All language subtitles for Law And Order S22E11 1080p WEB h264-TRUFFLE (1)_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.

[distant sirens wailing]

[glass shattering]

[tense music]

* *

- Yo.

Yo.

* *

Hey!

[dramatic music]

Yo, what you running for?

Hey!

- Early bird runner
found him laying here.

- Approximate time of death?

- MLIs put it somewhere
between 2:00 and 4:00 AM.

- Witnesses?
- None so far.

- Yeah,
nobody sees nothing, huh?

- Eh.

- [grunts]
Blunt force trauma?

- That'd be my guess.

- ID?

- Derek Stanton.

- Still got his cash.

Any indication that
the body was moved here?

- The way the blood has
pooled and the spatter

on the pavement, I think
it all happened right here.

- My boy had quite
the rap sheet.

Just got out of Fishkill
nine months ago.

- What was he in for?

- Selling marijuana.

Served four years.

- Four years for selling weed?

- Crazy.

- Times have changed.

[dramatic music]

* *

Surveillance footage from
the park near the crime scene

shows a guy wailing on Stanton.

But it doesn't capture
the whole thing.

- Damn.

Do we have any better video
than this?

- It's the only video we got.

There weren't many cameras
in the area.

- I can't even make out his
face or even a skin color.

- But it's clear that
the assailant and Stanton

are about the same size,
so we're looking for a guy

who's about 6 feet tall.

- What else do we know?

- Well, the ME thinks
that the perp

might have been wearing a ring
with some kind of stone in it.

- So did we run the
vic's body for DNA?

- Yeah, they took samples,

but the backlog's
a few weeks out minimum.

- All right, well,
just keep digging in.

You know,
given this guy's history,

it could be related to drugs

or maybe even his time
in Fishkill or both.

- Hey, I found
something interesting

on the vic's phone.

Past week,
Stanton made 28 calls

to a man named Jordan Spall,
but he never answered.

- So the vic's calling Spall,
Spall's not picking up.

There's got to be
a good reason.

Did Spall ever serve time?

[keyboard clacking]

- Sure did.

Armed assault, sentenced
to five years at Fishkill.

Got out a few months ago.

- He's probably
still on parole.

- Jordan Spall hasn't
missed an appointment,

hasn't failed a urine test,
hasn't re-offended,

at least not yet.

- You know,
since we're here,

would you mind seeing
what you could find out

about our vic, Derek Stanton?

He's a Fishkill alum.

- According to Stanton's chart,
he was a model parolee, too.

- Was he a model prisoner?

- Looks like Stanton
was disciplined

a few times for fighting.

- 20 bucks says he was
scrapping with Spall.

[keyboard clacking]

- As a matter of fact.

- Where's Spall living now?

[dramatic music]

[distant sirens wailing]

- Is that him?

- Looks like it.

Jordan Spall, I'd like
to have a word with you.

Jordan.

[grunts]

* *

- [grunts]
- [yelps, groans]

- [grunts]
Hey!

- I've got this side.
- 27 Squad to Central.

10-85.

Black male, 30s,
blue jeans, green hoodie

under a black jacket.

In pursuit,
Cherry Street flea market.

- NYPD.

Police, police.
It's OK. It's OK.

Watch yourself.
Watch yourself.

Spall!
- [screams]

- It's--it's the shoes.
Sorry.

[crib rattles]

- Whoa, whoa, whoa!
- Watch out!

- Oh, my God!

- Watch out!
- [grunts]

[crowd chattering]

- Give me your hands.
Stay down.

Stay down.

.

- Usain Bolt.

- I didn't have anything to do
with killing Derek Stanton.

- So why'd you run
when you saw us then?

- 'Cause I had weed on me.

- Bro, having weed on you
this day and age?

You're not gonna get
in trouble for that.

But beating Derek Stanton
to death,

that'll get your ass
locked back up in genpop.

- What?

I didn't even know
Derek was dead.

- Oh, we'd like to
believe you, Jordan.

We really would.

Unfortunately,
we're homicide detectives,

so we don't believe anybody.
[chuckles]

So help us out.

Where were you this morning
between 2:00 AM and 4:00 AM?

- In my bed at the
halfway house, sleeping.

You could check with
the tight-ass supervisor.

Dude watches like a hawk.

- Why was Stanton
calling you so much?

- Don't know, don't care.

I didn't like the dude,
so I ignored his calls.

- Jordan, come on.

Either we tell your PO
how cooperative you were, or--

- Or we tell her
something else.

- All right.

I heard Derek was reaching out
to a bunch of ex-cons,

trying to put together a crew,
make some money.

- Doing what?

- Word is, they was meeting
at a pizza place

near the projects
on Pitt Street.

That's all I know.

* *

- Window was busted when
I got here this morning.

- What time was that?

- 6:00 AM.

Derek was supposed to be here.

I thought maybe
it was a robbery,

but nothing's missing.

- So you work here?
- Assistant manager.

- Where were you
late last night?

- In my room.
- Can anyone verify that?

- I live in a group home.
You can check.

There's lots of cameras.

- Why was Derek here so early?

- Gotten the lease
to this pizzeria,

and he was working
around the clock

to get it off the ground.

Grand opening's tomorrow.

Well, it was supposed
to be anyway.

- How'd you know Derek?

- Fishkill.

- What were you in for?

- Heroin.

Picked the wrong time
to be an addict, you know?

Nowadays, they bend over
backwards to get you help.

Back then, we were
hardened criminals, man.

- We heard Derek
had been meeting

with a bunch of ex-cons.
You know anything about that?

- Just trying to put together
a team to open more pizzerias.

Wanted to help.

Was going to give us
a piece of the action, too.

- That's it?

There was nothing else
going on?

- He was just trying to help
a bunch of ex-cons out.

- Sounds like a good dude.

- He was.

- You know anybody
who didn't feel that way?

Anybody who might
have wanted him dead?

- [sighs] Last few months, he's
been all about making amends.

Kept his nose real clean.

Spent a lot of time
with his daughter, too.

- Sonya, Lena,

I am terribly sorry that
we have some very bad news.

Your father and your ex-husband

was found murdered.

* *

- [exhales]

I can't believe
that he's gone.

I just got him back.

He spent all those years
in prison over weed.

He finally gets out,
and then this?

- If you don't mind my asking,
why have you moved here?

Does it have anything
to do with your father?

Was he violent
to either one of you?

- No.

Never.

- No, Derek wasn't
about any of that.

He had his issues,
sure, but...

he never raised his voice or
his hands to either one of us.

- So why are you here?

Who are you afraid of?

- My husband, William.

He's got a temper.

And when Derek got out of
prison, things just got worse.

We just needed to get away
for a little while

until things calmed down.

- Did your husband and Derek,
they ever argue or fight?

- Yes.

The last time my father
came to the house,

William chased him out.

He said he was
going to kill him.

* *

- I don't care
what them girls said.

They're crazy,
tripping over nothing.

I ain't lay a hand
on either one of them.

- What about Derek Stanton?
You ever lay a hand on him?

- No, sir.

Wanted to, but I never did.

Punk-ass drug dealer

thought he could just walk
back into everybody's life.

- Lena's daughter said
you threatened to kill him.

- I did.

Meant it, too.

But I didn't kill nobody.

- Where were you last night
after midnight?

- Midnight?
I couldn't sleep.

Got a lot on my mind.

So I went for a walk.

- You remember where?

- Around.

- How about we take a walk
around to the precinct

and jog your memory?

- Lawyer.

- Do we have any evidence
that puts William Barnes

and Derek Stanton together
on the morning of the murder?

- I've dug through
every surveillance video

from the neighborhood.

Tracked Barnes
on his late night walk.

He heads north on Avenue C

in the general direction
of the pizzeria.

He never crosses paths
with Stanton.

- Do we have any video of him
actually near the pizzeria?

- This is him two blocks east.

It's the closest he gets,

and then he crosses the street
away from the pizzeria.

- [snaps fingers]
What's that?

Top right hand corner.

- Looks like a dude
throwing something.

- What's he throwing,
like rocks or something?

- There's another camera
that should cover that corner.

- Dude's throwing rocks
right next to where

Stanton got his window
broken that night.

And now he's headed
straight for the pizzeria.

- Can you pull up the video
of the actual assault?

- Same body size,
same type of hoodie, sneakers.

- And if I'm not mistaken,
that's a ring on his finger.

Just like the M.E. said.

- I think we might
have our killer.

- Yup.

Now we just got to find him.

.

- Looks like he made
his way down the street,

and for some dumb-ass reason,
just kept throwing rocks.

- Yeah, Stanton must
have been in the pizzeria

when the rock came
through the window,

chased the kid down,
confronted him.

[indistinct chatter]

- Excuse me.

You work here nights?
- Yeah.

- You think you might have seen
this young man around here

a couple nights ago?

- Sorry, doesn't look familiar.

- Thanks.

- Yeah, I remember that kid.

Came in the other night
just before we closed up.

- What time was that?

- Um, midnight.
- You sure it's him?

- Yeah.
Thought he was handsome.

- Did he buy anything?

- No, he didn't have a card,

but his friend did.

- You have a record
of that transaction?

- Yeah, I could
probably pull it up.

- You can drink it now?

- Kyle Brimmer.

- Let's start with who you were
with at the dispensary.

- Just to be clear, Kyle has
no knowledge of any crime.

He was home in bed
in his parents' condo

an hour before the homicide.

- Yeah, we got that.
We saw the surveillance video.

So right now, the only way
Kyle can get into trouble

is by lying to us.

So who were you with?

- Jesse Erickson.

- And how do you know Jesse?

- We're in the same class
at Martindale.

- Martindale?
The prep school?

- Why don't you walk us through

what you and Jesse did
that night?

- Well, I just got my weed
card, so we wanted to--

- They're giving out
medical marijuana cards

to prep school seniors now?

- My client has an exemption
for an anxiety disorder.

- Of course he does.

So you and Jesse,
you go downtown

to buy some cannabis, what,
around, like, what, 11 o'clock?

- Yeah,
Jesse wanted to get high.

And he kept bugging me
to take him to a dispensary.

So we bought some dabs.

- Concentrated hash oil.

Then what?

- We went to some diner,
had a couple of burgers,

and then I left.

I took an Uber at 1:08 AM.

I have the receipt.

- How about your boy, Jesse?

- Well, he didn't
want to leave.

He said he wanted
to walk around

and explore the East Village.

I told him to come with me,
but he sort of ran off.

- Ran off?

- Yeah.

It was really weird.

- Jesse Erickson, 18 years old,
lives on the Upper East Side

with his investment
banker father

and his book editor mother.

- He's a senior at Martindale.

- Fancy.
- He's a star varsity athlete

and in the top 10%
of his class.

- Any discipline problems?

- No, he just won
a citizenship award.

- Good kid, good family,
never been in any trouble.

- And yet he brutally beats
an ex-con to death?

I don't know. Why?

- That is
the million dollar question.

- [sighs]

OK, I'll call for a warrant.

- There's got to be
some kind of mistake.

- Mr. Erickson, just tell us
if Jesse is here or not.

- Jesse is a kind
and lovely boy.

You can ask anyone.

- We need to speak
with Jesse now.

- Well, you can't treat him
like he's some common criminal.

- We're treating him
like he's a suspect

in a murder investigation.
[video game chirping]

- Sounds like he's down here.

Young man,
will you stand up please?

Stand up.

Put your hands
behind your back.

- Wait, wait, wait, wait.
- Jesse Erickson,

we're placing you
under arrest for murder.

- Hold on, hold on.
- Do what they say, son.

And don't say a word,
no matter what they tell you

or promise you.
- What happened to your hand?

- So me and my buddy--
- Don't answer that.

- Dad, help me!

- I will.

Now, remember,
don't say a word.

- Let's go.

- Calling docket
ending in 9710,

People versus Jesse Erickson,

charged with murder
in the second degree.

- I'll hear you on bail,
Ms. Maroun?

- This was a brutal, unprovoked
attack on a defenseless man.

The defendant threw a rock,

smashing Derek Stanton's
pizza shop window.

When confronted about it,
the defendant reacted

by beating Derek Stanton
to death

with his bare hands.

He's facing life in prison,
has tremendous resources,

and has every incentive
to flee the jurisdiction.

The People submit
that no amount of bail

will secure his
appearance at trial.

We're seeking remand.

- Mr. Thorpe.

- Holding my client
without bail

is completely uncalled for.

My client is
a high school student

with no criminal history,

which is more than I can say
for Mr. Stanton.

- Well, the People
have a strong case.

The attack was
captured on video.

- A portion of the
attack was captured.

Mr. Erickson was in an
unfamiliar neighborhood

when he came upon
a criminal

who confronted
and threatened him.

He panicked and he fought back.

And we expect a full
exoneration at trial.

I'd also point out that
Mr. Erickson is a valued member

of his community.

His parents are here,
his classmates,

his teammates, his minister.

- OK, I'm setting
a $2 million cash bail.

- His parents will
post forthwith.

[gavel thunks]

- Next case please.

* *

- They're making my dad out
to be a monster.

- Well, it's just
a legal tactic, OK?

It doesn't mean anything.
- It does to me.

My dad was the victim.
They called him a criminal.

- It's what lawyers do.

- He was trying
to turn his life around,

be a better person,
a better dad.

- I know this must be hard.

Losing a family member
is a pain like no other.

It just never goes away.

* *

- His family can buy
his way out of this.

Who's going to stand up
for my family, for my dad?

- I will. I promise.

I'm--I'm going
to do everything I can

to honor his memory.

.

- [sighs]

[indistinct chatter]

- Nice.
What's the occasion?

- Oh, it's the anniversary
of my sister's death.

- Oh, I'm sorry.

- It's OK.
[chuckles]

Yeah, every--every year,

my parents send me
yellow roses.

It was her favorite flower.

- That's nice.

- Yeah.

So it definitely looks like

Erickson is going
to claim self-defense.

- It makes sense.

Derek Stanton was poor.
He had a criminal record.

They'll push the narrative that
he was obviously the aggressor.

- It had to be, right?

I mean, he's an ex-con,
sold marijuana.

How evil.

And of course,
he's Black, so...

- Right, I get it.

There are a lot of unanswered
questions here, though.

High school kid, great grades,
great reputation,

no history of violence,
crosses paths with a felon.

- A felon?
He's a victim.

- No, I understand, Sam.
I'm just stating a fact.

- Question is,
can we prove murder two?

Show that it was
an intentional act,

or was it something else,
a fistfight, mutual combatants?

- Not sure just yet.

We need to figure out
motive first

or offer a plea
to a reduced charge.

Man one?
- Plead him out?

Just like that?

- Well, unless more
evidence drops,

this is going to be
a tough case to prove.

- Why? Because the defendant
is a rich white kid?

- Excuse me?

- If a poor Black kid beat
the hell out of Stanton, then--

- Then we'd still need
to prove motive.

And that's not what happened.
A rich white kid did it.

And right or wrong,
fair or unfair,

that's the case we're trying.

- I understand,
but Ms. Maroun has a point.

Even though the facts
are confusing,

we need to be aware
of the optics.

- Fine.

I'll press forward
with murder two.

- Good.
But get ready for the defense.

They're going to attack
the victim's character,

blame him
for his own murder,

so you'll need
to counteract that.

Find some way to level
the playing field.

[tense music]

* *

- The people would like
to call character witnesses

on behalf of Derek Stanton.

- The victim?

- Yes, to demonstrate
that he was

a peaceful, hardworking
member of his community,

far different from the way

the defense is trying
to portray him.

- Your Honor,
Rule 4.11 allows a defendant

to call character witnesses,
not the victim.

- But there's nothing
in the rules

that specifically precludes it.

- Nice try, Mr. Price,
but I agree with Mr. Thorpe.

If you want to
change the rules,

take it up with
the state legislature.

- Thank you, Your Honor.

Defense's witness list
is unbelievable.

There's a federal judge?

[laughs] The CEO
of a Fortune 500 company,

the head of a charitable
foundation?

All nine of these
character witnesses

are incredibly impressive.

- That's what the wealthy do

when their backs are up
against the wall.

They band together,
protect their own.

- Well, that may be true,
but the question remains.

Why did Jesse Erickson,
who, by all accounts,

was a good kid,
rich or not,

suddenly decide to beat
a stranger to death?

- I don't know.

And legally,
it doesn't really matter.

- Uh, no, I'm not so sure
about that, Sam.

If we don't know what
precipitated the fight--

- It was an attack,
not a fight.

- You saw the video.

- But we don't know
what happened before,

and that's relevant.

The jury's going to want
to know the full picture.

- I understand,
and we'll keep looking,

but for now, since we can't
explain why Erickson did it,

let's focus on the horror
of what he actually did.

- Mr. Stanton had
a shattered occipital bone.

That's the bone
that's in the back of the head

that connects
to the cervical spine.

It essentially
protects the brain.

He also had several
other broken bones--

his nose,
his eye socket, his jaw.

- Did you make a ruling
as to the cause of death?

- Cranial cerebral trauma
so severe

that the brain hemorrhaged
and flooded with blood.

- [whimpers]

- Were there wounds
on Mr. Stanton's torso?

- He had three broken ribs.

- Did you form an opinion as to
how he sustained those wounds?

- Mr. Stanton had been
kicked four times.

- I have nothing further.

- We've all seen the video of
the fight and the crime scene

photos, but you don't know why
my client had an altercation

with Mr. Stanton, do you?

- No, I have no idea.

- So you don't know if my
client was protecting himself.

- I don't.

- Thank you.

- Were there any
scrapes or bruises

on Mr. Stanton's fists,
on his palms, on his forearms?

- No.

- Any wounds which suggest
he was the aggressor?

- Nothing like that.

- And there was no indication
he had a weapon of any kind?

- Correct.

- And Mr. Stanton
was 2 inches shorter

and 40 pounds lighter
than the defendant?

- That's true.

- And no drugs
in Mr. Stanton's system?

- Toxicology was negative
for alcohol

and controlled substances.

- Nothing further.

* *

The M.E. did a good job,

but I think we still need
a few more witnesses

to help offset
the self-defense claim.

- Like who?
- Not sure.

Someone who can speak
to his state of mind

prior to his death, someone who
can say he was in a good mood,

he was focused on the
opening of his pizzeria.

- Well, I'll look into it.

But if you ask me, I think
the M.E. pretty much destroyed

their self-defense argument.

- We still have no idea why
this kid killed Stanton.

[phone vibrating]

Whole thing still
doesn't make any sense.

- Defense just
changed their plea.

- Their plea? To what?

- Not guilty by reason
of mental defect.

- He's claiming insanity?

- They're alleging
Jesse Erickson

had a mental impairment
when he killed Derek Stanton.

- What's the impairment?

- Cannabis intoxication.

- They're using marijuana
as the basis for a--

for an insanity defense?

.

- I understand you'd like
to change your plea.

- We plan to present evidence
that my client

was in the throes
of a psychotic episode

the night
of Mr. Stanton's death.

My client went to a dispensary
earlier and bought cannabis.

- Yeah, something
you've gone out of your way

to denigrate Mr. Stanton
for doing.

- We denigrated him for selling
it, for committing a felony.

- Regardless,

if the defendant voluntarily
ingested an intoxicant,

he can't turn around now
and claim insanity.

- My client didn't understand
how potent

this dose of cannabis was.

No idea what
it could do to him.

That means his consumption
wasn't voluntary.

- I've never seen
a claim of insanity

based on marijuana usage.

Do you have any science
to back that up?

- Data from medical journals
detailing the frequency

of cannabis-induced psychosis

and a board-certified
psychiatrist

who will testify
that my client was

in the midst of
such a psychosis

when he came across
Mr. Stanton.

- Well, if that's your case
that you present,

I'm OK with it.

I'll grant
the defendant's request.

And the People can
call their own expert

to interview the defendant
and challenge the findings.

- I've researched
the potency of the THC

he claims to have ingested,
and I met with the defendant

for approximately two hours,
got a full medical history,

and it's scientifically
possible that the cannabis

caused him to experience
irrational thoughts

and paranoid delusions.

- Possible that pot can

make someone kill
another human being?

- It sounds farfetched.

- But we're talking about pot.

- This sure as hell isn't
the pot I grew up with.

Back in the '90s, the THC level
in marijuana was below 2%.

Now?

Some dispensaries are selling
dabs that are 80% or 90% THC.

Put that in a vape
and smoke it?

It can absolutely trigger
a psychotic episode.

If I'm being honest,
he seemed like a good kid

who smoked some
really strong marijuana

and lost his damn mind.

- So you want to concede that
he had an altered mental state

and reduce the charges?
- It makes sense to me.

- Not to me.

He literally beat
Stanton to death.

Each punch required independent
thought and movement.

High or not, his acts
were still intentional.

- Intentional? Our own doctor
believes the defendant

was in a psychotic state.

Not only that,
he ingested the pot legally.

- The legal age is 21, not 18,
and for good reason.

The teenage brain
is more susceptible to THC.

- Well, you're making my point.

- No, Erickson knew
he was underage.

That means he assumed the risk.

- Technically, yes, I suppose,
but come on, Jack.

No one on the jury
views marijuana

as an illicit drug anymore.

Man two is the
appropriate charge.

- You saw those
autopsy photos, Nolan.

He pummeled that man to death.

We can't just give this guy
a slap on the wrist.

- We're not suggesting
that we do.

I'll recommend a minimum
of 10 years.

[dramatic music]

- We're not pleading him out
to man two, not yet anyway.

- OK.

If that's what you want to do,
I think Sam should take over.

I'll--I'll sit second chair.

I'll support her as best I can.

I don't see murder two here.

I just don't.

But you do.

* *

- Are you good with that?

- Yes, absolutely.

* *

- Tell the jurors
what happened the night

of Mr. Stanton's death.

- My friend, Kyle,
he has a cannabis card.

So it means he can
legally buy marijuana.

So we went to a dispensary
down on the Lower East Side.

- Did your friend
buy marijuana?

- Yes.

- Did you partake?

- Yes.

- And did you ever smoke
or eat pot before that night?

- Yes.

But it wasn't
anything like this.

- Can you describe
your experience?

- So I started seeing things

that, like,
weren't actually there.

And I just felt like
everybody was threatening me.

- Is that why
you started throwing rocks?

- Yes.

- Do you remember
meeting Mr. Stanton?

- Yes, I threw a rock
at his store.

It's a pizza place.

And it shattered the glass.

- What did Mr. Stanton do?

- He came out,
trying to talk to me.

But I walked away,
and, uh, he ran after me.

- You felt threatened?

- Objection, leading.

- Sustained.

- Tell the jurors how you felt.

- OK.

I thought Mr. Stanton was--
was going to kill me.

And now I know that
that's not true,

but at the time,
like, in the moment,

it felt super real,
like very real.

So I hit him.

- Thank you.

Nothing further.

- You didn't just hit him.

You beat him to death.

- I feel awful, all right?

I'm so sorry for
everything I've done.

I'm so sorry for the pain
that I've caused my family

and Mr. Stanton's family.

- And up until
this very moment,

you've never expressed
a shred of remorse

for what you've done.

- That's 'cause my lawyer
and my dad told me not to.

- Oh, so you're blaming this
on your father and--

- No. No.
- Lawyer?

- See, that's not
what I'm saying.

I'm saying I'm a--
I'm not a bad person.

- [scoffs]
Not a bad person?

[tense music]

* *

- Yeah.

Yeah, I wish
I could take it back.

I'd do anything to have
that night back.

- But you can't.

That's not how the world works.

You did what you did.

And now a good man, an innocent
man is dead and buried,

and his family is grieving.
- Objection.

- Sustained.
Watch it, Ms. Maroun.

* *

- And after you brutally
murdered Mr. Stanton,

you went to great lengths to
cover your tracks, didn't you?

- Look, I don't know
what you mean.

- Yeah, you went to a hospital
to get treatment.

You paid out of pocket
so it wouldn't be reflected

in your insurance claim.

- See, that was my
family's decision.

- Yes, I know.
It's all their fault.

- Please.

[crying]
I'm so sorry for what I did.

I'm so sorry.

I'm so sorry.

I'm so sorry.

[crying]

- That's all I have
for this witness.

* *

Went too far, didn't I?

- No, not necessarily.

I think we still have
a few jurors in our corner.

.

- You're doing great.

- Be honest.

- I am.

You are doing great.

But the facts are the facts.

No matter how well
you present the case,

the jury is going
to want to know why

the defendant had such
a violent outburst

and killed another human being.

And, well, unless we can give
them an understandable motive,

I don't see us getting
a conviction on murder two.

- Last time
I tell you to be honest.

- [laughs]
Does that mean you agree?

- That we need to offer up
additional information

or find some sort of reason
for Erickson's violence?

Yes, absolutely.

And I've been looking
for one, but--

- You know, it occurred to me
when Erickson was on the stand

that neither he nor his lawyer
have talked about college.

- What do you mean?
- He's a high school senior.

He's a great student,
talented athlete

from a wealthy,
educated family.

For a kid like Jesse Erickson
not to be on his way

to some sort of elite college,
it doesn't make sense.

Has to be a reason.

- He was accepted early
at Brown,

but decided to take a gap year.

- To do what?

- He's enlisted in
a youth volunteer group

to build a school in Kenya.

- [scoffs]
Kenya?

- That's the plan--
or it was the plan.

- So he's never
been in trouble?

Suspended, discipline?

- Not to my knowledge.

- Ever shown signs of violence?

- Not that I'm aware of.

- Has he ever expressed
racist thoughts

and shown bias against
people of color?

- No.

I'm telling you,
he's a good kid.

I've been his advisor
since freshman year.

- So he's perfect?
That's what you're saying?

He just runs around,
getting straight As,

playing football,
winning citizenship awards,

and then one night, out of the
blue, he beats a man to death?

- It was the cannabis.

That's the only thing
that makes sense.

I don't understand
all your anger.

Why are you hell bent
on ruining Jesse's life?

[soft dramatic music]

* *

- You should have
heard this guy.

He--he made Erickson
out to be a saint.

He turned it around,
started pointing fingers at me

like I have some
personal vendetta

against Erickson.

* *

What?
What are you...

- OK.

I have wondered the same thing.

From the second
we charged this kid,

you've been convinced
that he's a monster

in spite of the evidence.

- The evidence?

He bludgeoned a man to death
with his fists.

I mean, those were the most

horrific crime scene photos
I have ever seen.

- I agree, which is why we
brought the murder two charge.

But...

the evidence no longer backs
our original theory,

and we're losing the jury.

[sighs] Manslaughter
is still a serious charge.

Like I said before,
we can recommend 10 years.

- That's not enough,
not for what he did.

- I'm not a psychiatrist,
but...

is there a chance
this has something

to do with your sister?

- [scoffs]

- You know, OK, I'm--
I'm sorry to even--

- You--you think I'm trying
to blame Jesse Erickson

for what happened to my sister?

- No, not consciously,
but there is a resemblance,

on paper anyway,
between him and--

and the young man who...

OK, I'm wrong.

I'm sorry for even
bringing it up.

* *

I'm just trying to help, Sam.

- I know.

* *

- Breakfast on a work day?

- Oh.

It's been a while.

Just thought I'd come by,
say hello.

- I'm thrilled.

And thanks for bringing
the fresh croissants.

- I thought it'd get easier.

- It doesn't.

It's an ache
that will never go away.

But I tell myself that
the pain is a good thing.

Lets me know
that I'm still alive,

that I'm still capable
of feeling.

- It doesn't help that

the police never arrested
the son of a bitch.

Just knowing that smug bastard
is still out there

walking around
free as a bird...

If I think about it too much,
I'm going to go crazy.

- So don't.

- Don't what?

- [sighs]
Think about it.

Focus instead on Christina,

her smile,
her laughter, her kindness.

Just forget about
all this stuff--

the hatred, the frustration.

- I don't think it's possible.

- It is.

I promise.

[soft music]

* *

I'm so glad you came by.

- [chuckles]

- It's been too long, hm?

* *

[indistinct chatter]

- What's going on?

- I pled him out to man two.

- Really? Man two.

- You were right.

Without a credible motive,

the jury wasn't going
to convict Erickson of murder,

but he's still going
to do a lot of time.

If this law thing
doesn't work out,

you should think about
becoming a psychiatrist.

* *

[wolf howls]