All language subtitles for Law.and.Order.S06E14.Custody.1080p.AMZN.WEB-DL.DDP2.0.H.264-playWEB_track3_[eng]

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.

Quentin Tarantino and
his buddies over there
were shooting a video.

They found him.

They were scoping the place
out a couple of hours before,
around 7:00.

They didn't notice
the deceased then.

We've been
canvassing
the area.

All right,
thanks, Kelly.

Let me know
if anything turns up.

Lawrence Bello, 47.
Lives in Syosset.

Not anymore.

$33.
All his credit cards.
And a wife.

Looks like
blunt-force
brain surgery, eh?

Probably took a header
into the climbing blocks.

CSU found some
blood and tissue
on the corner there.

What did he do,
slip on the ice?

With a little help.

He's got some bruises
on his neck.

Finger marks.

Probably got
grabbed
by the throat.

Big hands,
going by
the spread.

Detectives,
CSU's got something
across the street.

It's monogrammed,
initials LB.
Same as your vic, right?

Uh-huh.

The perp leaves the wallet,
but takes the briefcase?

What was
he expecting to find?I don't know.

Bello didn't look
like he was
carrying gold bricks.

Long Island Railroad
commuter pass,
Sporting News.

A screwdriver.

Might be the perp's.

The locks look like
they were jimmied.

Go ahead and bag it.

"New York Child Health
and Welfare Agency.

"Lawrence Bello,
case supervisor."

A social worker.

Yeah, the taxpayers
will be heartbroken.

The playground,
is it famous for its
after-hours recreation?

According to
the beat cops,

the worst thing that
goes on there is
some underage drinking.

Anyway, looks like
gambling was Mr. Bello's
vice of choice.

That Sporting News
we found in his briefcase,

he already had his picks
of the week circled.

He could have
been paying off a bookie
and come up short.

Or some nut doesn't like
the welfare system.

But the only prints
on the briefcase
belong to Bello,

and there's no prints
on the screwdriver.

Tradesman All-Pro.
Expensive item.

Professionals use these.
Plumbers, electricians.

There's a Mrs. Bello.
Wants to see you.

Usually, Larry takes
the 6:30 from Penn Station.

Yesterday, he called to say
he had a late appointment.

I assumed it was
about his kids.

His kids?

I mean,
his foster kids.

He took kids out of bad homes
and found families for them.

Can you think of
any reason why he was
in that park last night?

No. He didn't like the cold.
He was always getting sick.

Was he mugged?

We're not sure.

Mrs. Bello, did your husband
ever talk to you
about his gambling?

Gambling? He didn't gamble.
What makes you think that?

Well, we know he was
interested in sports.

No, he'd watch it on TV
and read the sports page.

Did any of
his friends
share his interest?

Larry and I didn't
socialize very much.
We had each other.

He was here for
a couple of hours
in the morning

and then he left
to do his fieldwork.

He was always
very busy.

How busy
with his gambling?

You know, you're not doing
him any favors by pretending
you don't know about it.

So? sometimes he liked
to talk about how many
points the Jets got

instead of how many
cigarette burns he found
on a five-year-old.

Some days,
this job...

How did he make out
with the betting?
Did he lose?

I wouldn't know.

He always seemed
on top of things.

You see what he had
in his briefcase
before he left?

The usual stuff.
I put his case files in
for his visits.

An appointment sheet.

Did he check in,
in the afternoon?

For his messages.

Um...

He got one from his wife,
one from our supervisor,
Mr. De Simio,

and one from
the Pattersons.

Who are they?Foster parents.

Mr. Bello kept playing
phone tag with them.
He needed to see them.

I didn't see their file
in his briefcase.

Well, he didn't
connect with them
until late afternoon.

The way he was talking,
I thought they were
candidates for an action memo.

Mr. Bello seemed
pretty angry with them.

You have an address?

"Patterson,
Henry and Sharlene.
300 2nd Avenue."

Three blocks from
where he was killed.

Sure, Mr. Bello was here.
He left just before 7:00.

Why, he do
something wrong?

Other than getting himself
killed in your neighborhood
last night, no.

Sharlene, take
the kids into their room
to play, okay?

Are they both fosters?

Just the little one.
Robbie is ours.

They told us
at Health and Welfare that
Bello had a beef with you.

Because we put
a deposit
on a new place.

We should have checked
with him first.

He said moving was
going to mess us up
with the agency,

that we might not
be able to keep
all our kids.

How many fosters
you have now?

Three.

Anyhow, we got it
all straightened out.

I signed some forms,
then Mr. Bello left.

That's funny, we didn't see
any forms with your name
on them in his briefcase.

He said he was
gonna come back
with some forms.

Uh-huh.

Where are the other
two kids, Mr. Patterson?

My sister took them
to a movie.

On a school night?

You know, I got
three kids myself,

and a whole pile
of winter clothes
by the front door.

Here? I hardly see
enough for two kids.

If I go into your kid's room,
I bet I'll find two beds,
two bathrobes,

just two
of everything.
Am I right?

Henry, what's going on?

He was just about
to tell us why you're short
two foster kids.

Sharlene,
don't say anything.

Yeah, maybe we'd all be
more comfortable not saying
anything downtown. Come on.

I swear to God,
I didn't kill Mr. Bello.

You know what, Henry?

Let's forget about Bello.
We want those kids.

I'm not saying
anything else.
I want a lawyer.

Fine with us.
Maybe Mrs. Patterson will be
a little more cooperative.

You can't talk to her
without a lawyer.

Hey, unlike you,
she's not a suspect.

She can leave
anytime she wants.

Now, how about it,
Mrs. Patterson?

You want to tell us
what your husband did
with those kids?

You know, if we find
out later that you had
anything to do with it,

they're gonna take
your son away.
You know what that means?

They're gonna
put him in foster care.

You leave her alone.

Hey, excuse me, you aren't
talking until your lawyer
gets here, remember?

So, shut up.

Now, what about
those missing kids?

There weren't
any other kids.

It was Bello's idea.

He made them up on
the computer and we pretended
to take them in.

And the state shoots you
a check 800 bucks a head
every month, right?

We only kept half.
We gave the rest to Bello.

He said it was okay.
He'd done it before.

It was going fine,
until we decided
to move to a nicer place.

Bello went crazy.

He said moving would bring
a whole new inspection
by the agency down on us.

He told us to
tear up the lease.

Then he left,
just before 7:00,
like I told you.

Virtual foster kids.

Yeah, after virtual sex,
it was only
a matter of time.

Their story makes
sense to you?

They confess to fraud
to avoid a murder charge?

Maybe. Or we're giving
them too much credit.

If Bello had
a gambling habit to feed,

chances are,
these aren't the only
foster parents on his team.

All those kickbacks.

He'd be walking around
with a lot of cash
in his briefcase.

Somebody knew.
Another parent
with virtual kids?

Book these two for fraud.
And find out who else
was working the scam.

I could spot
all the phony kids
in a half hour

if we were
directly hooked up
to birth records,

like we're supposed to.

They've been promising us
for two years.

They've been promising
to fix my chair for three.

This is gonna take days.

Look,
the first time somebody
gets a foster kid,

they get put under
a microscope, right?

Yeah, there's
a probationary period,
weekly inspections.

There's a whole battery
of people in the loop.

But not the second time
they get a kid?

Well, the foster home's
already approved.

There's less scrutiny.
Only one caseworker
is involved.

I'll check foster homes
with multiple placements,

cross-ref,
name Bello.

Here we go.

This doesn't make sense.
This file here, it's been
dormant for over a year.

Then yesterday
Bello downloaded it.

The same day
he was killed.
Whose file is it?

The Corbins.

Two fosters over a period
of four years. Then nothing
since a year ago.

And the file
wasn't in Bello's desk
or his briefcase.

Alan Corbin?

And who are you?

The police.
Do you mind
if we come in?

Lennie Briscoe.
What are you
doing here?

I'm working a homicide, Sal.
Larry Bello. And you?

Larry Bello from
Health and Welfare?

You know him?

He placed Alex with us.

Alex being...

Their adopted son.
He was kidnapped
this morning.

We'd just gotten to
the children's zoo.

Alex wanted to see
the polar bears.

I turned away for a second
and he was gone.

He's a good-looking boy.
How long have you had him?

Well, we signed
the adoption papers
about seven months ago,

and we had him as a foster
nine months before that.

Alex was a crack baby.

When he came to us,
he was so small,

so frail, but you see,
now he's just fine.

The ransom call
came in about an hour
after the abduction.

Now, the male voice,
sounded black to me.

How much do they want?

Nothing specific. Said the
boy was fine, and he would
call back with instructions.

You think that the same
people who killed
Mr. Bello took Alex?

Uh, could be
a coincidence.

We looked at everybody
who ever set foot
in the Corbin's house.

Maids, tradespeople,
but a social worker? Come on.
That's a new one on me.

If Bello was in on
the kidnapping, what's he
doing in the morgue?

After he gave his partners
the Corbin's address,

maybe they got greedy,
they cut him out.

This isn't about money.

You got one call
eight hours ago.
Didn't even name a price.

What do you think
it's about, Rey?

Well, when kids
are adopted, their files
are sealed, right?

To protect the
birth parents' privacy.

And the kid's.

If the birth parents
are trying to find Alex,
Larry Bello is the man to see.

No, the mom
is a pipe head.

That's been known to dampen
the maternal instinct.

Yeah, but a man killed Bello.
A man made the ransom call.

We could be
looking at the father.

What the hell?
Wonder Boy might be right.

I'll look into it.No, we'll look into it.

We caught the homicide, Sal.
That makes me
and Wonder Boy the primary.

Your deceased is
not gonna go anywhere.
I've got a missing kid.

Put them back in your pants,
gentlemen. There's enough
work to go around.

Detective Martel, talk to
the Corbins, see what they
know about the birth parents.

You two get over to
Health and Welfare,
get that boy's file opened.

You know what happens to me
if I let you guys see the file
without a judge's say-so?

You mean besides
having dinner on us
at The Palm?

That'll make a nice
change from standing
in the unemployment line.

We don't have time
to suck up to
a family court judge.

Now, you give us the name
of the kid's parents,

we promise
nobody will know
where it came from.

Sorry, I can't do it.
I could get sued.

Now, you listen to me!
If we get to that kid
too late because of you,

a lawsuit's gonna be
the least of your worries.

Rey. Rey,
take it easy.

Listen, we're not trying
to get you in any trouble.

Just, uh, point us
in the right direction,
you know?

You said the mother
was a crack addict?

When Bello put her kid
in the system,
he would have referred her

to one of six rehab clinics
we have under contract.

A referral from Larry Bello
16 months ago?

Even if I had time to look,
those files are in storage.

Well, maybe this will help.
It's a photo of her son.
His name's Alex.

Oh, yes. I've seen
a baby picture of him.

I remember because
of the raspberry birthmark
on his wrist.

You know
the mother's name?

Mays. Like Willie.
Jenny Mays.

Attitude to spare. She said
the kid's name was Jamal.

What about the boy's father?
She ever mention him?

She hardly even
mentioned the boy.

I practically had to beg her
to show me a picture of him.

Any idea where
we could find her?

No.

She was in and out
of here for a few months.

Then she came down
with pneumonia.
We sent her to Mount Sinai.

That's when the state
terminated
her parental rights.

That must have
boosted her morale.

Standard operating procedure.

She showed no interest
in her boy.
The state had to do something.

What about calling
her next of kin?

She mentioned she had
people in Springfield,
Massachusetts.

I'm sure they tried
to contact them.

You want to find her,
try Mount Sinai. They'll have
her Medicaid records.

Monroe.

Jenny Mays.
Lived in 2D.

Chipped two tiles
in the bathroom.

I could have charged
her for it, too,
but I didn't.

She moved out five
months ago. The hospital
gave you this address?

That's right.

Well, she didn't
look sick.

She didn't have nothing
catching, did she?No.

Did she leave
a forwarding address?

Uh-uh.

Most likely living
with her boyfriend.

He came by
a couple of times
to pick up her mail.

He got a name?

Michael.
Nice looking boy. Big.

Did Jenny
have a job?

Well, she used to work
a register at Loehmann's,

but she quit that
before she moved.

I'm told she
got a better job
somewhere else.

All right,
let's try it
this way.

When she
paid the rent,

do you remember
what bank
her check came from?

Checks?
I don't take checks.
Hard currency only.

Except for one month,
I did let her pay in trade.

What did she do,
bake cookies?

My fuse box sparked out.
Her boyfriend replaced it.
Got me a new one at cost.

He's an electrician.

Now, where
does he work?

Well, there's a sticker
on the fuse box
with a phone number on it

in case
I need service.
Come on.

We're looking for
a Michael Walters.

Over there.

Hey, Mikey.

What did I do, man?
What did I do?

Nothing,
until you cut out.

Michael Walters,
you are under arrest
for obstruction.

You have the right
to remain silent.

He's not my boy.

But you helped Jenny
take him, right?

No. I didn't even know
she had a kid.

So what, you ran
just to give us a workout?

Call it a survival reaction.
Pale faces, dark suits.
Usually bad news.

Hey, you want
real bad news?

He dropped his screwdriver
next to
Larry Bello's briefcase.

A Tradesman All-Pro,
just like
the rest of his set.

Just like a lot of tools
sold in this city.

Well, it was enough

to get us
a search warrant
for his apartment.

We got people
in there right now.

Oh! Rey, I don't
think Mikey likes it.

Help yourself
out, Mr. Walters.
Tell us where the boy is.

Michael, don't say anything.

He's with Jenny, right?

Where are they?

I don't know
what you're talking about.

Curtis.

Uh-huh.

Okay, thanks.

That was
Detective Martel.

He just found a pair of shoes
in Mr. Walters' apartment.

Matches the footprints
found at the playground.

And guess what?
There was blood
on the soles.

Give us a minute.

Thanks for the call.

I knew it sounded
too good to be true.

Martel did call from
Walters' apartment.

Confirmed
Jenny lived there.

He's staying put
just in case she turns up.

In the realm
of the "what if,"

Bello agreed to sell
Jenny Mays an address.

She asked my client
to act as go-between.

Then Bello upped the ante,
there was a scuffle.

Oh! I get it.
The whole thing
was an accident, huh?

Yes, it was.

He pleads to man two,
minimum sentence.

And we get Alex Corbin.

He'll help you
any way he can.

I'll make a recommendation
to the D.A. Now he talks.

Jenny took him
to my sister's.

Please, don't hurt her.

Jenny Mays?No, I'm Darla.
Darla Walters.

Where are they?

Where are who?
What's going on?

Hey, Darla, you want to
join your brother Michael
down at the station?

Just keep being
a wiseass.

She left about
an hour ago with her boy.
She took her suitcase.

Going where? Where?

She called a cab.
I heard her say
Port Authority.

She's got family
in Massachusetts.Keep an eye on her.

We caught it
just as it left
the terminal.

We kept the passengers
on board.
Not a happy bunch.

Thanks.

Hey, kiddo.
Are you Alex?

His proper name
is Jamal.

And you're Jenny.

Don't worry, Jamal,
everything is going
to be all right.

Stand up, please.

Jenny Mays,
you're under arrest for the
kidnapping of Alex Corbin,

for the murder
of Lawrence Bello.

You have the right
to remain silent.

Unless they changed
the rules since I sat on
your side of the table,

felony murder
requires a felony.

Try kidnapping, Paul.

In the commission
and furtherance of which,
Larry Bello was killed.

Mike never told me
what he did.

I didn't find out
until I heard it
on the news.

He was your accomplice.
Share the crime,
share the time.

An accomplice to what?
She had no intention
of kidnapping her son.

She just wanted
to see him.

I was a sick junkie
when they took him
away from me.

I never got to say goodbye.

You were saying goodbye
all the way to Springfield?

She saw her boy on the street,
she was overcome by emotion.

She took him.
Chalk it up
to maternal instinct.

That doesn't explain
the ransom call.

I only wanted to
let the Corbins know
Jamal was okay,

so that
they wouldn't worry.

Look, Jack, you've
got a dead, corrupt bureaucrat
and his confessed killer.

I've got a reformed
drug addict,

with a good job,
who's only guilty
of wanting her son.

Offer us
something reasonable.

I'll let you know.

For the record,

we'll take custodial
interference and
a suspended sentence.

If I don't hear from you
by tomorrow, I'll prepare
my motion for dismissal.

I imagine you already have
a draft in your briefcase.

She just wanted to see him.
That's all it was about.

We didn't scheme
any kidnapping.

You told the Corbins
you were
after ransom money.

We didn't want money,
she just told me to call them,
to throw them off.

She thought of that,
and you expect us to believe

that she didn't think
of kidnapping her son
until she saw him?

Well, if she told me
she was gonna kidnap him,

I never would
have helped her.

I don't want kids.
She knows that.

We are done talking,
Mr. McCoy.

We were promised a deal.

No deal until
he tells us the truth.

He lied about her leaving
town, and he's lying now
about her involvement.

I didn't know
she was taking the bus.

She must have
just panicked, that's all.

Look, I told you all
everything I know.

Me and Jenny didn't
set out to hurt nobody.

Things just went wrong.

She's laying
the murder
on her boyfriend.

As long as he keeps
lying for her,
she might get away with it.

This is giving me
a headache.

Drop the felony murder.
See if she'll take
a plea on kidnapping.

Paul's asking for
Custodial Interference
and no jail time.

It's not acceptable.

Split the difference.

Split the difference?
Have you read the file
on Jenny Mays?

I'm sure I'm about
to get a synopsis.

Crack addict
since the age of 17,
in and out of rehab.

Arrests for vagrancy,
petty larceny, possession.

So far,
par for the course.

When Child Welfare
was called in
18 months ago,

they found her son
lying in his own filth.

He'd been crying
for 10 hours straight, while
she was out buying drugs.

He was malnourished,
underweight,
covered with rashes.

If they hadn't
taken him away from her,
he'd be dead.

And if the police
hadn't found her,

who knows what fresh hell
she would have
put him through.

She's not charged
with being a lousy mother.

Her story doesn't
make sense, Adam.

I'm not giving her a walk
for lying to us.

You think she premeditated
the kidnapping, prove it.

Before Paul
throws the charges
back in our face.

This is her desk. The police
said they'd be by today
to pick up her things.

I never thought
I'd see her
on the 6:00 news.

She talk to you
about Jamal?

Just that she put him up
for adoption because
of a medical situation.

An addiction to crack.
Past tense.

Not Jenny?
Well, she certainly
kept that to herself.

She ever mention
wanting him back?

No. I wasn't
that close to her.

She was taking her son
to Springfield
when she was arrested.

Did you see any signs
that she
was planning to leave?

She mentioned Springfield
a couple of weeks ago,

when I helped her
change the direct deposit
on her paycheck.

She was moving
her account from

the Credit Union
to the bank
on Union Square.

I don't get
the connection.

There's a branch
in Springfield,
where her parents live.

She said they only had
social security to live on.

She wanted to
send them money every month
to help out.

She was in a rush
to get the paperwork done.

She's meticulous.
She was skipping town,

but not without making sure
she'd get her last paycheck.

Paul will argue
the bank move was to
support her parents.

Only makes her
halo shine brighter.

The only people
wearing halos
would be her parents.

I checked with the county
registrar in Springfield.
They're both dead.

Good going, Claire.

It's still only
circumstantial evidence
of premeditation.

We need to
back it up.Her boyfriend.

Unless Jenny
never told him.

It wouldn't surprise me.

You're making this up.

Look at the date
stamped at the bottom.

She opened the account
a full week before
she kidnapped Alex.

But she would
have told me.

Mr. Walters, all this lying
on behalf of Jenny is noble,

but it's just
putting you
in a very deep hole.

I can't believe
she didn't tell me
what she was doing.

Okay, so she played him.
You here to rub it in?

Actually, we were
hoping that she had said
something to him.

What about Larry Bello?
What did
she tell you about him?

She knew
he might get hurt.

He said he wanted
a grand for the address,
so she scraped it together.

An hour before the meeting,
he said he wanted 2 grand.

Jenny flipped out.

She told me
she wanted that address,
whatever it took.

Including murder?No.

We thought I might
have to scare him,
but not kill him.

I wouldn't be seeking
a dismissal if I thought
my motion had no merit.

I prosecuted dozens of
felony murder indictments.

I know the requirements.
This crime
doesn't meet them.

It's textbook. It takes
a felony, in this case
a kidnapping,

and a murder
during the commission
of that felony.

The intent to kidnap
wasn't formed at
the time of the murder.

They're separate crimes.

Referring to the moving
affidavits, Your Honor,
Ms. Mays made preparations

to leave the state
with her son a week prior
to Mr. Bello's death.

That evidence
can be interpreted
any number of ways.

She spent her last dime
to get the boy's address.

It wasn't just
to say hello and goodbye.

Whatever plans she had,
she did not communicate
them to her boyfriend.

How can his killing Bello be
in furtherance of a kidnapping
he wasn't even aware of?

His knowledge isn't important.
Ms. Mays was
calling the shots.

She told Walters
to get the Corbins' address
by any means necessary,

including
the use of force.

That's enough for me.

Mr. Robinette,
your motion is denied.

The charges stand.
Voir dire to begin tomorrow.

Judge, can we go
off the record here?

Tomorrow, I intend
to move to recuse you
from this case.

On what grounds?

Your bias
against my client.

Three years ago,
over dinner at Elio's

you said all drug addicts
should be rounded up
and sterilized.

I don't remember saying
anything of the kind.

I do.
And if I subpoena him,
so will Ben Stone.

We nearly
fell off our chairs
when you said it.

You can either
recuse yourself now,

or after your views on
forced sterilization become
a matter of public record.

Let's do this
by the book, Paul.
I want a hearing.

Thank you, Mr. McCoy.

For the record,

I won't be available
to hear this case.

I'm sending it back
to Part 40
for reassignment.

Congratulations, Paul.
You just bullied a judge.

I'm a bully?

I don't have 500 attorneys
in my office,
or a $200 million war chest,

the power to investigate
and arrest any citizen,

and a well-armed
police force
to back it up.

That's you, Jack.
You're the biggest badass
on the block.

Ben Stone. He's traveling
in Europe. He's not available
to testify at any hearing.

Paul knew.

Yeah, pure poker.

He caught a break
with the new judge.
Lisa Pongracic.

Permanent resident
of the Great Society.

No breaks.

I'm sure
Paul checked the roster
before making his move.

You talk to him
about a plea?

I offered him man one.
He won't even discuss it.

Paul knows
how it works.

If we go to trial,
we'll have to
seek the maximum.

Murder two.

Whatever his reasons,
I think a trial
is exactly what he wants.

Jenny Mays sent her boyfriend
to beat an address
out of Lawrence Bello.

Then she followed Alex Corbin
from that address
and kidnapped him.

She says that
she never thought
to kidnap him

until the moment
she saw him on the street.

The evidence says that,
that was
her intent all along.

If, after you've heard
all the testimony, you think
she's telling the truth,

you must find her
guilty of kidnapping.

If you think
she was lying,

then you must also find
her guilty of murder.

Mr. Robinette will ask you
to feel sorry for Jenny Mays.

That's all right,
you can feel sorry for her.

But don't forget that
there is a dead man here

and a grieving family.

And don't forget
Alex Corbin was abducted

by the woman
who got him addicted
to crack in her womb,

who neglected him
in ways that will
turn your stomach,

and who finally
abandoned him
to the care of strangers.

So, go ahead
and feel sorry
for Jenny Mays...

But never forget
who the real victims
are here.

The People's case
rests on one word,
kidnapping.

They use it to describe
what my client did.

They could have
used other words.
Custodial interference.

Restitution. Justice.

That's right, justice.

But they're stuck on
kidnapping. They say
she planned it all along.

They're right. She did.

But it doesn't matter,

because the real
kidnapper here
is the state of New York.

It stole Jamal Mays
from his mother,

and gave him
to a white family,
to raise as a white child.

Now, over
the next few days,

I'm going to
talk to you about racism
in this country.

About black children
lost in white America.

I'm going to show you
how trans-racial adoption

has become the code word
for the cultural genocide
of African-Americans.

Now, you won't hear this
from them. They don't
want to talk about race.

Because they are good,
moral people,

they'll concede there is
racism in America, and,
oh, what a shame that is.

But they'll never concede
it has any bearing on what
happens in this courtroom.

Or in the district
attorney's office.

I know, because
I worked in that office
for seven years.

And they won't point
the finger at the Child
Health and Welfare Agency,

because one hand
washes the other.

Because they're all a part
of the same racist system.

I'll lay the facts
out before you.

Then it's up to you
to right the wrong

that was done
to Jenny and Jamal Mays.

The zoo had just
opened for the day,

and I stopped at the
concession stand to
buy Alex some hot cocoa.

Just like that,
he disappeared.

And what did you do?

Well, I went crazy
looking for him.

The whole time
he was gone, I couldn't
sleep, I couldn't eat.

I just prayed
he'd come back to us.

When Alex was first
placed in your home,
what condition was he in?

He was underweight.
He was always sick.

He was difficult to feed.
He never cried.

He didn't know more
than a couple of words.

He was 20 months old
and he couldn't
even walk without help.

And now?

I can hardly
keep up with him.

He knows his numbers
up to 20.
He talks constantly.

He's as normal
as our other child.

Thank you.

You sound like
an excellent mother,
Mrs. Corbin.

Tell me,

why did you change
Jamal's name?

Alex is my
father's name.

I wanted to make him feel
like he was
a part of the family.

Did you ever consider
Jamal might have been
his father's name?

No. I didn't know anything
about his parents.

So, when he grew up
and asked you
about his roots,

what were you
going to tell him?

I don't know.
His file was sealed.

All they told me
was his mother
was a crack addict.

Then you didn't know his
grandfather was a
cabinet maker in Springfield.

No.

Or that his mother's
great-great grandmother

rolled bandages
for the Union Army.

Or that her uncle was
a surveyor for the
Union Pacific Railroad.

You couldn't tell him
about any of those people.

No. Because I wasn't
allowed to know.

But you could tell him
his mother
was a crack addict.

They didn't take
Alex away from her
because of me.

She couldn't take care
of herself, let alone
a defenseless baby.

Then why didn't they
take away your daughter
five years ago,

after you were arrested
for driving under
the influence of drugs?

Objection.

In my chambers.

Donna Corbin was
hooked on pain killers
for three years.

When the police
pulled her over,

she had her
two-year-old
in the back seat.

There's
a record of this?

Well, thanks to
Mrs. Corbin's lawyers,
the record was expunged.

But Mr. McCoy
can confirm the facts,

even though
he didn't submit them
for discovery.

It's not Rosario
material. It's irrelevant
and prejudicial.

It dramatizes
the double standard that
victimizes my client.

White drug addicts go to
Betty Ford while their kids
stay with nannies.

Black addicts
wait months for a bed
in a rehab clinic,

while their kids
are hijacked by the Child
Health and Welfare Agency.

This is all
a smokescreen.

Your Honor,
even if it were true,
it's a generalization.

Mr. Robinette can't apply it
to the specifics of this case.

Why not,
if the shoe fits?

You're practicing law,
not social science.

I'm fighting for my client.

You're playing chicken
with your client's future.

To prove what?Gentlemen.

Your Honor, I want defense
counsel's last question
to Mrs. Corbin stricken.

And I want
special instructions
given to the jury.

Denied, Mr. McCoy.
You can deal with it
in your closing.

I've been
a supervisor

in the Child Welfare Agency
for 15 years.

I can tell you that
our agency's standards

are the same for everyone,
regardless of race.

Black parents whose kids are
in foster care get the same
breaks as white parents.

Normally, how long is a child
in foster care before
he's put up for adoption?

We try to hold off
for about a year,

you know, to allow
the birth parents to get
their act together.

Well, according
to his records,

Jamal Mays was in foster
for only nine months.

Why the rush?

I really don't know,
but it's not appropriate
and it's not policy.

Is it policy to place
black children
with white families?

We encourage same race
adoptions, but that's
not always an option.

Our primary concern
is finding a home
for these kids.

Regardless of race.DE SIMIO: That's right.

Then tell us, how many
white children has your agency
placed in black homes?

For adoption?

I can't think of any.

When your agency
went to Family Court

to sever Ms. Mays'
parental rights,
did you notify her?

We certainly did.

We sent her a notice
by registered mail.
We have her signed receipt.

If she wanted
to oppose the severance,
what's the procedure?

That's spelled out
in the letter.

She could write us,
call us.

Sometimes parents
just show up in court.

What did Jenny Mays do?

There's no record
she did anything.
We never heard from her.

Thank you.

Black mothers are
programmed for failure
by foster agencies.

They're less likely to
get long-term housing
than white mothers,

less likely to get
help finding a job.

With what result,
Dr. Simmonds?

If they can't establish
stable homes, they don't
get their kids back.

Meaning, a disproportionate
number of black children
are funneled into adoption.

And what
happens there?

Adoption agencies
restrict the pool
of adoptive parents

by setting standards
which white couples
are more likely to meet.

Why is that?

They have the jobs,
the education,
the resources.

Sounds like an ideal
environment for
a black child. Any child.

My research
doesn't bear it out.

I tracked a group
of black children
raised by white families.

As adults, they're typically
low-achievers, at risk for
suicide and substance abuse.

Having read
Jenny Mays' file,

is it your professional
opinion that the Child
Health and Welfare Agency

acted in Jamal Mays' best
interests when they placed him
with a white family?

No.

Doctor, are you saying
that Jamal Mays

will grow up to be
a low achiever if he stays
with the Corbins?

Yes, probably.

Because he's a black child
raised in a white family?

Yes.

Not because he was born
addicted to crack

and then neglected and
malnourished for the first
18 months of his life?

Well, that might
have an effect, yes.

Paul started
an avalanche.

Black and white adoptions
are suddenly everybody's
favorite whipping boy.

Right along
with this office.
Let's end it.

Get in touch with Paul.
See what he'll take.

I know what he wanted
before cultural genocide made
the front page of The Post.

I don't see why
he'd back off now.

You won't find Paul Robinette
hawking bean pies
for Louis Farrakhan.

Maybe not,
but something
has changed.

He's still a lawyer.
Make him a reasonable offer,
he'll take it.

And what should I do?

The way Jenny Mays
lost her son was tragic.

What she did
to get him back
was criminal.

Maybe your jury won't think
that exercising the
maternal instinct is a crime.

Read the statutes.
Check the case law.

Find something
you can live with.

Then somebody have
a conversation with Paul.

Scotch and water.

I talked to Jenny.

We're gonna
pass on the offer.

I'm sorry
to hear that.

The system made her
a criminal.
She doesn't belong in prison.

That's a political
position, Paul,
not a defense.

It's using institutional
racism to justify
murder and kidnapping.

Racism doesn't exist
in a bubble, Claire.

It forces
its victims to live in
a different reality.

Look at us. A black
man and a white
woman having a drink.

Now, how many white men
in this room have
taken note of that?

How many of
them disapprove?

And what are they
going to do about it?

In Manhattan?
That's not something
I'd worry about.

In the Manhattan I live in,
I'd be stupid not to.

So, thanks to the bigots,
every black criminal
has a ready-made excuse?

Not an excuse.
A mitigating factor.

And we end up with
verdicts that are
about race, not justice.

Everything's
about race, Claire.

And all of our goodwill
is not gonna make
a damn bit of difference.

It's a school night.

Okay, Paul.

But this conversation
is not over.

What did you think

when you read the notice
telling you
about the adoption?

The nurse had
to read it to me.

I was on antibiotics
for the pneumonia.

I was running a fever.

It just didn't seem real.

Why didn't
you oppose the adoption?

I didn't know
any lawyers.

But I was sure they couldn't
just take Jamal away from
me without talking to me.

Once you got out
of the hospital,
what did you do?

I was off drugs,
and I got a job,
found a home.

And I talked to Legal Aid
about getting Jamal back.

They told me
it could take years.

So I called Mr. Bello.

What did
he say?

He wouldn't tell me
where Jamal was.

He said he wasn't
even allowed to
tell me anything

about the kind
of people
he was living with.

But he did
finally agree to tell you?

Yes, for a lot of money.
I'm not rich.

But I never meant for
Michael to hurt him.

Just scare him,
so he'd give us
the address.

Tell us what happened
when you went
to that address.

I saw Jamal
with Mrs. Corbin,

and he was
beautiful.

He'd grown up so much.

Mrs. Corbin took
good care of him.

But that doesn't
give her any more rights
than me. I'm his mother.

He has my blood,
and he has my skin.

I bore him
into the world,

and I'm the one
who can help him become
a proud black man.

There is just no way
a white woman,

no matter
how smart and rich
and decent she is,

could do that for him.

Thank you, Jenny.

You wanted
your son back

even before you knew
where he was living,
is that right?

Yes.

Even before you knew
the Corbins were white?

Yes.

What if the Corbins
had been black,

would you still
have wanted Jamal back?

Yes.

Then this isn't
about race, is it?

I had to get him back.
They stole him
away from me.

They took him away from you
because you were a junkie,

who would rather smoke crack
than change his diapers,
isn't that right?

I'm not
like that anymore.

No. Now you're someone
who causes a man's death,

who abducts a child
from the streets,

who makes ransom calls
to his parents.

I had no choice.

What about Legal Aid?

Didn't they tell you
that you had a chance

to win custody back of
Jamal through legal means?

That was going
to take too long.
He'd be all grown up.

By then it would
be too late.

Too late for what?

To make up
for what I did to him.

You felt guilty?

Yes.

So you tore this little boy
from a good home,

just to make
yourself feel better?

No, I did it for him.
I wanted to
take care of him.

How?

You quit your job,
isn't that right?

Yes.

You had no home,
did you?

No.

No means of support.

You weren't thinking
of him, you were
thinking of yourself.

Of your needs.That's not true.

Just like you were thinking
of your needs whenever
you lit up a crack pipe.

You're twisting my words.

I am his mother.

I have a natural right
to be with him.

Whatever it takes?

Ms. Mays,
is satisfying your needs
so important

that it justifies
taking a man's life?

Objection.

Is it worth
your son's future?

Sustained. Mr. McCoy.

I have no more questions
for this witness.

Madam Foreperson,
I understand there has been
no change in your situation.

Is that correct?

Yes, Your Honor.

You've only been
deliberating
for three days.

Are you absolutely sure
you can't work
past this deadlock?

We need clarification
on the law, Your Honor.

Can we find
the defendant guilty
on the murder count

even if we don't
find her guilty
of the kidnapping?

She's charged
with felony murder.

You cannot convict on the
murder without convicting
on the underlying felony.

Then, Your Honor,
I don't think we'll be able
to reach a verdict.

Your Honor, I think
an Allen Charge to continue
deliberations is appropriate.

It's delaying the inevitable.
I'm declaring a mistrial.

The jury is dismissed.

Counsel, I want to hear from
you by the end of the week
about a new trial date.

My last offer
still stands.

Hmm.

Well, I'll talk
to my client.

I'll make it work.

I didn't want it
to go this far.

I wanted the jury
to send a message,
and they did.

They sent us
both a message.

You're a long way
from the district
attorney's office.

Ben Stone once said
I'd have to decide if I was
a lawyer who is black,

or a black man
who is a lawyer.

All those years,
I thought
I was the former.

All those years
I was wrong.