All language subtitles for law.and.order.s05e21.1080p.bluray.x264-segment

NARRATOR:
In the criminal justice system

the people are represented by two separate
yet equally important groups,

the police
who investigate crime

and the district attorneys
who prosecute the offenders.

These are their stories.

(ROCK MUSIC PLAYING)

| go out with my friends,
you get mad at me.

So, now | take you along,
and you get...

You actually like these people?
Yeah.

| grew up with those guys.

You got bigger.
None of you grew up.

Just get me a cab.
At 2200 a.m.?

We have to walk over
to the avenue.

There's a gypsy.

| know how to handle this.

Hey, pal.

Oh, jeez.

9 mm to the head,
blood all over the car.

(SIRENS WAILING) And we found this in a puddle on the
backseat.

Well, you got the shell casing.
How about the slug?

They're digging it out of the dash, along with
half this guy's brains.

Chauffeur license.

"Daniel Johnson,
111 West 114th Street."

That's it for ID. Wallet's gone
and cash box is empty.

I'm gonna hold onto this.

So, how long
has he been dead?

Well, the way the blood's settled,
about four hours, tops.

Around midnight.

Hell of a way
to greet the new day, right?

(DISPATCHER CHATTERING
ON POLICE RADIO)

Anything in there?

Well, that guy wasn't.

Bartender says he would've
remembered a black customer.

Are those the two kids
who found the body?

Yeah.

Hiya. How you doing?
You all right?

Yeah. Sandy's
a little shook up. Yeah.

When you came out, did you see anybody at all
out here on the street?

No, no one.

All right, now, did either one of you
touch that cab?

| Knocked on the window.
Tommy opened the front door.

Okay, if you
think of anything.

These radio cars, they pick up fares
that Yellow Cabs won't.

Hey, Logan.
Found this stuck in the visor.

"Daniel Johnson, Corporal.
Awarded the Purple Heart."

Desert Storm.

Compared to this, driving across the sand
in Kuwait

must've been a piece of cake.

Johnson's the 43rd cabby
killed in the last 12 months.

These guys have shorter lifespans
than fruit flies.

Especially the gypsies.

This one leaves behind a wife
and a six-year-old son.

You talk to
the driver's last fare?

Yeah, 69-year-old lady. Takes her home from her
bingo game every Monday night.

That was at 10:00, and the dispatcher said
he was headed home after that.

He was killed around midnight?
What was he doing for two hours?

Rickie, honey, go in Momma's room. You can
watch cartoons. Come on.

Come on, Rick. We're just gonna talk to your mom
for a couple of minutes, okay?

(RICKIE MUMBLING)

Okay.

| told him his father's
on a trip.

Do you ever catch
any of these robbers?

Well, that would depend on the circumstances
of the robbery.

What do you mean?

Well, for instance,

the dispatcher said your husband quit work
at 10:00 p.m.

So?

Well, we were wondering,
do you have any idea

what he might have been
doing at midnight?

Same thing he was
always doing.

He was working.

Radio cars aren't supposed
to pick up street fares.

But they do, huh?

| opened a restaurant
a year ago.

It's not making
any money yet. So, Danny...

We needed every dime
he could bring in.

Okay.

Now, could you describe
any valuables he had with him?

There's a chance that
they'll turn up.

They said you'd need this.

His watch, ring, credit cards. It's all there.
BRISCOE: Thank you.

(SIREN WAILING)

Cab robbery, huh?

That narrows it down to anybody
who went out last night.

Yeah, if it was
a cab robbery.

Well, you heard her. They needed the money.
He was working.

He was driving the company car around
for a couple of hours

late at night.

What he was doing and what he told the wife are not
necessarily the same thing.

He told me
he was going home.

His wife said he was
picking up fares.

The drill sergeant?
She says a lot of things.

She called here yesterday during Johnson's break
and bit his head off.

Maybe he didn't
want to go home.

So, the Johnsons
weren't getting along?

Money problems. The guy was always
nosing around for an advance.

Okay, so, to make ends meet, he picks up a couple of fares
after his shift is over.

No, we don't do street fares.
Radio calls only.

Look, Bryant, we are
not the Hack Bureau.

All we wanna know is what Danny Johnson
was doing last night.

| wanted to help the guy out.

| told him, "Keep the car. Earn what you can.
It's your license."

Isn't that a little dangerous?

BRYANT: Danny knew the risks.

Two months ago,
some punk pulls a gun on him,

and by some miracle
a cop catches him,

and he gets off with two years
for attempted robbery.

We'll talk to the governor.

Their car-wash policy
must be once every leap year.

There's a million overlapping
prints on that cab.

Well, what about
the ones on top?

Funny. | got some partials.
Bring me somebody's fingers.

This from the victim's pocket?
"3RF"?

HOECK: Yeah.

Three is the coat, right?
Right.

What are the keys
doing in his pocket?

If a robber pulls you over, even if you kill the engine,
the keys stay in the ignition.

Well, he must have been parked,
and he was getting out.

There's nothing to get out on the block for,
except Noonan's.

A black guy'd have to be awful thirsty to walk into
that bar at midnight.

Unless he's
meeting somebody.

| already told you yesterday, | didn't have a black customer
last night

or the night before that
or the night before that.

Yeah, well, we were just wondering
if maybe somebody here was waiting for him.

| pour drinks and listen to gripes.
| don't get their social calendars.

Danny, two drafts.
Irish, neat.

Okay, about midnight,
was anybody sitting alone

like they were waiting
for somebody to come in?

Sorry.
Yeah. Steve what's-his-name.

When he come out of the can, asked if anybody
was looking for him. You know.

BRISCOE: Yeah.
Steve what is his name?

You know how many Steves
we get in here?

You wanna give it a shot?

| don't Know. | might've been thinking
of somebody else.

Okay, well, | guess we'll
camp out here a few nights.

Let's interrogate anybody
coming through the door.

| wouldn't expect
much of a cash flow.

Steve Breck,

but you didn't
hear it from me.

Buddy of mine
was a no-show.

Took a dump, then | left.

Nice detail.

So that puts you outside Noonan's
around midnight, right?

| wasn't wearing a watch.

(DOOR OPENING)

Mr. Breck here's
a lonely guy.

He goes to bars and hangs out
in the men's room.

He's about to become
less lonely.

Your fingerprint matches
a partial on the cabby's door.

The front driver's side.

Partial?

So, that could be
a lot of guys.

Yeah, but you're the one with a record for assault
and loan sharking,

so it might as well be you.

| was waiting for Johnson.
He doesn't show.

So, | go outside.
There's his cab.

| open the door to check.
He's already dead.

How much was he
into you for, Mr. Breck?

You think I'm gonna whack a guy, so | meet him
at my neighborhood bar?

Maybe he promised to pay you and then
showed up empty-handed.

Yeah, so | kill him?
That'll make him pay.

How much, Mr. Breck?

Fifteen grand,
but | never saw any of it.

{KNOCKING ON DOOR)

The 2-0 has got a guy trying to use one of Danny Johnson's
credit cards right now.

Urban Footwear.

Well, | guess it's not him,
‘cause he's here.

He looked like a homeless.
You should see his socks.

His credit card lit up my machine. Past due,
over limit and stolen.

What did this guy do?

We'll let you know. Thanks.

| just wanted
a pair of wingtips.

Where'd you get
the credit card, Ronald?

It's mine.
Sorry it's overdue.

No, Ronald, the man whose name is on that card
was murdered last night.

| found it after the man
threw it out.

It's mine.
What man threw it out?

The big man.
In the dumpster.

Ronald, now, think hard, what did the big man
look like?

He had a snake. | saw it when he
took off his jacket.

He was carrying a shake?

On his T-shirt.

It said snhake.

It said a snake,
or it was a snake?

| don't know.

Ronald, can you take us
where this dumpster is?

Last time we sifted a dumpster, the investigating
officer got in here himself.

That's fascinating. | think you missed
a spot over there.

Santana, Abraxas. Who would wanna
take a bite out of that?

Hey, what's that there?

Extra large, green plaid

with lots of dried brown.

The blood on the jacket is
a 96% match with Johnson's.

Figures. Any hints
about the jacket's owner?

The trick was sorting through the crap
from the dumpster.

Most of that was on the surface, but ingrained
in the fibers, grease.

So, he spills his
french fries when he eats.

Industrial grease,
and something else.

Bits of this in the pocket.

Kind of looks like
Silly Putty.

Great. We look for
a gigantic first-grader.

It's plumber's compound.
Seals pipe threads.

Plumber?

That thing they clean out
drains with is a snake, right?

A picture of a snake
that said "Snake."

Big and bald? That would be
Charlie Kovac. Good plumber.

You know where
we can find him?

The pain in the ass calls me Tuesday morning and says
he's not coming in, ever.

Did he happen to mention
if he hit the lotto?

Maybe he's looking
for better health benefits.

He didn't share it with me.

Well, why don't you share
his home address with us?

The super says he saw him
go out about an hour ago.

He keeps this place about
as Clean as his jacket.

(DISPATCHER CHATTERING
ON POLICE RADIO)

Lennie.

You know anybody that eats their
Corn Flakes frozen?

Whoever told him to hide stuff in the freezer
got it mixed up.

It's supposed to be
diamonds in the ice tray.

And what have you got,
about $15,000?

Yeah.

If I'm not mistaken, Ben Franklin's face
is covered with blood.

The personal touch.

It's not easy,
all things considered.

Mrs. Johnson,
you recognize this man?

His name is
Charles Kovac.

We think he killed
your husband.

So, then, you got him?

No, but we're looking for him, and we're watching
his apartment.

We thought maybe
you could help us.

Your husband
ever mention him?

You think Danny knew
the robber who killed him?

That doesn't make any sense.

Actually, what doesn't
make any sense

is that your husband had $15,000 on him
when he was killed.

$15,000?

He was carrying it
to pay off a loan shark.

This has to be a mistake.

Forgive me, Mrs. Johnson, but | look around
at this place,

it must've been
pretty expensive to open.

Maybe your husband borrowed
the money for you?

| saved eight years
for this place.

I've got budget
to work through till 1999.

Until my name gets around, I'm lucky if | clear
a few hundred dollars a week.

So, maybe you needed
a little help.

You think a loan shark would wait five years
for his money?

Well, you were married to him,
Mrs. Johnson.

| mean, you didn't know
what was going on?

No.

{BRISCOE SIGHING)

Did your husband have any friends who might've
known what he was up to?

Danny had a lot of friends.

Yeah, I'm gonna miss the guy.

You couldn't be unhappy
when Danny was in the room.

What was it, his sense of humor
or his winning smile?

Danny was generous.

You ever hear how
he got his Purple Heart?

He's over in Kuwait

with a truck of Chinese-smuggled beer
that he's bought for $1,000.

He's got it sold to an officer's mess
for $2,000.

Meanwhile, I'm lying in a hospital bed
10 miles away,

so Danny detours
to drop off some freebies.

This takes him through a minefield. Boom!
Shrapnel in the foot.

Not much of
a business head, huh?

Danny would've
made it someday.

Problem was, he was living
like he already had.

One Saturday, when his wife was still working at
Contini's, Danny has the kid,

and the kid wants
to go fishing.

So, wife says take the two-hour cruise
off Sheepshead Bay.

Not Danny.
Danny charters a boat.

| caught six bluefish.

He was
the Miller High Life guy.

Never an empty glass when Danny Johnson
was in the bar.

It doesn't take too many boat charters
and rounds for the house

to run up some debt.

You think Kovac was hanging around and saw
the goodies flowing?

None of Johnson's friends
recognized the photo.

Kovac's only priors
are small-time possession.

Maybe there's a drug dealer
out there who connects them.

You know,
as far as we can tell,

the only thing that Johnson was addicted to
was a good time.

Anybody turn up Kovac?

Mmm-mmm.

He must've spotted
our stakeout and run.

Here, Kovac was arrested twice last year
at the same place.

A drug alley off East 110th Street.
What?

The guy lives in Chelsea.

He can get a fix
a lot closer than East Harlem.

Maybe he has
a home away from home.

(SIREN BLARING)

Come here. Come here.
Get against that wall.

Time to get up, Charlie.

LOGAN: Listen up, everybody!

We are conducting a drill.

And this is your
get-out-of-jail-free card.

It's good for your next bust to the first camper
who can tell us

where to find Charles Kovac.

How about you?

Come here.

| heard of Ernie Kovacs.

Cuff him. Operating heavy machinery
under the influence.

You. You got something
to say, huh?

| got a probation hearing
next week.

And you want them to know what a good citizen you are,
right?

| pledge allegiance
every morning. Me and Kovac.

Oh, yeah?
Come on, I'm listening.

(STAMMERING) He's got a lady.
Melanie something.

Yeah? Where?

Mike.

| tell you,
nobody's there.

The girl who live in this
apartment was away for weeks.

You got the keys?
Yeah.

(BABY CRYING)

(WOMAN YELLING)

Okay, ready?

{MAN YELLING)

(WHISTLES)

You think a lug like Kovac would blend in with this
color scheme?

He's blended into the rug,
all right.

| think Mr. Kovac has
snaked his last drain.

LOGAN: Oh, yeah.

Looks like they got him right in the heart.
Small caliber. Maybe a .22.

All right, seal up the building
and get CSU over here.

You go knock on
some doors, huh?

Somebody just saved
the taxpayers a lot of money.

Another dead body? Don't plan on
any long lunches.

Hey, I'm looking on the bright side. We just
solved the cabby case.

We're pretty sure
Kovac killed Danny Johnson.

Who's Kovac?
The new stiff.

So, who killed him?

Well, he had
a lot of junkie friends.

| mean, these guys
kill each other all the time.

So, don't you think the cabby murder
and Kovac's are related?

She's got a point. | was thinking about
our leg-breaker, Breck.

Johnson's brains
are all over the car.

You think that mook had to open the door
to see that he was dead?

He was looking for
his $15,000.

Which wasn't there.

If it was me, maybe | see somebody
booking down the street,

I'd want to find them,
get my money back.

So, why haven't |
heard from you?

You sick?
Should | have sent flowers?

You, go away. You...
Don't be a stranger.

Took me two days
to find that weasel.

A friend of yours
sent us to say hello.

Charles Kovac.
Name ring a bell?

He's tall. He's ugly.
He's got a hole in his chest.

Is this supposed to
mean something?

Yeah, he's the guy who stole Johnson's cash right
from under your nose.

And we think maybe
that made you mad,

and you went
and tracked him down,

same way you found
bozo over there.

Yeah? Well, | never
found this dead guy.

Well, we're still wondering
how Kovac got so lucky

to hit that cabby
when he was flush.

Why are you guys on me?

Johnson said he was getting
the money from his wife.

| tied her corporate checking to a non-collateralized
credit line.

She had a strong business plan, and character
still counts for something.

This jumbo credit card
you gave her,

did she withdraw
$15,000 on Monday?

No, actually, her husband came in. Said they were
redoing the electrical.

And you just
handed over $15,000?

In exchange for a check
signed by his wife.

Can we see it?

Of course.
| have a photo image.

Do you have any
previous checks?

Of course.

Look at that.
Go back to the first one.

{(LOGAN EXCLAIMS)

Not even close. What, did she write that one
with her left hand?

Guess it is a little bit off.

Yeah, by about 15 grand.

He wiped her out,
and she never even knew it.

Actually, | saw some activity
later that day.

Mrs. Johnson tried
to withdraw $200.

There's only $22
left in the account.

She knew, all right.

Johnson wipes out his wife's working capital.
She finds out.

An hour later, she calls him at work
and rips his head off.

And that leads you to murder?

This does.
We pulled up some LUDs.

Kovac called Mrs. Johnson three hours before her husband
was killed.

If they weren't talking murder,
it's a hell of a coincidence.

You think the wife told Kovac
where to find her husband?

How did she know?

Johnson's last fare
was a regular.

Every Monday night, from the bingo parlor
to Lenox Avenue.

Now, the wife might have
known about it.

So, Kovac followed him from Lenox Avenue
to Noonan's Bar, and bang.

Then what happened to Kovac?

Maybe he tried
to shake her down

after we took the money
out of the freezer.

Or the grieving widow didn't
want to leave a loose end.

Nice theory.
You got a witness? A weapon?

Kovac was shot with a .22. Nothing registered
to the Johnsons.

So, the whole thing
hinges on that phone call.

You ever consider that Kovac could have been
calling Mr. Johnson?

You better find out if he and the wife
ever crossed paths.

Maybe he fixed
her leaky faucet.

| got two busted drain pans,
a leaky water heater,

and some genius tried to flush his kid's Nintendo
down the toilet.

All we wanna know is if Charles Kovac
did a job for the Johnsons.

My kid tells me
to computerize.

| don't see it.

Well, maybe he did some work for her restaurant.
A place called Dee's.

Doesn't ring a bell.

Wanna read the book yourselves?
| got things to do.

Hey, what about this job?
Did Kovac work on this?

Yeah, that was him.

Contini's, the restaurant where Mrs. Johnson
used to work.

Eighteen years I'm here,

and all of a sudden they say my sprinklers
are not up to code.

That must have set you back.

Worse than the money,
those plumbers,

they had my kitchen
torn up for two weeks.

And Denise Johnson
was working here then?

Yeah, she was here
till she opened her own place.

I've been helping her out.
Giving her some advice.

This is for
the night deposits, right?

Yes.

You carry it out of here
without protection?

Nowadays?

BRISCOE: Uh-uh.

| have a license.

Yeah, but let me get this.

22

Did Mrs. Johnson have
a key to that drawer?

She was my hostess.
| trusted her.

And did she
return that key?

We've been through all this. I've got to pick up my son
from school.

You looked right at a picture of Kovac and told us
you'd never seen him before.

You know how many repair people
go through a restaurant?

But how many of them
end up killing your husband?

You don't believe
| loved my husband?

What do you want us
to believe, Mrs. Johnson?

You lied to us about Kovac.
You lied about the $15,000.

Now we found out you had access
to Contini's gun.

Maybe this man met my husband at the restaurant
when he picked me up,

and they got mixed up
in something together.

You told us all your husband
did was work driving the cab.

| didn't follow him around!

| have to pick up my son.

I'm telling you, she's got ice water
in her veins.

Maybe she just knows we don't have enough
to arrest her.

(BANGING ON DOOR)

It's a positive match. The gun from Contini's
killed Charles Kovac.

That ought to be enough.

For Kovac.
What about her husband?

Well, it's sort of
a boxed set, isn't it?

She knew her husband stole her money.
She had contact with Kovac.

We don't know what went on
between her and Kovac.

Yeah, because the best witness is dead
because she killed him.

We let her shoot her way
out of a murder charge,

we're setting a pretty bad precedent.
Do it.

(CHILDREN CHATTERING)

Mrs. Johnson.

What now?

This is Mrs. Lawson
from Children's Services.

She'll take care
of the boy.

What?

We'd just as soon not arrest you
in front of your son.

Rickie, Mommy has to
go out tonight,

so this lady, she's gonna baby-sit
for you, okay?

Okay.

It's okay.

Denise Johnson,
you're under arrest

for the murders of Daniel Johnson
and Charles Kovac.

You have the right
to remain silent.

Anything you say can and will be used against you
in a court of law.

Do you understand that? You have the right
to an attorney.

If you cannot afford...

Two victims,
two distinct crimes,

and you come up
with one suspect.

Do you people get tunnel vision from
breathing the air down here?

It doesn't take a genius to connect your client
to both these murders.

Eight other people had access to the gun
that killed Charles Kovac.

Five of them met Kovac while he was repairing
the sprinklers at Contini's.

Only one of them has a husband in Greenlawn,
put there by Kovac.

That's right.
He was put there by Kovac.

Three hours after Kovac
talked to Mrs. Johnson.

| never talked to that man.
My machine must have picked...

That phone call
lasted 10 seconds.

Enough time to hear
the greeting and hang up.

Or...

"Denise? Kovac.
Where and when?"

"Noonan's Bar, midnight."

Four seconds.

ELLIOT: As long as
you're fantasizing,

you wanna tell me again
why she killed Kovac?

He wanted more money?

He tried to blackmail her?

| see.

She had motive to kill Kovac because she hired him
to kill her husband,

and you know she hired him
to kill her husband

because she killed Kovac.

You're driving in circles, and the jury's going
to be very dizzy.

You might want to lend them
your adding machine.

JACK: As long as we lay out
the whole package, Adam,

her motives and means
are perfectly clear.

Right. You're gonna
bring charts and diagrams

and the dead junkie
accomplice,

while Elliot shows the jury
a hard-working black woman

who's just become
a single mother.

She really can't complain
about being a widow

after murdering her husband.

I'm sure the jury'll
appreciate your sense of humor

while they're trying
to figure out

why Mrs. Johnson
wanted her husband dead.

Even when we were kids,
Danny was the smart one.

| used to read to him at night, till he
started to correct me.

But your brother's the one who ended up
behind the wheel of a cab.

Anything else
might have required

concentrating on one thing
for two weeks in a row.

Danny didn't have
much follow-through.

His wife seems
pretty disciplined.

She wants what she wants. Up the ladder,
one rung at a time.

And Danny didn't
fit with the program?

Denise was the program.

Danny should have got out of there
a long time ago.

Why didn't she just
divorce him?

When she was getting started, she needed his signature
for the lease documents.

If she divorced him, she probably would have to
give him half the place.

Now she doesn't have
that problem, does she?

Look, Denise is
a businesswoman.

She finds business solutions
for her problems, not murder.

Her husband was a problem?

The last time he was here,
we had to ask him to leave.

Why?

If you don't tell me,
someone else will.

Danny sunk some money, Denise's money,
in a pyramid scheme.

He was supposed to get rich quick
by selling distributorship.

Danny lines up
half a dozen prospects,

brings them and their wives here
to close the deal.

Runs up a $1,500 tab.

Pulls six bottles of Chateau Margaux
from the wine closet.

$300, our cost.

And his prospects
still didn't buy?

They got
too drunk to talk.

We had a restaurant critic here from The Times
that night.

Danny's party made
so much noise, she left.

Mr. Contini,
when the New York Times critic

walked out of her restaurant
because of her husband,

did you see the defendant
shortly after that?

Yes. The next day.

In fact, I've never
seen her so upset.

And she did have a key to the drawer
where you keep your gun?

Yes, but so do the day manager,
the night manager

and my bookkeeper.

You don't think any of them
killed Charles Kovac, do you?

Of course not.

Thank you.

Day manager, night manager,
bookkeeper.

You left out owner,
didn't you?

| have a key to my own desk.

You also had an argument
with Mr. Kovac

that was so loud, one of your customers called the police.
Isn't that true?

The man was a pig.

| was losing enough business
because of the repairs.

| didn't need the mess
spilling into my dining room.

So, in effect, Mr. Kovac was taking money
out of your pocket.

To some people,
that's motive for murder.

Objection. This is not cross examination.
It's pure speculation.

Let's move on.

Was Danny Johnson what you would call
a regular customer?

He borrowed money
maybe half a dozen times.

At first, a grand or two.

Worked his way up to eight.

And how was Mr. Johnson able
to repay these loans?

Last time, | said,

"Eight grand is
a major obligation, Danny."

He says, "Don't worry.
The wife is good for it."

Thank you.

You said Danny Johnson
borrowed $8,000,

but the night he died, he was supposed to
repay you $15,000.

Well, there's interest.

Almost 100%?

Well, that's not legal, is it?

| don't know.
| didn't go to law school.

ELLIOT: | see.

When someone doesn't repay
an illegal loan,

what do you do?

| convince them it's in their interest
to make good.

Come on, Mr. Breck. What you do is
break people's legs.

Objection! Mr. Elliot
has no basis for this...

The People are not the only ones with
a theory here, Your Honor.

Overruled.
The witness will answer.

Break legs? No,

but a person could get hurt.

Okay. Did you ever
hurt Danny Johnson?

| never laid a hand on him.

On the night he was killed, his payment was
how many weeks overdue?

Three.

$15,000, three weeks late,

and you never
laid a hand on him?

Two murders,
two cross-examinations,

and this defense lawyer makes suspects
out of your own witnesses.

Aren't we lucky
this isn't on TV?

Elliot's just blowing
a lot of smoke.

| don't think
it's gonna go over.

Well, that's fine,
but you two are not the jury.

If any of them thinks
for one minute

that the restaurant owner
killed Kovac...

Or how about this?

A loan shark
killed Danny Johnson.

Now, that's called reasonable doubt.
Offer a plea.

| already did.
They turned it down.

ADAM: Of course they did.

Well, at least you've got
one redeeming factor.

And what's that?

Saving the citizens
a little money.

Losing two cases
for the price of one.

We've got Detective Logan
coming up on the stand.

He'll link Denise Johnson to Kovac and the gun
that killed him.

Mr. Kovac was
behind the couch here.

He'd been shot once in the chest with
a .22 caliber pistol

which we recovered
at Contini's Restaurant.

Did you obtain phone company reports
from Mr. Kovac's apartment?

Yes. They showed a phone call from Mr. Kovac
to Denise Johnson

on the day of
Danny Johnson's murder.

Thank you, Detective.

Did the police department make a recording
of that conversation?

We usually don't investigate
before a crime is committed.

Then you don't actually know that Mrs. Johnson and Kovac
ever spoke.

Detective, would you read the highlighted portion
of People's Eight,

your activity report.

"Mr. Johnson's death occurred in the course of
an apparent armed robbery."

A robbery.

And did you find the money
taken from Danny Johnson

during the commission
of that crime?

Yes, it was in
Mr. Kovac's apartment.

And that money, in a sense,

belonged to Mr. Breck,
didn't it?

Well, it was being repaid
to Mr. Breck's employers, yes.

At one point, didn't you suspect Mr. Breck
of killing Kovac?

We did talk to him.

In fact, you accused him
of being the killer.

That's a common
interrogation technique.

Sounds like a good one.

Detective Logan, why did you stop pursuing
other leads

in the murder
of Charles Kovac?

Because the phone call
from Mr. Kovac

and the gun we recovered
at Contini's Restaurant

both point to the defendant,
Denise Johnson.

JACK: Thank you, Detective.

Your Honor, at this time
the People rest.

The Defense moves, pursuant to
CPL Section 290.10,

for trial order of dismissal.

I'll hear from counsel
in 15 minutes.

A motion to dismiss at the end of the People's case
is pro forma, Your Honor.

If you think I'm wasting your time by asking
to hear this one argued,

you don't have to
say anything.

I've seen some blatant bootstrapping, Your Honor,
but this takes the prize.

Johnson's murder explains Kovac's?
Kovac's explains Johnson's?

So the evidence overlaps.
Since when is that a weakness?

Without calling
a single witness,

I've established alternate theories
for both murders.

Right. Dead-ending
in the police investigation.

Our theory is the only one
that explains both murders.

If you assume the existence of the very plot
you need to prove.

Jack Ruby guns down Oswald.

It might seem like whoever killed Kennedy
wanted Oswald silenced,

but only if you've already come up with
a conspiracy theory.

| have more than theory.
Two men are dead.

The defendant had access to the gun that killed
one of them.

KAYLIN: May | say something?

You're right, Mr. McCoy, the gun killed one of them,
Charles Kovac.

But regarding the murder
of Daniel Johnson, however,

the People have not made
a prima facie case.

I'm dismissing that count
of the indictment.

Now, that's the post holding up the People's
entire tent, Your Honor.

Without that charge, they don't have any case
against my client

for the Kovac killing, either.

Hold it. Ruby did kill Oswald.

Point taken.

The Kovac matter
will go to the jury.

Thank you, Your Honor.

Don't thank me yet.

You're gonna have to make your case
without any hint

that Mrs. Johnson was involved in the murder
of her husband.

| will so instruct the jury.

But, Your Honor...
What?

So, now we're trying a woman
for the murder

of the hit man she hired
to kill her husband,

but we can't mention
the husband.

Beef up the rest of the story, and dig up some hard
evidence on Mrs. Johnson

linking her to
the murder of Kovac.

To use how?
We rested our case.

At least we'll be ready
to punch holes in theirs.

Go over the ground again
with Briscoe and Logan.

What am | looking for?

An eyewitness
would be lovely.

Nobody saw Mrs. Johnson with Kovac. Nobody even
heard the gunshot.

Okay, what else
have we got?

We've got phone records, just that one call,
the gun at Contini's.

She was in the office,
but no one saw her take it.

Yeah, what's this?

It's an old attempted robbery
against Johnson.

Two months before
he was killed.

Okay, the robber put a gun behind Johnson's ear
and pulled the trigger.

The gun jammed. The robber took off on foot
with the gun in his hand.

He was caught by
a passing anticrime car.

Don't these guys usually ask for money
before they pull the trigger?

This one didn't.

It was a Monday night.

The shooter
flagged down Johnson

right after the bingo lady,
his regular Monday night fare.

Just like Kovac.
What are the odds of that?

We always figured Mrs. Johnson tipped Kovac
to the bingo lady.

Yeah, well, maybe
she tried this once before.

| tried to take
that cabby down,

and it didn't go right.

Just like | said
when | made my plea agreement.

Are you certain, Mr. Lattimer, you weren't trying to do
more than just rob him?

| would've played gin rummy with him,
except | didn't have the time,

you know what I'm saying?

We think you may have
wanted to kill him.

Read my label, miss.

Attempted armed robbery,
two-to-six. That's it.

If you were hired to kill that cab driver,
and you can tell us by whom,

we can change those numbers.

You want me to cop
to attempted murder, man?

No, that's all right.

That ain't good
for this black man's health.

We're not after you. We want the person
who hired you.

And if | give it up?

You can call a cab
and go home.

{SIGHS)

The cabby's wife.

Name?

Denise.

She gave me the address to his last fare.
Some old lady.

| waved him down.

| think I'm gonna make that
phone call now, all right?

Interesting.

Get this kid to confess
to a more serious crime,

and you reduce his sentence.

He gave us Denise Johnson.

Denise Johnson.

You're gonna charge her

with attempted murder for the first try
on her husband?

CLAIRE: | Know, a tough sell.

All we have is the uncorroborated testimony
of an accomplice.

Johnny-come-lately, you should have connected
her with this punk hit man

before you rested your case.

We'll petition the judge
to reopen.

Judge Kaylin, yeah.

Dismissed half your case
in the first place.

If | can't reopen, I'll put the hit man
on as a rebuttal witness.

Rebuttal to what?

I'll drag some statement out of Mrs. Johnson
on cross-examination

that he can rebut.

What cross-examination?

Your case is such a shambles

that the defense attorney would have to be
brain-dead to put her on.

She doesn't take the stand, your witness doesn't
take the stand.

Then, I'll just have to convince
the defense attorney

that it's in his best interest
to call Mrs. Johnson.

Best interest.

| see no grounds to reopen, Mr. McCoy.
The People have rested.

We'll hear from them again
in closing arguments.

Will Your Honor
please remind counsel

that those arguments may not refer to
any alleged conspiracy

between my client
and Mr. Kovac?

Don't worry, Brian.

We've changed
our theory of the case.

We'll be arguing that Mrs. Johnson killed Kovac
for revenge.

Revenge?

He killed her beloved husband.
She wanted to get even.

That's fiction,
and they know it.

We don't need your permission to present a different
motive to the jury.

The Court's already ruled that you can't mention
any testimony

regarding the murder
of my client's husband.

The jury must disregard
Mrs. Johnson's role

in the murder of her husband,
not Kovac's.

He's right, Mr. Elliot.

But there's no evidence that Mrs. Johnson knew Kovac
killed her husband,

so how can she avenge something
she didn't know about?

JACK: Black letter law.

The jury can infer that she had
the requisite knowledge

if they believe
she committed the act.

Right again.
If you'll excuse me,

I've got a jury sitting
on its thumbs in Part 27.

That's very cute, Jack.

But you forgot one thing.

Revenge only makes sense if my client was sorry
her husband was dead.

Well, the jury's going to hear
that that's not the case.

It was like
living in quicksand.

The more | tried to raise us up, the more
Danny dragged us down.

ELLIOT: You mean into debt?

Not just that.

Emotionally...

Danny's habits made
home life pretty shaky.

Mrs. Johnson, in all honesty,

how did you feel when you heard
your husband was dead?

| felt terrible.

He was my husband.

And how else did you feel?

Relieved.

And were you angry
at the man who killed him?

God help me,

| was not.

Thank you.

So,

your husband's murder
was a blessing?

No, of course not.

But you were better off
with him dead.

All | wanted was
to make something of myself.

For myself and my son
and my husband.

But your husband
was hardly helping.

He was the father of my child.
| did not want him dead.

| see.

You just didn't care much
one way or the other.

Redirect, Mr. Elliot?

No, Your Honor.
The Defense rests.

The People would like to call a rebuttal witness,
Your Honor.

Your Honor?

Approach.

What's this witness, Jack?

He will refute the defendant's testimony that she didn't
want her husband dead.

Now, how can he
possibly know that?

Because Mrs. Johnson hired him
to kill her husband.

Well, now, even if that's true,
it's irrelevant.

My client is no longer on trial
for killing her husband.

It goes to Mrs. Johnson's credibility.
That's always relevant.

Your Honor, this would be
extremely prejudicial.

Call your witness.
Now, just a minute.

(SIGHING)

Jack, can we meet?

This so-called hit man can take the stand
for one reason only,

to challenge
my client's credibility.

Judge Kaylin can instruct the jury
any way he wants.

They'll hear what
they need to, and you know it.

If they convict,
I've got grounds for appeal.

JACK: Mrs. Johnson,

nobody likes to
let a murderer walk.

The appellate judges
will know what you did.

What are my choices?

Man two.
She does three-to-nine.

She's lucky the death penalty
isn't the law yet.

Murder two.
15-to-life.

If you wait for the jury
to convict, it'll be 25.

| grew up
in a two-room apartment.

My mother sent me
and my sisters to school

with mashed potato sandwiches
for lunch.

| pulled myself above that.

No one helped me. Not Danny.

People thought
he was charming.

When he took that $15,000
from me, it was not charming.

Kovac, or the deal's off.

After the police found the money,
he called me.

He wanted cash
to get out of town.

| took the gun

and | went over
to his girlfriend's place.

He would have been on my back forever,
just like Danny.

(SIGHING)

{DOOR CLOSING)

She killed two men. Still believes they're
the bad guys.

They interfered
with her cash flow.

No, it wasn't about money.

Maybe it wasn't the motive, but it was
her cue for passion.