Original subtitles

Sergeant Baker, please.

He's gone for the day, Mr. Spry.

- I can take a message. - I don't want to leave a message.

Look, I need to see him, please.

Mr. Spry, I can't help you. I'm sorry.

- I need to see him. - I can't do anything.

I've had multiple interviews.

Two detectives. No one has followed up.

Sergeant Baker!

Sergeant Baker.

Sergeant Baker!

Sergeant Baker, I'm talking to you!

Sir, step away from the glass.

- Buddy, calm down. - Go to hell.

Get over here.

Spread your feet.

- Get your hands off of me. - Give me your hand.

Please, get your hands off of me.

- Please. - Come here.

Shall we begin?

Madame Adjudicator, the relationship between the LGBTQ+ community

and the Halifax Police Department has always been strained.

One glance at the history shows a pattern of antipathy,

neglect, and at times, outright hostility.

And this pattern is evident

in the handling of my client's sexual assault,

from the delayed processing of his sexual assault evidence kit

to the lack of follow-up on leads.

Christian Spry

reveals just how the justice system

fails queer people.

Sexual assault is a...

it's a horrible and traumatizing experience.

And Christian Spry's trauma was just dismissed

by the very people we trust to serve and protect

because of their prejudice.

That makes my client a victim of assault

and a flawed system. And that

just isn't justice.

Thank you, Counsel.

Ms. Chen?

It's true.

Justice wasn't served in Mr. Spry's assault case.

No assailant was located.

And what is alleged to have happened to the complainant

in the early hours of May 28th is undeniably horrible.

But, uh, let's be clear,

the Halifax Police Department

have acknowledged their historical bias

towards the LGBTQ+ community.

They declined uniformed participation in Pride.

They hired an Equity and Diversity Officer

to build relationships with neighbourhood organizations.

Identity is not the issue here.

The sad reality is not every case can find resolution.

It's understandably frustrating,

but it isn't evidence of homophobia.

Suggesting that Constable Fitzpatrick

or Sergeant Baker's behaviour reflects their personal bias

ignores the more than 40 years of service

between these two men.

But maligning their character?

That won't provide Mr. Spry

with the justice he's so desperately seeking.

Marea!

You didn't tell me you were coming. When did you get in?

Last night.

Is there any chance we can have lunch?

I have court. What about dinner?

That's the only time I can see Mom.

Well perfect, you can see us both.

Is Mom gonna be cool with that?

Yeah, she'll be fine. I'll call her.

Honey, I'm sorry. I have to go to the office.

But come to dinner tonight. It'll be fine.

I promise.

- Text me. - Okay.

New haircut?

Same cut, new product.

It's that grape seed oil stuff that Dani keeps pushing at the salon.

You look terrible.

Wow, I agree to meet you for coffee and this is what I get?

I'm worried about you.

Ever since you teamed up with Marcie Diggs

- and her anti-police outfit... - Anti-police?

Mom, you have it so wrong.

This Christian Spry business,

trying to make us all out like we're homophobes.

It's one discrimination case.

I take offence to it.

I need to ask you a question.

Go ahead.

I need to know about Gary Baker.

You really gonna do her dirty work?

We both know that only complaints

that go to a hearing get published.

I just need to know if he's decent.

He walks a line, no question.

But I've never heard of him crossing it.

♪ But you still try and call my phone ♪

♪ Tell me how does it feel to be left in the smoke ♪

♪ Goodbye baby, goodbye baby ♪

♪ Goodbye baby, baby goodbye ♪

♪ Goodbye baby ♪

I-I knew you were good.

But you were really good.

I did not ask you to come down here to turn my head.

I'm just speaking facts.

Ah, Marcie mentioned

you wanted me to help your minister with something?

Not the minister, one of the parishioners.

Fulton Parker, you remember him?

Yeah, yeah, I know the case.

It was a Black teen jailed for killing a White boy,

claims he didn't do it, says he was framed.

That's right.

His poor mother died two years ago.

Never got over seeing her son in that situation.

So, how can I help?

Fulton's got a son.

Grown boy, eighteen.

Promised his grandma he'd prove his father's innocence,

but he's just a college student, Avery.

He's not equipped for this.

Look, I...

I feel like this is more up Marcie's alley, Mrs. Diggs.

You're the prosecutor, ain't ya?

Who knows better how to fight the law than a law man?

Mr. Spry, could you describe the events leading up to

and following your assault on May 28th, 2020?

I'd had a bit of a day,

so I called a friend to blow off some steam.

Ah, we went to dinner at the Oyster,

and then went to a couple bars in the north end.

And this friend was Xavier Tennant?

- When was this? - Um, dinner was at six,

so we got to Gottingen around eight,

started at Parkside

and then Xavier suggested we go to The Barracks.

And could you describe your level of intoxication

at this point, Mr. Spry?

I was buzzed, but I knew to pace myself.

I'd only had maybe five or six pints

in the course of six hours.

And then what happened next?

I remember looking at my phone.

It was about 12:30,

and the crowd was more intense.

I figured I'd have one more drink and then head home.

That's the, the last thing I remember before I,

I woke up face down.

My pants were around my ankles.

I didn't know where I was,

but as I got my bearings,

I realized I was at a train yard,

very near The Barracks.

I was feeling horrible.

I didn't have my phone or my things.

I wasn't good.

Mr. Spry, if this is too much for you, we can...

- we can stop. - No.

I got home, I went to work,

um, but I had to excuse myself halfway through.

I was nauseous and... and disoriented.

I kept getting these...

flashes.

I... I knew I'd been assaulted.

I went to the hospital and a nurse administered a...

a rape kit.

Can you describe Constable Fitzpatrick's demeanour?

Distracted.

Disinterested when he found out I was a man.

And he conducted the interview?

He asked for permission to access the kit,

and, um, said someone would be in touch.

I waited two weeks and then went to the precinct myself.

What happened then?

I connected with Constable Shadd.

She was unfamiliar with my case.

She conducted a short interview and said she'd call.

Did she?

No.

Four weeks later I learned that my case

had been transferred to Sergeant Baker.

And what was your experience like with Sergeant Baker?

Sergeant Baker asked if I was cruising,

if I'd been doing any illegal drugs.

He wanted to know how often I went to The Barracks,

why I was there, if I'd picked up there before.

So, did he follow-up?

No.

Three months went by.

Nothing happened.

Three months without any progress on the investigation?

No follow-up with eyewitnesses

or no visit to the crime scene that you're aware of?

That's correct.

Thank you, Mr. Spry.

In Sergeant Baker's notes,

you mentioned having an argument with your husband

prior to meeting up with Xavier Tennant.

Mr. Tennant is a former romantic partner, is that correct?

Objection. Relevance?

Get to the point, Ms. Chen.

Had you gone to The Barracks before?

Yes.

And, uh, describe that establishment, Mr. Spry.

It's a bathhouse.

A place where men go to hook up,

party, right?

Yes, but not all the time.

And participate in recreational drug use?

Objection, Madame Adjudicator.

It's a proper question. Go ahead.

I mean, yes.

There's drug use.

In Sergeant Baker's note,

you told him you'd used street drugs before.

I partied in my twenties.

On the night of your assault, you alleged you were dosed

with gamma-Hydroxybutyric acid, or "GHB",

the blackout drug. Is that correct?

Yes.

In your previous visits to The Barracks,

had you used GHB before?

- Yes. - And do you recall if you hooked up

on those nights when you took a blackout drug?

Objection. This case is about police response,

not about whether a criminal offence was committed.

Ms. Diggs is correct. I think we can move on, Ms. Chen.

So he's a military man who can't tell time.

Maybe he's still on Sudan time and thinks we're meeting for dinner.

Ah.

Here he is.

You made it.

Of course.

Mr. Thompson, how do you do?

Dad, this is Tyrone.

Tyrone, nice to meet you.

I am sorry I'm late.

The Major General is weighing in

on the new officer-in-charge appointment.

I don't mean to pry,

but if the new guy in charge happens to be you,

doesn't that make you Ian's boss?

Isn't that fraternizing? Is that allowed?

I mean, let alone getting married.

I was Ian's immediate superior when we met.

As soon as it got serious,

we declared the personal relationship

to the chain of command.

Now there are protocols in place.

I'm not involved in performance reviews,

decisions about posting,

duty assignments.

Huh.

I'm sorry, Marcie.

Don't apologize.

Their lawyer's job is to

poke holes in your credibility. It's...

it's early days.

Hey, you okay?

All this talk about bathhouses and drugs.

Did you even consider how this was going to affect your job?

Our adoption?

Jamie, I went out for a drink with a friend.

It's not my fault that I was raped.

The police had no right to treat me the way that they did.

Do you understand that?

Do you?

Why do I feel like I need a PhD in algebra

to understand these acronyms on these police files?

"C.P", "Q.T."?

Ah, C.P. is "complaining party".

Q.T. is "secrecy required".

What the heck is "O.C."?

Maybe the police are fans of early 2000 teen soaps

like you, Doug.

That was supposed to remain in the vault, remember?

So I shouldn't mention "Pretty Little Liars"?

No.

Hey, wait, Fitzpatrick and Baker are all over these documents.

Wasn't there a third officer?

Constable Shadd.

She was on the case briefly, but then left the force.

I reached out to her when we started the case,

but I've never heard back.

Can you follow up again?

Maybe she wants to break rank.

Roger that.

You said you only found two complaints against Baker?

Did you ask around?

He's not the greatest person

but he has a good rep as a cop.

According to who?

My mom.

She's an inspector at the HPD.

Respectfully, I don't need cops vouching for other cops.

We've got enough of that going on in the hearing.

I know you're looking for dirt on the police to help your case,

- but if there's nothing there... - Just because your mother said something

doesn't make it true, Ellery.

And if Baker has even one complaint

that justified a hearing, you know there's more.

So find out.

We got somewhere today.

Hold on to that, okay?

- Whatever it takes. - Sure.

- See you next week. - Sure.

Mr. Diggs, I heard about you and Mrs. Diggs.

You guys are good people.

Look at you,

you're always working an angle.

He just needs space.

Come on in.

Ah, Velma told me she filled you in on Fulton's case, right?

Mentioned you had the case files, yeah.

Thank you for doing this. Follow me.

No problem.

Here you go.

Okay.

Yeah.

Sergeant Baker, in his complaint,

Mr. Spry points to your failure to go to the crime scene

as evidence of a botched investigation.

It's a train yard.

Any evidence worth gathering would have been gone after 48 hours.

There wasn't any point.

Mr. Spry claims his complaint

was not investigated properly

because of his gender identity,

because he's a gay man.

I've done tons of work with our Equity and Diversity Officer.

Part of the training is to consider factors

of the lived realities of communities

with every case we handle.

Sergeant, have you ever had any complaints

from the LGBTQ+ community filed against you?

Every officer gets complaints.

In twenty years, I've only had

two complaints from that community.

Both were dismissed as unfounded.

Thank you.

Could you please read paragraph two on page 14

under "Sexual Assault Investigation Guidelines".

"Police will respond immediately to the reports

of recent sexual violence.

Attempts will be made to interview the victim/survivor,

secure any evidence,

and gather information thoroughly and expeditiously."

Want me to keep going?

"The officer will take steps

to preserve the privacy of the victim/survivor

and ensure that the complainants

do not have to keep retelling their experience

to multiple investigative officers."

Thank you. And would you say

that the handling of Mr. Spry's case

follows these protocols?

Objection. Leading.

Ms. Diggs, go about it another way.

If those are standard protocols

for handling sexual assault cases,

what made Mr. Spry's case different?

As I mentioned,

multiple officers were involved in Mr. Spry's file before me.

That makes it messy.

Sometimes hard questions have to be asked more than once.

And how many attempts did you make to interview

Xavier Tennant, Mr. Spry's friend?

At least two.

And it's your evidence that he didn't return your call?

I didn't say that. He returned, eventually.

I took his statement and put it in the file.

Did you interview any other witnesses?

Look, Ms. Diggs, there were no new leads to chase down,

no fresh description of the alleged assailant.

I'm sorry that this is unsatisfying for your client,

but without a physical description or DNA

I don't know what people expect.

- Just for you to do your job, Sergeant Baker. - Objection.

Really? I'm done with the witness.

Thank you.

I thought you had a new job.

Isn't this your old office?

Yes and no.

Uh, a little different.

So,

Tyrone.

What about him?

Well, he's just a little older than I had expected.

Fifty-two in May.

Nearly twice your age.

Is that why you disapprove?

I don't disapprove. I'm just asking.

He's your commanding officer.

If you two break up, are you gonna end up in a war zone?

- Please, Dad. Don't be ridiculous. - Seriously, how does that work?

Like Ty said,

- there are protocols in place. - Oh come on, Ian.

You two break up and I mean,

who do you think is gonna come out ahead?

Can you at least just give him a chance?

We're so happy you called.

We want to do whatever we can to support you

in this human rights case.

I pulled all the materials.

I've also gathered information on a number of other cases

Sorry if I wasn't clear earlier.

I am only looking for information on Gary Baker.

I'm not going after the entire HPD.

Why not?

I am focused on Gary Baker.

This is Baker's failure not a policing failure.

Just the bad apples and not the barrel.

I get it.

Well, if you have any evidence

that can stand up in court against Gary Baker,

let me know. I'd love to take a look at it.

Hello?

Hey, I've located Constable Shadd

in Prince Edward Island.

I mean, she was super friendly when I first called.

And then I mentioned Christian, and she hung up on me.

Oh, well pack your bags.

You're heading to PEI.

Really?

Really.

Think I'll run into Anne?

Bye, Iris.

Hey.

Hey.

So I see you spoke to Mom.

Yeah. Yeah, this is insane.

This Fulton kid is in the backseat of a guy's car named Flex

when the shooting happened. He never even laid eyes on the victim.

Well, what was the evidence?

Witness statement from the same Flex guy

and blood splatter on Fulton's hoodie.

Look at him.

He didn't kill anybody.

Someone set this kid up, Marcie.

Oh my God, I miss this so much.

I'm so tired of frozen fish sticks.

Well you should move home.

- Be nice to have our baby back. - Mmm.

Are you guys back together?

Of course not.

Then what's all this?

Sweetheart, it's not serious.

Man, you guys.

Last time I came to visit,

I made fifty trips between Hali and Eskasoni

just so you two wouldn't have to see each other.

Now you pull this on me?

Leah was so surprised

when I told her I was meeting you both for dinner.

And I defended you guys.

How mature you were being for my sake.

And you just wanted me in on your dirty little secret?

I'm so tired of this.

Just leave her.

I'll talk to her tomorrow.

Hello?

Thank God you're here.

You hit a parent?

We've been dealing with crank phone calls the whole night.

- Every bloody detail for this hearing is online. - Oh God.

I get to the school this morning

and I was helping unload kids off the bus

and this dad comes at me

says, "It must be illegal for a fag to be near his kids".

I belted him.

Marcie, if I'm charged for this,

my life is ruined.

My job,

the adoption.

The adoption.

Christian,

I think I might have an idea.

Ellery, yeah.

I need a favour.

Can I help you?

Andria Shadd?

I'm Iris Beals. I called about the Christian Spry case?

You sounded persistent on the phone.

It's okay, babe.

It's not a good time.

When would be a good time?

I can meet you at Founder's Hall & Food Market,

the end of Prince Street.

My lunch is at noon.

Inspector.

Thank you for taking the time to see me.

So, Ellery tells me you want a favour.

Yes, my client Christian Spry

got into a scuffle with a homophobic parent at school.

Your client seems to find homophobia everywhere he looks.

I'm wondering if it's possible for the charges to...

I talked to the officer.

The parent isn't interested in pressing charges.

Oh, ah...

I know my daughter thinks you're the second coming.

Me, I'm less impressed.

Thank you, Inspector.

And Ms. Diggs?

Ellery doesn't give you status here.

In case there was any confusion.

Am I gonna see you tonight?

I can't tonight.

What about Friday?

No.

And I need to talk to you.

Is this about Marea?

Last night at dinner, you told Marea

that this thing between you and me

was nothing.

Is that what you really think?

Because...

it's not nothing to me.

Are you saying you want to get back together?

No.

Yes.

Maybe, I don't...

I don't know.

I just want it to be something.

It is something.

It's fun.

And I like having you in my life.

And my bed.

Without having to rely on you for anything.

Your mom seems, uh, interesting.

I wish I could've witnessed that meet.

Is everything okay?

People like you, you never get it.

It's not the apples,

it's the whole bloody barrel.

- I told you, I'm not... - I heard you.

Everything you want to know about your friend, Gary Baker.

Hi.

Glad you made it.

I can only stay for a few minutes.

How are things in the 'fax?

You know, same old.

I mean, it's so beautiful here.

I know.

It was nice to get a fresh start.

Put my time at HPD behind me.

Things weren't so good there, huh?

You might not believe it,

but I did my best on the Spry case.

I wanted to go back to that crime scene,

do a reconstruction,

try to figure it out,

but they didn't want me wasting time on it.

I'd had enough.

Would you be willing to give testimony on all of this?

I'm sorry, I... I can't.

I just can't.

I don't understand.

That's my brotherhood.

Yeah, it's dysfunctional as hell,

but you don't stop being police.

What about Christian Spry?

Isn't he your "brother" too?

All right.

When you get back,

look into "Operation Citadel".

Uneasy is the head that wears the crown.

- Spry case? - Mm-hmm.

It's brutal.

Victimized in a violent assault.

Is victimized again

with the police's bias and incompetence.

And now his relationship's crumbling.

I just don't want this to be for nothing, you know?

Like we gotta win.

What happened to Christian can't keep happening.

Iris is on line one.

She wants to talk to both of us.

I met with Shadd.

Did she give us anything that we can use?

Well, she dropped a hint as to what "O.C." stands for.

"Operation Citadel".

Operation Citadel? That was a,

an undercover sting operation

the police ran in 1990 up on Citadel Hill.

Yeah.

Targeting men participating in consensual sex acts.

And charging them with trespassing and indecent exposure.

But what does that have to do with anything?

Queer activists complained and the HPD shut that down.

That was long before Christian Spry.

Unless the notation doesn't just apply to one operation,

but all files involving gay complainants,

like, um, you know, like a shorthand.

It could show us that that is more

than one isolated case of discrimination.

- Thanks, Iris. - I'll see you guys when I get back.

I'm gonna make an appointment

with the Equity and Diversity officer this afternoon.

Paul Nowak.

And I want you there.

I'll be there.

But I have a meeting first.

I've been coming to this survivors' group for four years.

After I got spiked at a party and woke up in that same site

that Christian was in.

The injuries from my sexual assault were so severe

I was in hospital for ten days.

I still remember the cops making jokes about me in the ER.

My coach raped me

after a hockey tournament when I was 17.

I reported it.

The cops said that I shouldn't have been drinking under age.

I filed a complaint.

Nothing.

I got picked up by two cops.

They found me bleeding and half-undressed

at the Public Gardens.

When I told the cops I'd been assaulted,

they threatened to charge me with public indecency.

I complained, too.

Cops met me after work one day,

persuaded me to drop it.

Is it okay if I write this down?

I have already taken statements from all these men.

You must be Marcie Diggs.

And Ellery!

Oh, it's nice to see you.

It's been a long time since your parents barbecue, huh?

Yeah, nice to see you too, Paul.

Thanks for seeing us on such short notice.

That's what I'm here for.

We've made such progress in...

in training our officers to treat marginalized communities

with increased sensitivity.

It's very sad to see a case like Christian Spry

fall through the cracks like that.

Indeed.

Well, I'm sure you're making a huge difference.

Um, we were hoping to have a look at specific cases

handled within the LGBTQ+ community.

Specific cases?

These cases.

This is an extremely unorthodox request.

Paul, I know you care as much as we do

about improving police procedures,

so it would be a huge help

if you could cross reference that list

with your sexual assault evidence kits

that you have in storage.

Now we don't need the kits,

we just need the associated files.

Okay, but the files need to stay in this office,

and only for you.

You don't have to do this.

Use the Lopez name. It's, um...

It could have some blowback.

I know.

Your mother...

It's not about my mother, it's about me.

This is just the tip of the iceberg.

There's more downstairs.

"O.C."

"O.C."

"O.C."

"O.C."

- They're all marked. - Yeah.

And unprocessed.

"Operation Citadel" is just a shorthand for "low priority".

How are the nachos?

Okay, I'll have two of those, please.

Yeah. Thank you.

Hey!

Wow, you look beautiful.

- Thank you. - Yes, yes.

Now see, there's a lot more lawyer jokes

than minister jokes.

Let me hear one.

Everyone says lawyers are going to hell,

but I don't believe it though.

Why not?

Because God loves overachievers.

Created the world in six days, didn't he?

Yeah.

I wouldn't quit my day job if I were you.

Yeah, my, um...

Can't mind your business?

Can you, Reverend?

Superintendent Costello.

Fulton Parker's case deserves another look.

You didn't want to oversee a review.

Just remember,

if you kick dirt in my face,

- I hit back. - Dad, come on.

Sergeant Baker,

can you please explain the "O.C." notation

on these sexual assault files?

It's just a notation.

But what does it mean?

We scribble all sorts of stuff on files,

maybe "other course" or "only copy"?

Sergeant, are you familiar with the term Operation Citadel?

It was an undercover sting in the late nineties.

Targeting gay men?

It was focused on individuals

participating in public indecency and trespassing.

But community activists saw it as unfairly targeting

men having sex with men.

That operation ended in 2002,

and those files also feature the "O.C." notation,

is that correct?

Yes.

So these two sets of files

relating to two separate police operations

sharing the same notation,

but the only detail that they share in terms of the context

is the sexual orientation of the complainants?

Coincidence.

You mentioned earlier you'd been the subject

of two complaints from the LGBTQ+ community.

But that's not quite true, is it?

Two complaints made it to a hearing,

but the actual number of filed complaints

was over ten times that.

Joe Rogers,

Earl McKinnon,

Roaul Proulx,

each of these men were sexually assaulted,

and you were the investigating officer on those cases.

Each filed a complaint against you

for not investigating their cases properly. I mean,

you didn't even process their rape kits.

- Objection. - Overruled.

Continue, Ms. Diggs.

You have a problem with gay men, Sergeant Baker?

We're allowed to use our discretion.

System would be bankrupt if we processed every rape kit.

The investigating officer doesn't think the case warrants it,

we don't process the kits.

And yet the percentage of unprocessed kits

from queer victims of assault is vastly higher

than the percentage of kits from the general population.

Circumstances in those cases were different.

What circumstances?

We can't respond to every case

with the same amount of manpower.

We have to factor in community considerations.

If we pursued every report that came in from that community,

- the department would be overrun. - And when you say that community,

who do you mean exactly?

I mean grown men who are going out to get drunk,

get high and get laid in places

no respectable person would go to.

Parks, bathhouses, train yards, you name it.

They put themselves in dangerous situations

and expect us to dedicate resources

when they party too hard and things go sideways.

Every cop on the beat understands that.

You learn from day one.

That'll be all.

Marea, please talk to me.

Dad, I don't have time for drama.

I'm gonna miss my flight.

At least let me drive you to the airport.

Save you a few bucks.

And spend the next hour listening to your lies and excuses?

You know what really pisses me off?

The way you think I'm so stupid.

Like I wouldn't find out about you and Mom,

or that you didn't care what I thought.

I do care.

I just didn't think.

I didn't think about you.

I mean, I've always felt bad about what I did to your mom,

and to you kids in the past.

I didn't think about how it'd affect you as an adult.

I'm glad that you made me notice.

The things a person has to do in this family for some attention.

I walked out of a lobster dinner!

After you finished your roll.

Did I make us late again?

Sorry to keep you waiting.

No no no, you're early.

I... I was earlier.

Glad you could make it.

Are you kidding?

Ian has told me so much about sailing with you

when he was growing up.

I am really looking forward to this.

Yeah, we had some good times.

Uh, are those the only shoes you got?

Please Dad, don't start with the shoes.

I'm not criticizing. It's a safety issue.

Look, uh, Tyrone,

ah, I have not been as welcoming to you as I should have been.

The truth is,

I didn't know how hard it was gonna hit me

when suddenly Ian shows up, and with you,

and announces he's gonna get married.

Yeah, I get it.

The truth is, he kind of took me by surprise too.

You have a fine son there, Mr. Thompson.

It's Reggie.

Thanks, Dad.

Okay, let's go sailing.

But those won't do. What size are you?

I think I might have some extra boat shoes in my car.

- Oh don't worry. - These have gum rubber soles.

Best deck shoes I've found so far.

Tyrone used to be an instructor

with the Canadian Forces Sailing Association at Munroe Head.

Ah, well played.

Could be a few months before we receive a formal judgement,

but I'm confident things will go our way.

I expected you to be happier.

Is it the job or?

- No, the school is keeping me on. - Oh.

It's Jamie.

We're gonna get a divorce.

Oh, Christian.

No Marcie, it was a long time coming.

He has this fantasy that we're Cam and Mitchell

from Modern Family.

It's not me.

I'm messy.

And I'm of pretending to be something that I'm not.

So you're saying all this was worth it?

It doesn't change what happened.

And it doesn't put people behind bars.

But it's good to feel like I matter.

That the system finally admitted

that what happened to me wasn't my fault.

But check on me in a few months.

I promise.

Twice in one week.

I'm happy to see you, but is everything okay?

You weren't straight with me before

when I asked you about Gary Baker.

What are you talking about?

You told me he was a good cop.

Mom, I just found out that he's...

he's terrible. He's the worst kind of cop.

And he just gets away with it

because so many other cops take it for granted

that they can mistreat and ignore LGBTQ+ people.

And I just don't understand how you didn't know that.

Baker is a macho jerk.

The system and some of the people in it

are far from perfect.

Sometimes...

sometimes people fall through the cracks.

What about me, Mom?

What if I fall through the cracks

and get treated like Christian Spry or Abe Hirsch?

That's okay with you?

Don't be ridiculous.

I would never let that happen to you.

You're family.

We protect our own.

- Synced and corrected by chamallow - - www.addic7ed.com -