Shark Transcripts
SHARK
1x02: LAPD Blue
Original Airdate: 28 September 2006
Written by: Ian Biederman
Directed by: Spike Lee
Transcribed by: Rahul Kudva
COLD OPEN.
[Recap: Outside the Brock Residence. Night. Sebastian Stark walks inside.]
VOICEOVER: Last week on Shark...
[Recap: Brock Residence, Living Room. Deena Brock lies dead on the floor, in a pool of her own blood. Stark looks at her mournfully.]
[Recap: Brock Residence, Kitchen. Gordie Brock sits on a stool, covered in his wife's blood. He is flanked by two detectives.]
GORDIE BROCK: [arms folded smugly] My lawyer, boys, why not let me go right now?
[Stark looks at him hatefully.]
MAYOR DELGADO: [vo] We're starting a high-profile crime unit in the D.A.'s office.
[Recap: Outside City Hall. Day. Stark walks with Mayor Manuel Delgado up the steps.]
MAYOR DELGADO: To nail rich folks with fancy lawyers like you.
SEBASTIAN STARK: What schmo would take that job? Come on.
[The Mayor puts his hand around Stark's shoulders, pretty much answering his question.]
SEBASTIAN STARK: [surprised] Me, a prosecutor? I eat prosecutors for breakfast. They're my main source of fiber. Come on.
MAYOR DELGADO: Who better to shake up the D.A.'s office, huh? Winning is what you do, it's what makes you the man.
[Recap: HPCU Office. Day. Stark confers with his team.]
SEBASTIAN STARK: Trial is war, second place is death. Truth is relative. Pick one that works.
[Recap: Courtroom. Day. A judge speaks to Julie, sitting in the witness box. Claire Stark (with her lawyer) and Stark look on.]
JUDGE: Having reached the age of 16, you must now designate which parent will act as custodian until your 18th birthday.
JULIE STARK: I choose to live with my dad.
[Recap: Courthouse, Hallway. Day. Claire takes her frustration out on Stark.]
CLAIRE STARK: Do you have any idea what it takes to raise a teenage girl alone in Los Angeles?
SEBASTIAN STARK: No, but...
CLAIRE STARK: This is the biggest case you are ever going to get. Don't blow it.
[Recap: DA's Office, Jessica's Office. Day. Stark speaks to Jessica.]
SEBASTIAN STARK: You are a good attorney, but the people in your office, [scoffs] they - I don't know, what's the word I'm looking for? Oh, yeah - sssuck.
JESSICA DEVLIN: [smiling] Well, this should be fun.
HARD CUT TO:
[Stark Residence. Night. A high-stakes card game is underway. Stark, Mayor Delgado and three others sit at a round table. Stark plays with his chips.]
SEBASTIAN STARK: Jesus, Manny, it took you less time to settle the [chuckling] transit strike. Come on.
MAYOR DELGADO: That wasn't my money. [tosses some chips into the pot] Call.
SEBASTIAN STARK: Shapiro?
BOB SHAPIRO: [tossing a chip into the pot] Raise five hundred.
SEBASTIAN STARK & MAYOR DELGADO: Ooh.
SEBASTIAN STARK: Profiles in courage. [addressing the lady in front of him] Position in the 9th circuit?
JUDGE VIVIAN BELL: [folds] Mmm, judicial restraint.
SEBASTIAN STARK: Wolfie?
WOLFGANG PUCK: [folds] These cards are crap.
MAYOR DELGADO: [to Shark] Your bet, big guy.
SEBASTIAN STARK: A, I'm going to put you all in... [slaps all his chips into the pot] and B, if you win, [holding his checkbook] I am writing a check for ten large to that soup kitchen on Fig that you're always trying to save, okay?
MAYOR DELGADO: [intrigued] And if you pull off this miracle?
SEBASTIAN STARK: I need decent work space for my unit at the D.A.'s office.
MAYOR DELGADO: No, that's Jessica's call.
SEBASTIAN STARK: Come on, you're the Mexican Monty Hall, make a deal.
MAYOR DELGADO: [declaring] I've got you cold, hermano!
SEBASTIAN STARK: [looking at his cards] No, no.
MAYOR DELGADO: [challenging] You need a queen to beat me.
SEBASTIAN STARK: Ten Gs buys a lot of minestrone, Manny.
[Julie Stark walks in behind Stark.]
JULIE STARK: Sorry to interrupt. Just gonna say good night.
[The gamblers all look at her and greet her warmly. Stark, still sitting, hugs her 'round her waist.]
SEBASTIAN STARK: There's my brilliant girl, huh?
JULIE STARK: How's it going?
SEBASTIAN STARK: [bragging] Three-eight at the Beverly School. Bob, what do you think of that? Nice, huh?
[Shapiro chuckles.]
SEBASTIAN STARK: [mock-humility] Heredity... is such a beautiful thing.
MAYOR DELGADO: [impatient yet politely] Not to break up this touching family moment, but can we get back to this game?
SEBASTIAN STARK: We had never left this game. You're virtually drawing dead. I have a million outs, okay? So you're either going to [taunting] call like a man or fold like a mouse.
[The Mayor looks around and calls, slapping his cards face-up on the table.]
SEBASTIAN STARK: [laughing] Yes. [as Wolfie picks out a card from the deck] Give me the clubs, give me the queen, give me the queen--
[Wolfie puts the card on the table.]
SEBASTIAN STARK: [exulting] And the queen of clubs! Thank you very much.
[The whole table erupts. Mayor Delgado reacts in sporting defeat.]
SEBASTIAN STARK: [collecting his winnings] Send the sherbet to Herbert, send the bread to Fred.
[Mayor Delgado's cellphone beeps. He looks at the text message, as Stark speaks.]
SEBASTIAN STARK: I am thinking kind of open-floor plan, very modern with traditional touches... [sees Delgado's serious look, stops] Problem?
MAYOR DELGADO: For both of us.
CUT TO:
[Downtown LA, Street. Night. A police helicopter flies overhead, flashing its light over many police cruisers parked under a bridge. Mayor Delgado gets out of his car, accompanied by his security detail. Stark arrives in his car. He walks up to the crime scene tape and flashes his DA's badge at the cops assembled there. They don't look too happy to see him. Delgado approaches Deputy Police Chief George Martinson.]
MAYOR DELGADO: What have we got, Chief?
DEPUTY CHIEF GEORGE MARTINSON: One of ours.
[Stark comes up. They look at the dead man, lying shirt open, a gunshot wound to his chest, a baggie stuffed in his mouth. A CSU criminalist clicks pictures nearby.]
DEPUTY CHIEF GEORGE MARTINSON: Detective Joe Rodriguez, undercover narcotics. Wife and two kids.
SEBASTIAN STARK: In the middle of a buy?
DEPUTY CHIEF GEORGE MARTINSON: [sees him, beat] I'll call you when we make an arrest. You can earn a few bucks getting the scumbag acquitted.
SEBASTIAN STARK: Maybe you missed the memo; I'm on your side now.
DEPUTY CHIEF GEORGE MARTINSON: [sharply] Stay behind the yellow tape.
[Martinson leaves.]
SEBASTIAN STARK: [deadpan] Was it something I said?
MAYOR DELGADO: They risk their lives putting away bad guys. You made a living letting them go.
SEBASTIAN STARK: Yeah, but it was never personal.
MAYOR DELGADO: It was for them.
[They hear a car door slam and turn. Isaac Wright, a tough-looking African-American cop (in plain clothes), comes running up. He ducks under the crime scene tape and goes over to the body, looking distressed. The criminalist stands and prevents him from getting closer.]
SEBASTIAN STARK: Who is that?
MAYOR DELGADO: That's the dead cop's partner.
[Grief-stricken, Isaac looks at his deceased friend.]
MAYOR DELGADO: [turning to Stark] You want to make things right with the LAPD? You nail the son of a bitch who did this.
[Stark nods slowly. Delgado leaves. Stark looks at crime scene. Isaac still stands there mournfully looking at Rodriguez. Stark shakes his head and sighs.]
CUT TO:
[Opening Sequence.]
CUT TO:
[DA's Office, outside. Day.]
JESSICA DEVLIN: [vo] The murder of Detective Rodriguez...
CUT TO:
[DA's Office, Steps/Hallway. Day. Surrounded by reporters (with flashing cameras and some carrying booms), Jessica Devlin, flanked by Mayor Delgado, Deputy Chief Martinson and others, gives her statement.]
JESSICA DEVLIN: ... is a crime against our entire city. My office will work closely with the LAPD to ensure that this vicious cop-killer is apprehended, prosecuted and convicted. [motions towards Martinson] Deputy Chief Martinson will now take your questions. Thank you.
[As reporters jostle to her ask Martinson their questions, Jessica and Delgado walk up the steps out of earshot.]
MAYOR DELGADO: I want Sebastian on this one.
JESSICA DEVLIN: In case you haven't noticed, the cops hate his guts.
MAYOR DELGADO: You have an election in two months, Jess. You need a win.
JESSICA DEVLIN: The relationship between this office and the LAPD is a powder keg, and Stark's a blow torch.
MAYOR DELGADO: Exactly, and if he loses, they'll be scraping him off the pavement and not you.
[He leaves. She considers it.]
CUT TO:
[New, improved HPCU Office. Day. The excited team marvels at their new digs, while workmen carry stuff out and in. Stark enters, pleased.]
SEBASTIAN STARK: All this on the turn of a card.
RAINA TROY: [actually impressed with Stark] This place rocks the planet. Narcotics Division must be pissed.
MARTIN ALLENDE: It's like working at a real firm.
SEBASTIAN STARK: Minus the salary.
CASEY WOODLAND: We got our own kitchen.
SEBASTIAN STARK: Oh, nice priorities.
CASEY WOODLAND: I get hungry.
MADELEINE POE: How did you get Devlin to sign off?
[Stark enters his new office, where a young technician is working on the phone wiring.]
SEBASTIAN STARK: Oh, we worked out a little system. I go behind her back to get whatever I want, she wonders what happened. [places his briefcase on the desk] All right, strap in, kids. We caught last night's cop-killing.
MARTIN ALLENDE: Who's the suspect?
SEBASTIAN STARK: [to the phone guy] Cover your ears.
[The phone guy gives a confused shrug and puts his fingers into his ears.]
SEBASTIAN STARK: [walking outside his office] Scott Ransom. Big money family, busted twice for selling drugs, walks both times.
[As he speaks, the team assembles around him.]
SEBASTIAN STARK: Undercover narcs are about to pop him for moving methamphetamine. Things blow up, Ransom pulls a gun. Detective Joseph Rodriguez ends up dead in the street.
RAINA TROY: Any witnesses?
SEBASTIAN STARK: Yeah, Rodriguez's partner, a Detective Isaac Wright, was monitoring the buy, says he saw Ransom standing over his partner's body.
CASEY WOODLAND: Well, we got a police eyewitness. We're golden.
SEBASTIAN STARK: No...
MADELEINE POE: [interrupting] Why haven't they picked up Ransom?
SEBASTIAN STARK: Because Wright says he didn't see the actual shooting and Ransom's got an alibi. Says he was with his girlfriend all night in Los Feliz. [takes Casey's cup of coffee] Oh, hey, thanks.
MARTIN ALLENDE: Doesn't an LAPD detective trump a drug dealer's girlfriend?
SEBASTIAN STARK: Normally, yes, but don't forget, this kid has already beaten two drug raps due to the fact that he is represented by none other than Elliott Dasher.
RAINA TROY: When's the last time that guy lost?
MARTIN ALLENDE: 1999, County of L.A. v. Pendleton, back when he worked for the law firm of Stark, Bell.
CASEY WOODLAND: You were his boss?
SEBASTIAN STARK: Taught him everything he knows. Let's hope he forgot a few things.
PHONE GUY: [fingers still in his ears] Hey, can I get back to work?
SEBASTIAN STARK: Thirty more seconds, you're a champ. All right, assignments. Raina, Martin.
MARTIN ALLENDE: [enthusiastic] Yes?
SEBASTIAN STARK: Rodriguez's widow is having people over. Pay our respects.
MARTIN ALLENDE: All right.
RAINA TROY: Since when are you so sentimental?
SEBASTIAN STARK: Since how about never? Look, guys, this is the hard part about a case like this. These undercover narcs, they're around drugs and cash all day long every day. Any defense attorney worth his salt is going to try to impugn the integrity of the dead officer. Get over there, sniff around...
RAINA TROY: Meaning?
SEBASTIAN STARK: Meaning I want to make sure I got a dead hero and not a dirty cop on my hands.
RAINA TROY: [protesting] That's disgusting. The woman just lost her husband.
SEBASTIAN STARK: You want to be a nun? Join a convent. You want to win? Stick a Band-Aid on that bleeding heart of yours and do what I tell you.
[That earns him a glare from Raina.]
SEBASTIAN STARK: Madeleine, Casey. Judge Pearlman denied Kaufman's search warrant petition for Ransom's condo.
[He walks into his office to collect his briefcase, walking past the phone guy, who still stands with his ears covered.]
SEBASTIAN STARK: Now, the cops have been staking it out since shortly after the murder. Ransom, of course, is lying low, probably at his lawyer's, so... [low serious voice] I don't care what it takes. You get us inside that condo before drug-boy decides to head home and destroy evidence. You got me? [in Casey's face] By any means necessary.
[He starts to walk out.]
SEBASTIAN STARK: The whole world's watching. No mistakes.
[He exits the door.]
CUT TO:
[Outside Rodriguez Residence. Day. Martin and Raina walk on the sidewalk leading up to the house. Police cruisers are parked near the sidewalk.]
MARTIN ALLENDE: There's the widow.
[Ana Rodriguez sits sadly on a lawn chair on her front lawn, her child on her lap. An officer comes up and pays his respects. She thanks him and walks away.]
RAINA TROY: [stops] Let's just tell Stark that we talked to her.
MARTIN ALLENDE: [carries on] I'll handle it.
[As Martin approaches, another officer pays his respects. A priest reads from the Bible in front of her.]
ANA RODRIGUEZ: Gracias.
MARTIN ALLENDE: Señora Rodriguez. [shaking her hand] Buenos días, yo soy Martin Allende, esta es Raina Troy.
[Mrs. Rodriguez. Good morning, I'm Martin Allende, this is Raina Troy.]
[Ana acknowledges Raina.]
MARTIN ALLENDE: Somos de la oficina del jurado del distrito. Condolencias por nuestro parte.
[We're with the District Attorney's office. Our condolences.]
ANA RODRIGUEZ: Thank you.
MARTIN ALLENDE: We'd like you to come in and prepare a testimony in the event of a trial.
ANA RODRIGUEZ: Whatever I can do.
MARTIN ALLENDE: I want you to understand that we really want to put this guy away. It will help to know anything that could potentially hurt the case.
[Raina grabs Martin's hand, preventing him from speaking further.]
ANA RODRIGUEZ: I don't understand.
RAINA TROY: We're very sorry for your loss.
MARTIN ALLENDE: In cases like this, the defense often tries to blame the victim.
ANA RODRIGUEZ: How could this be Joey's fault?
MARTIN ALLENDE: It couldn't. But reputations come into play. Lawyers will pry into your private lives.
ANA RODRIGUEZ: [getting upset] Wait a minute. You're asking me if my husband was a criminal?
MARTIN ALLENDE: [unsure of what to say] No, of course not.
ANA RODRIGUEZ: [angry] Does this look like the house of a dirty cop to you? You see a lot of fancy cars in the driveway?
[This gets the attention of the cops and guests.]
MARTIN ALLENDE: No, Señora, I didn't mean to imply...
ANA RODRIGUEZ: [incensed] Yeah, the hell you didn't. You come here, speaking Spanish, all de lagente, pretending like you give a damn. [sniff] I'll testify, but it won't be for you. [yells] Now get the hell out of here!
[Martin quietly apologizes and withdraws. He and Raina beat a hasty retreat, getting a whole lot of dirty looks from the cops around.]
CUT TO:
[DA's Office, Elevator/HPCU Office. Day. Casey and Madeleine exit the elevator.]
MADELEINE POE: According to the M.E., the slug they took out of Rodriguez "appears to be nine millimeter."
CASEY WOODLAND: Ransom has a nine millimeter handgun registered in his name.
[They enter the HPCU office.]
MADELEINE POE: The report's vague. We need a conclusive finding to have a shot at a warrant.
CASEY WOODLAND: Partner's statement puts Ransom at the scene.
MADELEINE POE: Judge Pearlman is a Fourth Amendment freak. We have no gun. She won't grant our search warrant petition unless the bullet's a solid match. [sits at her desk]
CASEY WOODLAND: [sits at his desk] Ballistics'll confirm the caliber of the slug in a few days.
MADELEINE POE: We don't have a few days. We need to get into Ransom's condo now.
CASEY WOODLAND: It's not like we can misstate the M.E.'s report.
MADELEINE POE: [deadpan] Of course not. That would be unethical. Unless... it was a simple oversight made under time pressure.
CASEY WOODLAND: [smiles] Forget it.
MADELEINE POE: Fortune favors the bold.
CASEY WOODLAND: And what's that supposed to mean?
MADELEINE POE: Sometimes you got to have some balls.
CASEY WOODLAND: [chuckles] Well, I've never had any complaints.
MADELEINE POE: So I hear.
[They look at each other.]
CASEY WOODLAND: [agreeable shrug] So, it was an oversight.
MADELEINE POE: [smiles] Happens all the time.
[He smiles at her, still unsure,]
CUT TO:
[LA Street. Day. Stark is giving a nervous Julie driving lessons in his car (and regretting it, by the looks of it). She slams the brakes, causing the car to come to a jerky halt, jerking Stark in front.]
SEBASTIAN STARK: Okay, better. Good. Just tap the brake, though. You don't want to stomp on it, right?
JULIE STARK: [arguing] I barely even touched the pedal. These brakes are completely different than the ones on Mom's car.
SEBASTIAN STARK: That's 'cause these brakes cost more than Mom's car. [smirks]
[She starts to cruise.]
SEBASTIAN STARK: Okay? Good. See? Nice.
JULIE STARK: This thing is so huge. Uhh, who needs a car this big?
SEBASTIAN STARK: Oh, just think of it as eight Priuses welded together.
[She starts picking up speed.]
SEBASTIAN STARK: There you go. Good.
[She slams the brakes. Stark grunts as he jerks in front.]
SEBASTIAN STARK: Okay, good. When's your, uh, test?
JULIE STARK: Tomorrow morning.
SEBASTIAN STARK: [pursed lips] Hmm.
JULIE STARK: Can't believe I'm finally going to get my learner's permit.
SEBASTIAN STARK: I still remember my Driver's Ed teacher, Mrs. Romanoff. Built like a Buick. I mean, tremendous calves.
JULIE STARK: [grossed out] Hello. Daughter.
SEBASTIAN STARK: Right. Sorry. Uh, hey, I noticed you're still living out of boxes upstairs.
JULIE STARK: Oh, yeah. It just takes a while to settle in.
SEBASTIAN STARK: Yeah. I was thinking I might have my decorator - you remember Sophia? - call you, and you know, maybe help you pick out some cool stuff, make the place your own. What do you think?
JULIE STARK: Thanks, but I was just going to hang some posters, and paint the walls.
SEBASTIAN STARK: You're gonna paint?
JULIE STARK: Oh, yeah, my friend Kim just redid her room this amazing shade of purple.
SEBASTIAN STARK: Purple? Wow.
[His cellphone rings.]
SEBASTIAN STARK: Oh, here we go.
[He looks at the phone.]
SEBASTIAN STARK: Uh, we got to go back to the house... carefully. Hey, you did great. And I'm going to have Sophia give you a call. Just, you know, trust me. You'll love her.
[She starts the car and drives slowly.]
SEBASTIAN STARK: Easy. Take a breath.
[They drive off-screen.]
CUT TO:
[Ransom's Apartment. Day. Madeleine, followed by an officer, comes down the stairs into Scott Ransom's living room/kitchen. Officers are searching the premises, while Ransom and ELLIOTT Dasher look on. Stark walks up to Ransom and Dasher.]
SEBASTIAN STARK: Nice place... for a condo.
SCOTT RANSOM: [smug] My dad says hi.
ELLIOTT DASHER: Sebastian Stark, a prosecutor...I'm... It's like Babe Ruth getting sent down to the minors.
SEBASTIAN STARK: Heard you haven't lost in a while, Elliot. Don't worry. It's like riding a bike - you never forget.
ELLIOTT DASHER: Are we almost done here? My client has a business meeting.
SEBASTIAN STARK: Why, is there a rave somewhere without enough crank?
SCOTT RANSOM: Screw you.
SEBASTIAN STARK: It's a date. Hope you like it rough.
ELLIOTT DASHER: What do you say we end this farce? Mr. Ransom has an alibi. His father's a respected business leader, and I'm not a third chair associate anymore.
CASEY WOODLAND: We got something.
[Casey, followed by a detective and Madeleine, enters. The detective holds a baggie containing a white powder, with red smudges on the baggie.]
CASEY WOODLAND: Found a baggie by the back door, looks like methamphetamine. Hook him up.
MADELEINE POE: And that's blood on the bag.
[An officer comes up behind Ransom and handcuffs him.]
SCOTT RANSOM: No way! That's not mine!
SEBASTIAN STARK: [as the officers take Ransom away] Make sure you read him his Mirandas.
SCOTT RANSOM: I'm being set up!
SEBASTIAN STARK: Mr. Dasher is an excellent attorney.
ELLIOTT DASHER: I always wondered what it would be like to take you on, Sebastian.
SEBASTIAN STARK: Be careful what you wish for.
ELLIOTT DASHER: What's that you used to say? Trial is war, second place is death?
SEBASTIAN STARK: I'll notify your next of kin.
[He walks off.]
CUT TO:
[Crenshaw Precinct, Parking Garage. Day. Isaac Wright walks into the garage on the way to his car. Stark comes up behind him.]
SEBASTIAN STARK: You got a second, Detective?
ISAAC WRIGHT: [keeps walking] Already gave my statement.
SEBASTIAN STARK: [walks with him] Yeah, I read it. There are some things I need to clarify...
ISAAC WRIGHT: [interrupting] I'm busy.
SEBASTIAN STARK: Look, I get that I'm not on the LAPD's Christmas card list, but I am trying to convict a guy who shot your partner.
ISAAC WRIGHT: You don't even remember, do you?
SEBASTIAN STARK: Enlighten me.
ISAAC WRIGHT: Eight years ago, you defended a rich scumbag named Palmer on an assault charge.
[They reach Isaac's car. Isaac puts his coat in the trunk.]
SEBASTIAN STARK: Yeah, so?
ISAAC WRIGHT: [slams the trunk shut] So. So, I was the arresting officer, the guy you accused of beating a confession out of your client. Is this all coming back to you?
SEBASTIAN STARK: [defensively] Technically that wasn't an accusation. Okay, I... it was more like subtle innuendo.
ISAAC WRIGHT: I faced a disciplinary board. They cleared me, but I had to switch precincts. Start over again.
[Stark purses his lips. Isaac goes to the driver seat door.]
SEBASTIAN STARK: Look, I'll make you a deal, okay.
[Isaac brushes him off with a "pff".]
SEBASTIAN STARK: No, no, you help me out, and I promise you, I will screw Scott Ransom ten times harder than I ever screwed you.
ISAAC WRIGHT: [softening] If you cross me again...
SEBASTIAN STARK: I promise you I won't.
ISAAC WRIGHT: [nods] We were setting Ransom up on a big-time meth score. Joey was running point, I was backup. Everything was SOP. Joey's about to get the cash when a-a truck pulls in front of the alley I was set up in. By the time I get the guy to move his rig, Joey's on the ground and Ransom's getting in his car.
SEBASTIAN STARK: Detective, I saw you drive up to the scene. Where did you go after the shooting?
ISAAC WRIGHT: After the paramedics arrived, I went after Ransom. But he drives one of these Italian sports cars with a damn airplane engine. [shakes his head sadly] Couldn't even get close.
SEBASTIAN STARK: [sympathetically] It wasn't your fault, Isaac.
ISAAC WRIGHT: I don't need your sympathy, Stark. Just put Ransom away.
[Isaac gets inside his car and shuts the door. Hold on Stark.]
CUT TO:
[HPCU Office. Day. Stark sits in his office while the team works on the case.]
MARTIN ALLENDE: Cops still haven't found the murder weapon.
CASEY WOODLAND: Who cares? The blood type on the baggie matches Rodriguez.
MADELEINE POE: We're a DNA test away from paradise. My opening will be brilliant.
RAINA TROY: Whoa, who said anything about Tinkerbell doing the opening?
[Stark comes out of his office, on the way to the kitchen.]
SEBASTIAN STARK: She asked.
CASEY WOODLAND: [eagerly] Can I close?
SEBASTIAN STARK: I have no idea. Can you?
[Casey leans back in his chair, sighing in defeat.]
SEBASTIAN STARK: I'm just kidding.
CASEY WOODLAND: [with renewed hope] So could I close?
SEBASTIAN STARK: No.
[Martin gets off the phone.]
MARTIN ALLENDE: Judge just called a suppression hearing. Dasher's challenging our warrant petition for Ransom's condo.
[Casey looks sheepishly away from Stark. Stark looks at him and walks off.]
CUT TO:
[Courtroom. Day. Dasher stands at the Defense Table addressing Judge Dana Pearlman.]
ELLIOTT DASHER: The petition states the bullet that killed Detective Rodriguez was nine millimeter. The M.E.'s report makes no such conclusive finding. Hence the search and all evidence yielded should be excluded.
SEBASTIAN STARK: This is a desperate request based on a trivial error, Your Honor.
JUDGE DANA PEARLMAN: I'm inclined to grant Mr. Dasher's motion and recommend disciplinary action against both Ms. Poe and Mr. Woodland.
[Casey and Madeleine sits nervously in their seats.]
SEBASTIAN STARK: As lead attorney, I take full responsibility for this oversight.
[Jessica sits in the galley, watching the proceedings.]
JUDGE DANA PEARLMAN: Then I should pursue disciplinary action against you.
SEBASTIAN STARK: Your prerogative, Your Honor, of course. But I assure the court that this oversight was completely unintentional, caused by our zeal for justice in the wake of the tragic loss of a peace officer.
ELLIOTT DASHER: That heartfelt explanation not withstanding, the warrant for my client's home was obtained with a factually flawed petition.
JUDGE DANA PEARLMAN: That's true. But I'm going to deny your motion to suppress the search.
ELLIOTT DASHER: [protesting] Your Honor...
[Stark looks victoriously at Casey and Madeleine.]
JUDGE DANA PEARLMAN: The court finds that even without the prosecution's misstated claim there remains sufficient factual basis for probable cause, but I warn you, Mr. Stark.
SEBASTIAN STARK: Ma'am.
JUDGE DANA PEARLMAN: You represent the people of Los Angeles now, conduct yourself accordingly.
SEBASTIAN STARK: Proud to serve.
[Judge Pearlman pounds the gavel, signaling an end to the proceedings. Dasher and his team start packing up their paperwork.]
SEBASTIAN STARK: [under his breath] Proud to serve.
[He starts getting his paperwork together.]
SEBASTIAN STARK: [to Dasher] Well, you can settle at any time.
ELLIOTT DASHER: Oh, you wish. Impressive team. Thought you had higher standards.
SEBASTIAN STARK: Look, you screwed up, I fired you. You landed on your feet, let it go.
ELLIOTT DASHER: Like you always used to say, "Never let go of your grudges, they make you stronger."
SEBASTIAN STARK: Well, they can also get you killed.
ELLIOTT DASHER: For the record, I didn't screw up. I lost.
SEBASTIAN STARK: I'm sorry. Is there a difference?
ELLIOTT DASHER: [smirks] You're about to find out.
[He leaves. Jessica comes up to Stark.]
JESSICA DEVLIN: Well, you dodged a bullet.
SEBASTIAN STARK: That wasn't even a BB, everything's under control.
JESSICA DEVLIN: I want Poe and Woodland reprimanded.
SEBASTIAN STARK: I'm... gonna read them the riot act.
CUT TO:
[Courthouse Hallway. Day. The team stands quietly. Stark strides up to them.]
SEBASTIAN STARK: [loudly] Listen up! Everybody stop talking and listen to me!
[Jessica stands at a distance, watching the "riot act reading" unfold.]
SEBASTIAN STARK: [quietly] Everybody nod your heads, pretend I just kicked your puppy, okay. You understand me, [loudly to Casey] right, GQ?
[The kids bow their heads, looks of shame on their faces. Jessica seems to like how Stark is handling this.]
SEBASTIAN STARK: Cue you, thank you. [quietly] Good, we're in great shape. All we have to do is break down Ransom's alibi and we are home free, all right. [to Casey] GQ, I want you to go over to the girlfriend's house, I want you to use that million dollar smile, and I want you to knock her off her story. [loudly] Do you understand me? Say yes!
CASEY WOODLAND: Yes.
SEBASTIAN STARK: Thank you! [stabs his finger towards Madeleine and Martin] You and you! [quietly] Talk to Ransom's Venice neighbors and see what they know. [loudly] Got it?
[He starts to leave.]
CASEY WOODLAND: So you're not mad about the petition thing?
SEBASTIAN STARK: [stops, looks at Jessica, loudly] Almost forgot! Consider this a lesson! The next time that you cheat, [quietly] don't get caught. [yells] Got it?!
[He looks at Jessica, a world-weary look on his face. Jessica seems mollified.]
CUT TO:
[Carrie Reed's home/outside. Camera holds on sweat-glazed, toned legs walking on a cross-trainer. There's a knock at the front door. Carrie Reed answers it, finding Casey there.]
CARRIE REED: [smiling] You're pretty cute for a cop.
CASEY WOODLAND: [flattered] Thanks. But I'm from the D.A.'s Office. [flashes the badge] Casey Woodland.
CARRIE REED: Oh, yeah I've seen you at the clubs, right? You used to go out with that Australian model chick?
CASEY WOODLAND: [nodding] Total psycho. Listen, I need to ask you a few questions about Scott Ransom.
CARRIE REED: Yeah, well, forget it. Like I told the detectives, [rehearsed speech] he was with me the whole night. There's no way he could have killed that cop.
CASEY WOODLAND: He's a bad guy, Carrie. If you lie for him, you're an accessory to murder.
CARRIE REED: [beat] You're a rich kid, right? Your daddy's some big-shot congressman.
CASEY WOODLAND: Senator.
CARRIE REED: Well, my daddy's a used-car salesman in Rhode Island. All right, Scott pays for this place, he takes care of me. He's a great guy...
CASEY WOODLAND: There's better ways to pay the rent.
CARRIE REED: Well, that's easy for you to say.
[She shuts the door in his face.]
CASEY WOODLAND: [sighing] Nice chatting with you.
[Casey walks off her porch and sees a man standing on the sidewalk, watering his plants and the sidewalk. Casey walks up to him.]
CASEY WOODLAND: Excuse me. Hey, sorry to bother you. [flashing his badge] I'm with the District Attorney's office. You live right here?
CARRIE'S NEIGHBOUR: [proud of it] Thirteen years.
CASEY WOODLAND: So you've heard what's going on.
CARRIE'S NEIGHBOUR: Yeah, just a matter of time. Carrie's a sweet girl, but her boyfriend, coming and going at all hours of the night. Stupid Ferrari.
CASEY WOODLAND: That's a pretty loud car. Must have woken you up a few times.
CARRIE'S NEIGHBOUR: Yeah, try every night. [continues watering his plants] Excuse me.
CASEY WOODLAND: [moving out of the way] Yeah.
CUT TO:
[Stark Residence, outside. Day.]
CUT TO:
[Stark Residence, Garage. Day. Stark leads Julie (who's holding her eyes closed) into the garage.]
SEBASTIAN STARK: Hold it. Okay, and... open.
[She does and seems shocked.]
SEBASTIAN STARK: Ta-da. Congratulations, baby.
JULIE STARK: You got me a car?
[Stark walks up to a red sedan.]
SEBASTIAN STARK: That's not just a car. It's the ultimate PC-mobile, for young tree-huggers on the go. [talking like a car salesman] Half a cylinder, solar-powered, 400 miles to the gallon - it's you!
[Julie does know what to say.]
SEBASTIAN STARK: And you hate it.
JULIE STARK: No, it was really sweet of you.
SEBASTIAN STARK: I asked, it doesn't come in purple...
JULIE STARK: No, that's not the problem, I... I failed my driving school road test.
SEBASTIAN STARK: That's funny.
JULIE STARK: I can't get my learner's permit.
SEBASTIAN STARK: [chuckles] Julie, how is that possible?
JULIE STARK: I don't... know, I-I got distracted. [quickly, defensively] The other kids in the car were talking, and then the instructor started yelling at me and...
[Stark chuckles.]
JULIE STARK: [upset] I'm sorry, is this funny?
SEBASTIAN STARK: No. Well... [chuckles] just a little. But, hey, um, it's okay. You can just take it over, right?
JULIE STARK: No, I have to take the whole stupid course again!
SEBASTIAN STARK: I didn't know that.
JULIE STARK: Glad I could amuse you, thanks for the car.
[She leaves in a huff.]
SEBASTIAN STARK: Julie, please, Julie, sweetie. I'm sorry. Hey, come on.
[He sighs.]
CUT TO:
[HPCU Office. Casey enters, a smile on his lips, a spring in his step. He jumps up onto a desk and announces.]
CASEY WOODLAND: Ransom's alibi is dead.
[The others look up. Stark comes out of his office to listen.]
The girlfriend's neighbor has a bedroom window overlooking her driveway. Whenever Ransom pulls in or out, this guy gets a twelve-cylinder wake-up call. He heard Ransom leave at 12:45 the night of the murder, and he came back at 1:37.
MADELEINE POE: How can he be so precise with the time frame?
CASEY WOODLAND: [jumping off the desk] Ah, because the guy's got a five-month-old. Every time Ransom pulls in or out, this guy checks the baby monitor, which has a time code.
MARTIN ALLENDE: Detective Wright put the shooting at 1:15 a.m.
RAINA TROY: [smiling] That's more than enough time for Ransom to kill Rodriguez.
MADELEINE POE: 'S not bad for a pretty boy.
SEBASTIAN STARK: It's not good either.
CASEY WOODLAND: What are you talking about?
SEBASTIAN STARK: [beckoning Martin for a marker] Sharpie.
[Martin tosses him a marker.]
SEBASTIAN STARK: Ransom leaves Los Feliz at quarter to one [writes "LF" on the glass window], heads into L.A. to make his buy [draws an arrow to the left, writes "LA"], he shoots Detective Rodriguez at 1:15, [draws an arrow back to "LF"] he's back in girlfriend's loving arms at 1:37. But under our theory, [scratching out the second arrow] Ransom didn't go straight back to Los Feliz, did he?
MARTIN ALLENDE: The bag of drugs.
SEBASTIAN STARK: Exactly. So Ransom would've had to drive from downtown - the murder scene - to his Venice condo [draws an arrow to the left of "LA", writes "VENICE"], drop the conveniently incriminating bag of dope and make it back to Los Feliz [draws a big arrow from "VENICE" to "LF"]. And this, what, in... twenty-two minutes?
MADELEINE POE: Forget the Ferrari-- you couldn't do that in a helicopter.
CASEY WOODLAND: So if Ransom didn't put the drugs in the condo, who did?
[Stark looks at his sketch on the glass window and thinks.]
CUT TO:
[Crenshaw Precinct. Stark barges into the precinct, an upset look on his face. He goes past the receptionist.]
RECEPTIONIST: Can I help you? [he ignores her] Hey!
[He strides up to Isaac Wright's desk.]
SEBASTIAN STARK: [as he reaches Isaac] Tell me - scale of one to ten - just how incredibly stupid are you?
ISAAC WRIGHT: [standing up, menacing] You don't want to talk to me like that.
[The other cops watch them.]
SEBASTIAN STARK: You weren't at the scene when I arrived. Where were you?
ISAAC WRIGHT: I told you, I went after Ransom.
SEBASTIAN STARK: Which took about five minutes. Where did you go after that?
ISAAC WRIGHT: Get the hell out of here.
SEBASTIAN STARK: [mad] What did you do, Detective?! Let me guess. You found the drugs on the ground, sitting in your partner's blood. The ambulance arrives, you take off after Ransom. You get to the condo, he's not there. So you plant the bag of drugs, and you take off. Just tell me, am I getting warm?
ISAAC WRIGHT: I don't know what you're doing here. You got everything you need to nail the guy who killed Joey.
SEBASTIAN STARK: Yeah, and I could've done it without your help, Detective.
ISAAC WRIGHT: [gets in Stark's face, quietly seething] I've seen too many rich perps walk by hiring hotshot lawyers willing to lie, cheat and steal to win.
SEBASTIAN STARK: [not cowed] Yeah. Well, thanks to you, it's about to happen again.
[He walks out, ignoring the stares and glares of the cops present.]
CUT TO:
[LA Street. Day. Stark crosses a road with his team.]
SEBASTIAN STARK: If Dasher finds out that Wright planted that bag of meth, forget his eyewitness testimony, we are done!
MADELEINE POE: Wright never admitted it.
RAINA TROY: He's the only one who could have dropped drugs covered in Rodriguez's blood at Ransom's place. It's potentially exculpatory evidence.
MARTIN ALLENDE: And we have to turn it over.
SEBASTIAN STARK: Whoa...
CASEY WOODLAND: What if we don't call Wright?
MADELEINE POE: He's our eyewitness. We've got squat without him.
[They stop on the sidewalk.]
SEBASTIAN STARK: Correct, so here's the deal. Casey never talked to the girlfriend's neighbor. We're just going to trade the hole in Ransom's alibi for the drugs at the condo.
[They resume walking.]
MARTIN ALLENDE: You'll let Wright lie on the stand?
SEBASTIAN STARK: No...
JESSICA DEVLIN: He doesn't have to lie. He just testifies to what he saw, nothing more.
SEBASTIAN STARK: [points to Madeleine] Exactement. Nothing more. Rule number 2: truth is relative; pick one that works. I will just never ask Wright where he went after the shooting.
RAINA TROY: That's grounds for disbarment, not to mention totally unethical.
[Stark, at his wits' end, stops walking and gets in Raina's face.]
SEBASTIAN STARK: You know what, Raina! You are so getting on my nerves!
RAINA TROY: [not backing down] No, this is wrong, and you know it!
SEBASTIAN STARK: You want Scott Ransom to get away with murder?
RAINA TROY: You don't give a damn about that! No, this is all about winning.
SEBASTIAN STARK: [pissed] How dare you say that to me!
[The others watch them uncomfortably.]
RAINA TROY: Screw the law, screw the system. And I'm gonna tell you that sucks.
[Stark's cellphone rings. He answers it.]
SEBASTIAN STARK: Hello. [checks his watch] Yes, I can. Thank you. [hangs up] Well, I've just been summoned to a meeting with the LAPD. Now, my problem is I don't believe in God... and he hates me for it.
[He leaves.]
CUT TO:
[DA's Office, Jessica's Office. Stark opens the door.]
SEBASTIAN STARK: Ah, the gang's all here.
[He walks inside. Jessica sits at her desk, with Mayor Delgado at the side. Three cops, including Deputy Chief Martinson, are also there, looking angrily at Stark.]
JESSICA DEVLIN: Did you barge into Crenshaw Precinct and accuse a detective of planting evidence?
SEBASTIAN STARK: Wait, let me try to remember. Uhh, [nods, smiling] yeah, that was me.
DEPUTY CHIEF GEORGE MARTINSON: This isn't a joke, Stark.
SEBASTIAN STARK: You're damn right it isn't. Because of your guy, my case is in the crapper.
MAYOR DELGADO: Can you prove the officer in question planted evidence?
SEBASTIAN STARK: No. But I'm praying the defense can't, either, because he was the only one with motive and opportunity. [to Martinson] That's lawyer talk.
DEPUTY CHIEF GEORGE MARTINSON: Listen, wiseass, you pissed off a lot of people at Parker Center. [testily, to Jessica] Did you know anything about this?
JESSICA DEVLIN: If I did, we wouldn't be here.
MAYOR DELGADO: I think we can all agree Mr. Stark's actions were regrettable.
SEBASTIAN STARK: My actions? A police detective plants evidence...
DEPUTY CHIEF GEORGE MARTINSON: Allegedly! The department's just coming off Rampart. Recruitment is up, the public's finally starting to trust cops again. The chief doesn't want another scandal.
SEBASTIAN STARK: He should relay that to the troops.
DEPUTY CHIEF GEORGE MARTINSON: The relationship between the D.A. and LAPD is based on trust. When that trust is violated, the system suffers. Cops don't show up to testify, evidence suddenly disappears. Nobody wants that.
[Jessica looks at him straight in his eye.]
JESSICA DEVLIN: [pissed yet quietly] This relationship goes both ways, George, and I don't respond well to threats.
[Martinson looks at her a beat and walks out, followed by the other two.]
SEBASTIAN STARK: Well, I think that went pretty well.
JESSICA DEVLIN: [to Delgado] What was that you were saying about avoiding political fallout if Stark takes this case?
MAYOR DELGADO: [to Stark] Not your finest hour.
SEBASTIAN STARK: Manny, I'm just the messenger here. Come on.
JESSICA DEVLIN: We can't afford a war with the police.
MAYOR DELGADO: Is there enough to convict Ransom without the drug evidence?
JESSICA DEVLIN: That's not the point! We have an obligation to disclose what we know to the defense.
MAYOR DELGADO: You two work out the legal stuff. [to Jessica] This is your deal, Jessica.
[Jessica raises her eyebrows in surprise.]
MAYOR DELGADO: I can't give you any cover.
[He walks out, leaving Jessica shaking her head in bewilderment and Stark standing, arms folded.]
CUT TO:
[Southland Driving School, outside. Day. A student drives a car (accompanied by an instructor). Stark pulls up in his car, right in front of a cone. An instructor stands nearby.]
SEBASTIAN STARK: [to the instructor] Hey, how are you doing?
NORMAN ELBY: You here to enroll?
SEBASTIAN STARK: No, no, I'm looking for, [looking at Julie's test paper] uh, "Norman Elby."
NORMAN ELBY: It's pronounced "Eel-bee."
SEBASTIAN STARK: Ah, that's too bad. Hey, listen, I think you tested my daughter yesterday. Julie Stark?
NORMAN ELBY: [looking at Stark] Wait. You're on TV, right?
SEBASTIAN STARK: I host a game show. You know, Julie is a really great driver and a great kid. She was a little nervous yesterday, so... Norm, can I confide in you?
NORMAN ELBY: Yeah, I actually have a class in about five minutes.
[Norman starts walking towards a car.]
SEBASTIAN STARK: Julie's going through a hard time right now, you know? Her mom went to New York, she's very vulnerable. You know how that is, and if you could possibly...
NORMAN ELBY: [cutting him off] She violated the posted freeway speed limit, she rolled a stop sign.
SEBASTIAN STARK: [joking] In other words, she's perfectly qualified to drive in Los Angeles, huh, Norm?
NORMAN ELBY: Anything else? [looks inside the car]
SEBASTIAN STARK: [peers through the opposite window] Yeah. January 23, 1999. 'S that ring a bell?
NORMAN ELBY: [looks up] Not at all.
SEBASTIAN STARK: Oh, really? Oh, 'cause you were stopped right over here in Culver City for driving erratically. Suspected DUI. Pretty big ticket, Norm.
NORMAN ELBY: How did you find out about that?
SEBASTIAN STARK: I'm a game show host. We know people.
NORMAN ELBY: I made a deal with the prosecutor's office. I went into rehab, and they dropped the charges.
SEBASTIAN STARK: [in "Shark Mode"] But did you tell your bosses about it, Norm? 'Cause they kind of like to know who's teaching safe driving skills to minors, don't you think? [speaking like a true game show host, putting Julie's test paper on top of the car] So, Norm, how'd you like to trade your job for what's behind curtain number one?
[Norman can only stare in bemusement, as Stark pushes the paper closer to him.]
CUT TO:
[HPCU Office, Conference Room. Day. Jessica, accompanied by a sullen Stark, offers a deal to Scott Ransom, accompanied by Dasher.]
JESSICA DEVLIN: Today is your lucky day, Mr. Ransom.
[She puts a paper on the table.]
JESSICA DEVLIN: I'm offering a sentence of fifteen years to life to settle this matter.
[Stark drops his shoulders, disgust writ on his face.]
SEBASTIAN STARK: Fifteen years - that's a bad joke.
ELLIOTT DASHER: Might I ask why the District Attorney has decided to make a plea offer at this time?
SEBASTIAN STARK: Yeah, actually, I was kind of wondering that myself.
JESSICA DEVLIN: The death of a police officer is a traumatic event for the community. The sooner this matter is settled, the sooner we can all move on.
ELLIOTT DASHER: That's touching, but I assume there's more to the story.
SEBASTIAN STARK: Oh, you bet your sweet ass there is. Scott's old man controls half the portfolios on the West Side - boy, there are a lot of campaign contributions, there, huh, Jess?
JESSICA DEVLIN: [to Stark] All right. You shut your mouth.
STARK: [smirks] Sure.
JESSICA DEVLIN: This is a one-time offer. You have thirty seconds to make up your mind.
[Dasher looks at them suspiciously. He turns and whispers something in Ransom's ear. Ransom seems to agree.]
ELLIOTT DASHER: [stands] No deal.
SEBASTIAN STARK: [claps his hands in victory] Thank you, God!
[Ransom stands and is led outside by an officer.]
SEBASTIAN STARK: [calling after him] You're going to like it up there Folsom, Scotty boy. Guys up there are going to vote you Miss Congeniality.
ELLIOTT DASHER: You know, this little water ballet notwithstanding, you clearly have a flawed case, or you wouldn't be offering an alleged cop-killer a break. And sooner or later, I'm going to find that flaw.
[He walks out. Jessica and Stark, sly looks on their faces, watch him walk out the door.]
SEBASTIAN STARK: [sitting] I kind of liked the campaign contribution thing. That was pretty good.
JESSICA DEVLIN: You were a little over the top.
SEBASTIAN STARK: Well, I'm the bad cop. I gotta be over the top.
JESSICA DEVLIN: We gotta drop the case.
SEBASTIAN STARK: [smirks] No way.
[She looks at him. He shrugs.]
JESSICA DEVLIN: Fine. But you will to turn over everything you have to Dasher.
SEBASTIAN STARK: Yeah, I will. [smirks]
[She leaves.]
SEBASTIAN STARK: [quietly] Eventually.
[He gets up and walks outside the Conference Room. He sees Martin gently instructing Ana Rodriguez. He and Ana exchange polite smiles.]
MARTIN ALLENDE: Just relax and try to tell the truth about your husband.
[Stark looks towards the kitchen and sees Raina speaking to Joe and Ana's daughter, who eats a chocolate popsicle. Stark looks more closely at Raina, whose eyes are filled with tears. She smiles at the little girl.]
CUT TO:
[Stark Residence, outside. Night.]
CUT TO:
[Stark Residence, Indoor Courtroom. Stark goes over his opening statement.]
SEBASTIAN STARK: The killing of a police officer represents the ultimate crime against society. [quietly, to himself] Ah, focus, you idiot. It's about their... sense of security, so make it personal. Personal, personal. [orating] When we walk down the street [thinks]... we feel safe, because every few minutes, we spot a police officer. Men and women willing to put their lives on the line to protect us.
JULIE STARK: [vo] Sounds good.
[Stark turns around, seeing Julie at the entrance.]
SEBASTIAN STARK: Hey.
JULIE STARK: [entering] Sorry, I know you're working.
SEBASTIAN STARK: No, I'm glad to see you. I wanted to apologize. I was a... a jerk.
JULIE STARK: That's not exactly a first. Look, it's not your fault that I failed my driving test. I-I totally freaked out and choked, so...
[Stark proudly holds up a certificate.]
JULIE STARK: What is this?
SEBASTIAN STARK: Apparently, your brilliant lane changes put you over the top.
JULIE STARK: [reading] "Driving Course Completion Certificate"? How did...?
SEBASTIAN STARK: Brief negotiation.
JULIE STARK: [unhappy] God, Dad. You went down there and you, what, you bribed someone?
SEBASTIAN STARK: I don't bribe.
JULIE STARK: Okay, so you threatened someone?
SEBASTIAN STARK: Well, that depends what your definition of "threaten" is.
JULIE STARK: [sighs, angry] You don't get it, do you?
SEBASTIAN STARK: I'm just...I thought you'd be happy.
JULIE STARK: I don't need you to fight my battles for me, okay? I can pick out my own car, and I can decorate my own room! God, can't you see, Dad?! I'm not a little girl anymore. You missed that part. While you were busy in here, I grew up.
SEBASTIAN STARK: [arguing gently] I know, I'm trying to make it up to you.
JULIE STARK: You can't, because this is where we are!
SEBASTIAN STARK: [losing it] Look, Jules, you're the one who wanted this! It was your choice to move in here, not mine!
[Immediately, he regrets saying that.]
JULIE STARK: I had to make this choice, because we both know you weren't going to fight for me!
[Stark looks at her.]
JULIE STARK: Why... why didn't you fight for me, Dad?
[Stark has no answer. She leaves. Stark heaves a sad sigh.]
CUT TO:
[Downtown LA, Street. While a train noisily moves under the bridge, Stark and the team walk upto the crime scene.]
CASEY WOODLAND: Shouldn't we be prepping our opening statement, and, uh...?
SEBASTIAN STARK: We are. [points] What do you see here?
[No replies.]
SEBASTIAN STARK: [points to a spot on the ground] This... is the spot where Detective Joseph Rodriguez was killed. Right here.
[The kids look down silently.]
SEBASTIAN STARK: This is where Ana Rodriguez became a widow, where two little girls lost their father. A murder trial is not about facts and evidence - which is good for us, since we're screwed on both. It's about asking a jury to demand justice for this family. We don't want them to see a lawyer. We want them to see Ana Rodriguez, a young mother in pain.
MADELEINE POE: 'S no problem.
SEBASTIAN STARK: Good, 'cause I'm giving it to Raina.
RAINA TROY: Me?
MADELEINE POE: [protesting] You got to be kidding.
SEBASTIAN STARK: Those kids got to you. I saw. Use that bleeding heart of yours, make twelve people understand what Scott Ransom took away.
[He moves away. Raina hangs back pensively, while the others join him.]
CUT TO:
[Courtroom. Day. The trial is underway. Raina delivers the opening statement to the jury.]
RAINA TROY: Joseph Rodriguez woke up like it was any other morning. He kissed his wife, Ana, brushed his daughters' hair, made them some oatmeal. Then he left for work. He never saw them again. Detective Rodriguez loved working as a narcotics officer. See, he knew what drugs could do to a neighborhood, especially the children. He wanted his daughters to grow up in a city where poison wasn't being sold on every street corner. The evidence will show that he was killed by the defendant trying to protect his kids and yours
from that poison.
[Ransom, at the Defense Table, looks cockily at a fuming Detective Wright, sitting in the galley.]
RAINA TROY: He wanted drug dealers like Scott Ransom off the street. Now it's up to you to step up and finish what he started.
[Finished, she slowly moves away from the jury box. Behind her, a man enters the courtroom. Stark adjusts Raina's chair so she can sit (a mark of respect). The man hands a folder over to Dasher, who opens and peruses it.]
JUDGE DANA PEARLMAN: Is the defense prepared to make its opening statement?
ELLIOTT DASHER: Your Honor, uh, information has just come to light that may fundamentally impact this proceeding.
[Stark looks at him.]
CUT TO:
[Judge's quarters. While Dasher (smiling victoriously) and Stark wait, Judge Dana Pearlman walks in.]
JUDGE DANA PEARLMAN: I warned you, Mr. Stark.
SEBASTIAN STARK: Your Honor...
ELLIOTT DASHER: The neighbor told the prosecution that Mr. Ransom departed Ms. Reed's home and then returned such that he couldn't have reached his condominium in Venice where the blood evidence was found. The prosecution knew the inescapable implication of this statement was that the evidence had been planted.
[Stark scoffs.]
ELLIOTT DASHER: They failed to share this information with the defense. That's a flagrant 1054 violation.
JUDGE DANA PEARLMAN: Sure sounds like one to me.
SEBASTIAN STARK: We fully intended to reveal this evidence as soon as our own crime lab could verify that Mr. Ransom's high-performance vehicle couldn't have traveled the distance in question.
ELLIOTT DASHER: [chuckles] Give me a break. Defense moves for immediate dismissal.
JUDGE DANA PEARLMAN: Any reason I shouldn't grant Mr. Dasher's motion?
SEBASTIAN STARK: Yes, Your Honor, because his client killed a police officer, and you don't want to be the judge to let him walk.
ELLIOTT DASHER: Your Honor, the rules of evidence clearly state...
JUDGE DANA PEARLMAN: I'm familiar with the rules of evidence, Mr. Dasher.
ELLIOTT DASHER: Then you'll invalidate the search and all evidence thereby gathered?
JUDGE DANA PEARLMAN: Yes. But I'm also invalidating all inferences of police misconduct arising from that evidence. It all goes.
SEBASTIAN STARK: Fair enough.
ELLIOTT DASHER: No, no, no, hardly. That evidence was clearly planted by Detective Wright. I should have the right to challenge his credibility if prosecution calls him as an eyewitness.
JUDGE DANA PEARLMAN: So ordered.
SEBASTIAN STARK: [nervous chuckle] Your Honor, you're going to take away my key piece of physical evidence AND my eyewitness?
JUDGE DANA PEARLMAN: Actually, you did that, Mr. Stark. And if you lose, you'll be the one who lets a cop-killer go free.
[Stark looks bewildered.]
CUT TO:
[Stark Residence, outside. Night.]
CUT TO:
[Stark Residence, Julie's room. Night. Stark walks along the corridor and stops at Julie's room. She's on the phone with Claire.]
JULIE STARK: I don't know what happened, Mom. One minute, we were talking, the next, we were screaming.
[Julie sits on her bed, facing away from the door. Stark slowly opens the door and eavesdrops.]
JULIE STARK: Actually, I was doing most of the screaming. It was pretty awful. [listens] No, no, you don't need to come out here. No, I can handle it, yeah. [listens] I know, it's strange being so far away from you, too. New York must be beautiful. I'm coming out as soon as exams are over. [listens] Look, please don't worry about me. Things are weird, but I'll be okay. [listens] Yeah, I miss you, too. [listens] Okay. Bye.
[She hangs up. She turns back, too late to have seen her father walk away from there. She sighs.]
CUT TO:
[Courtroom. Day. The room is packed as before. Jessica stands beside Stark and speaks quietly to him.]
JESSICA DEVLIN: You have no drug evidence, you have no eyewitness. It's over. Drop the charges.
SEBASTIAN STARK: Just let me play it out. I'll go after the girlfriend.
JESSICA DEVLIN: You want to lose, go for it. But this is a direct order: stay away from Detective Isaac Wright. Do not embarrass the police. Got it?
SEBASTIAN STARK: [humouring her] Yes, ma'am.
BAILIFF: All rise.
[The people stand as Judge Pearlman enters.]
JUDGE DANA PEARLMAN: Be seated.
[Everyone sits.]
JUDGE DANA PEARLMAN: Mr. Stark, is the prosecution ready to proceed?
[Stark, however, is not listening. He looks at Joe's daughter, sitting next to Ana. He smiles at her.]
JUDGE DANA PEARLMAN: Mr. Stark?
[Stark looks at the judge.]
SEBASTIAN STARK: Yes, Your Honor. [stands] The prosecution calls Detective Isaac Wright.
[The cops, including Deputy Chief Martinson, seem surprised. He gives an ugly stare at an equally surprised Jessica, who can only shake her head. Isaac stands and, glaring at Stark, walks over to the witness box.]
JUDGE DANA PEARLMAN: Mr. Stark, I remind you that all, previous rulings are in effect.
[Dasher whispers something to Ransom. Martin and Raina, at the Defense Table, seem apprehensive.]
BAILIFF: [to Isaac] Do you swear to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth, so help you God?
ISAAC WRIGHT: I do.
SEBASTIAN STARK: Detective, did you witness the murder of your partner, Detective Joseph Rodriguez?
ISAAC WRIGHT: Yes.
SEBASTIAN STARK: You were both working undercover to bust a methamphetamine dealer. Is that correct?
ISAAC WRIGHT: That's right.
SEBASTIAN STARK: Is that drug dealer in court today?
ELLIOTT DASHER: Objection. There's no evidence my client is involved with drugs.
JUDGE DANA PEARLMAN: Sustained. Jury will disregard any characterization of the defendant as a drug dealer.
SEBASTIAN STARK: Your Honor, he's on tape discussing various drug deals with the victim on several occasions. What, uh, should I call him?
JUDGE DANA PEARLMAN: [warning] Mr. Stark...
SEBASTIAN STARK: Withdrawn. [to Isaac] Is the subject of your investigation in this room, sir?
ISAAC WRIGHT: Yes, he is. [points at Ransom]
SEBASTIAN STARK: Let the record show that Detective Isaac Wright has pointed out the defendant. Detective, why were you unable to come to your partner's aid that night?
ISAAC WRIGHT: [painful memory] A truck blocked me in. By the time I got free, Joey was already hit.
SEBASTIAN STARK: What did you do next?
ISAAC WRIGHT: Well, after the ambulance arrived, I went after Ransom.
SEBASTIAN STARK: You went to Mr. Ransom's Venice condominium. Is that correct?
ISAAC WRIGHT: Yes.
SEBASTIAN STARK: Was Mr. Ransom home when you arrived?
ISAAC WRIGHT: No.
SEBASTIAN STARK: So what did you do?
ISAAC WRIGHT: I went back to the crime scene.
SEBASTIAN STARK: You went back to the crime scene. Is that what you say?
[Isaac nods.]
SEBASTIAN STARK: You went back to the crime scene. You didn't go to Mr. Ransom's condominium, break in and plant evidence implicating him in your partner's murder, did you?
[The courtroom erupts in murmurs. Jessica closes her eyes. Stark's team look shocked. Dasher himself seems confused.]
JUDGE DANA PEARLMAN: You don't have to answer that question, Detective.
SEBASTIAN STARK: Did you?
ELLIOTT DASHER: Sidebar, Your Honor.
SEBASTIAN STARK: Did you?
ISAAC WRIGHT: No, I'll answer.
JUDGE DANA PEARLMAN: You have a right to counsel.
SEBASTIAN STARK: You want a lawyer, Detective, [taunting scathingly] or do you want to stand up and be a man?
JUDGE DANA PEARLMAN: Mr. Stark...
ISAAC WRIGHT: [erupts] You're damn right I planted the evidence!
[Gasps all around. Stark backs down, allowing Isaac to explain.]
ISAAC WRIGHT: There was a bag of meth sitting in my partner's blood. I picked it up, I put it in my pocket, I went to Ransom's place and I stuck it inside.
SEBASTIAN STARK: [calmly] Why did you do that, Detective?
ISAAC WRIGHT: Because he killed my partner! And I wanted him to go to jail for what he did.
SEBASTIAN STARK: But wouldn't your eyewitness testimony accomplish that?
ELLIOTT DASHER: [stands] Objection. Calls for speculation.
JUDGE DANA PEARLMAN: Overruled.
ISAAC WRIGHT: Rich perps hire expensive lawyers. They get away with all kind of things. I couldn't let that happen.
SEBASTIAN STARK: So you broke the law to keep your partner's killer from going free?
ISAAC WRIGHT: You're damn right I did.
SEBASTIAN STARK: [smirks] Do you like being a police officer?
ISAAC WRIGHT: It's all I ever wanted to be.
SEBASTIAN STARK: Did you realize that by planting evidence you were putting your entire career in jeopardy?
ISAAC WRIGHT: Yes.
SEBASTIAN STARK: But you did it anyway. Why? Why would you do that, Detective? Why?
ISAAC WRIGHT: [long beat, stifling a sob] Because I let my partner get killed.
SEBASTIAN STARK: You did the best you could. The truck got in the way.
ISAAC WRIGHT: No.
SEBASTIAN STARK: It wasn't your fault.
ISAAC WRIGHT: It was.
SEBASTIAN STARK: How?!
ISAAC WRIGHT: [shouts, crying] I fell asleep! [beat] I fell asleep.
[Stark himself seems surprised by this declaration.]
ISAAC WRIGHT: We'd been up for thirty-six hours putting this buy together. I set up in the alley, I waited for Ransom to show. I was dead tired. I closed my eyes for what seemed like a second. The truck woke me up and... when I ran out of the alley, I saw Ransom standing over Joey, who was lying in the street.
SEBASTIAN STARK: [nods his understanding] You understand that by your testimony here today, you will almost certainly lose your job?
ISAAC WRIGHT: Yes.
SEBASTIAN STARK: And yet you are willing to do that rather than let the man who killed your partner... go free.
ISAAC WRIGHT: [fighting back tears, looking at Ana] Telling the truth is the least I can do for Joey.
SEBASTIAN STARK: Thank you, Detective. LAPD could use a lot more men like you.
[Isaac looks down, his lips trembling.]
CUT TO:
[HPCU Office, Conference Room. Dasher and Ransom face Stark and Jessica, standing stone-faced.]
ELLIOTT DASHER: We're prepared to accept your previous offer of fifteen to life.
JESSICA DEVLIN: That offer was good for thirty seconds. [checking her watch] You missed it by forty-seven hours, fifty-nine and a half minutes.
ELLIOTT DASHER: [to Stark] You managed to make Isaac Wright look like a saint. When I'm done, he'll look like Mark Fuhrman.
SEBASTIAN STARK: You lost the jury, Elliott, and they're not coming back.
ELLIOTT DASHER: Twenty to life.
JESSICA DEVLIN: Twenty-five. Or your client's looking at life without parole.
[Dasher nods and whispers to Ransom.]
ELLIOTT DASHER: [defeated] We'll take it.
[Ransom is led away by the officers. Dasher starts to walk out, but Stark gets in his way.]
SEBASTIAN STARK: I say this from the heart, Elliott. It's good to lose every once in a while. It keeps you grounded. [beat] From what I hear.
CUT TO:
[Courthouse, Stairs/Hallway. Raina ascends the staircase and sees Stark at the top. She walks away from him.]
SEBASTIAN STARK: [calling] Hell of an opening.
RAINA TROY: [slows down] Thanks for the shot.
[They walk together.]
SEBASTIAN STARK: You've got a big mouth, you're stubborn, and your tedious sense of morality drives me nuts.
RAINA TROY: I know.
SEBASTIAN STARK: Keep up the good work.
[She smiles at him and leaves, passing Jessica on the way. Jessica walks with Stark.]
JESSICA DEVLIN: [genuinely impressed] All right, just tell me one thing. How'd you know Wright fell asleep in the car?
[They start descending the stairs.]
SEBASTIAN STARK: I didn't. I wanted to show the guy did the wrong thing for the right reason by planting the drugs. His guilt over falling asleep in the car was a tragic, added bonus.
JESSICA DEVLIN: Hmm. Better to be lucky than good.
SEBASTIAN STARK: Better to be both.
JESSICA DEVLIN: You took a reckless chance that could've caused a huge rift between this office and the LAPD.
SEBASTIAN STARK: Uh-huh.
JESSICA DEVLIN: Oh, you think, what, just because you got lucky and won, that makes it all okay?
SEBASTIAN STARK: Is LAPD happy?
JESSICA DEVLIN: Yes.
SEBASTIAN STARK: Is Delgado happy?
JESSICA DEVLIN: Yes.
SEBASTIAN STARK: And you nailed a cop-killer, but still you're not happy. You should see someone about that.
[They stop at the end of the stairs and smile at each other.]
CUT TO:
[Crenshaw Precinct, Parking Garage. Isaac Wright walks despondently up to his car. He sees Stark leaning against the trunk.]
SEBASTIAN STARK: Hear you turned in your badge.
ISAAC WRIGHT: I figured I'd save everyone the hassle of a disciplinary hearing.
SEBASTIAN STARK: You've got a lot of support on the force. Maybe you could win, if you had the right lawyer.
ISAAC WRIGHT: Not even you're that good.
SEBASTIAN STARK: Look...
ISAAC WRIGHT: Save the apology. It's done. I'm moving on with my life.
SEBASTIAN STARK: I wasn't going to apologize. I did what I had to do.
ISAAC WRIGHT: We finally have something in common.
SEBASTIAN STARK: Where you gonna go?
ISAAC WRIGHT: I don't know. A friend of mine owns a private security company - pays pretty good.
SEBASTIAN STARK: It's a waste of talent.
ISAAC WRIGHT: So's my partner being dead. But some things we can't change.
SEBASTIAN STARK: I need an investigator. Somebody with guts, who will do what it takes, even when it's not pretty.
ISAAC WRIGHT: Are you offering me a job?
SEBASTIAN STARK: Sounds like it.
ISAAC WRIGHT: Why would I want to work for you?
SEBASTIAN STARK: Because you like to put away bad guys, and [smiles] that's what I do.
ISAAC WRIGHT: Even if I was interested - I'm not saying I am...
SEBASTIAN STARK: Of course not.
ISAAC WRIGHT: I'm damaged goods. You'd catch hell.
SEBASTIAN STARK: [chuckles] You say that like it's a bad thing. I need somebody who can work with the police. Who better than a hero cop?
ISAAC WRIGHT: Oh, I'm no hero.
SEBASTIAN STARK: That's another thing we have in common.
CUT TO:
[Stark Residence, Julie's room. Julie (dressed in old clothes) paints a wall purple using a paint-roller. Stark enters.]
SEBASTIAN STARK: Oh, wow.
JULIE STARK: Don't worry. I'll keep the door closed.
SEBASTIAN STARK: No, it's... it's colourful.
JULIE STARK: So I heard you put away the guy who killed the cop.
SEBASTIAN STARK: Yeah, I did. But I still can't figure out how to talk to my own daughter.
JULIE STARK: [stops painting] Dad...
SEBASTIAN STARK: Julie, you listen to me. Okay? I... love that you are here. And the only reason I didn't fight for you is I felt I didn't have a right.
JULIE STARK: You need to get over that.
SEBASTIAN STARK: The thing is, I thought we were doing better, but, [chuckles] you know... I mean, you seemed less pissed off at me. And now, it's just... It's different since you moved in, huh?
JULIE STARK: Yeah. Yeah, it is.
SEBASTIAN STARK: I didn't mean to interfere with the...
JULIE STARK: Oh, no...
SEBASTIAN STARK: ... driving instruct...
JULIE STARK: Dad, look, I know you were just trying to help. But... see the thing is, I'm not ready for that. To rely on you.
SEBASTIAN STARK: [walks close to her] I am your father.
JULIE STARK: Yeah, but... I don't... I don't trust you yet.
SEBASTIAN STARK: So you want me to step up and be there for you... and you have absolutely no faith in me. [makes "one hand-other hand" gesture] Jules, come on.
JULIE STARK: Look, no one said this was gonna be easy.
CUE MUSIC: James Morrison's "Undiscovered"
# I look at you, you bite your tongue, #
# You don't know why or where I'm coming from #
[She resumes painting. Stark watches her a beat.]
# But in my head I'm close to you #
# We're in the rain still searching for the su-un #
[Stark removes his jacket. Julie looks at him pick up a paintbrush, dip it into the paint and start painting the adjacent wall.]
# You think that I want to run and hide #
# That I keep it all locked up inside but I just want you to find me #
[Julie smiles. They paint in silence.]
# I'm not lost; not lost, just undiscovered #
CUT TO:
SUPERIMPOSE:
In Loving Memory of
MICHAEL J. WOODS
[End Credits.]
FADE OUT.