him on ESPN,

that's what gets him
his endorsements.

So...

So we encourage
it as a society,

and then clobber him when
it spills off the court.

A big part of sports
is entertainment.

An athlete forgets his image
is just that, an image.

The fault's his, not society's.

What about these loans?

Obviously for drugs. Had
nothing to do with the murder.

You can prove the baby's his?

JACK: Miles Hawthorne
has agreed to cooperate.

We'll confirm paternity with a
DNA test as soon as he comes in.

Chris Cody hired
me to kill her.

Why?

Chris said she was
pregnant with his baby.

See, she called Chris
up the day before,

said she needed to talk
to him about the kid.

I guess to make arrangements,

being that the due date
was near and all.

That's why he wanted me
to kill her that night.

He said she was gonna run back

and tell her family about
the baby and what not,

and by then it'd be too late.

JACK: Too late for what?

He'd have to pay.

I mean, he already had that
one kid down in Florida.

Said he wasn't
gonna pay for two.

And you agreed to kill her?

At first, you know,
I just kind of laughed.

'Cause it's like, I know Chris.

Known him since
we was little kids.

Chris has never really
been the type to be down

for no real gangster stuff.

I mean, he could play
the part and all of that,

but deep down inside, I didn't
think he had it in him.

But he did.

He sure did.

Nothing further.

(CLEARING THROAT)

You're a convicted drug dealer
facing a murder charge?

That's right.

And you were offered
a plea bargain

in order to secure
your testimony today?

Twenty-to-life.

You must've had something pretty
important they wanted, huh, Henry?

Say, like a pro
basketball player.

Objection.

Sustained.

That money Chris gave you,
that 18,000,

that wasn't the only money
he ever gave you, was it?

He'd given you money
before to buy drugs.

That's right.

Only this time, this last
time, he said no, didn't he?

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

Well, he cut you
off, Mr. Williams.

Only you still owed money.

Money for drugs you'd been
fronted, isn't that right?

You killed this woman because my client
wouldn't give you any more money,

isn't that right?

We killed her because
Chris asked me to.

You were the shooter?

Yeah, that's right.

How much were you paid?

Eighteen thousand.

How was the murder committed?

Henry set it up for her to
come to this bar downtown.

When she got there, she
got in her car with me,

we followed Henry to where we
told her Chris was gonna be at.

Where was that?

This street up in the Heights.

When we got there,
I put a gun to her head,

told her to get in the trunk.

Drove to this parking lot,

opened the trunk up,

put a cap in her,

went to where Chris was at
and told him it was done.

JACK: Where was Chris Cody?

Party at a hotel.

What was his reaction
when he was told?

Well, he was cool with it.

(CLEARING THROAT)

Did you ever, uh,
talk with Chris Cody

about killing Dena Meredith?

I can't remember.

Well, isn't it true that you never
personally spoke with Chris Cody?

That all your information concerning
this murder came from Henry Williams?

The 18 grand came from Chris.

But it was Henry
who gave it to you.

Henry's his boy.

All right, now when
you said before that

Chris was, uh, "Cool with
it," with the murder...

Were you present
when he said that?

Look, we was all at the party.

Henry came up to me and told
me everything was cool.

Oh.

Nothing further.

I first met Dena a couple
of years ago, at the bank.

I went in with Henry
about a loan.

And eventually you had
an intimate relationship.

Yes.

Did you know you were the
father of her baby, Chris?

At the time?
No. I did not.

I mean, of course,
I knew she was pregnant,

but she was about to
marry another man.

So, no, I had no idea.

Now, what about what Henry
Williams told this jury?

CHRIS: Henry and I
go way back.

I've always helped him out,
which is why this is so hard,

what he's trying to do to me.

Maybe everyone was right.

Maybe if I hadn't have bailed
him out all this time,

maybe if I had made him
take responsibility for...

I don't know.

Did you have anything to do with
the death of Dena Meredith?

Absolutely not.

You're upset Mr. Williams
isn't taking responsibility

for you, isn't that really it?
CHRIS: No.

The way people have always
taken responsibility for you?

I've taken care of myself.

Have you?

In college, didn't you get
your coach to bail you out,

when your grades threatened
your basketball eligibility?

That was different.

And when you went
into drug rehab,

you had your team cover that
up for you, didn't you?

Object to the form of the question.
"Cover up"?

Rephrase, Mr. McCoy.

You had your team

keep your drug use out of the
public eye, isn't that right?

They didn't want people to
know any more than I did.

And that's exactly what you've
always counted on, isn't it?

That your athletic ability would
make people look the other way.

I don't use people.

Didn't you use Dena Meredith?

Didn't you use her
to give you money?

Money that you knew
would be used to buy drugs?

She was getting her bonuses.

So using her was okay, then?

Now, if you knew

you hadn't done wrong,

why did you lie
to two detectives

when you were asked about
knowing Dena Meredith?

That was a mistake.

JACK: And what you said when you
surrendered at your mother's house,

was that another mistake?

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

You told Detective Green
that you tried to tell her.

Tried to tell her
what, Mr. Cody?

That you didn't want
this baby, isn't that it?

I tried to warn her.

Warn her?

About what?

You've already testified you didn't
know what Henry was going to do.

You knew you were the father,

and when she came to you, you did
what you've done your whole life.

You took care of yourself.

GARNETT: Objection. Ls there
a question here, Your Honor?

Were these people using you,

or were you using them?

Mr. McCoy can paint whatever
picture he wants of Chris Cody,

but the truth is,

he can't prove any of it.

The only evidence against
Chris Cody is the testimony,

the word of two
convicted drug dealers.

One who admittedly had
dealings with the victim,

and the other,

who never personally
spoke with Mr. Cody.

The simple fact is,

Chris Cody never knew he was
the father of this child.

And if he never knew,

he had no motive
for killing Dena Meredith.

This man rose from nothing

to become a respected
person in his community.

A champion for this city.

He spent his own money
in his old neighborhood,

never forgotten
where he came from,

never forgotten who he was.

Don't you forget him now.

Don't you let these people
trade on his celebrity

in order to steal his
liberty and his good name.

He pulled himself up out of
hell with his own hands.

Don't you dare let them pull
him back down with theirs.

"Pulled himself out of
hell with his own hands."

More like he stepped on others
in his climb to the top.

Listen to his
self-serving story,

and ask yourselves
if it makes any sense.

He claims he didn't know he
was the father of this child.

Says Dena Meredith
never told him.

Yet somehow
Henry Williams knew.

He claims he had
no motive to kill.

But he had the same
motive to kill

that he attributes
to Henry Williams.

Silencing a witness who could
implicate him in drug trafficking.

And he had a second
motive all his own.

To avoid paying child support.

This is no champion,
ladies and gentlemen.

This is no favorite son.

This is a man who
got by on his talent,

had others willing to look
the other way because of it,

had others willing to do his bidding
in order to profit from it.

A child taken from
its dying mother's womb,

will have to struggle
to survive without her.

Dena Meredith's mother will have
to make it without her daughter.

It's time to stop
cheering for this man,

and for his ability
to play ball.

It's time to stop fretting
over the opportunities

supposedly lost to him,

and time to start thinking

about the opportunities

and the lives

stolen by him.

JUDGE: Mr. Foreman, I understand
the jury's reached a verdict.

We have.

On the first count
of the indictment,

charging murder
in the first degree,

we find the defendant,
Christopher Cody,

guilty,

Life without parole.

He won't be able to
play his way out of that.

What do we hear
about the child?

Doing fine.

A man murders the mother of his
baby to avoid child support

and winds up paying
for the rest of his life.

Losing season
all the way around.