Life s01e06 Episode Script

Powerless

Charlie saved my life in there.
And so now i handle his settlement money.
You were in for white collar crime? Insider trading,yeah.
You been working the program,dani? Yeah.
I've been working the program.
Do you want to know my name? If i wanted to know your name,i would have asked you for it.
Detective,i have something you might be interested in-- The bank of los angeles shoot-Out.
That was 15 years ago.
You should ask your partner.
What happened to all that money? Powerless Okay,listen up.
This is the "officer down" scenario.
Thanks to our so-Called consent decree, some dirtbags will shoot it out with us 'cause they think we can't shoot back.
Nobody wants it-- Dr.
Detective.
Watching us do our homework? Skipped a grade.
Gotta re-Qualify.
You ain't riding with us,are ya? Thought i would.
Do you mind? Oh,no problem at all.
I ain't riding in back though.
You're riding in the back,juarez.
Come on,bobby,you know what the perps leave back there,all those fluids and stuff.
You're riding in the back,juarez.
All right,let's mount up.
all the cool people headin' west on wilshire.
That's my stop.
Mine too.
Mint? Great minds think alike.
My name is rick,and i'm an alcoholic.
Dani.
It's good to meet you,dani.
Good to meet you,rick.
Come on,what's the deal? Let's go.
This is the "officer down" scenario,juarez.
They gotta shoot somebody first.
You remember this? Yeah,i remember this.
You two maybe want to get a room? Do you know what i remember most? It smells like piss back here.
And something else.
The boredom? The burritos? The stories,man.
Your stories.
Hey,juarez,bobby ever tell you about his pet turkey? It drowned in the rain.
That turkey was.
.
The world's dumbest bird.
Yuk it up,chuckleheads.
That bird was d-U-M-B,stupid.
Hey,he ever tell you about the bank of los angeles shoot-Out? Yeah,only about a thousand times.
So many cops in the street.
.
All you could see was blue.
He fired his gun so many times.
.
The muzzle glowed red from the heat.
Like a hurricane of bullets.
And there he was.
Right in the middle of it.
Streets are full of blood and bullet casings.
Five dead.
18 million in cash gone missing.
And you were right there when it happened.
Yeah,i was right there when it happened.
Proudly Presents Season 1 Episode 6 I was doing pretty good.
Then i got to the end of this rotten day.
And oh,my god,she wants me to submit her expense report.
Of course i get a call from the babysitter that says she has to go home early,and where is my husband? Yeah,he forgot to charge his cell.
You know how that is,right? I wasn't sure i was gonna make it.
I managed to tell myself that this was just a situation.
.
You're powerless,but there's a way through it.
I'm seven months sober today.
They're free.
The donuts.
I've seen you here before.
You're always in such a rush.
I'm lou.
Why don't you stick around? Yeah,um,thanks.
But i gotta get to work.
I'm rick.
And i am powerless.
I'm coming up on a year of sobriety.
And i'm here to humbly ask you to help me.
It's not the first time i've made 12 months.
I'm not a good guy when i drink.
I've hurt people.
Women.
About a year ago this month,there was this,uh,one girl.
If i had been sober.
.
It got,uh,intense.
She coulda made a lot of trouble.
A lot.
She took back what she,uh-- I guess she realized she shouldn't have pushed me.
I'm telling you this because you,all of you here,are my strength.
I gotta say hi to a friend of mine.
Hey.
You waited.
Great.
Wanna pick up where we left off? Get to know each other? You told quite a story in there.
And you didn't say a word.
What's with begging those people to help you stay sober? Oh,boy.
Listen,i slipped.
And i needed to say so in there.
Is that so awful? That stuff about hurting women.
That's over.
What happened exactly? Do you ever,uh, have so much shame about something that you can't even choke it out? Dani,i know you understand this.
Give me a chance.
Maybe another time.
Can i call you? Tell me your last name at least.
I'm a friend of bill.
Hey,how was your meeting? Required by my employer.
Every moment you spend wishing you were someplace else is a moment you can't get back.
What about every moment i spend wishing you were someplace else? It would hurt my feelings if i thought you meant it.
Besides,those meetings do a lot of good.
I've seen guys get sober who were as self-Aware as this piece of fruit.
Although it's not entirely clear how aware fruit is.
You know plants recognize their relatives? Everything okay there? I heard something.
I heard a guy confess to a rape.
I mean,he acted like he wanted help staying sober,but he was drinking right before the meeting.
You saw him drinking? Which means you were in a place where there was drinking.
Like a bar? Focus on the words i'm actually saying,okay? Whis guy gets up and says he was hurtful to a woman the last time he went out on a binge.
That was a year ago.
And he's drinking again.
"Hurtful" can mean a lot of things.
Yeah,but it means this thing.
He blamed the victim for making him do it.
He said that he could get into a lot of trouble for it.
And he stopped talking when he got too close to saying what happened.
And he has a record.
I ran his plates.
Richard larson.
Misdemeanor sexual assault conviction in 2002.
I bet it was a plea bargain.
You can't push a misdemeanor to a felony jst because you don't like what somebody said.
It's not about what i like.
It's like circumstantial evidence.
Is that what you think? I'd like to welcome members of the press to our fifth annual open house.
It is an honor to have you all here.
We have great progress to report on community policing.
Compstat,our computer statistics program,has reduced crime city wide by 15% this year.
-If you look here- - Yeah,yeah,fine.
Great.
I know that number.
Why aren't you people out on the street? Numbers don't stop crime.
What news organization do you represent? The people's news.
I'm the stickler.
And this is tonight's webcast from the stickler.
Online now.
.
Lapd shills try again to trick us with half-Truths and lies.
Lies,ma'am? Can we discuss this ter the meeting? Get her on camera,bud.
Action.
We'll need to discuss this later.
She's not kidding.
Cut.
No,not "cut.
" Action.
Action.
Somebody is trying to drive me out of my home.
There a guy who takes a dump on my lawn.
A couple of times a week for the past three months.
He's after me.
I will contact animal control.
This is no dog.
How do you know? Dogs don't eat corn! We have a task force that's set up for just this sort of problem.
Nobody believes in results without seeing any,ma'am.
We will make sure you see results.
Lieutenant davis and i will take your case personally.
-Crews,not one more word.
-We promise.
We vow that we will catch your pooper.
And we will do it by the end of the week.
Find me a report,and i'll cover it here in sex crimes.
I don't know if there is one.
I'm looking for the victim now.
They usually look for us.
If you saw a crime about to happen,what would you do? But you said it already happened.
Well,it's about to happen again.
This guy stood up in a.
A.
,asked to be stopped.
I'm gonna stop him.
How come you're at a.
A.
It was drugs,not alcohol.
It was a lot of things.
Uh-- No open cases from last fall.
What about the dispatch reports? Fall 2006,especially november.
There were five-- No,10,000 911 calls.
Yeah,okay.
There you go.
Be my guest.
Say,dani,um,can we just have dinner or something? It didn't end right with us.
But it ended.
please,somebody has to pick me up.
Does it show my address? Are you injured? He locked me in my house,raped me,he did things,did things to me.
We're on our way.
Do you know your attacker? Rick larson.
His name is rick larson.
Where's the arrest report? There isn't one.
She withdrew the complaint.
You saw him drinking? And you think he might come after her again? He might.
Or he's after somebody else.
I can't find nancy,but i can find larson.
Cash or credit? It'll be,uh,credit.
Card and i.
D.
Please.
You know what,let's just,uh-- Let's just make it cash.
Are you a member of our book club? No.
Then can i offer you membership in our book club? 10% off today.
5% in the future.
Just this book,please.
Would you like me to recommend other books like this book,that you mightnjoy if you enjoy this one? Just this book,please.
Okay,uh,before we go on,i first want to thank lois for bringing those lemon squares.
Oh,also remember that next week there's going to be alternate side of the street parking.
Okay,that's that.
Anybody wanna share? Hi.
I'm charlie,and i'm powerless.
Hate is a prison.
Anger is the warden.
And rage,rage is the guard who takes a piece of you everyday.
You all know what it's like.
You fall,you hit the bottom.
The bottom breaks.
You fall some more.
You get lost.
And now i tell myself it is what it is.
And i'm-- I'm doing my best.
I hope.
Thanks.
-What was that? -The truth.
I know where you're coming from.
How hate is a prison.
It's good to say it out loud.
It doesn't always help saying it out loud,but.
.
Ain't that right,brother.
I was afraid you wouldn't want to talk to me.
No,no,it was my fault.
I came to.
.
Make amends to you.
Why don't we all go out for blended coffee drinks? Dani and i actually have a few things to talk about.
-Unless i'm intruding.
-No,no,you're not intruding.
So next time,charlie.
I want to hear more.
Let me get my coat.
What are you doing? If this guy is who you say he is,i just--I don't think you should deal with him alone.
You don't know what i can deal with.
Okay.
-Ready? -Yeah.
Yesterday,the story about the girl,what did she do to you? Some women.
.
-Make me so mad that.
.
-That? Only when i'm drinking.
You are drinking.
-You were at that bar.
-So were you.
Yo then you go to a meeting.
You know what that is? That's a lie.
It is living a lie.
We're both liars,aren't we,dani? It's the one thing i can always be honest about-- I am a liar.
What can you be honest about? I was a social drinker.
I did a little blow.
My boyfriend dumped me.
Lost a job.
And then i got it.
You know? It was time to clean up.
That's the whole story? Yeah,that's the whole story.
Something wrong? I don't think that's the whole story.
I know what you're doing.
You're messing with me.
You think you're different.
You're just like every other woman.
The only way to get larson off the street is to get nancy to testify.
Well,let's talk to her.
We'd have to find her first.
Nancy wiscinski has vanished.
No obit,no missing person report,no jane doe homicide around that time.
And she moved after the rape,but no forwarding address.
She's 22 years old.
Aren't they all on myspace or yourspace,facebook,faceplace? How do you know about that? Everybody knows about that.
Don't you want a whole bunch of new friends? Don't you want them all to know where you are all the time? PennyH238:Who's he talking bout? LUCKBOB231:Don't know <<HAPPYGIRL923:Hi! MANGOMAN:Have U see Nancy W? HAPPYGIRL923: R U Cute? MANGOMAN:Have U see Nancy Wiscinski? PMJI.
BUT IMHO,NRN,OM Oh,no,where did you go? Where did you go? Come on.
"Pardon my joining in,"but in my humble opinion,"no response necessary,old man.
" I im'd a couple of nancy's girlfriends.
You know,there's a whole new language out there we don't even know.
So you got nothing? Not from them.
But i found out that nancy's screen name was cancelled.
Hmm,great.
Too bad people don't have g.
P.
S.
Computers do.
How's that work? I find a friend in internet crimes who'll run down the url.
If nancy didn't ditch her computer,it'll take us right to her billing address.
I use my mom's maiden name now.
Because you're afraid larson will find you? No.
I don't think about that.
It was just a way to move on.
It was nice of you to come by,but i'd rather keep it in the past.
Well,we're here because it won't stay in the past.
We think that your attacker is about to go after someone else.
I can't help that.
I'm only asking you to make a statement,nancy.
Well,i don't want to.
I like where i am.
My job keeps me busy.
I like where i am now.
Good job? What do you do? Nancy does my books.
Oh,so you work at home.
Must be nice.
Work your own hours? I like it.
-Do you? -Very much.
'Cause it seems to me,and i-- Look,i'm only just guessing here, but it seems a lot like larson committed the crime,but you went to prison.
I'm right,aren't i? The wrong person's doing the time.
You put the right person away,you go free.
You don't understand.
It's his word against mine.
He's out there.
What if he found me like you did? What am i supposed to do? Testify.
Or wait until he dies.
That could be a long wait.
I'm sorry.
No eating in the car.
What? It's a stakeout.
No eating in the car.
I don't even let my husband eat in the car.
You're married? Why wouldn't i be married? What'd you think? You don't wear a ring.
Want to tell stories? Do i want to tell stories? Yeah,it's a stakeout.
We can't eat junk food.
At least let's swap stories.
You go first.
I'll go first.
Okay.
Okay,so-- Okay,stakeout stories,usually--Usually revolve around women.
Okay? Okay,who you would,you know,if you could.
You know,or cars? Or sports? Like,how 'bout those dodgers? Is this what you and detective reese talk about? No,no,mostly we just talk about how lucky we are to have you as a boss.
You know,back when i was a rookie,all we ever used to talk about,stuck in that car,was the bank of l.
A.
Shoot-Out.
That was all anybody talked about in those days.
Five perps dead.
Not one cop shot.
And all that cash gone.
The sixth man.
You know? I don't know.
I guess i just like conspiracies.
Conspiracies,detective,are how bored people pass the time.
But come on,if there was no sixth man,then who took all the money? There was obviously someone who got away with the cash.
Where's the conspiracy in that? Whose side were they on,ours or theirs? Like i said,conspiracies are how bored people pass the time.
I never got halloween,dressing up and begging for candy.
I think it's supposed to be fun.
But why beg for candy when you can just go out and buy what you want? I think it's supposed to be fun.
Drop it.
Drop the gun.
Nancy.
You bastard.
You have to die.
Drop the gun.
Look at me.
Remember me? You see me? You see what you did to me? Nabcy,drop the gun.
Drop the gun.
What are you doing? What am i doing? What are you doing? what'd you think you were doing? I can't live until he dies.
You told me that.
You said i would stay in prison until he was dead.
Yeah,but he didn't mean you were supposed to kill the guy yourself.
That's not what you meant.
Tell her that's not what you meant.
It's not what i meant.
Testify against larson.
I would lose.
The way he talks,he knows things about people.
He said he was just like me.
That he used to drink.
And he could tell that i was drinking a lot too.
He swore he'd kill me if i told,and now i've made him mad again.
What am i gonna do? You're gonna press charges.
I can't! I died that day.
You didn't die.
You survived what happened to you.
You lived through that and here you are.
Did you ever think you could live through such a thing? There's real violence in the world,nancy.
It never finds most people.
It found you.
But did you ever think you would have the strength to survive what he did to you? That's your secret,nancy.
Larson doesn't know it.
Larson doesn't know how strong you are.
Prison doesn't know how strong he made you.
You said "prison.
" You mean "larson.
" He means larson is your prison.
I never did that.
I never did that either.
I might have done that.
I guess i.
.
Did that.
Oh,i definitely did that.
EARLEY WARNING*** Oh,my god.
His phone's disconnected.
I called larson's company.
He didn't show up today even though he had a big meeting.
I asked when he'd be in,the guy said he wasn't holding his breath.
When larson went on that bender last year,he went awol for a month.
How'd you get him to tell you all that on the phone? Well,i asked.
And i waited.
People like to fill a void.
No one knows where he is though.
There's a sundowner meeting at a.
A.
I can ask there.
Uh-Uh,you mean we can ask there.
No,crs,this part's mine.
Okay? If i find him,i'll call you.
I can't believe this.
What,you came here to spy on us,dani? How could you? Lou,i came here because i need to be here.
Okay? But right now,i need to question rick larson about a rape.
I think you're wrong about rick.
Well,if i'm wrong,then he can clear it up once i find him.
Where is he? He hasn't called me.
Dani,he is doing great.
He's even sponsoring a new member.
I need to talk to that person.
You know it wouldn't be right for me to give you her name.
Dani,i don't know why you came here to begin with.
But what you're doing right now,how you're going about it,seems very dangerous to me.
I haven't seen him.
Did he say he'd come? I know you're friends.
We've talked.
He's a great person to talk to,isn't he? I didn't know what would happen to me here,and he could feel that.
Without me even saying,he knew.
It's kind of getting to be about more than a.
A.
What do you mean? I gotta go and change.
But i'll tell rick that you were looking for him.
Are you meeting him? At hunk on melrose.
Uh,i used to be afraid to go where there's a bar.
But with him there,i'll be fine.
Bye.
The reason why the bank of l.
A.
Shoot-Out is such good stakeout talk is there were so many cops on scene,there are so many different stories.
There aren't any different versions.
There is one version,the official version.
Really? Well,my old partner bobby's version was pretty intense.
The street in front of the bank,a sea of uniforms.
All that noise.
How exactly would stark know about that? He was there.
Right in the middle of it.
Stark told you he was in the middle of it? Yeah.
Why? There's always that guy.
Which guy is that? The one who wants to be there so badly he changes the story to make it happen.
There were no uniforms in front of the bank that day at all.
But all those rounds fired? Over 1,100 rounds fired,but they were all tactical.
Tactical? Swat was on a training exercise one block over.
They were there first.
That's why no civilians were killed.
That's why no police were shot.
That's why we study it.
But bobby said-- I don't know what your old partner told you,but if he was in uniform, which he was,he was working the barricades four blocks out.
Who is that? Is that her cameraman? Ugh! It's you! Why would you do this to me? You order me around like a dog.
You treat everyone like a dog.
So poo on you.
Lieutenant,i gotta go.
Buy me a drink.
Unless you're waiting for someone else.
Love the one you're with.
You know that old song? Are you happy to see me? I feel so happy.
How do you feel? I feel like this? What's that? It's her badge.
You're under arrest for the rape of nancy wiscinski.
What? That's insane.
Let go of me.
Everyone's watching.
Why not? It's a good show.
Stacey,it's a mistake.
my client is willing to admit he knows the plaintiff.
They dated on and off before the incident she calls a rape last year.
Why do you think she is telling the truth? I went out t that crazy girl.
I dumped her.
She kept calling me.
And i got loaded 'cause i felt guilty about her.
Okay.
I'll take it from here.
No,no,no,don't.
I want to say this.
After she called me,like,uh,100 times,i went over there.
Drunk.
We had sex.
And then i told her,"you got what you wanted,so shove off.
" Okay? You can get up on that witness stand and tell 'em exactly what i said.
You said more than you think.
Oh,what is wrong with you? What kind of a bitch shows up where a guy's trying to get right, and sets him up to get shot at and thrown in jail? You're not going to jail.
You're going home.
He's not admitting to anything more than consensual sex.
And i'm pretty sure that isn't a crime.
It is confusing.
What to do? I say we let the jury sort it out.
Now that's a good moment,isn't it? It's very good moment.
Thank you both.
How's it going,winston? Ted? This is a surprise.
No,it isn't.
The surprise is when you walk by a book store window and see your face.
I guess you read the book,huh? "Earley warning"? "Inside the mind of white collar trash? " That last-- It was my publisher's-- You were my partner,winston.
-Everything i did,you did.
-Yeah.
But you got caught.
What's with the mini-Bat,ted? Oh,this.
You remember that baseball player with the string of strip clubs? He handed these out when we took him public.
You know,i learned something in prison,winston.
And i forgive you.
We're online now.
Lapd shills try again to trick us with half-Truths and lies.
Lies? Um.
.
Where's your partner? She took off for the night.
Why? Larson made bail.
-When? -A few hours ago.
I just got word.
Hi.
My name is rick.
And i'm powerless.
You're drunk.
Yup,i am.
But tomorrow,i'll be sober.
And you.
.
Well,i don't know.
What's the plan? I want to get to know you.
What,you think i want to rape you? Is that what you think? You tell me.
Oh,you are so cool! And full of crap.
Drink it.
You drink it.
All of it.
And another one.
Come on,drink.
Calling Charlie Crews Nancy wiscinski's at her mothes.
I'll send a unit over there to sit outside just in case.
Try reese on her cell.
She just called me.
Get me dispatch.
Reese? Reese? You know what's wrong with you? The fact that some scumbag is sitting in my kitchen with a gun to my head? I know you got some piece of crap story to tell.
Keep it on.
Let's go.
You're not gonna tell it to anybody,are you? It's so precious and so special.
Th's what you think,right? Is that what you think? Sit down.
Yodon't get to call the shots,detective.
I call the shots.
You're not drinking.
I'm done.
You're done when i say you're done.
You're a big man with your gun out.
Go on,rick.
Hit the jackpot.
Kill a cop.
Be better than drinking.
Better than forcing those girls to do what you need.
Come on,do it.
We can't get any line of sight to the shooter.
They're still talking though.
Hey,got the officer needs assistance call.
Thought you might want some company on this one.
What is it u wanna do,rick? You wanna know me? Oh,i do.
I do know you.
You're in a world of pain.
You don't know pain.
-Finish it.
-All of it? Yep,that's right.
All of it.
Okay.
Give me a moment.
At? I can do what you want,but i just need for you to give me a moment.
You understand? That's not for him.
That's for me.
She just needs a moment.
You want to help me give her one? Uh,i don't know what the hell what means.
But you're going there,i'm going there too.
Okay,moment's up.
Drink.
You want to know me? You never shot up in a room where a guy blew his head off, and you're thinking you're lucky because he didn't get his brains in your dope.
Or found yourself lying in a pool of puke and crap.
Only you didn't care whose crap it was because the whole time you're thinking,"you were so sick.
"All you wanted was to get off and get well.
" You knew that about me? You think you hit bottom,rick? You have no idea how far down this goes,do you? You think you're bad? You think you got a demon inside of you? You don't even know what that means.
You understand that,rick? Want to tell me again about the bank of l.
A.
,bobby? Streets full of blood d bullet casings.
What was that? What was what? And you were right there when it happened.
Yeah,i was right there when it happened.
Who is that? Code four.
Suspect in custody.
Here.
He's all yours.
Hi.
My name is charlie.
Say "hi,charlie.
" Hate is a prison.
But you know what,rick? Prison is a prison too.
need some help? Just--Just make sure i don't fall.
All i needed was a moment.
Isn't it,crews? Isn't it? That's zen.
I got it.
I got it.
Isn't it? That day.
.
Bank of los angeles shoot-Out? I was on the barricade.
I-- I was on the bricades.
Not tonitonight you were right in t middle of it.
hey.
I'm dani.
And,uh.
.
I'm powerless.
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