Law & Order (1990–2010): Season 2, Episode 18 - Cradle to Grave - 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.

PA:
Dr. Silverman,
please report to radiology.

Dr. Silverman to radiology.

Bypass triage.
Straight to ER.

Exam room six.

Exam room three.
Don't forget your paperwork.

Exam room five, please.



PA:
Nurse Lacotter to Admissions.
Nurse Lacotter to Admissions.

Gunshot wounds
before sprained ankles.

Go on, sit down.
Go on.

Rhonda,

Luther Vandross.
Next week at the Garden.

Oh, Lucas, your mother's
gonna love that.

You're missing something
wonderful, Rhonda.

I know, the concert.

Nurse James, did you
send me a myocardial?

- Who else is gonna send him?
- He's got indigestion.

Huh-uh. Not for two days
he don't.

Now you run on back there
and stick him on the EKG.

Now.

PA:
Mr. Hagerty, please report
to nurses' station 12.



Mr. Hagerty, please report
to nurses' station 12.

Rhonda!

Oh my God!

Call the code.

PA:
Code Blue, ER.
Dr. Orton, exam area, stat.

Code Blue, ER.
Dr. Orton, exam area, stat.

- Man #1: Let's move it.
- Man #2: Get Dr. Bardon.

This baby's stone cold.

PA:
Dr. Herrera,
you're needed in maternity.

Dr. Herrera, you're needed
in maternity.

Phil.

Somebody left the box after
10:30, janitor's last sweep.

And you got
a perfect ID, right?

Yeah, "I saw a white guy
put the box down at 11:00."

"I saw a woman put it at 10:30."

She was tall and he was a midget.
You know what.

Well, we got
prints off the box.
Maybe we'll get lucky.

The chart.
Body's ready to pick up.

What do you think, Doc?

I'm an intern,
not a pathologist.

Hazard a guess.

I been in ER for a week.
Don't quote me on this.

He froze to death.

That doesn't make sense.

This is a clean,
well-dressed baby...

- not a homeless kid.
- How do you know?

You can't keep a kid clean,
dress him in clean clothes
if you don't have a home.

Otherwise healthy,
no signs of exposure.

He must've been covered.

What's a kid like that
doing out in the cold?

What's any kid doing out
in the cold?

PA:
Maintenance, please call
nurses' station five.

(theme music plays)

There are no babies
reported missing.

The prints on the box
were partials.

And smudged.

Don't they take
babies' footprints?

They put them on the birth certificates.
Something cute for the parents.

The hospital keeps them
a couple of months,
throws them away.

Great.

So somebody walked in there,

left a box with a baby in it
and we got no witnesses?

You don't go to the ER
to watch the scenery.

That baby was left
on the floor like trash.
Nobody even noticed.

Okay.

You got a photo of the kid?

Let's assume whoever left him
lives in the neighborhood.

We could start with day care.
There's three churches,
two community centers.

Talk about a haystack.

It beats ringing every doorbell
on the Lower East Side.

Oh, yeah. We used to take
babies before the federal cutbacks.

- What do you call these?
- Toddlers.

So you tell me.

Better to pay for a few more
fighter planes

or to take care of kids?

What about the churches?

Well, there is a church...
St. Julia's over on East 12th,

they had a day care for babies.

But let me ask
you something,

do you know a woman
who doesn't work?

I mean, what are we
supposed to do with our kids?

I'll see you tomorrow.

This kid asleep or dead?

Do you recognize the face?

What a beautiful world.
This the one they found
under the West Side Highway?

Could you just take a closer
look at the picture, ma'am?

We put them on the waiting list
at this age but...

I'm not gonna be able
to recognize a face.

I got to check out these kids.

I turn around five seconds,
somebody'll snatch one of them.

So what do we got?

We got the baby,
the box and the clothes.

Let's check out
the bunny suit.

Cragen:
Okay, so where
does that leave us?

Bunny suits were manufactured
and shipped from Taiwan

to a single wholesaler.
It was last year's big item.

All right, so the one
the baby was wearing,
was that new?

Wholesaler had 30 cartons
left from last season.

Went to a job lot guy
on Warren Street.

Job lot shipped 20 cartons
all over Jersey.

One carton each
to 10 different stores in the city

and three to the Lower East Side.

There's only a dozen suits to a box.

Down from 1,000 doorbells
to 10 stores. I call
that progress.

Unless, of course,
it's a gift from an aunt in Jersey.

It's unbelievable.

The lady at the church asks,

"Is this the one
from the West Side Highway?"

This wants to know
if this is the kid from Battery Park.

How many kids
died this weekend?

Well, we got one
more store down here.

This baby, I don't remember.

Wait, wait,
wait a minute.

Come on.
You looked at this picture
all of two seconds.

You want to take a good look?

You had one carton.
How many?

Six blue? Six pink?
You sure he didn't get one?

You remember the lady.

No, I don't, Fernando.
(speaking Spanish)

She bought the playpen, right?

We don't remember, Fernando.
Nothing!

You know, we got a baby
that's frozen to death,

I don't need your attitude.

Now, what about the playpen?

I took it home for her.

3rd Street, between A and B,
two flights.

She said she was sorry
she couldn't tip me.

3rd Street.
Do you remember the number?

No, a lot of iron gates
on both sides.

Tenement. A real pit.

Thank you.

Logan:
You understand what I'm saying?

The woman with the baby.
Okay?

Hermana...
no, that's sister...

hermana, y nino
como se Ilama?

Ward.
Ward.

Uh, first name?
Primo? Primo?

Yo no se.

You want to try
for a description?

I'm doing the best I can
with seventh grade Spanish.

Hey, Ward, es young,
old, blanca, negra?

Si. Negra, veinte,
veinte y uno. 2B.

Black, 20, 21.
She lives in 2B.

It's a romance language.

(sighs)

Leave me in this wind tunnel,
I'd freeze, too.

Left in a hurry.

They got out in a hurry.
What are we looking at here?

Crackhead?
I don't know.

Your guess is as good
as mine.

The baby dies, she dumps it,
just clears out.

Like it was nothing.

Anyone else home?
In casa?

The lady in 3B.
Fourth floor, nobody.

Oh, now you
habla Ingles well, huh?

No.
Not very good English.

Vamos.

I don't know nobody
named Ward and I don't want to.

She lives
right beneath you.

I knew the lady who used
to live there, Mrs. Loftus.

I didn't like her either.

Noisy people and they
had a noisy baby.
Cried at night.

Well, that's what babies do.

Oh, tell me about it.
I've had five of my own.

I'm sure they were
very devoted.

- Anybody live over there?
- It's empty.

- What about there?
- No home.

But somebody lives there?

Aqui esta, Mr. Turner.

Is there a problem?

Should there be?

You don't look like
you're from Con Ed.

Mr. Turner, Sergeant Cerreta,
Detective Logan.

We're looking
for a neighbor of yours.

A woman by the name of Ward?

I'm not your neighborly
kind of guy.

You mind if we come in
and just have a little chat?

You look like real nice people
but it's kind of a mess.

I'd only invite my friends in.

Okay.
The woman downstairs

on the second floor with the baby,
have you seen her?

Lot of people took
the buyout.

Landlord's offering
four or five grand to leave.
It's a real good deal.

Well, it's obviously
not that good.

Oh, me?
I'm on disability, bad back.

I pay $248.65 a month,
rent controlled.

Logan:
Bad back, huh?

Must give you trouble
in the gym, right?

Oh, no.
I like to work on myself.

Develop...
what do you call them?
Compensatory muscles.

The 248,
where do you send it?

Corman Equities.
Over on 1st Avenue.

I'd let you in to get
the exact address but...

Yeah, we know.
You only invite your friends
into the inner sanctum.

Remember the old song?
"Where have all the investment
bankers gone?"

Two bedrooms renting
for the price of one.

Ward, Ward, Ward.

There's none here.
Which building?

736 East 3rd,
apartment 2B.

Oh, that building.

I was offering buyouts.

Figured I'd renovate

and get those hip
Upper West Siders who want
to live downtown.

But the way the economy is...
you know...

You're looking for tenants
with style?

That.
A lot of cash.

Adele Loftus. 2B.

This lease goes back
to the '50s.

We're looking
for a young woman
named Ward.

What can I tell you?

What can you tell me?

Loftus has a bargain,
$230 a month.

Yeah, that building,
bargain.

Thanks for your time,
Miss Corman.

The Medical Examiner
guarantees the kid was dead

at least two hours before
anybody put him on the floor.

So what do we got?

A lease from the '50s,
different last names,

are we going to turn up
Miss Ward or what?

That building
is half empty.

It's a dump.
Why does it need
a full-time super?

I don't know, Phil.
Copper plumbing.

I mean, a couple of junkies
could strip a brownstone faster
than they could shoot up.

No Adele Loftus
in the five boroughs.

Why do I doubt anyone
in that building used
an assumed name?

I checked Social Security.
She died a year ago.

According to the city
death certificates

she's buried
at St. Stephen's,
off of the BQE.

Well, if only the dead
could talk.

They don't need to.
Unless, God forbid,
someone moved the body.

Somebody's paying
to maintain the grave.

I've always liked
graveyards.

Don't tell me...
a quiet, peaceful place

where you can contemplate
your own insignificance.

No. Every spring
my mother used to take us out
to Grandma and Grandpa's grave.

It's an Old World thing.

She would plant flowers
and wash the stone,

then she'd spread a tablecloth
and we would have

a beautiful picnic
with Grandma and Grandpa.

- You'd picnic on their graves?
- What're we gonna picnic
on some stranger's graves?

(panting)
Maintenance for Adele Loftus

was paid for by Charlayne Ward,
Long Island City.

- Thank you.
- And if you'd like
to pay your respects,

Miss Loftus is buried
in quadrant G-7.

I've marked it
right on the map here.

- Thanks. Thanks a lot.
- Okay.

Cerreta:
Who is Adele Loftus?

Adele Loftus was
our grandmama.

My sister Jackie took care
of her before she died.

Your sister
have any kids?

A little boy... Henry.

Now, Charlayne, here we are,
two police officers,

we're asking you
about your sister and her son,
and you don't seem too worried.

You don't
even ask why.

When's the last time
you talked to Jackie?

Jackie don't have no phone...
couldn't pay the bill.

Look, man, we ain't
talked to her, okay?

Hell, we haven't
even seen her.

Mike, did we ask
if he'd seen her?

And she doesn't call? If I was in trouble,
I'd want to talk to my only sister.

Look, man, Jackie
did not call, okay?

Okay, here's
what we can do.

I can leave
Detective Logan here.

I'll go get a warrant,
and when I come back
we'll search the place.

Yeah, yeah, you know,
we can pass the time.

Two, three hours,
watch some TV, whatever.
Does that sound like fun to you?

Or you can make it easy
and just let us look around now.

You're about as far into my home
as you're gonna be,

so why don't you just go on
and get your warrant?

(door creaks open)

Jackie!

It's all right, Charlayne.

I did the wrong thing,
so where else am I gonna go?

Does she look like she'd
let her own son die?

Cerreta:
She left him alone
in that apartment.

I didn't... I...

In other words, you sat there
and watched him freeze to death.

- Detective...
- I had to go to work...
Mrs. Hilliard in the Village.

I was servin'
at one of her parties

and Serena Price, the neighbor girl,
she comes right after school.

Henry's
never alone for long.

- Long enough
to freeze to death.
- Where's the father?

Truck driver,
killed in an accident.

I thought
Serena would be there.

I get home,
I don't know,

around midnight,

and the apartment
is dark, freezing cold

and Henry,
he wasn't movin'.

- I took him right to the hospital.
- And you left him there.

I was outta my head, okay?

I didn't mean
to leave him there.

He was...

he was...
he was so cold.

I kept hopin', ya know?

I didn't know
what to do.

Gentlemen, can we...?

She's responsible
for that baby's death.
Open and shut.

The only thing open and shut
around here is your mind.

Let's be realistic.

The DA might go for endangering
the welfare of a child.

The law says
she has to exercise
reasonable diligence.

The law says
she had to knowingly,
or intentionally,

or recklessly,
or negligently cause harm.

I don't think
any of those apply.

At the very least,
we can hand the DA
a solid case for negligence.

Has she talked
to the babysitter
since the boy died?

She was scared.
She panicked.

We'll check her story.

With your busy schedule,

maybe you could squeeze it in
before you indict her?

I'll talk to the DA.

Meantime she stays
at Central Booking.
Look, it beats Rikers.

She's a good mother.
She loves Henry.

Were you supposed
to be there, Serena?

I got stuck...
the subway comin' uptown.

It's not her fault.
She feels bad enough as it is.

Serena: Jackie said
she might have to leave.
I have a key to the apartment.

The super says there's no way
he opens the front door
for a stranger.

Like that place
is somethin' to protect.

You'd been there before?

He opened
the door for me once.

But now he says he doesn't
know me from Adam.

See, I told him about Henry,
but he said Jackie and Henry
were gone.

I thought
Jackie must have been mad,

that she'd never
want me to come back.

A black girl...
negra senorita...

she's tryin' to get
into the building.

- Yo no se.
- Here we go again.

Jackie Ward's babysitter...
she lives in the neighborhood.

She's a young black girl,
about 16 years old.

Her name is Serena Price.

Excuse me.

Ohh, Mike...

Iook at this... he bought out
the whole hardware store.

Pretty cold, huh?
Hace frio?

No heat.
Since when?

The morning.
I fix it tonight.

Yeah.

Six space heaters,
and the furnace just
went out this morning?

Maybe it goes out a lot.

If Jackie's telling the truth,
it was off two days ago.

First time we were here...
was the heat on?

It felt like that,
but the old lady on the third floor

had her hat and her coat on
inside the apartment.

The building's half empty,
the place is a wreck,

the landlady wants to renovate.
You get a message from that?

The message I get is the landlord
would be thrilled if her tenants left.

Maybe the heat was off
accidentally on purpose.

(phone ringing)

736 East Third.

Owned by Iris Corman,
Corman Equities.

Yeah, you got
a contract on it?

Thank you.

Any changes in the amount
over the last six months?

Thanks a lot. Listen, I'll
be gettin' back to ya, okay?
Thank you.

Petrillo Oil.

Contracted to service
the furnace,

no reports of trouble.
But get this...

in the last six months,
no change in oil consumption.

Colder in February
than September.

You shut it down once in a while,
you burn a lot less oil.

We prove harassment,
Jackie Ward's behavior's
gonna look a lot better.

You wanna
make this stick?

Find somebody
who was driven out.

The Department of Housing
and Community Renewal...

they keep the leases
on computer for four years.

And talk to Jackie Ward again,

'cause if she knew the heat was off
she is still on the ropes.

Logan:
Tell us about the building.

There was never
that much heat ever.

Sometimes it was off
an hour or two

and they just said
it was an old furnace.

Did you complain?

It wasn't my lease.
It was my grandmother's.

I complain, they find out she's dead,
they'd get me out in a minute.

The law changed.

You lived there when she was alive,
you're entitled to a lease.

I didn't know that.

I was scared
we'd end up in a shelter.

What about the other tenants,
the ones that left? Did they complain?

- What am I hearing?
- I kept to myself.

All I know is,
the Spanish guy takes over...

the new super...
and it gets worse.

He wouldn't do nothin'.

The heat was off
intentionally?

We're trying
to establish whether or not

the heat was turned off
to harass the tenants.

Wait, wait, wait.

Wait.

You mean to tell me
that they did this on purpose?

Iris Corman...
what a gem.

We got a whole desk devoted
to complaints on her.

Hampton, cops are asking
about Iris Corman.

Sweet Iris.
Scum Landlord of the Year,
three years running.

Lock her up
and throw away the key.

Better yet, lock her
in one of her own buildings.

No water,
broken windows, floods.

Textbook on how
to empty a place.

Is she trying to empty
the place on East Third Street?

Look, I'm a city employee...
for me to accuse her...

why don't you take the records,
make your own conclusions?

Moved out, September.

Really bad problems.

Water's coming down
the bathroom walls.

The super turns
the water off.

Two days later, the flood's gone,
no hot water.

Do you think
it was intentional?

Come on, I went down,

I tried to turn the water on.
The basement was locked up.

A lot of buildings
keep their boiler rooms locked.

Never before.

I took the buyout.

I had as much
as I could take.

The lock
on my door was broken.

I told the super,
Tirado, he pretended
he didn't understand.

- He's got trouble with English.
- The trouble is he's alive.

I put a chair against the door,
middle of the night, boom...

the door's down and that creep Turner,
he's in my living room.

Now is he angry
with the whole world,
or is it just you?

Come on, that guy is a tenant
like I'm the Queen of England.

I never saw him at night...
what, like he's sleeping
somewhere else?

The heat goes off,
I try to get it back on,

I gotta get past Turner.
He's a thug, pure and simple.

This is Turner's sixth building
for Iris Corman.

He clears out tenants.
That's what he does.

He's got three priors...
assault and menacing.

Tenants trying
to get heat.

We were thinkin' maybe
depraved indifference,
homicide, murder two.

- Wait a minute...
- There's another building.

Old lady gets pneumonia,
lack of heat, she dies
three months later.

No charges 'cause
they can't tie 'em together.

I'll admit, charging
Jackie Ward may be pointless,

but Tirado
and Turner murder two?
We have to prove intent.

Turner's been doin' this
for years.

Which doesn't prove the heat
was cut off deliberately
the day the baby died.

Tirado didn't have
six space heaters for no reason.

- They were all brand new.
- That's a reach.

But maybe Tirado, okay?

Turner, we have
no link to the Ward baby.

- Maybe we do. The babysitter...
- Serena Price.

You remember she said
the super wouldn't let her in,
that he didn't recognize her?

- You think Serena speaks Spanish?
- Of course she doesn't.

It wasn't the super
who kept her out, it was Turner.

- She talked to Turner.
- Thank you, it's been
bothering me. Huh?

Jose Tirado,
step outside please.

You're under arrest
for the murder of Henry Ward.

Turn around please.
Put your hands behind your back.
I know you've done this before.

- Where's Turner?
- Turner no home.

Woman:
Stop! Stop!

Stop!

Turner:
The lock is broke.
It has to be replaced.

- You're not the super.
You're not replacing it.
- Turner: You gotta...

Turner!

Just gimme an excuse.

- No way.
- (hammer thuds)

- You just got nailed.
- (handcuffs click)

Joseph Turner,
you are under arrest
for the murder of Henry Ward.

You have the right
to remain silent.

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

- Do you understand that?
- Yes.

You have the right
to an attorney.

Should you refuse
that right, one will be...

You have to wonder
how these people sleep at night.

The connection between
morality and sleep.

I guess I missed that
in law school.

Tossing little old ladies
into the street.

Going for manslaughter,
very admirable.

But how
do you prove intent?

I aim a gun at you.
Is that intent to harm?

It is if the gun goes off.

Why'd they cut off the heat?
To cause harm so people would leave.

That's intent,
and that's manslaughter.

- How do you sell it to a jury?
- Stone: Turner's crimes have
a common scheme.

I get his prior convictions
admitted, the intent to harm is clear.

His record gets admitted
as pattern crime.

On a bad day with a tired judge
we can sell tickets to that.

Robinette:
Maybe we get lucky.
Roll the super on Turner,

get Turner's record admitted,
he rolls on the landlord.

This Turner fellow's worked
a long time for Iris Corman.

They hang together
or they don't hang at all.

Thanks for your optimism.

I didn't say don't try.

Where are we, Cuba?
This is justice?

Reckless endangerment one,
if your client testifies against Mr. Turner.

The idea
of responsibility here is not...

You think the charge is inflated?
We're testing it with a jury.

- With no evidence.
- One, Mr. Tirado
has separate heat.

Two, he told police he ordered
a furnace part. No order.

Three, the maintenance
contractor said there was
nothing wrong with the furnace.

Okay...
just a damn minute.

(speaking Spanish)

No, no, no...
tell him no one'll kill him.

Everybody knows
what "muerto" means.

Reckless endangerment two,
he does no time.

Who turned off the heat?

The feed pipe...
Turner, he pull it.

He say we get these people out,
we get paid more money.

(speaks Spanish)

He wanted
to fix the furnace.

Turner stopped him.

Obviously, Mr. Tirado is lying.

- That illiterate moron.
The idea that I'm in...
- Joe, Joe, please, please.

Tirado is so credible?
He's the super.

You make this crime a habit, Mr. Turner.
Two prior assaults, menacing.

A jury sees this history...

Call Bellevue, make a reservation.
You're out of your mind.

You couldn't bribe a judge
to get that allowed.

It's not worth it,
Mr. Turner.

Convicted this time, you don't
do one or two years... it goes up to 25.

Oh, heavy.
You can see that I'm terrified.

Marc, tell him
about the facts of life.

- (chuckles)
- What, the birds?
The bees? The penal law?

He knows them
better than we do.

He has two
felony convictions.

One more, he goes up
as a persistent offender.

My first conviction
was appealed.

I didn't serve a day until
after my second conviction.

That counts as one offense,
not two.

You convict me,
I get six to 12.

I'm out in two years.

We're submitting
a motion to have your prior convictions

admitted as evidence.

I'll bet it's
beautifully written, Ben.

And it's worthless.

I'll see you in chambers.

You can't allow this.

The jury hears he attacked
three tenants, they'll beg you
to execute him in the courtroom.

Relax, Mr. Menaker. We don't
have the death penalty anymore.

Stone:
Three cases, virtually identical,

in which Mr. Turner assaulted
tenants who were trying to restore the heat.

That's my point...

they're assault cases.
They're not about heat.

Let me get this straight.

Making the buildings unlivable

is intent to cause injury...
that's the common scheme?

Yeah, but you're
not gonna allow...

It's a novel theory...
and I like it.

This court rules that Mr. Turner's
previous crimes

may be
introduced into evidence.

Thank you.
Mm-hmm.

- Robinette: We thought
Turner was a thug.
- He's no saint.

The buildings Iris Corman owns?
Turner owns 'em with her.

Not gonna
put her away so quick.

Wants to protect
his investments.

- That's not the only reason.
- They own a house together...

600 grand,
Sands Point.

They live in it together?

Love makes
the world go 'round.

Also makes plea bargains
difficult.

We convict, maybe he turns on Corman
for a sentencing recommendation.

Yeah, and then she confesses.
I wouldn't count on it.

Woman:
Mr. Turner showed up in August.

I moved out
a little after Christmas.

The incident when
Mr. Turner assaulted you...

how did it begin?

I went to the boiler room,
Turner's there screwin' in a lock.

I try to get into the room,

he smacks me across the face.

Did you sustain
any injuries?

He split my lip... I had
six stitches. The vicious jerk!

- Objection!
- Sustained.

The jury will disregard
that remark.

I was standing at the front door
of the building, pounding.

He wouldn't let me in.

Do you see him
in the courtroom today?

Yeah, he's sittin'
right over there.

Would the record show that she is
indicating the defendant Joseph Turner?

Let the record so indicate.

Had you seen
the man before?

Yeah, every time I went
to take care of Henry.

I told him
Henry was inside,

but this man,
he said he didn't know me.

He said
Jackie took Henry with her.

Thank you.

Your witness.

Ms. Price, how did you describe
Mr. Turner to the police?

Well, I...

I... I didn't.

Is that so?

Didn't you tell them that he was
the building superintendent?

Yes.

But he's not.

Now, if you'd
been there that often,

how come you didn't
know that?

How was I supposed
to know?

- He's there a lot, so I thought...
- So you didn't know who he was.

Now is it possible that
he didn't know who you were?

Objection... he's asking
the witness what was in
another person's mind?

Sustained.

(speaking Spanish)

I told Mr. Turner
we had to turn the heat on.

I tried to open the door
to the furnace room.

And what
did Mr. Turner do?

(speaks Spanish)

(Tirado speaking Spanish)

Turner said to leave
the furnace off.

I was going to turn it on
but he pulled me away.

Stone:
Mr. Tirado, in the past,

did you help Mr. Turner at all...
to harass other tenants?

(Translator
speaking Spanish)

(speaks Spanish)

Translator:
Yes, I did.

I thought it would only take
a few minutes, he'd be fine.

How long
was Henry alone?

Seven hours.

When you left, what was the temperature
in the apartment?

I had a sweater on, but it was okay,
it wasn't too cold.

And when you returned?

I could see
my breath in the air.

Thank you.
No further questions.

Mrs. Ward, I know
this is very difficult,

so I only have
a few questions.

Now you testify that
you didn't call the apartment
because you had no phone.

Did you think
of calling a neighbor?

I didn't know them
too well.

No one
in the neighborhood?

No, I pretty much
kept to myself.

Did you think of calling
Serena Price's mother?

I mean, just to make sure
that Serena was, in fact,

taking care of Henry?

I didn't
think of that, no.

So then who's really
responsible for Henry's death?

- Stone: Objection!
- Withdrawn.

No further questions.

Will the defendant
please rise?

The People
versus Joseph Turner,

on the sole count
of the indictment,

the charge of manslaughter
in the second degree,
how does the jury find?

We find the defendant guilty.

Judge: I thank
the jury for their service.
Short date for sentencing.

Your Honor, the People request
a pre-sentencing conference

at which Mrs. Jacqueline Ward
will be permitted to address the Court.

The Court will consider
the People's request.

The Court is adjourned.

There's a reason
I want you there.

I want you personally
to ask for the max.

It won't affect the sentence.

Whatever Turner and Corman
are paying Marc Menaker,

he's earning every dime.

- What's that?
- A juror, number seven...

he's white,
but he speaks fluent Spanish.

There's some question
about Tirado's testimony...

a mistranslation...
I don't know how serious it is.

Menaker probably called
every juror.

Desperate, but clever.
Asking for a mistrial?

I talked to Judge Barry's clerk.
He'll probably get it.

Son of a bitch!

"Turner said
leave the furnace off.

I was going to turn it on,
but he pulled me away."

That's not
an accurate translation.

Well, how far off is it?
What would be accurate?

L... I misheard.
I got the verb wrong.

It shouldn't have been
"pulled" away.

He said "ordered" away.

Menaker:
It's the heart of the pattern
crime issue, Judge.

In previous cases Mr. Turner
was violent, but not this time.

If a juror translated it
for them, we will never
know what they thought.

At the worst, it's a minor
linguistic difference.

Judge: Maybe.

Mr. Norman, you discussed this
with the other jurors?

I told them what I heard.

He said "ordered,"
not "pulled."

Mr. Norman, do you know why
we sequester juries?

Before the trial began,

I said the jury
mustn't consider evidence

not heard
in the courtroom.

Now, you told the jurors
something only you heard.

But I only told them
what he really said.

That's true, you did.

No blame here.

It's a mess, gentlemen.

It's a mistrial.

And the People will have
to re-try Mr. Turner.

We got a conviction once,
we'll get it again.

- Every jury is different.
- They're not stupid.

I'll put your client away
and he'll serve the max

if I have to show up
for every parole hearing myself.

If it ever gets that far.

We're not taking a deal,
unless you give us Iris Corman.

Same crime, same evidence,
same conviction.

I'm moving to have
Turner's records excluded
from the second trial.

- It won't happen.
- If I were you, I would
take a look

at what the Appellate Division
has been doing lately.

Suppose you win
the second trial... you'll
never survive an appeal.

Mr. Turner will take
reckless endangerment two.

Misdemeanor.
In his dreams.

What looks better
on the news at 6:00?
His dreams, or yours, hmm?

It's a bluff.
It's a hustle.

And it's a possibility.
Menaker's no fool.

If the jury doesn't
hear of Turner's record,
we don't get a conviction.

They will hear Turner's record.
And it'll stand on appeal.

Yeah, I'd like to play
poker with you...

leave the table
with your clothes.

Six of your jurors
told reporters

that they convicted
because of Turner's record...

not because they believed
intent to harm the baby.

Court of Appeals
gonna like that?

Maybe we give Turner
reckless endangerment one
if Corman'll plead, too.

Great. A child is dead
and you're offering a D felony?

Offer it to Turner
on two conditions:

Corman pleads,
they both sign a consent decree

not to harass
tenants in the future.

It's still a walk.
It stinks.

I don't believe this!
You want me to plead guilty?

She hasn't
even been charged.

If we don't get a deal,
we'll take Mr. Turner to trial

and work on getting
Ms. Corman indicted.

You have some nerve.
I can't even heat a building for what
those tenants are paying.

If the rent laws didn't
let people live there forever,
that baby'd still be alive.

- None of us'd be here.
- Iris, please.

I don't believe this.
It's not your fault, it's the rent laws?

For destroying the value
of my property, yeah.

I oughta sue
that Jackie Ward.

I mean, I'm sorry
about her baby,

but she wasn't even
a legal tenant.

- The hell she wasn't.
- Okay, that's enough.

- You knew the law
when you bought that building.
- Round one, that's it, over.

You can't believe
we meant to hurt that kid.

Did you care
one way or the other?

You got nothin',
and if Tirado hadn't rolled on me...

Maybe Jose Tirado's memory
won't be so clear this time.

- Iris, enough.
- His testimony's on the record.

- He'll maybe change his testimony.
- Shut up.

- Are you admitting you
threatened a witness?
- No, she is not.

Maybe he'll say that the DA
forced him to make up a story.

That's an E felony,
you know that?

No, she didn't say a word.
They didn't mean it.

None of this happened.

- She blamed the rent laws?
- Stone: For the death of a baby.

You'll be lucky to touch her
and she knows it.

We may have just drawn
inside straight.

For two years, Corman rings up
so many complaints, they can't
record them fast enough.

A year ago, all of a sudden,
no more complaints.

Attack of bad conscience.

No, their
housing inspector changed.

So?

This new inspector's
pretty generous.

16 complaints
against Corman.

All of them
resolved in her favor.

What, bribes?

Let's chase the money,
see if we can prove it.

- You got 15 minutes.
- We're both on the same side.

- I live in a small world.
- Don't we all?

Who inspects
Iris Corman's buildings?

Albert Boxer.

Does he take bribes?

I didn't hear that question.

February 1990, you were
covering Corman's buildings.

Why'd you change
assignments?

My wife works
for Merchant Bank,
she's in at 6:00.

New schedule... I could
take the kids to school.

Iris Corman ever
offer you a bribe?

She hinted.

I stopped her
before she had a chance.

Suppose she pulls out
a couple hundred bucks,

maybe before I know what happens,
I start thinkin' about new snow tires.

Albert Boxer, is he buying
new snow tires?

I don't know you.
I was never here.

Inspector Boxer
used to take $100 a week
from his checking account.

11 straight months
he didn't withdraw a dime.

That doesn't prove
he took bribes.

His wife paid for groceries
by check for three years.

The past 11 months?
Every week she paid cash.

So they live on cash.
Iris Corman's not stupid.

She's not gonna
give him checks.

What if somebody offered
Boxer a bribe?

- And?
- He takes it.

We turn him
against Corman.

You got a place
to do this?

I'll find one.

Set it up.

Testing, one, two.

Where the hell's Profaci?

Phil, you can play
the landlord.

No, we were both at DHCR.
Boxer might have seen us.

(cell phone rings)

Yeah, Stone. Uh-huh.

Oh, great.

Profaci's caught in traffic.

Boxer's on the way.

Paul, take...
take your coat off.

Cerreta:
Yeah, and your tie.

- Hey, I can't do it.
- Well, you're all we got.

All right.
Great.

(dog barking)

Boxer:
You don't look like
your name is Gagliardi.

He manages my building.
Home with the flu.

Simpson, Lewis.

Mr. Simpson,
Inspector Boxer.

Boxer:
You got heat in your building?
We've had two complaints.

Robinette:
Boiler's off... we're having it fixed.

You've been having it
fixed for two days.

I should take a look,
I have to write a summons.

Wait, is that necessary?
A summons?

It is the law.

It'll be fixed tomorrow.

It's not workin' today.

Come back tomorrow.

Maybe I don't have to.

What would stop you?

Boxer:
Think of somethin'.

Wait till he asks.

Gimme a general idea,
a suggestion.

I'm sure you're pretty familiar
with the neighborhood.

Ballpark?

500.

Five? 250.

Guess I'm gonna have
to write that summons.

- Three. 300.
- Cash, now.

Albert Boxer, you're under
arrest for bribe receiving.

- Hey, come on, you can't do this.
- You bet your ass we can.

- (Boxer groans)
- You have the right
to remain silent.

Anything you do say
can and will be used
against you in a court of law.

- Do you understand that?
- Gimme my coat back, man.

It's entrapment.
You offered a bribe.

You can lead a horse to water,
you can't make him steal it.

He solicited a bribe,
it's on tape.

It's a D felony.
Two years at Clinton.

You look a little outta shape
for two years hard time.

C'mon, Ben, no judge
is gonna give him two years.

Come on, I didn't kill anybody.

So I look the other way
for a few days,

so the temperature
was 50¡Æ inside, not 70.

20, not 50.

A baby froze to death.

Stone:
I'll make it easy on you.
Here's what you're gonna do.

You're gonna plead
to a misdemeanor,

you're not gonna fight
the city about your pension,

you'll testify against
every landlord and super
you ever took a bribe from.

Or you're gonna go to jail.

Who do you want first?

Iris Corman.

Stone:
We live in a time...

when greed is glorified.

Anything is acceptable.

We must decide
where to draw the line.

We must decide
when greed

has gone far enough
to be called murder.

The People will prove
that the defendants...

Iris Corman
and Joseph Turner...

turned off the heat

in an apartment building
they owned.

The People will prove
that their acts demonstrated...

a recklessness...

that led to the death
of a 10-month-old baby.

The People will show

that they willfully,
knowingly,

and without
a shred of concern

for the consequences
of their acts,

placed the value
of their real estate

above the value
of a human life.

A baby died...

a boy named Henry Ward.

And they didn't shoot him,
they didn't strangle him,

they didn't run over him
with their car.

In fact,
they never even met him.

But they did kill him.

Now, putting
the defendants

Iris Corman
and Joseph Turner in jail

will not bring
Henry Ward back to his mother.

Putting them in jail,
however,

is the only
remedy we have.

(theme music plays)