All language subtitles for JAG.S06E23.Mutiny.1080p.AMZN.WEB-DL.DDP2.0.H.264-Panda_track3_[eng]

[man 1]
Ready port gun!

[man 2]
Ready port gun!

Ready your lines.

Ready your lines!

Sir, will you forgive me?

[man] Have no fear,
Mr. Spencer.

God will extend you mercy.

And you, my son.

And you.

-Beat the Call!
-[man 2] Beat the Call!

[drum beating
"Call to Colors"]

Fire!

[opening theme music playing]

[Sims]
It's quite an honor, Colonel--

lecturing at the Naval Academy.

Be more of an honor
if I finish writing the lecture

before it's time
to start giving it.

Isn't this a bad week
to be doing this?

Six days before
my wedding,

I was yelling at
some caterer
about an ice swan.

-Did it help?
-Nothing helped...

until I walked into that church

and I saw Bud waiting for me
at that altar.

[Harm] An early wedding
present, Mac.

-Lieutenant.
-Sir.

Printed from microfilm.

Complete coverage
of the
Somers
affair

in the
New York
Commercial Advertiser
1842 and 1843.

You know, I could exchange it
for a blender.

No, that's very thoughtful
of you.

You, of course, know
that that's not the real gift.

I know,
but you wouldn't happen to have

a lecture in your pocket,
would you?

Fascinating case.
Wish I could hear
what you had to say.

Oh, me, too.

Mmm... the captain's
name was Mackenzie?

Alexander Slidell Mackenzie.

Friend of Washington Irving
and Henry Wadsworth Longfellow--

an author himself.

Was related by marriage
to Commodore Perry.

And to you, ma'am?

No, but the name
got me interested.

He had an impeccable reputation
as a naval officer.

Well, until his cruise
on the
USS Somers.

What happened? Shipwreck?

No, worse.

Ready your lines.

[Mackenzie]
Beat the call!

Beat the call!

[drum beating
"Call to Colors"]

Fire!

Whip!

[knock on door]

Come in.

First Lieutenant Gansevoort

reporting to
the Secretary of War.

-At ease, Lieutenant.
-Thank you, sir.

You come from the
Somers.
How is Commander Mackenzie?

Well, sir. We docked in New York
on Monday.

You traveled very
swiftly to see me.

Why?

Sir, the Commander has sent me
to inform you of certain events.

I regret to inform you that our
voyage was troubled by...
a mutiny.

-Mutiny?
-Yes, sir.

And Commander Mackenzie,
the ship, are well?

All is well, sir, except for
three mutineers who were hanged.

Hanged? Where?

At sea.

It is my
sad duty, sir,

to report that one of them...
was your son.

Philip?

Sorry, sir.

He led the mutiny.

[Sims] The son
of the Secretary of War?

Philip Spencer, bright,
but a drinker, a brawler...

He spent three years
as a college freshman
before being expelled.

His father got him
appointed a midshipman
just to straighten him out.

[door opens]

Sit. I'm looking
for Albritton's
Law of the Sea.

Sir, that should be in your
office or... right here, sir.

Philip Spencer had been
obsessed with pirates
since he was a teenager.

His plan, apparently,
was to take over the
Somers

-and turn it into a pirate ship.
-What did he do?

Storm the decks,
pistols blazing, swords drawn?

Actually,
the mutiny never happened.

The captain must have had good
reason to think that it would.

Well, that question was raised
by, among others,
the Secretary of War.

The Navy convened
a court of inquiry.

[Mackenzie]
I think you gentlemen
for this opportunity

to explain what befell my ship.

Since we embarked New York,
13th September,

last on a training mission
for young sailors and officers.

The officers, as a group,
I was pleased to receive,

except Midshipman Spencer.

You began the voyage displeased
with him, Commander?

I'd heard reports, sir,

of libertine behavior
and casual disrespect.

On a previous ship?

Yes. But on the
Somers,

I soon saw the character
of the man for myself.

[men laughing]

And then
she says to me,

"Spencer, where would you
bury your chest?"

[laughing]

Mr. Spencer...

report.

Sir?

A Naval officer
does not report

to his captain
holding a cigar.

Well, it's a fine cigar, sir.

If you refuse to honor
your officer's uniform

and properly supervise
your men,

I will
strip you of it.

And you will clean the deck

and they will smoke cigars.

Dismissed.

Aye, aye, sir.

Back to work,
or I'll flog you myself.

Get back to work.

You hear
the captain, Wales?

He requests I attend
better to my duties.

Then perhaps you should.

I'd like to catch him on
the roundhouse one night--

plunge him overboard.

Perhaps I shall do that.

Damned if I don't.

Improper and punishable

but he is not the first young
officer to denounce his captain.

A few days later,
he approached my master-at-arms.

-A fine day, sir.
-As you were, sergeant.

Aye, sir.

And a fine a ship
with which to enjoy it.

-Nothing in the fleet
can catch her.
-I suppose not, sir.

But has the Navy a need
to catch her own ships?

[chuckles]

I could take her with six men.

You couldn't
with three times six.

Six men, sergeant...

providing their leader knows

the lay of the ship as I do.

We would seize the Captain
and the officers

and take the arms chest.

And when the rest of the crew
see my men in arms,

they will all come over.

The officers
have swords, sir.

And your six would have...

We would run them through
with their own swords

and heave their bodies
into the sea.

Things came to a head
a few nights later.

[Irish music playing]

[Spencer]
Do you fear death, Wales?

Are you afraid
to kill a man?

I don't know,
Mr. Spencer.

Is there someone
I must kill?

Can you keep a secret?

I can.

I'm planning on
taking the ship.

[chuckles]

You cannot
be serious?

Good God.

I have 20 men with me.

Their names are on a piece of
paper, in secret writing.

Two of them are going to
stage a fight on fo'c'sle.

When the officer
on the deck
comes to settle the matter,

-he will be thrown overboard.
-And the other officers?

We will surprise them
in their wardroom.

Kill them all there.
Call the crew on the deck,

select the ones that we want

and toss the rest
over the side.

-Why?
-Why?

Why, then we commence cruising
for prize vessels.

[chuckles] As pirates?

Yes. Can you imagine
a better life, Wales?

Treasure... freedom...

and some of the ships we take
will have women.

Will you join us?

It's...

intriguing.

Wales, it would be a waste
to throw you overboard.

I want you
as my third officer.

We'll talk again.

If you lisp a syllable
about this to anyone,

20 men stand ready
to put a knife in you,
all right?

Nevertheless, Mr. Wales
found the courage
to report the conversation.

I had Mr. Spencer
placed under arrest

and his quarters searched.

Lieutenant Gansevoort
found this in his shaving kit.

Written in Greek letters,
but easy to decipher

a list of accomplices--
two of whom
I also arrested.

Commander, your intentions
at the time

were to bring these men home
for court martial

as prescribed
by the Articles of War?

Yes, sir, but I did not have
that luxury.

It seems to me, Commander,

that it is they
who were denied a benefit.

Then you, sir, need to
understand the situation.

The
Somers
is swift, but small.

There is no place
to hold men under arrest

other than on the deck
with the rest of the crew--

some of whom
may be their accomplices.

Some of the accomplices
we knew,

others we did not.

Overall, the crew became
sullen, disobedient.

Whispered conversations
broke up when
officers approached.

My officers
stood double watches.

They grew exhausted...

and they were vulnerable, sir.

And the men under arrest,
they remained confident
and insolent.

What other explanation

than they were expecting
to be rescued?

I referred the matter
to a council of my officers

who met independently of me

and concluded we had
no other alternative

than to rig the gallows.

That was the most terrible
decision of my life.

But I would do it again, sir,

for the sake of my duty
to my ship...

to my country...

and to my God.

Commander Mackenzie,
we have heard your evidence

and that of your crew
and we have concluded

that owing to difficult
conditions aboard the
USS Somers

and the demonstrated
malefactions

of the mutineers aboard her,

your actions were justified
in every respect.

We stand adjourned.

[pounds gavel]

I told you, darling,
there was nothing to fear.

I had faith
in you, Alexander.

I did not know
if they would.

Congratulations, sir.

It's been a pleasure
serving under you.

Congratulations, sir.

Thank you.

My dear, let's go home.

Forgive me, Commander,
if I don't offer
my congratulations.

Mr. Secretary,
I am sorry.

Things had to turn out
as they did.

"Had to," Commander?
You had no options?

The court just found
that he did not.

With all due
respect, ma'am,

your husband's reputation
is still at stake.

Sir, I would gladly
defend my reputation

in any venue you propose.

Excellent.
I propose a court martial.

Allow me to introduce
Commander Norris

who will serve
as trial council.

Commander. Ma'am.

You would prosecute me,
Commander, on what charge?

Among others,
three counts of murder, sir.

The Naval Academy exists today,
you are at Annapolis today

because of what happened
on a training mission

of the
USS Somers
159 years ago,
where the need

for some better method
of training

Naval officers
was tragically demonstrated.

[chuckles]
That's an understatement.

But it's a key
point, Mic.

There's so many
key points.

I was hoping this
would be a relaxing break
from planning the wedding.

No worries.
It's all under control.

Is it? The caterer called me
today about our check.

You delivered it
by 5:00, right?

-Right.
-Okay, and you faxed

the new song list
to the band?

Yeah. More Motown.

And did you call
the airline about
Chloe flying alone?

-I'll call them tomorrow.
-Tomorrow?

Tomorrow.
Am I on trial here?

First charge, conduct
unbecoming an officer.

Second charge, oppression.

Third charge,
unnecessary cruelty.

Fourth charge,
illegal punishment.

Fifth charge, murder on board
a United States Vessel

on the high seas.

-[judge] How does the
defendant plead?
-Not guilty.

Will the court
admit into evidence
the record compiled

-by the court of inquiry--
-No objections.

...whose verdict exonerated
my client?

The court may have
exonerated him
but the record does not.

Commander, shall we proceed
to witnesses

and save the argument
for later.

Yes, sir. I call Sergeant
Michael Garty
to the stand.

Sergeant, do you swear
that the evidence you
give in this case

shall be the truth,
the whole truth

and nothing but
the truth, so help you God?

-Yes, sir.
-Be seated.

Sergeant, the record
of the Board of Inquiry

includes an account
of a conversation you had

with Midshipman Spencer
during which he said

he could take the
USS Somers
with six men?

That's right, sir.
That's what he said.

Sergeant, were you acquainted
with Midshipman Spencer
before that conversation?

-We all knew him, sir.
-By "we" you mean

the common sailors
on board the ship?

Yes, sir. Mr. Spencer was quite
popular with the men.

Because he was...
he was brave?

Because he was strong,
an accomplished seaman?

Actually, sir, he gave away
a lot of cigars

and shared his rum.

[laughter]

[Norris] Even though
Commander Mackenzie

had forbidden tobacco
and alcohol to the men?

That's right, sir.

[Norris] Sergeant, was
Midshipman Spencer

a natural leader?

One men would follow
into action?

Well, they'd follow him
into a tavern if he was buying.

Sergeant, Commander Mackenzie's
account of your conversation
with Mr. Spencer

did not take us
to the end of it.

Would you favor us with your own
recollection of it?

Yes, sir.

He approached me by the rail.

He told me,
like the Captain said,

that he could take the ship
with six men.

[Spencer] Six men, sergeant,
providing their leader

knew the lay of the ship
as I do.

[chuckles]
Oh, I hardly think so, sir.

Be sure of it.

And, sir, you may be sure
that when the crew turns up,

they will toss you
and your six overboard--

or we would be a very poor crew.

But once we have the arms...

But how would you
get the arms, sir?

I have the key
to the chest.

If you joined us, sergeant...

[laughing]

Excuse me, sir.

[laughing]

-And you laughed?
-I couldn't help
myself, sir.

It seemed so ridiculous.

Thank you, sergeant.

Sergeant Garty,
have you ever heard
of the
HMS Bounty?

Of course, sir.

There was a mutiny
on that ship.

And the mutiny aboard
the
HMS Hermione?

Every sailor knows of it, sir.

The captain of the
Hermione
was slaughtered,

-along with eight
of his officers.
-Yes, sir.

Do you think any of the
mutineers might have
mentioned their plans

to fellow crew members before
they began killing people?

I don't know, sir.
I wasn't there.

No. You were only
aboard the
Somers,

listening to Midshipman
Spencer make dire threats

and laughing.

How ridiculous
might his words

have seemed
to you, sergeant,

after the captain
was run through

with his own sword

and his body
heaved into the sea?

Mr. Wales, you occupied the
position of Purser's Steward?

[Wales] That's right, sir.

As such, what were your duties
aboard the
Somers?

Bookkeeping, mostly, sir.
Handling the ship's accounts.

Logging purchases
from the ship's stores.

Like cigars and rum
Mr. Spencer gave
to the crew?

Yes, sir.

When Mr. Spencer
approached you

about being part
of his mutiny,

how long had
you been at sea?

The
Somers
cruise
was my second, sir.

I'd been under sail
a total of six months.

Mr. Wales, do you know
how to navigate?

-No, sir.
-Organize a watch list?

-No, sir.
-But you do know
how to keep accounts?

-Yes, sir.
-What was your reaction

when Mr. Spencer approached you
about being part of his mutiny?

Fear, sir.

And I'm not afraid
to admit it.

-Fear? Not confusion?
-Sir?

Why would Mr. Spencer
recruit a bookkeeper

to be third in command
of a pirate ship?

Did he intend to capture
the other vessels

by subtracting
their guns from them?

-[laughter]
-I-I admit, sir,
I wondered myself.

As well you might have.

Your witness.

But then I remembered--

Oh...
Oh, am I finished?

No, Mr. Wales,
please, continue.

Then I remember that
when Mr. Spencer
spoke to me,

Sergeant Garty was ill.

I was the acting
master-at-arms.

So you had the key
to the arms chest?

That's right, sir.

So, things are
clear after all.

Thank you, Mr. Wales.

Ma'am.

You're making
much work of this.

I did not seek
the job, ma'am.

-The job sought me.
-The "job"?

You're trying
to destroy my husband.
You should be honoring him.

-Everyone should.
-And someone needs to speak

for the men who died.

Mutineers.

Have you ever captained
a ship, Commander?

-No.
-Commanded men
under arms?

-No.
-Been to sea?

For a while.

Commander Mackenzie
went to sea at the age of 11.

He's commanded men and ships
in peace and war

and you question his actions

from the safety
of a courtroom?

How do you think you can
begin to understand?

[man] I killed them, sir.

Begging your pardon, sir.

[Norris] You killed whom?

Mr. Spencer
and the others.

I was on the lines.

[drums beating]

[Mackenzie]
Fire!

Whip!

[Norris]
You were compelled.

I hope God sees it
that way, sir.

How goes it
with the Captain?
Will you hang him?

That will be up
to the panel.

-Do you know about
the flogging, sir?
-I've seen the log.

At least one or two men
every day, sir.
Twelve lashes at a time.

For skulking, being dirty,
spilling tea on the deck.

Tell them.
Tell the judges.

It may do no good.

Then show them, sir.

For washing clothes
without permission.

Son, if I showed this
to the court,

it may make them believe
the crew was prepared to mutiny.

I never heard talk
of no mutiny, sir.

Not from Mr. Spencer,
not from anybody.

And if you did, would
you have joined them?

Those men didn't deserve
to die, sir.

Do something.

Please, sir.

Ma'am, your schedule.

They're expecting you
at the Naval Academy
tomorrow night

to speak
about the
Somers
mutiny
the next morning at 0900.

46 hours and 11 minutes.

How do you
do that, ma'am?

-Thank you, Gunny.
-Excuse me, Colonel?

About your transportation
to Annapolis, ma'am.

Do you need
the duty driver?

-I'll take my own vehicle.
-Do you need the travel claim

-for mileage reimbursement?
-No. Yes, but not now.

So...

Innocent or guilty?

-Who?
-Your great-grandfather,

the captain of the
Somers.

He's not
my great-grandfather.

Are you sure?

You know, I still have
a lot of work left to do.

Is there anything else you want?

Yeah. You're headed down
the home stretch

and I just wondered
if everything was okay.

With... the lecture?

Come on, Mac. At your
engagement party.

You know, with us.
I overstepped the
boundaries of a well-wisher.

I overstepped
the bounds of a bride.

So we're okay?

I think so.

You okay?

I... I just need
to finish this lecture.

[Norris]
You're familiar with

-Naval regulations?
-[Gansevoort] I am, sir.

Including regulations for
the Navy Marine Corps

published in February 1841?

I am, sir.

[Norris] Do those
regulations provide

that persons accused
of crimes have the right

to appear before
the tribunal judging them

to confront witnesses
against them

and to make a case
in their own defense?

I believe they do, sir.

And were these rights extended

to Midshipman
Philip Spencer

and the two men hanged
with him aboard the
USS Somers?

We did the best we could, sir,
under the circumstances.

The best you could?

That must mean
the council of officers

-convened by
Commander Mackenzie?
-Yes, sir.

We met and carefully
considered their case.

Without the accused men
being present.

Without the accused men
even knowing

they were being judged.

They were not present
during our deliberations, sir,

but I did conduct an interview
with Mr. Spencer
after his arrest.

[Norris]
While he was confined

in irons...

on the deck?

Yes, sir.

And what he had to say
was very incriminating.

I cannot
help it, sir.

-Help what?
-Plotting mutinies.

-You've done this before?
-Yes, sir.

On the
John Adams,
on the
Potomac.
[chuckles]

To turn them into
pirate ships also?

I have had not a great
success on land, sir.

I imagine a larger
way to live--

on the sea,
my own master.

It is a fantasy,
Mr. Spencer,

and a dangerous one.

I cannot stop.
I have tried, but I cannot.

It's a mania with me.

John Adams
and the
Potomac--

they were the other ships
Mr. Spencer had served on.

Yes, sir, and he plotted
mutinies on both
by his own admission.

Lieutenant,
was there ever a mutiny

on the
John Adams
or the
Potomac?

-No, sir.
-And for that matter,

there wasn't even a mutiny
on the
Somers,
was there?

Because we prevented it, sir.

Oh, yes... your evidence.

The list in Greek characters
of Mr. Spencer's accomplices.

Three columns... first,
"certain," second, "doubtful"

third, "to be kept with us,
willing or not."

Would you read the list of the
"certain" accomplices, please?

Mr. Spencer himself.

I would hope so.

Elisha Small,
the quartermaster.

Who was arrested and
hanged with Spencer.

Daniel McKinley.

Arrested later
and is awaiting trial.

Purser's Steward Wales.

Wales was the man
who turned Spencer in.

Spencer thought
he could trust him, sir.

Very well. Continue
with the "certain" list.

That is all.

So, he had three
certain accomplices

among a crew of 120,
and one of the three

was the man
who betrayed the plot.

We were in a dangerous
situation, sir.

[Norris] Commander Mackenzie
apparently felt that way.

Didn't he instruct you
to make sure that
the council of officers

would recommend hanging
the three men arrested?

He only instructed me
to make sure

that all the evidence
was considered.

He was the captain. It was his
option to run things
as he saw fit.

-Including your testimony
here, Lieutenant?
-No, sir.

Well, hasn't the captain
recommended your promotion?

I object. The question
is not relevant,

whether it's true or not.

It's relevant
if Commander Mackenzie

has influence over his officers
to do his bidding for him.

Your Honor,
this is outrageous.

It is allowed.
The witness may deny it.

The captain did honor me

by commending me
to the Navy Department,

but for merit, sir.

Apparently the
USS Somers
was a veritable wonderland

of excellent sailing.

Commander Mackenzie
has recommended promotions

for every officer on the ship--

except the ones he hanged.

He was supposed to be
one of our finest officers.

I actually wanted my son
to go to sea under him.

You could not have foreseen
what happened, sir.

Well, I knew my son
wasn't perfect, Commander.

I even heard him speak
of becoming a pirate

but I wasn't a big enough fool
to believe him.

It seems others
believed him as well.

A ship commanded
by a Muhammadan

will become a nest
of Muhammadans.

A captain has influence
over the minds of his men.

Apparently, Commander
Mackenzie did not have

much influence
over your son, sir.

That would have been a strong
point in Philip's favor...

if it hadn't killed him.

[Norris]
Your Honor, I call
Mrs. Alexander Mackenzie

-to the stand.
-The defendant's wife?

Your honor, she cannot
testify against her husband.

She cannot testify to anything
confided to her by her spouse

but anything said or done
with a third party present

is already not confidential.

True, but this
is still distasteful.

It is my right, Your Honor.

Mr. Griffin may
cross-examine if he chooses.

[Griffin] I do not choose.

Mrs. Mackenzie,

would you please take the stand?

Do you swear
that the evidence

you give in this case
shall be the truth,

the whole truth,
and nothing but the truth

-so help you God?
-I do.

Please be seated.

Mrs. Mackenzie, while
this court was in recess,

were you present
during a conversation

between Commander Mackenzie

and First Lieutenant
Gansevoort?

Were you spying on us, sir?

You made no attempt
to conceal yourselves, ma'am.

Because there was
no reason to hide.

Ma'am, what did the two men say?

Of you, sir, nothing nice.

[chuckling]

Well, I'm not surprised
your husband's officers

refuse to give me interviews.

Your Honor, there must be
some showing of relevance here.

I will make it apparent, sir.

Ma'am, have you
ever heard your husband

or any of his officers
discuss the testimony

they'll give in this court?

-I believe I have.
-Did your husband

ever make suggestions
as to how his officers

-should testify?
-He did not.

Did any of the officers
ever express a desire

to protect
Commander Mackenzie?

They did not.

Would you tell us if they did?

Are you now suggesting
that I, too, am part of
some conspiracy of silence?

No, ma'am, it's only natural.

You
do
love
your husband, don't you?

Ma'am... I-I only asked
if you loved your husband.

You are under oath.

I don't know.

You don't know what, love?

-Morning, Colonel.
-Morning, sir.

Looking a little
ragged, there.

Oh, jeez, not something you
should say to a bride-to-be.

I've been having strange dreams,
sir, about the
USS Somers.

Making it personal.

You're dreaming about
taking over a ship
becoming a pirate?

Beginning to seem like
an attractive option, sir.

Mac, it's just
pre-wedding jitters.

Now, I remember the week
before my wedding...

Well, actually, I don't,
but I'm sure I was miserable.

The marriage damn sure was.

Hmm, that's another thing
you don't want to say

-to a bride-to-be.
-To a bride-to-be.

Mac.

Can we talk?

Why not?

Mac, I value you
as a friend...

or whatever.

I know.

But most of all,
I respect you

and you've made
a choice to get married

and I respect that.

There's a lot of respect
going on there, Harm.

You have the right
to be happy

and, you know, whatever's
going on between us

or not going on, I mean,
between us...

I... [sniggers]
I want you to be happy.

Even if I'm happy with Brumby?

[exhales]

[Norris]
Do you solemnly swear
to tell the truth,

the whole truth and nothing
but the truth, so help you God?

-I do.
-Be seated.

Commander Mackenzie,

when you first heard
from Purser's Steward Wales

about the mutinous plot
led by Midshipman Spencer,

what did you think?

I assumed Mr. Spencer had
been reading piratical stories

and had amused himself
with Mr. Wales.

So you didn't take
him seriously?

Mmm, at first, no.

What caused you to
change your mind?

I kept a watch on Mr. Spencer.
I made inquiries among the men.

I learned
he had been asking

about the accuracy
of the ship's chronometer,

the basis of the ship's
navigation system.

I heard he'd been seen
in secret conversations

with malcontents among the crew.

He'd made a drawing
of a pirate ship,

and he had inquired
into the Isle of Pines

a well-known gathering spot
for pirates,

and he had remarked, sir,

that it would give him
great pleasure

to roll me from the round top.

So, you arrested him,

but even then you intended to
return him to the United States
for trial,

did you not, in accordance
with the Regulations
for the Navy and Marine Corps?

-[Mackenzie] Yes.
-[Griffin] Until, as you told
the court of inquiry,

you feared an imminent uprising

to seize the prisoners
and take the ship?

Yes. Executing the prisoners
made that impossible.

None of the other members
of the plot

had sufficient knowledge
to handle the ship,

one of the reasons
my officers

independently recommended
the execution.

[Griffin] Sir, on your way home
from the Western Atlantic,

did you spy
any merchant ships?

Many, all of whom may very well
had suffered pillage and rape

had I not done what I did.

[Griffin] Thank you,
Commander.

I have no further questions.

"It would have
given him pleasure

to roll you
from the round top."

He asked about the chronometer
and directions to
the Isle of Pines.

He drew a picture
of a pirate ship?

Well, there was more, sir.

His conversation with Wales.

Which you thought a fantasy.
That's what you said.

I said, at first.

Shall we go in circles
all day, sir?

[Norris] Can you identify this?

That is a watch bill for the
execution, prepared by me.

The date, sir.

Thirty, November.

So, the day before

your independent council
of officers

recommended an execution,

you had made arrangements
for it.

[Mackenzie]
I did not ask them
to recommend hanging

but I believed the facts
would lead them there.

You said the decision
to hang Spencer and the others

was the most terrible
of your life.

Yes.

That was a terrible day.

Mr. Spencer.

I've come to inform you
your fellow officers

have reached
a decision.

Your life is forfeit
to your country.

When?

In an hour.

I... I am not ready to die,
Captain.

Now is the time to set
an example, Mr. Spencer,

as an officer
to the men you corrupted.

"A terrible day."

Yet shortly after you
returned to New York,

you proposed your nephew
be appointed midshipman

the position made vacant
by Mr. Spencer's death.

You cannot be suggesting, sir,

that I hanged Mr. Spencer
to give my nephew a job.

No, I'm questioning
whether it was necessary
to hang Spencer at all.

Well, there is no doubt.

You were less than
two days' sail from Antigua.

Why not sail there,
unload the accused men

until they could be shipped home
for trial?

[Mackenzie]
Heading towards any
foreign port would've been

a sign of weakness
and may very well have inspired
the mutiny I sought to prevent.

Is that what you
were afraid of,

or were you afraid

that Mr. Spencer
might not hang at all?

Are you not going
too far, Captain?

You did not
consult me

when making arrangements
for your mutiny, Mr. Spencer.

Does the law
justify you?

You may think not

but I hardly think
you can be objective.

This will kill my mother.

The scandal will surely
tar my father.

If you had succeeded
in your mutiny, Mr. Spencer,

it would've been
a greater scandal,

as would
taking you home.

How? How will taking me home
for trial harm him?

He is your father.

He would interfere to save you.

[Norris] That's what
you were afraid of--

your hasty judgment
might be overturned.

I only meant by interfering

the Secretary of War
would dishonor himself.

So you hanged his son to save
the Secretary's reputation?

No, I hanged his son
because the threat
of mutiny was real.

-You were still the captain.
-The men were plotting.

Your officers
had all the guns.

-They were exhausted.
-Were you exhausted?

I made do with little sleep
for many days.

Might that have affected
your state of mind?

Sir, you were not there.

Well, you were missing sleep.

You heard tall tales
of mutiny and pirates.

You saw plotters
behind every timber.

Are you suggesting
I was deluded?

I'm suggesting you were afraid.

Sir, if we were not
in this setting--

Commander, I'm not in irons.

You might find me more difficult
to do in than Mr. Spencer.

It is time.

I am Christian, sir.

Do you think there may be
repentance for me
at this late hour?

Our savior pardoned
the thief on the cross.

Will you pardon me, Captain?

Your mutiny, Mr. Spencer,
would've started with my death.

I don't hate you.

It was my fancy...
to become a pirate.

I thought it an adventure,
a noble adventure.

Noble, Mr. Spencer?

Aye, sir.

I'm sorry, Captain.

You may think me a coward

but judge me again
after you see how I die.

[Griffin] The question
before you

is not whether mutiny was afoot
aboard the
USS Somers

but whether
the captain of the
Somers

acted honestly,
to his own best judgment

without corrupt motive,
when he concluded there was.

We must put ourselves
in his place.

Scanning the disaffected
faces of the crew,

breathing the atmosphere
of tension and mistrust

struggling to confine
the arrested men
on a ship so small

they could not be separated
from a mass of men

who might at any moment
act to free them.

Did Commander Mackenzie
act precipitously?

Ask the captain of the
Bounty

or of the
Hermione,
if he had survived,

whether it is reasonable
to hesitate

in the face of such a threat.

Commander Mackenzie honored
his duty to his ship

its innocent crew members

and an untold number
of merchant ships.

He did not have the leisure
to question his own decisions.

Neither should we.

What kind of Navy do we want?

One where a captain

caught up in rumor
and random act

can, without proof or trial,
snuff out the lives of men

given no opportunity
to defend themselves?

Or, one where all men
are treated fairly,

command bows to decency

and law is honored
above the noose?

Warship captains
for centuries

have made themselves
into kings afloat

and in that tradition,
Commander Mackenzie acted.

But this nation
fought a revolution
to rid itself of a king

and its Navy
should reflect the principles

we bled and died for

and not the despotism
that we overthrew.

I respectfully ask you

to send that message now
to Commander Mackenzie

and to future generations
of officers

in the United States Navy.

Commander Mackenzie,
you will rise.

On the first charge against you,
conduct unbecoming an officer,

this court martial
finds the case not proven.

On the second charge,
oppression,

this court martial
finds the case not proven.

On the third charge,
unnecessary cruelty,

this court martial
finds the case not proven.

On the fourth charge,
illegal punishment,

this court martial
finds the case not proven.

On the fifth charge,

murder onboard a United States
vessel on the high seas,

this court martial
finds the case not proven.

[Brumby]
Ready to go?

You okay?

Yeah, yeah, I'm... I'm finished.

Great. How'd the trial end?

Uh... not guilty on all counts.

Must have been a relief
for the captain.

Not entirely.

It was customary back then
to commend an officer

who was acquitted
of misconduct

to clear his reputation
completely.

Commander Mackenzie's
court martial

specifically stated
it was not commending him.

A slap in the face.

[MacKenzie]
He never really recovered.

Died five years later
at the age of 45.

The
Somers
sank two years before
that in the Mexican War.

Well, if we leave now, we can be
in Annapolis for dinner.

Well, uh...
knock 'em dead.

[closing theme music playing]