The Defenders (2010–2011): Season 1, Episode 4 - Nevada v. Cerrato - full transcript

Too many tats.

Too pervy.

There he is... Oklahoma.

Poor guy riding on a
transport bus for two days.

Doesn't even know why he's here.

Think he got any sleep?

Doubt it.

Oklahoma! Leonard!

Welcome. Leonard Jackson.

Uh-huh. How you doing?

I'm Pete Kaczmarek,
this is Nick Morelli.



We're your lawyers.

My lawyers? How did you...

Your sister called us.

What is all this? I mean,
check fraud?

I never wrote a check to...

How much do you owe, Leonard?

Owe? Come on, Leonard,

we don't have that much time.

How much do you owe?

You signed a marker in a casino

and you didn't pay it back.

How much do you owe?

Six million dollars.

Okay, Leonard.



Just keep your head down.

And, uh, we'll see you in there.

All right. Oh, boy.

Call it. Heads.

Crap.

Hope you brought
something to read.

Hello.

Okay, Lisa, slow down.

Vinnie?

My Vinnie?

Mr. Cerrato is with a
Detective Markowitz.

I told him not to say
anything until you got here.

Good. But he already told P.D.

they could go and
search his house.

His wife is there,
and she let them in.

All right, get over
there right away.

Make sure the cops stay
with what's in sight,

and don't let them touch a thing.

Got it.

All right, Detective.

I'm not comfortable with this,
so let's make it quick.

Your buddy's
restaurant burns down,

and you don't want
to help find out why?

Okay, what kind of
question is that?

It's okay, Nick.

I want to do
everything I can here.

According to the alarm company,

fire started about 6:00 A.M.

When'd you lock up?
It was a slow night.

Think I worked the books
for about an hour.

So I guess about 2:00.
Did you go back?

No, not till I got a
call about the fire.

00 you were what, asleep?

No, I was with my
buddy Alan Falcone,

and we were fishing on lake mead,

I think from about 4:00 A.M.

That's early.

That's when the bass are hungry.

You fish a lot, Mr. Cerrato?

Wh-wh-wh-wh-what... what was that?

What? Come on, cut the crap!

It's okay, Nick.

Leave it where you found it,
Detective.

Without a warrant,
this is a courtesy, not a search.

Mrs. Cerrato, I'm Lisa Tyler
with Morelli-Kaczmarek.

I'll take care of this.

All right?

So, you have four restaurants,
is that right?

Mm-hmm. Must be tough
in this economy.

Don't go there... you want
to know my client's finances,

call his accountant,
or him and I are out of here.

So... not to imply anything,
just asking.

Thank you.

How's business these days?

It's tough.

I mean, I'm stretched,
but I'm making it meet.

So you got debts.
Oh, that's not implying anything?

Morelli, you're not
exactly helping...

All right, Vin, come on,
let's get out of here.

It's okay, Nick, I don't mind.

I mind.

All right.

Hello?

Markowitz.

What'd he say?

It was in plain sight, Nick.

Couple of empty cans
of paint thinner.

They're bagging it now.

We got trouble.

Crap.

Vinnie, give me your
phone and your wallet.

Why?

Vinnie Cerrato...

What? You're under
arrest for arson.

Are you kidding? You have
the right to remain silent.

If you give up that right...

I'll get you bailed out.

What-what was the phone call?

You have the right to
speak to an attorney...

Nick? What happened?!
One will be provided for you.

Do you understand these
rights that I've read you?

I'm gonna need you, Nick!

Back home when I
worked at Wayburns,

I made $34,000 a year.

Played the lotto every week...
we all did...

and one day, I hit it.

$47 million.

Nice payday.

Yeah.

Take a $25 million
payout right off.

Gave away a bunch,

donated to the church, charities,

even bought cars for a
couple of strangers.

Like Elvis.

Oh, man, that was fun.

You got a dollar I can borrow?

Yeah. Okay.

So, then, uh... yeah. Oh, thanks.

Then you came to Vegas? Yeah.

They put me up in a
penthouse suite... drinks,

hot wings, women everywhere.

It got to the point where
they were flying me out

in private jets.

Just me... every
couple of weeks...

For free.

What was your game?

Uh started on, uh, roulette,

then moved to 21.

Oh, man, throwing down those
big ten-grand purple chips

was a kick, you know?

At a certain point,
it's just a color,

you know?

And then,

I would run out of chips,

and they'd start shoving
these markers in my face.

You understood that those markers
were an advance from the casino

with a promise to pay them back?

Yeah. Problem is, I don't
remember signing half of them.

I don't hold my alcohol so well.

I was signing anything
they put in front of me.

Well, how much did
they advance you?

Almost... $23 million.

$23 million?!

That's crazy, right? I know.
It happened quick.

I piled up them markers faster
than they could hit my bank.

Look, uh... let me
just get this straight,

you-you've already
paid back $17 million?

Yeah.

I know how it looks, but...

I've always paid my bills,
and I've owed people money before,

but they never threw me in jail.

You ever hear of
debtor's prison, Leonard?

They got rid of it
about 200 years ago

as being inhumane...

everywhere in the
world except Nevada.

Well... I guess my sister
can sell the truck.

How much is bail?

No bail for you.

Murderers,

rapists, child molesters

and casino deadbeats... no bail.

I'll see what I can do
to get you out of here.

He blew it all?

$47 million!

Yep. That's a lot of dough.

Mm-hmm. Hey, is he gonna
be able to pay for this?

You know, this isn't
exactly a charity case.

We need the money in
this firm, you know.

Don't worry about the money, Nick.

Morelli-Kaczmarek.
Thank you, Zoey.

Can't forget about the money...

we're running a business!

Nick, this is great
marketing, okay?

Future return.
We're gonna be famous

if we beat the casinos.

Oh, you're kidding yourself...

you can't beat the casino.

Yes, I can. It's simple.

Casino finds rich rube,

plies him with booze,
runs him into financial ruin.

I argue targeting,
coercion and enablement.

The jury is gonna love this guy.

Jury's not gonna love a
guy who blew $47 million,

not in times like these.

This isn't some rich
Kuwaiti whale... the guy

is a church-going truck
mechanic who hit the pick-six

and got robbed at roulette.
Where is it?

He got drunk, Pete.

He was plied with alcohol!

All right,
maybe enablement. Maybe.

But coercion and targeting?

You don't got a chance;

you're dead. All right, Nick...

You're so sure? Yeah.

I bet you 50 bucks I win this.

I'll bet you $250! Deal!

One last thing... where are my
little coconutty cakie things?

I fired 'em.

I fired the coconut cakie things,
the donuts,

the... the pies,

they're gone, they're out of here!

Executive order!

I'm on a diet!

I'm fat.

Nick, dieting? Right now? Really?

We're kind of busy around here.

Look, I-I got to change
my eating habits, man.

I got to lose a little weight.

I got to be thinner if I'm gonna

be on this dating scene...
I'm so big!

You're a big dude, Nick...
a lot of girls love big guys.

Yeah. Big girls.

We have a partnership, okay?

You deal with your
mid-life issues,

and I get my coconutty
cakie things.

I can't have that stuff around.

I'm gonna blow up like a tick.

All I'm saying is that a
thinner Nick is an angry Nick.

I am not angry! You're hungry!
Go eat something!

- Mr. Cerrato just made bail.
- Good. You tell him

to stay put...
I need to talk to him.

Okay. The, uh,
prosecution have a case?

The guy's underwater on
three of his restaurants.

So if all they
needed was bad loans,

half the restaurants in town
would be torched. What else?

Four empty cans of paint thinner.

Hey, he's got a legitimate
reason to have those.

His wife is an artist.

Her paintings are in
all his restaurants.

Yeah, I've seen those paintings...
he must really love her.

So far, all they got
is a junk arrest.

And according to Vinnie,
he's got an alibi.

Lisa, come with me.

Mmm...

You, uh, Alan Falcone?

Are you the lawyer guy? Yes.

Nick Morelli. Thank you so
much for meeting with me.

I appreciate it. Hey, look,
I'm sorry, I just got a truck down,

I got two guys called in sick today...
you know these guys.

Yeah. You'd think when
you own a business,

you'd get to sit on your fat ass

in a big old leather couch...
now look at me. Yeah, I hear you.

You gotta load this?
Let me give you a hand.

I used to load my
father's produce truck.

Yeah? Where was that? Chicago.

I'm Detroit.

Oh. I knew we were gonna have

a problem with each other.

Not if we don't talk football.

Yeah. Or basketball, or hockey.

Geez, what else is
there to talk about?

Well, uh... Vinnie.

So, uh, you and Vinnie,
uh, you were fishing

00 on?

Well, we headed out
for mead around 4:00.

On the lake by 5:00.

Oh. All right.

So, you and Vinnie been
fishing a long time, then?

Been going out every week
for maybe seven years.

Wow, seven years,
that's a long time.

Well, here's the thing.

The state is gonna hammer
you on Vinnie's alibi.

I just want to make sure

that, you know,
we get the time lines down

and there's no perjury
charges, you know.

Chicago.

What a place. Ha!

Look, Vinnie Cerrato is a friend.

We fish.

That clear enough for you?

That's great.

Shouldn't be a problem, then.

Should it?

Oh, there he is.

Here we go.

Oh!

You dropped something, buddy.

Poor guy.

I just get seasick
just watching him.

Is that Oklahoma?

Eye-in-the-sky
surveillance footage

of Leonard at the
Moroccan staggering around

like the town drunk
just around 8:00.

Ooh, d-did he just
bet his cell phone?

Here we go, here we go.

37 A.M.... the very helpful

floor manager propping
up Leonard's hand

- to sign a marker.
- That-that's coercion.

Nah.

That's hospitality.

Come on, it's grand larceny.

Look at the guy.
Pit boss is just doing his job.

Oh! Ooh! Ugh!

That'd hurt.

What do you mean, no?

No means no, Mr. Kaczmarek.

This footage clearly
shows that Mr. Jackson

was in no capacity to
sign markers, your honor.

The casino may have liability
if the patron drives drunk,

but if betting drunk
was an offense,

I think even you can see

where that goes.

The footage is immaterial
and prejudicial.

It does not get in.

They're holding up his hand,

your honor... the jury
has to witness that.

If they were signing for him,
you might have a case.

They aren't, and you don't.

I read Vinnie's file. Yeah?

I mean, it's nuts they
even charged your guy.

It's nearly impossible to
pinpoint the exact origin.

Okay.

The flow pattern could be
from methyl ethyl ketone,

petroleum distillates...

Sparky...

Speak less nerd.

Look, the burn marks

and smoke residue... okay,
got that.

Okay? Would be the same for
any alcohol in the restaurant.

Look, the d.A. Could say

that there's your guy
splashing paint thinner,

an obvious accelerant,
but you could say...

This bottle of
high-proof brandy fell.

Also an accelerant.

Find it in any restaurant in town.

Oh, and the wife's paintings.

Right. Above the booths,

those would leave the same exact

acetone trace as the paint
thinner they say he used.

The cops had enough

to make an arrest, barely,

but the evidence is
so flimsy, trust me,

the d.A. Won't file it.

They can't win,
not on this science.

Thank you.

Donovan.

Hey, how you doing, pal?

Wow, so we're pals now, hm?

Hey, come on.

You know what?

You should dump that Cerrato case.

Donny, save yourself
the headache. Oh...

He's got an alibi...
he's out in the middle

of lake mead with a
pillar of the community.

All right, I'll need
something for my boss.

Hey, how about he gets this...

he avoids a loss in court.

Okay, that's good.

Mmm.

Is that one of those
with jelly in it?

Mm-mm. Just a donut. What a bite?

Hey, just toss it.

My donut? No, no, no, no,
the case, the Cerrato case.

Really, I'm telling you,
save yourself the time, man.

It's a lot.

You're gonna love this.

What?

Meet you at the morgue.

Salvage crew was working
down in the basement

of Cerrato's place.

You got an I.D. On the guy? No.

But whoever it was,
was working down in the cooler.

Or maybe thought it was a safe
place to avoid the flames.

Either way, the thing
turned into an oven.

You can't tie this guy to my cl...

Chuck?

Yeah, your meat vendor.

Charles long.

They found what was left of him

in the walk-in cooler
at the restaurant.

No.

He was, uh...
I-I made sure that...

I mean, no, he-he...

He delivers on Thursdays.

He... he shouldn't
have been there, Nick.

He was there, Vinnie.

He was there.

Now they want to charge
you with felony murder.

Murder? Somebody dies
in the commission

of a crime, you get murder.
I didn't commit...

It doesn't matter if
you didn't mean to,

it's still murder. Come on.

No. All right?
Chuck is a friend of mine.

Maybe he caught... come on,
Vinnie, drop it, will you?

It wasn't an accident!

I knew all along you
burned the damn place!

Nick! You got to listen to me.

Tell me the truth, starting now,

or I cannot help you you
and I have been friends

if you don't tell me...
a long time,

and I'm telling you... Nick,
you have to hear me out!

I'm sorry, that... I'm sorry.

I didn't, uh...

I, uh...

Oh, God.

I'm sorry.

I did the fire.

For the insurance.

I'm so sorry.

All right, Vinnie.

I know you didn't
mean to hurt anybody.

But you... you got to face this.

I'm sorry.

Can you still help me, Nick?

Oh, Vinnie.

I can try.

Mr. Jackson,

you are aware that
losing is likely

when you gamble in a casino?

Of course, but I didn't...
and you willfully

assumed that risk when
you began betting?

Well, I, uh...

No. I-I didn't...

I'm sorry, when you sat down

at the Blackjack table,
you saw no risk?

What I meant was, when I was
drunk I wasn't really sure...

Did anybody make you drink
alcohol, Mr. Jackson?

They don't make you,
but they basically attach a spout

to your table... just yes or no,

please... did anybody force
you to drink alcohol?

No, ma'am.

The state would like to

present exhibits 1-a,
b and c, your honor.

Do you recognize these,
Mr. Jackson?

They're my markers.

Excuse me?

They're my markers.

And could you please read
the highlighted section

of the top one?

"I, Leonard Jackson,
hereby acknowledge..."

Speak up, please, Mr. Jackson.

Okay. Um...

"I, Leonard Jackson,
hereby acknowledge

"that I am being granted
a line of credit

"from the Moroccan club & casino

"in the amount of $2 million,

"and that I am obliged to pay

"full restitution of
this line of credit

under penalty of law."

And can you tell me the
amount of the second marker?

$2 million.

And the third?

$2 million.

All of those markers
signed by you?

I-I didn't mean to sign...

Are those your signatures or not?

Yes, ma'am.

So you admit a debt of six

million dollars owed
to the Moroccan club

& casino under penalty of law?

Yes, but I paid off $17 million.

Well, then you're not a total
deadbeat, now, are you?

Nothing further, your honor.

I'm sorry, I know that was bad.

Eh, it's okay, you told the truth,

and the jury saw your honesty...
that could be good.

Counselor.

Uh, who's the guy?

He don't like me.

The Moroccan casino lawyer...
as long as

he's not smiling, we're okay.

Hello.

No. I don't care!

You're not listening to me, putz!

Yes, it was me banging
the phone on my desk.

You want me to do it again?

Hey, listen,

you charge my client, I have a
right to know what you've got.

I want it today, putz!

Today, or I file with the judge!

Jerk!

Vinnie? Eh,

sons of bitches still
haven't given me discovery!

I still can't believe he did it.

I promise you, Nicky, I ever burn

this place down,
I'll look around for a little bit

and make sure you're not here.

Oh. Thanks. You're a real pal.

Well, what are you gonna do,
plead it? I don't know.

I can't have the guy's alibi
go on the stand and lie.

Not if I want to keep my license.

The dead guy, how does he get

into Vin's place
without him knowing?

Aw, these guys deliver in the
middle of the night sometimes,

beat the traffic.

Vinnie gives 'em the keys.

Well, there you go.

So... so the delivery guy,
he did it.

Come on, Pete, that's awful.

Hang the arson on the dead guy?

Well, you can't exactly
hurt his feelings.

It's all you got.

You're cold, dude.

You're a good man, Nicky.

I ever need a lawyer,
I'm calling you.

If? How about you pay me for the
last time you needed a lawyer?

Pay your bills, Kaczmarek!

Ooh, I threw a little
piece of carrot!

Ooh-hoo-hoo!

Hey!

That's your blood sugar,
right there!

Blood sugar?!

I'm fine!

Zoey...

Get me a...

A protein bar.

Do not go in there
until he's been fed.

What's going on?

Leonard's Vegas spending records.

His $23 million debt was
with the Moroccan casino,

but what's weird is
he changed casinos.

He used to only gamble at
the Florentine exclusively.

So why did Leonard stop
going to the Florentine

and switch to the Moroccan?

I have an in at the Florentine.

Well, use it. And get Lisa.

See what you can find out.

Now.

Leonard Jackson.

Do you know him?

Lenny.

You know him?

Yeah, everybody knows Lenny.

Sweet guy,

lousy player. Yeah. He owes

$6 million to the Moroccan.

But what's odd is,
before the Moroccan,

he always played here
at the Florentine.

He dropped $12 million
here in your hotel,

and yet he says you
kicked him out.

He got tossed.

Mr. Greene gave the
order personally.

Johnny Greene, the owner?

I don't understand.

Why would he ban someone
just for losing?

Lenny was a drunk,
and drunks are unreliable,

and his supply of money was
limited... as the Moroccan

is finding out right now.

Hey,

there he is right now...
Mr. Greene,

the smartest guy in town.

Okay, Johnny Greene at
the Florentine casino

could be our ace in the hole.

The prosecution is gonna argue

that a casino owes no
obligation to intervene

when a bettor is blind drunk.

But here, an owner,
Johnny Greene does exactly that.

He makes our case!

Yeah, if you can get him
on the stand. Exactly.

You think he won't
dodge a subpoena?

He'll avoid every member
of this law firm, Pete.

We're taking on a casino...
that alone will blackball us.

And they'll post our pictures
on every wall in town.

Really? That's so cool!

Well, not you, Zoey,
so don't worry.

What?

He's on the move. All right.

We're on it.

Excuse me, miss. Hi.

Do you have a second?

Hello, sir.

Top o' the afternoon to ya.

Look at him.

The smartest guy in town.

So? Leave it to a woman.

Mr. Greene?

Oh.

Thank you, honey.

You've been served.

You should have seen his face!

I cannot wait to get
that weasel on the stand.

You're gonna have
to pay out, Nicky.

Aw, come on, partner,
you're toast.

I already spent the money.

Not wise, partner...
I'm gonna win this thing now.

Not a chance... you're dead meat.

You keep calling me food, Nick.

What now?

Coroner's report just came in.

It says Vinnie's delivery man
was dead before the fire.

He was put into the
cooler postmortem.

Police think Vinnie set the fire

to destroy evidence of murder.

Oh, God.

Can this case get any worse?

Well, 20 minutes ago,
they revoked Vinnie's bail.

Capital murder.

They want the death penalty, Nick.

Of course.

He was already dead...

Before he was in the freezer?

Yeah.

He was strangled, Vin.

They found no smoke in his lungs.

Thank God!

Hey, you know, Vinnie...

All the times I ate in your place,

stories we told,
the jokes, the laughs,

I thought I knew you.

You know, you're gonna have
to find a new lawyer. Nick...

Vinnie... no, Nick,
I didn't kill him.

Vin! That's the thing,

I thought I did,
but I didn't do it.

What?

It was Alan. Alan?

I owed him 90 grand.

Alan Falcone.

Alan Detroit?

Your alibi?

He made me burn the place
down for the insurance money.

He threatened to kill Angie if

I didn't pay him
back what I owed him.

He said he was gonna gut my
wife like a trout if I didn't

give him his money.

I know he'd do it.

And now I know he killed Chuck.

This is no bull?

Chuck owed him money.

Alan wanted him to burn

his meat company down, same as me,

only he wouldn't do it.

He knew you were
gonna burn the place,

and he knew when?

It was his idea.

He told me when.

Nick...

He threatened my family.

And then I just...

I didn't know what to do.

So you don't deny
knowing Leonard Jackson

and showering him with free
rooms and lavish gifts?

Of course not.

It's the way of Vegas.

We set him up in a luxury suite,

reserved private betting tables,

and extended lines of credit
when he required them.

But at a certain
point you cut him off

and ultimately ejected
him from your casino?

Yes, that's right. Why?

He paid his debts.

$12 million. He did.

But he was gonna continue to lose,

and he was betting even bigger,
and foolishly.

More... foolishly.

Isn't that exactly what you want?

Well, in general, yes,

but in specific, not with him.

When you speak of an
individual like Mr. Jackson,

you're speaking of...

Well... to put it bluntly,

dumb money.

They don't have any
respect for it.

Okay.

Just to be clear, you ejected
Mr. Jackson because you felt

he was incapable of
continuing to pay back

the large markers
he was signing for?

That's correct.

It's irresponsible of the gambler,

but even more irresponsible
of the casino

to allow an individual
like that play.

Thank you, Mr. Greene.

Ms. hunt?

Mr. Greene.

Do you allow your patrons
to gamble while drunk?

365 days a year,
including Christmas.

And if it had happened
in your casino

that Leonard Jackson

had too much to drink and
wound up owing the Florentine

$6 million, what would you do?

I would make him pay
back every penny.

How?

If I couldn't do it personally,

I would be right here
in this courtroom,

at your table.

And... happily, I might add.

Thank you, Mr. Greene.

Happily, my ass.
Yeah, he just got out of court.

We'll see how much he's grinning
when I prove it's coercion.

Okay, Lisa, I need you
back here. Come on.

Oh, well, I think Pete needs
me to kinda... is that Nick?

What is he saying?
Is he calling you in?

Because I need you here.
I'm trying to hear!

Pete can handle it himself.
Come on,

I got a little
murder problem here.

Let me... let me talk to him.
I'll try to...

Let me talk to him.
Let me talk to him.

Pete, I'm... you can't
have her. I need her.

What do you mean, you need her?

I have no discovery here.

Besides, I got a murder case;

all you got is a
little check fraud.

Come on, Sammy could've
wrapped this thing up by now.

Give me a break, will you?

Have you eaten today, Nick?

I'm eating celery... celery?

No, have protein.
Nobody likes skinny Nick.

I like skinny Nick! What?

Girls like skinny Nick!
What is it?

I remember that guy.

Come on! Protein...

I-I need Lisa here!

I'm hungry and I'm stuck!

Wait, right there. There. Him.

He works for Johnny Greene...
he's the executive assistant.

What is he doing at the Moroccan?

Classic hand-off.

Oh, sure.

That's Mr. Guzman
from the Florentine.

Antonio.

And he took you to
the Moroccan? Mm-hmm.

After Greene banned me,
I swore off Vegas,

went back to Oklahoma.

Then Mr. Guzman shows up,
says he has some friends

that would love to have me.

I'd get to be king again.

He must've known I was itching,

because he had a jet
waiting for me...

oh, man, I loved that jet.

Howdy.

If you're looking for
Mr. Greene, good luck,

he's in Macao.

Actually, I was looking for you.

I was wondering how
Mr. Greene felt

about you moonlighting
for other casinos.

No idea what you're talking about.

Excuse me. No idea?

Because I happen to have
surveillance footage

of you and Leonard
Jackson at the Moroccan.

I could show it to Mr. Greene,
see what he has to say.

You knew exactly

what Leonard was,
and you exploited him.

So? We exploit people here,
Mr. Kaczmarek.

It's not exactly against the law.

No. No, no, no, no, no.

Look, look, look,
I'm really looking forward

to seeing how your
boss is gonna react

when he finds out that
you've been delivering whales

to other casinos.

You won't be able to get
a job as a valet in Reno.

Get out of my way.

Look,

I can't testify... I'll lose
everything that way, too.

One way or the other, Tony,

you're gonna have
to help my guy out.

There.

Thank you very much.

What?!

What are you standing around for?

This is an office...
you should be working.

Come on,

everybody in the kitchen.

All right. I just called

our alarm company to
find out what happens

when you punch in
a code to an alarm

that's not set. Try to turn it off

before it's been turned on?

They think somebody's
trying to break in.

It's not like I do
it all the time.

What does this prove, exactly?

Okay, Vinnie leaves the
restaurant at 2:00 A.M.

Okay? But he leaves the alarm off.

So when he comes back to
light the fire at 5:00...

He doesn't have to
punch the code in,

because it would leave
evidence that he came back.

So...?

So... I'm willing to bet that

somewhere in those four
boxes of discovery...

There's a record from
Vinnie's alarm company

that someone tried to
disarm the alarm between

4:00 A.M. and 5:00 A.M.

To go in to dump the body...
it couldn't have been Vinnie.

I'm thinking it's Alan Falcone.

Wow, that's so cool.

But how do you prove it?

He can't.

Well, I got

no choice than to put
Alan Falcone on the stand

to lie about the alibi.

Nick, you can't.

Oh, Pete...

I have to. Come on.

Nick, you can't put
someone on the stand

if you know they're lying.

You could be disbarred, right?

Well, it's either that

or Vinnie lands on death row.

What good does my license have,
then, anyway?

Straighten up, Tony.

If you want to stay off the stand,

you better look like you
can't wait to swear in.

Are you sure this is going
to work? It just did.

Hey.

We were informed of this witness
just this morning, judge.

Judge, we just found this witness.

How is he pertinent,
Mr. Kaczmarek?

Mr. Guzman has working
knowledge of casino targeting,

and specifically, knowledge

of Leonard Jackson
and the Moroccan.

We'd request time to investigate.

I will save you the effort.

Mr. Guzman will tell you that

he specifically targeted my client

traveling as far as Oklahoma

to drag him back to
Mr. briar's client,

accepting cash kickbacks
in the process.

It may be unethical, Kaczmarek,
but it's not coercion.

It's sick, is what it is,

and I can't wait to
get that to the jury.

He's a casino host; It's his job.

He's part of a conspiracy
to rob Leonard Jackson.

And if I beat you on this,

I'm not gonna stop...
Mr. Kaczmarek,

the Moroccan club & casino

cannot be seen going soft on debt.

But in order to save the
court's valuable time...

...We would consider
a settlement...

as long as we're seen to win.

We have precedent to consider.

We can't have every
weekend gambler

with a $10,000 marker
screaming coercion.

I have to win, Mr. Kaczmarek.

I have to crush you.

That can be arranged.

Oh, great.

Thanks for coming out.

Really appreciate it.
Hey, anything for Vinnie.

Eh, Vinnie. Geez, Vinnie.

Look, the trial's gonna be short.

They're gonna put an arson guy on

and a... Detective.

And your alibi's basically
my only defense.

So I'm gonna need to put
you on the stand today.

Is that okay? No problem.

Okay, great.

All right, I'm gonna start

with asking you your name,
how you know Vinnie,

how long. Sure.

And you're gonna testify that
the two of you are good friends

and you go fishing every
Wednesday morning...

For... seven years.

Oh, right.

Seven. Right.

Wow, long time.

Get to know a guy pretty well,
I guess, huh?

Yeah. Yeah, we get along good.

Yeah, good enough to...

Lend him $90,000, was it?

What does that matter?

Oh... doesn't.

Not to me, but
prosecution's gonna claim

that Vinnie burned down his place,

you know, for the insurance
because he owed so much.

Right, right, right.

And I need the jury to
know that the two of you

were good friends...

so Vinnie wouldn't worry
about what he owed you.

Yeah, yeah. He wouldn't.

I mean, I never
sweated Vinnie. Okay.

It's gonna be real easy.
I'll be in court.

You're on the stand.

I'll say, "Mr. Falcone,

did you see Mr. Cerrato
the morning of October 3?"

Yep. We went fishing.

Great. Uh,
what time of day was it?

From around 4:00 in the morning
to about 5:00, probably.

Oh, good, 'cause here's the thing.

You know, they got evidence
that says that someone was

in the restaurant at 4:09,
and it wasn't Vinnie.

Between you and me,

a security camera in east Vegas

caught him buying a fuse at 4:20.

A fuse? Yeah,

a candle, he sawed off
the last two inches

and put it in a puddle of acetone.

Stupid plan. He said it was yours.

You know what,
I think I'm done here.

Wait, wait, wait, wait,
wait, wait, wait, wait.

You've got to alibi for Vinnie.

Otherwise, I have no choice
than to put Vinnie on the stand,

and he's gonna say
that you killed Chuck.

Now...

Come on, I don't want
to go that way, okay?

That's... not how
I want to play it.

The jury never buys
"the other guy did it,"

even when he did.

So, what do you want?

I want to get Vinnie off a
murder that he didn't commit.

I need your alibi on the stand.

Look... Alan,

no arson, no murder,

everybody goes home.

Vinnie goes to jail,
the insurance company doesn't pay,

you don't get paid,
I don't get paid.

Look, I get up there,

how do I know you don't screw me?

The judge finds out I put
a perjurer on the stand,

I lose my bar card,
my career's over.

All right. Okay, I'll testify.

Great.

Let me know when I'm up.

Okay. Thank you so much. But...

If you mess with me...

...I will kill your whole family.

And I think you know I'm capable.

Well, Detroit...

Actually, I don't.

And that's for the red wings

stealing chelios
from the blackhawks!

Best defenseman we ever had.

There you go, Detective.

So I'm paying them back
with their own money?

The important thing is the
money is seen being paid back.

Doesn't really matter
where it comes from.

You already got tomorrow's
headlines sent off to the papers?

Something like, "deadbeat pays
back Moroccan every dime."

Six million bucks,

but I don't actually
have a dime to get home.

Don't worry, I took care of it.

Hey, Vinnie.

Hey.

D.A.'S offered a deal
based on the tape.

Admit to the arson,
and they'll drop the murder.

I got you two years in prison.

Is it my fault?

Chuck... if I had been
man enough to say, "no,

I won't burn it down..."

Vin...

Alan threatened the
life of your wife.

You were man enough
to protect her.

I would've done the same thing.

So take the two years,
take it like a man,

then move on.

All right. I'll let 'em know.

Thank you.

All right, Vinnie.

I promise I'll never come back.

No Atlantic City, no riverboats.

You work for a living, Leonard.

Right. Obey the law.

But a little lotto
can't hurt, right?

Nah. A little lotto can't hurt.

Good luck, Len.

Get on the plane. Right.

Ah. You arrive $6 million down,

chained to a child molester,
you leave debt-free

on a private luxury jet.

Yeah. Only in Vegas.

In the end, everybody wins.

Which reminds me, partner,

you owe me 250 bucks.
What for? I didn't lose.

Not according to the paper;
You lost there.

How about I just buy you dinner

and we call it even?
How about a steak?

Stone crab, Joe's stone crab.

I could eat that stone
crab all night long,

won't gain a pound.
You're killing me, Nick.

You know how expensive that is?
That's the point.

Besides, you're gonna have
half of it with me. Come on.

You know what, Nicky?

I think this is the beginning
of a beautiful friendship.

It's always beautiful
when you're buying.