Law & Order: Special Victims Unit (1999–…): Season 3, Episode 23 - Silence - full transcript

A murder in a church leads Benson and Stabler to an alleged cover-up involving sexual abuse by a priest.

NARRATOR: In the criminal
justice system,

sexually based offenses
are considered
especially heinous,

In New York City,

the dedicated detectives
who investigate
these vicious felonies

are members
of an elite squad known
as the Special Victims Unit,

These are their stories,

(BELL CHIMING)

(CLATTERING)

(GASPING)

FIN: Sodomized and murdered,
no ID.

Who found her?
Parish priest,
Father Michael Sweeney.



Came in at 5:30 this morning,
and there she was.

PIus a whole Iot of
other weirdness.

STABLER: Yeah? Like what?

FIN: For starters,
he torched the confessionals,

then he Iaid out the vic
Iike some Iittle princess.

Entry was made
through the side door.

Father Michael says
he Ieaves it unlocked
sometimes.

(POLICE RADIO CHATTERING)

FIN: The fire pretty much
burned itself out
by the time he arrived.

BENSON: No smoke alarms?
Church doesn't have
to have them.

Luckily it's built
out of stone.

Purse and panties
are gone.

But the stem's still
on the apple.

A trannie?
Our Jane Doe's a John.



BENSON: Painted up Iike a pro.

And dressed Iike this,
he wasn't out collecting
for the Red Cross.

STABLER: Did you guys
check this out?

Looks Iike the perp
Ieft us a message.

Peccavisti.

Lot of ritual here.
Could be the work of a
highly-evolved serial killer.

BENSON: We should run this
through VICAP.

Excuse me, Father.
Detective Stabler,
Special Victims Unit.

My Latin never got much past

amo, amas, amat,
Maybe you can help me
with this.

Does that mean
"I have sinned?"

Did you know this boy,
Father?

I had never saw him before.

Father, we're gonna need you
to come down to the precinct

and make a statement for us.
Of course.

So the perp
meets the victim.

Maybe he knows
he's a transvestite,
maybe not.

Well, if he didn't,
that'd definitely be enough
to set him off.

They come in here to trick,
perp sodomizes him
and kills him,

decorates his body,
then gives him a funeral pyre.

Why go to all the trouble
and then try to cover it up?

He's in a church,
he feels guilty.

He tells God he's sorry
and then he tries
to burn away the sin.

Bruising to the thighs, small
anal tears, but the attack
wasn't particularly violent.

Cause of death,
massive hemorrhage
from a skull fracture.

Any ideas
about the murder weapon?

WARNER: BIunt trauma
to the temple

caused by something round
and heavy Iike an iron bar
or flashlight.

But the fracture pattern
on the occiput is diffused.

He cracked his head
on the floor
when he fell back?

WARNER: Probably.
You got anything on our perp?

He didn't practice safe rape.
We got fluids.
We're running his DNA.

Any chance of getting prints
off the body?

He was wearing
surgical gloves. We found
traces of Iatex and powder.

No condom,
but he was wearing gloves?

You think that's weird,

I found traces of
sodium dichlorotriazinetrione
inside him.

It's the main cleaning agent
in scouring powder.

And this,
small fragments of steel wool.

Our perp used both
to scrub his penis.

So he's really clean.
And really dirty.

I found the body
when I came down to prepare
for 6:00 mass.

That's early.

There's nothing Iike
a hit of God before you
do battle on Wall Street.

Still, it seems Iike
a pretty rough area to Ieave
the side door unlocked.

Well, the church is supposed
to be a refuge.

This morning I asked
if you knew the victim.

You didn't seem surprised
he was a boy.

Well, when you serve
in this part of town,
you see almost everything.

So you never saw him before?
No.

But there is someone
in the trenches
who might have.

FIN: We're thinking
maybe he crossed your path.

PEG: Oh, dear Lord. Jamie.

He's dead?
You know him?

James Doyle, 16 years old,
called himself Jamie.

Ran away from home when
his folks tried to Iock him up
in a treatment center.

How Iong has he been
coming down here?
Four, five months.

Trying to earn enough
for a sex change.
Trannies make good money.

Any reason why you think
he'd end up at Saint Martha's?

That's where he died?

He went in there
to do business. Priest Ieft
the side door open.

Father Michael always Ieaves
the church open for the pros
when it's cold and wet.

But they know
not to do business there.

What's this
Father Michael Iike?
He's a good priest
and a good man.

Anything else you can tell me
about who did this
so I can warn folk?

Yeah. He's very particular
about his personal hygiene.

(SNICKERING)
He should stand out a mile.

VICAP can't find
any direct matches
for the M.O. or signature.

Just a partial out in EI Paso,

man murdered his wife,
Ieft her body in the church.

Don't tell me,
where they were married.
Yep.

And now he's sitting
on death row
so he's not much good to us.

You know, maybe
this is the first time

the place didn't burn
and the body's been preserved.

No one's actually ever seen
these Iittle rituals.

I'II ask VICAP
to widen the search
to all arson-related deaths

and cross-check with crimes
against transsexuals
and transvestites.

Warner got a DNA match.
One Mr. Gus Yoder.

Just paroled from Attica.
Did four years for guess what?
Arson.

What is this?
Gus Yoder?

What do you want?

The skinny
on your relationship
with Jamie Doyle.

I don't know no Jamie Doyle.

You always wear those gloves?
Customers don't Iike prints
on the glass.

Tell us about it
at the precinct.

PIease. Don't touch me.
I'II go where you want,
but don't touch me.

Looks Iike we got us a racist.
I'm a Jew.
Is that better or worse?

Haven't you heard of safe sex,
Mr. Yoder?
Of course I have.

Then why'd you Ieave millions
of Iittle Yoders
inside of Jamie Doyle?

We got a DNA match, Gus.
We know you were with him.

I didn't touch him.
Sodomy doesn't count
as touching?

I didn't do that.

Come on. You thought
Jamie was a cute Iittle trick

till he showed you
his surprise package.

And that pissed you off
and you cracked his skull.

Or maybe you Iike Iittle boys,
as Iong as they
Iook Iike girls.

GUS: No.
Sit down, Gus,
you're making me nervous.

I'm not sitting there,
it's disgusting.

It's a chair.
It's filthy.

Think of all the scum
that have sat there.
Yeah, you for one.

I can't breathe in here.
I wanna go home.
Not till we're finished.

We're searching your place,
Gus.

Is that where we're gonna
find Jamie Doyle's purse,
maybe his panties?

AII right. So I picked him up.
I had sex with him.

But he was alive
when he got out of my car.

He tightens his sphincter
any more,
he's gonna implode.

OCD. He probably
washes his hands
about 50 times a day.

Let me have a Iook
at the crime scene.

HUANG: What's this?

BENSON: It's a rosary.
His?

Priest said it came from
one of the statues
in the church.

And it's right
around his neck,
not just placed there?

It's right around. Why?
It's not Yoder.

There's no way
that he'd go near a dead body
or touch blood.

The guy has unprotected sex
with a male prostitute.

You can't tell me
he's squeamish.
He is.

After he has sex,
he wants to get as far away
from his partner as possible.

Or he feels dirty
and he kills him.

What's this?
That's Latin for
"I have sinned"'

I checked it with the priest.
Well, he's wrong.

"I have sinned" is Peccavi,
Peccavisti is
"You have sinned"'

This isn't a confession,
it's an accusation.
Against the victim?

Burning the confessional,
carving "You have sinned,"

seem more Iike acts of rage
against the Church
and the priest.

So Jamie's death is what,
an accident?
It could be.

The altar cloth, the candles,
the rosary beads,

you can't say
they're accidental.

But they were all done
post mortem.
The kill itself is accidental.

Yes, our man killed Jamie,

but the ritualistic elements
seem Iike acts of contrition.

So he was attacking
the priest, and Jamie just
happened to get in the way.

And if the killer had a grudge
against the priest,

there's a good chance
that Father Michael knows him.

Check the Father's background,
see if he's been keeping
bad company.

Yes, I'm still on hold.

Okay. Thank you for that.

That was the secretary from
Saint Thomas's Catholic School
in Hoboken.

Father Michael
used to teach there.

October 1996 he Ieft abruptly,
right in the middle of a term.

What was the reason given?

She says she doesn't know
for sure, but according
to the rumor mill,

a priest abused some boys,
he was then removed.

And the case
never came to trial.

Far as she's heard
it was never even reported.

I'II get Munch and Fin
to check
with the Hoboken cops.

You two talk to Father Michael

before the Church
gets wind of this
and removes him again.

EIIiot.
Not a problem, Captain.

Well, if it becomes one,
you can take a back seat.

You know, I try to be
a good Catholic, raise my kids
as good Catholics.

Something Iike this
shakes your faith. I know.

If I didn't see
through this guy,
how could a 14-year-old?

How could an eight-year-old?

Hello, Detectives.

We need to ask you
some more questions, Father.

AII right.

I'd Iike to know
why you Iied to me.

About what?
The message
on the confessional.

The correct translation is
"You have sinned"'

Well, I'm very sorry.
I was never very good
at Latin.

Or maybe you're the sinner.
Well, who isn't, Detective?

BENSON:
Where were you Iast night?

I was with a parishioner.

I was helping him
through a midnight crisis.

Give us a name.

I can't.
BENSON: Why?

Because he confessed
to the murder?
You know better than
to ask me that.

STABLER:
Saint Thomas's School,
October '96.

There are rumors that a priest
sexually abused some boys.

Was it you?

Tell us what happened
or we'II just get it
from the Hoboken police.

I signed
a confidentiality agreement.

What planet
you been Iiving on, Father?

Confidentiality agreements
won't hold up
in a criminal court.

Evening mass starts
in 20 minutes.

If you're going to charge me
with something, charge me.

Otherwise, please Ieave.

Saint Thomas's School?

That's one I'd rather forget.
Why?

(TV CHATTERING)
The case never went anywhere.
Nobody wanted it to.

Sit. Sit.

So, how'd you catch it?
Somebody make a complaint?

Oh, not at the school,
the ER.

Kid falls off his bike,

doctor finds something else,
bruising around his backside.

I check out the parents.
They're clean.
Yeah, and?

Well, the kid's a student
at Saint Tom's.
I dig a Iittle deeper.

I find four boys
who say they were molested.

By the same priest?
Well, the stories varied.

Kids didn't want
to give names.
MUNCH: What, they were scared?

Maybe, because
just as I was getting close,
the Church steps in,

settles with the families
for 200 grand each.

Why didn't you push harder?
Try to convince the families?

You don't think I tried?

No case,
no complaining witnesses,
what could I do?

Moresco took a Iot of notes,
but never filed a report.

That was the alumni office
at Saint Tom's.

One of the boys moved
to Europe, two of them
are still in the area.

Todd Ramsay
on the Upper West Side

and Ben Campion
works three blocks
from Father Michael's church.

Well, you'd think
he'd try to be as far away
from him as possible.

Let's take him.

We'II take Ramsay.
What about the fourth kid?

Yeah. Bobby Douglas.
Don't know.

AIumni office said
that he severed all ties
as soon as he Ieft the school.

Monday night I was here.
I got an apartment
on the top floor.

Were you alone?
Just me and my TV.
What's this about?

We wanted to ask you
about Saint Tom's,
October '96.

We heard you made allegations
against one of the priests.

I've put that behind me.

But you've remained close
with Father Michael.

He was at Saint Tom's, right?
Yeah.

Father Mike invited me
to run this place
after college.

That was kind of him.
That's how he is.
He Iikes to help people.

He set this place up
to get the kids
off the street, you know.

Did Father Michael abuse you
at Saint Tom's?

No way. No.
He never touched me.

And how is he
with the kids here now?

He doesn't
come around here much anymore.

For the past year
I've pretty much
run the place.

But if there ever is a problem
with a kid, he's always there.

STABLER: For what?
Not for what you're thinking.

Excuse me.

I'm not going to be part
of your witch hunt.

Come on, guys. Let's go!

MUNCH: Mr. Ramsay?
Who are you?

Detectives Munch and Tutuola,
Special Victims.

How can I help you?
Do you know
Father Michael Sweeney?

I knew him at school.

Not since then?
No, and I'm not
saying anything else.

Why not?

Confidentiality agreement.
They paid, I shut up.

It doesn't have to end there.
Forget it.

So a pervy priest put his hand
on my ass...

Todd!
...I'm not gonna Iet it
ruin my Iife.

It's okay, Judi.
We're going.

FIN: Where were you
Monday night?
Home with my wife.

New kid,
so we don't get out much.
What is this about?

MUNCH:
Do you know Bobby Douglas?

We stayed in touch for a while
till he started weirding out.

Look, I haven't seen him
for a couple of years.

You have any idea
where he Iives?

MUNCH: Bobby Douglas?
Yes.

What can I do for you,
Officers?

We spoke to your mom.
She said we could find you
down here.

I help out
when I can take a break
from my studies.

Do you know
Father Michael Sweeney?
Name sounds familiar.

Well, he taught
at Saint Thomas'.
Didn't you go to school there?

I've had a Iot of teachers.

You told the school
to take a hike after they
wrote you a big fat check.

Something must've happened.
I don't want to talk about it.

Did you study Latin, Father?

It's required at seminary.

What does Peccavisti mean?
I don't remember.

How about Monday night,
you remember that?

I was studying.

Where,
at Saint Martha's Church?

So you could Ieave
Father Michael a message?

No.
Do you remember him?

Oh, my God.

I could've been a good priest,

but he ruined me,
he took away my Iife.

Who did?

Father Michael.
I had to expose him.

MUNCH: So you tried
to burn down his church?

He had sinned.

Bobby was at
the homeless shelter Monday
night. What is this about?

There was a crime committed
and we just want to make
sure Bobby wasn't involved.

We have a warrant
to search your son's room,
Mrs. Douglas.

Where is it?

Down the hall on the Ieft.

Bobby wouldn't do
anything wrong.

What time did he come home
on Monday?
After midnight.

I was asleep, but I woke up
when I heard him on the phone.

Who was he talking to?
I don't know.

Did you hear anything else?

At 3:00 I woke up again.
I heard voices.

I came downstairs
but it was only
Father Michael.

Bobby told me
to go back to bed,
that everything was okay.

Does Father Michael
come around a Iot?

Well, yes especially
with Bobby trying
to get into the seminary.

You mean
he's not a priest already?
Oh, of course not.

You can't be a priest
unless you've been accepted
by the seminary.

FIN: We got something.

Excuse me.

MUNCH: He's got a thing
for virgins
and a thing for purses.

We found this in the trash.
It belongs to Jamie Doyle.

It's got 250 bucks in it
and a dozen condoms.

Looks Iike
Mr. Freaky-CIean Yoder's
in the clear.

This was in the closet.
Tech sprayed Iuminol on it.
Hit the Iights.

BENSON: BIood?
FIN: Yeah.

And what Iooks Iike skin.

BENSON: Your mom said that
Father Michael came over
in the middle of the night.

Must've been
a pretty big deal?
Not really.

Well, it sounds Iike
you wanted to get something
off your chest.

No.
No?

No.

You killed him
with the flashlight
that we found in your room.

But you treated him
with respect.

You covered him up,

Iit the candles,
those rosary beads
you gave him.

I mean, obviously you cared.

I said I was sorry
and I was forgiven.

In confession?
Yes.

You confessed
to Father Michael.

That's between me and God.

I did my penance.
Yeah and what's that?
Ten Hail Mary's?

You haven't asked
Jamie Doyle's family
for forgiveness, have you?

I can't face them.
Then Iet us help you.

Tell us what happened.

Oh, I'd already
started the fire.

I didn't know he was there.

He came up behind me.

He startled me,
I swung the flashlight.

He went down.
BIood started pouring.
He didn't move.

(DOOR OPENING)

This interview is over.
His mother called me.

We have a confession,
Counselor.

Well, you don't have it
in writing,

and you won't get it,
unless I get to talk terms
with the A.D.A.

Why should I deal?

I've got his confession,
and a murder weapon
with his prints all over it.

Stick a fork in him,
Kressler.

He's a victim of abuse,
working out his rage
against the Church

that ruined his Iife.

Jamie Doyle
was not the Church.
He was an innocent victim.

He was a transvestite hooker,
fresh from a trick

and in Iight
of the psychological damage
inflicted on Bobby.

Once I'm through
with the jury,
he won't serve a day.

He killed a 16-year-old boy
who caught him
trying to burn down a church.

I could try that in my sleep.

The second the jury
hears the words
priest and abuse,

whose side do you think
they'II be on?

Man two. Eight-to-10.

In this climate Bobby could
have torched a kindergarten

and a jury would
still be sympathetic.

Man two, five years probation
with psych treatment.

Man two, five years
Kirby Psychiatric,

and that depends on
what he has to tell us.

There was this room
in the basement

next to where they kept
the sports equipment.

Father Michael
called it the Lair.

He said that boys went in
as Iambs
and came out as Iions.

He'd call me in there
after practice
for extra tutoring.

He'd show me videos.
CABOT: What sort of videos?

At first just sports.
Then porn.

What sort of porn?

AII sorts.

Some with women,
some with boys.

He'd say
I shouldn't be embarrassed,

that how I was feeling
was normal.

Did he touch you?

He'd put his arm around me.

He'd stroke my Iegs.

Say I had good, strong thighs.

How old were you, Bobby?

Fourteen.

What else did he do to you?

Said I had to pass a test.

What test?

I had...

I had to masturbate.

He said he'd help me.

Then, I had to do him.

Afterwards, he said
I'd done well.

I'd made a mark in heaven.

(CHURCH BELL RINGING)

RORY: Excuse me, Detectives.

Rory O'Halloran.
I represent the Diocese.

We have a warrant,
Mr. O'Halloran.

Oh, of course you do.
We'd just Iike a Iittle word.

STABLER: Who's we?

Your Grace, EIIiot Stabler.
Hi.

STABLER: OIivia Benson.

You know Bishop Mallinson?
Yes. Of course.
How can we help you?

Mr. O'Halloran says that
a search warrant has been
obtained for the rectory?

Why is that?
We suspect Father Michael
of child abuse.

You should be more concerned
with Bobby Douglas

and his vendetta
against Father Michael.

Why would Bobby
accuse Father Michael of abuse
if it weren't true?

Because Father Michael
prevented him
from joining the priesthood.

The priesthood
is under siege.

Fragile men have crumbled.
We need strength.

Father Michael has known Bobby
for years.
He felt he was immature.

Are you aware that he was
impersonating a priest when
your colleagues found him?

Feeding the homeless
is hardly a crime,
no matter what he was wearing.

I know my priests,
Detectives.

And believe me,
if I had anything
against Father Michael,

it would already be
in your hands.

But he's innocent.

I'm sorry, Your Grace,
we need to
execute this warrant.

Home, sweet home.

At Ieast Father Michael's
keeping the vow of poverty.

Take this back to the Iab,
scan the hard drive.

I doubt we'd find any porn
on this. It's so ancient,
it hasn't got a modem.

Nice video collection.

STABLER: Any pornography?
Mostly all sports. NBA, NHL.

Bag it all up.

EIIiot...

M. S. April 2001.
It's about the time
he Ieft the youth center.

THERAPIST: Are you attracted
to boys, Michael?
Yes,

What age?

Thirteen, 14 years old,

Tell me about your desires,

What's this?

Looks Iike some sort of
therapy session.

I want to see them naked,

In the showers,
at the youth club, I'll find
a reason to watch them,

Do you approach
these boys?
Yes,

If one shows interest,
a look is enough,

or if he seems vulnerable,

You feel a compulsion
to touch?

I try to resist, but I'm weak,

I'll pat him on the back
or put my arm around him,

but I know I want more,

Genital contact?

Yes,

Is that a confession
or a statement of intent?

That sounds Iike
a confession to me.

Actually, it's a part
of aversion therapy.

The subject relates
his fantasies, they're
recorded, edited into a Ioop

and played back for him

while he masturbates
for 30 minutes
past the point of climax.

That sounds painful.
It's supposed to be.

It's behavior modification.

The fantasies trigger
memories of pain,
instead of pleasure.

BENSON: So does it work?

Nothing can change
a sex offender's desires.

Well, then why do it?

Father Michael can't
change his desires, but
he can try to control them.

That's what celibacy is
supposed to be all about,
controlling the desires,

channeling the sexual urge
into the Iove for God.

I thought celibacy was
a big part of the problem.

Most celibate priests
are not sex offenders.
Our priest is.

Well, if he gives
into temptation
then you're right.

An alcoholic must avoid bars,
a pedophile must stay away
from children.

Well, an alcoholic
is still an alcoholic

and Father Michael
is still a pedophile.

Actually, he's an ephebophile.

He desires adolescents,
not children.

Whatever you call him,
they're still children
and he's still a predator.

The question is,
can you use this tape
to prove it?

No judge is going to Iet you
introduce that tape.

It's doctor-patient privilege.

He hid it in his home.
That sounds Iike a turn-on,
not therapy.

What he uses it for
doesn't alter what it is.

The tape substantiates
Bobby Douglas's accusations.

So what? You'II never
get it in as evidence.

We could argue
it shows intent.

To deal with his problem,
not to molest boys.

You've got Bobby Douglas
in Rikers Iooking Iike
a fruit Ioop,

and a tape that's privileged.
Your case is pathetic.

So your answer is
to do nothing?

My answer, Captain,
is that unless
I have bulletproof evidence,

I am not jumping
on the bandwagon to crucify
the Catholic Church.

Nearly 200 priests
have been implicated
in cases of abuse so far.

Which is Iess than half
of one percent of the priests
in this country.

What we need is someone
to corroborate Bobby's story.

Another victim.

BEN: You want to
interview the boys?

Everyone between
the ages of 1 1 and 15

who's had any contact
with Father Michael Sweeney
before he Ieft the club.

You need to ask the parents.
We'II do that.

Maybe you can answer
some questions for us,
Mr. Campion.

Like what?

You ever see Father Michael
show undue interest
in any one boy?

No.

Were there any boys
who always wanted to be
near him?

Half the club.
Does that mean
they're all abused?

What about boys acting up?

Personality changes,
mood swings, temper tantrums?

PIenty.
They call it puberty.

Well, have any of the boys
Ieft abruptly, or been absent
for Iong periods of time?

Only one. Darius Retafian.

He stopped coming, I suppose
it was around the same time
Father Michael Ieft.

Okay. You know why?

I called the mother.

She told me
to Ieave them alone,
and hung up.

BENSON: Mrs. Retafian?
Yes?

I'm Detective Benson,
this is my partner,
Detective Stabler.

Would you mind
if we come in?
Sure.

We just wanted
to ask you about Darius.

Is he in trouble again?
Just wanna see
how he's doing.

He's all right, I guess.

Is this Darius?
Uh-huh.

My kid just started serving
as an altar boy.
It's a proud moment.

Can you tell us
why you pulled your son
out of the church youth club?

He just wasn't
fitting in there.

Did he have any contact
with Father Michael?

The priest?

Did he talk about him much,
anything Iike that?

Yes.

(CHOIR SINGING)

Very good.

STABLER: Father Michael!
Yes?

We need you to come
with us, please.
Why?

Don't make us do this
in front of them.

Thank you all.
I'II see you next Thursday.

WOMAN: Goodbye,
Father Michael.
MAN: Good night, Father.

Am I under arrest?
For sexual abuse.

You have the right
to remain silent.

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

You have the right
to an attorney.

COURT OFFICER:
"Docket number 28385.
People v, Michael Sweeney,

"Sex abuse two,
sex abuse three,
multiple counts"'

AIexandra Cabot
for the People.

Rory O'Halloran
for Father Sweeney.

JUDGE SELIGMAN:
How do you plead?
Not guilty, Your Honor.

Ms. Cabot,
are you asking for bail?

The People request that bail
be set at $200,000.

Your Honor, that's punitive.
Father Michael has taken
a vow of poverty.

He has no assets.

The Church has
more than enough money
to meet his bail, Your Honor.

JUDGE SELIGMAN: The Defendant
has no priors, Ms. Cabot.

Why are you demanding
such a substantial bail?

In the Vatican's own words,

"The defendant is guilty
of the serial, predatory
sexual abuse of minors"'

He escaped detection
in the past

with the complicity
of the Church and he is
believed to be a flight risk.

Then bail is set at $200,000.

Call the next case.

Ms. Cabot?

Coming to offer a deal?
Not this time.

You want a trial,
you can have one.
My pleasure.

Time to stop Father Michael
from molesting children.

Father Michael is innocent.

Then why did the Church
settle with his victims
in '96?

Why did he seek therapy
to control
his sexual proclivities?

There are explanations
for that.
I Iook forward
to hearing them.

Then you'd better
prep your witnesses
for an ugly cross

because I'm going to make
their Iives very unpleasant,

however young they are.

That should go over
really well with the jury.

Whatever it takes
to clear him.

CABOT: Okay, Darius,
Iet's go through this
one more time.

When did you most often have
contact with Father Michael
at the club?

After basketball,
he'd come by the showers.

He'd hang around, talk.

Did he touch you?

He'd put his arm
around my shoulder,

pat me on the back.

Did he ever do
anything else?

At his place.

It's okay, baby.
You just tell her.

He'd ask me to watch videos
with him.
What kind of videos?

Sports, movies,

then other stuff.

Porn.

Then what would he do?

He'd sit

real close.

He'd tell me it was okay
to feel what I was feeling.

That it was normal.

(KNOCKING ON DOOR)

AIex.

What are you doing here?
Trying to save your face,
Counselor.

Can I talk to your witness?
So you can intimidate him?
No.

Then Iook at this.

Recognize anything?

But this has no bearing
on what Darius is saying now.

Really?

Then Iet me suggest
a Iittle experiment.

Ask the witness about
Father Michael's television.

CABOT: Did you watch
these videos
on Father Michael's TV?

Yeah.

Was there anything funny
about them?

What does she mean?

When you watched the videos,
did you notice anything
unusual about them?

You're asking a child
to judge pornography?

Was it Iike watching
normal TV, Darius?

Yeah.

Was it in color?

What else is there?

BIack and white.

Father Michael
is a few decades
behind the times.

What is this?

Darius was abused
at his school,
nowhere near Father Michael.

And you settled
with the Church for $50,000.

Father Michael molested him.
No, he didn't.

You recycled those accusations

when you and your son
were questioned
by the detectives.

And you think your priest
isn't guilty, too?

Darius will never forget
what was done to him.

No money will make up
for that.

And you would make him
re-Iive his trauma
to get every penny you can.

(DOOR CLOSING)

The details of Darius' abuse
were true.
He was alone with a priest,

and he watched porn videos,
and he was molested.

Mom sued, a priest
was defrocked, the diocese
settled. Mom wants more.

If someone abused my son,
I'd do more than sue them.

I doubt
you'd make false accusations.

So where does that
Ieave us now?
Father Michael's
going to walk.

Bobby Douglas
is all we've got.
Not anymore.

(JAIL DOOR BUZZING)

Bobby Douglas was placed
in a cell with a Iifer.

His name is Dale Farrelly.

Bobby kept trying to tell Dale
how much Jesus Ioved him,

till Dale stopped him
by stabbing him 57 times
with a homemade shiv.

This is the interesting part
though, Father. Bobby had
no defensive wounds on him.

He had no cuts on his arms
and his hands.

He never even tried
to put up his arms
to protect himself.

That boy'd given up.
Now maybe you think
he deserved it

because he killed that kid
and he burned your church.

No. No. Bobby was a victim.
Yeah. Whose victim?

Come on, Father,
you and me, no badge...
What do you want me
to tell you?

...no collar. Come on.
Bobby's dead!
You're free as a bird.

Be a man, confess to me!
AII right! AII right!
It was me. I abused him.

How?
I took him to my room,

gave him some beer
and made him have sex with me.

What about the videos?
Yes.

We watched videos
to get us in the mood.

Where?

I told you, in my room.
When did you go to the Lair?

Tell me what you told
the boys,

how they'd go in Iike Iambs,
come out Iike Iions.

You have no idea
what I'm talking about.

Somebody must do penance
for Bobby.
Oh, yeah.
But it ain't you, is it?

And those therapy sessions,
is that all fiction, too?

That was real.
You give me the names

of the boys you abused.
There are no names.

I've controlled my desires.
I have kept every one
of my vows,

poverty, chastity, obedience.
Well, then why'd Bobby
accuse you?

Because he came to me
for help,
and I didn't protect him.

Why'd you Ieave school?
Shame.
For what I failed to do.

Failed to protect him
against another priest, yeah?
Right?

Yes.
I want a name.

I can't. He confessed.

You priests,
you got it all figured out,
don't you?

You confess to each other.

You forgive each other,
and you go right on sinning.

I'm sorry.
Go to hell.

He's covering
for another priest, just Iike
he covered for Bobby Douglas.

No court is going to force him
to break the seal
of confession.

Then we Iook
at the '96 case again.

This priest must have been
at Saint Tom's

when Bobby and the other boys
were abused.

Check the staff roster.
Check if any other payments
were made.

I want you to subpoena
any records and bank accounts
that we have to.

Easy to say,
but on what grounds?
BENSON: What about RICO?

D.A"s tried it in CIeveland,
in Texas, even in Jersey.

And two out of three failed.

Well, I'II take those odds,
AIex. What else do we have?

JUDGE LINDEN:
Racketeering, Ms. Cabot?

New Jersey already
dismissed a RICO case
against the Church.

But the violations
have continued, and innocent
people are still being harmed.

Mr. O'Halloran?
The Church has been
more than willing

to turn over documents
for cases of abuse by priests
without the necessity

of a subpoena.
When it suits them.

Only yesterday, Mr. O'Halloran
showed me a secret settlement

the Diocese made
with the family
of a 14-year-old boy.

Now how many more
of these are there?

We'II turn over files relating
to all allegations of abuse,

but the request for the
Diocese's discretionary
accounts overreaches.

We have some rights
to privacy.

The accounts will show
how the Church has
consistently made payouts

to individuals to buy
their silence and evade
criminal investigation.

That is a definition
of a corrupt organization
under RICO.

I'm inclined to agree.
You have your subpoena,
Ms. Cabot.

The Diocese will surrender
all reports of abuse,

all records of priest
transfers, and will give
the New York District Attorney

access to the Diocese's
discretionary accounts.

AII right. We got payments
to the Ramsay family,

to the Campions,
to the Zuniga family.

Checks drawn in October '96,
$150,000 each.

What about Bobby Douglas?
We've got Mary Douglas,
$100,000.

Bobby even Iost out
in the abuse stakes.
Who signed the checks?

Looks Iike Randall.

John Randall,
Bishop before Mallinson.

The cover-up went straight
to the top.
And stayed there.

Every quarter Mary Douglas
gets $10,000 from the Diocese.

Each check is signed
by Bishop Mallinson
right up until Iast month.

Why would Mallinson
continue making the payments?

Maybe because he started them.
Staff roster
for Saint Thomas', 1996.

Guess who was
a visiting Latin teacher
three times a week?

Father Mallinson.
And Bobby was his star pupil.

STABLER: I know
who you're protecting.

I need to know
what he told you.

I can't.

Why'd you
become a priest, Father?

To serve God and his Church.

That includes those boys
that were abused.

How are you serving them?

To the best of my ability
without breaking
the Sacraments.

By protecting the sinner.

By protecting a priest
who confessed that,

"I am abusing a child"'

He promised me
that he would get treatment.

Then he came back to you
and confessed the same sin
all over again, didn't he?

And you absolved him again.

What, because you are bound
by your Sacrament?

Yes.

Silence is a sin, Father.
I cannot break the seal.

Not to defend my name,
not to save my own Iife,

not to save
someone else's Iife. I have
to protect the penitent.

But what
of the faithful, Father?

Who protects us?

What about my vows?

What about the children?

STABLER: Your Grace.

Detective Stabler. Michael.
How can I help you?

I need to ask you
about statements you made
to Father Michael

in July and September of 1996.

What statements?

Relating to sexual acts that
you forced on various boys
at Saint Thomas's school.

No.

See, what's shared
in the confession between
a priest and a penitent

is sacred and confidential.

Michael, do you know
what you've done?

You'II be expelled
from the priesthood and you'II
be cast out of the Church,

barred from the Sacraments.

You're risking your soul.

I... I believe I'm saving it.

How could you do this?

I couldn't help myself.