MAN: I am a prosecutor.
I'm a part of the business of accusing...
...judging and punishing.
I explore the evidence of a crime...
...and determine who is charged.
Who is brought to this room...
...to be tried before his peers.
I present my evidence to the jury...
...and they deliberate upon it.
They must determine what really happened.
If they cannot...
...we will not know if the accused deserves to be freed or should be punished.
If they cannot find the truth...
...what is our hope of justice?
RUSTY: Thanks. Where's Nat?
BARBARA: Burying a goldfish.
That he forgot to feed. Kid's gotta learn responsibility.
He's 9.
I know, when you were 9 you fed all the animals on the block...
...made dinner for your family, did homework...
...in your spare time you practiced law.
I didn't practice law till I was 10. Listen to this.
"In their first face-to-face debate...
...Nico Della Guardia appeared to throw Raymond Horgan off stride...
...with an opening swipe at the prosecuting attorney's 12-year tenure...
...as 'an uninterrupted retreat from reality...
...and slow-motion surrender to thugs, punks and hand-wringing liberals.'"
The guy's unbelievable.
Well, I'm finally starting to get used to that rug on Della Guardia's head.
Hey, don't eat standing up. Sit down.
Food goes down easier. It has the help of gravity.
Oh, God. Ha-ha-ha.
Yet another lawyer.
I won't be home till late. I got a game after school. Bye.
BARBARA: Like his father, he doesn't come home till he has to.
If Raymond loses this election, I could be home a lot.
[CHATTERING]
RICK: Morning, Russ. -Rick, I looked this thing over last night.
Top count, max.
It's a first offense.
No plea to anything except the A-1 felony. Period.
-On all of them? -All of them.
And no promises on the sentence.
WOMAN: Morning, Rusty.
-Morning. RUSTY: Morning.
This is for you.
Somebody must have put it under the door. I found it when I came in.
Mr. Big Cheese wants to see you in his office now.
-Tell him I'll be right along. -He said "now" now.
Hi, Harold.
What's wrong?
Carolyn Polhemus was murdered last night.
Her cleaning lady found the body.
Some creep got into her place somehow and strangled her.
It looks like she was raped.
He tied her up, he beat her with some kind of instrument...
...and strangled her.
No weapon. No sign of forced entry.
Unless you want me, I'm supposed to meet the coroner.
No, that's all right. Go on, get out of here.
I can hear Della Guardia now.
"If Raymond Horgan can't protect his own attorneys...
...how the hell is he gonna protect an average citizen?"
Tommy Molto's secretary said he wasn't coming in today.
Some fucking acting head of Homicide he turned out to be, the little creep.
Should have fired him when we fired Nico instead of handing him his job.
If I had any balls, I'd do it now.
I want you to handle this personally.
I got the office, I'll assign somebody.
Who are you gonna assign it to, Homicide? Tommy Molto, for chrissake?
Wouldn't Della Guardia just love that. Molto would tip him off on everything.
Miserable guinea bastards.
They're so close you can see Molto's nose sticking out of Nico's bellybutton.
Christ. Listen to me.
What a waste.
Beautiful, sexy gal. Hell of a lawyer.
That's her ending, right? That's her au revoir.
And the first thing we think about...
...is what the public thinks in the middle of an election.
Look, take charge of this one for me, okay, tiger?
If you care about my health.
You're the only one around here I can trust.
Well, Greer's a good investigator, but I'd rather have somebody on this...
...that I'm used to working with. Lipranzer.
Whatever you want.
Just catch me a bad guy.
EUGENIA: Just heard about it on TV. It interrupted Oprah Winfrey.
[COMPUTER BEEPS]
MAN: So I'm here.
Hey, Lip.
-What the hell was she doing with a B file? -B file?
Bribery of elected officials. She's got the case on her computer...
...but the case itself isn't among the papers in her files.
Why? Did she take it home? What?
Maybe it was taken?
Check the apartment. What do you got?
Bunch of pictures of a dead lady.
-No weapon found, yet? -Nada.
It's a weird one.
She was strangled, but look at the way he tied her.
He put himself between her legs...
...and when he pumped they all tightened up to let his weight strangle her.
It's all slipknotted.
He was sort of trying to fuck her to death.
Look at the next one.
Check the computer under sex offenders and see if we can match on Carolyn's name...
...or this business with the ropes.
Find out which of the creeps she put away is out on parole.
I never did understand why you put a broad in charge of rape and all that sicko shit.
She wanted it. And she was good.
Yeah, too good maybe.
I'm just- I'm not grabbing this yet.
Now, you worked with this broad. She's not gonna leave her door and windows open.
She was drinking with him. She gave him a glass of beer, like she was entertaining.
-Fingerprints on the glass? -Yeah.
Greer sent it down to the lab.
What are you figuring...
...somebody opened the windows to make it look like a break-in?
She's not gonna let some sex maniac she sent to jail in for a beer.
On the other hand, we're talking Carolyn.
RUSTY: Mac...
...tell me what Carolyn Polhemus was doing with a bribery file.
I had no idea Carolyn was interested in crimes above the waist.
It's listed on her computer printout, but not on mine, not on the department's.
That makes no sense.
Why don't you ask Raymond.
Ready for something else?
Molto's left.
His secretary came back from lunch and found his desk cleaned out.
[WOMAN SPEAKING INDISTINCTLY ON TV]
[DANCE MUSIC PLAYING ON TV]
RUSTY: Exercise?
Masturbation.
The refuge of the lonely housewife.
Missed the 8:35. I tried to call you, but you weren't here.
Well, Nat had dinner at Josh's, and I was at the university.
I tried to get in a little extra time on the mainframe.
Get anything done?
[BARBARA SCOFFS]
Who am I kidding?
Still working on my dissertation at my age. It's ridiculous.
RUSTY: Come on. You were the best mathematician in your class.
Second best just made full professor at MIT.
[NEWSCAST MUSIC PLAYING ON TV]
All I've made are beds.
ANNOUNCER [ON TV]: And now the Channel 6 local news.
MAN: Carolyn Polhemus, prosecuting attorney in prosecutor Raymond Horgan's office...
...was found brutally murdered this morning in her Southside apartment.
Police are about to release a statement concerning the circumstances...
You hear?
BARBARA: Eugenia was thrilled to be messenger of bad tidings.
MAN: Ms. Polhemus was seen... -Yeah, I'll bet.
...on the Newsmakers portion of this program.
CAROLYN: From top to bottom we are riddled with cruelty.
We must expose and punish it.
Especially when inflicted upon the impotent and the ignored.
WOMAN: You sound like a woman with a mission.
CAROLYN: I am. -Ha.
MAN: The murder of Ms. Polhemus-
They have a suspect?
We have diddly-shit.
So?
So Dan Lipranzer and Rusty Sabich will work night and day for the two weeks...
...and catch Raymond a killer. At least that's the strategy.
You're in charge of this investigation?
Raymond insisted I take it on.
There are 150 lawyers down there.
They couldn't find one who didn't fuck her to put in charge?
Did you tell Raymond?
This is a conflict of interest. Is that professional?
Barbara, I'm Raymond's chief deputy.
You are so predictable.
It's your way of reliving the whole thing.
She's dead and you're still obsessing.
[ORGAN PLAYING]
Rusty.
Nico.
She was just...
-Splendid. -Splendid. That's it. Very good.
Raymond's pressing pretty hard on that case, I imagine.
Raymond Horgan presses hard on every case, Nico.
You know who would've been hard to beat? You.
You'd have been tough. Very tough.
You're really something.
-Where's Tommy Molto? -Molto?
Thought he'd show up for the funeral of his favorite colleague.
You must really have him scrambling.
Judge.
RUSTY: Who's that with Raymond?
LIPRANZER: Oh, I'm told that's her ex-husband.
I didn't know she had one.
Yeah.
Teaches college someplace.
RAYMOND: Carolyn Polhemus worked for me.
I hired her over the objections of many of our prosecutors...
...who felt she didn't have the stuff.
I see those prosecutors here today...
...along with the judges she defied...
...and the defense attorneys she defeated.
Why are they all here?
They're here because Carolyn Polhemus stood for something.
She stood for justice.
The prosecutor's office, under my leadership...
...has a conviction rate of over 91 percent.
Now, Mr. Della Guardia...
...or as he's affectionately known to those of us...
...who have had to work with him, "Delay"...
-Food and drink here for 100. -A lot of no-shows.
-Delay considers you people knee-jerk... -They smell a loser.
-Good speech. -What the hell is happening with Carolyn?
Everything's in the works.
I've reassigned all her cases, and I gotta deal with the stuff Molto left us.
Wait, what is all this reassignment shit?
Goddamn it, Rusty.
I told you to give this investigation top priority, for chrissake.
Look, Nico is eating me alive with this thing. The election is in 10 days.
If you don't have Carolyn's killer in 10 days, we are history.
Goddamn it, turn over all of that administrative bullshit to Mac.
Mac's got more than she can handle already.
And let me remind you, we lost two key PA's in one day.
All you got time for is the damned election. I've gotta run the office.
Fuck the office! Don't you understand what's happening here?
If you don't find me a killer, there is no fucking office.
You listen to me. I want you right on top of Carolyn's case, do you understand?
I want you to run out every ground ball...
...I want you to do it in an orderly goddamned fashion.
Start acting like a fucking professional.
The campaign is a total disaster. Haven't taken a poll in two weeks.
For chrissake, we don't even know where we are.
WOMAN [OVER INTERCOM]: You're 10 minutes late...
...for the bar meeting on criminal procedure.
All right, listen. Call them, tell them I'm on my way.
Did you assign a bribery case to Carolyn?
There's a file missing.
Loretta, find my driver, all right? Tell him to be ready to leave.
She had a case we can't account for.
It was logged in as a B file.
Nobody knows where it came from.
-Shit. -Nobody knows where it went.
Where the hell is my speech? It was here on my desk.
WOMAN: Cody has it.
You're giving me a runaround.
MAN: Right here, boss.
Cody, pull the car around. I'll meet you down front.
Give me a straight answer, will you, boss?
There's the B file, tiger. Read it and we'll talk.
RUSTY: "Dear Mr. Horgan.
This is about a deputy prosecuting attorney who is taking bribes.
Five years ago, a person I will call 'Noel' got arrested.
I gave him $1500 to pay somebody off.
We went out to North Branch.
A secretary who seemed to know Noel took him into the PA's office...
...where a man he could not see talked behind him.
Ten days later, Noel went to court and the lawyer from the prosecutor's office...
...told the judge that the case was dismissed.
I can't remember the lawyer's name.
I hope you get him, and I hope you get Noel too.
He has let me down."
-Unsigned. -Unsigned.
LIPRANZER: Five years ago.
That guy must write real slow.
RUSTY: "Noel equals Leon."
This is Carolyn's handwriting.
Looks like she went out to North Branch to see Kenneally.
[COUNTRY MUSIC PLAYING OVER SPEAKERS]
RUSTY: Hey, how you doing? MAN: Good, how are you?
RUSTY: All right.
LIPRANZER: You'll love what I got from Painless.
There's this guy's semen inside her vagina, but there's nothing outside.
So Painless figures she didn't spend much time on her feet after sexual contact.
Painless says normally he would see the guy's little thingies...
...swimming upstream in the womb when he looked under the microscope.
Instead, this guy's was all dead.
Nothing went nowhere.
So Painless figures this guy is sterile.
-He got blood type A. -Ah.
My very own.
I thought of that. But you got a kid.
-You get anything from hair and fiber? -No hair or skin under her nails.
Carolyn would've fought back.
Maybe she was playing sex games with the wrong guy.
Well, the rope is Kmart, Sears, Walgreens, you name it.
And they found carpet fibers from some other location, a Zorak V.
It's only the biggest seller.
Did you call the fingerprint lab on the bar glass?
[LIPRANZER SCOFFS]
-I forgot. -God, you are a class-A fuck-up, you know?
They ain't gonna expedite it for me.
Oh, I got the phone company printout on her apartment.
And?
I noticed as I'm going through there...
...that one of the numbers that comes up is yours a number of times.
-At the office. We're working cases together. -No, she's calling your home.
She never called me at home.
I made these calls, uh, to Barbara from Carolyn's apartment.
"Late again, kid.
This trial's a bitch. I'll catch dinner in town."
[GRUNTS]
I'd just as soon you let it go. Hm?
If Barbara sees a phone company subpoena now, she's gonna bust a gut.
Under the circumstances, if you don't mind, Lip...
...I'd appreciate it.
I gave Barbara...
...enough pain.
Polhemus was bad news.
MAN: You know what they're calling you and your partner downtown?
RUSTY: Spare me, Kenneally.
KENNEALLY: "Mission: Impossible." OFFICER: Northside precinct.
Hey, Guerasch, you wanna bring that shit in my office?
Hey, so you're figuring, what? Guy she's having cocktails with is the one?
I figure it was somebody who knew what he wanted it to look like when he cooled her.
Cop. PA. A private dick.
Guerasch, you remember that lady PA who was here maybe four months ago?
Yeah, nice set of lungs.
See, this kid's gonna make a copper. Never forgets a bra size.
Rusty wants to know what she was looking for.
Oh, she was looking for someone by the name of Noel. Noel.
Noel.
It took me a week to find this.
I mean, from five years back, they were booking 100, 150 a day back then.
KENNEALLY: Public indecency.
They were sweeping parks, cleaning out the faggots.
Back when Raymond got some balls for a day and a half.
-She find anything? -I don't know.
When I gave these files to her, they were in order.
Now none of them's complete.
All the work and the bitch just trashed them.
KENNEALLY: She doesn't give a shit about anybody else's work. She never did.
One's completely missing. Look.
See right here? It skips a number between this one and that.
Tommy Molto been looking at these?
What the fuck does Molto have to do with this?
Would there still be a court file on this case?
That far back, it'd have to be in storage or microfilm by now.
Hey, you don't wanna say what this is about, maybe?
Gee, Lionel, I can't.
She used to ask about you, you know.
Five years ago when she worked out here as a probation officer.
-Five years ago I didn't know her. -Sure you did.
The night you brought the Night Saints in.
You were really hot stuff. A regular fucking hero.
Breaking the meanest gang this side of Watts.
There was a lot of talk you'd end up in Horgan's job.
She wanted to know what you were like.
I told her you didn't fuck around.
Hey, Dad, look who's here.
-How are you? -Good. Mom's in a good mood.
How'd you know I'd be on this ferry?
Took a chance.
RUSTY: How was your day?
BARBARA: Well, I figured out today that it's 10 years this week...
...that I'm working on this dissertation.
I thought we'd celebrate. You gonna take us to dinner?
RUSTY: All right.
NAT: Why don't you just give up on that dissertation?
It makes you miserable.
Your mom's not a giver-upper.
Maybe that's her problem.
-I sure wouldn't do math unless I had to. -You got my genes in the math department.
If it wasn't for your mom, I'd still be taking algebra.
I had to be good at something.
You were good at everything.
School.
Did you ever cheat?
I mean, like borrow someone else's homework?
And copy it and pretend that it was mine?
NAT: Yeah.
Why do I have the feeling that that question has some personal relevance?
NAT: I didn't say I did.
RUSTY: It's all right, kid.
It's good to see you guys happy.
RUSTY: Pretty.
It's new.
It's very pretty.
Mr. Polhemus? I'm Rusty Sabich.
Seems so strange to be talking about her after all these years.
You hadn't had much contact with her, then?
None since she left.
What about her family?
Mr. Sabich, I have no idea where she came from.
She admitted that she lied her way into university.
Made up some kind of background.
She was very good at playing roles.
When she left me, I lost all pride.
I begged her not to leave.
The last time she looked at me it was with disgust.
Disgust that somebody she'd looked up to could be so weak.
At that moment, I remember, I had the most desperate wish that she were dead.
Maybe she made a man feel like that who actually acted on his fantasy.
Would you like to see what she looked like at that time?
Yes, I would.
They were taken at about the time we were married.
This isn't just work.
No.
On the Polhemus thing, now what the fuck is happening to the fingerprints report?
Don't give me that computer crap. You know I don't understand that shit.
They want to know how big a field you wanna run against?
We could do convicted felons...
...anybody who's ever been fingerprinted, county employees.
Just do felons. We'll do the rest if we need them later.
Do them all. God knows when I can get them back on.
Do everybody. How soon?
What the fuck takes a week?
The man's running the biggest murder investigation in the city.
He's gotta kiss your ring?
I know. I know.
We don't have jurisdiction over the computer.
Yeah.
-A week. Probably 10 days. -I need them yesterday.
I'll push, but I don't think you'll see them any sooner.
Have your copper get that glass back from Evidence and take it down to the lab...
...in case they need it for anything.
[MAN WHISTLING]
Mr. Sabich.
Real important stuff.
We got the chief deputy with us.
Lipranzer and I were wondering, on your report...
...are you indicating that you think the guy bashed her after she was already strangled?
-Read the fucking report. -This report?
No, no, no, not that report. My report. The autopsy.
Here.
See anything with bruises on the wrists, bruises on the ankles, bruises on the knees?
Are you saying you think that she was raped and then tied up?
Tied up last, yeah.
She already died from multiple head injuries.
Rape? Now I'm thinking no.
Why?
Read the fucking report.
-This report? -No, no, no.
This report? The chemist's report?
Yeah, the chemist's report.
She had a two percent solution of nonoxynol-9 in her vagina.
A spermicidal jelly used with a diaphragm. That's why the guy's sperms were all dead.
Diaphragm? You missed a diaphragm in the autopsy?
Fuck no. You've been to autopsies. You slice her wide open.
No diaphragm in that lady.
Well, what happened to it?
-Somebody took it. -Jesus.
I think it's a setup.
This man is her lover, who comes over. They have drinks.
This lady has intercourse with him. Real nice. Okay?
But he's an angry guy. Picks up something, kills her.
Tries to make it look like rape.
Ties her up.
Pulls out the diaphragm.
That's what I think.
-What does Tommy Molto think? -Hm?
You got his phone number right there.
Wanna jot it down in case you need to get in touch?
Oh, Tommy.
Next time you talk, tell him to give me a call...
...so I can find out what's going on in my own fucking investigation.
Painless...
...you tell Molto, and you tell Nico too...
...that this is cheap.
Cheap politics. Cheap police department bullshit.
God better help them and help you too. I can make a case for tampering.
Our latest poll shows Della Guardia's leading Horgan by 4 percent. Eight days left.
Jesus. Well, at least it's made somebody happy.
You don't think I wanna see you guys out.
-Come on, pal. We're old news. -I'd miss you, Rusty.
Who else around here can talk morality and ethics and not break me up?
Horgan's gotta pull it together.
The voters smell an exhausted man who's lost sight of the important issues.
Issues? Bullshit.
The only issue is Raymond Horgan has respect for the law...
...and Nico Della Guardia will fuck the law for politics.
That's the issue.
[KNOCKING]
RAYMOND: Rusty.
Have you ever been to an Irish wake?
Come on in. Come on over and pull up a glass.
You know what Della Guardia's gonna find out?
You run for office because you think you can make people do things to make things better.
But you can't.
Nobody can.
You get potholes filled, keep the lid on the best you can.
But in the end...
...all you can do is try to hang on to the fucking job.
[CHUCKLES]
I never used to drink when I started here.
When you started here you still believed you could make a difference.
Funny, part of me still does.
Rusty, a guy as tough as you are...
...you're still hanging on to shreds of your ideals.
The shreds are all I got.
You're a good man, Rusty.
God bless you.
So, tell me, who's our bad guy?
It could be a boyfriend. Some guy she picked up.
Whoever it is knew enough about her to know what to make it look like.
Could be a law-enforcement type.
Jesus. One of us.
You and Carolyn have a thing?
Well, don't beat around the bush, Rusty. Just come right out and ask the question.
Oh, why don't I say that the decedent and I were both single and both adults?
Yeah, I had a thing with her.
She thought like everybody else thought...
...that I wasn't going to run again.
I could just hand the mantle over to anyone I chose...
...so why not a broad?
Why not her?
One more question.
I gave her the B file because she asked me for it.
Because I was fucking her.
Stupid, huh?
She went over to Northside...
...and she shoveled through the records...
...and there wasn't anything there.
At least that's what she told me.
Oh, what are you gonna do now, Rusty?
Once the party's over?
RUSTY: I don't know.
RAYMOND: Well, I got an idea.
Suppose we try to get you on the bench.
I should still have enough clout to pull that off. What do you say?
Why don't we just see what the future holds?
I wonder if that would've satisfied her.
-What's that? -A judgeship.
I wonder if a judgeship would've satisfied Carolyn Polhemus.
[RAYMOND & CAROLYN LAUGHING]
RAYMOND: Rusty. Rusty.
Come on in here. Say hello to Carolyn Polhemus.
-You guys ever meet? -I've seen Rusty.
RAYMOND: Listen, I wanna bring Carolyn on board as a prosecuting attorney.
She's been working probation, Northside, and she just passed her bar exam.
Congratulations.
Thank you.
RAYMOND: She comes very highly recommended, Rusty.
Why don't we see if we can find a nice place for her?
I'd like the Index Division.
RAYMOND: Oh, my God, that's not a job, that's a jail sentence.
Rape, sex crimes, child molestation.
We can do better than that, can't we?
It's hard to get a conviction on a rape. It's a dead-end for anybody with ambition.
So, what do you do? You get the worst attorneys trying the hardest cases?
RAYMOND: Whoa, ha, ha. Listen to this. We got another idealist in the office.
CAROLYN: He's 5 years old.
The doctors found 23 healed fractures from old wounds.
Victim of his own beloved mother.
I need your help.
EUGENIA: Your wife called.
Why don't you fire her?
Civil service. They're here forever.
Why don't you give this to Nancy. You haven't had much experience with kids.
Nancy's not available.
And, besides, I'd like to try this case myself.
With your help.
Outline it for me.
About a month ago...
...the mother brought him into the hospital emergency room.
The boy was unconscious from severe head injuries.
She said he fell.
The doctor says the head wounds were too symmetrical to be the result of a fall.
He told me...
...he was treating a child whose mother had crushed his head in a vise.
We have any proof it was the mother? We got the vise?
Just the testimony of the child.
When he sees the mother, he'll likely recant.
You got a very iffy case here.
I've examined him several times, and I think he's begun to trust me.
Look, how many child abuse cases does this office handle in a year?
Over a thousand.
Every one of them terrible.
Every one of them heartbreaking.
I can't stop everything else that's going on to take care of one case.
You're gonna have to get somebody else to help you.
You don't like me, do you?
You've turned out to be a damn good prosecutor.
You were pissed off when Raymond hired me.
I didn't go through the channels like everybody else.
Clearly, you're not like everyone else.
You think I got this job because I fucked some fat-cat friend of Raymond's.
Look, it's late.
Come on, I'll drive you to your ferry.
RUSTY: This is not the way to the ferry.
CAROLYN: I wanted you to meet somebody.
Wendell, this is Rusty Sabich.
He's a very important man in our office.
And he's gonna help me when we go to court.
Remember what I told you about court?
Yes.
Now, tell me.
There's a judge and some nice people.
They're called a jury.
And you're gonna ask me questions.
CAROLYN: About what?
WENDELL: About what happened.
CAROLYN: When?
WENDELL: When I got hurt.
What else did I tell you about?
You said that if I told what Mommy did...
...the judge and the nice people will protect me...
-That's right. -...and Mommy wouldn't hurt me anymore.
Do you think you can do that?
Answer my questions in court...
...and tell what Mommy did to you?
I think you can.
Mommy will be there.
She can't hurt you. She can't even talk to you.
You'll be completely safe.
You promise?
I promise.
His father got to him last night.
He told him God would put him in hell if he testified.
He's terrified.
If you're not ready, we'll ask the judge for a couple more days.
No.
We've gotta do it now or we're gonna lose him.
Your mommy took you to the hospital because you were hurt.
What part of you was hurt?
My head.
How was it hurt?
Wendell, how did you hurt your head?
WENDELL: I don't remember.
Wendell, have you ever seen this?
Yes.
Where?
-In the cellar. -At home?
WENDELL: Yes.
CAROLYN: Did somebody put your head inside it?
Wendell?
What did you say when somebody put your head in the vise?
You told me you screamed when your head was put in the vise.
Remember?
You told me.
WENDELL: "I promise I'll be a good boy.
I'll be a good boy."
And did somebody answer?
Mommy.
Mommy said I was a bad boy and I deserved to die.
CAROLYN: And then what did Mommy do?
WENDELL: She made it tighter and tighter.
CAROLYN: On your head?
She hurt my head. My mommy hurt my head.
No further questions, Your Honor.
The doctors have told us...
...that the wounds that Wendell suffered...
...could not possibly have come from a fall as the defense would have you believe.
The police have told us that they found a vise at the home of the defendant.
And medical experts have testified...
...that the size and the shape of the jaws of that vise...
...exactly match the size and the shape of the wounds to the little boy's head.
And this evidence is clear and uncontested.
But the most compelling evidence in this trial...
...comes not from doctors, or police officers...
...or other expert witnesses.
The most damning testimony...
...comes from an abused and frightened child...
...who overcame his fear and his pain to tell you, in his own words...
...what really happened.
If you were to remember nothing else as you begin your deliberations...
...remember Wendell's words:
"My mommy hurt my head."
RUSTY: Congratulations.
It's gonna be so good.
BARBARA: You're still in love with her.
[RUSTY CRYING]
It was never love.
What was it, then?
It was never love.
What did she have to make you feel so much?
ANNOUNCER: Ladies and gentlemen...
...Raymond Horgan.
[CROWD CHEERING]
[BAND PLAYING MUSIC]
Hi.
Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.
I wanted to come and say a few words...
...before I called Mr. Della Guardia and congratulated him on his victory.
No, no, no. Come on.
Of all the wonderful things that have happened to me in the past 12 years...
...the best has been knowing and working with all of you.
Wait till you hear what is going down. This is too strange.
Something is fucked up over at the hall. It's way wrong.
-Why? -Okay, I get a message.
I'm supposed to be in the chiefs office 8:00 tomorrow morning to be interviewed.
By Molto. No discussion. Interview. That's like they're after me, right?
Another thing. When I come back in...
...they took all the receipts of the evidence I inventoried on Polhemus.
No questions asked.
-Sounds like you're off the case, pal. -Sure. Fine. But figure this in.
I am out at the North Branch before 5:00 going through that microfilm, right?
All of this hits by 6, 6:30.
And look what I picked up while I was out there.
The number matches the complaint that was missing when you went to see Kenneally.
RUSTY: Five years ago. Bingo.
LIPRANZER: Yeah. And look who's listed as Leon's probation officer on the bond slip.
RUSTY: "Carolyn Polhemus."
Wait. Here's the best.
Who do you think was the deputy handling the case?
Tommy Molto.
No, you keep this because I don't know what the fuck is happening with me.
Tommy Molto.
Tommy Molto. We once had a guy that name working here...
...but we think he might be dead.
Raymond's inside.
We've been waiting for you.
RAYMOND: Rusty.
Molto and Delay...
...have questions about the Polhemus investigation.
This should not be handled this way. You should speak with Rusty alone.
What's this about?
The fact you were in Carolyn's apartment the night she was killed.
Bullshit.
What was that, a Tuesday night?
Barbara was at the university. I was babysitting.
Rusty, for your own sake, keep your fucking mouth shut.
We've got the fingerprint results.
The ones you could never remember to ask for.
And they're your prints all over the bar glass.
Yours, Rožat K. Sabich.
Five feet from where the woman was found dead.
Or maybe you didn't remember that all county employees get printed.
This is absurd.
And the phone records that you told Lipranzer not to get?
We had the phone company pull them this morning.
You were calling her all month.
There's a call from your house to hers that night.
My God, you're serious.
-Sabich. Sabich. NICO: Tommy, for chrissake.
TOM: Sabich.
I want you to know one thing, Sabich. I know.
-Sure you do. -Go ahead, play cool. I know.
You killed her. You're the guy.
Yeah? You're right. You're always right.
They think I did it, I killed her. They're gonna charge me.
Don't be seen with me, man. They'll fucking bury you.
[DOOR OPENS]
I'm sorry. I didn't mean to scare you.
Are you sick?
Nico and Molto are gonna charge me with Carolyn's murder.
They say they found my fingerprints on the glass of beer in her apartment.
What does this mean?
Grand jury investigation, I should think.
And then they will or they won't indict me. And if they do, there'll be a trial.
It's not gonna go that far.
I'm gonna need a lawyer.
A very, very good lawyer. Expensive lawyer.
It could break us financially.
We can mortgage the house.
We'll sell it if we have to.
What time does Nat get home?
Nat.
Oh, Russ.
CAROLYN: A lot of people think Raymond shouldn't run again.
If he agrees to step aside...
...the party would probably let him decide who should take his place.
They know he's not gonna hand it all to Nico.
RUSTY: That's for sure.
Who would he choose?
Somebody from the office.
Carry on his traditions.
You?
[RUSTY CHUCKLES]
Mac, maybe.
She'd make a hell of a candidate in that wheelchair.
That chair is not very telegenic.
I think he'd pick you.
You're the natural.
Rusty...
...if you let him know you want it, it'll be you.
I should just go and tell Raymond his time is up, huh?
-You could be tactful. -No. Mm-mm.
Why not?
I'm not gonna bite that hand.
If Raymond wants out, that's up to him.
He's still the best candidate around up against Della Guardia.
Without Raymond, Nico doesn't have an issue.
You pull the party people and Raymond's people together behind somebody else...
...that person would walk into the PA's office.
It wouldn't be close.
You've thought a lot about this, haven't you?
He just needs a push.
Well, push him yourself. It's not in me.
What?
Were you all set on being chief deputy?
Carolyn. Hi.
If I can get away tonight. Should I get some take-out?
-I like you, Rusty, but I think it's over. -What?
It's just not right for me now. It's over.
I don't accept that.
You don't accept it?
Well, do I have a say?
Come on.
I don't want us to end up enemies.
[KNOCKING ON DOOR]
Mac said it was all right.
Have it your way.
Look, I have someone in my office. Bye.
What is it, Rusty?
I just wanted to talk to you about this rapist you habitualized.
There's some problems here.
I'm late for an appointment.
I would appreciate it if you could put it in a memo.
You keep avoiding me.
You communicate through memos. Skip meetings I'm supposed to go to.
It's affecting work.
My work?
My work.
I tried to make it easier for you.
You make me feel uncomfortable.
I just wanna be with you. Can't we just talk about it?
I'm involved with someone else.
Since when?
What is it you want from me?
What do I have to do?
Grow up.
Rožat K. Sabich?
Tom.
Rusty, I don't like to be here.
A search warrant for these premises.
Okay, Tom. Come on in.
They're taking swatches from your suits.
They'll try to match threads from clothing and from the carpet...
...with fibers they might find at her apartment.
-They're not looking for a murder weapon? -I wouldn't be stupid enough to bring it home.
And if they look for it and don't find it, they'll have to admit that in court.
I'm gonna have to go and give them a blood sample.
If you refuse?
They've got a warrant.
It's all routine.
I'm gonna ask Sandy Stern to take my case.
Hi, Sandy.
I realize that you would like to avoid public places at a time like this...
...but I don't think it's wise for you to go into hiding.
I'm flattered that you want me to represent you in this matter.
You have been my, um, toughest adversary.
Did you get my subpoena from the grand jury?
This morning. Clearly, we will not let you testify.
Sandy, you expect me to take the Fifth Amendment?
Of course.
Well, that I cannot do.
You don't want to prepare the prosecutor by giving him pretrial statements, do you?
Sandy, I don't think this case is ever gonna go to trial.
But if I take Five and refuse to testify before the grand jury...
...it could destroy my reputation.
The results of the blood test have come back.
They have identified you as someone who secretes A-type antibodies...
...just like the man who had last been with Ms. Polhemus.
Chances of this being a coincidence are one in 10.
Therefore, I believe you will be charged and that indeed you will go to trial.
MOLTO: Do you have anything you wanna tell this grand jury...
...concerning the death of Carolyn Polhemus?
On the advice of counsel, I decline to answer.
Wouldn't it be fair to say that you were well acquainted with Ms. Polhemus?
On the advice of counsel, I decline to answer.
MOLTO: Weren't you, in fact, intimate with the lady?
On the advice of counsel, I decline to answer.
Rožat Sabich, you are under arrest. "You have the right to remain silent.
-Anything you say can be used against you." -Honey.
"You have the right to a lawyer and have him present while questioned."
-Barbara. JIM: "If you cannot afford a lawyer...
...one will be appointed and will represent you before any questioning if you wish one.
You may stop answering questions at any time."
Do you understand these rights I have explained to you?
Call Sandy Stern. Tell him to make bail.
Sandy should be available in a couple hours.
Let's see what they got.
Can't believe there could be any more surprises.
That's when they come. That's why they're called surprises.
So do we now understand Della Guardia's case?
Yes, I think I do.
Let me hear it.
Sabich is obsessed with Polhemus.
She ditches him for another man.
Sabich becomes enraged.
He can't let go.
One night, knowing his wife will be going out he calls her up, begs her to see him again.
Carolyn finally agrees.
She rolls around with him for auld lang syne.
Then something goes wrong.
Sabich is jealous. He wants more than she's willing to give.
He blows it.
Gives her what for with some heavy instrument.
Decides to make it look like rape.
Sabich is a prosecutor, this way he knows there'll be dozens of suspects.
So he ties her up.
Opens the latches to make it look like someone slipped in.
And this is the diabolical part...
...pulls out her diaphragm so it looks like rape.
But in his haste and confusion, he makes mistakes.
He forgets the glass he drank from.
He doesn't think the forensic chemist will be able to ID the spermicide.
But we know he did evil to this woman...
...because he lied about his presence in her apartment on the night she was killed.
His fingerprints on the glass...
...his blood type A identified from semen...
...fibers from the carpets in his home tell us he was there.
Very convincing.
But their evidence of motive is weak.
There's where we must attack.
Is there proof of prior amorous relationship between the defendant and the decedent?
Just a few telephone calls.
That can be accounted for by business.
-Any diary? -No.
No note that came with flowers? No lovers' correspondence?
RUSTY: No. SANDY: Good.
Gossip will not be admitted.
RUSTY: But there are calls from my home to Carolyn's apartment...
...all through October of last year.
You were trying the case of Wendell during that period.
Reason enough for calling.
Why did I tell Lipranzer not to get my home telephone records?
I take it for granted that a person of an innocent state of mind...
...would rule himself out as a suspect and save a busy detective from wasting time.
Clearly, they hope to win the case on the strength of their physical evidence.
I would like to look at that glass. It could help me figure things out.
SANDY: List a motion for production of physical evidence.
I want an inventory of everything in that apartment.
Where's the contraceptive jelly or whatever this chemist is saying he finds present?
-Wouldn't it be in her medicine cabinet? -I don't know.
I'm gonna hear worse in court.
I never asked her what she was doing.
SANDY: One word of caution.
We do not want to lead Della Guardia to evidence he has not thought to obtain.
Best we conduct the search ourselves without disclosing our intentions.
Also, your mention of Carolyn's personal habits leads to this thought.
We should subpoena her doctors.
Who knows what we might discover.
There is one big surprise, however.
Raymond Horgan's on their witness list.
Why?
RAYMOND: This is a hell of a way to impress my new partners.
I'm here three days, I get a grand jury subpoena.
SANDY: I was wondering what we might expect, in terms of your testimony.
I'm gonna testify about Rusty's conduct of the Polhemus investigation.
-How he volunteered to handle it. -Just a second.
Raymond, you insisted I take it on.
I don't remember it that way.
-Raymond, what are you trying to do to me? -What am I trying to do to you?
What are you trying to do to me?
I thought I had your loyalty.
-Why didn't you tell me about Carolyn? -Raymond-
Under the circumstances, I have to advise Rusty not to respond.
Clearly, he would like to.
Well, let me ask you something, counselor.
What the hell were his fingerprints doing all over that glass?
So that's what I'm gonna testify.
That he wanted the case.
I had to chew his ass repeatedly to get him to move on it.
He seemed a lot more interested in if, when and how...
...I was fucking Carolyn Polhemus than in his own investigation.
And when push came to shove, he stood there in my office...
...gave us some horseshit...
...he'd been nowhere near her apartment the night she was killed.
That's what I'm gonna testify.
And I'll be goddamned pleased to do it.
How can you-? How can you think that I could do a thing like that?
You always had the cork in too tight.
We all saw that.
When you blew, you blew.
Come on, Rusty.
When did this relationship take place between Raymond and Carolyn?
Just after she stopped seeing me.
SANDY: Delay's got his motive.
Sandy, what would you say if I tell you...
...that Raymond secretly assigned a bribery case to Carolyn?
Some poor son of a bitch up on a public-indecency charge...
...paid off a PA to have his case dismissed.
Turns out, the guy's probation officer is Carolyn...
...and the deputy assigned to the case is Tommy Molto.
Day after I find this out, I'm charged with Carolyn's murder.
Before we venture down the road into actual accusation...
...we must consider the matter very carefully.
It can't be a coincidence it lays out this way, Sandy.
I mean...
I mean, I'm innocent.
God, I made a fool of myself today with Sandy.
BARBARA: How?
I told him I was innocent.
I thought he would've asked you that by now.
No, it's axiomatic.
Defendants rarely tell the truth.
Lie to the cops, lie to your lawyer, lie to the jury that tries your case.
Leave the bastards out there with a grain of doubt.
You never asked.
-What, if you're innocent? -Yeah.
Do you want me to?
Please draw a name.
"Judge Larren Lyttle."
Now, I have some motions from the defense.
Mr. Stern, you want to examine the scene of the crime, right?
Yes, Your Honor. As part of evaluating the evidence...
...to see if it proves what the prosecution claims it proves.
Mr. Della Guardia?
With proviso nothing to be removed, nothing disturbed.
-No objection. LYTTLE: Granted.
Mr. Stern, anything further?
Your Honor, we notice that Mr. Molto is listed...
...both as a prosecutor and as a potential witness for the prosecution.
We object to that.
I take it you are speaking of where Mr. Sabich...
...responds to Mr. Molto's accusation of murder by saying, "You're right."
"Yeah, you're right."
Your Honor, the man admitted the crime.
Oh, come on, Mr. Della Guardia. Really.
You tell a man he's engaged in wrongdoing, and he says, "Yeah, you're right."
Everybody knows that's facetious. We're all familiar.
Shit, in my neighborhood, had Mr. Sabich come from those parts...
...he would've said, "Your mama."
But in Mr. Sabich's part of town I would think they would say:
"Yeah, you're right."
And what they mean is, "You are wrong."
Just to be polite.
Your Honor, isn't that a question for the jury?
No, on the contrary, Mr. Della Guardia, it is first a question for the court.
Now, if you wish to use Mr. Sabich's statement...
...and risk my ruling it out of order, then I will bar Mr. Molto from prosecuting.
But if he is the prosecutor...
...then Mr. Sabich's statement may not be offered.
And I'll see you in court in three weeks.
Ernestine, show in the next bunch.
What the fuck are you gonna do with those?
We don't want Tommy Molto thinking fingerprints we leave here today...
...are from before, do we?
We're not gonna plant anything, if that's what you're worried about.
The law's the law.
Yeah, I know, Glendenning.
Diaphragm.
I don't know, the bathroom.
-Where? -There.
JAMIE: Nothing.
Fucking cops always forget something.
What is it?
Her phone book.
Check with her doctors on the contraceptive stuff.
I don't remember Carolyn ever worrying about that.
She's got them under D.
Jesus, she's got a lot of doctors.
If the chemist says spermicidal cream was present...
...and it's not seized from the apartment, then you tell me where it's at.
I don't know.
Maybe I took it when I took the diaphragm.
JAMIE: That doesn't make sense.
Well, you gotta remember, I wasn't thinking very clearly.
If I had been, I wouldn't have left my fingerprints on the glass.
REPORTER 1: You were a former deputy prosecutor.
-How does it feel to be on the other side? REPORTER 2: Mr. Sabich.
REPORTER 3: How about that Fifth Amendment?
REPORTER 4: How come you took the Fifth?
REPORTER 1: Are you feeling that you might be a scapegoat?
Sorry, but we're not about to try this case on the courthouse steps.
REPORTER 5: Do you think this is political? REPORTER 1: How do you feel?
WOMAN: All rise.
Oyez, oyez. The superior court for the county of Kindle is now in session.
The Honorable Larren L. Lyttle, judge, presiding.
Draw near and give your attention and you shall be heard.
God save the United States and this honorable court.
The People v. Rožat K. Sabich, for trial.
NICO: May it please the court.
The state's evidence will show that on or about April 1st of this year...
...Carolyn Polhemus, a deputy prosecutor in Kindle County...
...was brutally murdered.
The proof will show that this murder was perpetrated by her colleague...
...Rožat K. Sabich.
How are we to answer this, Rusty Sabich and I?
Mr. Della Guardia's case does not involve facts...
...but supposition upon supposition, guess upon guess.
When you listen to the evidence, ask yourselves why Rusty Sabich...
...the finest prosecutor of this county, a man who has devoted his life...
...to preventing and punishing criminal behavior...
...not to committing it...
...sits here as the accused.
Why?
State calls Detective Harold Greer.
Your Honor, may we have a word at the bench?
Your Honor, this witness will testify about a bar glass. They have no bar glass.
LYTTLE: What about this, Mr. Della Guardia?
Your Honor, I learned the first time last night, from Tommy, the bar glass-
Hold it right there. Inside, gentlemen.
Your Honor, I request that Mr. Sabich join us in chambers.
He is an integral part of the defense.
All right.
Molto, where is the fucking glass?
Evidence was where it was supposed to be...
...but they haven't been able to locate it.
Well, we're not gonna be talking about evidence that nobody can find.
Not in my courtroom.
No objections to the photographs.
Any testimony as to fingerprints, we will object to.
LYTTLE: I will reserve decision, gentlemen.
A little stroke of luck.
Their disorganization will help us with the jury.
RUSTY: They'll find the glass. They always do.
Ladies and gentlemen, these photographs...
...depict horrors you may be expected to react to with disgust.
But I'm instructing you that in themselves...
...they are proof of nothing except the nature of the crime.
[RINGS]
LIPRANZER [OVER PHONE]: How you doing?
-They making it tough on you? -Those cupcakes? Come on.
Is there anything you need?
Yeah. Yeah, I got to find this guy, Leon. Leon Wells.
Guy who's supposed to have bribed the PA at North Branch.
Yeah.
I wouldn't ask, but it might really matter.
Oh, you think Molto's kinky on this?
Set you up to keep you from looking?
You wanna hear me say I think it might be possible? I do.
Okay, after I testify, all right?
Those guys, they got their eyes on me.
When I get off the stand, they'll ease up. I'll work on it then. Hard. Okay?
RUSTY: You're a pal.
Is he gonna help?
After he testifies. Might be too late by then.
I think it's going well.
Yeah. The jury's gonna remember pictures of Carolyn tortured to death.
They're gonna want somebody to pay for what they saw.
Tomorrow, Raymond...
...my friend and mentor, my teacher, is gonna testify he thinks I'm guilty.
Then come the physical proofs:
Fingerprints, fiber, bodily fluids.
They all point to me.
NICO: And do you know the defendant, Rožat Sabich?
Sure, I know Rusty. I've known him since he was a law student.
-He was my second in command. -Would you identify him?
[WHISPERING]
That's him.
NICO: You assigned Mr. Sabich to supervise the investigation in this case?
He volunteered.
And I accepted.
He promised to pursue it vigorously.
Did he?
Not to my way of thinking, no.
I got the feeling he was stalling the investigation.
I let him know that I wasn't happy about that.
He, uh...
He brought in his own detective to replace Harold Greer.
And then he gave this new partner of his instructions to ignore evidence...
...about telephone calls between his house and Carolyn's.
He tried to limit the scope of the fingerprint search so as to exclude his own.
He seemed much more interested in whether I had been intimate with Carolyn Polhemus...
...than in the facts surrounding her murder.
NICO: And what did you tell him about you and Ms. Polhemus?
I told him the truth.
That we had been together for three months.
This, of course, was after I was divorced.
At that time, or any other time...
...did Mr. Sabich inform you he had a per-
Objection. There is no proof in the record of any relationship...
...between the defendant and Ms. Polhemus.
LYTTLE: Well, I'm gonna let the question stand.
But, ladies and gentlemen...
...Mr. Della Guardia is asking a question based on his assumption...
...that there was something was going on between Mr. Sabich and Ms. Polhemus.
Just because he thinks it's so...
...doesn't make it so.
-Proceed. NICO: Mr. Horgan?
I never would've let him handle the investigation...
...if I thought he'd had an intimate relationship with the victim.
NICO: Nothing further.
Have you any personal knowledge, Mr. Horgan...
...that there was ever a relationship between Mr. Sabich and Ms. Polhemus?
RAYMOND: That's the point. He didn't tell me.
Please answer the question that I asked you.
Do you remember the question?
I do.
But you chose not to answer it.
I apologize, Mr. Stern.
I have no personal knowledge that such a relationship ever existed.
Assuming there was something to disclose, you believe he, as an honest official...
...should have informed anyone in a responsible position?
I do.
Certainly you would give any information you had relevant to a case...
...to a member of your staff investigating the case.
Certainly.
Mr. Horgan...
...you removed a file, a so-called B file...
...from Ms. Polhemus's office after the investigation of her murder began?
What's the relevance of this, counsel?
Your Honor, the witness has testified on direct examination...
...that Mr. Sabich did not bring to his attention...
...information that he regarded as pertinent.
The defense is entitled to explore Mr. Horgan's standards in this regard.
Well, subject to a later connection, I'll allow it.
Continue, counselor.
And you gave that B file to Mr. Sabich...
...only after he informed you that it was missing from Ms. Polhemus's office.
-Is that not true? -That's true.
You've told us that you and Carolyn were lovers.
For a short time, yes.
B-file cases...
...cases involving bribery and official misconduct...
...are normally assigned to the assistant deputy.
At the time, Mr. Sabich. Is that not true?
That was the usual practice, yes, sir.
You gave this highly sensitive matter in this B file...
...to Carolyn Polhemus while you were sleeping with her?
That appears to be the time frame.
The answer to the question is yes.
And were you not concerned, sir, in the midst of a nip-and-tuck election campaign...
...about word leaking out that you had secretly given a file...
...that was in Mr. Sabich's area of authority...
...to an assistant with no experience in such matters...
...with whom you were sleeping at the time?
It may have crossed my mind. Ahem.
Who knows, Mr. Stern. It was not an ideal situation.
Far from it.
And, sir...
...you come to this courtroom...
...where the life of a man...
...who served you faithfully for a dozen years now hangs in the balance...
...and you tell us that you withheld evidence from him...
...that might have assisted in his investigation?
All right.
Is it fair to say...
...that the chief deputy is the person in the office...
...in whose judgment you place the greatest confidence?
I regarded him as the best lawyer for the job, yes.
And you gave Mr. Sabich the authority...
...to decide when and where to fire Mr. Della Guardia.
Gentlemen, let's stop right there.
What is the relevance of who fired who?
Judge, it's our theory that Mr. Sabich is being framed in this case.
I don't believe this.
-Beneath contempt. -Your response has been noted.
If Mr. Stern is truly going to endeavor...
...to prove that the case against Mr. Sabich has been manufactured...
...then I suppose this history of antagonism is relevant for those purposes.
Now, what about this missing B file?
We believe it's being withheld because it contains evidence...
...that is necessary to the defense.
So we intend to pursue this matter...
...until we have a full understanding on how it bears on the truth.
I don't know where this is gonna lead us, but I'll tell you two things:
You had better be prepared for the prosecution's response...
...because he is going to be entitled to a great deal of latitude in answering.
Because I am going to give him that.
Do you recall that we spoke about a B file that you assigned to Ms. Polhemus?
I believe I'll remember it for quite some time.
Did Mr. Molto tell you that he was involved-?
-Objection. -Objection sustained.
Mr. Stern, you're playing with fire.
SANDY: Do you know what investigation, if any, Mr. Molto pursued-
I'll answer that. He took no action.
He wasn't gonna chase Rusty Sabich's red herrings.
LYTTLE: Mr. Della Guardia, you will remember that you are the prosecutor...
...not the witness.
[PEOPLE LAUGH]
Perhaps we can all learn something about red herrings and scapegoats.
That is all.
LYTTLE: This court is adjourned for the weekend.
I don't understand what you're doing, Sandy.
You're alienating the judge.
I suggested Nico and Molto were manufacturing the case...
...you wanted nothing to do with it.
Clearly, I changed my mind.
On the basis of what?
Instinct.
RUSTY: If you don't like it, you can always come home.
I wanna go.
All my friends will be there.
RUSTY: I'll be okay, you know.
Come here. Sit down.
Look, I've been accused of doing something that I didn't do.
And this trial is gonna give me a chance to clear myself.
-That's what's gonna happen. -Of course.
Of course.
Here are the postcards, okay? Use them.
-Don't forget, now. You write. NAT: They make me.
Hey, what about me?
MAN: Parsons.
Rosa.
Calabrese.
The Robinson brothers.
Strauss.
MOLTO: Did Mr. Sabich ever tell you...
...that he had a personal relationship with Carolyn Polhemus?
No.
Did Mr. Sabich, at any time...
...order you not to get the telephone company records of calls from his home?
He never ordered me, no, sir. He asked me.
He asked you not to get those records?
And did you oblige him?
Well, I was taken off the case before I got to those records.
-You did or did not get those records? -No, sir, I did not.
We had a lot of higher-priority items on our mind.
One of the high-priority items was getting fingerprint analysis...
...of fingerprints found in Carolyn Polhemus's apartment.
Who was communicating with the lab?
Mr. Sabich.
Did you ask him to expedite the reports?
Yes, sir, I did.
And what did he say, if anything?
He said he forgot.
He forgot?
Rusty forgot.
Would it be fair to say the two of you, by working together...
...have formed a personal friendship?
I suppose so, yes.
-Were you assigned to the case initially? -No, Harold Greer initially handled the case.
Has Mr. Sabich ever expressed to you...
...any reservations about Harold Greer's abilities?
Everybody that I know thinks of Harold Greer as a top-grade cop.
Do you know who decided to replace Harold Greer and bring you on this case?
Mr. Sabich.
Do you feel...
Withdrawn.
To your knowledge, does the defendant have a closer personal relationship...
...with anyone on the police force than he does with you, Detective Lipranzer?
Not that he's mentioned, no.
So it's fair to say, detective, is it not...
...that you are the person on the police force least likely to suspect Mr. Sabich of murder.
I would never believe that. Never.
MOLTO: Thank you for your cooperation in answering what must've been...
...painful and difficult questions for you...
...considering your relationship to the defendant.
Nothing further.
SANDY: You made reference to a theory you were developing...
...that Carolyn Polhemus might have been the victim of a revenge killer.
Someone she had once sent to jail?
Yes, sir. We thought of that as our most likely case.
And to identify possible suspects...
...you reviewed the files of cases she had prosecuted...
...and was currently prosecuting, going back several years? Is that correct?
Yes, sir.
Were you able to find all those files?
No, sir. A file was missing.
SANDY: This is the so-called B file...
...that was withheld from you and Mr. Sabich...
...until Mr. Sabich requested it personally from Mr. Horgan?
-Is that correct? LIPRANZER: Yes, sir.
SANDY: It involved allegations-
LYTTLE: Oh, let's move on.
Counsel have been warned about this riding off in all kind of directions.
SANDY: No further questions, detective.
No redirect, Your Honor.
Okay, we need subpoenas for Carolyn's doctors...
...a subpoena for phone company records, to check for errors.
I don't think we need to bother with that.
What? You said there was something wrong with the records.
That you never called Polhemus the night of the murder.
Jamie, I'd like a moment alone with my client.
-Sure. RUSTY: Thanks.
I used to call Carolyn's apartment after it was over.
I'd call...
...just to hear her voice.
I'd hang up, like a goddamn kid.
I'm not sure I called that night or not. I don't remember.
Contrary to my original hopes, I believe we are going to have to present a defense.
My first instinct is to begin with Barbara on the witness stand.
No.
She's an attractive woman, Rusty, and there are five men in the jury.
She can also support your alibi quite effectively.
That's not negotiable, Sandy.
Look, when I was a prosecutor...
...I always knew I had a winner when the defendant refused to testify.
All I wanna do is tell the truth.
The jury wants to hear me say I didn't do it.
And that you will do very well.
But with every word, you will confirm what the prosecution is saying.
That you were overwhelmed with a sexual obsession...
...that took a wrong turn into rage when she ended the affair.
And you will have gone a long way to eliminating the jury's reasonable doubt.
MOLTO: State offers as evidence...
...from suit coat in closet in defendant's home...
...a hair identified by police crime lab as that of the deceased.
The skirt of the deceased, contaminated with fiber identified as Zorak V...
...a carpet fabric found in the home of the defendant.
Report of forensic chemist, identifying blood type...
...and semen from the vagina of the deceased as type A.
Report of results of a blood test of Rožat Sabich...
...identifying his as blood type A.
The shirt of the deceased, contaminated with fiber identified as Zorak V...
...a carpet fabric used in the defendant's home.
The state now calls Detective Morris Dickerman.
SANDY: Your Honor, this relates to missing evidence.
I hope you're not considering allowing them...
...to proceed with the fingerprint evidence in the absence of the glass.
If so, we certainly would like to be heard on that question.
I understand that.
You may want to do some research into this issue, Mr. Stern.
You hit the books tonight, and I'll listen to you tomorrow.
And if I were you...
...I'd roll up my shirtsleeves and get down to that evidence room myself...
...and find that glass.
BARBARA: So you're not gonna get any sleep again.
RUSTY: That glass is the strongest piece of evidence they have that I was there.
If I can find solid precedents for Larren to keep it out of evidence...
...I think their case will fail.
Well, just get something to eat and don't drink too much coffee.
Here.
-Thanks. -For what?
For hanging in there.
What did you expect?
[PHONE RINGING]
Hello.
Yeah, just a sec.
It's your uncle.
My uncle?
Hello?
LIPRANZER [OVER PHONE]: We got something on that matter...
...that very important matter.
-Yeah? -Yeah. I'm downstairs. I'm in the lobby.
Well, look, we're working to keep the glass out of evidence.
Fuck the glass. I found Leon.
Feature this: He's a Night Saint.
[HIP-HOP MUSIC PLAYING OVER SPEAKERS]
[KNOCKING]
LIPRANZER: Leon!
Answer the door.
Open up, Leon! It's the police!
We just want to talk, Leon.
[LOCK CLICKING]
LIPRANZER: On the floor, scumbag!
-Don't even fucking breathe, asshole. LEON: What the fuck is this?!
LIPRANZER: Shut up.
Sit the fuck down.
I'm Detective Lipranzer.
This is Mr. Sabich from the prosecutor's office.
We have a few questions to ask you, Leon.
You're straight with us, we're out of here in five minutes.
Five, six years ago, you paid off a deputy PA...
...1500 bucks to make some trouble you had go away.
555-3469.
Jack Friedman, you ask for.
What the fuck he do that for?
He wants your complete attention.
Now, Rusty Sabich is getting on the phone...
...and he is going to tell your present associates...
...that five years ago you paid off a PA to get off a rap of molesting an officer.
To wit:
Trying to get paid to suck his cock in a public place.
Now, Leon...
...how about five minutes of your time?
Huh?
This blond bitch.
My probation officer set it up.
In the PA's office.
Man standing behind me, okay?
And she be telling me, when I come in:
"Just don't turn around. Just do what the man say."
He said:
"Just...
...leave the money in the top drawer."
Fifteen hundred dollars.
LIPRANZER: What, you never saw him?
But he knows who it was.
Judge Motherfucker.
That's what we all call him.
LIPRANZER: Larren Lyttle.
Bet you Larren was porking her...
...and he was taking the money to keep her in style. God.
Sometimes I hate being a cop.
I'm sorry, pal. I know you were counting on it being Molto.
If you leak this stuff we got on him to Larren, he might dismiss your case.
Okay, it was just a thought.
All rise. This court is now in session.
Judge Larren Lyttle presiding.
Where's Kemp?
We just received the files from the medical examiner...
...and the report from her doctors.
He's going over them right now.
We may have a surprise in the medical testimony.
[GAVEL BANGING]
LYTTLE: Well, Mr. Molto, you have completed your search?
Your Honor...
...the police have not been able to locate the glass.
LYTTLE: All right.
Mr. Stern, I have studied your arguments.
Ladies and gentlemen...
...you're about to hear the testimony of a fingerprint expert...
...concerning evidence that he claims to have identified on a certain glass.
I'm instructing you, as a matter of law, ladies and gentlemen...
...that you are entitled to consider the prosecution's failure...
...to make the glass available to the defense.
I'm not telling you what to do.
But it is permissible for that one fact alone...
...to raise a reasonable doubt in your minds that would require Mr. Sabich's acquittal.
Mr. Stern's objection is overruled.
And his exception is noted for the record. Proceed.
I'm sorry.
He's right, under the law.
MAN: Based on the lateral slash on the anterior portion of the fingerprint...
...the distinctive center whorl...
...and the exact match on the top swirl...
...I am certain that the fingerprint found on the glass...
...recovered from Carolyn Polhemus' apartment is identical...
...to that contained in the employment file of Rožat K. Sabich.
NICO: Very good.
We are going to call Dr. Kumagai, the county coroner, Your Honor.
KUMAGAI: There are three depression fractures...
...like from a heavy, blunt instrument.
Maybe a hammer.
Here, here and here.
This and this over here...
...are sharp, deep penetrations of the skull and of the brain...
...like with a hatchet, or maybe a meat cleaver.
Now, doctor, I call to your attention...
...the results of the forensic chemist's analysis:
State's Exhibit 63.
Yes.
-Okay. -I think we might just nail this sucker.
SANDY: And that report states the specimen of semen...
...taken from Ms. Polhemus' body...
...has been identified as being of Mr. Sabich's blood type.
-Am I correct? -You are correct.
It also indicates the presence of chemicals...
...consistent...
...with the use of a birth-control device.
A diaphragm.
It does.
Now, your opinion is that this was...
...a staged rape?
That is my opinion.
And that the way it was done...
...suggests the knowledge...
...of investigative techniques?
Yes. That's what I told Mr. Molto.
SANDY: And all of these deductions depend...
...on the presence of spermicidal jelly...
...in the specimen you sent to the forensic chemist? Do they not?
Yes, sir.
How many autopsies do you perform in a week, Dr. Kumagai?
Oh. One, two...
...10. It all depends.
Would it surprise you to know that you performed 18 autopsies...
...in the two weeks surrounding Carolyn Polhemus' death?
No, sir.
Sounds about- Sounds about right.
And given that number, isn't it fair to say...
...that the specifics of any one examination may slip your mind?
I take notes while I do the autopsies.
Notes, yes.
Well, these notes led you to tell Detective Lipranzer...
...that the murderer was sterile.
Looking back, you must have thought you were a fool...
...to have escaped something so obvious as the use of a contraceptive spermicide.
All the sperm were dead.
I didn't have the forensic chemist's report about the spermicidal jelly.
In absence of any other explanation, I thought the guy was sterile.
Do you recognize your notes...
...of your autopsy of Ms. Polhemus, Dr. Kumagai?
That's my signature.
SANDY: Unless there is any objection...
...would you please read the short passage marked by the paper clips?
Page 2, counsel.
Read it out loud, please.
"The fallopian tubes are ligated and separated.
The fimbriated ends appear-"
Not- Not right.
Your own autopsy notes?
You dictate them as you perform the procedure, do you not?
Not- Not right.
I show you the records of Dr. Lubin, a gynecologist, and of the hospital...
...where he performed this procedure on Ms. Polhemus six and a half years ago.
Would you explain to the jury what a "tubal ligation" is?
[WHISPERING]
SANDY: Would you explain, in layman's language...
...what a "tubal ligation" is?
Uh...
She, um...
She had her tubes tied.
Is it possible for a woman with this procedure to conceive a child?
-No way. -Can you think of any reason...
...for a woman who had her tubes tied...
...to use a spermicide?
No reason. No medical reason. I...
Heh. I think of nothing.
Does it not follow, given these facts...
...that the specimen you sent to the chemist...
...was not taken from the body of Carolyn Polhemus?
I can't account for it.
Oh.
So you don't know what happened.
Wherever you got that specimen from, doctor...
...you sent it to the chemist...
...while you were having secret communications with Mr. Molto...
...behind Mr. Sabich's back. Am I right?
Do you accuse me, Mr. Stern?
[GAVEL BANGS]
Sit down, doctor.
SANDY: I think we have had enough...
...unsupported accusations for one case.
Dr. Kumagai.
LYTTLE: You may step down, doctor.
Do I take it, Mr. Della Guardia, that the state rests?
Judge, may we approach?
Your Honor, we would like Mr. Molto to testify.
LYTTLE: No.
Judge, you said that we would be entitled to some leeway...
...if the defense proceeded with this frame-up theory.
-Now, you said that. -Yes, but I did not know then...
...that the state's chief piece of evidence...
...was going to disappear after last being seen with Mr. Molto.
I did not know that Mr. Molto...
...and the chief pathologist were gonna manufacture evidence...
...and testimony.
And I tell you, sir, that is a fair interpretation of today's events.
I'm still considering the question of what happens to Mr. Molto...
...but what isn't gonna happen...
...is him getting on that witness stand, making matters worse.
-Your Honor, my testimony- LYTTLE: Withdraw, gentlemen.
On behalf of the people of Kindle County, the state rests.
LYTTLE: This court is adjourned.
Well, you should savor today, Sandy. No lawyer gets many crosses like that.
What a colossal blunder.
Tomorrow, I will make the motion for a dismissal.
If the dismissal is not granted, we have no choice but to proceed with the defense.
I need to know if you still insist on testifying.
Of course, you know my strong objections.
Why is he so against your testifying?
He's afraid I'll tell the truth about my relationship with Carolyn.
That'll give the prosecution the motive they've been lacking.
One could argue...
...that if the jury feels I'm being truthful about something so painful...
...that they should believe me when I say I didn't commit the murder.
What would you think?
-If I were a member of the jury? -Yeah.
And I heard you admit how much she meant to you?
I think I'd conclude you were guilty.
I wanna testify.
What would you say?
I'd say you were the only man I ever loved.
And I still do.
SANDY: Your Honor, before we begin our presentation, I would like to—
LYTTLE: Make a motion for dismissal?
-Yes, Your Honor. LYTTLE: Sit down, counselor.
I have reflected on this case at length, ladies and gentlemen.
Now, I understand...
...the prosecutors have suspicions.
Perhaps Mr. Sabich was there that night.
The state might be entitled to that inference.
And if the prosecutors had ever found that glass...
...I might be more convinced.
I mean, before yesterday...
...I might even have said there were reasonable grounds for those suspicions.
But now, I'm not so sure.
So after yesterday...
...there is no proof of motive here.
There is no concrete evidence that there ever was an intimate relationship.
There is no effective proof, so far as I am concerned...
...that would give a reasonable person grounds to believe...
...that Mr. Sabich had carnal relations with Ms. Polhemus on the night of her death.
In point of fact...
...there's not one shred of direct proof...
...that Mr. Sabich murdered Ms. Polhemus.
So under these circumstances...
...I cannot allow this trial to continue.
[PEOPLE MURMURING AND GAVEL BANGING]
Mr. Sabich...
...you are discharged, sir.
And I cannot begin to tell you how sorry I am...
...that any of this has taken place.
Not even the pleasure of seeing you free...
...can make up for this- This disgrace to the cause of justice.
I wish you Godspeed.
Case dismissed.
[GAVEL BANGS AND PEOPLE CHATTERING]
REPORTER 1: Hey, Rusty, come on.
Give the missis a big hug.
REPORTER 2: Do you have anything to say about how you're feeling about him.
REPORTER 3: Tell us about what this has done to your family.
I don't think anybody can say anything at a time like this.
We're very grateful, very pleased it's all over.
REPORTER 3: You can tell us what you're up to.
I want to call Nat.
-Talk to Nat. I'll phone him, tell him. -Okay.
NICO: I'd just like to get it on record...
...that I have the highest personal regard for Rusty Sabich.
While I disagree with Judge Lyttle's decision to dismiss...
RUSTY: You're the very best.
Sandy, how did you know what was behind Larren's fear of the B file?
Ah. You question the judge's integrity?
With just cause, wouldn't you say?
You knew that file didn't have a damn thing to do with my case.
And yet, you let Larren know you'd drag it in at any opportunity.
That it would come out he was taking bribes.
That Carolyn was the courier.
You blackmailed him, Sandy.
We speak now, tonight...
...and these things are never spoken of again.
Agreed?
Larren's divorce left him in a state of disorder.
He was drinking much too heavily...
...and he fell into a relationship with a beautiful, but self-serving woman.
The fact is, Larren himself grew suicidally depressed.
He wanted to resign from the bench.
Raymond Horgan talked him out of it.
Raymond knew he was taking bribes?
Larren told him.
Raymond cleaned up the north side, as you recall...
...and he also rescued a distinguished mind...
...and a career that does honor to the bench.
I believe Larren, today, did what he thought was just.
You tell me, Rusty.
Was justice done?
LIPRANZER: How you doing?
Christmas present.
Jesus.
You're hanging your ass out a good long way on this one, Lip.
It was them that fucked up.
Remember, they came around, they grabbed all the evidence.
The glass wasn't there. I took it down to Dickerman.
The very next day, I get a call from the lab.
The test is done. I can pick up my glass.
But when I went down there...
...Molto had signed the receipt: "Returned to Evidence."
You know, I guess the idea was that I'll put it back in.
Only I got nowhere to put it anywhere...
...since it ain't my goddamn case anymore.
So I tossed the thing in my drawer.
I figured, sooner or later, somebody has gotta ask me.
Nobody did.
You think I killed her.
The lady was bad news.
So that makes it okay I killed her?
Did you?
Oh, pal.
RUSTY: Nat.
Where's Mom?
Upstairs in the bathroom throwing up, last I saw her.
She's got her interview today for the university.
NAT: What's the big deal?
No eggs for me, thank you very much.
RUSTY: That looks nice. -You think?
-Yeah. NAT: Mom, that dumb old college...
...would be lucky to have you teaching there.
You tell her, kid.
RUSTY: I'm gonna do some work around the house while I still have time.
BARBARA: To think I've lived to see the day.
RUSTY: Give me a hand with the fence when you get home.
I can't. I got a game after school.
Good luck, Mom.
Go get them, kid.
BARBARA: I did it.
I fooled them all.
The interview.
They think I'm qualified.
You understand what happened had to happen.
Couldn't have turned out any other way.
A woman's depressed...
...with herself...
...with life...
...with her husband, who had made life possible for her until he was...
...bewitched by another woman.
A destroyer.
Abandoned...
...like someone left for dead.
She plans her suicide.
Until the dream begins.
In the dream, the destroyer is destroyed.
That's a dream worth living for.
Now, with such simplicity...
...such clarity, everything falls into place.
It must be a crime...
...that her husband can declare unsolved and be believed by all the world.
She must make it look like a rape.
But she must leave her husband clueless.
Once he discovers who it was...
...he'll put the case into the file of unsolved murders.
Another break-in by some...
...sex-crazed man.
But all his life...
...he'll know that it was her.
She remembers a set of glasses she bought for the woman...
...some time before, a housewarming gift from her husband and his office.
She buys another set.
Her husband has a beer one night.
Doesn't even comment on the glass.
Now she has his fingerprints.
Then on a few mornings...
...she saves the fluid that comes out when she removes her diaphragm.
Puts it in a plastic bag.
Puts the bag in the basement freezer...
...and waits.
She calls the woman and asks to see her.
Stops first at the U and logs into the computer.
Now she has her alibi.
She goes to the woman.
The woman lets her in.
And when her head is turned, she removes the instrument from her bag and strikes.
The destroyer is destroyed.
She takes a cord out...
...that she brought along...
...and ties her body...
...in ways her husband described the perverts do.
She feels power...
...control...
...a sense that she's guided by a force beyond herself.
She takes a syringe and injects the contents of the Ziploc bag...
...leaves the glass on the bar...
...unlocks the door and windows...
...and goes home.
And life begins again.
Until a trial...
...when she sees her husband suffer...
...the way she never...
...intended.
She was prepared to tell the truth.
Right up to the very end.
But magically...
...the charges were dismissed.
The suffering was over.
They were saved.
Saved?
RUSTY: The murder of Carolyn Polhemus...
...remains unsolved.
It is a practical impossibility to try two people for the same crime.
Even if it wasn't...
...I couldn't take his mother from my son.
I am a prosecutor.
I have spent my life in the assignment of blame.
With all deliberation and intent...
...I reached for Carolyn.
I cannot pretend it was an accident.
I reached for Carolyn...
...and set off that insane mix of rage and lunacy...
...that led one human being to kill another.
There was a crime.
There was a victim.
And there is punishment.
[ENGLISH SDH]