Law & Order (1990–2010): Season 7, Episode 7 - Deadbeat - full transcript

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.

The coffee shop is open till
1:00 a.m. Here's your thermostat.

It's left for cooler,
right for hotter.

Cut that out!

Hey! Get off! I mean it!

You've got extra
blankets in the closet there.

Right. There's a 24-hour
dry-cleaning service.



Just call the valet.

How do we get this channel?

"Naked Nights." We don't.

I can have the desk
block that. Thank you.

The health club is
open till 10:00 p.m.

You just take the
elevator marked roof.

We have a video checkout.

There's an information
card on the desk...

What's in here? That
is called a mini-bar.

We will not be using that.

Joey took a can of pop.

Joey! How much is that?

$3.50.

Jeez! You're kidding.



Can we put it back?

I don't think it goes back.

It's electronic. Oh, man.

Dad! What?

That man. Is he dead?

Kids wanted to see the Statue
of Liberty. We're going home.

Lennie, this is Mrs. Mills.

"Ms." And Ms. Tanner.

Ms. Mills says she
heard a gunshot.

Sylvia said it was a backfire,

but I grew up in West Virginia,

and all the men in
my family had guns.

She thinks she
heard it around 5:00.

I didn't look at my
wristwatch. I opened the door

and saw a man running down
the hall. He had on a green shirt.

I only saw his back.

Well, was he
short, fat, tall, thin?

Uh...

Not tall like you. He
was about average.

Well, don't go anywhere,
okay? No! No, no. I won't.

All right.

She likes you.

Yeah, maybe if I
play my cards right.

Scapelli, tell us something.

Michael Malone, registered
from Tucson, Arizona.

Wound to the chest from a
small caliber pistol. No brass.

Airline ticket.

Michael Malone. Just flew
in from Miami this morning.

Long way around from Tucson.

No wallet. Seventy-two
bucks in his side pocket.

Let's see, three shirts,
one pair of pants.

Two theater tickets for
tomorrow night. The King and I.

Guy liked to party. Quart of
12-year-old scotch and an ice bucket.

Hey, that door's supposed
to be locked, right?

Maid says it's been
busted about a week.

Yeah?

Uh, Jimmy, yeah, Mike's here, but
he can't come to the phone right now.

Okay, I'll tell him
you're on your way up.

Mr. Malone has visitors.

Over here, right here.
Oops. Wrong floor.

This car's out of service.

Which one of you is Jimmy? You?

My name is Pete.

That makes you
Jimmy, then, right?

We're minding our
own business here.

And what business is that?

Our business.

Who'd you come up here to see?

Army buddy, but we
got the wrong floor.

What you got in the envelope?

Documents.

Oh, and what do you got in here?

Aw! I hope you got
documents for that.

Let's go.

Pogosian, James. Forgery. Criminal
possession. Issuing a bad check.

I forgot I closed the account.

Assault. Criminal possession.
Assault. Pogosian, Peter.

Grand larceny auto. Grand
larceny auto. Grand larceny auto.

You could at least
put some music on.

You two like other
people's cars, huh?

These registrations
are all legit.

And you were taking them
up to Mike Malone, why?

Who? The guy on the 14th floor

whose room you called, Jimmy.

What if I did?
Mr. Malone is dead.

No kidding?

So you can see why we
want to talk to two mooks

who were hanging
around with a gun.

I get it. We killed him,
then we went to visit him.

What'd you guys
think, we forgot our hat?

Okay. If you didn't kill him,

tell us what you
were doing there.

Just car business. He called us up
from Miami, said he wanted to meet.

And who else knew he
was staying at that hotel?

We knew. If you want to know
who he told, you'll have to ask him.

This conversation's over.

The gentlemen's attorney.

I lost my gun permit, Gori.
This guy don't believe me.

Pete, shut up.

You had probable cause to search
my clients? It's a trick question.

I saw the outline of a gun.

With your x-ray
vision, no doubt.

Thank you,
Mr. Gorian. Book them.

Well, even if they walk, it's
one more gun off the street.

The M.E. just called. The
slug in Malone was from a .22.

Your friends were
carrying a nine-millimeter.

You know, Malone wasn't going to
drive these pictures back to Florida.

Well, if he was car
shopping, he had cash on him.

Those boys don't
take personal checks.

Yeah, well, he had a
fast 72 bucks in his pocket.

Did you look in the hotel safe?

No, he didn't give us
anything for safekeeping.

You're not just saying that because he's
not around to tell us different, are you?

Here's the ledger.
Look for yourself.

Did Mr. Malone
have any visitors?

I don't know.

Any incoming phone calls?

We don't keep records. His
outgoing calls are on his bill.

Let's see, no outgoing calls.

A real lonely guy,

or else he just didn't want
anybody to know his business.

This the credit card he used?

Yeah. You can keep
it. That's his copy.

No room service charges. I wonder
where he got that bottle of scotch.

There are two liquor stores
within a few blocks of here.

Actually, three. You
want to take a walk

and see if he had company
when he went shopping?

Thanks.

Yeah, he was here.
He was here by himself.

Bought one of those
fancy bottles of scotch.

Paid for it with one of
those brand new hundreds.

He had a roll on him, too.

You remember what time that was?

It was in the afternoon, but I
couldn't tell you exactly when.

Your tape is time-stamped. Yeah?

Where do you keep the rest?

It's in the back. But I
can't get it for you now.

Come on, I got customers here.

I'll help you look.

Lot of good labels up there.

It'd be nice to share a taste.

You asking me for a date?

My mama told me
never to date a cop.

They fool around on you.

How about this guy?

Anybody around here
date him yesterday?

I didn't, but he's cute.

You've been at this too
long, honey. He's dead.

Hey! You don't work
my store. Get out of here!

Lennie, change for a
hundred. Yesterday, 4:33 p.m.

Did any of the
girls hit on the guy?

Well, not in my store.

Did he talk to anybody?

Well, maybe on the phone.
He asked me for quarters.

He could have picked up a girl,

invited her up for a party.

If he did, we
haven't found her yet.

Anyway, that credit
card Malone was using,

it was an additional card

on the account of Victoria
Lewis of North Miami Beach.

Wife? I just called her,

left a message on her machine.

LUDs from the payphone
across from the liquor store.

4:37, long-distance call
to North Miami Beach.

Victoria Lewis.

Well, if you don't
need me around here,

I'll go home and take a nap.

His credit card's on her
account. She's not home.

Well, she wasn't
home yesterday either.

That first call lasted
less than a minute.

Then Malone made another call

to a construction
company in Miami.

Yeah, hello. Victoria
Lewis, please.

She's not?

Well, this is her Uncle
Stanley from Chicago.

Yeah, could you tell me
where I could find her?

Oh, really? Yeah, okay, thanks.

She works there, but she took
today off for a long weekend.

She's flying up north
to meet her boyfriend.

Call the airlines. Maybe
you can meet her plane.

Oh, wow, this is great.
Did Mike send you?

He is such a doll! Where is he?

Miss Lewis? I'm
Detective Briscoe.

This is Detective Curtis.

What's going on here?

We need to talk to you.

May I see that?

Arriving passenger Joseph Ryan,

please wait for your
party at the lower level...

Where's Mike?

We have some bad
news, miss. He's dead.

What?

He was murdered
yesterday afternoon.

He warned me this might happen.

What might happen?

I don't believe you.

Oh, God!

So where's the FBI,
and why aren't they here?

The FBI?

Well, didn't you call
them? Don't you know?

No. Tell us.

I don't know if I'm supposed to.

I guess it doesn't matter now.

Mike was working for them.

He was an FBI agent?

Undercover. A special informant.

He worked on
that big Mafia case.

He should have been in the
Witness Protection, you know,

where they change your identity,

but he valued his
freedom too much.

People were looking for him.

The Mafia?

And Cubans. He used to
work for the CIA in Nicaragua.

Oh, God, you guys
don't know anything!

How long had you
known him, Miss Lewis?

Almost six months.

And you gave him
your credit cards?

No. It wasn't like that. He
put his money in my account.

We were engaged.

Did you ever meet any of
the people he worked with?

Once, around Labor Day,

Mike had me take some
money out of the bank.

We gave it to a
man in a parking lot.

Mike said it was a
sting. How much money?

$10,000.

Did you take any money
out for his trip to New York?

Fifty thousand.

Did Mike ever give
you his real name?

What do you mean?

Did he ever use any other
names that you knew of?

Once in the trunk of his
car, I found some mail.

It was addressed
to Michael Webber.

And he said that that
was one of his covers.

What kind of a scam
was he running?

He put cash into her account?

Softening her up for
the big withdrawal?

Well, what does she earn at
that construction company?

Hey, here we go. Michael
Webber. Outstanding warrant.

He's a wanted man. Who wants
him? The FBI? The Mafia? Fidel?

Worse. Ex-wife. The
warrant's from family court.

Webber v. Webber. He owed Mrs.
Webber alimony and child support.

Maybe she decided
it was time to collect.

We're looking for Arlene Webber.

I'm her father. She's not here.

What do you want? It's
about her ex-husband.

Oh, did you find that bastard?

We've been trying
for five years.

Yeah, we found him. He's dead.

Did he have any money on him?

It belongs to my daughter.

Seventy-two bucks.

He owes her $200,000.

What happened
to him? He got shot.

Shot? Where was
he? In a hotel. Midtown.

In New York?

You didn't know where he was?

Nobody knew.

Billy, his son, my grandson?

He's got leukemia. He's sick.

Webber never even saw the
kid once. Can you believe it?

You mind telling us where you
were around 5:00 p.m. yesterday?

Where I always am at
5:00 p.m. on Wednesdays.

Dragging 30-pound
sacks of dirty laundry

from restaurants in Washington
Heights. I drive a linen truck.

Mr. Schaeffer, where
can we find your daughter?

Mount Eden Hospital.
Pediatric ward.

He's dead?

You want to talk
about this outside?

It doesn't matter.

Shoot! Are you
talking about my dad?

Yeah. We're sorry. Don't worry
about it. Billy never even met him.

I think he's gonna
come back, though.

Billy, I'll be back in
a few minutes, okay?

We lived in Park Slope, duplex.

Summer nights, we'd
sit out on the terrace,

have a smoke, look
at Prospect Park.

The he decided he wanted
to look at something else?

No, that's the funny part.
He wanted his girlfriends

and his weekends in
Las Vegas with whores,

and he wanted to
be married to me.

Like one thing
didn't affect the other.

I sued for divorce. I
was six months pregnant.

You must have been pretty upset.

He was mad at me. I was
the one who broke us up.

Thought he could have
whatever he wanted all the time.

Well, I don't think a bullet in
the chest was on his wish list.

It wasn't on mine either.

All I wanted was the
money he owed us.

You saw Billy. I
can't work anymore.

My father should've retired two
years ago. His job's too hard for him.

Your husband
didn't pay anything?

The judge ordered
the settlement,

Mike leaned over to
me and said, "Forget it."

I got home about an hour later,

found out that my rent
check had bounced.

He had cleaned out the bank
account on his way out of town.

Just for the record,
Mrs. Webber,

where were you
yesterday at 5:00?

I didn't kill Mike. I was here.

And you had no idea
where he was? No.

My lawyer tried
everything to find him.

Only 20% of the children
of divorced fathers

who need financial
support get any.

This one has leukemia.

Yeah, Michael Webber.

Special prince from day one.

His first year or
two on the road,

he used to send his ex-wife
postcards from Martinique.

"Having a wonderful
time with Tiffany.

"Oops, did I forget to
pay your heating bill?"

Tiffany? Who knows?

He just liked to torture Arlene.

How did he make his living?

He brokered used cars.

Shipped them to
Europe, South America.

His income was
major six figures.

Cars are pretty big.
You couldn't find him?

He didn't have to
be with the cars.

He ran his operation out of
a briefcase and a telephone.

He lived in Arizona for a while.

We contacted the local police.

They were too busy to
serve an out-of-state warrant.

By the time we got a lawyer down
there, Webber was in California.

We did manage to slap an
injunction on some of his cars

being shipped out of San Pedro.

We just have to
prove they're his,

and Arlene will get
some of her money.

So, things are looking up?

Yeah. Except her son needs a
bone marrow transplant or he'll die.

Arlene and her
father don't match.

Webber was a potential
donor, if we'd found him.

What about after California?
We heard he was in Miami.

A collection agent we
work with sometimes

went down there a
couple of months ago.

He came up empty.

So which murder
case would you drop

to go serve warrants
on deadbeat dads?

Somebody's gotta find the time.

I mean, look at this guy.

He's on a world tour with
the bimbo of the month.

Let me tell you one thing.

There's two sides
to every divorce.

Well, this one has three sides.

I mean, how many child support
payments did you ever miss, Lennie?

My ex just kept my checkbook.

If I forgot, she knew
how to forge my signature.

You know, that collection agent

was in Miami a
couple of months ago.

Right around Labor Day.

I usually get my expenses up
front, but for the Women's Center

I pay my own
freight. It's a charity.

That's very nice.

Are you sure you didn't get a
peek at Webber down in Miami?

Only thing I got in Miami

was a case of sun poisoning.

Hello.

That's him.

Do I know you?

The parking lot of
the Pancake House.

Labor Day. $10,000.

I'm afraid you got me
confused with somebody else.

I was with Mike.

I don't know what
she's talking about.

That's okay, Kirby. We do.

Now, how about we
start all over again, huh?

Vicki, why don't you go get
yourself an ice cream cone?

No. I want to know
who this guy is.

Please. Have one on me.

Okay. I found him.

Practically laughed in my face.

He said I wasn't
gonna get a cent,

his ex wasn't gonna get a cent.

All his money's
buried in proxy names.

He didn't even
own his own clothes.

I said, "Fine.
I'll call the cops

"and you can sit in jail while
we look for your money."

But he had a better idea.

Yeah. He gave me
10 grand to go away.

But you wanted more and he
said no... I never saw him again.

Where were you Wednesday
afternoon? Nashville.

Looking for the daddy of twins.

How'd you find Webber?

I got his pager number.

I left him a message I had some used
Range Rovers. He called me drooling.

How'd you get his number?

From Arlene Webber's lawyer.

Where'd she get it?

I don't know.
Father-in-law, Arlene's dad.

Max isn't here. He's a driver. I don't
pay him to drive around the plant.

You always know where he is?

He's on a tight schedule.
He has to hustle.

So, for example,
Wednesday afternoon?

Wednesday, Schaeffer.

Broadway and Dyckman
Street. 165th Street and up.

Now how do you know
he made those stops?

If he didn't, I'd have had 20 angry calls
from customers looking for clean napkins.

You got another
one of those? Sure.

You know, if you guys
are looking to hassle Max,

you're making a mistake.

Because he's tough?
'Cause he's a good guy.

Now, where can we
find him right now?

Friday afternoon. Chelsea.

I ran into a guy who did business
with Webber before the divorce.

He had a pager
number. He gave it to me.

You said you didn't
know where Webber was.

I didn't. It was an 800 number,

one of those satellite things.

He could've been on the moon.

I thought maybe the
collection guy could figure it out.

You ever use it
yourself, to call Webber?

Yeah, once.

I left a message that his son
needed a bone-marrow transplant,

and asked him if he'd be tested.

He never called back.
Look, I got a route to cover.

He wears a green
shirt. He lied to us.

He didn't tell you he didn't
have a phone number.

He hated the guy.

A lot of people wear
green shirts, Lennie.

You want to get his picture in
front of your witness from the hotel?

A, she didn't see his face.

B, she's sailing through
the Panama Canal

on a bridge cruise
with Omar Sharif.

She sent him a postcard.

Max Schaeffer will still be
here when she gets back.

If he did kill Webber,
he's walking around

with 50 grand traveling
money in his pocket.

You think he's going to
run out on his grandson

the same way the father did?

You know, when we saw the
kid, he was playing a video game.

Yeah? A new Playstation.

CD drive? Yeah,
with, like, six games.

Ooh. Crash Bandicoot?

Excuse me, young parents.

My kids' idea of high technology
was Barbie's convertible.

No, Lennie, we're talking about $500,
$600 dollars' worth of video game here.

Yeah. Who bought it
for him? And when?

See, you use your
thumb to jump. Cool.

You have to be running or he
won't make it to the other side.

My daughter really
wants one of these.

Where did you get yours?

Grandpa brought it.

- When was that, Billy?
- That's okay, Doc.

Couple days ago. In the morning.

Thursday?

Yeah, maybe.

Chickee, the mom.

You have to be ready when
they throw fireballs at you.

What's going on here?

They're asking about my game.

Get away from my son.

Look, we would have asked
you if you'd have been there.

Ask me now.

Did your father give that
game to Billy Thursday morning?

What if he did?

Whoever killed your ex-husband
stole $50,000 from him.

You bastards.

Has your father been saving
up for that game or what?

I got it from the Angel's
Dream Foundation.

We told Billy his
grandfather gave it to him.

I didn't want to tell him

his grandpa is a
poor working stiff

who couldn't get
his dying grandchild

the one toy he wanted the most.

Hey, it was your idea.

Yeah. You know, I can't
imagine what that's like.

Yeah. Sickness,
poverty and then us.

Watching your kid in the
hospital, waiting for a donor.

If I'd found Webber,
I might have shot him

and scraped the bone
marrow out myself.

I don't think that's how
the operation's performed.

Listen, how many times
have we heard about

how tight Max
Schaeffer's schedule is?

I mean, when did he have
time Thursday morning

to visit little Billy?

Something like
that, you make time.

Yeah. First stop Thursday,
O'Connor's Tavern.

That's right down the street
from where Webber was shot.

So, if he wasn't there Thursday
morning, when was he there?

Thursday, 9:00 a.m.
Every week for 11 years.

This week he showed
up on Wednesday.

And Max never came
in a day early before?

I'm gonna have to
reset my calendar.

Did he tell you why
he came in early?

I asked him.

He said he wanted to clear
some time for Thursday morning.

He had something special
to do. What time was he here?

About 5:00. The guys with
jobs were just coming in.

You guys want a drink?

No, thanks.

Webber had to walk right by here

on his way past
the liquor store.

Yeah, at about 5:00.

This is not right. You
have no right to do this.

Does your father have
a gun, Mrs. Webber?

No. Is that what
you're looking for?

For starters. I'm gonna
check the bedroom.

You never put this much
effort into finding my husband

while he was alive.

Doyle? Nothing.

You check the freezer?
And the garbage can.

What about this
toaster? You unplug it?

No. It's broken,

like everything
else around here.

Well, maybe this is what
was gumming up the works.

About a dozen $100 bills.

I won it on a horse at OTB.

You always hide your
winnings in a kitchen appliance?

In my neighborhood, yeah.

Which horse, Max?

Number seven.

Yeah? What track? What race?

Belmont. Wrong, Max.

They're running at Aqueduct.

So it was Aqueduct.

Hey, you think we're stupid?

Michael Webber was carrying a
roll of hundreds when he was killed.

Hey, there are a lot of
$100 bills in the world.

Yeah. In toasters.

Max. MAX: Hi, Sam.

This is Sam Pokras, an attorney.

Mostly real estate.
I'm Max's cousin.

Oh, what a tragedy. First Mike is
murdered, now Max is in trouble?

Well, we want to ask
him a few questions.

Sam, they think I killed him.

They do?

You didn't, did you,
Max? No, of course not.

Then just tell them the truth.

I never saw anybody
get hurt by the truth.

He said he was an attorney.

The suspect has a right to a
lawyer, not to a good lawyer.

Couldn't this whole
interview be thrown out?

I'll take care of it.

You heard what
the man said, Max.

You want to tell us the
truth about the money?

Mr. Schaeffer, I'm Assistant
District Attorney Jamie Ross.

Did you understand the rights
that were read to you earlier?

He's got nothing to hide.

So you understand your
rights, Mr. Schaeffer?

Yes. Okay? Everybody happy?

We didn't tell you this before,

but we have two
witnesses from the hotel.

We'd like them to
take a look at you.

Go ahead. He wasn't there.

Sam. What?

I was there.

But you just said... I
met him on the street.

I went up to his
room and we talked.

And he gave you $1,200
for old times' sake?

No, he told me to get...

Max, I think maybe
now you should shut up.

"Docket 74302.

"People v. Max Schaeffer. Charge
is murder in the second degree."

Is counsel ready?

Hello? POKRAS: Your Honor, yes.

Sam Pokras for the defense,

who happens to be my cousin,

so I can vouch
for him personally.

How does he plead?
Definitely not guilty.

Can I hear it from
Cousin Max, please?

Not guilty.

Your Honor, the
People request bail

in the amount of $1,000,000.

What?

He's a decent man. He
doesn't even own a passport.

He didn't need one
to commit murder

within the New York City limits.

He has a job. His
grandson is sick.

Can the People live with
half a million, Miss Ross?

Fine, Your Honor. Done.

Miss Ross, Miss Ross.

I was talking to Judd Fields.

He plays golf with Barry Tuller,

a partner of your
ex-husband, so I was told.

And?

He told me your boss, Jack McCoy,
is in the plea-bargain business.

It's not a business, Mr. Pokras.

Have you considered
employing co-counsel?

Is counsel ready?

Caroline, where did he find you?

Yellow Pages.
Women's legal services.

I haven't met the defendant yet,

but I always assumed
Max Schaeffer was a man.

The victim of the
central crime here

is Arlene Webber, his daughter.

The central crime
isn't the murder?

Matter of opinion.

When the dead man is deadbeat
scum like Michael Webber.

That's what your client thought
of him. It's called his motive.

You're being very helpful.

That's funny. Is that
your whole case?

He had the $100 bills.

Twelve of them. The
police say 500 were stolen.

He lied to the police.

He admitted being in
the dead man's hotel room

at the time of the murder.

Before the murder.

He says Webber
was alive when he left,

and you can't prove he wasn't.

We'll be in touch.

Good friends?

Last year, I did pro bono
work at the Women's Center.

Solidarity forever.

How do we prove Webber was
dead when Schaeffer left him?

He's not a hardened killer.

He would have
been nervous, upset.

He might've said
something to somebody.

After he left the hotel room,

did he make any more
stops on his linen route?

You think I noticed what kind
of mood the laundry man was in?

Did you talk to him?

I don't have time to chat
with the laundry man,

especially when he comes in
a half-hour before dinner rush.

Which wasn't his usual time.

Did you notice anything
else unusual about him?

I don't know. I don't care.

We leave the dirty linen in
an alcove by the side door.

He comes in. He picks
it up. He goes away.

Yeah, but he was a day early.

So, was the laundry
in the alcove?

No. It was in the
storeroom. Down here.

It's a nice, quiet place. You
let him come in here alone?

Why? Was he gonna
steal a can of chickpeas?

No, we're more concerned about

what he might've left here.

So Schaeffer is nervous, he wants to
stash the gun. He's coming back in a week.

Ah, garlic, Rey. The
secret of fine cuisine.

Really? I thought
it was corn flour.

This is kind of like the Easter
egg hunt at the Curtis household.

Ooh! Check out this loose vent.

I think I win the
chocolate bunny!

.22.

What's the matter? The
Yale Club isn't open yet?

Good morning.

I hear I'm gonna be
getting a ballistics report.

And you ran over here 'cause you
couldn't wait to get the bad news?

Actually, I walked.

Without your co-counsel?

I sent Mr. Pokras to the
library to do some research.

He'll be back when
the trial's over.

If you really
want to go to trial.

We found the murder weapon,

and it has your
client's fingerprints.

Well, I hate to ruin your
weekend, Jamie. Caroline,

I don't think you can.

Max Schaeffer will be
pleading self-defense.

Self-defense?

I thought he didn't kill Webber?

I misspoke. He killed
him in a struggle.

After an argument,
Webber pulled a gun on him.

Webber pulled a gun?

The one you found. When
you get the registration trace,

you'll see that it belonged
to Michael Webber.

Here, fell out of your mailbox.

It's Webber's gun.

He bought it eight
years ago in Connecticut.

That's convenient.

He was carrying $50,000
cash. He was armed.

Yeah. What about that money?

What does Caroline Bennett
have to say about that?

Schaeffer took $1,200 home for
rent and groceries and hid the rest.

Caroline will bring it in

along with a family court
order giving it to Arlene.

I love these happy endings.
What's the rest of the story?

Schaeffer saw
Webber on the street.

He followed him
back to his room.

You believe it?

I can talk to somebody
who knew them both.

My dad isn't gonna
have to go to jail, is he?

That depends upon
how credible his story is.

His story? My father
doesn't tell stories.

Up to now, he's
been telling people

he didn't murder
your ex-husband.

That's because he was scared.

He didn't know what
would happen to him.

Mrs. Webber, does your
father have a temper?

He argues about football
teams with his friends.

He doesn't go around
shooting people.

What about your former
husband? What about him?

Your father said he
pulled a gun on him.

So he did.

Was he the kind of person

that would do something like
that without being provoked?

My father is lucky to be alive.

You want to know what kind
of person my ex-husband was?

Here's where he
used me as an ashtray.

A little going-away present
at the end of our marriage.

Schaeffer saw Webber,

the man who abused his
daughter and ruined her life,

who wouldn't even
visit his own dying son.

So far, Jack, I'd say
the jury will be with her.

They argued,
Webber pulled his gun,

Schaeffer grabbed it, bang.

And all this because Schaeffer
happened to see Webber on the street?

Jack, Webber was a possible
bone-marrow match for his son.

You think the grandfather
would go looking to kill him?

I think Caroline
will take man two.

You think? Or did you two work it
out at a meeting in the ladies' room?

Okay, so I feel
sorry for a woman

who was brutalized
by her husband

and abandoned with a sick child.

Call me a sentimental fool.

But that doesn't mean that Max
Schaeffer's story doesn't make sense.

I'd just like to hear Webber's.

Fine. You arrange the séance. Miss
Ross can work out the plea bargain.

Are you Mr. McCoy? Yeah.

I'm Victoria Lewis.
I called your office.

I heard the man that killed
my Mike is going on trial here.

Is this the place?

Actually, Miss Lewis,
it's only a hearing.

Yes, but I flew all the
way up from Miami,

and I want to make sure that this
creep gets what's coming to him.

There isn't going to be a trial.

The man who shot
your fiancé confessed.

Oh, good. I read that some of
these people were getting off.

We made an arrangement with him.

Manslaughter in
the second degree.

We don't believe it was
premeditated murder.

Oh.

Well, I know what
you think about Mike,

and I feel real sorry for
his ex-wife and the kid,

but he must have had a
good reason to leave her.

He told me he had a sick boy.

He was getting
a test to help out.

No, he didn't deserve this.

Excuse me.

Is that her?

Your father didn't
have to kill my Mike.

I don't have anything
to say to you.

Yeah, well, Mike
did. He loved me.

I'm the one he loved.

At least I knew his name.

I might have been a little
excited. I begged with him.

I told him about
the hospital bills,

and that Arlene
couldn't work anymore.

Billy wanted a dinosaur
book and some stickers,

but we couldn't
give him anything.

And here was his father,
who never called once,

who owed us all that money.

Reached in his pocket and gave
me two $100 bills and said, "Here,

"here's a down payment."

Then he went to his
suitcase and opened it up

and I saw all that money. I thought
he was gonna give me some more.

Instead he came up with a gun.

I was looking right
down the barrel.

He said, "Get the
hell out of here!"

I didn't care
whether I died or not.

I grabbed his hand
and pushed it to the side

and he pushed back
and the gun went off.

Are the People satisfied?

No. Your Honor, we
had a plea agreement!

It's withdrawn.

What the hell was that?

You don't have a deal
until I say you have a deal.

So our negotiation,
our agreement,

our date with the judge
was all for nothing?

You just felt like
wasting everyone's time?

I changed my mind.

You want to give me a hint why?

Or you didn't like
Max's cologne today?

Jamie?

Caroline, I'll call you.

Oh!

The great man doesn't deign
to confide in his associate.

Maybe next year
you'll get promoted

to carrying his briefcase.

You trying to destroy both
our reputations, or just yours?

I'd rather be insulted
by Caroline Bennett

than mistakenly free a murderer.

What are you talking about?

Do you think Webber would
check a bag with $50,000 in it?

Three shirts, one pair of pants.

This is everything from
Webber's hotel room?

We didn't bring
in the furniture.

Just this suitcase?

Check.

Anything in the trashcan? Trash.

No baggage-claim check?

Why would there be?

He flew here from Miami.

Looks like carry-on to me.

Yes, it does.

You don't think he
checked a bag? So?

So he didn't bring the
gun with him from Miami.

So he didn't have it
with him in the hotel.

So your client wasn't
threatened with it.

Want to try another
story, Mr. Schaeffer?

It's true.

Don't insult us.

Maybe Webber left
the gun in New York

and picked it up
when he got here.

Where did he leave it, Caroline?

Under a rock in Central Park?

They let you back on the
team, Jamie? How sweet.

Try this one. Max
did have the gun.

He carried it for protection
on his laundry route.

He ran into Webber, they argued,

and in a moment of
highly-justified passion...

You can't decide
which lie to tell?

When we get in
front of the jury,

you'll have your theory
and I'll have mine.

Mine will make sense. Logic?

Which one do you think
they'll want to believe?

The one that points to the old
man with the abused daughter,

or the one that points to
the man who abused her?

I tell you to make
a deal, make a deal!

Caroline Bennett's
gonna make a jury

want to dig Webber
up and kill him again.

We can prove our
case or make a run at it.

Yeah? And how?

Max Schaeffer must have
gotten the gun from his daughter.

Webber must have left it
with her when they divorced.

She's gotta know something.

I'm sure she'll be
delighted to cooperate.

She could be subpoenaed.

We can even charge her if she knew
how her father was gonna use the gun.

Papers are gonna love that.

Trumping up a charge
against a woman

with a dying son. Wonderful.

Who says it's trumped up if
she gave her father the gun?

Could be that Caroline
Bennett is right.

She gave her father the gun for
protection on his laundry stops.

Come on, Adam. What's so
scary about a laundry route?

It's a coincidence that he was
carrying a gun when he ran into Webber?

It was always a coincidence

he ran into Webber. Whenever.

He said he changed his route, which
put him near the hotel that afternoon,

so he could visit his grandson

in the hospital
the next morning.

Why that afternoon?
Why that morning?

How about this one?

Who knew that Webber
was gonna be at that hotel?

We already danced this dance with the cops.
Malone, Webber, whatever his name was,

he called us and we
made the date with him.

He just called you
out of the blue?

Well, we're
prominent in our field.

And you never mentioned your
date with him to Max Schaeffer?

We never heard of Max Schaeffer.

Are you sure? Yeah.

All right. You can think it over

while these officers
check the VIN numbers

on every axle and
engine block on this lot.

Anything shows up
stolen on the computer,

this place belongs to
the city of New York.

You care so much? Deeply.

Okay. We didn't set
up the meet ourselves.

There was a
middleman in for 10%.

He called us about Webber.

Why didn't you tell the police?

Our customer gets taken off,

maybe by somebody who set us up.

We handle that kind
of business ourselves.

Where's your middleman now?

At the bottom of
the Hudson River?

We did have a nice long talk
with him, but he's walking around.

His name is Kirby.
He's a collection agent.

I'm going to stuff your head
into that little hole over there

until you start
telling us the truth!

Hey, you can't do
that! He's a witness.

What do you think,
Mr. District Attorney?

Webber was lured to New York and
killed for the money he was carrying?

I think we're looking
at a death-penalty case.

Death penalty?

You want to see the statute?
It's got your picture in it.

I didn't do anything!
You set it up.

You're as guilty as the
one who pulled the trigger.

That son of a bitch Schaeffer.

I didn't even get
a nickel out of it.

I told him I knew
Jimmy and Pete.

From the PTA?

I did some collection
work for them.

I figured they could get Webber
up here. The old man told me

I could make a little more than
my usual third of what's recovered

once he was locked up.

You mean once he was dead?

I didn't know he
was going to kill him.

I thought he was
gonna call the cops,

I swear. That's what he told me.

Are you ready to talk
deal again, McCoy,

or did you bring us here for
another one of your practical jokes?

Neither.

I just had a nice chat with
Joe Kirby, Mr. Schaeffer.

The collection agent?

Right. The one who did
some work for your client.

It turns out he's also an associate
of Jimmy and Pete Pogosian.

The people Michael Webber
came up from Florida to meet.

Good morning, Caroline.

Your client used Mr. Kirby

to set up Webber's
trip to New York.

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

We made a deal with him
this time, Mr. Schaeffer.

He told you when and
where the meeting was,

and you showed up with the gun,

killed Webber, stole
the money... No.

You're in this, too. You
gave your father the gun.

Who's going to believe that?

Webber was a possible
organ donor for her son.

Maybe you just
hated your ex-husband

more than you loved your child.

You don't know what you're
saying. It's not possible.

We'll see what a jury thinks.

You leave her out of it.

Max. No.

I shot him.

She had nothing to do
with it. I planned it myself.

Dad, don't!

I don't care. I'm
glad he's dead.

I think we're ready to talk
plea bargain now, Caroline.

Murder two.

Anything he wants. Long
as he leaves Arlene out of it.

Twenty-five years to
life? He's 67 years old.

Man one. We leave
sentencing to the judge.

Talk, Mr. Schaeffer.

We knew he was the
match for the transplant.

Arlene had his old
medical records.

So I got the son
of a bitch up here.

Why now? Your
daughter's divorce lawyer

just found some of his assets.

That stuff takes years.
Billy was sick now!

I knew if I got him up here to
buy cars, he'd be carrying cash.

You could have called the
police once he was in New York.

Yeah, sure. Like
they give a damn.

Yeah, I'd do it again.

Your plea bargain
gonna stick this time?

As far as I'm concerned.

It's still one case where I would
have loved to put the victim on trial.

He destroyed three lives. He put
out cigarettes on his wife's chest.

He did tell his girlfriend he was
gonna be tested for the transplant.

He also told her he
worked for the CIA.

He'd still be alive if his wife didn't
have some old medical records.

Until he failed the test.

Jack, what kind of records
could she have had?

Going down.

Check with the hospital.

You people don't
have any other cases?

My dad's probably gonna
die in jail. I hope you're happy.

I spoke to your son's
doctor, Mrs. Webber.

I know. You know what?

Why you and your father
conspired to kill your ex-husband.

Because he is a
miserable cheapskate worm

who wouldn't help
his dying child.

How's that for a reason?

I have to get some sleep now.

Did he call you?

Did he tell you he
was gonna get tested?

I can get his phone records from
Florida. His medical records, too.

Do you want to know
what the doctor told me?

You can't tell from old records

if a man is an organ donor,

but you'd see blood types,

and blood types
can rule out paternity.

He didn't know he wasn't
Billy's father, did he?

If he'd been tested,
he would've found out.

And your entire claim
for child support, gone.

You know, the last year of my
marriage, it wasn't much of a marriage.

I have no doubt.

Do you have children?

She's three.

My son gets so
tired he can't play.

My son starts vomiting
and he can't stop. He's dying.

And I can maybe keep
him alive a little longer

or maybe just make
him a little happier

if I had some money.

I have to go now.

I know. We already
got the father.

But she's guilty, too.

We put her in jail,
her son dies alone.

Everybody's got a sad story.

It won't be an
easy case to make.

Webber's dead.
Her father won't talk.

We can look for other evidence.

You feel burned?

You feel sorry for her?

Call me a sentimental fool.

There's no statute of
limitations on murder.

We'll keep it.

Right on top of the pile.