Law & Order (1990–2010): Season 13, Episode 8 - Asterisk - full transcript
A star baseball player accused of killing a limo driver claims that "roid rage" made him do it.
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.
"Just light it up here.
No one will even notice."
How was I supposed to know
there was a cop up the street?
Because you were
supposed to be watching.
Look on the bright side. At
least you won't have a record.
Yeah, not to mention the
great workout I'm getting.
You know what your problem is?
You don't know how to
look on the bright side.
You know what Lincoln said.
Leslie, call the supervisor.
"Most people are about as happy as
they make their minds up to be."
Leslie, would you quit the damn
psychobabble and get the supervisor?
What, why?
Oh, my God.
Wallet's gone.
No ID.
You thinking it was a mugging?
Can't think of a
more amenable spot.
One of my guys found a piece of
paper with some scribble on it
in the DOA's jacket pocket.
I wanna get a look at that before
it goes to the lab, all right?
You got it.
Neck was snapped
like a stalk of celery.
I hate celery.
It's good for you, man.
There you go.
Body temp tells me he's a
relatively new arrival.
Dead maybe 12, 14 hours.
Twelve to 14 hours?
You sure about that?
Give or take. No external
wounds or obvious bruising.
Hey, maybe we're looking
at a real act of God?
I doubt God needed
his watch, cash and keys.
Have fun, this guy's
handwriting's worse than mine.
That shouldn't be a problem. Lennie
takes my messages sometimes.
I'm fluent in scribble.
Looks like a to-do list.
"Pick up dry cleaning,
"photos,
flowers for Suzy..."
Looks like Suzy will be
the one sending flowers.
Ripped By mstoll
No defensive wounds, no
bruising around the neck,
which was snapped like a...
I know, like a stalk of celery.
I was going to say like a twig.
But celery's good.
So he went without a struggle?
Yeah, I'm thinking it went
down too quick to fight back.
Oh, and I'm betting that
the bad guy was a lefty.
Oh, this is going to be good.
Now, I'm a righty. If I wanted to
snap your neck, I'd go like this.
And just the opposite
for a lefty.
The crack in his spinal column was
at a downward angle like this.
Now if you can only tell us
what he was doing in the park.
What makes you think I can't?
He was found face down, right?
Yeah.
Blood pooled in
the posterior cavities,
so unless this guy
was able to defy gravity...
He was killed somewhere
else and then dumped.
Damn litterbugs.
Any identifying marks?
You mean something like this?
(BUZZING)
So I'm a few days late
renewing my license,
I still run a kosher shop.
Mr. Pina, that ain't
why we're here.
If it's that parole thing...
Ralph, maybe you oughta
keep your mouth shut
before you talk
yourself into a felony.
Come on, we need your expertise.
Yeah? Always wanted to
be an expert witness.
Oh, don't jump the gun, huh?
What about this guy?
Is he one of your clients?
Never seen him.
What about this tattoo?
Nice work.
Only one guy who
does flames like that.
Name's Hades.
He got a real name?
I thought that was it.
Where can we find
the artist known as Hades?
Try artist formerly known as Hades.
He's dead.
Died in a motorcycle
accident two months ago.
Okay, how about this?
This have any special meaning?
I don't do Japanese.
Nam. Two tours.
I know it's not the same,
but I still get spooked.
And what's in it for me?
That cup of coffee's as
good as it's gonna get.
Your partner, he only calls
when he wants something cheap.
Yeah, but I have your number
on speed dial, Detective.
"Ike." It means "Live."
Okay, that solves it.
Not so fast, sport.
Ike is also short for lkedo.
It's a last name.
Ike's a nickname.
You know, like "Sully" for Sullivan
or "Fitzy" for Fitzgerald.
Plus it has a double meaning.
Yeah, can I have the
number for a Suzy lkedo?
In Manhattan.
S. L-K-E-D-O.
Smart guy, my partner, huh?
That's it.
Norman Pratt.
He proposed to me a month ago.
He was saving up
to buy me a real ring.
He said he couldn't wait until
he had the money to ask me.
He made me promise
I'd wear this.
We're sorry, Miss lkedo.
Do you know of anyone that would
want to hurt your fianc??
I can't think of anyone.
Any friends of his he might
have had a falling out with?
Norman was a recovering addict.
So, some of his acquaintances...
BRISCOE: Weren't exactly
model citizens, huh?
But I don't think any of
them would want to hurt him.
Is there a chance that
Norman started using again?
He's been clean almost a year. He's got
a really good program, a good job.
He put his life back together.
ED: What kind
of work was he doing?
He's a limo driver. He was
driving last night, too.
SUZY: At least
that's what he told me.
So what if Norman
was out of rehab?
I got an ex-con
working as a mechanic.
If I don't give these
kids jobs, who will?
Hey, no job,
we all know what happens.
Hey, I'm just doing my part.
So can we assume that Norman
Pratt was a good worker?
No complaints.
Aw, jeez.
I really liked this kid.
But you weren't concerned when he
didn't show up for work this morning?
Why would I even notice?
He has one of your cars, right?
Yeah. It was an overnight
to Atlantic City.
And?
Sorry, we guarantee
confidentiality.
Mr. Bosford, Norman Pratt
was murdered last night.
Do I really have to tell you?
All right, all right,
of course. I'm sorry.
I don't know
what I was thinking.
Good kid like that.
I'll get you the routing sheet.
Kevin Seleeby.
As in Kevin Seleeby
the baseball player?
He uses us all the time.
Norm always drove him.
I always gave him
the plum assignments.
That's the one I hit
my first dinger with.
Wow! I figured you have kept
using it till it cracked.
I would have, but I struck out
the next 10 times at bat.
There's something about me
and a major league slider.
Well, you finally
figured it out.
Yeah, you dance
or you go home, right?
So, what can I do
you gentlemen for?
We had some questions
about Norman Pratt.
Good guy.
Past tense, Kevin.
He was murdered.
Wow.
I mean, he was just
with us last night.
Us?
My agent, Martin Stanley,
and my cousin, Davie.
We went down to Atlantic City.
What time did you get back?
Norman dropped me off
around midnight.
I think.
I couldn't be too sure.
I thought you
booked an overnight.
We lost a little quicker
than we expected.
I hear that.
Damn, poor Norman.
He had a girlfriend,
a fianc?e, somewhere.
Yeah, we spoke to her already.
So, you and Norman
were pretty friendly?
He was cool.
Didn't hassle me for balls,
autographs, stuff like that.
We got to know each other
after a while, sure.
He say anything
about any enemies?
No. Norman was the kind of guy
who always wanted to help out.
He said if there's anything
I want, just ask.
What did he mean by that?
Hey, I'm just a hick
from North Dakota.
I didn't want to
embarrass myself.
Hey, wasn't Maris
from North Dakota?
I've got a signed
picture on my wall.
VAN BUREN: What is it with
the male of the species?
BRISCOE: You got
a couple of months?
Well I'm referring to how you can
just about melt in front of a guy
who can hit a ball with a bat.
All I said was, if the kid stays
healthy he's a lock for Cooperstown.
Yeah, only it's how you said it.
How did I say it?
Like a six year old talking
about a banana split.
Oh, please, like
you're any better?
"Maybe he'll sign
his rookie card for me."
No, see, that was
a business proposition.
That rookie card could put my
grandchildren through medical school.
Moving right along.
Seleeby and friends were the last
guys to see Pratt alive, right?
Oh, ain't no way.
M.E. Said the
doer was a lefty.
What side of the plate
does Seleeby bat from?
Thirty percent
of the league bats lefty.
And that don't
include switch hitters.
Okay, if not Seleeby, then who?
He did say Norman Pratt bragged he
could get his hands on anything.
Like what?
Maybe his fianc?e will know.
I told you, Norman
was off the stuff.
We're not saying he was using,
but what if some of his
passengers wanted some?
He wasn't a pusher if that's
what you're hinting at.
No, not a pusher.
An accommodator.
Look, that ring
he was going to buy you,
a couple of extra bucks
wouldn't hurt the cause.
He's dead. How can you
slander him like this?
Because it might help us find
out why he's dead, Suzy.
There was a guy he
used to buy meth from.
Ellery. Roger Ellery.
Norman called him Doc.
But they haven't seen each other
since Norman got out of rehab.
I'm a doctor, that's
why he called me Doc.
And this is your office?
That's right.
Sort of a Marcus
Welby thing, huh?
Make a lot of house calls?
I'm a PhD in chemistry.
Yeah, and I can guess what
kind of chemicals you cook up.
You can go now.
Lennie, what do you think the good
doctor's got brewing back here?
Beats me.
On my way to the can,
I'll take a look.
ELLERY: You guys are funny.
I hear there's an
opening at Caroline's.
Yeah, we'd check it out, but we're
getting our laughs working a homicide.
We don't care what
you're selling, Doc.
Sure, I knew Norman Pratt.
Yeah, I sold him crystal
meth, crack sometimes.
But I'm not into that anymore.
What are you into?
Oxymetholone.
It's an anabolic steroid.
You mean, like the kind that
athletes ain't supposed to be using?
Athletes like Kevin Seleeby?
Norman might have
mentioned his name.
Now they'll have to put an asterisk
next to his name in the record books.
Just like his idol.
Makes it harder to believe the
Babe hit 60 on hot dogs and beer
during a 154-game
season.
In my book he deserves
an asterisk, too.
Babe Ruth?
He never faced Satchel, did he?
Yeah, Green.
We're five minutes away.
Ah! They found
Pratt's limo.
All right, we'll talk to you.
OFFICER: Vehicle was sticking out
into the lane like three feet.
Like this was his
own personal driveway.
ED: What time
did you find it?
Wrote the ticket
at 11:10.
Just got your APB.
I called CSU to pop the locks,
dust for prints, whatnot.
Nice work, Officer.
Okay, tell me you found
a signed confession.
Other than about a million
prints, this baby's clean.
Hey, Lennie. It says here that
when Norman took the car out,
odometer read 11,622 miles.
So?
Well, now it reads 11,629.
So either they moved Atlantic
City a whole lot closer...
Or Saleeby and his posse
never left Manhattan.
That asterisk is getting
bigger as we speak.
Okay, it's not
like it's a secret.
BRISCOE: Well it's not exactly
public knowledge either.
The guys know.
Hell, most of them
are on it, too.
Yeah, but most of them don't have a
driver that ended up dead in the park.
Look, I told you what I knew.
BRISCOE: The trouble is,
we like fact, not fiction.
Screw you.
Oh, that kind of attitude is not gonna
get you on a Wheaties box, Kev.
We know you didn't go to
Atlantic City, Kevin.
And that means I killed Norman?
No, but it means
that you lied to us.
Yeah, and that kind of puts
a dent in your credibility.
Look, I've got an image
to protect, all right?
Martin, my agent, he was going to
get us some girls, you know, pros?
Why the hell would
you need a pro?
Because they don't
want anything from me.
It's not like they're gonna
accidentally get pregnant
or tell some judge
that I promised
to take care of them the
rest of their lives.
We were at a small hotel.
The Scott House.
Over in the sixties, East Side.
If you wanted to party, wouldn't
it have been easier here?
Call girls have been
known to become stalkers.
I prefer not
to give out my address.
We're going to need
the names of those girls.
I can't.
I mean, Martin
never called them.
A photographer
followed us into the hotel.
So we just stayed there, got drunk
and watched the Knicks game.
And then we went home.
Look, talk to Martin.
I swear I don't know
what happened to Norman.
You don't know the headaches
these kids have to live with.
I guess 10, 20 million a
year helps ease the pain.
Ninety percent of them
would do it for free.
But like anything in this world,
there's a price.
Women throwing themselves
at you non-stop,
not because of who you are
but because of what you do.
And what you've got in the bank.
Exactly.
Kev's from a place called Rugby.
There are more people in this
building than in all of Rugby.
But he's got a head
on his shoulders.
He saw what happened
to guys like Shawn Kemp,
kids in every NBA port.
BRISCOE: So you keep
his nose clean?
That's right. I mean, he's human.
He has needs.
All right, how about you give us a
rundown of Tuesday night's festivities?
Sure.
Kev picked me up about, I
don't know, 7:30, no 7:45.
BRISCOE: And Norman
was driving the limo?
Davie was also in the car.
That's Kevin's cousin?
David Arkuss, that's right.
Pretty good pitcher until his rotator
cuff went on the permanent fritz.
He's finishing college
over at Manhattan.
Good for him.
Right. Why would you care? You just want
to know when we got to The Scott House.
There was a little traffic, so
I'd say we got there about 8:20.
Did you go right up to the room?
Unfortunately, we saw someone Davie thought
he recognized from the Daily News.
So we went to the bar.
He followed us in.
About 9:10, I went upstairs.
Ten minutes later, Kev came up.
About 10 minutes after
that Davie joined us.
We ordered a bottle of
Jack and watched the game.
About 11:45 we decided
to call it a night.
I was dropped off
first, about 12:10.
That was our night.
So Kev told me about Norman.
That's a real kick in the ass.
We wanted to ask you some
questions about Tuesday night.
Sure. We arrived
at the hotel about 8:20.
Then I saw some dude who hung around
batting practice all the time.
A reporter? Photographer,
more likely.
Kev couldn't take a chance so,
then we went into the bar.
Oh sure, no image
problem there, huh?
About 9:10 Martin
went up to the room.
Ten minutes later Kevin pretended
to take a leak and he snuck up.
Ten minutes
after that I went up.
Then we ordered a bottle
and we watched the game.
Sounds like fun.
What were you drinking?
DAVIE: Jack Daniels.
We left the
hotel at 11:45.
Kev dropped Martin off
at home first.
Then he dropped
me off about 12:30.
Then I went to bed.
That's some memory
you've got there, Davie.
You know, back in Rugby,
Kev once found a buck with a
broken leg when he was out hiking.
He carried it on his back to
the vet for over two miles.
He wouldn't hurt anyone.
So I got psych in five.
BRISCOE: Thanks.
Well, they certainly have
their stories straight.
A little too straight,
don't you think?
Come on, last night I
brushed my teeth at 11:47.
Let's go see what's going on
with Seleeby's LUDs.
A buck? You're kidding.
I don't think he meant
the spending kind.
Whatever happened to the
good old cherry tree story?
That's better
than "I told you so."
Okay, when was it you first
showed up at Seleeby's apartment?
Yesterday.
About 5:30.
Spent about 20 minutes, did you?
That's about right.
Well, at 5:57 Seleeby called his
agent, talked for about 10 minutes,
hung up and dialed the cell
phone of someone named Arkuss.
That's Seleeby's cousin,
the memory expert.
And the night of the murder, your
hero called the agent's cell at 8:36.
When he was supposed
to be at the hotel bar.
We happen to be
very discreet here.
Serve drinks to a lot
of big shots, do you?
You see, I'm not
going to answer that.
We're only interested
in one big shot,
so if you don't want
to talk about it here,
we can always drag you
down to the squad room.
After making quite
a scene out in the lobby,
so the boss doesn't miss a word.
Discretely, of course.
Well, of course, the big
cheese might not understand
and you might wind up discretely
pounding the pavement.
What?
Kevin Seleeby,
the baseball player.
Yeah, I know who he is.
What about him?
ED: What time did he get
here Tuesday night?
I don't know, uh,
maybe 8:30.
That's funny because he told us he
didn't get here until almost 10:00.
Oh, now you expect me to change my story.
Very clever.
Well, for cops.
I'm sticking with 8:30,
thank you.
This guy got to everybody.
Or he was telling the truth and somebody
else used the phone in his house.
(CELL PHONE RINGS) Oh!
ED: Yeah.
Excuse me, do you
know Kevin Seleeby?
Who doesn't?
Tuesday night, when he showed
up here with his buddies,
did you happen to get a
good look at his driver?
Why would I look at a cabbie?
Okay, thanks, Loo, later.
That whole tell the truth thing?
Forget about it.
Loo ran all the LUDs
on the cell phones.
9:17, the night
of the murder,
the agent made a phone
call to 911 on his cell,
hung up before he said anything.
I wonder if that had anything to
do with Kevin showing up here
in a cab without Norman.
Tails, I talk to the agent.
I made a mistake.
I meant to dial 411.
ED: From the bar
at the hotel?
That's right.
Check the phone records.
I did.
So you saw I called information
right after the slip-up.
I did. I also saw you didn't
make another phone call
from your cell
until the next day.
We were going to order some food. I
called for the number at Bucci's.
What? Then you got full
from the peanuts at the bar?
Well, I was the only one that was
hungry, so I figured what the hell.
No. We never planned
on going to Atlantic City.
Martin was just going
to get the girls.
And bring them to the hotel?
That's right.
Like I told you before, that
reporter guy ruined our plans.
See, the thing is, Davie.
Last I heard they have
girls in Atlantic City.
Yeah, they also have
scum-sucking reporters.
When you're good, you're good.
I checked. You even called and
made room reservations at the Taj.
Just to throw everybody
off track, right?
I don't know about that.
Martin takes care
of all that stuff.
If there's one thing that
pisses me off to no end
is when the suspect confesses
and then some defense
attorney comes at me
with all this
Fifth Amendment crap.
I didn't hear me confess.
Yet.
I don't know what
you're talking about.
BRISCOE: Oh, right.
You were at the hotel bar.
Until we snuck up to the room.
You and Martin Stanley
and your cousin, right?
That's right.
The thing is, if Kev was
with you at the bar,
how could he call Martin's
cell phone from his house?
Wrong answer, Davie.
You should have said it
was the maid who called.
ED: Bucci's, huh?
Yeah, it's a
three-star restaurant.
They must have one
hell of a veal piccata.
As a matter of fact, they do.
I wouldn't figure a place
like that would deliver.
I'm a good customer.
You must be to get them to deliver
from Twenty-third and First
all the way up to
Sixty-third and Third.
Like I said.
It was moot anyway.
I was the only one
that was hungry.
That's one explanation.
Another one is,
that you saw Norman
with his neck snapped,
you freaked out. You dialed
911, Kevin made you hang up.
Now which story sounds
more plausible to you?
I didn't kill anybody.
Well, that's up to
the jury now, Davie.
Lucky for Kev
he's a ballplayer, huh?
Juries love ballplayers.
I mean, you saw
what happened with O.J.
So now it's just you, Davie.
A hick with a bad right arm.
You got the DP in North Dakota?
DP. That doesn't mean
"Designated Player,"
it means Death Penalty.
Because we have it here.
Damn it, I just wanted
to play some blackjack.
Kevin screwed it all up.
He killed Norman Pratt?
Me and Martin just
helped him dump the body.
So, I guess blood
isn't thicker than water.
Well, neither is 10% percent.
Stanley said the same thing.
They got to Seleeby's
and found Norman dead.
And you still want his rookie card?
Arrest him.
Did you find out
who killed Norman?
As a matter of fact, we did.
What the hell's going on?
Two outs, bottom of the ninth
and you just struck out, pal.
Kevin Seleeby, you're under arrest
for the murder of Norman Pratt.
You have the right
to remain silent...
BAILIFF:
"Docket number 39867.
"People v. Kevin Seleeby, Martin
Stanley and David Arkuss.
"Charges are Murder
in the First Degree
"and Conspiracy to Commit
Murder in the First Degree."
Let's talk please.
Not guilty.
Not guilty.
Not guilty.
Ms. Southerlyn? The People
request remand, Your Honor.
And I'm sure you have something to
say on that matter, Mr. Fenwick.
Absolutely, Your Honor. Due to my client's
celebrity, he's hardly a flight risk.
In addition...
Which one's the hotshot?
Kevin Seleeby happens to be...
Indicted for murder,
famous face or not.
Bail is set at a half
million for all three.
Mr. Seleeby,
you should have dove for that
ball against the Sox in '99.
So is this kid guilty?
His friends say he is.
Will they say it in court?
If we drop the charges to accessories
after the fact, no time.
Done. That'll put this Seleeby thing
to rest, no hustle or bustle.
You want me to
deal with Seleeby?
The whole deck.
Oh, I see, if you can hit a
ball you get special treatment?
That's right, Serena.
By the jury.
I'll give you Marcia Clark's phone
number if you want a second opinion.
JACK: How low?
How long are we on motive?
We think the victim was
asking Seleeby for money
to keep his steroid use
out of the papers.
Blackmail's good.
Two witnesses...
Fenwick will grab
Man One and run.
Now, this is all very
generous of you, Jack,
but you've gotta know
I can't accept it.
Actually, Alan, I thought you'd
see Man One as manna from heaven.
FENWICK: Not considering
my client's status.
When will people
get off of O. J?
That verdict was jury
nullification pure and simple.
The Juice never crossed
my mind, Ms. Southerlyn.
I was thinking more
about Ray Lewis,
All Pro linebacker for the Ravens
who was knee-deep in a homicide.
Not only was he acquitted,
he was voted MVP.
We have two witnesses.
FENWICK:
They had about 50.
Do you realize that after
Allen lverson was caught
running around
Philly with a gun,
the sales of his jerseys and
shoes increased ten-fold?
On the other hand Rae Carruth
is in maximum security
for the rest of his life.
JACK: Athletes
are not immune.
FENWICK: I agree.
But you see, Kevin
has one thing
that Carruth didn't have.
You?
That, too.
Kevin here is suffering from
steroid induced psychosis.
That's like saying a drunk driver is
not responsible for vehicular homicide
because he was drunk.
That's one argument. I'll
send you my expert's report.
Have your guy spend some time
with Kevin, then we'll talk.
SKODA:
It must be something,
thousands of people
screaming for you.
Or against you.
Yeah.
How does that feel?
You don't hear it.
You focus.
On a ball coming at you at
close to 100 miles an hour?
That's all you see.
It's like you're in a tunnel.
You, the pitcher and the ball.
Nothing else is there.
Nothing else exists.
Too bad it can't be like
that outside the ballpark.
I get by.
Actually, you don't, Kevin.
That's why you're here.
The guy got in my face.
You're talking
about Norman Pratt?
Kevin, are you
always this tense?
No! Maybe, I don't know.
Why Norman?
Do you know what it's like
to get to the Show, man?
Do you know how hard
it is to stay there?
Would the world end
if you couldn't? Yes.
You don't know.
My old man, if I didn't...
He used to have to shovel horse
manure on someone else's ranch,
12 hours a day for 40 years.
Now you tell me
what man deserves...
That's his problem,
Kevin. Not yours.
I got to the Show, man,
and he got to put down his shovel
and hold his head up high.
And Norman Pratt was going
to take that all away.
To be accurate, they're called
anabolic- androgenic steroids.
They're synthetic derivatives
of testosterone.
Which hardly
makes you psychotic.
No comment.
Naturally occurring testosterone
triggers male maturation
and helps retain proteins,
which aid in muscle growth.
So far, I don't hear
anything about insanity.
Okay, most normal men produce
less than 10 milligrams a day.
Kevin Seleeby was taking
over 10 times that.
And that affects his behavior?
Professional athletes are
aggressive to begin with,
toss a little fuel
on that fire...
He was being blackmailed. He
knew exactly what he was doing.
Knowing what you're doing and
not being able to prevent it
are two different things.
There's actually a clinical
term for it, "'roid rage."
And he conveniently told you all
about how he was suffering from it.
I don't think this
kid's faking it, Jack.
Are you saying he was truly
unable to control his actions?
SKODA: Look, there was a
lot of pressure on him.
There's a lot of pressure on me.
You're not injecting yourself
with chemicals twice a day.
Look, I'll testify that
he was legally sane.
But was he what the masses
would consider normal?
Not a chance.
Did you know that far and away the most
common users of steroids are teenagers?
Kids have to get bigger
to get on the team,
to get the scholarship,
to get drafted.
So, the league just
turns a blind eye?
More home runs means
more tickets sold.
Yeah, even if the law is broken?
Special rules
for special talents.
Well, the upside is that
their testicles shrink.
It's Fenwick's expert's report,
written by Dr. Sarah Hoffman.
The kid's got money. Might
as well go with the best.
Let me guess, 100 pages.
Something's wrong here.
This shouldn't...
Somebody from Fenwick's office screwed
up and attached an interoffice memo.
Money doesn't always
buy you competence.
"I spoke with Douglas Karell and he
has no intention of testifying."
Who's he?
I don't know, but there's more.
"I believe this will
allow us to pursue
"our original theory
of the case."
Is there an address
for Mr. Karell?
KARELL:
It's about living life,
it's about having fun
in the city, you know?
Out loud and proud.
New York Magazine
for gay people, hmm?
People love to read about who's
seeing whom and who's doing what.
And occasionally we have
dish on celebrities.
As a matter of fact, that's
exactly why I'm here, Mr. Karell.
Sorry. A.D.A.'s
don't rate.
I'm here about Kevin Seleeby.
Am I supposed to know him?
The baseball player?
Oh, I'm sorry. Baseball bores me.
Hoops on the other hand...
Kevin's on trial for murder.
That's too bad.
Your name came up in the
course of our investigation.
My name?
Yeah, it seems
that Seleeby's counsel
would like to keep you
out of the courtroom.
You know what, it must be another Karell.
There's a Marty over on...
Why don't you stop
playing games with me?
Because I can get detectives
here in less than 15 minutes.
You wanna know what I think?
I think you and Norman Pratt
were blackmailing Kevin Seleeby.
I think...
No, no, no.
I would never do anything to hurt
Kevin or his precious little career.
The publisher of the magazine
was his lover, Jack.
Was?
They had different views
on freedom of expression.
Anyway, back when they were closer,
they were in Norman's limo.
He recognized
Mr. Karell.
And started blackmailing
Seleeby.
Jack.
I'm glad I found you.
Change your mind
on that deal, did you?
Hardly. The expert report I sent you,
there might have been a memo attached.
A very interesting one.
You read it?
And we talked
to Mr. Karell.
Shame on you.
I should say the
same to you, Alan.
Well, I didn't read your confidential
work product, Jack. That's a no-no.
You use it, I don't know how
many Canons it violates.
Lucky for you,
there isn't a judge
in this state who will let
you make that mistake.
It's a clear-cut
situation, Judge.
If Mr. McCoy would just go
back to the notes he took
in Evidence, he'll see that
attorney work-product is sacred.
Then why did you send it to me?
If you don't know
already, Mr. McCoy,
I'm not big on sarcasm.
As the Supreme Court
said in Hickman,
the work-product
doctrine is critical
to a lawyer's ability to
render professional services.
JACK: Practically, the
rule protects one lawyer
from intruding upon opposing
counsel's legal strategizing.
The People did not
intrude in this case.
Mr. Fenwick delivered
his strategy by messenger.
By attorney error.
My client shouldn't suffer because
of my associate's negligence.
He's right, Mr. McCoy.
The Second Circuit held that
the rule protects against
disclosure of mental impressions,
conclusions, opinions, legal theories only.
Not facts.
The People do not plan on
using counsel's theories,
only the fact that
Mr. Karell exists.
Nice, Jack. My
brother-in-law's a barber.
Tomorrow, I'll send you a whole
bunch of hairs to split.
My judicial sarcasm rule applies to
both sides of the aisle, Mr. Fenwick.
I apologize, Your Honor.
But the memo clearly expresses
my associate's opinion
of how to try
the case, to wit...
"In my opinion it is crucial to keep
Douglas Karell from testifying."
Game, Set, Match.
Any reference to Mr. Karell and l or his
particular relationship to the defendant
is inadmissible,
Mr. McCoy.
Fenwick should have known better than to
put something like that down on paper.
It wasn't Fenwick.
It was his associate.
And if that one ever knocks
on our door begging for work,
politely escort him
to the elevator.
This has to be a first. A lawyer's
negligence benefiting his case.
I don't see why.
We had a case before we knew Seleeby
was gay. We still have a case now.
Since when do we need a motive?
Me and Martin were at the Scott
House over on the East Side.
Kev was supposed to
pick us up around 7:00.
JACK: That would
be in his limo?
That's right. To take
us to Atlantic City.
How did your plans change?
Kev never showed.
Why not?
He called Martin on his cell.
He was freaked.
Martin couldn't calm him down.
So he gave the phone to me.
I've known Kevin my whole life,
but I never heard him like that.
I mean, it scared me.
JACK:
What did you do?
We took a cab
down to Kev's place.
I have a key, so we just
went in, and Kev...
He was just so jacked
up he could hardly talk.
What else did you see,
Mr. Arkuss?
I didn't know what to do so...
I went to get Kev
a glass of water.
In the kitchen
there was the driver.
JACK: You're referring
to Norman Pratt.
That's right.
He was slumped over the table.
I could tell he was dead.
Did you call the police?
Martin started to.
But I stopped him.
Why?
Kev's my cousin.
I know what
we did was wrong, but...
When Kev finally calmed down,
we loaded the body into the
limo and dumped it in the park.
And then we left the limo over on the
West Side and went to the hotel.
JACK: To establish
an alibi?
That's right.
Did your cousin tell you what
happened in the kitchen?
Not really.
So he didn't tell you why
he killed Mr. Pratt?
No.
No more questions.
Yes, it's possible that when
placed in a threatening situation
an abuser of anabolic steroids can
become exceptionally violent.
Would that be a psychotic
reaction, Doctor?
Psychosis? No.
Psychotic disorders are
characterized by an extreme
impairment of a person's
ability to understand reality.
Typical symptoms are
hallucinations and l or delusions.
Did Mr. Seleeby
tell you, for example,
that he heard voices telling
him to kill Norman Pratt?
No. He may have had
an overly violent reaction
because of the abundance of
synthetic chemicals in his body,
but in the end, he
merely lost his temper.
So, in your analysis, there
was an actual inciting event
as opposed to an imaginary one.
That's correct.
Thank you, Doctor.
Did my client tell you what
that inciting event was?
Not specifically, no.
But you did ask him, didn't you?
Of course, but he
refused to answer.
Isn't it true that a mark
of a psychotic disorder
is an incorrect emotional
response to ordinary situations?
Yes. But inappropriate responses
are not necessarily psychotic.
Killing for no motive
whatsoever, Doctor,
would you consider
that psychotic?
In certain cases.
FENWICK:
No more questions.
The People call Roger Ellery.
Objection, Your Honor.
JACK:
On what grounds?
I get to ask that
question, Mr. McCoy.
Chambers, Your Honor?
Ten minute recess.
Was Dr. Ellery on the People's
witness list or not, Mr. McCoy?
Front and center, Your Honor.
But that's not the issue.
What is then?
His testimony is inadmissible.
JUDGE:
Who the hell is he?
Dr. Ellery sold steroids
to Norman Pratt,
who sold them to Kevin Seleeby.
You better not be wasting
my time here, Mr. Fenwick.
FENWICK:
I wouldn't think of it.
Since an element of our defense is that Mr.
Seleeby abused steroids,
it would be redundant
to offer testimony
that he actually bought
them from someone.
Redundant, yes.
Inadmissible, no.
Come on, Jack. We both know
what you're doing here.
Perhaps one of you
would explain it to me?
Gladly. In order to counter our
defense of steroid induced psychosis
Mr. McCoy is planning
to offer evidence of motive.
And it's a very
good plan, Mr. Fenwick.
Yes, it would be if the prosecution
had some reasonable basis in fact
for offering it.
Clearly, Mr. McCoy
is planning to argue
that Mr. Pratt was
blackmailing my client.
He was.
That's right, about his being
gay, not about his steroid use.
Ergo, offering evidence
to the latter would in effect
be arguing something that Mr.
McCoy knows is false.
And we all know that would be
tantamount to suborning perjury.
I can present facts and the jury
can draw their own conclusions.
Rules may be there to be broken, Mr.
McCoy, but not in my courtroom.
Defense's objection to Mr.
Ellery's testimony is sustained.
I think we split on the experts.
Yeah, well, with no motive,
my money's on the jury's love
for apple pie, Mom and baseball.
We have two witnesses
who said he did it.
For no reason at all. Which
means he must be legally nuts.
Let's face it, Jack, Seleeby's
not going to go to prison.
I did what I thought was
necessary to put him there.
Which also includes
arguing a false motive.
Implying is not arguing. And it
certainly isn't subornation of perjury.
Well, it's not exactly
ethical either.
There are rules, Jack. You were
knowingly going to break them.
Look, I think that Seleeby should
be convicted as much as you.
But I don't think we have the
right to pick and choose
which laws we're gonna follow and
which ones we're gonna ignore.
Rugby, North Dakota.
I'll bet most of you can't
pick that out on a map.
But that's where Kevin
Seleeby was born and raised,
and most probably
would have lived and died,
if not for his special talent.
Unfortunately, in the universe
that was Kevin's destiny,
talent wasn't enough.
Twenty-five players on a team.
Thirty Major League teams.
That's 750 men
in the entire world.
Kevin had to be bigger, he had to
be stronger, he had to be quicker.
He heard whispers around the
clubhouse of a magic potion,
a potion that would make him the best
ballplayer he could possibly be,
that would keep him from shoveling horse
manure like his old man back home.
So he took the potion.
And he became bigger, and he became
stronger, and became quicker.
And he also became sick.
I'm not talking about
the kind of sick
that would put him
on the Disabled List.
I'm talking about a mental disease
that would cause him to kill a friend
for no reason whatsoever.
Luckily, in this country we don't
put men like that in prison.
Let's be clear
that just because we
couldn't state with certainty
in this courtroom here today
just what Mr. Seleeby's motive was, it
doesn't mean that he didn't have one.
And just because the Defense Counsel has
presented you with a touching story,
it doesn't mean that
it's the whole story.
Mr. Fenwick omitted the part about his
client admitting to killing Norman Pratt.
He left out the part about his
client enlisting his friends
to help him cover up the crime.
He omitted the part
about his client
trying to evade the
consequences of his act.
Just in case anyone
has forgotten,
taking steroids is illegal.
It's cheating.
Kevin Seleeby didn't care.
Why would he?
After all,
it isn't really cheating
if you don't get caught.
But this time he did get caught.
He cheated at
his chosen profession.
He cheated at life.
And now he's trying to
cheat the justice system.
But you have to ask yourselves.
Is it really justice if
it's obtained fraudulently?
Can cheating become
its own defense for murder?
Has the jury reached a verdict?
We have, Your Honor.
JUDGE: On the sole count of the
indictment, Murder in the First Degree.
How do you find?
We find the defendant,
Kevin Seleeby, guilty.
JUDGE: With the defendant
remanded, this case is adjourned
for three weeks while
sentencing is decided.
(BANGS GAVEL)
So the rumor is
Fenwick's going to appeal.
He's claiming the jury convicted
against the weight of the evidence.
Well, if he manages to get a
retrial, I'll bet he changes gears
and argues that Seleeby
was being blackmailed
about his sexual preference.
Not a chance.
Why? Because being a cheater is
more sympathetic than being gay?
I can see you've never
been in a pro locker room.
Hell of a closing, Jack.
I've got nothing
to apologize for.
That's right, special rules
for special talents.
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.
"Just light it up here.
No one will even notice."
How was I supposed to know
there was a cop up the street?
Because you were
supposed to be watching.
Look on the bright side. At
least you won't have a record.
Yeah, not to mention the
great workout I'm getting.
You know what your problem is?
You don't know how to
look on the bright side.
You know what Lincoln said.
Leslie, call the supervisor.
"Most people are about as happy as
they make their minds up to be."
Leslie, would you quit the damn
psychobabble and get the supervisor?
What, why?
Oh, my God.
Wallet's gone.
No ID.
You thinking it was a mugging?
Can't think of a
more amenable spot.
One of my guys found a piece of
paper with some scribble on it
in the DOA's jacket pocket.
I wanna get a look at that before
it goes to the lab, all right?
You got it.
Neck was snapped
like a stalk of celery.
I hate celery.
It's good for you, man.
There you go.
Body temp tells me he's a
relatively new arrival.
Dead maybe 12, 14 hours.
Twelve to 14 hours?
You sure about that?
Give or take. No external
wounds or obvious bruising.
Hey, maybe we're looking
at a real act of God?
I doubt God needed
his watch, cash and keys.
Have fun, this guy's
handwriting's worse than mine.
That shouldn't be a problem. Lennie
takes my messages sometimes.
I'm fluent in scribble.
Looks like a to-do list.
"Pick up dry cleaning,
"photos,
flowers for Suzy..."
Looks like Suzy will be
the one sending flowers.
Ripped By mstoll
No defensive wounds, no
bruising around the neck,
which was snapped like a...
I know, like a stalk of celery.
I was going to say like a twig.
But celery's good.
So he went without a struggle?
Yeah, I'm thinking it went
down too quick to fight back.
Oh, and I'm betting that
the bad guy was a lefty.
Oh, this is going to be good.
Now, I'm a righty. If I wanted to
snap your neck, I'd go like this.
And just the opposite
for a lefty.
The crack in his spinal column was
at a downward angle like this.
Now if you can only tell us
what he was doing in the park.
What makes you think I can't?
He was found face down, right?
Yeah.
Blood pooled in
the posterior cavities,
so unless this guy
was able to defy gravity...
He was killed somewhere
else and then dumped.
Damn litterbugs.
Any identifying marks?
You mean something like this?
(BUZZING)
So I'm a few days late
renewing my license,
I still run a kosher shop.
Mr. Pina, that ain't
why we're here.
If it's that parole thing...
Ralph, maybe you oughta
keep your mouth shut
before you talk
yourself into a felony.
Come on, we need your expertise.
Yeah? Always wanted to
be an expert witness.
Oh, don't jump the gun, huh?
What about this guy?
Is he one of your clients?
Never seen him.
What about this tattoo?
Nice work.
Only one guy who
does flames like that.
Name's Hades.
He got a real name?
I thought that was it.
Where can we find
the artist known as Hades?
Try artist formerly known as Hades.
He's dead.
Died in a motorcycle
accident two months ago.
Okay, how about this?
This have any special meaning?
I don't do Japanese.
Nam. Two tours.
I know it's not the same,
but I still get spooked.
And what's in it for me?
That cup of coffee's as
good as it's gonna get.
Your partner, he only calls
when he wants something cheap.
Yeah, but I have your number
on speed dial, Detective.
"Ike." It means "Live."
Okay, that solves it.
Not so fast, sport.
Ike is also short for lkedo.
It's a last name.
Ike's a nickname.
You know, like "Sully" for Sullivan
or "Fitzy" for Fitzgerald.
Plus it has a double meaning.
Yeah, can I have the
number for a Suzy lkedo?
In Manhattan.
S. L-K-E-D-O.
Smart guy, my partner, huh?
That's it.
Norman Pratt.
He proposed to me a month ago.
He was saving up
to buy me a real ring.
He said he couldn't wait until
he had the money to ask me.
He made me promise
I'd wear this.
We're sorry, Miss lkedo.
Do you know of anyone that would
want to hurt your fianc??
I can't think of anyone.
Any friends of his he might
have had a falling out with?
Norman was a recovering addict.
So, some of his acquaintances...
BRISCOE: Weren't exactly
model citizens, huh?
But I don't think any of
them would want to hurt him.
Is there a chance that
Norman started using again?
He's been clean almost a year. He's got
a really good program, a good job.
He put his life back together.
ED: What kind
of work was he doing?
He's a limo driver. He was
driving last night, too.
SUZY: At least
that's what he told me.
So what if Norman
was out of rehab?
I got an ex-con
working as a mechanic.
If I don't give these
kids jobs, who will?
Hey, no job,
we all know what happens.
Hey, I'm just doing my part.
So can we assume that Norman
Pratt was a good worker?
No complaints.
Aw, jeez.
I really liked this kid.
But you weren't concerned when he
didn't show up for work this morning?
Why would I even notice?
He has one of your cars, right?
Yeah. It was an overnight
to Atlantic City.
And?
Sorry, we guarantee
confidentiality.
Mr. Bosford, Norman Pratt
was murdered last night.
Do I really have to tell you?
All right, all right,
of course. I'm sorry.
I don't know
what I was thinking.
Good kid like that.
I'll get you the routing sheet.
Kevin Seleeby.
As in Kevin Seleeby
the baseball player?
He uses us all the time.
Norm always drove him.
I always gave him
the plum assignments.
That's the one I hit
my first dinger with.
Wow! I figured you have kept
using it till it cracked.
I would have, but I struck out
the next 10 times at bat.
There's something about me
and a major league slider.
Well, you finally
figured it out.
Yeah, you dance
or you go home, right?
So, what can I do
you gentlemen for?
We had some questions
about Norman Pratt.
Good guy.
Past tense, Kevin.
He was murdered.
Wow.
I mean, he was just
with us last night.
Us?
My agent, Martin Stanley,
and my cousin, Davie.
We went down to Atlantic City.
What time did you get back?
Norman dropped me off
around midnight.
I think.
I couldn't be too sure.
I thought you
booked an overnight.
We lost a little quicker
than we expected.
I hear that.
Damn, poor Norman.
He had a girlfriend,
a fianc?e, somewhere.
Yeah, we spoke to her already.
So, you and Norman
were pretty friendly?
He was cool.
Didn't hassle me for balls,
autographs, stuff like that.
We got to know each other
after a while, sure.
He say anything
about any enemies?
No. Norman was the kind of guy
who always wanted to help out.
He said if there's anything
I want, just ask.
What did he mean by that?
Hey, I'm just a hick
from North Dakota.
I didn't want to
embarrass myself.
Hey, wasn't Maris
from North Dakota?
I've got a signed
picture on my wall.
VAN BUREN: What is it with
the male of the species?
BRISCOE: You got
a couple of months?
Well I'm referring to how you can
just about melt in front of a guy
who can hit a ball with a bat.
All I said was, if the kid stays
healthy he's a lock for Cooperstown.
Yeah, only it's how you said it.
How did I say it?
Like a six year old talking
about a banana split.
Oh, please, like
you're any better?
"Maybe he'll sign
his rookie card for me."
No, see, that was
a business proposition.
That rookie card could put my
grandchildren through medical school.
Moving right along.
Seleeby and friends were the last
guys to see Pratt alive, right?
Oh, ain't no way.
M.E. Said the
doer was a lefty.
What side of the plate
does Seleeby bat from?
Thirty percent
of the league bats lefty.
And that don't
include switch hitters.
Okay, if not Seleeby, then who?
He did say Norman Pratt bragged he
could get his hands on anything.
Like what?
Maybe his fianc?e will know.
I told you, Norman
was off the stuff.
We're not saying he was using,
but what if some of his
passengers wanted some?
He wasn't a pusher if that's
what you're hinting at.
No, not a pusher.
An accommodator.
Look, that ring
he was going to buy you,
a couple of extra bucks
wouldn't hurt the cause.
He's dead. How can you
slander him like this?
Because it might help us find
out why he's dead, Suzy.
There was a guy he
used to buy meth from.
Ellery. Roger Ellery.
Norman called him Doc.
But they haven't seen each other
since Norman got out of rehab.
I'm a doctor, that's
why he called me Doc.
And this is your office?
That's right.
Sort of a Marcus
Welby thing, huh?
Make a lot of house calls?
I'm a PhD in chemistry.
Yeah, and I can guess what
kind of chemicals you cook up.
You can go now.
Lennie, what do you think the good
doctor's got brewing back here?
Beats me.
On my way to the can,
I'll take a look.
ELLERY: You guys are funny.
I hear there's an
opening at Caroline's.
Yeah, we'd check it out, but we're
getting our laughs working a homicide.
We don't care what
you're selling, Doc.
Sure, I knew Norman Pratt.
Yeah, I sold him crystal
meth, crack sometimes.
But I'm not into that anymore.
What are you into?
Oxymetholone.
It's an anabolic steroid.
You mean, like the kind that
athletes ain't supposed to be using?
Athletes like Kevin Seleeby?
Norman might have
mentioned his name.
Now they'll have to put an asterisk
next to his name in the record books.
Just like his idol.
Makes it harder to believe the
Babe hit 60 on hot dogs and beer
during a 154-game
season.
In my book he deserves
an asterisk, too.
Babe Ruth?
He never faced Satchel, did he?
Yeah, Green.
We're five minutes away.
Ah! They found
Pratt's limo.
All right, we'll talk to you.
OFFICER: Vehicle was sticking out
into the lane like three feet.
Like this was his
own personal driveway.
ED: What time
did you find it?
Wrote the ticket
at 11:10.
Just got your APB.
I called CSU to pop the locks,
dust for prints, whatnot.
Nice work, Officer.
Okay, tell me you found
a signed confession.
Other than about a million
prints, this baby's clean.
Hey, Lennie. It says here that
when Norman took the car out,
odometer read 11,622 miles.
So?
Well, now it reads 11,629.
So either they moved Atlantic
City a whole lot closer...
Or Saleeby and his posse
never left Manhattan.
That asterisk is getting
bigger as we speak.
Okay, it's not
like it's a secret.
BRISCOE: Well it's not exactly
public knowledge either.
The guys know.
Hell, most of them
are on it, too.
Yeah, but most of them don't have a
driver that ended up dead in the park.
Look, I told you what I knew.
BRISCOE: The trouble is,
we like fact, not fiction.
Screw you.
Oh, that kind of attitude is not gonna
get you on a Wheaties box, Kev.
We know you didn't go to
Atlantic City, Kevin.
And that means I killed Norman?
No, but it means
that you lied to us.
Yeah, and that kind of puts
a dent in your credibility.
Look, I've got an image
to protect, all right?
Martin, my agent, he was going to
get us some girls, you know, pros?
Why the hell would
you need a pro?
Because they don't
want anything from me.
It's not like they're gonna
accidentally get pregnant
or tell some judge
that I promised
to take care of them the
rest of their lives.
We were at a small hotel.
The Scott House.
Over in the sixties, East Side.
If you wanted to party, wouldn't
it have been easier here?
Call girls have been
known to become stalkers.
I prefer not
to give out my address.
We're going to need
the names of those girls.
I can't.
I mean, Martin
never called them.
A photographer
followed us into the hotel.
So we just stayed there, got drunk
and watched the Knicks game.
And then we went home.
Look, talk to Martin.
I swear I don't know
what happened to Norman.
You don't know the headaches
these kids have to live with.
I guess 10, 20 million a
year helps ease the pain.
Ninety percent of them
would do it for free.
But like anything in this world,
there's a price.
Women throwing themselves
at you non-stop,
not because of who you are
but because of what you do.
And what you've got in the bank.
Exactly.
Kev's from a place called Rugby.
There are more people in this
building than in all of Rugby.
But he's got a head
on his shoulders.
He saw what happened
to guys like Shawn Kemp,
kids in every NBA port.
BRISCOE: So you keep
his nose clean?
That's right. I mean, he's human.
He has needs.
All right, how about you give us a
rundown of Tuesday night's festivities?
Sure.
Kev picked me up about, I
don't know, 7:30, no 7:45.
BRISCOE: And Norman
was driving the limo?
Davie was also in the car.
That's Kevin's cousin?
David Arkuss, that's right.
Pretty good pitcher until his rotator
cuff went on the permanent fritz.
He's finishing college
over at Manhattan.
Good for him.
Right. Why would you care? You just want
to know when we got to The Scott House.
There was a little traffic, so
I'd say we got there about 8:20.
Did you go right up to the room?
Unfortunately, we saw someone Davie thought
he recognized from the Daily News.
So we went to the bar.
He followed us in.
About 9:10, I went upstairs.
Ten minutes later, Kev came up.
About 10 minutes after
that Davie joined us.
We ordered a bottle of
Jack and watched the game.
About 11:45 we decided
to call it a night.
I was dropped off
first, about 12:10.
That was our night.
So Kev told me about Norman.
That's a real kick in the ass.
We wanted to ask you some
questions about Tuesday night.
Sure. We arrived
at the hotel about 8:20.
Then I saw some dude who hung around
batting practice all the time.
A reporter? Photographer,
more likely.
Kev couldn't take a chance so,
then we went into the bar.
Oh sure, no image
problem there, huh?
About 9:10 Martin
went up to the room.
Ten minutes later Kevin pretended
to take a leak and he snuck up.
Ten minutes
after that I went up.
Then we ordered a bottle
and we watched the game.
Sounds like fun.
What were you drinking?
DAVIE: Jack Daniels.
We left the
hotel at 11:45.
Kev dropped Martin off
at home first.
Then he dropped
me off about 12:30.
Then I went to bed.
That's some memory
you've got there, Davie.
You know, back in Rugby,
Kev once found a buck with a
broken leg when he was out hiking.
He carried it on his back to
the vet for over two miles.
He wouldn't hurt anyone.
So I got psych in five.
BRISCOE: Thanks.
Well, they certainly have
their stories straight.
A little too straight,
don't you think?
Come on, last night I
brushed my teeth at 11:47.
Let's go see what's going on
with Seleeby's LUDs.
A buck? You're kidding.
I don't think he meant
the spending kind.
Whatever happened to the
good old cherry tree story?
That's better
than "I told you so."
Okay, when was it you first
showed up at Seleeby's apartment?
Yesterday.
About 5:30.
Spent about 20 minutes, did you?
That's about right.
Well, at 5:57 Seleeby called his
agent, talked for about 10 minutes,
hung up and dialed the cell
phone of someone named Arkuss.
That's Seleeby's cousin,
the memory expert.
And the night of the murder, your
hero called the agent's cell at 8:36.
When he was supposed
to be at the hotel bar.
We happen to be
very discreet here.
Serve drinks to a lot
of big shots, do you?
You see, I'm not
going to answer that.
We're only interested
in one big shot,
so if you don't want
to talk about it here,
we can always drag you
down to the squad room.
After making quite
a scene out in the lobby,
so the boss doesn't miss a word.
Discretely, of course.
Well, of course, the big
cheese might not understand
and you might wind up discretely
pounding the pavement.
What?
Kevin Seleeby,
the baseball player.
Yeah, I know who he is.
What about him?
ED: What time did he get
here Tuesday night?
I don't know, uh,
maybe 8:30.
That's funny because he told us he
didn't get here until almost 10:00.
Oh, now you expect me to change my story.
Very clever.
Well, for cops.
I'm sticking with 8:30,
thank you.
This guy got to everybody.
Or he was telling the truth and somebody
else used the phone in his house.
(CELL PHONE RINGS) Oh!
ED: Yeah.
Excuse me, do you
know Kevin Seleeby?
Who doesn't?
Tuesday night, when he showed
up here with his buddies,
did you happen to get a
good look at his driver?
Why would I look at a cabbie?
Okay, thanks, Loo, later.
That whole tell the truth thing?
Forget about it.
Loo ran all the LUDs
on the cell phones.
9:17, the night
of the murder,
the agent made a phone
call to 911 on his cell,
hung up before he said anything.
I wonder if that had anything to
do with Kevin showing up here
in a cab without Norman.
Tails, I talk to the agent.
I made a mistake.
I meant to dial 411.
ED: From the bar
at the hotel?
That's right.
Check the phone records.
I did.
So you saw I called information
right after the slip-up.
I did. I also saw you didn't
make another phone call
from your cell
until the next day.
We were going to order some food. I
called for the number at Bucci's.
What? Then you got full
from the peanuts at the bar?
Well, I was the only one that was
hungry, so I figured what the hell.
No. We never planned
on going to Atlantic City.
Martin was just going
to get the girls.
And bring them to the hotel?
That's right.
Like I told you before, that
reporter guy ruined our plans.
See, the thing is, Davie.
Last I heard they have
girls in Atlantic City.
Yeah, they also have
scum-sucking reporters.
When you're good, you're good.
I checked. You even called and
made room reservations at the Taj.
Just to throw everybody
off track, right?
I don't know about that.
Martin takes care
of all that stuff.
If there's one thing that
pisses me off to no end
is when the suspect confesses
and then some defense
attorney comes at me
with all this
Fifth Amendment crap.
I didn't hear me confess.
Yet.
I don't know what
you're talking about.
BRISCOE: Oh, right.
You were at the hotel bar.
Until we snuck up to the room.
You and Martin Stanley
and your cousin, right?
That's right.
The thing is, if Kev was
with you at the bar,
how could he call Martin's
cell phone from his house?
Wrong answer, Davie.
You should have said it
was the maid who called.
ED: Bucci's, huh?
Yeah, it's a
three-star restaurant.
They must have one
hell of a veal piccata.
As a matter of fact, they do.
I wouldn't figure a place
like that would deliver.
I'm a good customer.
You must be to get them to deliver
from Twenty-third and First
all the way up to
Sixty-third and Third.
Like I said.
It was moot anyway.
I was the only one
that was hungry.
That's one explanation.
Another one is,
that you saw Norman
with his neck snapped,
you freaked out. You dialed
911, Kevin made you hang up.
Now which story sounds
more plausible to you?
I didn't kill anybody.
Well, that's up to
the jury now, Davie.
Lucky for Kev
he's a ballplayer, huh?
Juries love ballplayers.
I mean, you saw
what happened with O.J.
So now it's just you, Davie.
A hick with a bad right arm.
You got the DP in North Dakota?
DP. That doesn't mean
"Designated Player,"
it means Death Penalty.
Because we have it here.
Damn it, I just wanted
to play some blackjack.
Kevin screwed it all up.
He killed Norman Pratt?
Me and Martin just
helped him dump the body.
So, I guess blood
isn't thicker than water.
Well, neither is 10% percent.
Stanley said the same thing.
They got to Seleeby's
and found Norman dead.
And you still want his rookie card?
Arrest him.
Did you find out
who killed Norman?
As a matter of fact, we did.
What the hell's going on?
Two outs, bottom of the ninth
and you just struck out, pal.
Kevin Seleeby, you're under arrest
for the murder of Norman Pratt.
You have the right
to remain silent...
BAILIFF:
"Docket number 39867.
"People v. Kevin Seleeby, Martin
Stanley and David Arkuss.
"Charges are Murder
in the First Degree
"and Conspiracy to Commit
Murder in the First Degree."
Let's talk please.
Not guilty.
Not guilty.
Not guilty.
Ms. Southerlyn? The People
request remand, Your Honor.
And I'm sure you have something to
say on that matter, Mr. Fenwick.
Absolutely, Your Honor. Due to my client's
celebrity, he's hardly a flight risk.
In addition...
Which one's the hotshot?
Kevin Seleeby happens to be...
Indicted for murder,
famous face or not.
Bail is set at a half
million for all three.
Mr. Seleeby,
you should have dove for that
ball against the Sox in '99.
So is this kid guilty?
His friends say he is.
Will they say it in court?
If we drop the charges to accessories
after the fact, no time.
Done. That'll put this Seleeby thing
to rest, no hustle or bustle.
You want me to
deal with Seleeby?
The whole deck.
Oh, I see, if you can hit a
ball you get special treatment?
That's right, Serena.
By the jury.
I'll give you Marcia Clark's phone
number if you want a second opinion.
JACK: How low?
How long are we on motive?
We think the victim was
asking Seleeby for money
to keep his steroid use
out of the papers.
Blackmail's good.
Two witnesses...
Fenwick will grab
Man One and run.
Now, this is all very
generous of you, Jack,
but you've gotta know
I can't accept it.
Actually, Alan, I thought you'd
see Man One as manna from heaven.
FENWICK: Not considering
my client's status.
When will people
get off of O. J?
That verdict was jury
nullification pure and simple.
The Juice never crossed
my mind, Ms. Southerlyn.
I was thinking more
about Ray Lewis,
All Pro linebacker for the Ravens
who was knee-deep in a homicide.
Not only was he acquitted,
he was voted MVP.
We have two witnesses.
FENWICK:
They had about 50.
Do you realize that after
Allen lverson was caught
running around
Philly with a gun,
the sales of his jerseys and
shoes increased ten-fold?
On the other hand Rae Carruth
is in maximum security
for the rest of his life.
JACK: Athletes
are not immune.
FENWICK: I agree.
But you see, Kevin
has one thing
that Carruth didn't have.
You?
That, too.
Kevin here is suffering from
steroid induced psychosis.
That's like saying a drunk driver is
not responsible for vehicular homicide
because he was drunk.
That's one argument. I'll
send you my expert's report.
Have your guy spend some time
with Kevin, then we'll talk.
SKODA:
It must be something,
thousands of people
screaming for you.
Or against you.
Yeah.
How does that feel?
You don't hear it.
You focus.
On a ball coming at you at
close to 100 miles an hour?
That's all you see.
It's like you're in a tunnel.
You, the pitcher and the ball.
Nothing else is there.
Nothing else exists.
Too bad it can't be like
that outside the ballpark.
I get by.
Actually, you don't, Kevin.
That's why you're here.
The guy got in my face.
You're talking
about Norman Pratt?
Kevin, are you
always this tense?
No! Maybe, I don't know.
Why Norman?
Do you know what it's like
to get to the Show, man?
Do you know how hard
it is to stay there?
Would the world end
if you couldn't? Yes.
You don't know.
My old man, if I didn't...
He used to have to shovel horse
manure on someone else's ranch,
12 hours a day for 40 years.
Now you tell me
what man deserves...
That's his problem,
Kevin. Not yours.
I got to the Show, man,
and he got to put down his shovel
and hold his head up high.
And Norman Pratt was going
to take that all away.
To be accurate, they're called
anabolic- androgenic steroids.
They're synthetic derivatives
of testosterone.
Which hardly
makes you psychotic.
No comment.
Naturally occurring testosterone
triggers male maturation
and helps retain proteins,
which aid in muscle growth.
So far, I don't hear
anything about insanity.
Okay, most normal men produce
less than 10 milligrams a day.
Kevin Seleeby was taking
over 10 times that.
And that affects his behavior?
Professional athletes are
aggressive to begin with,
toss a little fuel
on that fire...
He was being blackmailed. He
knew exactly what he was doing.
Knowing what you're doing and
not being able to prevent it
are two different things.
There's actually a clinical
term for it, "'roid rage."
And he conveniently told you all
about how he was suffering from it.
I don't think this
kid's faking it, Jack.
Are you saying he was truly
unable to control his actions?
SKODA: Look, there was a
lot of pressure on him.
There's a lot of pressure on me.
You're not injecting yourself
with chemicals twice a day.
Look, I'll testify that
he was legally sane.
But was he what the masses
would consider normal?
Not a chance.
Did you know that far and away the most
common users of steroids are teenagers?
Kids have to get bigger
to get on the team,
to get the scholarship,
to get drafted.
So, the league just
turns a blind eye?
More home runs means
more tickets sold.
Yeah, even if the law is broken?
Special rules
for special talents.
Well, the upside is that
their testicles shrink.
It's Fenwick's expert's report,
written by Dr. Sarah Hoffman.
The kid's got money. Might
as well go with the best.
Let me guess, 100 pages.
Something's wrong here.
This shouldn't...
Somebody from Fenwick's office screwed
up and attached an interoffice memo.
Money doesn't always
buy you competence.
"I spoke with Douglas Karell and he
has no intention of testifying."
Who's he?
I don't know, but there's more.
"I believe this will
allow us to pursue
"our original theory
of the case."
Is there an address
for Mr. Karell?
KARELL:
It's about living life,
it's about having fun
in the city, you know?
Out loud and proud.
New York Magazine
for gay people, hmm?
People love to read about who's
seeing whom and who's doing what.
And occasionally we have
dish on celebrities.
As a matter of fact, that's
exactly why I'm here, Mr. Karell.
Sorry. A.D.A.'s
don't rate.
I'm here about Kevin Seleeby.
Am I supposed to know him?
The baseball player?
Oh, I'm sorry. Baseball bores me.
Hoops on the other hand...
Kevin's on trial for murder.
That's too bad.
Your name came up in the
course of our investigation.
My name?
Yeah, it seems
that Seleeby's counsel
would like to keep you
out of the courtroom.
You know what, it must be another Karell.
There's a Marty over on...
Why don't you stop
playing games with me?
Because I can get detectives
here in less than 15 minutes.
You wanna know what I think?
I think you and Norman Pratt
were blackmailing Kevin Seleeby.
I think...
No, no, no.
I would never do anything to hurt
Kevin or his precious little career.
The publisher of the magazine
was his lover, Jack.
Was?
They had different views
on freedom of expression.
Anyway, back when they were closer,
they were in Norman's limo.
He recognized
Mr. Karell.
And started blackmailing
Seleeby.
Jack.
I'm glad I found you.
Change your mind
on that deal, did you?
Hardly. The expert report I sent you,
there might have been a memo attached.
A very interesting one.
You read it?
And we talked
to Mr. Karell.
Shame on you.
I should say the
same to you, Alan.
Well, I didn't read your confidential
work product, Jack. That's a no-no.
You use it, I don't know how
many Canons it violates.
Lucky for you,
there isn't a judge
in this state who will let
you make that mistake.
It's a clear-cut
situation, Judge.
If Mr. McCoy would just go
back to the notes he took
in Evidence, he'll see that
attorney work-product is sacred.
Then why did you send it to me?
If you don't know
already, Mr. McCoy,
I'm not big on sarcasm.
As the Supreme Court
said in Hickman,
the work-product
doctrine is critical
to a lawyer's ability to
render professional services.
JACK: Practically, the
rule protects one lawyer
from intruding upon opposing
counsel's legal strategizing.
The People did not
intrude in this case.
Mr. Fenwick delivered
his strategy by messenger.
By attorney error.
My client shouldn't suffer because
of my associate's negligence.
He's right, Mr. McCoy.
The Second Circuit held that
the rule protects against
disclosure of mental impressions,
conclusions, opinions, legal theories only.
Not facts.
The People do not plan on
using counsel's theories,
only the fact that
Mr. Karell exists.
Nice, Jack. My
brother-in-law's a barber.
Tomorrow, I'll send you a whole
bunch of hairs to split.
My judicial sarcasm rule applies to
both sides of the aisle, Mr. Fenwick.
I apologize, Your Honor.
But the memo clearly expresses
my associate's opinion
of how to try
the case, to wit...
"In my opinion it is crucial to keep
Douglas Karell from testifying."
Game, Set, Match.
Any reference to Mr. Karell and l or his
particular relationship to the defendant
is inadmissible,
Mr. McCoy.
Fenwick should have known better than to
put something like that down on paper.
It wasn't Fenwick.
It was his associate.
And if that one ever knocks
on our door begging for work,
politely escort him
to the elevator.
This has to be a first. A lawyer's
negligence benefiting his case.
I don't see why.
We had a case before we knew Seleeby
was gay. We still have a case now.
Since when do we need a motive?
Me and Martin were at the Scott
House over on the East Side.
Kev was supposed to
pick us up around 7:00.
JACK: That would
be in his limo?
That's right. To take
us to Atlantic City.
How did your plans change?
Kev never showed.
Why not?
He called Martin on his cell.
He was freaked.
Martin couldn't calm him down.
So he gave the phone to me.
I've known Kevin my whole life,
but I never heard him like that.
I mean, it scared me.
JACK:
What did you do?
We took a cab
down to Kev's place.
I have a key, so we just
went in, and Kev...
He was just so jacked
up he could hardly talk.
What else did you see,
Mr. Arkuss?
I didn't know what to do so...
I went to get Kev
a glass of water.
In the kitchen
there was the driver.
JACK: You're referring
to Norman Pratt.
That's right.
He was slumped over the table.
I could tell he was dead.
Did you call the police?
Martin started to.
But I stopped him.
Why?
Kev's my cousin.
I know what
we did was wrong, but...
When Kev finally calmed down,
we loaded the body into the
limo and dumped it in the park.
And then we left the limo over on the
West Side and went to the hotel.
JACK: To establish
an alibi?
That's right.
Did your cousin tell you what
happened in the kitchen?
Not really.
So he didn't tell you why
he killed Mr. Pratt?
No.
No more questions.
Yes, it's possible that when
placed in a threatening situation
an abuser of anabolic steroids can
become exceptionally violent.
Would that be a psychotic
reaction, Doctor?
Psychosis? No.
Psychotic disorders are
characterized by an extreme
impairment of a person's
ability to understand reality.
Typical symptoms are
hallucinations and l or delusions.
Did Mr. Seleeby
tell you, for example,
that he heard voices telling
him to kill Norman Pratt?
No. He may have had
an overly violent reaction
because of the abundance of
synthetic chemicals in his body,
but in the end, he
merely lost his temper.
So, in your analysis, there
was an actual inciting event
as opposed to an imaginary one.
That's correct.
Thank you, Doctor.
Did my client tell you what
that inciting event was?
Not specifically, no.
But you did ask him, didn't you?
Of course, but he
refused to answer.
Isn't it true that a mark
of a psychotic disorder
is an incorrect emotional
response to ordinary situations?
Yes. But inappropriate responses
are not necessarily psychotic.
Killing for no motive
whatsoever, Doctor,
would you consider
that psychotic?
In certain cases.
FENWICK:
No more questions.
The People call Roger Ellery.
Objection, Your Honor.
JACK:
On what grounds?
I get to ask that
question, Mr. McCoy.
Chambers, Your Honor?
Ten minute recess.
Was Dr. Ellery on the People's
witness list or not, Mr. McCoy?
Front and center, Your Honor.
But that's not the issue.
What is then?
His testimony is inadmissible.
JUDGE:
Who the hell is he?
Dr. Ellery sold steroids
to Norman Pratt,
who sold them to Kevin Seleeby.
You better not be wasting
my time here, Mr. Fenwick.
FENWICK:
I wouldn't think of it.
Since an element of our defense is that Mr.
Seleeby abused steroids,
it would be redundant
to offer testimony
that he actually bought
them from someone.
Redundant, yes.
Inadmissible, no.
Come on, Jack. We both know
what you're doing here.
Perhaps one of you
would explain it to me?
Gladly. In order to counter our
defense of steroid induced psychosis
Mr. McCoy is planning
to offer evidence of motive.
And it's a very
good plan, Mr. Fenwick.
Yes, it would be if the prosecution
had some reasonable basis in fact
for offering it.
Clearly, Mr. McCoy
is planning to argue
that Mr. Pratt was
blackmailing my client.
He was.
That's right, about his being
gay, not about his steroid use.
Ergo, offering evidence
to the latter would in effect
be arguing something that Mr.
McCoy knows is false.
And we all know that would be
tantamount to suborning perjury.
I can present facts and the jury
can draw their own conclusions.
Rules may be there to be broken, Mr.
McCoy, but not in my courtroom.
Defense's objection to Mr.
Ellery's testimony is sustained.
I think we split on the experts.
Yeah, well, with no motive,
my money's on the jury's love
for apple pie, Mom and baseball.
We have two witnesses
who said he did it.
For no reason at all. Which
means he must be legally nuts.
Let's face it, Jack, Seleeby's
not going to go to prison.
I did what I thought was
necessary to put him there.
Which also includes
arguing a false motive.
Implying is not arguing. And it
certainly isn't subornation of perjury.
Well, it's not exactly
ethical either.
There are rules, Jack. You were
knowingly going to break them.
Look, I think that Seleeby should
be convicted as much as you.
But I don't think we have the
right to pick and choose
which laws we're gonna follow and
which ones we're gonna ignore.
Rugby, North Dakota.
I'll bet most of you can't
pick that out on a map.
But that's where Kevin
Seleeby was born and raised,
and most probably
would have lived and died,
if not for his special talent.
Unfortunately, in the universe
that was Kevin's destiny,
talent wasn't enough.
Twenty-five players on a team.
Thirty Major League teams.
That's 750 men
in the entire world.
Kevin had to be bigger, he had to
be stronger, he had to be quicker.
He heard whispers around the
clubhouse of a magic potion,
a potion that would make him the best
ballplayer he could possibly be,
that would keep him from shoveling horse
manure like his old man back home.
So he took the potion.
And he became bigger, and he became
stronger, and became quicker.
And he also became sick.
I'm not talking about
the kind of sick
that would put him
on the Disabled List.
I'm talking about a mental disease
that would cause him to kill a friend
for no reason whatsoever.
Luckily, in this country we don't
put men like that in prison.
Let's be clear
that just because we
couldn't state with certainty
in this courtroom here today
just what Mr. Seleeby's motive was, it
doesn't mean that he didn't have one.
And just because the Defense Counsel has
presented you with a touching story,
it doesn't mean that
it's the whole story.
Mr. Fenwick omitted the part about his
client admitting to killing Norman Pratt.
He left out the part about his
client enlisting his friends
to help him cover up the crime.
He omitted the part
about his client
trying to evade the
consequences of his act.
Just in case anyone
has forgotten,
taking steroids is illegal.
It's cheating.
Kevin Seleeby didn't care.
Why would he?
After all,
it isn't really cheating
if you don't get caught.
But this time he did get caught.
He cheated at
his chosen profession.
He cheated at life.
And now he's trying to
cheat the justice system.
But you have to ask yourselves.
Is it really justice if
it's obtained fraudulently?
Can cheating become
its own defense for murder?
Has the jury reached a verdict?
We have, Your Honor.
JUDGE: On the sole count of the
indictment, Murder in the First Degree.
How do you find?
We find the defendant,
Kevin Seleeby, guilty.
JUDGE: With the defendant
remanded, this case is adjourned
for three weeks while
sentencing is decided.
(BANGS GAVEL)
So the rumor is
Fenwick's going to appeal.
He's claiming the jury convicted
against the weight of the evidence.
Well, if he manages to get a
retrial, I'll bet he changes gears
and argues that Seleeby
was being blackmailed
about his sexual preference.
Not a chance.
Why? Because being a cheater is
more sympathetic than being gay?
I can see you've never
been in a pro locker room.
Hell of a closing, Jack.
I've got nothing
to apologize for.
That's right, special rules
for special talents.