Murder, She Wrote (1984–1996): Season 2, Episode 9 - Jessica Behind Bars - full transcript

During Jessica's lecture in a woman's prison with an all-female staff, the doctor is found, killed by a morphine injection, with convict Mary's fingerprints on, but this is proven not to be the murder weapon. Next there is a revolt, which takes Jessica hostage but is ill-prepared: even the demands are a matter for debate. Jessica is now asked to investigate, and while she digs into malpractices apparently involving warden Gates, who has political ambition, and conflicts involving staff as well as prisoners, another staff member is killed. Jessica discovers things are not as they appear.

[Alarm Blares]

What's that? Trouble.

[Woman] Tonight on
Murder, She Wrote.

Mary drove the syringe home.

- I say we use her as a shield
and blast our way out of here.
- You made a deal with me.

You gonna try and
have us all killed?

A lot of people are going to die
unless I get the truth from you now.

For 20 years, I've lived in
fear of something like this.

[Women Shouting] You have
to hold off the National Guard.

I think I know who the
murderer is. She's in the hallway.

What? [Woman Screams]



[Woman] You want to open it up
for me? [Woman #2] Yeah, sure.

There you go.

Okay, ma'am, take her through.

[Buzzes]

Excuse me. I was told
to— Please state your name.

Jessica Fletcher. Fletcher.

Here.

Wait here a moment.

Give me your personal effects,
then step through the metal detector.

Wait.

All right. Go on through.

Why didn't you tell me about
the new guard on the gate?

You worry too much,
Mims. I took care of her.

Yeah, I hope so.



All personnel, uh, I'm
pleased to announce...

that a registered nurse will be joining
the staff to assist in the infirmary.

[Knocking]

Come in.

Warden, Mrs. Fletcher's coming
through. There's nobody to greet her.

I'd better get down there. Where's
Dr. Matthews? She was supposed to see me.

I think she's signing
out for the night.

Have reception hold her.

This is ridiculous.

You can't hold me here.
I'm not one of the prisoners.

Sorry, Doctor. It's
the warden's orders.

Dr. Matthews. Mary.

What are you doing here?

I have escort duty
for the new teacher.

Could I talk to you for
a minute about Susie?

She's in a lot of pain.

Mary, I don't need your advice
on how to treat my patients.

You know what I want
you to do. Just do it.

You have a parole
hearing coming up soon.

[Door Buzzing]

I'm Jessica Fletcher, and I, uh— Oh, yes,
we've been expecting you, Mrs. Fletcher.

Mrs. Fletcher, I hope I didn't keep
you waiting. I'm Elizabeth Gates.

Oh, I'm delighted to
meet you, Warden.

And actually I just arrived. I
have to admit I'm a little nervous.

Oh, I remember how I felt the
first time they locked me in here.

I want to thank you for taking
over Margaret's class tonight.

How is she? Oh, she's fine.

Thank goodness there are no complications.
And she should be back quite soon.

Good. I can't tell you
how honored we are...

to have a writer of your
stature helping us out.

Oh, this is my administrative
deputy, Amanda Debs.

How do you do? I've read several of
your books. Found them very interesting.

Well, that's awfully
nice. Thank you.

If there's anything you need while
you're here, just get in touch with Amanda.

Excuse me. Hello,
my name is Dr...

This is our prison
physician, Irene Matthews.

- Oh, how do you do, Doctor?
- Nice to meet you.

Uh, Mary— This is one of
your students, Mary Stam.

Mary will show you
to the recreation room.

Mary Stam. Of course. Margaret
sent me some of your stories.

You know, you're a
very talented young lady.

Oh, thank you, ma'am.

Mary's also helping
Dr. Matthews out in the clinic...

until I can hire a
registered nurse.

Which, despite opposition,

the state board approved today.

Oh. That should take some of the
pressure off of you, Dr. Matthews.

Perhaps you too, Warden.

Suppose we talk about
it in my office... now.

Excuse me.

I'll be in my office if
you need me. Thank you.

Mrs. Fletcher.

You know, I thought your story had
a great deal of sensitivity... and skill.

Well, I worked
pretty hard on it.

I know it doesn't come easy.

You know, I used to always
dream about becoming a writer.

Well, it's never too late to
start. Look at me. I'm living proof.

You didn't have to fight
your way past a parole board.

Oh, I can't believe you're
going to have a difficult time.

- Why? What are you in for?
- I murdered my husband.

[Dr. Matthews] A t least you could
have let me pick my own nurse!

A friend on the board says
you're preparing a report on me.

Liz, I'm just trying
to do my job!

No, you're trying to
destroy me! That's crazy!

You know I have a shot at the
state senate nomination next year.

I don't know who got to you, Doctor,
but I know how to take care of you.

You're going to find
that out the hard way!

Warden, please.

Your financial reports
are a month overdue.

I want them on my
desk tomorrow morning.

Warden... Oh.

[Clears Throat] [Jessica] Now
admittedly, I am out of my bailiwick.

But I do sincerely believe
that this can be a fun...

and educational
experience for all of us.

Well, now, I'm
not at all sure...

that authors should only write
about the things that they know,

but I am certain that
they should only teach...

about the things that they know.

Now...

Don't you know who
she is? Who cares?

One of the things I'm
going to discuss tonight...

is the "perfect crime."

[Chattering]

Perfect.

[Chattering Continues]

Now, this, of course, can
fall into several categories,

some crimes being
more perfect than others.

But of course I don't
have to tell you about that.

[Chuckling]

Now, I'm not able to match...

the name with the face yet,

but is there a Miss Tug here?

[Chattering, Laughing]

Miss Tug, I thought your
story was quite delightful.

- Say what?
- Well, I particularly liked...

the way the gas station
bandit was caught.

You know, having
the getaway driver...

shift into reverse by mistake
and crash into the police car...

[Laughing] Now, that showed
a great deal of imagination.

Not exactly. That's
the way it happened.

Hey, I didn't know it had a stick
shift, or I wouldn't have stole it!

Well, I thought
it was wonderful.

Actually, I thought all of
your stories were wonderful,

particularly one by Mary Stam.

Mary?

[Whispering, Indistinct]

Mary?

How're you feeling, Susie?

Not good.

Take it easy. I'll
see what I can do.

I think you're
overreacting. The hell I am.

Oh, Irene! Come back!

This can be ironed out.

Oh...

[Woman] Dr. Matthews.
[Dr. Matthews] What is it?

Can I speak to you
a minute, please?

Thank you, Doctor.

[Typing]

Dr. Matthews?

[Alarm Blares]

What's that? Trouble.

[Woman Yelps]
Doctor, are you in there?

Doctor! Open up! [Knocking]

[Blaring Continues]

Code red. Medical West.
Connect me to the warden.

Stand back!

[Gates] Oh, my God.

She's dead.

Brady, Henderson— search
the pharmacy and these offices.

The rest of you
guards come with me.

Nobody's in there.

Get her!

[Bangs] [Mary Gasps]

[Gasping]

Mary, why?

[Blaring Continues]

Mrs. Fletcher.

What's the matter? Come with
me. We'll get your things later.

What's going on? Nothing.
Get back in the room!

Come on. What's going on?

[Shouting]

This way.

Come on, lady. What's the alarm?

[All Shouting]

[Gates] Mary Stam. We're
bringing her down now.

Girls. Girls, the doctor's
dead! They're sayin' Mary did it!

[Shouting]

Quickly.

Hey, they got Mary. Come on.

Don't move.

Drop it. Drop it quick! Get it!

Shut the gate. Reset
the key! The key!

[Shouting]

Good Lord! What's happening? This place has
been ready to blow for a long time, miss.

Sorry, Mrs. Fletcher. You're
not going anyplace just now.

[Guns Cocking]

Oh, please, before
anyone gets hurt,

put those guns down
and take me to the warden.

The warden? Sure,
we can arrange that.

Sit down.

[Tug] Okay. The guards have
got the rest of the joint sealed off,

but we've got our dorm
and this whole compound.

And we got the warden, which gives us
a pretty good handle to get what we want.

For 20 years, I've lived in
fear of something like this.

Surely this can't
last very long.

You don't know prisons very well,
Mrs. Fletcher. I've made a career of it.

Listen! We're only
asking for two things...

That the charges against Mary be dropped,
and they clean things up around here.

[Phone Ringing]

Pipe down. This is it.
[Phone Continues Ringing]

Library, Louise.

It's the lieutenant governor.

She wants to speak
to Warden Gates.

She's not doing the talkin' here anymore.
We are, and we've got some demands.

Number one, we want to
speak to the governor, not you.

[Woman] I'm not interested in your demands.
I'm giving you five minutes to surrender.

[Scoffs] The hell you are.

We got gold-plated
hostages here, lady,

and you’re gonna give us money
and a chopper to fly our way outta here.

Shut up, Kat! That's not
what we're doin' this for.

We'll get back to you.
Are you crazy, Bertha?

We can get out of here the easy
way and spring Mary the same time.

And get everybody killed doin' it!
Come on. Maybe Kat's right, Bert.

Mary's already doin' time
for murder. If they frame

her for this one, she'll
never get out of this place.

Tug, nobody is trying...

Nobody is trying to frame Mary.

Lay down your weapons. I
guarantee she'll get a fair trial.

Oh, sure. Just like
she did the first time.

Come on. Mary's only part of it. What
about the living conditions and the food?

You know I've tried to improve
things. I've only been here a few months.

Oh, save it for your campaign!

You managed to con the media, but, lady,
you don't show me nothin' but hot gas.

That's why you
grabbed Mary so fast,

so you could show the newspapers that
you just cracked the case in five minutes.

"Hey, it's not my
fault. A murderer did it."

Hey, I'm tellin ‘you.
The only way to save

Mary from another 20
to 30 is to spring her.

Bust her outta here. No!

Wait a minute. [Gasps]

What we need is— Is
someone the police will respect.

Somebody who knows
how a killer thinks,

and—and can figure out
who really killed Dr. Matthews.

You're dreamin', Louise.

We have that somebody.

Where? Right here.

[Woman] Oh, come on.
[Bertha] Listen to her, will ya?

[Chuckles] Oh, no.

Mrs. Fletcher, if you don't,
they'll do things Kathryn's way.

Please.

Will you give me your word...

that the murderer will be
turned over to the police?

No matter what, no matter who?

Yeah, sure.

Very well then.
I'll do what I can.

[Woman] Mrs. Fletcher, do you
understand the risks in this plan?

Oh, indeed I do, Mrs. Campbell, but I
think it will avoid unnecessary bloodshed.

The governor is out
of the state. I'll have to

reach him. But I'll recommend
he give you a chance.

But, ladies, this will
have to end by daybreak.

And I warn you, if any
harm comes to the hostages,

the prison will be retaken
by whatever force necessary.

I'm not an expert,

but certain things indicate
she died of respiratory failure,

probably caused by a massive
dose of morphine injected in her arm.

There is a slight sign
of a struggle, of course.

Warden, show me how
you think it happened.

I would, uh, say that, uh,

Mary used her job
in the infirmary...

to steal a key to these offices.

We found it on her.

As much as I hate to say it,

apparently she was...

sneaking drugs
out of the pharmacy.

Mary never dealt drugs.
That would explain...

her popularity with
the other prisoners.

She must have just come
through that door when

she heard Dr. Matthews
returning unexpectedly.

I wonder why the
doctor came back.

Did you hear her on
the telephone, or...

No. No. But, uh, when I
was hiding, I heard her typing.

I thought that was strange because
she never touched her typewriter.

Did you find what
she was typing?

Oh, no. She must have filed it,

which would explain
what probably happened.

Mary hid in the pharmacy
locker room and armed herself...

with the only weapon
available, the syringe.

And when Dr. Matthews
finished typing,

she went to the file.

And with the doctor's
back towards her,

Mary came out of hiding and
sprang at her with the syringe.

Irene must have
twisted for the alarm,

but she missed and
hit the riot locks instead.

Because Mary was hitting her
and hitting her again and again,

a-and when the
doctor fell stunned,

Mary drove the syringe home.

Her, uh, fingerprints...

w-will be on the
morphine vial, of course.

It isn't true, any of it!

I was hiding in the
examination room.

When the alarm went off,
I panicked. I wanted to run.

But when I looked out, I saw the
doctor in her office lying on the floor.

I wanted to see what was wrong.

- And no one else was in here?
- No.

[Jessica] And you
didn't touch anything?

I picked up the vial.

I— I thought maybe
if I knew what it was,

there might be something
I could do for her.

But then when I took her
pulse, there wasn't any.

I heard people coming.
I had to get out of here.

[Sighs] I know how this
sounds. But I didn't kill her.

We need complete tests on the
body and the morphine vial right away.

No. Once the cops get their hands on the
evidence, they could pull anything with it.

Well, at least
send out the vial.

I mean, the worst that the police
can say is that Mary's prints are on it,

which she already admits to.

She's right. Might as well.

[Sighs]

Warden Gates,
are you quite sure...

that there was no one else in
the medical suite? [Door Opening]

I told you. Brady,
the infirmary guard,

heard the fight after the riot
locks had sealed the doors.

Only the master pass
key can unlock them.

No one could have gotten out.

And Mary was the only person
we found. Believe me, we searched.

Staff came running from all directions—
Mrs. Debs, the prison cook, Miss Springer,

uh, my head guard
and—and her squad members.

If anyone had been in that
room, we would have found them.

You mentioned the prison cook.

Why would the cook come
running to the doctor's office?

Maybe she ate some
of her own cooking.

Hey, Cookie, what's
going on? [Chattering]

Ha! Caught you.
Caught her nippin'.

Girls—Girls, you're just in
time for tomorrow's lunch.

Ew. What is this mess?

Navarin printanier.

It's from the approved
meal plan. Help yourself.

Ew. No way. My daddy wouldn't
feed this to his hogs, and they love slop.

We don't have to eat this stuff. We own
the kitchen now. Let's get some real food.

Yeah, I heard that!
Girls—Girls, wait a minute.

[Woman] Open it up. [Chattering]

Mrs. Springer. Yes.

If this is navarin
printanier, I'm afraid both

the lamb and the
vegetables died of old age.

I suggest you give
it a decent burial.

This food meets every state nutritional
requirement... [Prisoners Scoffing]

in spite of the fact
that I've been denied

sufficient funds to buy
the best ingredients.

That is a lie. Your budget
is perfectly adequate.

That's more than I can say about the
meals. Have you ever tasted them, Warden?

It gives new meaning to
cruel and unusual punishment.

I'll look into it when this
is over. That is a promise.

Miss Springer, you
were in the corridor...

with the warden and the others
when the prisoners took over.

Yes, and I have never
been so frightened in my life.

How did you get
into that corridor?

Which way did you come?

Up the front stairs,
from the dining hall.

The front stairs were
cut off by the riot locks.

[Woman] Come on,
Cookie. [Chattering]

She must have come up the
back stairs from the basement.

Hey, come on.
Let's go. Check it out.

Whoo-hoo. [Chattering]

You don't have anything to
gain by concealing the truth.

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

I forget how I got to
Dr. Matthews's office. I...

Maybe it was the back stairs.

[Chattering Angrily]

Look what we found hiding in the basement
with the rats. What about this, huh?

Of course, the truck.

I saw you driving in
the gate when I arrived.

Well, when I first
heard the alarm,

I told Mrs. Mims to stay put.

And then later, I could see no reason
why she should be taken hostage.

Right.

She has you to
thank for this, honey.

Mrs. Fletcher, if Cookie
didn't kill the doc, who did?

That isn't too big a
mystery, is it, Mrs. Fletcher?

You're just afraid to say it.

Well, I know who
the murderer is,

and I'm looking right at her.

[Siren Wailing] [Woman]
Unload the truck.

[Woman #2] Set up the barricade.

Come on— Let's go!

Hang on, you guys.
Get out of there.

[Chattering]

I oughta kill you.
Kathryn, wait!

Dixie, get Brady.

Maybe I didn't go to finishing school,
lady, but I can still add two and two.

If the killer wasn't
trapped inside the offices,

then she must have gotten
out after the riot lock was thrown.

And only one lady has
the magic key to do that.

Brady, you sure you didn't
see the warden coming

out of the doctor's
offices after the hit?

No. In fact, I
couldn't find her.

I mean, I had to call
her to come with the key.

Oh, you know what we do to
liars, Brady. Where was she?

I don't know. She didn't answer.

Right after I called her,
there she was with the key.

Warden, don't you think you
should give them an explanation.

W-Well, it's very simple.

I—I—I was in my office
when the alarm sounded.

I grabbed the pass key, and I
was gone by the time Brady called.

That'll be easy enough to check.

Jamie was on mop
duty there tonight.

Why don't we just fetch her?

We'll have ourselves a little trial in
the library so everyone can watch.

[Chattering] [Woman]
Hey, over here.

[Jessica] Preparing for battle?

Do you seriously
think you can win?

If we had any brains, none of
us would be here to begin with.

Hey, Warden. Here she comes.

Okay. It's gonna
be a short trial.

Come on, Lizzy. On
your feet. Tell her.

Go on.

I heard you fighting
mean with the doc tonight.

And then you ordered
her to stay late.

Guess that's why she
came back to the infirmary.

- Did you see the warden
come out of her office?
- I sure did.

Way before all the excitement.

And she never came back.

If she had that key
of hers with her,

it's 'cause she was
already planning on using it.

You're really somethin',
Warden. You kill the

doc, and then you try
and lay it off on Mary.

No, I— Ladies?

Guilty. What else? Yeah, guilty!

No, no. No, Kathryn. You
still have not made your case.

You say, lady. I say different.

[Woman]So do I. Mrs. Gates, tell
them why you were upset with the doctor.

- Amanda, it wouldn't help.
- Mrs. Gates has tried
to improve conditions here.

[All Scoffing]
But it is very hard.

She even started to
have fainting spells.

- Well, because of the strain.
- It's probably from the food.

And Dr. Matthews
knew about the spells?

Oh, yes. Was going to
file a report with the board.

Mrs. Gates found
out about it today.

But that is certainly no
reason to kill anybody.

[Chuckles] I have worse reports
from my doctor all the time.

But you ain't runnin' for
state senator, are ya, Debs?

Who'd vote for a lady who had fainting
spells on the job? Nobody. Right, Lizzy?

So you ordered the doctor
to stick around until the

building was empty, and
then you killed her, didn't you?

What are we gonna
do about her? Yeah, get

her. You know they'll
never convict a warden.

I say we use her as a shield
and blast our way out of here!

[All Shouting]
No, No. Kathryn...

[Shouting Continues]

Kathryn, you made
a deal with me.

- I don't remember any deal.
- Well, I do.

Kat, listen, you said you’re
doing this for me. Then do it.

I'm with her. What's
it gonna be, Kat?

[Phone Ringing]

Library, Louise.

Mrs. Fletcher, it's the lieutenant
governor for you. She has some news.

[Kathryn] Hold it!

Dixie, take the warden and Debs outta
here, back to the hostages. You too, Mary.

Why? I have a
right to hear this.

[Kathryn] I want her out of
here. You heard her. Move it.

[Jamie] Come on, Debs, move it.

[Chattering] All right.

[Chattering Continues]

Uh, Mrs. Campbell,
this is Jessica Fletcher.

I understand you have
some information for us.

First of all, the morphine
in that vial was diluted.

Second, I must warn you, all
of you, that you are in danger.

We found two fresh sets of prints on
the vial, and neither were the doctor's.

Whose were they? One set belongs
to Mary. We cannot identify the other.

But one thing is certain, they don't belong
to any of the prisoners or the staff.

We checked. It looks like there may
be an outside killer loose among you.

Why would a pro
break in to nail the doc?

That's enough. Hang
up. I'll get back to you.

I want a cell-to-cell search. If there's a
stranger in here, I want to know about it.

Where would a stranger
hide in this place?

W-Where are you going?

We must get to that
grocery dealer right away.

Louise, you stay by the phone. The
lieutenant governor may call back.

Where are the other
hostages? In the rec room. Why?

What? [Woman Screams]

You stay here. Who screamed?

Come on.

[Jessica] Good Lord.

Mrs. Mims.

I-It happened when
the lights went out.

- Mary, what happened?
- I don't know.

Some of the prisoners are
such hotheads that I was worried

about the hostages, so I
was staying close to them.

Then, like the warden said, the
lights went out and I heard a scream.

Were you really
worried about us, Mary,

or did you just mistake
Mrs. Mims for me in the dark?

Mary.

The cops are playing
games with us.

Where'd you get
the knife, Warden?

Kat— Kat, somebody threw the
master switch in the basement.

Mims.

Mrs. Fletcher,

how did you know that something
was going to happen to the grocery lady?

Call it a hunch. Yeah?

You got any more of those
hunches? Keep an eye on the warden.

The warden.

Mary— Mary, a lot of people are going
to die unless I get the truth from you now.

I told you the truth.

Maybe about the doctor's murder,
but not about why you were in the office.

And where did you get the
key? What does that matter now?

Well, because time
is running out, and I

need answers. Now,
where did you get the key?

From Dr. Matthews.

She forced me to
type her reports.

She knew I wouldn't
understand anything in them.

And she was right. I hated it.

Well, then why did you do it?

Oh, Mary, tell her. Who
cares if they prosecute us now?

She did it for us.

So you could have
access to medication?

Shh, shh, shh, shh.

[Sighs] Dr. Matthews never believed
the girls when they said they were in pain.

Or maybe she just didn't care.

So you slipped up here
at night to help them.

When I could.

[Sighs] And covered up by
diluting the drugs that you used?

No. I didn't dilute anything.
I wouldn't know how.

That's the truth, Mrs. Fletcher.

But the truth is
hardly a defense.

I found that out the hard
way. By your husband?

[Sighs] He beat me so bad I
was hospitalized three times.

But there wasn't enough
evidence for anybody

to stop him from
doing it to me again.

I finally made up
my mind to leave him,

when a friend called me to warn me that
he was coming home mean, nasty drunk.

I called the police.

And then I went and I hid in the
bedroom with my husband's .22 rifle.

My husband got there first.

Surely a plea of self-defense.

I was armed. He wasn't.

- [Door Opens]
- Mrs. Fletcher, come quick.

Kathryn says she's got everything figured
out, and I don't like the way she says it.

One of us is a snitch,
working for Warden Gates.

She's trying to save Gates's
neck so Gates will save hers.

Are you sure about
that, Kat? Somebody had

to cut the power so
Gates could knife Mims.

Kathryn, what makes you think
that Warden Gates killed her?

Look, lady, it is still
the only way it adds up.

The prints show an
outsider killed the doc.

The warden must've
hired Mims to make the hit,

and then gave her the
pass keys to get away.

Only instead, she
got trapped by us,

so Gates killed Mims
to keep her from talking.

Yeah. [Prisoners Affirming]

- Mims was the only outsider in here.
- You know what this means?

If the warden hangs this killing on
us during a riot, it won't be just Mary.

We'll all be convicted of
murder. [Prisoners Shouting]

Who's gonna believe us?
We gotta shoot our way out!

- That's right.
- Get Warden Gates!

If she got us into this,
she's goin' out first.

Listen to me. Nah,
shut up, teacher!

- Please, listen.
- Or what?

Or maybe you'd like to lead this
parade outta here. Yeah, we sick of you.

Yeah! Right. Stop
it! Will you stop it?

Stop it! Will you just listen to her?
Look. Now, maybe Kathryn is right. Maybe.

But if you try to shoot
your way out of here,

you are all going to
be guilty of murder.

Now, not one of you
has a chance of escaping.

Will you please give
me a little bit more time?

Better make it fast,
Mrs. Fletcher. I don't

think we can keep
Kathryn out of here for long.

I—I've been trying to protect you,
and maybe that was a mistake...

It stopped me from asking
you some hard questions.

If you didn't kill Dr. Matthews,
what were you doing with that key?

It wouldn't help,
even if I could tell you.

Well, maybe I could tell you.

If you're innocent, you were
probably carrying that key...

so that you could meet
with someone secretly.

And since you could have
met any member of your staff...

anywhere at any time, it
had to have been a prisoner.

And since that
meeting was secret,

that tells me that you
didn't trust your staff.

I can see how you
earned your reputation.

Warden— Elizabeth,
what was going on here?

Why would women like Bertha
and Louise feel compelled to riot?

I don't know.

In the five months since
I've been warden here,

I've spent most of my time at the
state capitol lobbying for more funds.

And, yes, I have been chasing
my senatorial nomination.

But I have made
big reforms here.

The prisoners
don't seem to care.

At first I thought it was
my staff undercutting me,

so I had Amanda run an
audit on all the departments.

That wasn't the problem.

So you were trying to talk to a prisoner
secretly when the alarm went off?

Possibly to someone
in the infirmary?

Susan, for instance?

Please.

If Kathryn and her friends
had the faintest idea...

Susan was willing to talk
to me, they would kill her.

Jessica,

this thing is probably
going to blow all to hell.

But if you don't try to defend
me, maybe you'll survive.

[Door Opens, Closes]

[Chattering]

Mrs. Fletcher. Oh, Mrs. Fletcher.
It's—It's—It's Kat. She's out of control.

Well, never mind Kat. I
want to talk to the lieutenant

governor right away.
But I must have privacy.

[Campbell] I'm sorry.
It's out of my hands.

I've just heard from the governor,
and we're sending in the National Guard.

I hear Kathryn's voice.

Just tell me, have you
matched the prints...

on the morphine
vial with Mrs. Mims's?

How could we? Her prints
aren't in the state's files,

and the prisoners wouldn't let
us in to lift them from the body.

Mrs. Campbell, you have
to hold off the National

Guard. I think I know
who the murderer is.

- She's in the hallway.
- Mary, Louise, I need your help.

- Do you know where
Dr. Matthews's body is?
- We put her in the infirmary.

I've had it with this,
Bertha. I'm not gonna

take the rap—I don't
care! [Chattering]

- Listen to me!
- Mrs. Campbell,
I need just 10 more minutes!

Time for talking is past,
teacher. We're bustin' out of here.

And you and the warden
are gonna be our shields.

- Get moving.
- Kat.

- No.
- I said get moving.

Frankly, dear, I don't
care what you say.

Is this what you've
risked everything for?

So that Kathryn can
lead you to a slaughter?

They're going to hang
the murders on us.

No, they're not, because I
know who committed them.

Mrs. Debs, would you pull the folder
for Dr. Matthews out of the file, please?

It's another stall. She's
been stalling us all night.

Yeah, yeah. [Tug]
No, wait, wait.

Can you really prove
it, Mrs. Fletcher?

Yes. Yes, I can. But I
need her fingerprint records.

The police didn't match the fingerprints
on the morphine vial with Dr. Matthews.

They couldn't, because you
wouldn't give them the body.

So they matched them
with the state's records,

which are the same
as these records here.

Isn't that right,
Mrs. Debs? Yes.

But somebody has taken her file.

Here they are. Oh,
for heaven sakes.

I'm so rattled, I don't
know what I'm doing.

Mrs. Fletcher. Mrs. Fletcher.

We got them. And I hope I
don't have to do that again.

Thank you. I asked
Mary and Louise...

to get these fingerprints
straight from the doctor's body.

- Hey, those aren't the same.
- No, you're right, Tug.

The prints in the
folder are frauds.

The police did get the fingerprints
of Dr. Matthews on the morphine vial,

but they were different
from the ones in the file,

and they couldn't identify them.

That's when they thought
of the outside person theory.

Ah, that's beautiful.

You see what she's just done?

She's just pinned
the murder on Mary.

Mrs. Fletcher?

No, Mary. These prints
prove that you're innocent.

Let's go to the clinic.

[Chattering] But the fact is, Mary
can't be the murderer because no one is.

[Prisoners Muttering] Yeah,
Dr. Matthews committed suicide.

Now, sometimes a killer
goes to a great deal of

trouble to make a
murder look like a suicide.

I thought something was strange
when we first examined the scene.

Finding the sterile swab, it
made me wonder if the injection...

might have been taken with care,
rather than in the heat of battle.

But I let the
fingerprints mislead me.

After all, the swab might have
been discarded earlier in the day.

- But what about the typing?
- A suicide note possibly.

She was probably finishing it...

when Officer Brady heard the
typing, hurried up the hall to investigate.

It was a terrible
moment for the doctor.

Having made up her mind, she
was determined not to be stopped.

And the only way she could shut
out Brady was to throw the riot lock.

What Brady thought was
the sound of a brief struggle...

was the shock of a
massive injection taking hold.

But I never would have arrested
Mary if we'd found a suicide note.

Oh, of course not.

Mary didn't see it either. She
rushed straight to Dr. Matthews,

no doubt to try to help her,
but it was already too late.

When Mary heard you
coming, she panicked.

The suicide note was
probably in plain sight.

But while you were intent on
capturing the doctor's murderer,

which meant searching
the offices, in the excitement,

no one noticed the suicide
note in the typewriter.

Well, almost no one.

You haven't proved a
thing. Yeah. Who'd be crazy

enough to make a
suicide look like a murder?

Right! [Chattering]

Someone who needed to escape, and
would have, if the riot hadn't trapped her.

Escape from what? Why?

The doctor's suicide letter might
have confessed to staff improprieties,

embezzling of funds
and supplies, which would

explain the diluted
medicine in the pharmacy.

That's why the patients were
always in pain. [Woman] That's right.

Yes. I'm afraid the doctor
was selling off her drug supply,

just as you were selling off
the kitchen supplies to Mims.

[Woman] Oh, come
on. [Chattering]

From the library window
I could see prisoners

pulling boxes out of a
truck to build a barricade,

a truck I saw arrive
here empty this evening.

If you think I'm gonna
say anything, you're crazy.

Come on. Anything this big,
the top brass must have run it!

[Prisoners] Yeah.
Right. The warden.

[All Shouting]

[Shouting Continues]
Ladies! Ladies, please!

Listen up! Listen to
Debs! She's makin' sense.

Ladies, please. You've
already won your victory.

Nobody has to get hurt.

With crimes like these
laid at the warden's door,

there will be no retaliations.

I promise all of
you. Right. Listen,

you guys stay
here till we get back.

Debs will tell the cops that, uh,
Mrs. Fletcher's got it all worked out.

- Yeah, that's the smart thing to do.
- No, I'm afraid that's not
the smart thing to do.

If you let them leave,

these two may convince the
police to shoot their way in here.

- [Kathryn] You're cracked.
- Look, you're right about one thing.

Corruption on this scale could only
have been organized by the top brass.

The doctor was hired years ago,
long before Mrs. Gates became warden.

No, the problem was that Warden
Gates's reforms might have worked.

Hiring a registered nurse was the first
threat. That's what panicked Dr. Matthews.

But wait. If it wasn't
the warden, then who?

Yeah. [Woman] Yeah, who?

Why are you all looking at me?

Mrs. Debs, you've been
deputy warden for 20 years.

While Mrs. Gates was
pursuing funding for her reforms...

and a nomination to the senate,

you ran the prison, Mrs. Debs.

According to Dr. Matthews's file,
you even certified her fingerprints.

I would never have time to
certify every fingerprint card.

Now, who could?

Look. Look. Th-This is
just crazy speculation.

We're going out
to call off the police!

Miss Springer, I think you'll find that
they are planning to leave without you.

Oh, is that it, Amanda?
You're going to try and

have us all killed so there
won't be any witnesses?

- Keep your mouth shut.
- She's been looting the prison for years,

ever since they passed her
up for promotion to warden.

Yeah, it's like Mrs. Fletcher
said, except for one thing.

I'm sure you did
kill Dr. Matthews.

Springer, you're wrong.

You see,

I still have Matthews's
suicide note.

[Murmuring]

She was a coward.

We could have
handled that nurse.

Instead of having some guts,

she tore away from me and
came down here and killed herself.

Oh, no, you may
convict me of fraud,

but never murder.

All the suffering you caused us.

You ain't gonna fall
just on no fraud rap.

No, Dixie. The charge
will still be murder!

You're forgetting Mims,
the grocer, who didn't

leave a suicide note.
She was the real danger.

So Mrs. Debs had her own
accomplice cut the power,

and then she knifed
Mims in the dark.

Kat,

you wanted to take
her out to the cops.

No.

Dixie, sh-she made me do it.

That's why you were so
hot to shoot your way out.

'Cause pinned to Debs, you wouldn't
stay alive in any prison in the country.

- [Bertha Shouts]
- [Gunshot]

[Prisoners Shouting]

[Gates] I can't thank
you enough, Jessica.

Well, don't thank me. I
wasn't given much choice.

But I hope you won't hold it
against Bertha and Louise.

They just wanted
justice for their friend.

And in the end, they
risked their lives for you.

I know they did. I promise you
there won't be any recriminations.

And no more politicking. I
meant what I said about reform.

And what about Mary? She had a
parole hearing coming up. She still does.

Well, perhaps I should warn you,

I intend to do everything in
my power to help at that hearing.

Don't worry, Jessica. So do I.