Law & Order: Special Victims Unit (1999–…): Season 5, Episode 18 - Careless - 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.

CHUNY:
What do we got?

Six-year-old male.

Stopped breathing
at a church service.

No pulse. Gave him epi
and atropine.



Oh, please.
The boy's dad.

You wait here.

Still no pulse.
Pupils fixed and dilated.

Asystole.

CHUNY:
Push vasopressin and
atropine. Scalpel.

Oh, my God,

what are you doing?
We're trying to
start his heart.

Sir, you need
to wait outside.
No, no, no, no.

Please let me stay
with him.

Did he ingest anything:
poisons,

detergents, drugs?
There was just-just

a glass of
milk before bed.

NURSE:
Vasopressin
and atropine

on board--
still no pulse.



How long's he been down?

Nearly 30 minutes.

You have to help him.

I'm sorry.

There's nothing more we can do.

Paramedics were called

to a service at the Church
of Divine Blessing

just before midnight.

A parishioner said
the kid had stopped breathing.

We did everything we could
to resuscitate him,

but he was DOA.

His name's Jamie Semple.

BENSON:
Did you notify the parents?
Yeah. Dad came in

with the paramedics.
And what's the
cause of death?

I have my suspicions,
but you'd better wait
for the autopsy.

Why us?
Because I think
he was physically abused.

There's these
indentations.

Do you mind if
I take a look?

Partial finger
impressions, and...

is that a ring mark?

Somebody really
squeezed this kid.

Or crushed him.
Hold on. The
ring might have

partial initials-- can
we use your camera?

From the positioning
of the imprint,

the ring...
is on the right ring finger.

Where are the parents?

They're in the waiting area.
They tell you
why they took

their kid to church
in the middle of the night?

Yeah.

They were praying over him.

Captioning sponsored by
UNIVERSAL NETWORK TELEVISION

and NBC

Mr. and Mrs. Dufoy?

I'm Detective Benson,
this is Detective Tutuola.

We are so sorry
about your loss.

We need to ask you
a few questions.

Can you tell us what happened?

Um, I'm-I'm afraid
I don't know a lot.

I-I was... I work late.

Um, I run a bodega
up on 121st.

Sam was home with Jamie.

Well, he'd been wild,
real wild, all day,

uh, just... throwing fits
like he was possessed.

When he finally quieted down,
I took him to the church.

I-I thought it might help

if Father Hendry
prayed over him.

What time was it?

11:15, 11:30.

And you were okay with this,
Mrs. Dufoy?

Well, um... we're-we're
Jamie's foster parents.

His birth mother
wanted church to be
part of his life,

so... we-we try
to respect that.

So, what went on last night?

We were praying
with Father Hendry,

and this lady
was holding Jamie's hand,

and... suddenly,
she couldn't find a pulse.

Jamie stopped breathing.

We tried to wake him,
but we couldn't...

May I please see
both of your right hands?

Why?

Please.

Thank you.

Where's the church?

Um, 126th,

off Lennox.

Okay.

If you think of anything else,

please call us, okay?

God, it's 4:45.

I've got to be in
court in five hours.

Okay, you go ahead.

About time Munch got
his bony ass out of bed

for some religion.

Thanks.

Jamie and his father
found comfort

and healing here
on many occasions.

Ask my brothers
and sisters.

Why'd Jamie need healing?
He had demons.

He'd have fits:

hurl himself to the ground,

froth at the mouth,

shout, swear,

bang his head.

And this was
the devil's work?

Medicine couldn't heal Jamie.
Our prayers could.

Then why is he dead?

Excuse me, ma'am,
and you are...?

Mariel Plummer, ACS;
Jamie's case worker.

I just came
from the hospital.

I spoke to Lori-Ann
and Sam.

I just can't believe
this has happened.

Jamie's in a
better place now.
The only better place

Jamie could be is at home
with his parents!

I'm... sorry.
This is just really upsetting.

Ms. Plummer,
in your professional opinion,

was Jamie possessed
by the devil?

Jamie had ADHD with conduct
disorder and epilepsy.

You don't believe me,
speak to his doctor.

DOCTOR:
I worked with Jamie
for nearly a year.

He could be a
real handful.

When a child has
both a behavioral

and an organic
disorder,

one exacerbates
the other.
What did you do for Jamie?

Gave him medication
for epilepsy

and therapy for the ADHD.

He was steadily improving.

He could be
a sweet kid:

funny, loving,
inventive...

I can't believe he's dead.

Isn't that Mariel Plummer?

DOCTOR:
Yes. Jamie's
case worker.

She's great with kids.

He was quite
fond of her.

I felt we had
the behavioral problems

under control,
but there was always a chance

that he could have
another seizure.

FIN:
Could he die
from that?

There is a rare syndrome

called Sudden Unexpected Death
in Epilepsy.

How does that happen?

Not taking one's meds
or mixing them.

Do Jamie's foster parents
know how to medicate him?

Yes, and how to care for him
during a seizure...

but in the last few months,

they'd started looking
for answers elsewhere.

Like at the Church
of Divine Blessing.
Yeah.

Sam Dufoy insisted
that it was good for Jamie.

A month ago, I told them either
leave the church or leave me,

because I couldn't take
responsibility

for Jamie's health.

They chose the church.

According to Doc Engels,
cause of death

could be an epileptic seizure.

You ask me,
that kid is dead

because his parents
didn't give him his meds,

and then dragged him off
to a faith healer.

That's the lure
of faith healing.

Medicine doesn't give them
the answer they want,

so they turn to God.

Doc said Jamie
was getting better.

He's got epilepsy--
he'll always be epileptic.

Medicine can only
treat the condition.

Father Hendry can
promise them a cure.

But he can't deliver.

Then he says
it's the Lord's will.

Yeah, or maybe Sam and
Lori-Ann didn't pray
hard enough.

I got the feeling that Lori-Ann
didn't approve of it.

She doesn't belong
to that church.

Even if Jamie was having
a seizure,

and his dad took him
for a prayer session,

it doesn't account for
the mark on Jamie's chest.

Depends on what kind
of prayer session
you're talking about.

That autistic kid
who died in the
Milwaukee church--

the parishioners
held him down.

They were laying on
top of him to cure him.

That would explain
the ring mark.

Right? Somebody holds
onto Jamie, he struggles,

and they hold
onto him tighter.

Until he stops breathing.

Thank you. I enjoyed that.

Now, have we tracked down
his birth mother yet?

MUNCH:
Social worker says

she moved to Long Island.

I made a call.
The phone's disconnected.

I also did a little homework
on Father Hendry.

He used to be minister
of the Sacred Spirit Church,

but left over
"religious
differences."

Okay. Liv, Elliot,
you got trial prep.

John, Fin, pay a visit

to Sacred Spirit Church--
let's see how

"different"
Father Hendry's religion was.

Lucas Hendry was with us
for many years.

He was a popular preacher.

Why'd he leave?

He was drawn to a more
charismatic form of worship.

He felt people needed
more drama in their faith.

Have you heard of
the Toronto Blessing?

Nope.

It started in the '90s,

in a church near
Toronto Airport.

Practitioners claimed

they could cast out demons,
heal the sick,

speak in tongues.

Hendry and some of our members
were seduced by it.

Like Sam and
Lori-Ann Dufoy?

Sam was.
He and Lori-Ann

are good people.
We were sorry to see them go.

FIN:
You think
Father Hendry's

a fraud?

He doesn't hold rattlesnakes
in one hand

and the collection box
in the other,

if that's what you mean.

He may be deluded,
but he's sincere.

Does Reverend Hendry
always wear this ring?

Yes. It was
his grandfather's.

This mark
was on Jamie's body.

See the partial initials:
J.O.?

Well, my initials are L.H.

FIN:
But it's your ring.

The initials belong
to your grandaddy,

Jackson Ormond.

MUNCH:
Where's the
ring, Father?

I don't wear it anymore.

We talked to the people
that prayed for

Jamie that night-- they said
you were calling to the Lord,

battling with Satan.

His demons were powerful.
I had to fight them.

You held him
so tight

that the ring left
an impression on his flesh.

I was healing him!

You crushed the life
out of him!
No!

You killed him!

God forgive me.

I was only trying to help
the boy.

I-I-I must've held him
too tight.

I... I saw the mark
my ring had made--

I took it off.

I'm so sorry.

About to take him

to Booking.
Put him in the cage.

I think you better
talk to Warner first.

WARNER:
We've got microscopic
cotton fibers.

I found them
in Jamie's lungs and stomach.

Along with these--

traces of toluene
diisocyanate polyol

and pentabromodiphenyl oxide.

Your basic foam rubber
and fire retardant.

So he was smothered
with a cushion?

Or a cheap pillow.

Okay, somebody holds
a pillow over Jamie's face.

The kid fights and bites
right through the case

into the foam.

Yeah, but the parishioners
didn't say anything

about a pillow.

That's because Jamie wasn't
smothered at the church.

How do you know that?

See how clear and deep
the impression is?

That wouldn't have happened
with living skin.

His flesh had started
to swell and become waxy.

Jamie was already dead.

At least an hour
before this mark was made.

You know, I don't know
what you think

you're going to find here.

MUNCH:
We'll let you know

as soon as we find it.

Pillowcase is clean,
no tears.

When's your husband
coming back?

Soon.

He's out making
Jamie's funeral arrangements.

Look like teeth marks.

Mm-hmm. Check this out.

Blood?

LORI-ANN:
No, it couldn't be.

Jamie must've spilled
his chocolate milk or something.

Look, do you really think
we would hurt him?

He was like
our own son.

We need to get this
to the lab.

See if they can ID it.

Pillowcase.
Found it in the trash.

Tear marks.

Check it against
the bite marks on that.

What's going on?

Perfect match.

We just found
your murder weapon.

Jamie was sleeping
when I took him to the church.

He was already dead
when he got there, Sam.

No, no. After one of his fits,

it's like he's in a coma,
but he always wakes up.

He couldn't wake up.

He'd been suffocated
with a pillow.

That's impossible.

I'd never hurt Jamie.

Then why are there bite marks
on his pillow and pillowcase?

Because Jamie is an epileptic.

When he's having a seizure,
he goes crazy.

He'll bite anything
within reach.

MUNCH:
That doesn't explain

the fragments
of foam and fiber
in his lungs.

I don't believe you.

FIN:
What do you think
these are?

That pillow
was pressed so hard
against Jamie's face

he inhaled this stuff.

No!

Come on, Sam.
The kid was running wild,

you were at the end
of your rope.

You put that pillow
over his face,

and you held it there
till he stopped moving.

Stop!

( sobbing )

I loved Jamie.

No, you killed him.

Then you took him
to the church to cover it up.

No. I know my husband.

He would never do anything
like this.

We dumped your phone.

Sam called you at your store
at 11:00. Why?

He said Jamie
was out of control.

Did you go home?

I couldn't.

I had customers.

I told Sam to stay calm.

That I would be there
as soon as I could.

FIN:
Let it out, Sam.

You'll feel better.

( sobbing ):
I just wanted him to sleep.

Just be still for a while.

But then he stopped moving!

So you took him
to the priest.

Father Hendry woke him up
before.

I thought
he could do it again.

Sam, don't say anything else.

We're getting a lawyer.

Baby...

I tried so hard
not to hurt him.

I'm sorry!

Oh, God, I'm sorry!

Father Hendry didn't know

Jamie was already dead?

FIN:
Sam lied.
Told him

the kid had a fit
and was all wrung out.

After a grand mal seizure

epileptics can go
into a semi-comatose state.

It's called
postictal shock.

FIN:
Sam's brought Jamie
to the church

like that before.

Father Hendry thinks
he can wake him up again.

Jamie's birth-mother
just arrived.

This woman is
going to blow.

Anything I can tell her?

Yeah. You caught
her son's killer

and I'm arraigning him
for murder.

Why didn't anybody tell me

what those monsters did
to my son?

We tried calling you.

Then why'd I have
to find out about it

over the television?

My own little son...

Didn't ACS contact you?

How do you think
this all got started?

Who the hell do you think
took Jamie from me

and put him with those freaks?

If you have any information
about the Dufoys,

we'd like to hear it.

He said they hurt him.

He begged me
to let him come home.

Did you report that to ACS?

Yes, I did.

But do you think that bitch
did anything about it?

You mean Mariel Plummer.

Yeah, her.

My son's poor dead
little body is at her door.

She's going to pay for it,

and ACS is
going to pay for it,

the city's going to pay for it.

That's not going

to bring Jamie back.

Have you ever lost a child?

You think

this is about money?!

Unfortunately,

it does seem to be about money.

Tamara Semple's got convictions

for credit card fraud
and shoplifting.

Doesn't take away her right
to be angry.

She loses custody of Jamie
and he ends up dead.

Kid might not have been much
safer with his real mama.

ACS removed Jamie

after his little
sister drowned
in the bathtub.

Where was Tamara?

Talking on the phone.

Courts ruled it was
an accidental death,

but ACS did a
precautionary
removal of Jamie.

This woman's kid dies
in foster care,

the first thing she sees
is a big fat settlement.

What about her allegations
the Dufoys hurt Jamie?

If they did,

ACS could be
found liable,

which would weaken our case
against Sam Dufoy.

We should check it out.

Wouldn't be the first lawsuit

that Tamara Semple brought
against ACS.

Of course,
none of them succeeded.

She told us Jamie complained

the Dufoys
physically abused him.

He never said a word
to me about abuse.

Sam and Lori-Ann
were good parents.

Good parents
don't kill their kids.

You have to understand

how difficult a child
like Jamie could be.

Sam probably snapped.

Did you ever see any evidence
that Sam was unstable?

No. On my home visits,

Jamie was happy, clean,

and very fond of both

Lori-Ann and Sam.

Sam work?

He stays home,

looks after Jamie.

Lori-Ann brought in the money.

Sam and Lori-Ann
were married young.

He was a college
basketball star,

about to be drafted
into the NBA,

when a knee injury
put an end to the dreams.

Excuse me. Tutuola.

Lori-Ann stuck by him.

I make it my business

to know about
my foster families.

This is Jamie's file.

You can take it.

I'm afraid I can't take it

without getting
a subpoena first.

Sure. It's here
when you need it.

Thank you.

Thanks.

Crime lab.

They said they got
something they want
us to hear.

I checked Sam's LUDS.

A half hour before
he called Lori-Ann
at the store,

he also called
the Child Abuse Hotline.

And all the Hotline calls
are recorded.

That's right.

SAM:
Hello? Hello!

WOMAN:
Child Abuse Hotline.
Can I help you?

Yeah, it's my foster kid,

I can't deal with him
anymore. He's...

( loud crash, Jamie yells )

Jamie, cut that out!

You've got to help me here!

Sir, are you reporting
an incident

of child abuse?

No, no, nothing like that.

Is the child in danger
at this moment?

No! He's just
out of control!

Sir, if it's an
emergency, call 911.

Otherwise you should call
your ACS caseworker.

I have called!
She never answers.

I want help, you hear?!

I want him out
of my house!

Sir, I'll take
your information

and pass it to Child
Protective Services.

They'll contact you
within 24 hours.

24 hours? Oh, man!

Had he called his caseworker?

Well, LUDS show four calls
to Mariel Plummer's ACS office

the day Jamie died.

Did she talk to him?

I can't say.

No call was shorter
than 20 seconds,

which means Sam either
had a conversation with her

or left a message.

It's funny how Mariel
didn't tell us any of this.

I'll put a rush on the subpoena.

You get a hold
of all Mariel's case files.

We'll see what else
she forgot to tell us.

Mariel's records seem to show
she was doing her job.

Visited Jamie every month,
but see those dates?

MUNCH:
They're the same.

Yeah.

which means all the records
were wither generated

or altered on the same date;
which happens to be yesterday.

What are you doing?

I gave you everything you need.

We were just admiring
you writing up

six-months worth of records
in only one day.

I was checking them
because of the subpoena.

I didn't alter a thing.

I'm afraid the log date

only changes
if an alteration is made.

I was probably
tidying things up.

It's impossible to keep track
of all the paperwork.

Mariel Plummer,

you are under arrest

for tampering
with public records.

You're arresting me
for paperwork?

And for reckless
endangerment

in the death
of Jamie Semple.

You have the right
to remain silent.

Anything you do say...

You've got
a problem, Counselor.

Arresting Jamie's social
worker makes it harder

to convict Sam Dufoy.

He can claim it
was her fault:

he asked for help
and didn't get it.

And if a jury buys it,
Sam could walk.

What are you going
to do, plead him out?

No way.

He killed that kid.

Question is--
who do I try first?

If I go with Sam and I put
Mariel on the stand,

she can't testify without
incriminating herself.

But I don't want
to give her immunity.

What does your gut tell you?

Get the facts
on the record...

catch the little fish
before I go for the big one.

I'll go schedule
Mariel's court date.

Casey...

Carolyn. What are
you doing here?

Representing
Mariel Plummer.

I trust you've had second
thoughts about persecuting her.

No.

You seriously intend
to clog up the courts,

to try someone on a couple
of clerical errors?

Not errors.

Deliberate falsifications
designed to conceal the fact

she recklessly
endangered a child.

My client was deceived

by a nut case,
who murdered a kid

and then asked a voodoo priest
to bring him back to life.

But let's deal.

A year's probation

for falsifying
the official record--

you drop
all other charges.

No thanks.

She takes a felony plea--

guilty of reckless
endangerment.

Motion to dismiss
the endangerment charge

on constitutional
grounds.

What are you talking about?

You're forgetting your
14th Amendment, Casey.

See you at the hearing.

The Due Process Clause
in the 14th Amendment

does not require a state agency
to protect its citizens

from private violence.

Therefore there's no case
against my client.

That ruling also says
that a state agency

isn't required to protect
its citizens

against violence
and other mishaps

that are, I quote,

"not attributable

to the conducts
of its employees."

Jamie Semple's death is at least
partly attributable

to Mariel Plummer's
negligence.

Ms. Maddox,
your own case law

seems to help Ms. Novak.

She's misreading
what the justices

had in mind.

If a criminal court finds
my client culpable

for Jamie's death,
then who's next?

Police officers who fail

to prevent a homicide?

Firefighters who don't save
someone from being burned?

Your Honor,
that's a reach.

Many courts
have ruled

that a child in foster care
is analogous

to a prisoner in state custody,

and that state officials,
like Ms. Plummer,

are not only liable
for harm the child suffers,

but also
for failing to act

where there is potential
for harm.

I'm sorry, Ms. Maddox,

I agree with Ms. Novak's reading
of the law.

Your client must
stand trial.

When you called
the Child Abuse Hotline

the night Jamie died,

you said you tried to contact

your case worker,
Mariel Plummer.

How many times?

Four times that day.

Another three times
the week before.

Did she ever return
any of those calls?

No.

Why were you calling her?

Because I was
having a hard time

coping with Jamie.

What could Mariel have done?

If she had called back
or visited,

she would have seen that Jamie
was out of control,

and how I was struggling.

Then none of this
would have happened.

Thank you.

Why not call 911?

What do you mean?

You said you were scared you
couldn't cope with Jamie.

Why not call 911

as the operator suggested?

I don't know.

Or take Jamie
to the emergency room,

or call a neighbor,
or do anything?

I thought I could handle him.

How, by smothering him
with a pillow?

Objection!

It goes to credibility,
Your Honor.

The jury has a right to know
that this witness

is facing criminal charges in
the death of his foster son

and therefore has
an excellent motive to lie.

I'll allow it.

The witness will respond.

Did you suffocate Jamie

with a pillow?

I assert my Fifth Amendment
rights

against
self-incrimination.

Nothing further.

How long have you been
a social worker?

About 18 years.

And why did you become one?

I wanted to help people--

make a difference
in a small way.

I'm sure there are
many people

who are very grateful to you.

Frankly,
I doubt that.

I usually show up

when a family is in crisis.

I'm the one who has to say
to the mom,

"Why are your kids'
clothes dirty?

Why did your kids
miss school?"

Worse than that,
I'm the one

that has to remove the kids

if there's any suspicion
of abuse or neglect.

Have you ever been threatened?

Usually just
verbal abuse.

I've been mugged three times,

chased out of apartments
with knives.

I work in pretty rough areas.

And you keep
coming back?

Someone has to look out
for the kids.

Then what went wrong with Jamie?

I made a mistake.

I thought that Lori-Ann and Sam
were good foster parents

and that Jamie was safe.

And you never thought

he was in danger?

No.

And I had what
I thought

were more urgent cases--

and I was giving all my
attention to them.

I was wrong.

I'll never be able
to forgive myself.

Thank you.

You say you didn't think
Jamie was in danger...

but Sam Dufoy had called,
left messages.

Didn't that warn you?

The messages said that
Jamie was acting up

and that Sam wanted to talk.

It didn't sound urgent.

He called four times

the day Jamie died.

How much more urgent can it get?

I thought Jaime was safe.

You had no idea

what was going on
in the Dufoy house.

You'd hadn't
visited in months.

You'd forgotten
all about Jamie.

No, I cared about him.

Then why not return Sam's calls?

Because I was out of the office

till late working
on another case.

But you cared about Jamie.

Why was that other case
so much more important?

A father returned home
from prison.

He beat his wife to death
with a hammer,

then he killed himself
in front of his two children.

That's what I was working on.

That's why I didn't
return Sam's calls.

I made a terrible mistake,

but don't accuse me
of not caring.

No further questions.

A social worker's job--
poorly paid, usually thankless.

They work in the most
deprived

and violent parts
of our cities,

where they can be assaulted,
raped even murdered.

Burnout's common.

Many don't last five years.

Mariel Plummer has worked
for 18.

When Jamie died,
she had nearly 20 cases.

The recommended caseload
is 12.

This tragedy isn't
Mariel's fault,

it's the fault of an
overburdened system:

too few case workers,
too few dollars,

too many children in need.

Out of grief and panic
after Jamie's death,

Mariel altered
her official records.

She admits it,
she is sorry for it.

Find her guilty on that charge,

not on the charge of endangering
Jamie's life.

Jamie slipped through
a crack in the system.

Blame the system,

blame the man who killed Jamie,

but don't blame
the social worker.

Mariel Plummer was the crack
in the system.

She was the one person whose job
it was to look out for Jamie,

and she failed to do her job.

If she'd made any one
of the visits

she fraudulently claimed

to have made, or returned any
one of the phone calls,

Jamie would be alive.

She turned her back on him.

That is child endangerment.

This time you must blame
the social worker.

Find Mariel guilty and send
a message to her,

to her supervisors
and to the city

and to the state,

that the death of even one child
is unacceptable.

Verdict in already?

Guilty
on the record tampering,

not guilty on
child endangerment.

Why not?

Maddox played the jury
like a violin.

Mariel was under intolerable
pressure,

she made an understandable
mistake.

They bought it.

At least when
you try Sam Dufoy,

he won't be able
to blame Mariel.

Unless I blow that trial, too.

Someone's got to be accountable
for that poor kid's death.

I may have something.

Clear evidence of abuse
from the Dufoy apartment.

Why'd it take so long?

Sample had to work its way from
Criminalistics to Serology.

Remember the stain
on Jamie's bed?

It's blood.

Lab finally ID'd the object
that made it:

a cheese grater.

Serology found skin cells
and cheese fragments.

Someone dragged a cheese grater
across the kid's skin?

How old is the blood stain?

At most a few days.

Otherwise the blood would
have oxidized completely.

FIN:
But Jamie didn't have

any other marks on him.

That's because it wasn't
Jamie's blood.

It's from a female.

Mom?

Wrong blood group.

And from the low levels
of the hormones

FSH and LH in her blood,

this female is in early puberty.

The Dufoys had a girl
in that apartment?

Then where the hell is she?

Go talk to Mariel.

See if she made another
understandable mistake.

What do you want?

Aren't you done
harassing me?

Don't kid yourself, lady,
you got off light.

I lost my job, my pension,

I've been crucified
by the press.

I get threatening
phone calls...

I don't have time for
your self-pity.

Where's the other foster kid
that was staying

in the Dufoys' apartment?

What are you talking about?

Jamie was their only child.

You saw my records.

Your records don't mean
a damn thing.

Forensics says there was
another girl there.

What forensics?

The girl's blood.

Sam Dufoy sliced her up
with a cheese grater.

Oh, my God, I... I had no idea.

Why didn't I go
to the apartment?

I'm so sorry.

( phone ringing )

Yeah, I bet you are.

Just tell me where she is
and how I can find her.

I don't know...

Hello.

Just leave me alone!

Give me this.

Yeah, who the hell
you calling a bitch?

This is the police.

Ring this number again
we're going to come

busting in your damn door.

Believe that.

Mariel...

Okay, okay, okay.

Put the gun down.
Come on.

Please put down the gun.

I saved thousands of children
and I'll only be remembered

for one.

No...
( gunshot )

( gasping )

You didn't have to do this.

Single shot to the
chest, point blank.

This should be a
quick job for you.

WARNER:
Thanks.

Are you okay?

I'm cool.

I know.

But are you okay?

Yeah.

You come to shrink me, too?
Nope. You need me,
you'll holler.

Yeah, I do.

Would you get over to ACS,
see what you can find

on a foster kid-- a girl--
staying with the Dufoys.

Mariel Plummer didn't
know who she was?

If she had have checked
on Jamie, she would've,

but, uh, I told her
about the blood stain.

That's when
she shot herself.

Where you going?

I'm going to go
get cleaned up.

Then I'm going to pay
Sam Dufoy a visit.

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

FIN:
People who say that
usually mean they do.

There was no girl
living with us.
!
You're a liar.

You cut her
and left her blood

and skin on the bed--
what's her name?

He told you:
he doesn't know.

FIN:
You kill her too?

Like you killed Jamie?

Guard, we're through here.

Is she alive?

What did you do with her?

Where the hell is she?

That bastard
didn't give me a thing.

What about Lori-Ann?

She'll just come out with
that "Sam's a good man" crap.

You got anything?

Yep. ACS have no record

of any other kids
placed with Sam Dufoy.

So I got them to check under
Lori-Ann's maiden name.

Four kids were placed
with Lori-Ann Watkins
in the last two years--

all from Freshfields
private foster home.

Is one of them our girl?

Last kid was placed with
Lori-Ann six months ago,

but ran away a
couple weeks later.

Her name is Megan Rose.

CRAGEN:
Why the hell did ACS

only hear about this now?
ACS says

they never got the report
Megan was missing.

Freshfields insists
they sent it.

While they're playing pass
the buck, Megan could be dead.

John, find out why
this foster agency

went on sending
kids to a woman

who kept on
losing them-- Fin!

I'm hauling her ass in.

Yeah, of course
I know Megan.

She ran away a week after
being placed with us.

I'm afraid she
was incorrigible.

And that just
slipped your mind.

It was six months ago.

I'm sorry, it didn't
seem relevant.

What about Stacey Dean,
Isiah Simpson, Nyal Iwa?

They incorrigible too?

Yes.

They've been in the foster care
system their entire lives.

Sam is a great dad, and even
he couldn't cope with them.

He "take care of them"
the same way he did Jamie?

They ran away.

We tried to help these kids,

but they didn't
want to be helped.

And I resent your accusations,
Detective.

We're not through, lady.
Sit back down.

When these kids went missing,
what did you do?

I informed the
foster care agency.

And they informed ACS?

Right. They gave
the file back.

MUNCH:
Then why doesn't ACS
have the files,

and why are you
still getting paid?

Your bank records show
you're still receiving

Adoption Assistance Payments

for every one
of those kids.

It was a computer error.

Four computer errors,
a little more than two years:

you get two grand a month

for kids that haven't been
in your home in months.

I'm telling you,
it's a mistake.

FIN:
You took in runaways,

treat 'em like crap,
so they'd run away again.

Or did Sam
just kill them?

No! Nobody else
would touch these kids.

Well, somebody touched Megan
Rose with a cheese grater.

What are you talking about?

This is Megan Rose's blood,
and it damn sure

ain't six months old.

She was in your home
the week Jamie died.

Did she see Sam kill him?

I swear,
Megan was gone.

Or maybe she came back,
I don't know!

I work so many hours
at the store...

If she came back,
where is she now?

You're trying to get me
to hurt Sam, but I won't.

Just tell us where Megan is!

I said I don't know!

FIN:
That's Megan.
Remember her now?

She was in your home, Sam,

maybe for a night,
maybe for just an hour

but her blood says
she was there.

Did you kill her, Sam?

Come on! You're already
going down for murder,

what have you got to lose?

Tell me what happened!

What are you hiding, Sam?

Are you trying to protect her?

Did she kill Jamie?

No!

Then help me find her.
She's just a kid.

St. Columba's.

The psych home?

She went crazy.

WOMAN:
Megan was brought here
three weeks ago.

She was kicking and
screaming at the staff,

raving about
murdered children.

What did you
do with her?

Diagnosed her as
acutely psychotic

with paranoid features.

We sedated her with Haldol,

waited for the
psychosis to break.

Unfortunately, as soon as
the medication wore off,

the delusions returned and
we had to sedate her again.

How's she doing?

Quieter. We've
reduced the dosage.

But her foster agency
doesn't want her back,

and I doubt
anyone else will,

so it looks like

she's set for
a long stay.

Any chance
she was telling the truth?

No, she had clearly
decompensated.

The foster parent
who brought her in told us

she would mutilate herself

and that these
psychotic episodes

had become
increasingly frequent.

The foster parent--
her name Lori-Ann?

Yeah.

You should've
listened to Megan.

She was brought in here
the night

her six-year-old foster brother
was murdered.

Megan...

My name is Fin.
I'm a cop.

I want to talk to
you about Jamie.

Get away from me.

We know he's dead, Megan.

Megan, get back into bed.
You stay out of this.

Get away from me!
You leave me alone!

I'm not going to hurt you.
Yes, you are.

You're trying to trick me!

You're gonna stick me
with needles!

No, I'm not.

I know you're
telling the truth.

I know who
cut your face.

She said I was crazy.

You're not crazy.

You saw
what happened to Jamie.

( sobbing )

Tell me.

That night,
were you in Jamie's room?

Yes.

Was Sam?

No.

Who was it?

I can't. I can't.

I promise no one will hurt you.

Who was it?

Lori-Ann.

Tell me what happened, baby.

Jamie was crying and crying,
and then he just stopped.

So I went in his room
and I saw her.

She was covering his face
with a pillow,

screaming "Shut up! Shut up!"

He was fighting, but he just
wasn't strong enough.

Then he just stopped moving.

Come on.

Where are you
taking her?

Away from this place.

Got good news.

We found Megan.

Yeah, that is good news.

Is she okay?

Oh, yeah,
she's doing fine.

That's pretty slick:

hiding a murder witness
in a loony bin,

telling them
she was a psycho.

Yeah, well, obviously,
the girl is disturbed.

She not
that disturbed.

She told me what happened.

Said she saw you

kill Jamie.
Well, she's lying.

Who you think
a jury's gonna believe:

me... or some
teenage delinquent?

After they see

how you cut her face,

I think they're gonna
believe her.

She cut herself, okay?

She's psychotic.

And Jamie
smothered himself, too.

No, my loser husband
did that.

And I've heard enough.
I'm going home.

Sam...

What're you doing here?

I watched you
through that window.

You told me it
was an accident.

You did it.
You confessed.

No!

I could never
have hurt Jamie.

I wanted him to be our son!

You killed him.

Don't you do
this to me, Sam.

I'm not going to
protect you anymore.

Protect me?!
You never protected me!

You promised me

everything
and you gave me nothing!

I've wasted my life on you!

I loved you, Lori-Ann.

I believed your lies.

I let you
hurt those kids.

You weak son of a bitch!

You don't give a damn
about anyone.

MUNCH:
Lori-Ann Dufoy,
you are under arrest

for the murder
of Jamie Semple.

You have the right
to remain silent.

You have the right
to an attorney...

You okay?

I'm cool.

Captioning sponsored by
UNIVERSAL NETWORK TELEVISION

and NBC

( wolf howling )