All language subtitles for Law and Order S13E16 Suicide Box.DVDRip.HI.en.UNVSL

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.

Couple of jabs.
Couple of jabs. Boom!

A right cross and
that's all he wrote.

You're gonna knock out Coop?

Speed, my friend.
No, not speed. Quicks.

Two rounds tops.

JIM: I'll tell you what.
You knock out Coop

in two rounds, beers
are on me for a month.

You in on this?
Coop's a southpaw.

ROB: So? You ever
fight a southpaw?

Burger, rare.
Fries crispy, guys.

That man has the
bladder of a fruit fly.

No. A beer says it's not
his bladder that's aching.

No. No, no.

I said no, Adam.
Come on, no one cares.

I do!

I got a husband, damn it.
Didn't bother you last week.

I made a mistake.

So what does that
mean? You figure it out.

Hey!

I got a gun. I'll use it.

JIM: He's not gonna catch me.

ROB: Catch you? Yeah.
One punch and I'm down.

Jab. Jab. Cross.
Uppercut. If Coop hits back?

ROB: Bob and
weave. Bob and weave.

JIM: Black and blue. Black
and blue. (GUNSHOTS)

(CAR TIRES SQUEALING)

Shots fired, MOS down.
Rush the bus. 43rd and 11th.

Give her room, damn it! Back
up! Give her room! Hang on, Alice.

ADAM: Alice Cushman.
She works the 31.

You too, huh? Yeah.
I just talked to her.

What about? I
went to take a leak.

It was a "hello" outside the
men's room. Nothing heavy.

Anybody else talk "heavy"
to her in the past? Why?

Just helps to get a fix on
who the victim is, that's all.

I saw her in the house
every morning before call.

"Morning." "You see the game?"
Stuff about Rickie. Stuff like that?

Who's Rickie? Her son,
17 months. Real cutie.

I seen pictures.

Paramedic says she's gonna make
it. Shoulder through-and-through.

She's just mostly in shock.

Adam Brennan. Any
fix on the shooter?

Maybe I should be
asking you that question.

You were the first one
out of the diner, right?

I was inside.

You know, Alice has got a
husband. Maybe I should call him.

Why don't you
give us his number.

I can get it for you. Great.

I think Officer Brennan knows
a lot more than he's telling us.

What, a little
birdie told you that?

You and I've been
partnered, what, four years?

He knows the exact
age of the victim's kid.

So?

So, forget about how
old my daughter is,

you even know what
state she lives in?

Hey, the busboy saw a blue car
speed around that corner after the shots.

The plates had three
numbers followed by

three letters, the last
two were "U" and "V".

I don't think the
first one was "L".

The Commissioner's
talking about a task force.

What, over two cops, who
each have a spouse on the side,

sweating up the sheets?

Lennie's been watching
too much Dr. Phil.

I don't know who that is but if
he's got a cure for marital infidelity

on the job we ought
to put him on retainer.

On the other hand, half of the 31
ends up at the Market Diner for coffee.

If someone was holding a
grudge against Officer Cushman,

they'd know to find her there.

Witness says the shooter was
moving at a pretty good clip.

Could have been he wasn't picky,

as long as you
were wearing blue.

Well, let's hope to
hell Lennie's right.

(TELEPHONE RINGS) Yeah?

Okay. They'll be right there.

She's awake.

Don thinks I should have quit
the job after we got married.

He thinks a woman's place
is making dinner and babies.

Tell me I'm wrong now. Well...

Tell him this was a freak thing.

ALICE: It's not like there's anyone
out there gunning for me, Don.

Well, actually we
can't confirm or deny.

Oh, yeah, all those
parking tickets,

I knew I should have
worn a Kevlar bra.

You wear a uniform.

There could be some nut
out there gunning for all cops!

I'm just saying
we got a new baby.

By the way, your pal, Adam
Brennan, sends his best.

Who? Just one of the cops.

My wife!

Just one of the boys!

She's out partying and I'm
stuck home changing diapers.

What, it's my fault
no one's hiring?

Look, I really didn't
see the guy or the car.

(CLEARS THROAT) Look, Doc says I
should get some sleep if you don't mind?

You know where to find us.

Okay. You were right. Once.

ADAM: Okay. We
rented a room twice.

It's not like it was this
hot-and-heavy kind of thing.

I'm happily married.
How happy is your wife?

Very. And if it's okay with
you, I'd like to keep her that way.

That's why I didn't
say anything last night.

You're a real ace with
secrets, huh, Brennan.

How happy is Alice's
marriage? ADAM: You think Don?

No way.

BRISCOE: What, he's
not the possessive type?

She says he didn't have a clue.

And if he did, he'd be
taking shots at me, not her.

Did Alice get "personal"
with anybody besides you?

No way. She's a good girl.

Could we... Yeah, yeah.

New York's finest. Hey,
he cheats on his wife.

You built a new wing on
some casino in Atlantic City.

I liked the liquid
refreshment a little too much.

We're dogs, every one of us.

No wonder the public
thinks so highly of us.

Oh, no, they love us. They
have to. (CELL PHONE RINGING)

When they run away from
something, we run toward it.

Yeah, Green.

Okay. Could you do me a
favor? Get that over to Forensics.

All right. Cool. Thanks, man.

A BMW was clipped last night around
the corner from the scene by a blue car.

Could be our shooter.

I parked it in front of my house two
nights ago when I got home. I overslept.

The next morning it was gone.
Why didn't you report it stolen?

Because I thought
you guys towed it.

And you didn't call Parking
Enforcement to check?

I didn't have the money to claim it
back until next week's pay check.

Took me an hour-and-a-half
on the bus to get here.

Does anybody else have
access to the car, Ms. Thomas?

Like who? A kid, for instance.

My son is dead.

So, you did your good
deed telling me it was stolen.

You can go now.
I got work to do.

You don't understand,
Ms. Thomas.

Whoever took your car may
have tried to shoot a police officer.

Oh, that sure explains
it. ED: Explains what?

How hard would you have looked
if it was me reported it stolen?

So much for your theory
about the public loving us.

Well, there's an
exception to every rule.

Well, hopefully she don't
work every night. Hey!

ED: How you doing? Can we
talk to you about Janet Thomas?

Who'd she kill?

Now why would you say that?
She's got a temper, that one.

Thinks the world owes her.

Last night she screamed at me because
I took the last milk in the Nurses' Lounge.

So she was here all
night? Until midnight.

You don't know the
problems that caused.

ED: What you mean, she don't
care for the graveyard shift?

Well, just the opposite.

Well, they wanted to put her on
days, but she raised all kinds of hell.

Says she's got to be home when
her son gets home from high school.

Her son?

She told us her kid died.

Looks like she's
lying to someone.

Well, why do you suppose she
wouldn't tell us she had another kid?

I don't know. Let's ask him.

Thank you.

(SCHOOL BELL RINGS)

BRISCOE: Back when
I was using Clearasil,

we didn't have to walk
through metal detectors.

When you were 18, I doubt if you
could buy a semi-automatic weapon

on every street corner.

Wait. Are you saying
Stevie... No. No.

He smokes some
weed. Cuts some classes.

Nothing out of the ordinary.

Unfortunately, that's a truth the
times have made me live with.

If you wait here,
I'll bring him out.

All I can say is I'm
glad my kid is grown.

I'm glad I'm grown.

Look, I don't know
what you think I've done.

It's not me, Stevie. It's
the detectives want a word.

Man, I ain't do nothing!

I ain't do... Yeah. You can tell
me all about it down at the squad.

Come on.

Alice Cashman. Don't know her.

BRISCOE: Cushman.
And she's a cop.

Well, maybe she was getting a payoff
under the table or something. I don't know.

Where did you come up with that?

That's what they do, ain't it?

How old are you?
What's it matter?

There's something you
ought to know, Stevie.

My partner here, he's famous
all over the city for his temper.

You can tell your partner to
kiss my ass. I ain't done nothing.

Not like it makes
no difference though.

You haven't been reading
the papers, have you, kid?

Cops are heroes now.

Not to me, they ain't.
You know what, Lennie?

I think you could
use a cup of coffee.

(DOOR CLOSES)

Let me tell you
something, Stevie.

That little attitude of yours,
that might play on the street,

but from this moment on,

all it's gonna do is dig you
in a hole you can't get out of.

Man, I can handle it!
Hey, man, you shot a cop.

People around here, including
me, don't appreciate that.

So, what! "Officer Tom's" gonna
rescue me now? Oh, hell, no.

I'm just telling you what's
what. After that, it's up to you.

So what? You get some kind of
raise to take a brother off the street?

That's right, man. For every 10 I
bring in I get an extra day's pay.

If he's got a big
mouth, I get two days!

If I bring him in a little bloody, the
man gives me a damn toaster oven!

The best thing for you to do,
Stevie, is for you to talk to me.

Gimme a reason why? I
am your last chance, bra!

You shot a white cop.

Nobody else in this building
wants to listen to your little ass.

You want me to say I'm sorry?

The only thing I'm sorry
about is that cop is still alive.

You don't even have a record!

Now I know you didn't
wake up one day and say,

"I'm going out and
shoot me a cop today!"

What do you know! Stevie.

Tell me why, please.

You think I don't know you?
I know everything about you.

Whitey gets shot or gets a hangnail,
they snap and Tom comes running.

But my brother gets shot. (SOBBING)
And no one... No one does nothing.

No one gives a
damn! No one but me!

So what, you take down a
cop, just to even things out?

That's right. You
better believe it.

Your client didn't ask for an
attorney until after he confessed.

Well, be that as it
may, he's just a child.

It just so happens his
18th birthday was last week.

So he's not entitled to have a parent
with him in the interrogation room.

Eighteen.

Let me ask you, Lieutenant,
when you were 18,

would you have been capable
of holding your own alone,

in a closed room with
two homicide detectives?

I wouldn't have popped
three rounds at a cop.

I would have thought the air in
here would be more sympathetic.

Now why would you think that?

Do I offend you, Lieutenant?

You know, the truth is,
Counselor, I've seen you in action.

I've seen you turn a simple assault
into Brown v. Board of Education.

When the sheet fits...

Your client shot an innocent
cop, a wife, a mother.

Because his brother was
murdered eight years ago

and a whole bunch of other innocent
cops shined him and his mother on.

Which is a fact you can take up

with the District
Attorney, Counselor.

Who, if they ever get
around to it, will quickly see

this is not the kind of case
they want to put in front of a jury.

Have a nice day.

There he goes. Johnnie
Cochran without the rhyme.

He's just saying
what we already know.

Let's not pretend Joe Cop
moves with the same speed

when the call's to 125th and
Lennox than to 63rd and Park.

Okay. 1994. The 16 investigated
the murder of an Eric Thomas.

ED: You call up the file?

All the current database had
was the name and "case closed."

There you go.

That means we caught the
guy who killed Eric Thomas

and now his kid brother and his esteemed
attorney are trying to pull a fast one.

You know, we should
talk to the lead detective.

That'll be hard to
do without a séance.

Lead detective was a
guy named Nick Helms.

I went to his funeral
about six years ago.

ED: Well, I hope you
brought your antihistamine.

Why? You ever
been to "Dead Files"?

Whoa. Whoa. The computer
said the case is closed.

Well, this one isn't.

And this kid's
whole defense is that

we screwed up on his
brother's murder investigation.

So what? So I, for one,
would like to know how bad.

Bottom line, Ed, no
matter what we find,

it doesn't justify that
kid shooting at a cop.

It could affect sentencing.

And if God had wanted
man to have fair trials

he would have given the jury Pentium
processors instead of prejudices.

Hey, all I'm saying is people bring a whole
lot of baggage into everything they do

and lawyers, like Halpert,
know how to make the worst of it.

Here's all I got.

"All you got"? What
does that mean?

Most of the file looks lost.

Lost? This is file storage.
How do you lose a file?

Eight years.

CLERK: I'll put out an APB, but based
on past experience, odds aren't good.

I'm starting to
think Halpert is right.

Complaint was called in by a neighbor
who found the body on 128th Street.

Cops arrived at 1:48 a.m.
and found Eric Thomas dead.

You hear what I said? Weapon was
a Ruger found four feet from the body.

Should be in the
Property Clerk's unit.

But the death certificate and
final autopsy report are missing.

Lennie...

Hey, Ed, what do you want from me? I
sold my plantation over a century ago.

All I'm saying is,

where do they store the homicide
files for the rich, white kids?

I think we can worry
about that another time,

because Stevie's brother
Eric wasn't murdered.

He committed suicide.

Of course their report
said Eric committed suicide.

That way the cops never
had to investigate the crime,

that way they can sweep the
life of another innocent black child

underneath their
very white carpets.

Hey, he was just
getting warmed up.

He can try his
case in the press,

but that doesn't mean
I have to listen to it.

The kid shot at a cop for no
reason other than that she was a cop.

What does he want?

Dead Files sent this
over. It was filed under "E".

"E" for Eric, that makes sense.

Says here that the
weapon was melted down

three years after the case
was deemed a suicide.

Your boy Helms interviewed somebody
named Jason Hendri three times.

What about the death
certificate or autopsy report?

Well, it must be filed
with Hendri's statement.

Well, let's hope he remembers seeing
Eric Thomas put one in his own head.

Jason, I'm Detective Green.
This is Detective Briscoe.

We want to talk to
you about Eric Thomas.

What about him? We're
looking into his death.

A little late, aren't you?

Well, it's come
up in connection...

Why'd I care about that?

BRISCOE: We found
your name in the file.

It seems you told Detective
Helms that you saw the shooting.

(LAUGHS)

(EXHALES FORCEFULLY)

We want to laugh, too, man.

What's in it for me?

That nice warm feeling you
get from doing the right thing.

You're serving three
consecutive life sentences,

a few years off one of
them ain't gonna do much.

Wanna know why I was laughing?

I mean, what's it been, seven, eight
years you all haven't figured it out yet?

ED: Figured out what?

Yeah, I saw the son-of-a-bitch
who shot Eric Thomas.

Pretty hard not to see when you the
son-of-a-bitch who pulled the trigger.

You?

(WHISPERING) Pow!

You know, it never
ceases to amaze,

the extent some people will go to
prove their ignorance, fear and hatred.

No cameras here, Carl. No
need to waste the sound bite.

Hey, let's discuss the mother of all
sound bites, "To protect and serve."

Actually, I prefer the
unexpurgated version,

"To protect and serve
them that look like us."

I'm glad to see you
haven't lost a step.

I'm just getting started.

A suicide but no autopsy
report? Give me a break.

A felony defense based on
incompetent office personnel?

Oh, Jack, you're giving
them too much credit.

Let me spell this one
out for you, "cover up."

Nobody lost anything.

That's right. I saw
your press conference.

The cops didn't investigate it
in the first place. That's right.

Why bother to investigate

when you can get one of your
lackeys to check the little suicide box.

Neat. Clean. No fuss. No muss.
Best of all everyone's home for dinner.

Even if that were true, vengeance
isn't a defense for attempted murder.

I'm not sure this even rises
to the level of vengeance.

Officer Cushman wasn't even on
the force when Eric Thomas died.

The criminal acts
against my client

weren't committed by an
individual but by the entire system.

Now, you call a murder a suicide

and the victim's family is
robbed of justice under the law.

This is nonsense. It's obvious
you just want to inflame the jury.

Big picture, Ms. Southerlyn.

This case is not
about a devastated kid,

it's about Jim Crow, new and
improved racism with a felt-tipped pen.

All I have to do is point
the jury in the right direction

and they'll do exactly
what they should.

Let your people go?

(CHUCKLES) Yeah. Perhaps.
But I'll settle for Stevie Thomas.

Carl, Carl.

I'm sure you had better things to do with
this morning than spend it here with me.

Simple assault. No time.

He shot a cop, you
know I can't do that.

As always, my brother, time
with you, is time well spent.

Ms. Southerlyn.

We can move to exclude all evidence
of Eric Thomas' death as irrelevant.

Or we can cut
it off at the pass.

If we can prove beyond a
doubt that it was a suicide,

we essentially prove that the
police didn't do anything wrong.

Start with whoever it was
that wielded that felt-tipped pen.

RODGERS: I put in a request
to records after you called.

My luck was about
the same as the cops.

Files don't just
disappear. Really?

What city do you work for?

The good news, we did
come up with a name,

Gail Berardi performed
the autopsy on Eric Thomas.

Great. If nobody's
misplaced her, that is.

Yeah. You might be better off.

Gail left the M.E.'s Office a few years
ago to become a private consultant.

The parting wasn't what
you would call sweet.

What are you telling me, this
woman ransomed her autopsy reports?

With Gail Berardi,
nothing would surprise me.

I don't remember the case.

The M.E.'s Office seems
to think you have the files.

It's possible. I'll take a
look and get back to you.

When? I don't know.

When I get around to it.

I'm being called as an expert
tomorrow in Hartford. Next week, LA.

I don't think I
made myself clear.

This file is going to be evidence
in an attempted murder case.

I don't think I made myself
clear, it's not my problem anymore.

Goodbye.

Dr. Berardi's files are
evidence in a felony trial.

Subpoena them. That's
the first thing I threatened.

But what's evidence to
us is work product to her.

She'd fight it for sure.

This woman rents herself out
as an expert witness, doesn't she?

You want to hire her? No.

But no one else will either

if we charge her with embezzlement
of government property.

SERENA: Dr. Berardi took files
when she left the M.E.'s Office.

Her personal files, which
she had every right to.

As an employee of the State those
files were produced at behest of the State.

They were in effect
"works for hire"

and were and remain
her employer's property.

What is it we're talking about
here? Research? Time cards?

Autopsy reports.

Shame on you.

SERENA: Thank you, Your Honor.

And shame on you for trying to
swat flies with SCUD missiles.

This is a civil
matter, Counselor.

If you want to argue
about personal property

you should take it up with
people who actually give a damn

about this sort of nonsense.

Your Honor... You've
got a colorable claim

and I use that term very freely.

Although I'd love to, I can't in good
conscience dismiss the charges.

So what do you say, Doc?

Give the lady her files or you're
looking at one major headache.

These notes are better organized and
more detailed than most of what I see.

The cause of death was a
single gunshot wound to the skull.

Consistent with suicide?

No. I said organized and
detailed. I didn't say complete.

Why aren't I surprised?

There's nothing here regarding the
position of either entrance or exit wounds.

Trace gunshot residue is
referenced but taken alone,

that's not enough
to say for sure.

See, you really need to
examine the beveling of the bone.

We typically keep photos
and scale drawings.

Do you think Berardi
held them back?

Oh, you'd never be
able to prove it if she did.

Documents from closed
files are often used

for research, teaching,
statistical studies.

Her reports could be anywhere
between here and Albany.

So you're telling me I won
the battle and lost the war?

Not necessarily.

You've still got
a fighting chance

if you get me the
skull of Eric Thomas.

You people. You tossed one
of my boys off like he's garbage.

Now you want me to
pull him from his grave?

If Eric were my son, I'd want to
know for sure what happened to him.

I always knew what happened.
Now I know how and who.

Of course. I understand.
What do you understand?

You don't care a damn about Eric.
You just want to save some cops' butts.

Those are some pretty
harsh words, Mrs. Thomas.

You earned them.

Eight years you people have
kept me dangling on a string.

Well, I'm not dancing
for you no more.

I don't care how many
strings you try to pull.

Of course not.

How about you let me talk to
Mrs. Thomas, mother-to-mother?

Thanks.

You know, it's a funny
thing, Mrs. Thomas,

we have a laundry room in
the basement of my building

and a couple of weeks ago I went down
to move a load from the washer to the dryer

and I noticed that my box of detergent
was missing and I knew who did it.

Mrs. Ross, second floor,
real scavenger, that one.

You got a point?

Yeah, I got a point.

A week later,

my son, my oldest, Stefan, gets
into a fist fight with Andy Ross.

It seems he called
his mother a thief.

Hatred isn't inherited,
Mrs. Thomas.

It's learned.

I didn't talk Stevie into doing
this, if that's where you're headed.

I think I can understand how
angry you must be, how hurt.

Now, I can see it in your
eyes and we just met.

I can only imagine
what Stevie felt like

looking at those eyes
for eight long years.

He had to feel small, powerless,

unable to ease
his mother's pain.

He just turned 18, right?

Yeah.

So now how could he become a man
if he couldn't stop his mama's suffering?

Stevie traded his
life to ease your hurt.

The least you can do is
make it mean something.

Prove to the world that your
oldest was really murdered

and I swear to you I
will personally go after

whoever was responsible
for covering it up.

Oh, God. Oh, God!

(SOBBING) Help! Help me!

The funeral home was
owned by Douglas Lexhall.

Was? He was convicted

four years ago for selling
corpses without permission

to foreign medical schools.

The A.D.A. handling the case thought
they'd ID'd all of the missing bodies.

That is a real comfort.

With the way this case
has been handled to date,

I wouldn't be surprised if
Eric Thomas just got fed up

and decided to
walk off on his own!

Missing files. Missing bodies.

I for one would like to display

at least a modicum of
competency at my job.

And if my office can't convict a kid
who confessed to shooting a cop,

then I'm not gonna get
many more opportunities.

Halpert's insisting that
Stevie Thomas does no time.

(CHUCKLES)

What the hell? At my age,
I should be fishing anyway.

JACK: On February 4th,
at approximately 10:15 p.m.,

Stevie Thomas was not at home
working on his physics homework.

He was not watching the Knicks
beat the Clippers on television.

He was not talking to
his friends on the phone.

On February 4th, at
approximately 10:15 p.m.,

Stevie Thomas was
in his mother's car,

without her knowledge,

driving past the Market
Diner over on 11th Avenue.

On February 4th, at
approximately 10:15 p.m.,

police officer Alice Cushman
exited the Market Diner

after having a cup of coffee with several
other officers from the 31st Precinct.

She was on her way home.

She was thinking about kissing her
sleeping baby, Rickie, on the forehead.

On February 4th, at
approximately 10:15 p.m.,

Stevie Thomas had a .38
caliber revolver in his hand.

He fired three times
from his mother's car.

One of those bullets struck
Officer Cushman in the shoulder.

Defense counsel will present
a bevy of possible explanations.

But in a court of law in
the State of New York,

they have nothing
to do with the case.

Stevie Thomas shot a cop.

That's all that matters.

Your opening
statement, Mr. Halpert?

I think I'll pass, Your Honor.

Actually, I didn't
know what happened.

I remember a flash of
light, wheels screeching,

a shooting pain
running down my side,

and then I guess I passed out.

Could you identify the car?

It was blue. Kind of old.

A Pontiac, I think.
It happened fast.

JACK: The driver?

ALICE: The most I could
tell was that it was a male.

JACK: Had you ever had any dealings
with the defendant prior to the shooting?

I never saw him
face-to-face until today.

JACK: Any members of his family?

ALICE: Not that I'm aware of.

Thank you, officer.

So other than being male, you
can't tell us anything about the driver?

He was African American,
if that's what you mean.

That's exactly what I mean.

Nothing more, Your Honor.

Forensics determined that the
bullet taken out of Officer Cushman

was from a .38

that was found in the trunk of an
abandoned car in Long Island City.

The car was registered
to one Janet Thomas.

Did there ever come a time

when you personally spoke to
the defendant, Stevie Thomas?

Yes.

My partner, Detective Briscoe and I brought
him down to the squad for questioning.

And what happened?

He confessed to
shooting Officer Cushman.

What did Detective Briscoe
say after Stevie confessed?

He wasn't in the room. Really?

I could have sworn you just testified
that the two of you questioned my client.

Detective Briscoe was in the
room for part of the interrogation.

He left before the
defendant confessed.

I see.

So from now on we'd best assume

what you tell us is
"kind of" the truth.

Tag-teaming a suspect is often the
most efficient way of interrogating him.

It throws the suspect off.

Sometimes he forgets what he told
one detective and he changes his story.

Either way, the other detective

is monitoring the interrogation
from the observation room.

Did you question Stevie
about where he got the car?

Yes.

About the shooting? Yes.

And there was something else,
something about a new toaster oven.

That was a figure of speech.

HALPERT: I never
heard it used in the context

of a police
interrogation before.

Why don't you explain it to me?

Your client was being
completely disrespectful.

And you thought
toast would help?

He was denigrating me as a cop.

And you got mad? No.

I was always in control.

Isn't it true you told Stevie that the
department gives out toaster ovens

for every African American
child you beat the crap out of?

I wasn't serious.

You were joking?

Yes. That's right.

What did your partner,
who you've already testified

was watching through the glass,

what did he do when
you "joked" with my client?

He watched. A white
cop just watched

while his partner
threatened a black boy?

Does this happen
often? Objection.

JUDGE: Sustained.

Withdrawn.

Tell me, Detective. Whose
prints are on that .38?

It was wiped clean.

So you have no way of
proving exactly who fired it?

ED: Your client confessed.

After you threatened
to beat him silly!

I didn't threaten him.

When a jury is involved, the
truth doesn't always matter.

Especially this jury.

What are you saying,
"Especially this jury"?

What's different
about this jury,

that they wouldn't
recognize the truth?

Halpert wants to show

how irresponsible the force is when
dealing with the black community.

He gave you the
brush, Detective,

and you painted the exact
picture he was looking for.

So can't you paint
a different picture?

How? I don't have
any more witnesses.

The People rest, your Honor.

At this time, Your
Honor, the defense is

prepared to proceed
with its opening statement.

Chambers, Your Honor.

You can't open in
the middle of a trial.

I don't see why not?

The Court rules
give me the right

to give an opening
statement to the jury.

They don't specify
when I have to give it.

The plain language of the rule

suggests that it was intended to
be given at the opening of the trial.

Well, that's funny, I thought it
meant at the "opening" of my case.

This is merely a way for counsel

to divert the jury's focus from
the People's case-in-chief.

It would provide a
distinct advantage.

HALPERT: Well, let's
talk about advantages.

Which side gets to sit
spitting distance from the jury?

Who gets to open
first and close last?

If you forgot, it's the
State on both counts.

I'm just trying to offset the
overwhelming advantage the State has

the moment we open
the doors to the courtroom.

I never thought of that.

Well, you've never
been a defendant.

The rules don't prohibit
it, so why should I?

HALPERT: You know,
before I got here today,

I joined an acquaintance
of mine on line

at a coffee truck
around the corner.

We reached the counter and we both
ordered a cup of coffee and a Danish.

Unfortunately, there
was only one Danish left

and the man at the
counter gave it to my friend.

He was white. I was mad.

Now here I was, an
established attorney

who'd argued before this
country's Supreme Court

and yet this "slight"
made my blood boil.

Not because I had my
heart set on that Danish, no,

but because for that
moment in time I was invisible.

Now just imagine how
mad I would have been

if I wasn't an attorney,

if I was an 18-year-old boy.

If it wasn't some ignoramus
behind a coffee counter

who made me
disappear, but the police.

Imagine how mad I'd have been

if I wasn't turned invisible for a
moment, but for eight long years.

Stevie Thomas's big brother,
Eric, was murdered eight years ago.

The police made the case
disappear by calling it a suicide.

They kept it invisible by not only
losing the records but his brother's body.

Now. As you listen to my case,
please keep two things in mind:

Stevie's prints were
not on the weapon.

And there are no witnesses
to put him at the scene.

I knew Eric Thomas from around.

You were friends? I
wouldn't go that far.

Tell us about the last time
you saw him, if you could. Sure.

Maybe eight years ago, it
was at night, maybe 9:00, 9:30.

We got into, like, a scuffle.
And what happened?

HENDRI: Eric
wasn't all that tough.

He tried to run, I put a round
through the back of his head.

You shot him? That's right.

Were you ever questioned by
the police regarding this shooting?

Sure, but I gave them
some song and dance.

You're currently incarcerated
at Sing Sing State Penitentiary,

are you not, Mr. Hendri?

That's right. Three
counts of murder.

When do you expect to get out?

I don't.

So, you have no
reason to lie, do you?

You have no reason to tell
the truth either, isn't that right?

Huh?

The State can't do anything more
to you, so why not have a little fun,

get your name in the
paper, your face on the news.

All I know is, I shot him
smack in the back of the head.

It was Detective Helms working
the case. He told me he was dead.

Did he ever once say
your son committed suicide?

Not at first.

So, initially, he told
you Eric was murdered?

It was more than once.

Every time he told me he was
getting close to finding the killer.

Then one day he tells
me to stop calling him.

Eric killed himself, he
said. He's off the case.

Did you believe him?

I knew my son. I knew there was
no way he would take his own life.

So I went to his Lieutenant
and then his Captain.

Both of them told me there
was nothing they could do.

They said Eric committed suicide

and I should stop bothering
them and get on with my life.

Were Eric and Stevie close?

Since my husband passed away,

Eric was like both his
brother and his father.

Eric would do
anything for Stevie.

And Stevie loved him
more than he loved himself.

To have him murdered, to have his
memory treated like trash by the police...

As one of the Assistant
Medical Examiners,

it was my function
to perform autopsies.

And you performed the
autopsy on Eric Thomas, did you?

That was eight years ago.

I don't remember, but if the
records show that I did, I won't argue.

I show you what has been
marked Defendant's Exhibit D.

Do you recognize
it, Dr. Berardi?

Those are my initials, yes.

Please tell the
court what it is.

We call it the M.E.'s
Summary Report.

It contains the
bottom line on a case?

That's correct.

Typically, there are detailed
reports found inside the folder.

But, alas, this one's empty.

Could that mean that the
detailed work you spoke of

was not performed in this case?

Absolutely not.

I couldn't have completed the
summary if I hadn't done the work.

And you know it was a suicide
because this little box is checked?

That's correct.

While at the M.E.'s office, I
performed thousands of autopsies

and I followed the exact same
procedure with each of them.

Okay, tell us what happens after
you check the little suicide box.

The case is deemed closed.

And the detectives stop working?

That's correct.

So, hypothetically, if a
detective was stumped

or if he just didn't feel
like investigating the case,

you could help him out by
making a little check here.

That is absurd.

But it's possible.

Dr. Berardi, I show you
what we'll call People's 17.

Do you recognize it?

Yes, these are my notes from
the autopsy of Eric Thomas.

Now, earlier, we heard

Mr. Jason Hendri testify that he shot
Eric Thomas in the back of the head.

Is there anything in these notes
that might confirm that statement?

Actually, quite the opposite.

I can state as a fact that Mr. Thomas
was not shot in the back of the head.

Please explain.

There were two holes in the
deceased's skull. Here and here.

In the occipital
and temporal bones.

The pattern of gunshot residue indicates
that the entrance wound was here.

Then in your opinion
Mr. Hendri lied

when he testified that
he murdered Mr. Thomas

by shooting him in
the back of the head.

That's correct.

This all happened
eight years ago

and I cannot say for
sure what happened.

But because the
suicide box was checked,

I would have to assume that there
were sufficient forensic markers

to conclude that this
was not a homicide.

JACK: Thank you, Dr. Berardi.

(QUIETLY) I may have
misunderstood Rodgers,

but I think Berardi's taking
liberties with the truth.

Find out.

I'm glad there are no
hard feelings, Dr. Berardi.

Certainly appreciate
your coming down here.

After what I did for you in court
today, I'd expect champagne.

Don't get me wrong. I like
winning as much as the next guy

but I don't like winning
with partially true testimony.

You think I lied?

Dr. Rodgers tells us that
gunshot residue by itself

is not enough to determine
entrance and exit wounds.

She told us that you'd have to examine
the beveling of the bones as well.

We'd like to know why you
omitted that from your testimony.

Hey, you go to hell!

You made it perfectly
clear that I had to testify.

Do you know I busted
my ass for this city,

and they paid me
back by not paying me.

But I came down here
against my better judgment

to serve the city one more time
on a case I don't even remember.

Do you want to know what it
was like for me at that time?

I had 20 open cases on
my desk at any given time!

I was overworked and overtired.

SERENA: Are you saying
you made a mistake?

That you checked the
suicide box by mistake?

Haven't you ever made
a mistake, Counselor?

Haven't you ever
forgotten a crucial question,

forgotten a vital
piece of testimony?

(SCOFFS)

You know what, the
truth is I just don't know.

Thanks for meeting me here.

When I'm on trial I live on Frankie's
chili. Keeps the heart pumping.

You can trade it in for a steak.

I'm sorry, Jack, I can't
take a deal, especially now.

I'm going to redirect
Berardi first thing tomorrow.

She was tired. She was overworked.
She might have made a mistake.

Or maybe it wasn't
a mistake at all.

Look, Jack, if you were in my
position, who would you believe?

A white woman who's
already lied once on the stand

or a couple of
centuries of history.

This isn't about history.

Now, Jack, that was a very self-serving
rationalization and you know it.

To a large portion of this
country, it is always about history.

So you're fine with the next kid

who's unhappy with the cop on
the corner and decides to get a gun?

Of course not.

But maybe now that kid won't
be condemned to live the life

his father and grandfather
were forced to accept.

It's not going to end, is it?

(SIGHS)

Jack, try the chili.
It's really good.

JUDGE: Jury Foreman,
have you reached a verdict?

We have.

On the first count
of the indictment,

attempted murder in the
first degree, how do you find?

We find the defendant,
Steven Thomas, not guilty.

(EXCLAIMING HAPPILY)

Hello! You're not in a
rush to get home tonight?

You know, I used to
wake up in the morning,

brush my teeth, comb my hair, look in the
mirror and see a cop looking back at me.

Stevie Thomas
shattered that mirror?

Now I've got six
eyes looking back.

A cop. A black woman. A mother.

That's lucky.

You know what Eric Thomas sees?

Nothing.