All language subtitles for JAG.S08E15.Friendly.Fire.1080p.AMZN.WEB-DL.DDP2.0.H.264-BurCyg_track3_[eng]

How's your fuel, Sugar Two?

I show four-point-O, Sugar One.

Another ten minutes,
we'll be headed home.

Hey! Look at those fireworks!

-[Sugar Two]
Someone's firing at us.
-Beehive, this is Sugar One.

We're taking ground fire
20 klicks southwest of Kandahar.

Request permission
to hit 'em with 20 mike-mike.

Stand by, Sugar One.
Any reports of unfriendlies
near Kandahar, sir?

Not tonight.
Tell him to stand by.

Hold your fire, Sugar One.
We're checking it out.

I'm going to take a mark.

[jet engines roar]

[Sugar One] We got a couple of
vehicles, light artillery.

Whoa. You see that?

[Sugar Two]
See what, Sugar One?

[Sugar One]
Taking A-A fire.
Declaring self-defense.

Switch is hot,
set to signal release.

Rolling in.

Master arm on.

Hitting pickle.

Bomb's away.

[whistling]

[explosion]

[Beehive]
Shack! Disengage!

Disengage! Friendlies.

They were shooting at us.

Sugar Two, you saw that, right?

[groaning]

Easy... you'll be all right.

[groans]

[Chegwidden] The Navy's never
filed criminal charges

over a friendly fire incident
in wartime before, until now.

Lieutenant Commander
David Ridley

dropped a Mark 82
laser-guided bomb

on a platoon
of British soldiers--

three dead, three wounded.

What did the preliminary
inquiry find, Sir?

Commander Ridley did not have
permission from the AWACS

to engage.

What are
the charges, Admiral?

Involuntary manslaughter,
dereliction of duty.

You and Lieutenant Roberts
will prosecute.

Yes, sir. I'll be looking
forward to getting back

into the courtroom again, sir.

Commander Turner, you'll defend.

Aye, sir.

This is a high-profile case.

The media will be in
the courtroom.

Commander Rabb,
since you'll be presiding,

do you have a problem
with that?

-Judge Rabb?
-Well, as an aviator,

I think he has
a certain hands-on
understanding of the issues.

As an aviator, sir,
the commander may be biased

in favor of the pilot.

Then don't be.

Absolutely not, sir.

Commander, Colonel,
I'm counting on both of you

to maintain a certain level
of... decorum?

You'll have no trouble
from us, sir.

That'll be all.

Aye, sir.

You seemed pretty confident
in there, Harm.

Well, I've observed
enough judges.

How hard can it
be to be one?

I was referring
to your assurance

that there'll be no sparks
between us in the courtroom.

-Well, there won't be.
-Yeah, that's what I thought
when I was a judge.

We know what happened then.

Yeah, you started throwing
your judicial weight around

and tried to buffalo
a guilty verdict.

Excuse me, I was the one
showing restraint.

You were trying to hijack
the proceedings

-by circumventing the rules.
-Your rules.

You were making them up
as you went along.

Oh, no, you don't.
I was following the law.

Well, you can be sure
of one thing--

while I'm in the hot seat,
there'll be no retribution.

No payback?

No.

Good. I'll hold you to it.

The meat loaf not up
to your standards

this morning, Petty Officer?

I'm going to be
your clerk of court, sir.

I thought I'd better
do some reading.

Well, research never hurt
anyone, but a good judge's clerk

will temper book smarts
with common sense.

By the way, I don't expect
you to be a silent partner.

-Yes, sir.
-What's it say
in there, anyway?

"A judge must be a passive
recipient of information,

a quiet force
who is most effective
when nearly invisible."

Commander, Coates.

Mind if we join you?

Unless Your Honor no longer
mixes with lowly trial lawyers.

Now is not a good time
to get on my bad side, Sturgis.

[Roberts] "A trial lawyer
who becomes a judge

is like a boxer
who becomes a referee."

I never had a judge hit me.

Day's still young.

"It is exceedingly difficult

"for the passionate advocate

to become the objective
observer."

Don't you two have trial prep?

My client's on his way here.

And Colonel MacKenzie is
interviewing our witnesses, sir.

Well, why aren't
you with her?

Colonel MacKenzie has gone out
to the Coral Sea,sir.

[Roberts] Due to my
limited duty status, sir,

I'm kind of landlocked.

[Turner]
Are you worried

-about being a judge?
-Why would I be?

You two have
all the work to do.

I'm just an objective observer,
right, Coates?

-Right, sir.
-You could have told the Admiral
you didn't want to preside.

Why would I do that?
That would be lying.

Millions of years ago,
there were hunters

who killed saber-toothed tigers
with sticks and stones.

Back at the cave,
there were others--

not so courageous,
but wise and fair...

And theywould divvy up
the meat amongst the tribe.

You two don't think I can
"carve the meat" fairly?

You area natural born killer,
Commander.

[man]
What we have here, Colonel,

is command-and-control error,
not pilot error.

[MacKenzie]
You're part of command
and control, CAG.

And I'm only as good as the
information that I'm provided.

So you didn't know
the British were conducting

a live-fire exercise
near Kandahar?

The Coalition Air Operations
Center never told us.

I briefed my pilots
only on what I knew.

Even without the heads-up
about the British troops,

Commander Ridley is still bound
by the rules of engagement.

Correct. The enemy
is not, however,

bound by
any rules whatsoever.

Well, our rules prohibit
deliberately descending

into anti-aircraft range
in order to draw enemy fire.

Commander Ridley
descended to take a mark

of the suspected enemy position,
not to draw fire.

The AWACS never gave
permission to engage, sir.

Colonel, when you are
taking A-A fire,

you do not need permission--

not from AWACS
or a JAG officer.

CAG, the anti-aircraft fire
reported by Commander Ridley

turned out to be tracers fired
at ground level by the British.

Well, it all comes back
to intel, doesn't it, Colonel?

No one ever
briefed the AWACS

that there were
friendlies in the area.

If the strike controller
had had that information,

there wouldn't have been a delay
in getting the word to Ridley,

and he never would have engaged.

[man] Given the circumstances,

I believed that dropping
a single bomb

on an apparent enemy position
was both necessary

-and proportional.
-What circumstances?

There had been unfriendlies
in the area three days prior.

And on two previous missions,
I'd taken incoming.

Doesn't that count
for something?

It would, had you shot
at the unfriendlies

instead of the British.

From 5,000 feet
at night,

tracer fire looks like A-A fire.

-Ask my wingman, he saw it.
-That's another problem--

when I interviewed
Lieutenant Commander Barry,

he said he never saw
the second burst,

the one that prompted
you to fire.

So, he missed it.
He saw the first one.

The British say
they stopped shooting

when they saw you descend.

They claim there
was no second burst.

We need to find a defense
for you, Commander.

[Bill O'Reilly]
It is absolutely
second-guessing at its worst.

It's hypocritical, unjust,
and dangerous to the country.

A pilot in combat makes
a split-second decision

then is forced to answer
to some pinhead politician

if something goes wrong?

Hey, It's war.
Lots of stuff goes wrong.

You cannot turn an honest
mistake on the battlefield
into a crime,

and you can't treat American
fighting men like criminals

if an accident happens.
Come on.

We have a war to fight.

I don't always agree
with him,

but he's right... partly.

What part is that, sir?

We do have a war to fight.

And I'm not just talking
about Afghanistan.

I'm talking about a place
that's even more dangerous--

Capitol Hill,
Appropriations.

I'm not sure, I, uh,
see the connection.

The British are screaming
bloody murder, A.J.

That makes senators with purse
strings nervous about funding.

It's tragic,
the whole thing.

One grave error, three young men
pay with their lives.

Now another one's going
to have to pay with his career.

Well, sir, that has yet
to be determined.

Commander Ridley made a mistake.

Now, surely, when it comes to
holding our people accountable,

the Navy's standards are higher

than those of the court
of public opinion.

Our standards are the same
as they've always been,

Mr. Secretary--
a presumption of innocence,

and a fair and impartial
hearing of the facts.

Which is why you appointed
an aviator to sit in judgment

of one of his own?

Commander Rabb
is an excellent attorney,

and I'm sure he'll make
an excellent judge.

I hope you're right.

[clears throat]

Washington is at least
as much about appearances

as it is about policy.

I told you that I would fight
the good fight

to get the Navy what it needs.

I just hope that this incident
doesn't jeopardize that.

-I know you share that
hope with me, A.J.
-Yes, sir.

[Turner]
Bloodwork showed amphetamines
in your system

after the incident.

That'd be
from the Go-pills, sir.

One pill every two or three
hours in flight.

Plus traces
of Benzodiazepine.

-No-Go pills, sir.
-Sedatives?

Yeah. It's for a combat nap
before takeoff.

You're mixing stimulants
with sedatives.

Everything's prescribed
by the flight surgeon.

These Go-pills-- they make
you jittery or nervous?

No, sir. More like
honing my concentration

to a razor-sharp edge, sir.

Good.

Good, just make sure
you tell that to the jury.

[sighs]

All the pilots take anti-fatigue
medication, Commander.

I don't see how
the prosecution's going
to use that against me.

They're not
going to, Ridley.

We're going to use it
to get you off...

if we're lucky.

[dramatic music rises]

[bailiff]
All rise.

[Rabb] Please be seated.

This court-martial
will now come to order.

Let the record reflect
that the accused,

counsel and Members
are all present.

Is prosecution ready to proceed?

We are, Your Honor.

And the defense?

Ready, Your Honor.

Before we begin, will counsel

please approach
the bench.

-What's with
the cheering section?
-I have no control

over the Secretary of the Navy,
Your Honor.

Well, let him know
that I will not stand

for any displays of favoritism
in my courtroom.

I'll do my best.

All right, let's roll.

Excuse me?

Proceed, Colonel.

Friendly fire.

That's such an innocent-
sounding phrase,

but there's another term, too--
fratricide.

The killing of one's brother.

In this case,
our brothers in arms,

British soldiers in Afghanistan.

The prosecution will prove
that the defendant,

Lieutenant Commander
David Ridley,

violated the rules

of engagement
and disregarded instructions

from a strike controller
on an AWACS aircraft.

The result-- Commander Ridley

recklessly dropped
a precision-guided bomb--

but not on the enemy-- on
British soldiers, killing three.

His excuse?

Well, he claimed
it was self-defense,

that someone was firing at him.

But there are no other witnesses
who can corroborate that.

Colonel, this sounds more like
a closing argument.

Please confine your opening
to a preview of evidence

you plan to submit.

I thought I was, Your Honor.

It's my call, Counselor.

Prosecution will prove

that Commander Ridley is guilty
of dereliction of duty

and involuntary manslaughter.

Thank you.

Friendly fire is a problem
as old as warfare itself.

General Stonewall Jackson,
in the Civil War,

was killed by his own men
on a nighttime mission.

During Desert Storm,
nearly 25% of our causalities

were caused by friendly fire.

And while these losses
are tragic,

they're also unavoidable.

Objection.
This is argumentative.

Overruled.

It is against this backdrop
that you will consider the case

of Lieutenant Commander
David Ridley,

a decorated
and highly skilled pilot

who took incoming fire
three days earlier

from the same locale.

[man, British accent]
We were positioned
in Wadi-East,

a ditch about 25 kilometers
southwest of Kandahar.

And what are your duties,
Lieutenant Whitehall?

Range Safety Officer
for the live-fire exercise.

Will you please tell the Members
what happened that night?

My unit was engaged
in tank-stalking operations.

Were your men firing weapons?

Small arms and
machine guns, Lieutenant.
All at ground level.

And did there come a time
when you observed an aircraft?

There did.

Can you please tell the Members
what happened then?

When we saw the American
aircraft approaching,

I called for a "check-fire."

Did the firing cease?

Oursdid,
Lieutenant.

But one of the American
jets swooped down

over our position.

Did you transmit
to Coalition Air Ops?

Our generator
had just broken down.

A few seconds later,
the American bomb hit us.

I lost three men.
Lance Corporal Greengrass,
Lance Corporal Weatherall,

Staff Sergeant Porter.

You were injured
in the attack as well.

I was some distance
from the strike, sir.

But clearly not far enough.

Your witness, Commander.

Lieutenant, why did you
tell your men to cease firing

when you saw
the American jets overhead?

We all knew about
the American gunship

firing into that wedding
party at Uruzgan, sir.

-Killed 40 civilians.
-The wedding party
where the celebrants

-were firing
small arms into the air.
-Objection, Your Honor.

That incident is irrelevant
to these proceedings.

Your witness opened the door,
Counselor. Overruled.

Local Afghans were firing
into the air, Commander.

Apparently, that's how
they celebrate.

The American flight crew
wasn't charged with a crime

in that incident, was it,
Lieutenant?

-Your Honor.
-Now you're pushing it.

Sorry, Your Honor.

During your
tank-stalking exercises,

did your men fire
any weapons into the air?

No, sir.

But they fired from
the Wadi floor upwards,

towards a tank on higher ground.

That's correct, sir, yes.

Your machine guns
shoot tracers, don't they?

Every fifth round.

And tracers
light up the night sky.

That's correct, yes, sir.

So your men were firing
small arms and machine guns;

you were trying to fix
a broken generator;

you were worried
about two jets flying over,

and yet you're sure
none of your men fired

after Commander Ridley's plane
descended over your position.

I'm quite sure, sir.

Nothing further.

[MacKenzie] I don't mind
taking an unpopular case.

Public opinion's against us.

The SECNAV
wants a quick hanging.

Turner's a tough opponent.
I can handle all that.

To have to fight
the judge, too?

He's completely out of line.

You know,
he's injecting his own opinion,

breaking my momentum
wherever he can.

How much more payback do you
think the guy can dish out?

With all do respect, ma'am,

maybe we should just focus
on what's under our control.

Are you defending him?

Because he is out of line, Bud.

I'm sorry if you can't see that

because of some residual
commander worship.

I think your right, ma'am.

Sometimes the people we look
up to do have feet of clay.

So would you say I was
a passive recipient

-of information today?
-Sir?

"A quiet force
who's most effective
when nearly invisible"?

Yes, Commander.

Is that what
you really think?

I think Colonel MacKenzie's

having a tough time
in there, sir.

And you think that
I'm the cause of that.

I think shemight think
you're the cause of it.

Colonel... no, as you were.

I just wanted

to commend you
and Lieutenant Roberts

on just an excellent
job thus far.

-Thank you, Mr. Secretary.
-I'm a bit surprised

at the apparent
level of hostility

between you and the commander
in the courtroom.

I imagined you might
have a bit more sway.

Well, neither the commander
nor I sway easily, sir.

Well, if I can be
of any assistance

in your pursuit of the truth...

You can, sir.

-Really?
-I think it would be helpful

if you weren't sitting
on my side of the courtroom

during the proceedings, sir,

-in the interest
of eliminating sway.
-Mm.

Yes, I can find other ways
to spend my afternoons.

Colonel, again,
keep up the good work.

[woman]
Commander Ridley asked

for permission to engage.
I told him to stand by.

What did you do next,
Lieutenant Kaufman?

I attempted to ascertain
whether there were any
friendlies in the area, ma'am.

And what did
Commander Ridley do?

He descended,
declared self-defense

and dropped a 500-pound bomb
before I could get back to him.

Your witness.

Nothing at this time,
Your Honor,

subject to my right
to recall the witness.

I have a few questions,
Lieutenant.

Your Honor?

Yes, Colonel?

Nothing, sir.

Wouldn't you normally have
that information available?

What Coalition troops
are in the area?

Yes, sir, but
there was a breakdown.

The British reported
their exercise

to the Coalition
Air Ops Center,

but it slipped through
the cracks at the Center

and never got to us.

But Commander Ridley would have
expected to have received

the information
immediately, correct?

Your Honor, I have to object
to the hypothetical question.

You're objecting to myquestion?

I am, Your Honor.

Overruled.

May we approach?

Sure, come on up.

You may approach.

Your Honor, I object to your
questioning the witness.

The Court has that right,
Colonel, you know that.

Do you have a problem with
my questioning the witness?

No, Your Honor, but I had
planned to ask the witness

the same questions
later and I still do.

Oh, great, then the Members
get to hear it twice.

Once with the inference that
the judge favors the defense.

That was not my intent, Colonel.

Clarity was.

Well, the effect
is to prejudice the prosecution.

If I'm going to lose this case,
I'd like to do it

without any help from the bench.

-What is your problem?
-You are, Your Honor.

Respectfully.

First you interrupt
my opening statement,

and then you let defense counsel

refer to another
friendly fire incident

where no charges were filed,

and now your questions
of Lieutenant Kaufman

imply that the Air Ops Center
was to blame.

So what do you want, Colonel?

Some judicial restraint, sir.

You're asking me to refrain
from questioning witnesses?

No, Your Honor, I am asking you
to recuse yourself

on grounds of bias.

[Bill O'Reilly]
It is sad and demoralizing

when family members fight
amongst themselves,

and that's what is happening
to our Navy

in its unfair prosecution
of fighter pilot David Ridley.

Charged with manslaughter
for a friendly fire incident

in Afghanistan,
Ridley is scapegoat

for bad intelligence,
incompetent allies,

and even the fog of war itself.

Yesterday, things got ugly

when Marine Colonel
Sarah MacKenzie,

the prosecutor,
accused the judge,

Commander Harmon Rabb, of bias.

[horn honking]

Now, I don't know
Commander Rabb,

but he is a hero,
a decorated fighter pilot,

and he has not bailed out
of this case.

So, I'm with the commander
so far.

And to the Navy,
I have only this to say:

Don't put handcuffs
on your fighter pilots.

That will mean defeat
in every way.

[sighs]

I can't discuss the case,
Mr. Secretary.

Of course not.

I would never dream of
asking you to, Commander.

But I... I do have
one question, though.

You've flown in combat.

Did you ever find yourself

in a position like
Commander Ridley was in

in the skies over
Afghanistan?

Sir, I can't talk about it.

Oh. As a judge?

As an aviator,
I can't discuss it.

Well, as an aviator,
do you endorse his actions?

Sir, I don't know what I would
or wouldn't have done

without a full understanding
of the context of the situation.

But you're going to have
to render decisions as a judge.

After a careful review
of the facts and the law, sir.

And I suspect
that'll be difficult for you

because you can so easily
put yourself in the shoes of
the accused.

A lawyer is trained to look
at all sides of an issue.

A judge is required
to view the issues objectively.

But I think there
may be more sides

to this than you realize,
Commander.

The cockpit is only one
context in play here.

We're in a war on terrorism,
and we need to have our allies

standing confidently
alongside us.

I understand that,
Mr. Secretary.

Well, than you also
understand how critical it is

to have accountability
for the death

of three British soldiers.

I will see to it
that justice prevails, sir.

I thought we weren't going
to discuss the case.

Are we?
I wasn't aware.

Well, if we are, sir,
it could be construed

as unlawful command influence
and obstruction of justice.

Oh, well, then,
you'd better run.

[MacKenzie]
You're the only one
I can turn to, sir.

-In the middle of a trial?
-Commander Rabb refuses

to recuse himself
despite clear evidence of bias.

An interlocutory appeal
isn't permitted,

so I have to wait
until the trial,

but if Commander Ridley
is acquitted,

the Court of Criminal Appeals
won't hear it

because the prosecution can't
appeal an acquittal.

It's a catch-22.

That's quite a catch,
that catch-22.

It's the best there is.

This isn't a joke, Commander.

Oh, what is it exactly
you want me to do?

Remove Commander Rabb
from the case.

I don't think I can do that.

Then order him
to recuse himself, sir.

Can't do that, either.

Commander, do you see any reason
you shouldn't sit on this trial?

Sir, I feel I can continue

to discharge my duties
fairly and impartially.

Then I request permission

to withdraw myself
as trial counsel.

-On what grounds?
-I'm incapable

of rendering competent services.

Colonel, if you were truly

incapable of doing a good job,
you wouldn't know it.

And you wouldn't request
to be removed.

The mere fact that you
made the motion

means you're
a competent attorney.

Hell, it's a...

[sighs]

...catch-22.

Request denied.

Aye, sir.

You think
I'm favoring the defense?

Your rulings do all seem

to favor
Commander Ridley, sir.

You did ask me
to speak my mind, sir.

I'm not favoring the pilot.

I'm just
getting after the truth.

Yes, sir.

What, you think
I'm going too far?

I think that in some
situations it's impossible

to keep your personal
feelings out of it.

I have no personal feelings
toward Commander Ridley.

I didn't mean
Commander Ridley, sir.

Commander Barry, you were
Commander Ridley's wingman

-on the night of the incident?
-Yes, ma'am.

-You fire
any weapons that night?
-No, ma'am.

-Declare self-defense?
-No, ma'am.

In fact, you never saw
what Commander Ridley described

as a second burst
of anti-aircraft fire, did you?

No, ma'am, but I saw the first.

Which turned out not
to be enemy fire at all.

Apparently so, Colonel.
But David Ridley doesn't lie.

If he says he saw
green lizard men firing
at him, I'd believe him.

Objection. Not responsive.

Sustained.

Would you instruct
the Members to disregard

the witness's last statement,
Your Honor?

So instructed.

Would you articulate
the instructions, sir?

Come on, Colonel.
The Members are up to speed.

Let's move it along.

Perhaps the best way for me
to move it along is to sit down.

Your witness.

Commander Barry,
how long was this mission?

From the time of taking off
from the Coral Sea

to our return,
about nine hours, sir.

-In-flight refuelings?
-Five, sir.

That makes for a pretty
grueling nine hours, eh?

Keeps us on our toes, sir.

At what point in the mission
did the incident occur?

We were just minutes from
heading back to the Coral Sea.

-Must have been tired.
-No, sir.

Given the protracted
length of the mission,

the Battle Group Commander
authorized use of Go-Pills.

Doesn't that make it
difficult to sleep?

We take the No-Go
pills for naps.

Is this standard procedure?

No, sir. This particular
mission required it.

You took these pills
on the day of the incident?

-Yes, sir. We both did.
-So, you're mixing

amphetamines and sleeping pills
on the day of a combat mission?

-Yes, sir.
-Medications which may affect
mood and judgment

and can cause amnesia
and paranoia?

Objection. Assumes
facts not in evidence.

Sustained as phrased.

Commander,

were these medications
a problem for you?

No, sir.

I'm the flight surgeon
aboard the Coral Sea.

[Turner]
Commander Sachs,

do you routinely provide
dextro-amphetamines

to flight crews?

I do, as anti-fatigue
medication.

Better bombing
through chemistry, Commander?

-Objection. Argumentative.
-Sustained.

Don't amphetamines have serious
side effects, Commander Sachs?

Properly used,
they increase alertness
and focus attention.

And improperly used?

Over-stimulation could be
deleterious to performance,

but I dispense only enough
for each flight.

These pills come
with warning labels,
don't they, Commander?

These days, all medication does.

"Can affect perception
and impair the ability
to operate machinery."

You shouldn't drive a car
while taking these drugs,
should you, Commander?

That depends on the amount.

But it's okay
to fly a $40 million aircraft

-loaded with high-tech weaponry?
-Again, Commander,

the proper amount of medication
used by pilots

in top physical condition--
it's not a problem.

"Medication may provoke
irritability

"and an unreasonable concern

about threats
to one's well-being."

That sounds like paranoia,
Commander.

That would be extremely rare.

But not, uh, unheard of.

Some people are allergic
to peanuts, Commander Turner.

We don't ban flight crews
from eating them.

Are you equating peanuts

with amphetamines,
Commander Sachs?

Objection. Counsel is
baiting the witness.

Colonel, Counsel has the right
to cross-examine the witness.

-Overruled.
-I'm just saying
that these warning labels

list everything imaginable,

no matter
how infinitesimal the risk.

Well, how many casualties
have to mount up

before you no longer
consider the risk
to be infinitesimal?

-Objection. Argumentative.
-Sustained.

Commander, do you consider
this medication to be safe?

These drugs have been in use
since before Vietnam.

Their safety's been
demonstrated.

But assuming
these pills affected

Commander Ridley's perception,
could that explain

why he saw a burst of gunfire
that no one else did?

Objection.
Calls for speculation.

Sustained.

From now on, I'll let you
be the one who objects.

At the briefing, Captain Bales,
the CAG, told us

there'd been unfriendlies
in the area.

Did this come as news
to you, Commander Ridley?

Hardly, sir. We'd been fired on
three nights earlier.

Did the CAG tell you
in the mission briefing

that the British
would be in the area?

No, sir. Apparently,
he never got word from
the Coalition Air Ops Center.

Would you tell the Members what
happened that night, please?

It was pretty uneventful.

Five refuelings.

No calls for air support.

And then...

[Ridley]
Hey, look at those fireworks!

[Barry]
Someone's firing at us.

I asked the AWACS for permission
to fire 20 mike-mike,

the machine gun,
and was told to standby.

What did you do then?

I descended to get a better look
and take a mark of the position

in case it was necessary
to use a precision-guided bomb.

[Ridley]
Whoa! You see that?

[Barry]
See what, Sugar One?

Taking A-A fire.
Declaring self-defense.

Did you feel justified
in declaring

self-defense?

Yes, sir.

I believed I was
being fired upon.

Commander, did you use
amphetamines

-during this mission?
-Yes, sir.

Ten milligrams prior to takeoff.

Three additional pills

of five milligrams each
during the flight.

Your witness.

Lieutenant Roberts will do
the cross, Your Honor.

Very well. Lieutenant.

So, the AWACS strike controller
instructs you to stand by,

and you interpret this to mean
go down for a closer look?

I interpreted it to mean
not to engage yet.

What was the altitude
you were at

when you noticed
the ground fire, sir?

About 12,000 feet.

And the surface-to-air fire
that you thought you saw--

was it reaching your altitude?

No, sir.

So, you weren't in any danger
until you descended.

That's true, Lieutenant,
but if it had been the enemy,

they might have had
other weapons.

But it wasn't the enemy, sir.

I had no way of knowing that.

I thought it prudent
to check out the situation.

Wouldn't it have been
more prudent

to ascend to a higher altitude

and wait for word
from the AWACS?

Perhaps. I'm trained
to be aggressive

as well as prudent.

Did the medication

that you're taking

make you more aggressive?

Uh, no.

Does the medication affect
your perception?

No.

So, you don't blame the pills

for the deaths
of three British soldiers?

No. I don't.

If there's any blame,
it's all mine.

Thanks, sir.

Sir, how did Colonel MacKenzie
know that Commander Ridley

wouldn't use the medication
as an excuse?

Well, she saw Turner
hadn't asked Ridley

if the pills affected
his perception.

And Commander Turner
would've asked

if the answer had been helpful
to his case.

The colonel's a really good
lawyer, isn't she, sir?

-Yeah.
-[chuckles]

So she and Lieutenant Roberts
have the case won, sir?

Well, unless the Members believe
Commander Ridley's claim

that he'd taken
a second burst of fire.

Do you believe
Commander Ridley, sir?

He was very convincing
on the stand.

But then so was the British
officer, Lieutenant Whitehall,

who claimed
they stopped firing, so...

Almost forgot.

Instructions to the Members.

"If there is a reasonable doubt
as to the guilt of the accused,

your verdict
must be not guilty."

Well, won't there always be some
doubt, Commander?

Keep reading.

"A reasonable doubt
is not mere conjecture.

"It is an honest, conscientious
doubt suggested by the evidence.

"An absolute
or mathematical certainty

is not required to find
a defendant guilty."

Glad I'm not one
of the Members, sir.

Just be glad you're not
sitting on the bench.

I-I thought Commander Turner
might have been onto something

with the tracers looking like
surface-to-air fire.

Yeah, but it went nowhere.

Whitehall's preoccupied
with the generator.

Commander Ridley descends.
He swears he's taking incoming.

The British swear
they ceased firing.

Somebody's got to be lying, sir.

[sighs]

Unless Commander Ridley saw

-what he thought was
anti-aircraft fire.
-Well, what could that be, sir?

I mean, they're in the middle
of nowhere on a dark night.

Yeah, really dark
after the generator went down.

Sir?

I think I know
what Commander Ridley saw.

That's great, sir.

No, it's not.

I can't tell anyone.

What do we do now, sir?

We need to make sure
that justice prevails.

Let's take a look at
the Code of Judicial Conduct.

Maybe there's an answer there.

[Coates] So another example
would be, say a witness

hobbles into court using a cane
and testifies

he's so disabled
he can hardly walk.

But the judge remembers
seeing the witness

on the ski slopes
two weeks earlier.

The judge has
to disqualify himself.

That's what
the book says, sir.

"Under the Code
of Judicial Conduct,

"the judge must not have
personal knowledge

of disputed evidentiary facts."

Any exceptions?

Yes, sir. "If the judge
learned the knowledge

in the court proceeding,
he can remain on the case."

Great, so I can stay
on the case, I just,

I can't do anything with
the information I have.

No, sir.

"A judge must refrain from any
action that assists a party."

"Assists."

Yes, sir.

What if he "assists" a party

but hurts their case?

Well, then I guess it wouldn't
be assistance, sir.

Nice work, Coates.

Thank you, sir.

For everything, sir.

For requesting me
as a clerk

and letting me take part
in the case.

All right, the theme
of our closing argument

should be personal
responsibility.

You can't blame the British,
you can't blame the Ops Center.

I don't know.
If Commander Ridley had
had the intel, ma'am...

Morning, you two.

-Morning, sir.
Good morning.

I, uh, was wondering
when you thought

we might get this case
to the Members.

Well, that depends
on Commander Turner.

-He hasn't rested yet.
-Do you have
rebuttal witnesses?

Depends on what
the commander does.

Hmm, 'cause I thought
you might be getting into

the AWACS electronics.

Why would we?

I'll see you in court, then.

He's trying to tell us
something, ma'am.

De-confliction reports.

MASINT records.

Electromagnetic
impulse sensors.

Ma'am, is it okay
for Commander Rabb
to be helping us?

Well, have you ever know the
commander to do anything...?

Improper? No.
Unconventional, huh, yeah.

-E.M.I. transmissions?
-What about them, ma'am?

The AWACS picked up something
from the British position.

Well, that
wouldn't be unusual.

The Brits have vehicles
out there that would
throw off E.M.Is.

Here's one that spiked.
Something electrical?

Something that would be
visible from above?

-I don't get it.
-Oh, I think I do.

It looks like the commander
just handed us

the winning evidence...

for the defense.

[Turner] It's not like
Colonel MacKenzie to be late.

Sorry, Your Honor.

Take your time, Colonel.

May we approach?

Yes.

As the court is well aware,
under Brady v. Maryland,

the prosecution is required
to turn over

all exculpatory evidence
to the defense.

AWACS' electromagnetic
impulse recordings

from the night of the incident.

Well, it's a little late for
Bradymaterial, isn't it,
Colonel?

Oh, we just received
the information this morning.

But I'm sure
the court will grant

a short recess
to allow you to digest it.

Well, ground fire wouldn't cause
electromagnetic impulses,

so I don't see what
relevance this has, unless...

whatever produced
the impulses

could be mistaken
as anti-aircraft fire.

Are you ready to proceed,
Commander?

Yes, sir, I am.
Thank you, Colonel.

Don't thank me, Commander.

Bring in the Members,
Marine.

Yes, sir.

It's called the Black Crow.

It's a sensor that
picks up and identifies
electromagnetic impulses.

Can you identify the sources
of these impulses?

Yes, sir.

Different equipment produces
different electronic signatures.

We can distinguish
a laptop computer

from a radar antenna
from a car's spark plugs.

In fact, sir, we can tell
a Cadillac from a Volkswagen
20 miles away.

Did the sensor pick up
any E.M.I. activity

on the ground the night
of the incident?

Yes, sir. There was an output
of approximately

one kilowatt from what turned
out to be the British position.

And could you identify
the source of the impulses?

They have the signature
of a Rolls-Royce R-7

gasoline generator, sir.

Did the impulses
hold steady?

There were three spikes

to ten kilowatts
within about five seconds.

What would cause spikes
in electromagnetic impulses?

The generator may have
sparked two or three times

when it went down, sir.

Did the sparks light up
the night sky?

Not from where
I was standing, sir.

-You were on the ground
in the Wadi?
-Yes, sir.

And the generator
was on the bed of
a truck above you?

-Yes, sir.
-Where was
Commander Ridley's aircraft

at the time
the generator sparked?

Directly above us, Commander.

And therefore directly above
the generator that was sparking?

Yes, I suppose so.

But that still does not excuse
what he did, sir.

Nothing further.

All rise.

Please be seated.

Will the defense please rise.

Will Senior Member
announce the findings?

Lieutenant Commander
David Ridley,

United States Navy,
this court-martial finds you,

on all charges and
specifications... not guilty.

[Rabb]
I want to thank the Members
and counsel

for completing their duties
with the highest standards

of professional conduct.

But before I adjourn
these proceedings,

Commander Ridley, although
you were not found guilty

of a crime
under the UCMJ,

I find that your conduct
in this matter

raises questions as to your
ability to fly in combat.

Accordingly, I'm recommending
to your commanding officer

that a Field Evaluation Board
be convened

to consider your future
as a Naval aviator.

This court is adjourned.

[gavel pounding]

[Chegwidden]
I assume your friends
at State

are doing damage control
with the British.

All the years as our allies,
no, that won't end in a day.

Of course it helps that
our pilot really did
see something

that looked like
anti-aircraft fire.

-The truth won out.
Hmm.

Everybody wins.

So it behooves us
to make sure

that such a tragic incident
can never again occur
on our watch, A.J.

More dollars spent on
communication technology,

command and control,
training...

that sounds
like the antidote to me.

Sounds like an appropriations
bill to me.

Bigger piece of the pie.
We all benefit.

Oh, Commander.

Mr. Secretary.

I just want to say that

your first assignment
to the bench was...

distinctive.

-A.J.
-Mr. Secretary.

-Colonel.
-Sir.

Have a seat.

I need to find someone
to serve as a judge

for a couple of months.
Any volunteers?

[Rabb]
You can count me out, sir.

Oh, Commander, I thought
you did a fine job.

Well, I don't know,
the colonel asked to have me

-removed from the case.
-I got over it.

I'm just not cut out
for it, sir.

I'm more of a hunter.

A hunter?

It's a metaphor.

The type to hit saber-toothed
tigers with sticks.

What this job requires
is someone

with patience and judgment.

Some-someone like,
uh, Mac, Colonel MacKenzie.

Oh, I think that's the nicest
thing you've ever said to me.

Well, let's see what he says
the next time

he has to appear before you,
Your Honor.

[closing theme music plays]