Law & Order: Special Victims Unit (1999–…): Season 5, Episode 13 - Hate - full transcript

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.

I don't care how much
money I'll make.

I'm going to med school.

You're not going
to make the big bucks

working at an HMO,
and those loans...



Why do we have
to be rich?

I want my life
to be meaningful.

Oh, so suddenly having money
isn't be meaningful?

I love you, but
your values suck.

( woman shrieking )
Oh, my God...

Kyle!

Kyle, be careful!

Kyle!

BAMFORD:
Folks over there say

she came running
down the street already on fire.

And you're thinking
it's a rape.

That's why I called
the panty police.

Found her torn underwear
in that doorway.

Guy must've ripped 'em off
before he torched her.



She's pretty crispy.

Any prayer of
getting DNA?

Only if you have a special
connection upstairs.

With any luck, the lab'll find
something on the underwear.

The guy was careless.

Maybe he left
something else behind.

Looks like there's blood
on that pipe.

He could've hit her
on the head with it.

STABLER:
Smells like fuel oil.

You'd have to add an accelerant
to light her up.

We'll run a gas chromo,
see what he used.

BENSON:
Well, there's no
mailing labels on
these magazines,

but we got a register receipt.

Time stamp says 7:14.

Witnesses said they saw her
around 7:40,

so maybe she bought
the magazines nearby.

We find the newsstand.
Or better yet,
get prints.

Any I.D.? Purse?

Fire melted it
onto her body.

I've never seen
a woman raped and
then burned alive.

Guy's looking
to send a message.

Captioning sponsored by
UNIVERSAL NETWORK TELEVISION

and NBC

Whoever you're looking for

is sicker than I thought.

Setting her on fire
isn't sick enough?

Not for this guy.

There are pubic hairs
in that blood.

He raped her
with a pipe.

To be sure, I stained
the skin cells

scraped off the metal;
they're cervical.

VICAP should be able
to tell us

if there're any rapists out
there who uses foreign objects

and burns their victim.

He didn't burn
quite all of her.

She was wearing
high boots.

You see that? It's
made from henna.

STABLER:
Some tattoo.

Drawn on the skin
and set with oil.

It's a traditional
Muslim design

for weddings and
family celebrations.

Only Muslim?
Mostly.

You see it in Africa, India
and all over the Middle East.

Burning Muslims?
Could be a hate crime.

Let's not say that
too loud.

Last thing we need
is copycats.

STABLER:
Nothing from VICAP.

The only burnings
of women we could find

are by men in India
when their wives

don't play by the rules.

Yeah, like
having an affair.

Husband's family
helps do the burning.

An angry husband
makes sense,

especially if his
wife cheated on him.

CRAGEN:
That would cover a lot of men.

He burned her alive.

What does that tell you?

Fire's a form
of purification.

We burn witches,
garbage,

anything that makes us
feel evil or dirty...

and, of course, fire's
a metaphor for passion.

Freud believed
that setting fires

was a sign
of disturbed

adolescent sexuality.

Maybe we're dealing with a man
who still lives with his mother.

MUNCH:
We found the guy

who sold her
the magazines.

Doesn't remember
what she looked like,

what she said,
or if she was with anyone,

and considering
what he was snorting,

it's a miracle
he remembers his own name.

CRAGEN:
Whatever this is,
let's be careful
not to say

Muslim men like
to burn their wives.

No, if they want
to burn people,

they fly a airplane
full of gasoline

into an office building.
Excuse me,

but they were extremists.
( phone rings )

Sorry, but my next door
neighbor's Iranian.

At airports,
even he's scared

when he sees
Middle Eastern passports.

I mean, let's get real.

People know it's wrong,
but they think it

anyway.
STABLER:
Okay, thanks.

Lab caught us a break.

CRAGEN:
Talk to them.

The prints on the magazines
are smudged,

basically useless.

Is that the good news?

Be patient. Her
purse burned with
everything inside.

We tested the
ash residue.

It was made of suede,
and we were able to
clean up the label.

STABLER:
"Lant-ve-lyn"?

BENSON:
Probably a private label.

That's what
I was thinking.

Okay, I give up.
Private label?

Well, small stores
go to manufacturers

who provide them
with custom labels

to make it look like the purse
was made only for that store.

Now, I'm guessing
that the "lyn"... is Brooklyn.

Indian or Middle Eastern
neighborhoods in Brooklyn.

Atlantic Avenue?

Let's see if somebody there
recognizes the tattoo.

It's beautiful, but
it's not my work,

and this wasn't done
by an Indian.

Do you have any idea
who might've done it?

Someone from Egypt,
I would think.

See the narrow penpoint style,
the detailing?

Zara? Hey, Zara.

Zara, come look.

Is this your work?

They're police officers.

Of course,
I did that.

Aha, I thought so.
It's lovely.

Do you remember
who you did it for?

Mira Elbisi.
She was attending a celebration:

a birth of a friend's baby.

You know Mira well?
Mira's just
a customer.

I like her. Her name in Arabic
means "princess,"

like mine: Zara,
from the Hebrew.

STABLER:
You Jewish?

Oh, no, no. She's Muslim.

ZARA:
The languages-- Arabic,
Hebrew dialects--

they blend together.

What's this all about?

Do you know where
Mira's family lives?

May I see your identification?

Mira's husband
and his mother, Jazlyn--

they publish The Arab-American,
the newspaper.

It's around the corner
near the mosque.

My wife? Haven't seen her
since last evening.

She's with a friend.

Which friend
would that be?

Uh, my wife has
many friends.

Are you two
not getting along?

Of course we are.

Mr. Elbisi,
is this your wife?

Not to be rude, but it seems

that if everything was fine,

you'd know where
she spent the night.
Well, I tell you,

you know what I find strange:
We ask you about your wife.

You're not the least bit curious
why we're asking.

Did she file a
new complaint,

how I mistreat
and harass her?

Why? You like to beat her up?

I would never hurt Mira.
Where were you
last night?

My mother and I worked
here late putting
the paper to bed.

My mother's Jazlyn
Elbisi-- she's well-
known in the community.

She here today?

She took the day off.

And how late did you two work?

Mira doesn't
like being alone

in the apartment
after dark.

Sometimes she visits
friends in Bay Ridge
and stays over.

Which friends?

I-I don't know.

Recognize this tattoo?

Yes... and that mole.

It's Mira.

Why do you have
that photograph?

Mr. Elbisi,
we're very sorry.

Your wife was murdered
last night.

No...

STABLER:
She was burned to death.

Who could've done this?

We're hoping
you can help us with that.

I wouldn't have any idea.

JAZLYN:
Of course I was at the paper
with my son

all evening.

Could you translate
"evening"

into something
more specific?

I went to the office
around 5:00.

I left at midnight.

Your son told two detectives
that you left at, uh, 10:00 p.m.

10:00, midnight.
It was a long day.

What's the difference?

The difference is
your stories don't match.

Which probably means
you're not telling the truth.

You just want to make Arabs
look like bad people.

That's why you're here.

All right.

I came home with my grandson.

I took him to the office,

and I brought him home
to put him to bed.

MUNCH:
Where was
his mother?

I don't know.

Nanna,

where's Mama?

When's Mama coming home?

Sonny boy must've called Mom
and warned her.

And they couldn't keep
their stories straight.

Every word out of
her mouth was a lie,

except maybe
"Good morning."

Casey?

Who talked to a reporter
about this burned woman?

And it's nice to see you, too.

"Burn Victim Said
To Be Target Of Hate Crime.

"Sources say Special
Victims Unit detectives

"refuse to release the
woman's ethnicity

for fear of setting off
more attacks."

I hope this didn't come
from here.

We don't leak
to the press.

Only person I talked
to about this was you.

Well, then, how did
they get the story?

Somebody heard
the rumor,

made up the rest.
When this hits

the papers before I brief
my boss, I look incompetent.

Three weeks ago,
Mira Elbisi called the 7-4,

said she was afraid
of her husband.

Cops respond. She apologizes.

She overreacted.

One week later,
neighbor calls.

Shouting from the Elbisi
apartment.

This time, it was the mother-
in-law who sent the cops away.

If he was abusing her,

Mira had a lot of courage
calling the cops.

Well, let's find this neighbor

and see what the shouting
was about.

I think maybe he hit her.

She had a split lip
the next day.

What were they
fighting about?

I don't know.
Mira said she cut herself.

I didn't believe her.

Must have had a reason
for that.

Well, she was struggling,
you know-- it was obvious.

She had no one to talk to.

She told me
she was true to Islam,

but you could see
this lady wanted some freedom.

STABLER:
You ever talk
to her husband?

I don't go where I'm not wanted.

Got a problem
with Arabs?

No. He's got a problem with me.

He's an educated guy.

I think he looks down
on tradespeople.

Did Mira fight with
her mother-in-law?

She hated living
with the old lady.

She felt squeezed.

When they shouted,
they turned up the stereo.

She ever mention anybody
that she confided in?

There was one friend:
a guy who works

for some do-gooder
religious group.

He-he's Jewish.
She wanted me to meet him.

Name's, uh, Feldman,
Joshua Feldman.

She thought since I'm Jewish,
I'd make a donation.

He beat her up, didn't he?

That lunatic husband of hers.

Is that why you're here?

Mr. Feldman,
did you see Mira last night?

Is she in the hospital?
Tell me.

STABLER:
Was she here last night?
I was expecting her.

We're trying to build
bridges here between
Muslims and Jews,

and she wanted to
be a part of it.

When she didn't
show up, I called.

Her-her mother-in-law
answered, and I hung up.

Why didn't you leave
a message?
Strange man calling

a married Muslim woman
might not go over too well.

So she kept her work here
secret?

Yes.

Mira's afraid her husband'll
keep her from coming.

Please... tell me,
is she all right?

Mr. Feldman...

last night, Mira was attacked
two blocks from here.

Maybe you read
today's paper?

No...

That was Mira?

Oh, God, no...

So, you two
were more than friends.

We were in love.

She was going to leave him.

We were going to live together.

Did her husband know
about all this?

Yes. When she told him
I was Jewish,

he said he'd never let her go,

never let her leave.

Mira and I fought.

We argued.

We're from
different generations.

We didn't get along--
this was no secret.

You sure had some secrets
last time we talked.

Like where
your daughter-in-law was

when you were
baby-sitting.

I don't know.

Your wife is out

at night,
you have a young child,

and you don't know where she is?

She didn't
always tell me.

I wonder why.

I don't know
what you mean.

I mean
her boyfriend.

Please. My wife is dead.

Don't defame her good name.

Did you leave the newspaper
office at around 6:00

with a can of fuel oil?

We got a warrant,

and we searched your car.

Our lab found traces of oil
in your trunk.

You want
to explain that?

Our boiler in the office
went out.

You need oil to prime it,

and the service company
wouldn't come out,

so we had to get some ourselves.

We figure you
left your grandson

at the office, and went out
with your son to start a fire.

We're not barbarians.

We are faithful Muslims.

And you couldn't bear
that your daughter-in-law

was in love with a Jew.

AL-SHANI:
She cheated on me.

She disgraced our family...
but I still loved her.

Your wife wanted a divorce,
and you refused.

Mira wanted to go,
she could go.

Not if you threatened
to kill her.

I would never do that.
Yeah, you would.

The neighbor said
that you split her lip.

It was an accident.

We were both ill-tempered.

That's not
what her boyfriend said.

You see, Mr. Elbisi,
I want to believe you, I do...

but you find out that your wife

is having an affair
with a Jewish man,

and I'm wondering how
somebody like you would react.

Someone like me?

He puts his head down.

He cries.

He mourns the loss of his son
because his wife gets custody.

He doesn't set
the woman he loves on fire.

Circumstantial-- unless
you get permission
to talk to his kid.

A six-year-old
whose mother was just murdered?

No judge will let us near him
unless we indict the father.

Sure we got the
right people?

Yeah. Why?

Then we got a copycat.

NOVAK:
What?

94th Street and Second Avenue,

near the big mosque.

A man set on fire.

Name was Tariq
Assad, 27.

Didn't live
to make it to
the ambulance,

but we got a witness.

BENSON:
The witness is
Jason Mullavy.

Says the guy in flames
came toward him,

and he heard
somebody shouting,

"Killer, you'll
burn in hell for
what you did to us!"

Just what the city needs
to read in tomorrow's papers.

Mr. Mullavy?

Jason,
Captain Cragen.

How you doing?

Look, we'd like you

not to repeat what you saw
to the press.

You think
you can handle that?

I guess, yeah,

but I could get
real money for this.

Well, that could compromise
our investigation.

I think maybe The Enquirer
would pay me for an interview.

You could turn them down.

That depends
how much they offer.

Detective Munch.
Yes, sir?

Take this young man
into custody

as a material witness.

Lock him up

somewhere comfortable.
I know just the place.

You can't do this to me.
He just did.

BENSON:
Same M.O.

Torn underwear
on the ground,

and the smell of fuel oil.

We didn't release
anything about fuel oil.

This is definitely
not a copycat.

We got a pipe with
blood and tissue,

like the first victim.

WARNER:
Only the last one
had cervical cells.

With a male victim,

I'm betting
this one will be rectal.

We got to figure out

how this guy
picks his victims,

and we got to
do it fast.

There's one distinction

he's not making.

The first one's a female, 29.

The second victim's a male, 27.

STABLER:
They both look
Middle Eastern.

Other than that, so far,
they got nothing else in common.

Except that he

symbolically raped them
and set them on fire.

CRAGEN:
A crime of opportunity,
or does he stalk them?

It's hard to say,
but he seems impulsive.

He brings a pipe with him.

That's premeditation.

Any leads off the pipes?

FIN:
Old, corroded junk,
different manufacturers.

He could have picked it up
off the street.

Using a pipe as a penis,

so he's just your garden-variety
sexually repressed racist.

Actually, I think

the racism is a cover,
a mask for inadequacies.

He probably has conscious
feelings of being wronged,

cheated by life.

And using a pipe
on both sexes...?

HUANG:
A need to humiliate.

These offenders were
often humiliated

or abused as children.

So, you're saying
race isn't what sets him off.

In a way, yes.

He sees these features
that are Middle Eastern.

That person is "the other."

This killer needs someone
different from himself to hate.

He sees an Arab,
he thinks terrorist.

Well, he's not alone.

Even normal
people have

crazy thoughts,
but we don't act on them.

The new victim,
Tariq Assad--

I found his brother.

We came here
to study engineering.

Our parents live in Cairo.

We're trying to trace
your brother's movements.

Can you help us with that?

As far as I know,
he would have been
in class till noon.

Then he'd go
to the mosque

for religious
instruction.

He was a much more
observant Muslim than I.

Did he socialize in the Arab
community in Brooklyn?

You mean
the woman

who was killed?

No, he wouldn't know her.

You seem pretty sure of that.

My brother and I...

Well, that's not
our sort of people.

You know, they're still
very isolated in Brooklyn.

Tariq was quite social.

He spent a lot of time teaching
Christians and Jews about Islam.

He called it "building bridges."

STABLER:
"Building bridges"?

Did he use
that specific phrase--

building bridges?

Yes.

He was a bit of an idealist.

Is that important?

Do you know if he belonged
to any organizations?

A place downtown--

The Interfaith Council.

FELDMAN:
Now, it's Tariq Assad?

Don't tell me
Mira's crazy husband

is killing people she met here.

STABLER:
We don't think
he's involved.

So, you knew Tariq?

This is a nightmare.

Kid was such an optimist.

I mean, how many Arabs tell you
Israel is a great country?

Could Tariq have known Mira?

Mira and Tariq
were on the same panel

last week--
"The Modernization of Islam."

STABLER:
You sell tickets
to that event?

No. People just show up.

It's open
to the public.

How about that thing up there?

Security
we have plenty of.

Metal detectors,
cameras, guards.

We record everything
just in case.

This is the tape
after the panel.

Camera three is the reception.

BENSON:
There's Tariq Assad.

FELDMAN:
And there's Mira in the front.

That guy in the baseball cap--
he was standing

next to Tariq; now, watch.

Sidling up next to Mira.

Do you know him?

No, never
seen him before.

What's
on his jacket?

Can you freeze that for me?

Can you bring
it in closer?

BENSON:
"Donaghue Heating Service."

STABLER:
Heating.

As in fuel oil.

DONAGHUE:
Yeah, it's
Sean Webster.

Drives a
truck for us.

Is he in
some kind of trouble?

We just want
to talk to him.

He's clocking in;
top of his shift.

Hey, Sean!

Some cops here want
to talk to you.

Sean...

( tires screeching )

( horn honking )

BENSON:
What are you
running from, Sean?

We just want
to have a little chat.

You're under arrest
for the murders

of Tariq Assad and Mira Elbisi.

You don't want
to do this.

Just listen to me.

You have the right to remain...
Shut up!

You have the right
to remain silent.

If you give up that right,

anything you say
can and will be
used against you...

But you're like me;
I know you are, man!

You have the right
to an attorney.

Been in some
trouble before,

so when I saw
you two coming,

I automatically ran.

But not because you
burned two people alive.

See, you know, it's like...

If somebody was going to do
what you say that I did...

BENSON:
Somebody.

Meaning not you.

Yeah.

If this man was to do this,
and maybe he knew

that these people only
pretended to be good,

but secretly... they weren't...

well, then, you'd
understand why he did it.

This man knew
they were bad.

How'd he know?

Maybe by the color
of their skin,

their voices...

and because they're a danger
to our way of life.

Way of life?

Which way is that?

Freedom, democracy.

If these people don't believe
in those things,

and they get money for terrorism
from overseas...

well, somebody ought
to kill them, right?

Almost dissociating,

as if this
isn't about him.

Sounds like he wants Olivia's
and Elliot's approval.

Well, it makes
you wonder

whose approval
he really wants.

Fuel oil in Sean's truck
is a perfect match

to the victims.

36 million gallons sold
every ten seconds.

The dumbest lawyer in town
can do an O.J. DNA with it.

The lab says

the oil was accelerated
with benzene.

Munch and Fin
are going to need
a search warrant

for the kid's
apartment.

It's done. He saying anything?

HUANG:
Not directly.

Likes the sound
of his own voice.

Well, call me
if he gives us anything useful.

Any suggestions?

Keep him talking.

This man wants
to confess,

but first, he
needs to be heard.

Till he says
the magic words,

"I want a lawyer."

No. He won't hide
behind a lawyer.

They keep listening,
he'll keep talking.

WOMAN:
What did my son do?

He's not a criminal.
Yes, ma'am.

Sean's boss called.

He said you dragged him away.

I called the Police Department.

They said
they'd never heard of my son.

He's at our
precinct, ma'am.

You have to stop.

You have to leave right now.

You'd better look
at that search warrant.

You don't stay out
of our way,

we're going to have
to arrest you, too.

MUNCH:
Check this out.

The Citizen's
Survival Manual

published by

The White People's Press.

"Chapter Six: Fires
and How to Start Them."

Why do these publishers
always have post office boxes

and not real addresses?

'Cause they know
we're looking for them.

Cleaning fluid.

Ingredients:

dichloramethane

and- what do you know--
benzene.

Sean, you got some decisions
to make here, man,

and you got to make them now.

Why?

No one's going
to put me in jail.

You know?

Once they understand.

Well, what
are they going
to understand?

Talk to me, talk to me.

What are they going
to understand?

How in the hell did you
get yourself into this mess?

I don't know.

You come from
where I come from, and...

( sighs )

Thing's are supposed
to be different.

I'm a real American.

I was born here.

It-It should be easier.

I understand
what you mean,

and it obviously
pisses you off,

so what do you do?

What do you do?

( door opening )

We just got some news.

They found your can
of cleaning fluid.

It's got benzene in it.

You used it as an accelerant.

I told you

what I know.

How much longer are you going
to keep me here?

It's entirely up to you.

See, you just don't get it,
do you?

( sighs )

Things were different
when I grew up.

You didn't have these... people.

Look, there's always
been foreigners here.

We're all foreigners.

This country is
built of immigrants.

SEAN:
Yeah, now they come over here

and they rent places in Jersey

and they set up
their little cells

and they bomb buildings.

Did somebody tell you
that Mira Albisi

and Tariq Assad
were involved
in 9/11?

SEAN:
Well, I heard Arabs

all over the country
had advance warning,

sold their houses and moved back

to their hellholes
in the desert.

And what about
the street vendors

and the cabbies
who were told to stay away

from the Trade Center
that morning?

Those were rumors,
Sean, rumors.

I call 'em like I see 'em.

What do you think?

( sighs )

Well, I'll tell you.

I see those people walking
down the street, and I admit,

I don't like them being here.

Yeah?

Yeah.

Stabler?

Yeah.

That Irish?

Yeah.

I, um...

I went to Holy Name.

You?

Sisters of Mercy.

You go to college?

Yeah, I went
to night school.

Just got out of the Marines,

but, uh, I got my BA.

So, now, how come

you had to go
into the service

instead of straight to college?

My dad was a cop.

I got two sisters,

three brothers. You know?

Not a lot of money going around.

You see, that's
exactly my point.

I didn't get to go myself

'cause all the places were
taken up by Arabs,

who come over here
with their oil money,

and they buy up all the slots
in the schools

with the money
that we paid them.

You're right.

That's not fair.

That's not fair.

Yeah, it's a bitch.

So you understand?

One of my best friends died
in the World Trade Center.

What do you think?

See, you don't get it.

He gets it.

Gas chromo on
the benzene was
a dead-on match

to the residue on
both the victims.

This going anywhere?

No, I thought he'd crack.

He's having too good a time.

I can try and go
and light him up.

It's been four-and-a-half hours.

Knock yourself out.

Detective Tutuola,
Sean Webster.

And what's he doing here?

You invited him?

You don't like me very much,
do you?

BENSON:
Actually,

I'm not all that invested
either way.

What do you
see in her?

You know
what I see?

I think she's got
some color in her.

What's in you?

Arab? Raghead?

Oh, and you look it, too, boy.

You got some
raghead in you?

In Africa, folks moved around,

intermixing for thousands
of years.

I could be part Arab.

Oh.

That would explain

why your coon brothers went
to the enemy.

Black Muslims.

Traitors to the American people.

You can call me anything
you want, Sean.

Coon, traitor,

raghead, towelhead.

I got some words for you:

killer, psycho.

Hey...

I'm no psycho.

You burned two innocent people
to death.

They weren't innocent!

They had to die,
or they're going to kill us all.

Well, who was Mira Elbisi
gonna kill?

She was working for peace.

I didn't want to kill her!

You tore up that innocent woman
with that pipe,

then you burned her alive.

You're sick.

She said
that she was a good American,

and that raghead said
that he was our friend.

They're all liars.

We have to stop them,

or they're going to kill us all!

You okay?

I'll take words anytime
over being raped with a pipe.

You've got thicker
skin than me.

Couple hundred years,

races will be so mixed up,
it won't matter.

No one will know
what color anyone is.

He got to you.

A little.

He thought he'd rattle
me by calling me an Arab,

but the truth is,

I don't know anything
about my father.

Race and color are the
least of my questions.

Probation report.

Sean Webster, aged 16,

attacked a Pakistani kid
at school.

Tried as an adult,
sentenced as a juvenile.

No time served.

Father died when he was ten.

Mother had a nervous breakdown,

had to move out of the house
from Long Island.

Brought the kid into the city.

He's been in and out
of trouble ever since.

You want us to feel
sorry for him?

Oh, no. He's a racist
son of a bitch.

With a damn good lawyer.

The confession's inadmissible.

He was Mirandized.

He never asked for a lawyer.

You can stop
grandstanding, Oliver.

This isn't a
press conference.

You kept him hidden
from his own mother.

CRAGEN:
No, no. Our
detectives

told his mother we had him.

Yeah, he was offered his
phone call. He declined.

The confession was provoked.
I'll get it excluded.

NOVAK:
Well, there's not much
law on provocation.

And considering
how wired your client is,

I'd say, he provokes easily.

The confession will stick.

Maybe you're right.

See you in court.

I've seen that smile.

Usually before he demolishes
the prosecution's case.

How did that kid's mother find
Oliver Gates?

He's one of the major opponents
of the hate-crimes statute.

Well, he picked
the right case.

Well, we'll deny him
the pleasure.

I don't need
a sentencing enhancement.

We'll convict Webster
for both killings.

He does consecutive time.

It's 50 years before
he sees a parole board.

My opinion?

You need a hate-crimes charge.

It goes to motive.

I think we should prosecute
action, not thought.

Webster killed out of hate.

That matters.

Okay, you tell me.

Does that mean

a black man who kills a Klansman
does additional time?

Or a gay man
who kills a homophobe?

I mean, where do we draw
the line?

Hate crimes incite
other people.

( phone ringing )

It's a kind of terror.

We use the statute
to make a point.

( phone continues ringing )

Cragen.

Yeah. We'll be right there.

Sean Webster just killed
a Muslim prisoner

at Central Booking.

MAN:
Webster was in the pens,

waiting for arraignment
when he just flipped out.

He stomped the Arab guy
into a pulp.

Why didn't you
segregate him?

He's booked for two murders.

We didn't know
about a racial angle.

Nobody said squat, okay?

Your lawyer's going
to be pissed, Sean.

You just convicted yourself.

One less Arab,
one less terrorist.

GATES:
Sean, seal your lips,
not another word.

Actually, my client just proved
my theory correct.

NOVAK:
What?

Another murder
gets him off?

No. It gets him sent

to a mental hospital

for the treatment
he so desperately needs.

An insanity defense?

You've got no grounds.

Sure I do.

His genes.

The motion will be filed
tomorrow.

Sean Webster is biologically
and genetically predisposed

to hatred and violence.

He had no control
over his actions.

It'll never fly.

You put a man's genes on trial,

nobody will ever be responsible
for anything.

It's the ultimate defense.

NOVAK:
Your Honor, this
defense is absurd.

The defendant sodomized
and burned two people

and beat a prisoner to death.

His guilt cannot be determined
by his genes.

Are you citing the
law, Counselor,

or is this just
your opinion?

The law is clear.

New York doesn't have
an insanity defense

of "irresistible impulse."

We ask that it
be excluded.

Thank you, Ms. Novak.

Proceed.

GATES:
Thank you, Your Honor.

My client, Sean Webster,

believes that Muslims
are a danger to our society,

and therefore,
he's driven to kill them.

Now, we will prove

that he's not responsible
for these crimes

because he was born

with hatred and violence
hard-wired into his brain.

Your Honor,
the defendant

ran from the police.

He knew right from wrong.

That negates

a mental disease
defense.

Michigan v. Carpenter.

Not wanting to be caught

is different
than knowing right from wrong.

And what better proof
he can't control his actions

in killing another inmate
while awaiting two trials?

JUDGE:
You know, you
haven't convinced me

that biology is the issue

or that it's proper for me
to allow this defense.

U.S. v. Robertson.

The trial judge must consider

the defendant's ability
to control himself.

I know the case, Counselor.

I went to law school, too.

I'll review
your scientific evidence.

And I presume you have

a bang-up expert witness.

The esteemed Dr. Emily Sopher,

Chair of Neurobiology
at the Mid-Hudson Institute.

JUDGE:
Documents in my
chambers, 48 hours.

You'll make your
witness available

to the District Attorney.

( gavel bangs )

The whole defense is bogus.

The judge should've
dismissed it.

He still might.

Casey!

Now, this is gonna be a blast,
don't you think?

I think it's a bad joke.

Your client killed that inmate
just to make himself look crazy.

No, he can't control

his genetic predisposition
to hatred.

Why are you doing this,
Oliver?

It's the next frontier.

I like being
on the cutting edge.

You like being
in the spotlight.

That, too.

Why, it must be genetic.

You think his expert
can convince a jury?

Sopher's a world-class
neurobiologist.

There's no telling what
they're going to think.

You talk to Sopher.

See what you think.

Read the research
on brain chemistry.

Multiple studies, not just mine.

Genotypes that cause low levels

of monoamine oxidase A
predict violence.

Maybe violence is
genetically influenced,

but hatred is a
learned behavior.

Actually,
my research shows

that emotions
are genetically determined.

Someday we'll treat
the Sean Websters of the world

with gene therapy

before they commit
terrible crimes.

You start treating people
you think will be criminals,

you turn psychiatry
into social control.

All due respect, Dr. Huang,
you're living in the past.

You're living in the future.

You might be able
to prove your theories then,

but you can't do it now.

I can convince a jury.

Do you think
that a courtroom

is the right place
to test-drive your ideas?

Where should we do it?

At some academic conference
where no one'll notice?

You might not want to testify
after you read my research.

GATES:
Dr. Sopher, are hatred

and racist violence
mental diseases?

Yes. They're caused by
genetic abnormalities
in the brain.

Where in the brain
does this occur?

In the prefrontal cortex

which controls emotions
and which is smaller

in people convicted
of violent hate crimes.

Dr. Sopher, were you able to
examine Sean Webster's brain?

Yes, first slide please.

( machine clicks )

These images are
called PET scans.

The one on the left shows
a normal prefrontal cortex.

On the right
is Sean Webster's.

His is abnormally small.

More important, violent
people have more activity

than normal people
in another section
of the brain.

It's called the subcortex.

How can you tell?

Well, for example,

here's a scan of the subcortex

of a neo-Nazi skinhead

who was convicted
of attacking Jews.

This is his subcortex after
he hears the word "Jew."

Note how it lights up.

Did you perform this
test on Sean Webster?

Yes.

His subcortex lit
up the same way

when he heard
the word "Arab."

Your conclusion,
Dr. Sopher?

The mere mention of Arabs

puts Sean Webster into a state
of extreme hatred and violence.

Thank you.

Your witness.

Can you tell by looking
at pictures of people's brains

whether they'll kill
other people?

That's difficult to say.

Your Honor?

Answer the question, Dr. Sopher.

With enough time
and sufficient PET scans,

yes, I'll eventually be able to
predict who will become violent.

"Eventually predict"?

Eventually.

But not now?

No.

HUANG:
I turned to colleagues

at the Ranney
Psychiatric Institute

to replicate
Dr. Sopher's experiments.

Tell us what you found,
Dr. Huang.

We interviewed
several people.

Number one is the PET
scan of an orthodox rabbi.

We showed him that
picture of Nazi officers.

His subcortex responded
exactly like Sean Webster's.

Number two is the subcortex
of an African-American minister.

We showed him that picture
of the Ku Klux Klan

at a rally burning a cross.

So, both of these men

have the same subcortical
activity as Sean Webster?

That's correct.

What do these results
mean to you, Doctor?

That even if behavior
is partly genetic,

it's about our experiences,
also.

After you're bitten by a dog,
you might not like them,

but you weren't born
to hate them.

Your witness.

Dr. Huang, is high cholesterol
genetically caused?

We think so.

Can you identify the genes
which cause it?

In the average patient, not yet.

No. So, if I have
high cholesterol

and I die of a heart attack

it may have been
genetically predetermined?

Yes.

But you're saying
that Sean Webster,

and not his genetic make-up,
is responsible for his violence?

Dr. Huang?

It's not that simple.

Thank you.

I was thinking the same thing.

I wasn't finished.

Dr. Sopher identifies
violent people

after they've committed
hate crimes.

That doesn't mean
she can predict violence

based on their brain patterns.

No more than you can predict
someone having a heart attack

based solely
on their cholesterol level.

But your rabbi or minister could
become violent at any moment.

Any of us could.

My point, thank you.

That includes Sean Webster.

When I was a kid, I
was always in trouble.

The school sent me
to a therapist,

but it never helped.

What kind of trouble?

Fights mostly.

Who did you fight?

Arabs.

People like Tariq Assad

and Mira Elbisi?

Yeah.

What made you choose them?

I saw this poster for
a panel they were on.

I went and I listened.

You know, they say
that they're our friends.

They're more dangerous
than the ones

who admit they're our enemies.

Did you hear voices telling you
to kill them?

No, sir.

Crazy people hear voices.

I'm not crazy.

But, still, you felt
you had to kill them.

They hate and want to destroy
our country.

Do you think killing people
is wrong?

We kill people in wars,

and we're at war
with these people, right?

Thank you.

Your witness.

So you hate Muslims.

Do you hate black people,
too, Sean?

No, ma'am.

Well, I mean, except
for the ones who are Muslims.

Do you hate the Chinese,
Japanese?

No, ma'am.

So your hatred's
pretty specific.

Muslims come here,

and they study
engineering and aviation,

and then they use it
to attack us,

and we fought for them
in Bosnia,

and my dad fought for them
in Desert Storm,

and he died for his country.

They killed your father?

Muslims killed your father?

And they turn around,
and they attack us!

And they're gonna explode
chemical warfare in the subways!

Sean!

And poison our water supplies
and blow up bridges!

Your Honor, may
we have a recess?

JUDGE:
I'm going to recess
while the defendant

regains control
of himself.

...while they stockpile weapons
of mass destruction!

( gavel banging )

He said his father
died in Desert Storm.

I need to know whether Sean
killed out of hate or revenge.

Find out how
the father died.

GATES:
Casey, just accept it.

It's over.

If you want a deal,
the answer is no.

I thought you'd jump
at the chance.

I wouldn't give you
the satisfaction.

The jury's buying it.

See, they understand hatred
'cause at one point,

they've hated
someone themselves.

Well, none of them
have killed three people.

But they understand
the impulse,

and they won't
blame Sean for his.

No deal.
There's no way I acknowledge

an ounce of validity
in this cockamamie defense.

NOVAK:
You will realize

that it's based on speculation,
on maybes and could bes.

On maybes and...
( knocking on door )

Practicing your summation?

Yeah. It's
not working.

It may not have to.

I think I found what you wanted.

Seth Webster--
that's Sean Webster's father--

he fought in Desert Storm...

didn't die there.

( buzzer sounds )

What's this about?

You still want a deal?

You've come to your senses.

It's about you coming to yours.

He pleads three counts,

Murder Two,
consecutive sentences.

Have a nice day.

GATES:
Who's this?

Get him out.

Don't you want
to introduce Dad?

Sean, what's going on?

STABLER:
He never told you?

His father met
an Arab woman

in Kuwait,
divorced Sean's mother,

remarried and moved to Detroit.

You still think
it's genetics, Oliver?

Why don't you
just go back

to where you came from.

Go back to your Arab whore.

Sean, I'm sorry.

What do you care, hmm?

Because this is my fault.

Yeah, you're damn right
it's your fault.

My mom told me
that you died a hero,

and you never came around
to tell me different.

I go to get benefits
for college,

and I find out
that he's still alive.

SETH:
Sean, listen,
I wanted to see you.

Your mother wouldn't let me.

She had custody.

She threatened that
if I even tried to come visit...

Liar!

You were too busy with your
half-breed kids! Admit it!

She filled your head
with all this crap

about Arabs
because she was angry with me.

Can't you see that?

She poisoned you with her hate.

My mom worked her ass off
to take care of me!

You never gave a damn!

Oh, Sean.

I hate your stinking guts!

( spits )

If I had a gun right now,

I'd shoot you in the head,
and then I'd go back

and I'd set your wife
and your bastard kids on fire!

Get off me!

Sean Webster wasn't born
that way.

I don't believe anyone is.

It takes a human being
to teach you to hate.

"Some mysteries past
all understanding."

Letters of St. Paul.

The Muslim who Sean Webster
killed at Central Booking?

He had friends.

Webster was just stabbed
to death in the yard at Rikers.

Captioning sponsored by
UNIVERSAL NETWORK TELEVISION

and NBC

( wolf howling )