Law & Order (1990–2010): Season 9, Episode 1 - Cherished - 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.

Please, just take
me in your car.

The hospital's only a few
blocks. (SIREN WAILING)

Hang on, they're almost here.

Please help the baby.
What's wrong with it?

She fell out of the crib.

It's her head. Please, help her.



All right. Come on. Now
let's give them some room.

It's gonna be all right.
It's gonna be all right.

All right? Hang on one second.

What do you got?

Baby's dead. She was
dead before we got here.

How long?

Not long, still
warm, no lividity.

This baby didn't
fall out of no crib.

How do you know?

It's a three-foot drop.

You don't die from that unless
you land wrong and break your neck.

Her neck's fine.

Sure, the bruises could
be consistent with a fall,

and maybe she cut her head
on something on the way down.



So why are we here?

There's one bruise in
front and one in the back.

Did she fall twice?

Maybe she bounced.

You tell the parents you
think they beat the baby?

I didn't say anything,
and I don't think anything,

except that this needs
explaining. That's your job.

Sorry if I interrupted
your coffee break.

When's the last time
we had a coffee break?

August of '96.

I got up at 6:30,
went to check on her,

and she was on the
floor in front of the crib.

I can't believe you
think we would hurt her.

How'd she get the
cut on her head?

I don't know.

Look, either there's something

she could've cut her
head on or there's not.

You think we spent five
years on a waiting list

just so we could
beat a baby to death

three days after we
brought her home?

Well, we can clear
this up pretty fast.

We'll take a look at her room.

You mean come to our apartment?

Yeah.

We didn't do anything wrong,

and you're not coming into our
apartment. Not without a warrant.

Then you can come
to the station with us.

Are we under arrest?

Not at the moment.

Then we're not going.

You didn't see the look
on their faces, Judge.

They did a 180 so
fast we got whiplash.

I can think of a
thousand reasons

people might not want
cops in their apartment.

Yeah, illegal drugs,
unregistered guns.

That's the attitude that makes

the Fourth Amendment
such a good idea.

Listen, the paramedic said
there was... Yes, you told me.

You don't even have
a cause of death.

If the M.E. calls it homicide,

you know where to find me.

Hi, Jane!

CHARTERS: I can't
rearrange my schedule

unless Dr. Rodgers tells me to.

So, how long?

I'm cutting as fast as I can.

Why don't you
give her a quick look

and tell us what
you think. (SCOFFS)

Determining the cause
of death is a complex...

Yeah. But you check
them when they come in.

Listen, you don't have
to sign off on anything,

just give us something to go on.

(SIGHS)

Two recent bruises, one
sphenoid, one temporal.

Bad enough to kill her?

Maybe. And there are four less severe
bruises that are three or four days old.

Like maybe somebody
pounded on her regularly?

It's a possibility.

You want my
off-the-record opinion,

you're looking at a homicide.

You want something on
paper, you'll have to wait.

We can't know if it's a
homicide until the M.E.'s office...

Yes, sir.

Uh, sorry to bother you.

Captain McKinney declines
to put pressure on the M.E.

Guy really knows
how to nurse a grudge.

He's been chilly since
my lawyer deposed him.

Go figure.

Find something to
change the judge's mind.

Moved in maybe about 10-12
months ago, them and the boy.

They have another kid?

Yeah. Nicholas. Uh, six, seven.

Must've slipped their minds.
How do they treat him?

I see 'em when they go out and
when they come in. What would I know?

I can tell you
they've been through

about half a dozen nannies
since they've been here.

Why's that? (EXCLAIMS)

They close with any
of their neighbors?

Don't think so.

They keep to themselves.

Anybody ever complain?

Screaming or crying
coming from the apartment?

(LAUGHS) No. Not to me.

Children's Services were snooping
around about three months ago.

What happened?
They came, they went.

Kid's still here.

If anything was wrong, they wouldn't
have let them adopt another one, right?

I conducted an investigation,
no action was required.

You have to wait until
a kid shows up dead?

No action was required.

Who made the complaint?

I can't tell you that.

Lady, this is going
to hit the news,

and the fingers are
gonna be pointed at you.

You rather have us
on your side or not?

Who made the complaint?

You told Children's
Services, why not tell us?

No, the señor and
señora have their...

(SPEAKING SPANISH)

Lawyer.

Sí, their lawyer said to me

that I am not to make
any trouble for them again,

or they will send la migra

and take away my
green card and deport me.

Well, you have your
green card, right?

They can't do anything to you.

(SPEAKING SPANISH)

She says she can't help us.

"The devil is in that house."

So you go back to the
judge and tell her what?

The devil made them do it?

She'll say you need an
exorcist, not a warrant.

Well, we thought,
coming from you...

Wait for the autopsy.

You gun-shy all of a sudden?

LT, there's something's
wrong in that family.

(SIGHS) Who's the riding A.D.A.?

Abbie Carmichael.

Oh, so she finally got
out of Special Narcotics.

I know her. She can help.

You didn't sue
her, too, did you?

(LAUGHS)

JUDGE: There's still no cause
of death. Nothing's different.

And siccing the D.A.'s office
on me doesn't help your cause.

CARMICHAEL: Your Honor, I
have booked time in the Grand Jury.

I am looking to charge the
Warings with obstruction.

Give it up, Carmichael.

Refusing police entry into
one's home is not obstruction.

Threatening a witness is.

The detectives tried to
talk to a Mrs. Angela Cruz,

who used to work
for the Warings.

Mrs. Cruz was
afraid to talk to them

because the Warings
threatened her with deportation

if she opened her mouth.

Is Mrs. Cruz here illegally?

She has a green card.

I want the detectives to search
the Warings' apartment to find proof

they knew their threat was extortionate
and thereby obstructed justice.

And what evidence do you
expect to find in their apartment?

If they hired and
paid her legally,

I expect to find a copy
of Mrs. Cruz's green card,

I expect to find her
Social Security number.

All right, Ms. Carmichael.

You didn't tell us you booked
time with the Grand Jury.

What Grand Jury?

(CHUCKLES)

Where's the baby's room?

There.

Where's your son, Nicholas?

He's in his room.

Where's his room?

Can you wait until my husband
gets back? What are they doing?

They're taking this
stuff down to the lab.

Now, where was she
when you found her?

I think I'd better
wait for my husband.

Fine, you can wait with
the officer right here.

Lennie. Bring her with you.

This your son's room?

PHILLIP: Elizabeth?

Elizabeth?

They have a warrant.

Hey, you must be Nicholas.

My name's Rey.

Hey, can I take a
look at your arm?

BRISCOE: How did
you get those, Nicholas?

I fell.

I'm going to call our lawyer.

I'll get Children's Services.

And you can call your
lawyer from our station house.

The boy himself
told you he fell.

Yeah, with his parents
standing there, glaring at him.

Where's my son?

Children's Services.

They don't know him.
They don't care about him.

They're not the ones
keeping him in a dungeon.

You don't understand.

No, I don't. Explain it to us.

I really want to hear this.

CSU found this tape
in their apartment.

I hate you! I hate you!
Nicholas! Nicholas!

You're safe now.

You're safe now. Get out!

Nobody's gonna hurt you
here. I'm gonna kill you!

(SHUSHING) I hate
your guts. I hate your guts!

Nicholas, you're safe
now. (SHOUTING)

There's your devil.

(SPEAKING SPANISH)

At least his head
didn't spin around.

(SCREAMING)

Nicholas... Hold on, sweetie!

I'm right here. We
love you, Nicholas.

I hate you! I hate you!
Nicholas! Nicholas!

You're safe now.

Get out!

So?

I see what you see.

He's disturbed and violent,

manages anger badly and
has poor impulse control.

That explains why they
stonewalled us so hard.

They knew he killed the baby.

This behavior is almost certainly
a reaction to severe abuse.

You know anything about his
background before he was adopted?

He's adopted, too?

Yeah. Of course he is.

Why else would his mother assure him
he's safe now, no one can hurt him here.

Could he have attacked the baby?

Sure.

Did he? Couldn't even
hazard a guess from the tape.

If I could talk to him...

He's a suspect. You
can't speak to him

without his parents'
permission, and they say no.

Well, call me if they
change their mind.

Pull the state files,

find out what agency placed
the boy with the Warings.

See if he has a history.

Of what? Punching babies?

Or torturing cats,
setting fires. Whatever.

It's our policy not
to discuss matters

related to pending litigation.

BRISCOE: There's a
lawsuit over the boy?

Yes. Who's suing? The Warings?

Yes. Because he's violent?

I really can't talk about it.

BRISCOE: So, he's
attacked people before?

I didn't say that.

Come on. Let's face it,
the kid's a lunatic, right?

He's a perfectly charming
little boy. I interviewed him at...

I really can't talk
about this. I'm sorry.

According to the court records,

the agency neglected to mention
the boy had attachment disorder.

If he has it, the
kid's a sociopath.

"If"?

Attachment disorder's
over-diagnosed, like hyperactivity.

Kid can't sit still,
he's hyperactive.

Kid hates his mother's
guts, bing-bang, it's A.D.

What's the story
on the birth parents?

The mother was a drug addict,

her brother was a pedophile
who raped him repeatedly

and rented him out
to other pedophiles.

He was beaten when he cried.

He ate out of a garbage can

because his mother
would forget to feed him.

I need to decide how hard to
pursue this and in what direction.

If he has attachment disorder,

he's capable of killing a baby.

He has no empathy.

No conscience, no remorse.

What's the best setting for him?

You mean, where can
he do the least damage?

There's no wonder
drug, no proven therapy.

You don't know what
he's been through.

I do. And I'm sorry.

Did you see him attack the baby?

No, and we have no
reason to think that he did.

If you think he's innocent, then
why are you covering for him?

They're not covering for him.

They're just trying to protect
him from unfounded accusations.

According to your lease, you
paid a pet deposit for a dachshund.

The police found no
dog in your apartment.

What happened to it?

I want our psychiatrist
to talk to him.

What's the point of this?

You can't charge the boy
with a crime, he's too young.

I don't need to charge
him with a crime.

If I take this to family court,

a judge will decide where
to institutionalize the boy.

Bluff. She has nothing
to take to family court.

The videotape proves he's
dangerous to himself and others.

Work with me to do
what is best for Nicholas.

We are doing
what's best for him.

You people look at him
and you see a little monster.

My husband and I
see a wonderful boy

who has suffered horrors
no child should go through.

You have no idea how
much progress he's made.

She doesn't care.

It's like watching Ted Bundy

at the beginning of his career.

I don't want this kid let loose
in society without treatment.

Yeah, but unless the
parents or the kid fess up,

that's it, case closed.

I'm gonna ask family court

to rescind the Warings'
adoption of the boy.

Based on what?

You saw the room
they kept him in.

Wouldn't you call that
abusive and neglectful?

What does that give us?

The court appoints a guardian,

who gives permission
for Skoda to talk to the kid.

He's a difficult child,
so they lock him in

what amounts to a bare cell.

Children's Services
investigated,

they found no abuse, no neglect.

Do I have to tell you how many fatal
mistakes Children's Services has made?

They're doing what the boy's
psychiatrist recommends.

You've seen the videotape.

When he loses control,
they don't lose their temper,

they don't strike him...

They just immobilize and hold
him firmly until the fury passes.

He's seven years old. What
will they do when he's 18?

We're doing everything
that can be done.

He's on medication, he's
in therapy, we give him love.

There's absolutely no reason
to think he can't get better.

Your Honor, this child
is violently disturbed.

He needs to be in a setting

where he's supervised
by professionals.

Nobody can do any more
than we can for Nicholas.

Nobody else has ever loved him.

No matter how
much they love him,

they are not equipped
to deal with him.

He's under suspicion
for killing a baby,

and I believe he's
also killed a dog.

You believe?

They had a dog,
then they didn't.

I asked Mr. and Mrs. Waring
about it, they wouldn't respond.

That was eight months ago.

He's made a lot of
progress since then.

Not if he's graduated
to killing babies.

There's no evidence he did.

Somebody did it.

If it wasn't you or your wife...

I agree with Ms. Carmichael.

It's in the boy's best interest

to have round the clock,
professional attention.

SKODA: Were your
parents still asleep?

Yes.

And you went into
the baby's room?

Yes.

What did you do?

I said hello to her.
She wouldn't look at me.

She was like that sometimes.

What did you do?

I poked her, like this.

Can you show me?

Did you take her
out of the crib?

Mmm-hmm.

Did you drop her? Uh-uh.

I put her on the floor
and I hit her like this.

With your fist? Mmm-hmm.

How many times?

How hard did you hit her?

Not too hard. She just
wouldn't look at me.

Did you cut her face?

I scratched her, like this.

I wanted to make her cry.

Because she
wouldn't look at you?

She didn't cry. She
hardly ever did cry.

(SIGHS) Then what?

I went back to my room

and I played with my dump truck.

Did you mean to hurt her?

Listen, it wasn't my fault.

She just wouldn't look at me!

(EXHALES)

You saw him. He
can't connect the dots.

He doesn't grasp that other
people exist apart from his needs.

Sounds like half
the people I know.

(EXHALES)

Like I said, no empathy,
no conscience, no remorse.

Arrest him.

How about the people
who made him what he is?

Turn him into a psychopath,
then lock him up?

Better now than after he
shoots up a schoolyard.

CURTIS: We have to arrest him.

No.

You want to put him someplace
with bars on the windows,

guards at the doors,
20 kids to a room?

What the hell is
wrong with you people?

Please, just let him come home.

I'm sorry, Mrs. Waring,
that's up to the court to decide.

(SHOUTING) Nicholas, you
have to come with us. Come on.

PHILLIP: Please!
He'll be all right.

(CONTINUES SHOUTING)

Arresting a seven-year-old
kid for murder?

A kid with a laundry list
of psychological problems?

What was Carmichael thinking?

Why don't you ask her?

I will.

And I don't like the way she got
the parents removed as guardians.

Sounds like you're sorry
you didn't think of it first.

Her tactics are highhanded,

and she doesn't have enough
experience for major felonies.

Four years in Special
Narcotics is nothing.

A 95% conviction
rate isn't nothing.

She's earned her
stripes. Work with her.

I understand you're opening
a children's wing on death row.

Jack McCoy?

Abbie Carmichael. Thrilled
to be working with you.

As for Nicholas Waring,

I gave his parents a
chance to do it the easy way.

So you do an end run
around his civil rights?

He's gone from dogs to babies.

What's next?

Should I have waited for him

to go after his parents
with a hammer?

You think he's better off in
children's lockup in Bellevue?

I weighed his rights
against society's.

My decision was
ethical and legal.

It's nothing for the disciplinary
committee to sweat over.

(SCOFFS)

If you have something
to say, say it.

Sorry. I know they
exonerated you.

It's just that I don't like
being second-guessed, either.

I wouldn't be
second-guessing you

if you'd checked with me first.

This is a team operation,
Ms. Carmichael.

We discuss these things.

I'll keep that in mind.

The Warings filed their
appeal on guardianship.

I started briefing our response,

if you want to take a look.

I'm sure it's brilliant
and on point.

Unfortunately, it's all moot.

The boy didn't kill the baby.

They told me the autopsy would
be ready at the end of the week.

You should get to know the
cutters in the M.E.'s office.

The cause of death
was heart failure.

The cut and bruises
were inflicted postmortem.

This says the baby was
two and a half years old.

The Warings' daughter
was 13 months.

They autopsied the wrong kid.

Why don't you go
down to the M.E.'s office

and introduce yourself.

(DOOR SLAMS)

It's the right baby, and
she was two and a half.

Bone age doesn't lie.

But I saw her photos.

Well, she looked younger
because she was underdeveloped.

Long-term neglect.

This cause of death
doesn't mean anything.

A bullet can
cause heart failure.

Oh, this kid had massive
medical problems.

I'm sorting through them all

to pinpoint the exact
cause of the heart failure.

In the meantime, we have a
seven-year-old suspected of murder.

So you do.

All I can tell you now
is that little girl was dead

by the time her brother
laid a hand on her.

It's a relief to know
Nicholas didn't kill her.

Thank you for telling us.

Can he come home now?

We still have a few questions.

What kind of questions?

You told the police you'd had
the baby for only a short time.

LINDE: Three days.

You have the adoption papers?

Of course they have the papers.

Is there a custody issue
here over a dead baby?

The issue is who had
the baby before them.

I don't understand
the relevance.

The Medical Examiner said the
baby suffered long-term neglect.

That's why she
appeared so small.

Small? My sister's
baby is the same age.

According to the M.E., your
baby was two and a half years old.

Now, where did you get the baby?

Gray market adoption?

An independent
adoption, yes. We had to.

A reputable agency wouldn't
put a baby near Nicholas?

The broker said
the baby was fine.

We paid him $12,000.

What was his name?

You know my files are
confidential, Ms. Carmichael.

What I do is perfectly legal,

so don't come in here and start
threatening me, you understand?

You passed on a baby who'd
been so severely neglected

she had only days to live.

If you think that's legal,
I've got bad news for you.

I didn't know.

Where'd the baby come from?

We're not letting go of this,

and if I find out you knew anything
about the baby's condition...

Look, I got a call
from a lawyer,

he represented a woman who
wanted to get rid of her baby.

What was the lawyer's name?

Smith. John Smith.

Look, the child's
papers are in order.

Here's the birth certificate.

Diane Sullivan.

It's legitimate.

The county recorder's
stamp is genuine.

And here's the
health certificate,

signed by a Dr. Andre Kostov.

I called Mr. and Mrs.
Waring, who were thrilled.

The lawyer brought
the baby to me,

and the Warings picked her up.

Did you speak to the
baby's birth parents?

James and Patricia Sullivan?

Why?

I don't understand.

Diane died in a car accident
with my mother a year ago.

She was just three months old.

Somebody has used
her birth certificate

to document and
sell another baby.

They must've just
gone to the county clerk

and pulled the
birth certificate.

The police looked into that.

No one has requested her birth
certificate in the last 12 months.

I need to know from you if anyone
besides you had the certificate.

Only Edward Connery.

The lawyer who represented us

in the wrongful death suit
against the other driver.

CARMICHAEL: Unless you want to
add convicted felon to your resume,

I suggest you tell us
where you got that baby.

My client couldn't
keep it any longer.

I agreed to arrange an
adoption. There's no felony.

You're saying you were
unaware the baby was at risk?

That's what I'm saying. I
was given a health certificate.

Then why switch
birth certificates?

My client wanted me
to protect their privacy.

We need to talk to your client.

You know I can't divulge
privileged information.

Your client's identity
is not privileged.

I say it is.

You want to be charged
as an accessory?

If you want to defend
a false arrest lawsuit.

Arrest him.

On what charge?

Filing a false business
document, for starters.

That should hold up
about 10 minutes, Abbie.

The man is a partner
at Peterson and Gold.

It doesn't make sense
he would dummy up

a birth certificate
for a client.

It's closer to home. A relative.

Or himself.

Find out if he has a wife
or a girlfriend with a baby

that suddenly isn't
there anymore.

Thank you.

At this time, we suspect
you of abandoning your baby.

Before we go on, we have
to advise you of your rights.

I know my rights.

Are you waiving them
or asserting them?

I want to talk to my husband.

After he makes bail.

Are you willing to
talk about the baby?

You don't understand.

She wasn't really ours.

We adopted her
about a month ago.

VAN BUREN: And what?

More responsibility than you
wanted, so you just dumped her?

CARMICHAEL: Why didn't
you return her to the agency?

If you only had her for a month,

the adoption isn't final.
What's the problem?

I want to see my attorney.

Call this attorney,
tell her she's got

a client under
investigation for a homicide.

Homicide? We didn't have
anything to do with that.

She was going to die anyway.

First, the baby
was born premature.

How do you know?

There was evidence of an
old intraventricular hemorrhage,

common in preemies.

That didn't kill her?

(SIGHS) No.

She also had atypical teratoid
growths in the spinal region.

Even otherwise healthy children

almost never survive
that type of cancer.

So she died of cancer?

She died of a metabolic problem

called fatty acid
oxidation disorder.

Her liver failed,
her heart failed.

And so you know,
with proper treatment,

almost nobody
dies of this disorder.

JACK: What's proper treatment?

Diet.

Treating infections
expeditiously.

If she'd been fed right,
she would've lived?

Until the cancer killed her.

Thank you.

If we need anything
more, we'll call you.

(SIGHS)

I can probably get an
indictment for manslaughter.

Manslaughter? They never
gave that baby a chance.

They faked an identity for her,

they never told anyone she
needed medical attention.

I don't see any intent
here to kill this baby.

CARMICHAEL: It's depraved
indifference. Murder two.

They knew the
baby was gonna die.

They didn't care
one way or the other.

Assumption. Charge
them with man one.

So, we send a message
it's sort of okay to kill a baby?

This isn't a couple of teenagers

who killed their newborn
because they were scared.

These are two adults who went to
a lot of trouble to dump a dying child

and to cover their tracks.

I may be the new kid here, but
to me this sounds like murder.

Megan, what are you doing here?

She's under arrest for murder,
Mr. Connery. And so are you.

Let's go.

You want a lawyer, Counselor?

It was a spontaneous
admission, Your Honor,

there's no basis
for suppression.

Mrs. Connery had
asked to see her attorney.

Ms. Carmichael was required
to cease the questioning.

And the questioning did cease.

Lieutenant Van Buren made an
offhand remark to a police officer.

All Mrs. Connery had to
do was keep her mouth shut.

You're splitting
hairs, Mr. McCoy.

The lieutenant made a
provocative and unnecessary remark.

Maybe it was designed to
elicit an unguarded response

from Mrs. Connery, maybe not.

No, sir, it wasn't.

ROCKWELL: Now, I've seen
enough of these charades

to know the likelihood is there.

I'm suppressing her statement

they knew the child
was in poor health.

Mrs. Connery's statement is
the only evidence the D.A. has

that they knew about the
baby's medical condition.

There's no longer any basis
for the charges against them.

Your Honor, these people
callously and deliberately

abandoned a sick little girl,

who died because
of their actions.

And I wish you luck in
proving that, Mr. McCoy,

but until you have admissible
evidence to that effect,

the charges are dismissed.

The Connerys found out
somehow about the child's condition.

What about the doctor who
signed the health certificate, Kostov?

Was he part of the collusion?

He's not listed in the
state medical association.

The cops are trying
to track him down.

The Connerys must've
had a pediatrician.

I'll check with their
medical insurance company.

I've been her
gynecologist for 15 years.

All I can say is that I counseled
them to consider adoption.

You thought they'd
be good parents?

No reason to consider otherwise.

Would it surprise you to
know that they kept the baby

for three weeks
and then got rid of it?

The Connerys? No, there
must be some mistake.

They were so desperate to adopt

they went halfway
around the world.

Where's halfway
around the world?

Russia.

I checked with U.S. Immigration
and the Russian consulate.

The Connerys have been to Vologda,
Russia, twice in the last three months.

The second time they brought
back a baby girl, Mariana Petrova.

Still doesn't prove they
knew the child was sick.

No, but I've located Dr. Kostov.

I am a diplomat.

I am attached to the
World Health Organization.

Nice try. I checked.

You're a temporary
consultant without immunity.

Why did you sign a
health certificate for a baby

with serious medical problems?

To my knowledge, I
have done no such thing.

If you excuse me.

I checked with immigration.

Dr. Kostov signed
numerous health certificates

for Russian children
adopted by Americans.

Where does he get the children?

He has an exclusive deal with
three orphanages in Vologda

who offer the children for
adoption to foreign couples.

How many couples did you find?

Eight.

They were given
sick children, too?

Two of the families have
had no problems as yet.

The others do, to
varying degrees.

JACK: And he told them
the children were healthy?

Yes.

One family adopted a
little boy with a club foot.

Easily correctable.

Dr. Kostov said that was
the only thing wrong with him.

So far they've spent $80,000
in fixing other problems,

and that's on top of the 20
grand they paid Dr. Kostov

for the placement.

He's peddling defective children

without regard
for their welfare.

Or the welfare of
the adoptive parents.

A fine summation.
What's the charge?

JACK: Same as the
Connerys. Murder two.

Depraved indifference.

CARMICHAEL: It's a stretch.

He's one step removed
from the child's death.

Morally, he's just as culpable.

You need one to
convict the other.

See who blinks first.

The only way my clients
will plead to anything

is you agree to
a fine and a walk.

CARMICHAEL: A fine?

For filing a false document.

How much for killing a baby?

Please. We didn't
mean for her to die.

If Dr. Kostov hadn't lied to us,

none of this would've happened.

The offer is man one,
minimum sentence

and you testify
against Dr. Kostov.

JACK: You gave Mariana
Petrova a clean bill of health.

She died of a diagnosable
and treatable disease.

I told the Connerys to
make sure she ate regularly

and got plenty of Vitamin A.

Did you tell them
about the spinal tumors?

I knew nothing of spinal tumors.

You can try and sell that.

I'm asking the Grand Jury
for a murder two indictment.

You can't be serious.

My client is a distinguished
representative...

Your client is a ghoul who
traffics in dying children.

Whatever actions Dr. Kostov
took occurred on Russian soil.

You have no jurisdiction.

The baby died here.
It's a result offense.

CPL-2010, Sub Three.

I have all the
jurisdiction I need.

What are you angling
for, Mr. McCoy?

CARMICHAEL: Whatever
your client can tell us

about his dealings
with the Connerys.

Man one, minimum sentence.

Three-to-six.

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

I am not responsible
for any of this.

If that's your position, you can
take your chances with a jury.

(DOOR OPENS)

(DOOR CLOSES)

So, who do you
want to put on trial?

All of them.

ATKINS: I was the
physician in charge

the night the Connery's
brought their child into the E.R.

What was wrong with her?

They said she wouldn't eat.

She was vomiting.
We stabilized her,

and I suggested to the parents

that she be admitted for tests.

Why?

She was lethargic, undersized,
had poor muscle tone.

What was the
result of the tests?

The carnitine level
led us to suspect

fatty acid oxidation disorder.

Tests also uncovered several
cancerous spinal tumors.

Were the cancers treatable?

Well, surgery wasn't an option.

I told them they could
try chemotherapy,

but that any course of treatment

would be very expensive
and the outcome

was unlikely to be positive.

This is a cancer that kills.

Always? Virtually.

How long could
the child have lived?

A year, maybe two.

Doctor, what is fatty
acid oxidation disorder?

Well, as the name implies, the
system is unable to oxidize fatty acids,

so the deposits
build up in the liver.

Fatal?

If it goes untreated, yes.

Possibly in a matter of days.

Is there a scientifically
recognized treatment?

Well, the factors that
stimulate the disorder,

infection and improper diet,

control these and the patient
can live a normal life span.

Did you give all this information
to Mr. and Mrs. Connery?

Yes.

No more questions.

If that was a little
rough, Mrs. Waring,

we can call you after the
trial, give you the verdict.

Now you worry about
being rough on us?

You don't have to put
yourselves through this.

It's so...

I still can't believe anybody
would do what they did.

All they had to do was tell us.

We would have taken her anyway.

I had no reason to suppose

the child would not respond
to affection and a proper diet.

Did you know she had a
specific metabolic disorder?

No, I did not.

Did you know she had cancer?

No, I did not.

So when the Connerys told
you, it came as a surprise to you?

Yes. They wanted me
to take the child back.

A child is not a defective
washing machine.

I told them they cannot
return it to the manufacturer.

Thank you.

So, it's your testimony
you didn't know

that Mariana was gravely ill?

Yes.

People's 17, Your Honor.
A translation of a report

prepared by the
director of the orphanage

Mariana Connery came from.

Could you read the
highlighted section, Doctor?

"Every effort should be made to
find American and European families

"for orphans with
medical problems

"that cannot be successfully
treated in this country.

"We can place most of the healthy
children with Russian families."

So, your mission is to
palm off sick children

on unsuspecting
Americans, Dr. Kostov?

You people have the
resources to help them. We don't.

Oh, I see, your motives
are altruistic, is that right?

Yes.

And to accomplish
this laudable goal,

you sign false health
certificates, is that right?

If I must.

And in exchange for this,
you put $20,000 per child

into your altruistic
pocket, is that right?

$20,000 can save a
lot of children in Russia.

There is an epidemic
of child abandonment.

Every year the spring thaw
uncovers hundreds of dead babies

who were pushed down into
the snow and left there to die.

I am saving as many as I can.

People's 18.

A translation of a financial
statement from the same orphanage.

You'll note the
highlighted section, Doctor.

Does it indicate that the
orphanage receives $2,000

for each foreign placement?

Where does the other $18,000 go?

Your Jaguar?

Your expensive home in Odessa?

Objection.

The $1,500 Italian
suit you're wearing?

Enough, Mr. McCoy.
You've made your point.

Why accuse me?

Why don't you accuse them?

To them, children are
like fashion accessories.

Something to fill
out their empty lives.

Objection.

They wanted a perfect child.

Even God cannot guarantee that.

That will do, Dr. Kostov.
The jury will disregard.

Mr. McCoy?

I have nothing further.

MEGAN: When Edward and I
found out we couldn't conceive a child,

we were devastated.

Like everybody,
we wanted a family.

We saw infertility experts,

underwent dozens of
procedures, but nothing worked.

After a while, we
decided to adopt.

MARSDALE: How did
you meet Dr. Kostov?

Through an agency that specializes
in Eastern European adoptions.

What were you told
about her background?

Dr. Kostov told us that Mariana
had been in the orphanage

for only a few weeks.

That her mother had given her up

because she wanted
her to have a better life.

Did he tell you she was sick?

He told us that she was healthy,

but she would get sick if
she stayed in the orphanage.

The conditions were deplorable.

It was just a
warehouse for children.

Dr. Kostov pleaded
with us to save her,

to take her to the United
States and give her a good home.

Later, you found
out how sick she was.

What was your reaction?

We were upset. We
felt so bad for her.

What did you do?

Edward and I talked
about it for days.

We thought at first that
we'd be able to deal with it.

But we couldn't.

We tried to return
her to Dr. Kostov.

He wouldn't take her back.

He said that she was
our responsibility now.

Then what did you do?

We tried to find someone
who would take her.

Adoption agencies, baby brokers.

One broker told us that she
had a snowball's chance in hell

of being placed anywhere else.

So we called another broker,

and we lied.

He said he knew a
couple who would take her.

Did you think you were
doing the right thing?

We honestly thought
that she'd be better off.

When I was six,

my older brother got cancer.

He died three years later.

My parents were drained,
financially and emotionally.

The ordeal destroyed
their marriage.

I'm not Mother Teresa.

I just don't have the emotional
resources to go through that.

Thank you, Mrs. Connery.

Mrs. Connery, was Mariana
covered under your medical insurance?

No. We couldn't get coverage

because of her preexisting
medical conditions.

So, the cost of treating her
would've been borne entirely by you?

Yes.

You knew she
required a specific diet

to keep her
alive, is that right?

Yes.

You knew from experience
how difficult it was to feed her?

Yes.

But when you abandoned
Mariana to the broker,

you decided to keep that tidbit
of information to yourself, correct?

Yes.

Did it occur to you
to call the broker

and tell him after she
was in her new home?

I assumed that
whoever got the baby

would take her to the doctor,

and they would find out
what was wrong with her.

Doesn't it bother you that your
assumption cost Mariana her life?

Objection!
CARMICHAEL: Your Honor,

they raised the defendant's
state of mind on direct.

I'm entitled to cross on it.

Overruled. Answer the
question, Mrs. Connery.

We were trying to do
what was best for her.

Then why falsify documents?

Why hide where she came from?

In fact,

as long as you could make
her somebody else's problem,

you just didn't give
a damn, did you?

It's easy for you
to sit in judgment,

but what would you have done?

Please, tell me. What
should we have done?

Did you call
Children's Services?

Did you talk to your own doctor?

Did you talk to other families

who were in similar situations?

Did you, Mrs. Connery?

No.

I have nothing
further, Your Honor.

Why should I make
a deal with you now?

No room for mercy, Mr. McCoy?

What can you offer?

EDWARD: Our remorse.

We feel terrible
about what we did.

Did you feel terrible
before you were caught?

You accept your responsibility
for Mariana's death?

Dr. Kos...

Yes, we do.

Is the man one offer
still on the table?

We'll get back to you.

They'll be pariahs for
the rest of their lives.

They lose a few friends.

That's your idea of justice?

Three-to-six years in a
state prison is not a cakewalk.

How many drug dealers
got a free pass from you?

The ones who could give
me someone bigger in return.

All the Connerys have to offer
is their plea-bargained remorse.

She's still trying to
blame it off on Kostov.

Did you see her
husband cut her off?

She's the least
culpable of the three.

Oh, gentlemen, please.

That sorry excuse for a
woman has a hole in her soul.

That's enough.

I can take care of myself, Adam.

Then remain objective.

It was Edward Connery's actions
that directly caused a little girl's death.

And he's an attorney. He
knew what he was doing.

The Connerys will
never do this again.

Kostov has and will,
over and over again.

Kostov's children better
off in their new homes?

CARMICHAEL: All but Mariana.

I have a solution that
will make us all happy.

What's that?

No deals for anybody.
Let's hang them all.

(LAUGHS)

ROCKWELL: As to the
defendant, Andre Kostov,

on the first count
of the indictment.

Murder in the Second
Degree, how do you find?

Not guilty.

As to the second count,

Manslaughter in the First
Degree, how do you find?

FOREMAN: Guilty.

As to the defendant,
Edward Connery,

on the first count
of the indictment,

Murder in the Second
Degree, how do you find?

Not guilty.

On the Second Count,
Manslaughter in the First Degree,

how do you find? Guilty.

As to the defendant,
Megan Connery,

on the first count
of the indictment,

Murder in the Second
Degree, how do you find?

Not guilty.

On the second count,
Manslaughter in the First Degree,

how do you find?

Guilty, Your Honor.

Man one all around.

I'll start working on the
pre-sentence reports.

Any suggestions?

You mean, who should spend more
time in prison? Kostov or the Connerys?

Don't get me started.

We can always skip the
report and take no position.

Leave it to the judge.

Let's do that, for the
sake of world peace.

The Warings filed a
petition to get their son back.

We have till the end of the
week to file our objections.

Can you and I
agree we're too busy?

Deal.