Professor T (2021–…): Season 2, Episode 5 - The Trial - full transcript

Adelaide?

Not now, Wilfred.
Can't you see I'm on the warpath?

Lisa!
Not now, Dan.

Morning (!)

Ma'am, I... Oh, erm...

I should've... knocked.

Don't mind me,
I'm, er, just on my way.

So, er, what is it that's so important

that made you feel compelled
to barge in here without knocking?

I wanted to let you know I am
interested in that promotion, Ma'am.

I figured if I didn't tell you
straightaway, then...



I didn't want you to be in any doubt.

Are you sure about that?

I know you've got a lot going on at home.

Now, I want you to go into this
with your eyes wide open, Lisa.

It'll mean a lot more hours,
a lot more responsibility.

I know, Ma'am. And there will be
other opportunities.

You know, no-one will
think the less of you.

I will.

The proudest day of my life.

I'd never forgive myself if I let go
of this opportunity, Ma'am.

Glad to hear it.

You know, I think you have
real leadership potential, Lisa.

So, all I need now

is for you to give me your
written expression of your interest.



Of course.

Thank you, Ma'am.
Mm-hm.

Can I mention it to DS Winters?

Let's leave that for now...
until we know it's confirmed.

I wish to know the meaning of this.

It is a letter from my therapist

inviting you to take part
in a joint session with me.

Don't be so literal, Jasper.
I can read as well as you can.

I demand to know why it has been sent.

Dr. Helena believes
that you can help me excavate

the root of my hostility towards women.

Your hostility towards me,
I think you mean.

Am I to conclude that you
are refusing to take part, Mother?

And give you another reason
to resent me? Heavens, no.

Ah, yes, a homework assignment.

Dr. Helena has suggested
that we come prepared with a list

of one another's personality traits.

Both positive...

...and negative.

Dear boy, if you're gonna go
mano a mano with me,

you'll need to come
better prepared than that.

Your full attention, please,
ladies and gentlemen,

with immediate effect.

At the risk of exposing
your ignorance of current affairs,

can anyone apprise us
of the significance of today's date?

It's my birthday.

Then you have the honour of sharing it

with the Emperor Ming of the Han Dynasty,

the sadly underrated
Italian balladeer Sergio Endrigo

and the eminent criminologist
Robert D Keppel,

who helped identify the American
serial killer Ted Bundy.

And that is not the
observation I was hoping for.

Had you bothered to read
the Crown Court listings

as instructed, you would be aware

that the trial of Sean
Hallett begins today...

...not half a mile
from where I am standing.

On the March 9th last year,

officers were dispatched to the property

when a silent intruder alarm was
triggered at 18 minutes past nine.

Arriving at 9.34pm, they
encountered a vehicle on the drive,

later confirmed to belong to the defendant.

When the officers entered the building,

they came across the
victim's body, Vincent Soames.

He had suffered a single
gunshot wound to the chest

and was pronounced dead at the scene.

The defendant, Sean Hallett,

was found standing
next to the victim's body.

He was arrested and taken into custody.

A hunting rifle was found
in the immediate vicinity.

Ladies and gentlemen of the jury,

you will hear expert
witnesses give evidence

that Vincent Soames was killed
with the rifle found at the scene.

You'll be presented with forensics

linking the defendant to the murder weapon.

And you will also hear evidence from
a close associate of Sean Hallett's

that the weapon used to kill
Vincent Soames belonged to him.

You'll be asked to consider
a list of more than 50 items

recovered from Sean Hallett's
cottage in the wake of the murder.

It is the prosecution's contention
that these were stolen

from the Soames during
his nine years of employment

as groundsman and
odd-jobs man for their estate.

And lastly, you'll hear
from the victim's wife Hester

that her husband meant
to confront Sean Hallett

about her missing diamond engagement ring

on the very night he was murdered.

Sounds like it'll be over before lunch.

A facetious observation, but
an understandable one nevertheless.

The Crown Prosecution Service
would not have opted

to initiate proceedings against Mr. Hallett

had they not been convinced
that the investigating officers

had put forward a case backed
by compelling evidence of his guilt.

But, as regular attendees of my lectures

will have understood by now,

evidence alone is not always sufficient

to determine the outcome
of an investigation.

It can be ambiguous,
circumstantial, contradictory.

Undue focus on one piece of evidence

can cause the investigating authorities

to overlook others that might lead
to a different view of the case.

I bring this trial to your attention

as a case study in the pitfalls
of a criminal investigation

that fails to marry evidence gathering

with psychological insight.

Indeed, the interpretation of evidence

without psychological understanding

is like the appreciation of music
without Johann Sebastian Bach.

Yes.

Why are we using this as a case study

if we don't know the outcome of the trial?

Because this murder predates my
consultancy with Cambridge Police,

and I wish it to be known
that I had nothing to do

with constructing the
case against Sean Hallett,

particularly when he is acquitted
of the murder of Vincent Soames,

as I believe he invariably will be.

Won't that be embarrassing, Professor?

For the police officers involved?

I cannot say.

That is not an emotional state
with which I'm familiar.

And as I was saying,

it is very important that all
the facts about the firearm

are laid out in detail for the jury.

What were you so desperate to speak
to the boss about this morning?

Nothing important.
...but also who used it.

Could've fooled me.

In layman's terms,
Detective Inspector Rabbit,

the defendant fingerprints were
found all over the murder weapon.

That's correct. Fingerprints were
found on the stock and the barrel.

The examination report also indicated

an attempt to wipe the weapon
clean before we recovered it.

Thank you. No more questions.

Lock, stock and barrel,
Detective Inspector.

Perhaps you could explain
the different parts of the weapon

for the benefit of the jury.

The stock sits against
the shoulder when firing.

The barrel acts as a...

That's self-explanatory.
But the lock?

It's an archaic term that basically
means the firing mechanism.

Including the trigger.
That's correct.

So, fingerprints
on the stock and the barrel,

but no mention of the lock,
Detective Inspector.

Does that mean that none
of the defendant's fingerprints

were found on or around the trigger?

That's correct.

As I said, the forensics found

were consistent with an attempt
to wipe the weapon clean.

Or maybe a better explanation
is that Sean Hallett never fired it.

One more thing, Detective Inspector.

Was any gunpowder residue found
on the defendant's hands or clothes?

The presence of gunpowder residue
is no longer considered to be...

A simple yes or no will suffice.

No.

No more questions, Your Honour.

Maybe he washed his hands
before the police arrived.

A half-witted suggestion.

If he had time to wash his hands,

he surely also had time
to escape the scene.

Will that be Hallett's defence? That
they can't prove he fired the gun?

We will have to wait and see,
but in his statement to police,

he was adamant that Mr. Soames' fatal injury

was sustained BEFORE he arrived.

What was even doing there
at ten o'clock at night?

Mr. Hallett claims he was summoned
by an urgent call from his employer.

Is there any way of verifying that?

His wife Anya cooks and
cleans for the Soames.

She has confirmed that she was
watching television with her husband

when the call was placed.

What about telephone records?

They confirm a call was made
from a landline owned by the Soames

to a mobile number registered
to Sean Hallett at 9.24pm.

That is six minutes after
the silent alarm was triggered.

Has Hallett said why Soames called?

He thought he'd heard noises in the cellar,

but the light bulb was gone.

He wanted me to change it
and maybe check things out.

Did Mr. Soames often ask you to do
things outside normal working hours?

There was no such thing as normal
working hours with the Soames.

They'd call at all hours, especially him.

Expect me and Annie to drop everything.

We didn't think we could say no.

It was made pretty clear
what the consequences would be.

How long did it take you
to drive to the main house

after receiving the call?

A few minutes.

Our cottage is by the east gate,
about half a mile as the crow flies.

Did you have keys to the main house?
No.

Just the sheds and outhouses, but...

the kitchen door was
open, so I went in, and...

...and there he was.

Is there any chance it was a burglary?

There were no signs of
a break-in, no tyre tracks,

foot marks or unexpected fingerprints,

and nothing reported missing by
the Soames family in the aftermath.

Except for the aforementioned diamond ring.

Is his IQ below average, Professor?

No more so than many here today.

It just seems pretty
dumb to commit a murder

when you know a panic alarm
has been triggered.

'He wasn't aware it had been installed.'

So Soames did it without telling him.

After the ring went missing,
about ten days before the murder.

I should go back.

Support Rabbit.

Are you all right, Lis?

You seem a bit on edge. Out of sorts.

Have you been reading Cosmopolitan?

"17 signs you're dating
an emotionally intelligent person."

Ah, we're dating now, are we?

Nah, I thought you might be worried.

Worried?
About the professor.

No.

Brand vetoed his involvement
in any investigation

that predates his consultancy.

He's only seen a summary.

Still, it's not often we find
ourselves on opposing sides.

It's not our investigation, Dan.

We weren't involved in investigating it.

Who says we're on opposing sides?

Oi. Your bag.
Ooh!

What's this?
That's a surprise. For tonight.

Tonight? Oh, can we say tomorrow?

I've got a pile of paperwork. Yeah.

Yeah, me too. I'll see you later.

Hm. Simon?

Shh. Go back to sleep.

Hm.

What time is it?
Oh, it's still early.

It's just before six. Oh.

You're in early, Winters.
You too, boss.

Hoping to catch the worm?
No.

A word of advice, maybe. Oh.

Come on in.

How can I help?

Erm... Yeah, I was hoping
you might be able to tell me

what I needed to do to be considered for,

erm, a-a promotion?

Well, you need to, er...

need to be talking to DI Rabbit
about that in the first place.

I already have done, Ma'am.

Erm... I don't think he took me seriously.

Oh, I'm sorry to hear that.
That's not good.

You know, erm, passing
your inspectors' exam

is just the start of it.

You know that, don't you?
I'm aware.

There are a very small amount of vacancies

and a large number of potential candidates.

It's very competitive.

I guess what I'm asking is
if you'll support my candidacy,

er, should an appropriate vacancy arise?

I'd be delighted to...

...in due course.

There are a number of...
people ahead of you in the queue.

Lisa, you mean?

I'm not at liberty
to discuss that with you.

OK. Thank you, Ma'am.

Winters? You're a good cop.

You're a very good cop.

You just need a bit more
experience, that's all,

just a few standout cases

to get you noticed
further up the food chain.

Thank you, Ma'am.

Go catch those worms. Yeah.

Day two, ladies and gentlemen, of
Regina versus Sean Arthur Hallett.

And the victim's wife Hester
will take the stand.

Mrs. Soames was not present in the house

on the night her husband was murdered.

Her inclusion as a
witness for the prosecution

is intended to establish a motive
for murder in the minds of the jury.

She will tell the court

that her diamond
engagement ring went missing

on a day, no less, when
Mr. Hallett was in the main house,

polishing the parquet floors.

She will also testify that she
discussed with Mr. Soames,

on the very day he was murdered,

his intention to confront his handyman

about the ring's disappearance.

However, in my not-so-humble opinion,

Mrs. Soames' testimony will raise
as many questions as it answers.

Would you call Sean
Hallett reliable, Mrs. Soames?

It depends on what you mean by "reliable".

Did he have regular
days off sick, for example?

Where's this going, Miss Finch?

Your Honour, I am seeking to establish

that my client was a model employee.

So much so that in nine years of service,

the only time off he took was
a single day of compassionate leave.

Very well.

Do you recall why compassionate
leave was granted, Mrs. Soames?

His wife, Anya...

...she was hospitalised.

And can you say why?

Your Honour, I have
Mrs. Hallett's permission

to tell the court that 18 months ago,

she suffered a stillbirth.

How would you characterise
the defendant's relationship

with your husband, Mrs. Soames?

I'm not sure I could.

Well, was it better than your own
relationship with him, for example?

Your Honour, I would like
to show the court Exhibit 6C.

For the record, the witness has been
given a copy of a police report

that details a complaint of common assault

filed by a Mrs. H Soames against
a Mr. V Soames in March last year.

You phoned the police to
complain about your husband

on three other occasions,
didn't you, Mrs. Soames?

We were happily married for 14 years.

Did your son Anthony know that
his stepfather was a violent bully?

Miss Finch.

Where were you on the night

that your husband was
murdered, Mrs. Soames?

In Corby with my mother.
Her home help had the night off.

Your mother has Alzheimer's, I believe.

That's correct.

Which conveniently renders her
unable to support your alibi.

If Vincent was beating his wife,

then maybe she has a motive for murder?

And the son, too.

At this stage, and from this distance,

we have no way of knowing

whether Mrs. Soames
and Mr. Hazeldean are lying

or whether, like all of you,

they have simply reached an
opinion about Mr. Hallett's guilt,

or otherwise, and have
interpreted the facts of the case

with a degree of unconscious partiality

to support their instinctive prejudice.

What I can tell you with absolute certainty

is that opinions are the enemy of justice

and the curse of the modern world.

Professor?

Ah, my spy in the camp.

If Rabbit knew I was talking to
you, he'd have a conniption fit.

Can I help you with
something, Detective Sergeant?

I don't know, can you?

You could have easily sent this list
of stolen goods to me by email.

I surmise therefore that you have
something to say to me in person.

You wish to apologise...

...for not supporting more wholeheartedly

my efforts to persuade
DI Rabbit that Sean Hallett

is not the personality type
to murder over a material object.

I was going to tell you
I've been offered a promotion.

Hm. And yet, from your demeanour,

it does not appear to be
a source of unalloyed celebration.

Don't get me wrong, I want the job.
I just feel bad for Dan.

Hm. I have this idea
of how to make it up to him.

I just... I don't know
how he's gonna react.

I require a taxi cab, Miss Snares,

with immediate effect, to Swaffham Priory.

Unless you care to give
me a lift, DS Donckers?

My treachery has its limits.

But mine certainly doesn't.

I've been known to borrow the
Dean's car when he's not looking.

Erm... If he leaves the keys
in the glove compartment,

what does he expect?

That really won't be
necessary, Miss Snares.

You're doing me a favour.

Ten more minutes in this fusty backwater

and I'll die of boredom.

Or commit murder.

Come on!

So, what exactly is so urgent?

You will see.

And where exactly are we going?

You will see.

Are you sure you know what you're doing?

You'll see.

It might be better if you
wait here, Miss Snares.

Don't be ridiculous.

The detectives on TV shows,
they always work in pairs.

I'll be bad cop.

Good afternoon, Mrs. Hallett.
My name is Professor Jasper Tempest.

I am a consultant with Cambridge Police.

I wish to speak to you about your husband

and his potential conviction
for a murder he did not commit.

I've given a statement to the police.

May we come in?

The police have been so fixated
with the one item of real worth

that has not been recovered, Mrs. Hallett,

that they have failed to interrogate

the 50 or so essentially
worthless items that have.

And I quote, a pair of soup spoons,

a blown glass figurine,

a corkscrew with the
head of a mallard duck.

This is not the work
of a professional thief.

More likely the trivial
pickings of a kleptomaniac.

Kleptomania is associated
with depression, Mrs. Hallett.

The sort of depression
that might be triggered

by the hormonal changes
that take place during pregnancy

and which would only be exacerbated

by the tragic loss of a longed-for child.

I can only speculate that your
husband failed to tell the police

how these items came
to be in his possession

in a misguided attempt
to conceal something worse.

Much worse.

I want you to leave now.

Yes, of course.

Well, that wasn't especially illuminating.

On the contrary. The case is solved.

I hate that.
You hate what, Miss Snares?

That bit in every detective
show where the sleuth

says they got everything
they need to solve the crime

and you, the viewer,
are still utterly clueless.

Smug, I call it.

And I call it purely a matter
of gathering the necessary proof.

DS Donckers?

Most productive, thank you.

I wonder if I might
inveigle you to provide me

with a copy of the full case file

and the recordings of Sean Hallett's
interviews with DI Rabbit?

Oh, yes, and a mobile telephone
number for his legal representative.

Drive on.

♪ Il primo amore sara per sempre

♪ Il piu bello

♪ Il primo amore sara per sempre

♪ Il piu forte

♪ All'orrizonte
Quando il cielo si oscura

♪ Non ce ne accorgiamo

♪ Il primo amore si vive... ♪

Lisa?

♪ Solo una volta

♪ Il primo sguardo rimane

♪ Dentro ai miei sogni... ♪

Lisa?

♪ Il primo sguardo rimane

♪ Dentro al mio cuore

♪ Nei nostri occhi

♪ Tante tante promesse

♪ Che un battito di ciglia

♪ Puo dare abbastanza amore

♪ Per l'eternita

♪ Il primo bacio

♪ Sara per sempre il piu dolce

♪ Il primo bacio

♪ Sara per sempre il piu vero

♪ Quando dobbiamo lasciarci

♪ Quando dobbiamo dirci "ciao"

♪ "A domani"

♪ Suona come un addio

♪ Il primo amore si vive... ♪

Lisa?

Lisa, are you in here?

What's... What's going on?

Macaroons first and then the jelly beans.

I'm not hungry.
Oh, come on.

No, Lisa. I told you.
I'm... I'm not hungry.

When were you gonna tell me?

Tell you what?

About this.

Ah...

I wanted to, Dan. I was going to.

DCI Brand, she told me not to.

I feel like such a mug.

God, all that bollocks
about giving us the best chance

and putting in for a transfer,
you meant me, didn't you? Not you?

You said it yourself. You were
looking for a different job.

No, I said a second job.
Not a different one.

My old man's lost a bundle
on some property investment,

and he's lost his savings,

so I've been working my days off
to support him. Working days off?

Yeah. Like driving,
baby-sitting business people,

you know, that sort of thing.

Private security work.

Dan, we are not allowed
to do private security work.

Says who?
Says the regulations.

You know them so better than me?

It's basic. Everybody knows that.

Oh, Lisa, stop lecturing me.
You should know that!

You do this all the time.
Oh, that is so unfair.

Oh, I got it. I'm too stupid
for a promotion, aren't I?

And I'm too stupid for you.
Dan, I never said that.

Dan!

Your Honour, I asked the court's permission

to make a last-minute
addition to the witness list.

Why should I allow this, Miss Finch?

I believe this witness can offer
important insight for the jury

into my client's state
of mind, Your Honour...

now that he's decided not to take
the stand in his own defence.

Professor, if I c...

Professor, if I could ask you

to tell the court a little about yourself.

I hold a chair at the
Institute of Criminology

and also act as a consultant
for Cambridge Police.

Although you have had no
involvement in investigating this case,

is that correct?

That is correct.

I have, however, more
than 25 years' experience

of applying Eysenck's PEN model
to diagnose criminal personality

using three broad behavioural traits:

psychosis, extroversion, neurosis.

Hence the acronym... PEN.

Having studied the case file,

and having played back
a number of interviews

the defendant was subjected
to following his arrest,

I am convinced Mr. Hallett
is a stable introvert.

In layman's terms, not the sort to anger

or resort to violence,
however badly provoked.

What's your point, Professor?

Professor?

My point is that Mr. Hallett
would never kill his employer.

Unlike his wife.

Your Honour, I demand to speak.

Sit down, Mr. Hallett. You have
waived the right to give evidence.

I'm changing my plea... to guilty.

I killed Vincent Soames.
Mr. Hallett, be quiet.

I regret to say that Mr. Hallett is lying.

What is more, I can prove it.

Ladies and gentlemen of the jury,

I know this may seem
a little out of the ordinary,

but I am persuaded that this will
help our understanding of the case.

Mr. Hallett, I want you to re-enact
the events of the night in question

as faithfully as you can remember.

Your Honour, it was dark when
I arrived and got out of the car.

Please. A faithful re-enactment.

Leave the seat.

Mrs. Hallett.

I could throw the book at you, you know?

You're not supposed to speak
to witnesses without our say-so.

He prevented a miscarriage of justice.

Whose side are you on?

We are on the same side.

Then why doesn't it feel like it?

You are enthralled with the
process of evidence gathering,

Detective Inspector, but evidence
without criminological insight

is as much use as criminological
insight without evidence.

We need each other...

...Paul.

It was Mrs. Hallett, not her husband,
who drove the car to the main house.

It was Mrs. Hallett who, in
the grip of postpartum depression,

shot Vincent Soames
using her husband's rifle.

And it was Mrs. Hallett
who phoned her husband

to tell him what she had done and why.

He was trying to cover her
tracks when the police arrived.

'Mr. Soames...'

He caught me... stealing
salt and pepper pots.

He said we'd lose our jobs, the cottage...

...everything.

After everything we'd done for them.

The late nights, the weekends...

...being at their beck and call 24/7.

They gave me one day.

One day to bury my child.

Are you out of your mind?
Put that gun down! No! No!

I wanted to confess straight away.

Anya... Anya.

It's not your fault.
It is NOT your fault.

I'm sorry, I'm so sorry.

'But Sean persuaded me not to.'

Run, run. Run!

'He was convinced there wouldn't be
enough evidence to convict him.

'I'm glad the truth has come out.'

I never should have let him
face trial for my moment of madness.

She is never late without reason.

I'm so sorry I'm late. Please forgive me.

Take your time, Mrs. Tempest. Please.

Erm...

Time to start digging, then?

For where the bodies are buried.

There he is.
Oh, hello, mate.

Good to see you. You're looking very well.

Thank you. You, too, sir. You, too.
Can I get you a drink? Yeah.

It's all right, I'll get these.

Simon? You all right?
You well?

Yeah, Dan. How are you?
Yeah, good.

I didn't know you two knew each other.

Me and Simon go way back, don't we, mate?

Oh, yeah, we go way back.

Go on, what are you getting us?
I think Champagne, don't you?

What else? What else?

Well, thanks for having me out, lads.

Well, shall I make a start?

What you've shared with me
over our sessions to date, Jasper,

is that your father
was a violent alcoholic.

And you've disclosed
that he took his own life...

...rather than face up
to his responsibilities as a father.

And, indeed, as a husband.

And you've also revealed,
and possibly for the first time,

that you suffered a trauma
in the wake of his suicide...

...which cast a dark shadow over
your subsequent lived experience...

...and which you now believe
is of vital importance

to share... with your mother.

That day...

...Miss Lowden was unwell,

I came home from my piano lesson early.

I-I-I saw him, Mother... hanging there.

I hid in the coal cellar...
reappeared at the appropriate time.

Pretended... that I had seen nothing.

Oh... Oh, my poor boy.

You never said a word?

You didn't tell a soul about it?

It's surely no surprise that you
feel angry and resentful, Jasper.

But you persist in directing it

not against the father who
abused and abandoned you,

but against your poor, traumatised self.

And against the mother
who did her best to protect you.

And who brought you up single-handedly.

To win a Double First at Cambridge.

So, perhaps it's time
to ask yourself the question,

why is that, Jasper?

Yes. Why is that, Jasper?

Because you betrayed him, Mother.
You betrayed us.

Wha...

"Betrayal" is such a terrible word.

But one I use advisedly.

Would you like to expand
on that a little, Jasper?

I saw you, Mother.

'With another man.'

And I have long believed
it accounts for his misery

and his search for salvation
in the bottom of a bottle.

I was never unfaithful to your father.

And I would feel no blame if I had been.

After he died, I sought comfort
from a kind and gentle man.

The sort of comfort
no son could give a mother.