Law & Order (1990–2010): Season 7, Episode 3 - Good Girl - 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.

We re-tarred the roof in '80,
re-fitted the boilers in '85.

And how long ago did you re-paint?
Vernon?

We did the hallways
two months ago.

All this in two months?

Who you all got living
here, Jackson Pollock?

These people aren't going
to be your headache.



That's why we got
management companies.

(LOUD MUSIC PLAYING) I didn't count
on becoming a New York slumlord.

What slum?
Vernon, the music.

Mr. McCurdy, you're three
blocks from Times Square.

(KNOCKING ON DOOR) Disney's buying up
everything that isn't nailed down.

You think Mickey Mouse
is going to live in a slum?

Look, I'll have to let you know, my plane
back to Richmond leaves in an hour.

Mr. Coyle.
In a minute.

You better come
look right away.

(LOUD MUSIC CONTINUES)

It's Charley Monroe.
I think he's dead.

I should be getting to the airport.

I hook a buyer for this dump
and he had to see this.

And what did "this" do for a living?



Charley was a freshman
at Manhattan University.

He's only been
here for six weeks.

I guess he can forget about
his security deposit.

Hey, I'd take a
building full like him.

You can see, he fixed
up the place nice.

For anyone in particular?

Yeah, a real piece of work.

I saw her tearing him a new one

in front of
the building last Tuesday.

Yeah? What did
she look like?

Young, black,
Whoopi Goldberg hair.

I don't know, I didn't
really get a good look.

Okay, either one of you remembers
anything else, you call me. All right?

The guy down the hall
says he heard an argument

from Monroe's place
about 5:00.

Monroe and some female.

You see a pattern?

What have you got?

No forcible entry.
Gold chain's still around his neck,

$23 on the desk.

I found a puncture wound
under his rib cage

and a slashing cut
on his left forearm.

Looks like he blocked one shot.

What kind of weapon?

A single-edge,
serrated.

There's a steak knife missing
from the set in the kitchen.

That what I think it is?

Fluids. His, maybe hers.

There's two empty
wine glasses in the sink.

There's two empty condom
wrappers over there.

The near perfect Sunday afternoon.
Yeah.

Yeah, I'd almost
trade places with him.

Pi?a Colada wine coolers.

Whatever happened to a cold beer?
Anything else in his system?

The tox report won't be
ready for a couple hours.

What about his playmate?

Latent got prints
off a wine glass

but nothing popped
up on the computer.

Nobody saw her coming or going?

No one who was there
to talk to us.

Next door neighbor
works a night shift,

guy across the hall
wasn't home.

Well, that might not be a coincidence.
Was this kid into anything?

No. No drugs, no weapons.
Not much cash.

He's got a sealed
juvenile record

from six years ago,
but that's about it.

(PHONE RINGING)

Van Buren. Okay,
put them in interview.

The victim's parents.

Rey, you chase down
those missing neighbors.

Lennie.
Oh, goody.

MR. MONROE: We buried
his cousin last fall.

He was shot walking
on the street.

We thought if Charley got out
of the Bronx, he'd be safe.

He worked two summer jobs to
make his rent and tuition.

He didn't deserve this.

When did you last speak to him?

Yesterday morning,
before church.

He called me.

Did he say anything
about meeting somebody?

Maybe a girlfriend?

(STAMMERS) No.

He said he had
a lot of studying.

What's this about a woman?

There's evidence there was a
young lady in his apartment.

And he was seen arguing with a
young woman earlier in the week.

She wore dreadlocks.

You know this girl?

It may be Arlene Williams.

But he stopped seeing her
a couple of months ago.

Well, where can we find her?

She works in a dance club
on Fordham Road.

(KNOCKING ON DOOR)

Um, Lennie?

According to our files, Charley
got into trouble six years ago.

The judge said
there'd be no record.

Computers don't
always get the message.

What happened?

He was 12.

Some older boys he was with

surrounded a girl at the Y and
they pulled at her bathing suit.

Charley was just
in the wrong place.

Legal Aid said to plead to a
misdemeanor and take probation.

I don't see what that
has to do with this.

Probably nothing.

I mean it straightened him out.

His grades went up.

He stayed out of trouble.
He was making something of himself. He...

(BREATHING DEEPLY)

What? Charley's dead? He can't be.
I just saw him last week.

Yeah, we heard.
So did half the neighborhood.

What was that all about?

I mean, he pissed me off and I
let him know it, that's all.

So, what? Sunday, you
guys kissed and made up?

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

Come on, Arlene, he took
advantage of your giving nature.

So you went off on him.

Look, I was nowhere
near his crib on Sunday.

I was patching cables for
some party in Claremont Park.

Why don't you check it out?
Oh, we will.

I loved Charley.
I'd never hurt him.

Sure.

You know, you can clear this
whole thing up right now.

Why don't you come down
to the station with us,

let us take your fingerprints?

No. No, no, no, no, no.

You're not going to
run a Fuhrman on me.

A Fuhrman?

Right, have it your way.
We'll get back to you.

The party kicked in around 2:00.
We was done by 7:00.

Arlene was there
the whole time?

It was a party, all right?

She came in, rolled out her
cable, rolled it back in.

What she did in
between was her business.

So you're saying she could've
slipped away for awhile?

I'm saying she was
there when I needed her.

In other words, Mr. Bell, you'll confirm
whatever half-assed alibi she gave us?

Look, what do you need? The names of
the 200 people I know seen her there?

(SCOFFS)
Sure, start with the A's.

(CHUCKLES) All right.
She was through with Charley, all right?

She knew that he didn't run
with the home girls no more.

He was down with
the college type.

And Arlene told you
all this? Why?

Because you're
a Jerry Springer?

No, because she's
hooked up with me now.

Excuse me.

Messages from his mother
and his grandmother.

His last page was Sunday
night, from his parents.

Well, who'd you expect to beep him?
The killer knows he's dead.

Well, no little
black book in there.

Bingo. Anna, with
a phone number.

You think Charley was striking
out with the college crowd?

Well, Sunday,
he hit a home run.

(EXHALES)

I beg your pardon?
I'm sorry, Sister, it's a wrong number.

Saint Anna's Convent.
Some girl gave him a bum steer.

Well, it happens
to the best of us.

Never happened to me.

Hey, Lennie, look at this.
Mycenaean Amphorae, 1400-1375 BC.

Yeah. I'm expecting my copy from
the Book-of-the-Month Club.

This one's from the Manhattan
University library.

He checked it out on Sunday.

BRISCOE: He might've been
with a young woman.

Look, I only worked
three hours Sunday morning.

Maybe somebody else saw him.

Well, is there any way of knowing
what time this potboiler checked out?

(SIGHS) We scan the book's
registration card and the student ID.

Depending where it is in the
sequence, you'd have a general idea.

Would you mind taking a look?

(SIGHS)

You know my wife
went to college here,

when she was still
living with her parents.

You see that statue over there?

That's where we used to meet
when we first started dating.

Why? The computer
room was booked?

No. We'd go make
out in the stacks.

Here we go. It was checked out
Sunday afternoon by Gina Tucci.

She's a student at Saint
Mary's College in Queens.

We have a reciprocal
agreement with Saint Mary's.

Wait. Are we talking
about the right book?

Mycenaean Amphorae?

We only have one copy.

It wasn't checked out
by a Charley Monroe?

Not unless he looks like this.

I can't even pronounce the title.
Believe me, it's not my book.

But it is your student ID?

(SIGHS) You're here
about a library book?

We're here about
a homicide, Ms. Tucci.

Were you at the library on Sunday?

Yeah.

With my friend, Danielle.
What's her last name?

Danielle Mason.
She goes to Saint Mary's with me.

We spent the whole
day at the library.

You know anybody
named Charley Monroe?

Should I?

Well, your book
was in his apartment.

Look, I said it's not my book.

You know what I think happened?

No, why don't you tell us?

The library screwed up.

At 6:00, it's a zoo over there,

with everybody checking
out books at the same time.

So my card must've got mixed
up with someone else's book.

You left at 6:00?
GINA: Yeah.

What book did you check out?

Some psych book.

I don't remember the name.
I left it at school.

Take a good look, Ms. Tucci.
You're sure you've never seen him before?

No. Never.

But I see why you have
a hard time believing

he'd take a book
out of a library.

CURTIS: You volunteer
here every day?

Three times a week.

What about last Sunday,
Ms. Mason?

No. I was at the library in the
city, at Manhattan University.

Oh? By yourself?

No. I went with
my friend Gina.

We worked in the stacks until
closing and then we left.

So she was with
you the whole day?

Yes. Why, is
she in trouble?

Well, it's probably
some kind of a mix-up.

You ever see her with this guy?

No. Look,
I'm really sorry.

I can't talk anymore.
I have to get these people ready for lunch.

Twenty years, they still make
the best calzone in Queens.

Hey, you remember what I said about my
wife and me in the stacks at the library?

You trying to
spoil my appetite?

Gina said they were in
the library until 6:00.

Her friend said they worked
in the stacks until closing.

I'm with you so far.

Yeah, I'm still on hold.

Okay. Thanks.

It's what I remembered.
On Sundays, the stacks still close at 5:00.

Oops.

I swear, she was
with me the whole time.

So you worked in the
stacks until you left?

Right.
5:00 until the stacks closed?

(CHUCKLES) I didn't
notice the time.

Well, Gina did.
She said you left at 6:00.

You see the problem?

Well, after they
closed the stacks,

we moved to the reading room to
look at magazines, then we left.

And that's the story
you want to go with?

It's the truth.

It's putting yourself on the hook
for something your friend did.

Look, anytime you want to set the
record straight, you have our number.

(SCOFFS)

With friends like
her to cover for me,

I'd still be playing
around on my first wife.

Well, Gina had a good alibi.
You think this girl's just as smart?

Actually, we're trying to keep your
daughter out of trouble, Mrs. Mason.

You talked to her
at the rest home.

She told you, she didn't know
anything about this dead person.

That's right.
She told us the same story as Gina.

Well, almost.

You think she's lying?

Yes, we do.

Well, if she is,
Gina put her up to it.

They've been friends
since grade school.

Do you know where
she was on Sunday?

Yeah. She was at
Manhattan University library.

I even gave her
money for lunch.

What? Gina picked her up?
No.

I didn't even know
they were there together

until Danielle
told me that evening.

But why Manhattan?
No libraries in Queens?

(SCOFFS) She was researching
a term paper on Greek art.

Her professor told
her Manhattan University

has the best collection
of books on the subject.

You mean, like,
Mycenaean pottery?

Mycenaean. Yeah.
That's what she was studying.

We've got Gina's book
in Charley's apartment

on a subject
Danielle was studying.

I saw this problem
on an aptitude test.

So who's watching whose back?

Well, figure one or both of these
girls was at Charley's place.

I say we pull their
driver's license photos

and show them
around the neighborhood.

I didn't see them but, hey, if
they want to make some jack,

tell them Fast
Eddie's interested.

No. Not these
girls, Eddie.

(LAUGHING) God ain't made
the woman I can't turn out.

I'll remember that.
Thanks.

It was Sunday afternoon.
They might've been with a young black man.

Well, the blonde one
doesn't look familiar.

But this one, she came in just before 6:00.
Are you sure?

Oh, yeah. She was
out of it, you know.

She was upset. She wanted to
know where all the cabbies were.

Usually on a day like today, a lot of
cabbies come in for coffee, you know?

But on Sunday, they must've
all went to Jones Beach.

What else did she say?
Nothing.

She just started
crying and ran out.

The witness puts her half a block
from Charley Monroe's on Sunday.

That pretty much
shoots down your story.

Your witness made a mistake.

Forget it, Rey.
Let's click her for conspiracy.

We'll let the D.A.
Sort it out.

You can't arrest me.

What do you think
these badges are for?

There a problem there, Gina?

No, it's okay, Uncle Joey.

Look, Danielle
called me on Sunday night.

She said if anyone asks, to say
we were at the library together.

Did she say why she
wanted you to lie?

No.

I thought she got jammed
up with her parents,

she's done the same for me.

How come your student ID
ended up at the library?

We swapped cards.

She's 18, I'm 17.
I needed her ID

to get into the arena
on Saturday night.

And she needed my
card for the library.

For what? She going to look up
Charley under Social Science?

She doesn't know him.

She wouldn't be caught dead
with a guy like that.

Like what? A tall guy?

You know what I mean.
A guy from outside the neighborhood.

She was on
Charley Monroe's street.

Her book was in his apartment.

Is there some reason you
haven't picked her up?

We can't put her
in the apartment.

What about the prints
on the wine glasses?

Well, unfortunately,
Danielle's never been printed.

Well, there's always
a first time.

I'll call Judge
Boehm for an order.

You bring her in.

I don't give a damn
who signed the order.

I want my lawyer to look at
this before you do anything.

Hey, you can laminate it for all we care.
We're getting her prints now.

I won't allow it.

You get in the way,
Mr. Mason, you're next.

Okay, now, just relax.

It's a 10-point match on the
thumb print from the wine glass,

six-point on
the index finger.

I've got her on the desk
and on the inside doorknob.

Is that enough?

(CHATTERING)

Are we through here?
No.

Danielle, I have to
advise you of your rights.

Listen carefully.
You have the right to remain silent.

Anything you say can
and will be used against you.

Do you understand?

Yes. You have the right
to consult an attorney.

If you can't afford one, one will
be provided to you at no cost.

Do you understand that?

Yes. Are you willing
to answer questions?

All right. I just talked to our lawyer.
He's in court.

He said we just sit
tight until he gets here.

They're arresting her.
What?

Her fingerprints were in
the victim's apartment.

That's impossible.

Danielle, do you have
anything to say to us?

Yes. MR. MASON: Now, wait.
Wait, sweetheart.

Don't say anything.

Now, her lawyer is on his way.

So you can't
talk to her anymore.

I just heard her waive her
right to remain silent.

I don't care what she just said because
I'm saying she talks to her lawyer first.

She's 18. If she wants to make
a statement, that's her right.

I want to get this over with.

Just sign this waiver.
Then we can talk.

Sweetheart, please, just wait
until the lawyer gets here.

No. I want to explain
what happened.

I was at the library.

This boy came and he
sat down next to me.

He saw what I was reading.
He said his name was Charley

and that he was studying Art
History at Manhattan University.

He seemed nice.
He was funny.

(BREATHING DEEPLY)

We went outside to get something
to eat from the vendors.

He said he had
some good art books

at his place, just a
couple of blocks away.

Oh, God!

DANIELLE: I was only going
to stay for a few minutes.

He got me a wine cooler.

Right away, I started
to feel tired and dizzy.

From the alcohol?

No. It felt different.

I tried to get up,

but I fell down on the bed.

I couldn't move.

He started taking
my clothes off.

Did you fight back?

I couldn't even lift my arms.

I was just lying there

and he raped me.
And then I passed out.

For how long?

DANIELLE: It was getting
dark when I woke up.

I put on my dress,

then he came out
of the bathroom

and he wanted to
do it to me again.

So I tried to run
and he grabbed me.

So I picked up the knife
off the table and...

I didn't even
know that I hurt him.

What did you do with the knife?

I don't know.
I was so scared that I just ran out.

I didn't even know where I was.

Did you go to a doctor
or to a hospital?

Why are you...

Danielle, did you see a doctor?

No. Did you tell
anybody about this?

No.

(SOBBING) I couldn't.

I felt so stupid.
I felt like it was my fault.

Mom.
MRS. MASON: Come here.

She was dizzy,
disoriented, paralyzed.

Sounds like Charley slipped
Rohypnol into her drink.

It's colorless, tasteless.

Yeah. And the biggest thing
on campus since keg parties.

Roofies pack a big punch.

Most of the time, girls don't
even remember they got raped.

That's right,
they don't remember.

You don't believe her?

Not until I see one piece
of corroborating evidence.

Come on, she's a naive kid who
got hustled by some creep.

She disposed of the murder
weapon, lied to the police,

fabricated an alibi.
She didn't get here on a turnip truck.

Well, then I did
because I believe her.

She could've kept
her mouth shut

and let the lawyer do the
talking, but she didn't.

I doubt he cries
as well as she does.

LT, take a look.
Does she look like a stone killer?

Um, what am I supposed
to be looking at, Rey?

Okay. So, what do
we do with her?

What we usually do with
people who kill people.

BRISCOE: Danielle, would
you please stand up?

MR. MASON: Why?

What's going on?
Danielle Mason,

you're under arrest for the
murder of Charles Monroe.

"Case number 072196
People v. Danielle Mason,

"one count Murder in
the Second Degree."

Your plea, Ms. Mason?

Not guilty.

The People request
$500,000 bail.

Your Honor, she defended herself
against a rapist. She's 18.

She lives with her parents.
We ask for R.O.R.

She had sex with the victim,
there's no evidence she was raped.

Look, she voluntarily gave a full
and candid statement to the police.

After a week of
lies and deception.

Why don't you both save it
for the trial judge?

$250,000, cash or bond.

REPORTER: Danielle?

(REPORTERS CLAMORING) It is a
disgrace that a decent, young woman

cannot spend an afternoon in our city

without becoming prey
to a common street hustler.

Thank God Danielle Mason fought back.
Thank God.

(ALL CLAMORING)
Mr. Archer...

Do you expect the District Attorney to
dismiss the charges against your client?

Should they? Yes. Will they?
You should ask Ms. Ross that question.

REPORTER 1: Ms. Ross.
REPORTER 2:Ms. Ross!

Ms. Ross, if Danielle Mason was raped,
will you dismiss the charges?

Let's first find
out if she was raped.

You have evidence she's lying?

Look at her track record.

Does that mean you'll present the case
to the grand jury for indictment?

It means facts, not prejudice,
will dictate how we proceed.

(REPORTERS CLAMORING)

"Facts not prejudice."
Well, do we have any facts?

There was no Rohypnol residue
found in the wine glasses

and the police didn't find any
other pills in the apartment

or the foil wrap
they're packaged in.

The glasses were rinsed out.

Charley used his last pill on Danielle
and he flushed the packaging.

Case over.

So we take her word for it,
she was drugged and raped?

A jury will without
evidence to the contrary.

Not to mention, her story
pushes all the hot buttons,

black on white crime,
date rape, Rohypnol.

Did I forget anything?

Yes.

Common sense.

She went to bed
with him willingly,

why kill him?
Buyer's remorse?

Well, until you come up with a
better motive than self-defense,

stay away from the grand jury.

Adam's right. Who knows, she
might even be telling the truth.

Look at this. She told the police
she came out of Charley's apartment

and she didn't
know where she was.

Right.

Her first time in
his neighborhood.

This witness says she came into
his store looking for a cab.

The place was known
as a hangout for cabbies.

She had been there before.

She just asked me to say we were at the
library, she didn't have to say why.

She's my friend and
that's reason enough.

You don't think she would've
told you if she'd been raped?

She was ashamed.
Come on, Gina.

She knew his neighborhood.
You're her best friend.

She must've told you
something about him.

Why is it so hard for you
people to believe her?

You know, I know a lot of guys

who don't go out
on Saturday night

without a rubber and a roofie.

Has it happened to you?

Is that where Danielle got her story?

You know what? The hell with you.
You ask any of our friends.

Those niggers are always trying to scam white girls.
They all want a piece of this.

And if they have to rape
you to get it, they will.

There's no record of calls from Charley
to Danielle's house or the rest home.

Well, ditto for calls
from Danielle to Charley.

But she did call
his pager service.

There's got to be
like 50 calls here

over the last couple of months.

A service?
Cut-rate.

You dial the number,
then punch in a code

and it routes the call
to the right pager.

So she was calling him, or one
of 100,000 other subscribers.

Her calls to the service stopped
the same day he was killed.

She was too upset after her
brutal rape to call anyone.

Seven acquittals, huh?

Eight if she was my client.

Well, we talked to
Charley's friends.

He never even told them
he was seeing this girl.

And what are all these calls here
from Charley to A.S.M. Incorporated?

A.S.M. Charley had a stack
of paychecks from them.

A.S.M. It's one of
his summer jobs.

A.S.M. Is in Queens.
So is Danielle.

Charley was one of my top producers.
Funny kid. Goes to show.

What's that?

BOXER: He just didn't
look the type.

What about the girl?

She ever stop by to visit him?
No.

Charley worked outside the
office ringing door bells.

Selling magazines.
Was Harper Street on his route?

(SIGHS)

Yeah.

Any sales to the Mason
family at 325 Harper?

No, he got a sale from
McDermott's at 306, Bergin, 343.

Nothing, 325.

But he would've
rung their bell?

That's the general idea.

He sold magazines to the left
of her and to the right of her,

but there's no evidence she was even
home when he rang her door bell.

You're 18, you're seeing
somebody for two months,

and you don't tell anyone?

Not all men brag.

And I never met a woman
who could keep a secret.

Danielle's friends aren't
burning any crosses yet,

but I can see why she wouldn't
want them to know about Charley.

There's nobody she talks to?

No coach?
No guidance counselor?

Nobody like that in her file.

The papers have been playing up

her volunteer work
at a rest home.

Danielle is a very sweet girl.

We, right away,
took a liking to each other.

You see, she doesn't
have a grandmother.

I told my grandmother things
I wouldn't tell my parents.

Mmm-hmm.

Did you say you were a lawyer?

Yes. An Assistant
District Attorney.

I heard Danielle
was in trouble.

We're trying to
find out what happened.

Did she tell you
about a boyfriend?

She said she met somebody.

What did she say about him?

This is just between
us, Mrs. Rainey.

Well, she told me
she kissed him.

(CHUCKLES)

Did she tell you his name?

I'm not sure.

Did she say if he was black?

She didn't say.

Do you think she'd keep it a secret?
Oh, no.

She dated this boy on the
football team in high school.

She was a cheerleader.
He's black.

She made no bones about it, she
even brought him home to dinner.

(LAUGHS)

You know young people,
they run hot and cold.

So what happened?

Well, Danielle broke her
arm falling off her bike,

she stopped
being a cheerleader,

and she said the boy
met another girl.

Danielle never
talked about him again.

One kiss from a mystery lover,
that's some revelation.

Want me to go back
with a rubber hose?

I wouldn't dare suggest it.

In the meantime, all we have are
maybe's, could be's and coincidences.

(PHONE RINGING)

Doesn't add up to a
relationship or a motive. Yeah?

Charley Monroe's parents are downstairs.
With their attorney.

It's been over
a month, Mr. McCoy.

You haven't presented one witness to
the grand jury or issued one subpoena.

I'm sure you explained
to your clients, Mr. Baylor,

there's no rush to indict.

You have a signed confession.

We have a statement,

which came with a defense that
we can't at this time rebut.

Can't or won't?

Don't be shy.
Put your cards on the table.

This white girl's lawyers are
on the news every other day,

mocking us, calling their
son a street hustler...

I'm not trying this
case in the media.

You're not trying
this case anywhere.

You're saying that the
killers of young, black men

have nothing to fear
from the District Attorney.

I understand you're frustrated.

But if we go to trial
now, we'll lose.

Simple as that.

It doesn't make sense.
She can't prove Charley raped her.

It's enough that
she says he did.

We have to prove he didn't
beyond a reasonable doubt.

This is just like the last time.
I can't go through it again.

What last time?

A girl accused
Charley of touching her.

He has a criminal record?

He was a kid.
We told Lieutenant Van Buren.

It's of no consequence, he
was 12 years old. Jane, Ed.

We're putting you
on notice, Mr. McCoy.

Either you move this case
forward, or we start shoving.

The record was sealed.
It should've been expunged.

It wasn't even supposed
to be on the system.

Hardly the point.
You knew about it.

You should've told us.

It was a six-year-old
misdemeanor.

It's a sexual assault.

He was a minor participant.

No drugs were involved,
no weapons, no rape.

I made a judgment call.

This is my case, Lieutenant.
I decide what's relevant.

This is a disaster.

Not only does it make
Charley Monroe look bad,

it makes us look worse
for withholding evidence.

Well, if anyone was
looking for an excuse

to drop the case,
now they have one.

It's not exculpatory evidence.

Under Brady, we're
under no obligation

to turn it over to the defense.

They can argue it's evidence he had
a reputation for sexual violence.

Which is relevant
only if she knew

his reputation
before she killed him.

She can't say she did and
claim she didn't know him.

Do you expect a jury to give a damn?

I don't want this to come back and bite
us in the ass in the middle of the trial.

Notify the defense.

Mr. McCoy?
This is for you.

It's from
the Monroes' attorney.

They filed a writ of mandamus
to force us to indict.

I'd call that a shove.

Under C.P.L.R.
Section 7803,

this court can compel Mr.
McCoy to perform his duty.

The decision to prosecute, let
alone seek an indictment,

is solely within my discretion.

His refusal to indict Danielle Mason
is an abuse of that discretion.

Prosecutorial
discretion is absolute.

By definition,
it can't be abused.

There are no absolutes
in the law, Mr. McCoy.

You have a confession,
what's the problem?

The defendant made
a claim of self-defense.

Well, let a trial jury
decide if she's credible.

Mr. McCoy can make his prima
facie case for murder.

I can only see one reason why
he hasn't sought an indictment.

I want a murder
conviction as much as you.

Calling me a racist...

Address yourself
to me, Mr. McCoy.

Your Honor, it's up to you to give the
victim's family a chance at getting justice.

With all due respect,
Your Honor,

you don't have the authority to force
this case before a grand jury.

I cite Hammond v. Leonard,
Murphy v. Kelley...

I don't really care about
precedence, Mr. McCoy.

I'm granting
the petitioner's request,

and I'm ordering you
to seek an indictment.

Your Honor...
We're done, Mr. McCoy.

Either you comply,

or I'll have you removed from the
case and cited for contempt.

She overstepped her authority and thumbed
her nose at 100 years of precedence.

The appellate division
will reverse the order.

Yeah, well,
you're not filing appeal.

The Monroes didn't have standing to
even bring the suit in the first place.

It's moot.

I don't want anyone to think that we don't
care what the victim's family wants.

The judge was mugging
for the cameras, Adam.

Her decision's
completely political.

The case is political.

If you think that being called a
racist by one hothead is bad,

you appeal, then you
see what happens.

We haven't been sitting on our thumbs,
we're still gathering evidence.

It's not enough to be busy,
you've got to look busy.

Get an indictment. Go to trial.
Give them what they want.

I have to convince a jury that

Charley Monroe didn't
rape Danielle Mason.

We're 20 minutes
from Howard Beach.

A young, black man can't
talk to a white girl

without getting his brains
kicked in by thugs.

Means, motive, opportunity.
Two out of three ain't bad.

She was familiar
with his neighborhood.

And her calls to
his pager service

stopped the day
he was murdered.

What conclusion, if any, did
you draw from this evidence?

That she knew the victim

and that she had been to his
apartment before that Sunday.

Detective, you don't
have any direct evidence

to support your
conclusion, do you?

You don't have any eyewitnesses
who saw them together,

no photographs, no letters?

No, nothing like that.

Now, who secured the order
to fingerprint my client?

BRISCOE:
Lieutenant Van Buren.

This is your
African-American superior?

She's my boss, yes.

And didn't she also run the interrogation?
BRISCOE: Yes.

Uh-huh. Does she always
get this involved

or only when white people are
suspected of killing blacks?

Objection!
Withdrawn.

Now your partner testified

that Mr. Monroe had
a sealed criminal record.

Do you know what it was for?

It was a misdemeanor
sexual assault.

Did you know this before
you arrested my client?

No.
ARCHER: To your knowledge,

did anyone in the office?

Lieutenant Van Buren.

Oh. Her again.

Well, now that you know this,
as a professional investigator,

are you more likely to suspect that Mr.
Monroe raped my client or less likely?

I'd have to say more likely.

In my opinion,
it wasn't relevant.

No more than a rape victim's
sexual history would be.

Permission to treat as hostile.

Go ahead.

You took a personal
interest in this case

right from the
beginning, didn't you?

I'm paid to take a personal
interest in every case.

Oh, in every case, you
routinely secure court orders?

VAN BUREN: No.
Not routinely.

You routinely conduct
interrogations in your precinct?

No.
ARCHER: Then why this time?

In my experience,
a female suspect

is more comfortable talking
to a female detective.

So you were concerned with
my client's comfort level.

Lieutenant, isn't it true that you
hijacked this case from your detectives?

No. That left to
their own devices

and with the information
that you withheld,

they would never have booked
my client for murder?

No. In fact, the only
reason that we're here

is because you and the
entire black community

bullied the District Attorney
into getting an indictment.

Objection.
The District Attorney himself

(GAVEL POUNDING) Doesn't
even believe in this case.

Mr. Archer, you
are out of order.

The jury will disregard
counsel's outburst.

I'm very sorry, Your Honor.

No more questions.

Van Buren wasn't intimidated.

She held her ground.

A strong black woman.

Just what that
jury wants to see.

Archer's making history.
He's the first lawyer to claim

a white defendant is being persecuted
by the black power structure.

(PHONE RINGING)

Hello?

We'll be right there.

I received this letter late this afternoon.
It's unsigned.

The author claims to be a
co-worker of juror number six,

who he says is a racist.

Number six.
The tool-and-die-maker.

The white tool-and-die-maker.

The letter reads in part,

"I heard him say on
several occasions

"how he can't stand
taking the subway anymore

"because he has to
ride with the blacks.

"He wishes they had a special car
for them at the end of the train."

Have you spoken to the juror?
Yes.

Of course he denies
the allegations,

but I'm inclined
to dismiss him.

What a coincidence.
Your Honor,

the first alternate juror
is a young black woman.

This letter is a blatant attempt to hang
the jury by altering its racial makeup.

It's tampering.
Unless it's true.

My husband is waiting
for me in the Hamptons.

I'll hear arguments on Monday.

Maybe today's the day
to buy a lottery ticket.

I'm not so sure.

Call Briscoe and Curtis.
Have them look into this.

This is a serious accusation.
I hope the judge does the right thing.

It's so serious, I had
the police check into it.

Workers at the juror's tool-and-die
factory said a heavy-set white man

driving a red Ford tried to
question them about the juror.

Doesn't your investigator
drive a red Ford, Mr. Baylor?

You're saying
I wrote this letter?

You're accusing me of jury tampering?
You better back it up.

This isn't the way to
get justice for your son.

We don't know anything
about this letter.

But from where we sit,
your way isn't working.

Our way was to get all our ducks in a
row before going to the grand jury.

Right, it's our fault.

Charley was stupid to get
mixed up with a white girl,

and we're naive to
expect a fair trial.

Stunts like this
letter don't help.

They're dragging my son's
good name through the mud.

What're you doing to stop it?

You tell Adam Schiff that if this
racist isn't thrown off the jury,

I'm releasing the
letter to the media.

Thanks for meeting with us.

I think that you'll agree
that our proposal is fair.

It's up to Judge Stein if she
wants to dismiss a juror.

Well, she can't
decide on caf v. Decaf.

We can agree to skip the first
alternate and seat the second.

A white male instead
of a black woman.

It maintains the racial
make-up we started with.

I'll let you know.

Ooh, Stein wants to hear
from us in an hour.

Then you'll know in an hour.

(INHALES DEEPLY)

All right. Let's go.

Hey, don't you see what's going on?
That letter is a fake.

I mean, these people
are trying to rig the jury.

They are incapable of
playing by the rules.

Dad.

It's just a game
to them, Mr. McCoy.

They have no respect for our system.

And one of their
boys raped my daughter,

and now they're using
you to do it again.

All right, Henry, that's enough.
That's enough. Come on.

In an hour.

Racial make-up, my ass.

Archer's afraid a black woman
would vote to convict.

What makes you
so sure she would?

I'm telling the judge we'll go
along with Archer's proposal.

I don't like being manipulated
by phony letters.

You like losing better?
We don't know for a fact the letter's bogus.

Seating a black woman would
get us closer to a hung jury.

And to prosecutorial misconduct.
I don't want to do it.

You heard Danielle's father.
That's who wins here.

A bunch of bigots.
Because your ethics might get ruffled.

You took the same oath I did.
They're your ethics now.

Well, they won't help when
Danielle takes the stand tomorrow.

It will be one hell of a show.

A sweet kid telling a very
appealing well-rehearsed lie.

I'm glad I don't have
to cross-examine her.

Thanks.

I'm open to suggestions.

If you want to rattle her cage,

try asking her
about her father.

You see how she reacted when
he went off on that rant?

When Danielle was seeing that black
football player in high school,

you said she had an accident?

Yes. I was told she fell off
her bike and broke her arm.

And then they split up.

I'd love to see
that medical report.

Well, it's not quite ethical,

but I still have some sources
at medical insurance companies.

Now it's your
ethics being ruffled.

Get me that report.

(DOOR CLOSING)

So, what is it that can't wait?

Ms. Mason,

do you remember dating a black
football player at your high school?

Wait, don't answer that.
You'll get your chance

to ask her all
the questions you want

when she gets on
the stand this morning.

Then she can sit and listen.

You stopped seeing him
after he met your parents.

After you broke your arm.

ARCHER: We don't have to
listen to this crap.

This is a copy of her medical
report from her accident.

It states that she had a spiral
fracture of the forearm.

Where'd you get this?

That's not important.

I've read enough
child abuse reports

to know spiral fractures
are caused by

someone twisting your
arm until it breaks.

Someone like your father.

That's why you stopped
seeing that football player.

Now wait a minute...

That's why you kept
Charley Monroe a secret

because you were
afraid of your father.

Stop right there. First off, this
never gets in front of a jury.

I don't need this report.
I have a good faith basis

to question her
about her injury.

You don't have the report,
you can't ask the question.

Tell that to the Appeals Court.

I'm going to cross
examine you about this.

You can lie or refuse to
answer but it'll be out there

for everyone to see.

He can't do this, can he?

I certainly can, Mr. Mason.

That's all I had to say.

Mr. Archer, are you ready
to call your next witness?

At this time, Your Honor,
the defense rests.

I heard the jury put in
their order for dinner.

And for breakfast tomorrow.
WOMAN: Ms. Ross?

Four days deliberations.
What're they doing, electing a Pope?

Probably still wondering why
she never took the stand.

By the way, terrific bluff.

It was 50-50 whether Judge Stein
would disallow the questions.

That was Stein's clerk.

The jury wants part of Van
Buren's testimony read back.

Question. " Lieutenant,
how many rape cases

"have you investigated
during your career?"

Answer. "45 to 50."

Question. " In your opinion,

"was this defendant's
behavior consistent

"with these other
rape victims?"

Answer. " No.
They didn't lie about being raped.

"They told a friend
or family member

"and they didn't
make up alibis."

That concludes
the read-back.

Now the jury has
a question as follows.

"If we find the witness
was less than truthful

"in one aspect
of her testimony,

"can we still believe other
aspects of her testimony?"

You may believe a witness'
testimony in whole or in part.

How much is up to your
common sense as a jury.

You may resume your
deliberations now.

It's going our way. They're giving
Van Buren the benefit of the doubt.

McCoy, your office
in 10 minutes.

I've advised Danielle
to take a plea.

We're thinking man two, with
a sentence recommendation.

I'm thinking

the jury is voting to convict
on murder two as we speak.

(GRUNTS)

Man one.
She does 15 years.

Tell us what happened,
Ms. Mason.

We spent the afternoon
making love.

I had to go home.

He wanted me to stay the night.

He knew that wasn't possible.
My father would've gone crazy.

What did Charley do?

He started taking the
pictures of me off his desk.

He said if I didn't want them,

he was going to
throw them away.

He said he never
wanted to see me again.

Did he tell you why?

He said I acted like being
with him was something dirty.

That he was tired of
being my black buck

and hiding in the cellar.

He just didn't understand.

If people in my neighborhood had seen
us together, they would've killed us.

JACK: What happened
after that?

He told me to leave.

I wouldn't.

He started dragging
me toward the door.

But I couldn't believe that
he was doing this to me.

I begged him to stop.

I hit him.

He said that he didn't love me.

(SOBBING)

So I hit him again
and he wouldn't let go.

You killed him
because he rejected you?

No. I needed him.

He was the most important
thing in my life.

I understand perfectly how she felt.

She risked everything to be with him.

You're talking about obsession.

No.

I just remember what it was
like to be in love at that age.

(LAUGHS)

Did I say something funny?

I almost forgot what
started this circus,

two kids in love.

What could be simpler?