Close to Home (2005) s01e16 Episode Script

everyone stay now nobody gets hurt.
Hurry up.
What,do you have attention deficit disorder? give me the diamonds.
eyes on the floor,you bitch.
In the bag.
Pretty impressive, the police showed up so fast.
Yeah,someone called it in,said they could see the robbery going down from across the street.
This good samaritan have a name? Hung up before we could get one.
Stickup guy has a name, though-- james miller.
James miller? James miller who broke out of prison last year, kidnapped a deputy warden's wife.
Killed a prison guard.
Stabbed him in the back.
Then went on the run for a year.
I take it you know this guy.
She was the one who put him away to begin with.
He was one of my first cases.
He was a first-time offender.
-The sheet says -I don't need his sheet.
I know his sheet backwards and forwards.
He held up a jewelry store with an unloaded gun, he took two diamond rings, claimed they were for this girl he was in love with.
I cut him a deal.
I let him plead down to four years, and I recommend he do his time in a minimum security facility.
freeze!put your hands up now! Hands! Hands! Hands up! on your knees now! On the ground! He played me.
Miller convinced me that he was repentant and deserved a break.
He wasn't,and he didn'T.
Instead,he kidnapped some poor woman to be his getaway driver during his escape.
Name's darla johnson.
She's 29 years old.
she was the prison librarian.
She taught remedial reading and writing.
She and her husband have a ten-year-old daughter.
Stacey.
She just turned 11 years old.
Her birthday was two months ago.
Has miller said anything about darla? No.
We don't know whether he's killed her,kept her, or what he's done with her for the past year.
All we know for sure is that she's missing.
Nice to see you again,miss chase.
You're looking well.
Cut the crap.
Where's darla ohnson? Darla johnson? Refresh my recollection.
Where is she? I don't know what you're talking about.
I haven't seen mrs.
Johnson since the day we left prison.
Think I remember dropping her off somewhere by the side of the road.
What does that mean? What do you think it means? Miller,if you killed her,why don't you tell us where you hid her body is? Oh.
This is a horrible cup of coffee,man.
Listen to me,you may think this is a joke.
It's not.
You're looking at a date with a lethal injection.
Like I said, I don't know where she is.
You and I go back,miss chase.
Remember? You know me.
Would I lie to you? S01E16 Where is she? Is she alive? Maybe your daughter should wait outside.
All right,honey, go wait in the hall.
GO BE wait out,ok? I'm sorry,mr.
Johnson.
Miller's not talking.
You're the deputy warden at the prison.
-You knew this guy? -I thought I did.
Apparently,I didn'T.
Is there anything else that you can tell us about him that might help us find your wife? Or anything that could help us in our case against him? I thought miller was turning his life around.
He only had two years left in his sentence.
He probably could have gotten out in less based on his record of good behavior.
I gave him a job in the prison library.
That's where he killed the guard? Yeah.
Hal robbins.
He was a good man.
My wife was in there.
By herself.
She was unpacking some books she'd ordered for the inmates.
We found hal in there.
He'd been stabbed to death.
Miller took his keys and his security card, and forced darla to walk him out of the prison.
He held a knife to her back as they walked through every checkpoint, and then he made her drive him away.
-No ransom note? -No,ma'am.
No phone call.
They just disappeared.
If she's alive,we want her back.
And if she's not if she's not I want to know where he left her so we can give her a proper burial.
I don't get it.
Miller broke out with two years to go? But he claims he'd been threatened.
He said some of the other inmates wanted him dead.
At a minimum security prison? You buy that? I don't take anything this guy says at face value.
All I know is that I want him for the escape, for the killing of the guard, and for darla's kidnapping, if she's still alive, for her murder if she's not.
Well,you can tack on identity theft.
All these credit cards are fraudulently obtained.
Including his license-- fake name,fake address.
Coffee card? Well,it looks like he's got one more cup before his freebie.
He must have gone there pretty often.
Yes,this is ours.
We had to offer them to keep up with the chains.
You recognize this guy? Larry.
That's what he said his name was? Well,that's what I wrote down on his coffee order.
He's a customer? He drops by almost every day.
And he's really into the shade grown beans.
-How long has he been coming in? -A few months.
He said he just moved into the neighborhood.
He and his girlfriend.
His girlfriend? Oh,I assume that's who she is.
Her name's dorry.
She comes in with him.
What does she look like? A petite little thing.
Uh,shy,too.
Doesn't say much.
Never leaves his side.
It's almost like they're attached at the hip or something.
Is this the woman that you saw him with? Yeah,it looks a lot like her.
Yeah,but dorry's blond.
I suppose they could be sisters.
All right.
When was dorry last in? -A week ago.
-Thanks.
If there's a chance that darla's alive, we have to offer miller a deal in exchange for her location.
Oh,man,I hate this.
-I really hate this.
-I don't like it anymore than you do, but if a deal's the only way to get information out of this guy, then we have no choice.
First of all,I've haven't had very much luck cutting deals with miller.
And secondly,he killed a corrections officer,steve.
Not to mention,he's just going to try to play us again.
Well,if he does,then the deal's off.
Look, it's possible he'sholding her somewhere without food,without water.
We don't have time to wait on this.
And you can't let your anger get in the way of what you have to do,annabeth.
So you're willing to drop the death penalty if my client agrees to disclose mrs.
Johnson's location? That's our offer.
Can we have a minute to discuss it? I can give you my answer now.
No.
You understand we still execute murderers in the state of indiana? Only for special circumstances.
Yes,like killing a prison guard.
Who says I killed a prison guard? We found his body lying on the library floor,stabbed to death.
So? Could have been someone else.
You got no one to say it was me.
No eyewitnesses, no surveillance tape.
So,darla killed him? Because she was the only other person in the library that day.
Is that your story? All I'm saying is, she's the only witness you got.
So now,why in the world would I tell you where she is? So she's alive.
Maybe.
Let's be clear.
You want to cut a deal, it's going to have to be a lot sweeter, 'cause I am not spending the rest of my life in that hell hole.
Thinking serve the last two years on my sentence.
What do you think? I think you should have his head examined.
You might have a decent competency issue.
Hey,you're not into it, go get your boss down here so we can have a little chat.
While you're at it, why don't you grab me some coffee? Okay,none of that sludge you tried to pass off on me before.
I want the good stuff.
Preferably,the shade grown variety.
I think you know what I'm talking about,right? He wants a walk on everything.
Well,that's not going to happen.
He's just bluffing.
He wants to see how far we're willing to bend.
Mm-hmm.
And how far are we willing to bend? I was willing to let him live, that's how far.
Have you heard from detective vega? No.
The police are canvassing the neighborhood around the coffee shop right now The coffee guy saw a similarity between darla and the girl in the shop, but he couldn't make a positive id.
So the police are posting fliers with a computer-altered picture of darla as a blond.
They're also going door-to-door talking to folks in the area.
Haven't seen them in a couple of days.
Out of town? I don't know.
I just haven't seen 'em.
Is there anything I can help you with? Yeah,I'm detective vega with indianapolis police department.
We're looking for this woman.
Oh,sure,dorry.
You were just knocking on her door.
Hey,I got something here! &&&&&&& Darla? Water.
Water.
Water-- get her some water now.
Mrs.
Johnson,I know you have been through a traumatic experience but the doctors tell us you're physically strong enough to make a statement.
God shh darla? Can'T.
-I know this is difficult -I can'T.
He threatened to kill my family.
Stacey.
My little girl.
my husband.
-But he's in custody.
-Me.
He said he'd kill me if I ever said anything, if I ever tried to leave.
If I ever left the house.
Oh,no I take it back.
I take it back.
I take it back! -I need to get back! -Ma'am?Ma'am? Please! Please,I have to get back.
Please!Please! I have to get back! -He can't hurt you now,we've got him.
-He's going to kill me!My husband!Stacey! He's going to kill us all! darla,you were handcuffed when the police found you yesterday.
Did miller do that? He was protecting me.
Protecting you.
How? Well,he said if the police ever came, that they'd bring guns.
He said they'd shoot, he didn't want me hurt.
That's why he did it.
The psychiatrist is in with her? Hopefully,we'll find out if she'll be able to hold up in court.
Cause if she melts down the way she did in the hospital won't be pretty on the stand.
The police found a dog bowl in the cellar where he was keeping you.
-Did miller make you eat from it? -No.
Not all the time.
Only when I didstupid things.
Like what? The neighbors.
Sometimes they'd wave, or want to say hi.
I'd wave back sometimes.
Why was that stupid? Because he said they might want to get into his business.
He said I shouldn't invite conversation, and he was right.
About what? About inviting conversation.
They'd always start asking questions.
How things were going and what did you say when they did? I said,"fine.
" Because they were.
Most of the time.
He bought me a picture frame once.
For my for my pictures of my little girl.
Stacey.
I had them with me when we left that day.
In my wallet.
Hmm.
Stacey?Your daughter? Who miller threatened to kill? You think she's suffering from stockholm syndrome? As in,she's been brainwashed.
No,it's a very real condition, I assure you.
An abuser like miller traumatizes darla with threats to her survival.
Darla,perceiving herself to be isolated from the outside world, looks to him for protection.
Her life literally depends on his good will towards her.
So she starts to see the world from his perspective to determine what makes him happy.
More importantly,to do those things that make him happy.
Like avoiding the neighbors.
You mean that for the last year, she was purposefully avoiding those people who might have been able to help her get away from this guy? If she contacts these people, it's contrary to miller's wishes.
She puts both her life and the lives of her family in peril.
She really believed miller She couldn't afford not to.
He was her lifeline to food,water,communication,freedom.
She's still afraid of him.
She seems to like the guy.
I mean,the way she talks about that picture frame he bought her, it's like it's the most wonderful gift in the world.
In some ways it was.
He showed her kindness by buying that frame.
It allows her to bond with his positive side, denying the side that is terrifying to her.
How long does it take for stockholm syndrome to set in? A year's more than enough time.
It can take effect in a matter of days.
It's a catch-22.
She says how bad miller is and then excuses what he did in the same breathe.
Yeah,there are also inconsistencies in her story.
She said she was kept locked up, but the coffee guy saw her just last week with miller.
How badly do we need her testimony? Well,at the very least,we need it to try miller for the murder of the prison guard.
Otherwise,his lawyer will probably argue that any of the 300 other inmates in that facility could have killed the guard.
Do you think the jury's going to buy that? I think that in a post- robert blake,michael jackson,O.
J.
-World, they're ready to buy just about anything.
Okay,bring her in.
Shore up her testimony, take her deposition, see what she remembers about the day of the prison escape.
Okay.
I remember unpacking books and then I saw blood on the floor.
Was it officer robbins'? I think so.
What do you mean,"you think so"? What was miller doing? Standing there.
Maybe.
Was he holding a knife? I-I don't remember.
Darla,we know you're afraid of him, but we need to know what happened.
It's the only way to make sure that he stays out of your life forever.
Do you understand? Was he holding a knife? Darla,you told the psychiatrist earlier that miller kept you locked up.
But we have someone who saw the two of you in a coffee shop just a week ago.
Sometimes he'd let me go out with him.
When I'd been good.
You know,when I hadn't done anything to make him mad.
He'd buy tea for me.
Sometimes.
She has been reduced to a child.
A defense attorney is going to have a field day turning every inconsistency and hesitation into evidence of instability and lack of credibility.
So we need to show how she got that way.
How miller tormented her with abuse and threats.
We need to cement in the minds of the jury how and why she stayed as his hostage for over a year.
Have we talked to their neighbors? They said that miller kept her pretty much locked up.
Any time someone came over to say hi, or invite them over to a barbecue,he'd shoo them away.
How did he manage to stay underground for so long? Well,there was no shortage of cash, fake ids or disguises in the house.
Did he rob any other jewelry stores while he was out? I'm waiting on surveillance tapes, heists that match the m-o of his last job.
We also need to document the environment in which miller held darla hostage.
They jury will want to see that.
Yeah,we're heading over to the house this afternoon to take pictures.
Good.
In the meantime, I think we should let darla go home.
looks like something out of a horror movie.
Almost too much.
I hate to ask this,but is there any way darla's playing us? Why would she do that? I don't know.
Any chance she wanted to be with this guy? I mean, in a non-stockholmed way.
Nothing in the file suggested that she was unhappy in her marriage.
Didn't she seem happy to be back with her family? It's just hard to believe that she didn't try to escape this-- especially with a husband and daughter out there.
She was trying to protect them,maureen.
I mean,I imagine if I were convinced jack and haley's lives depended on my staying here, I would do it.
I know you want to lock this guy up, I'm just posing a question.
You really think she chained herself to this pipe? no.
You're going to want to see this surveillance tape.
It's one of the robberies that matched miller's m-O.
we've got miller hitting a high-end jewelry store during morning hours.
He's wearing a plastic mask.
He only wants the diamonds.
And this has two people.
Right.
Listen.
Let's hurry it up.
I'm going as fast as I can.
That's darla johnson.
Darla helped miller rob the place? This was six months ago-- I got tapes that show they hit two other places during the last year.
They? As in they both did it? Same method.
He held the gun, she collected the diamonds.
I didn't tell you about the robberies because I was afraid of what you'd think.
I had to help him.
He would do things if I didn'T.
What things? My pictures of stacey he'd take them away.
He said that's how easily he could kill her her and dan.
Just like he did hal.
So why didn't you go along on his last robbery? A couple of months ago, I got really emotional.
It was stacey's birthday.
I missed her so much,I tried I tried writing her a card.
A birthday card? But he caught me.
He got really angry.
He said I betrayed him, that he couldn't trust me anymore.
Then he raped me and beat me and locked me up.
And he said that's where I was going to stay from now on when he went out, until he could trust me again.
I just got a call from miller's attorney.
What did she want? To talk deal.
I told her we'd think about it.
Why would miller want one now? Because we have a witness who can testify he killed the guard.
Yeah,I get that, but why would we want to do a deal.
Because there's no guarantee that darla is going to be able to withst and the pressure of trial Make a deal,annabeth.
I'll be clear.
Doug will testify against you, and you will be facing the death penalty.
So I'll make the same offer I made before.
Wait,wait,wait, there's tape of darla johnson willingly participating in these robberies.
How credible is she going to be? It'll look like she's testifying against my client just to save her own skin.
Not after our psychiatrist explains that her behavior was consistent with stockholm syndrome There are many examples of this: Patty hearst,elizabeth smart.
And you believe that? I think a jury will.
I'm willing to take the death penalty off the table in exchange for a full confession.
That will include the death of the guard? The murder of the guard,yes.
I'll take it.
What happened after you entered the library? Officer robbins turned his back to me, then I pulled out my shiv, which I hid in my shoe.
-You had a shiv? -Right.
Where'd you get the shiv? I made it out of a metal spoon.
I sharpened it myself.
And then you stabbed officer robbins with it.
Yes,I did.
-How many times? -I don't know.
A few times.
I don't remember exactly.
Definitely more than once,though.
What happened then? I told darla johnson she'd better do as I say,or she was next.
Congratulations, you just got yourself a confession.
He's lying.
The story about the shiv doesn't make any sense.
Officer robbins' wounds were inflicted by a serrated knife.
Why would miller lie? I don't know.
There may be other inconsistencies in his statement.
Turns out that dale braddock, miller's old cellmate and a reputed jewelry fence, was paroled 18 months ago.
He runs a welding shop here in the city.
That's not the guy miller says he used as a fence.
No,he didn't, and the guy he did mention, we can't find.
You think miller may have used braddock instead? Maybe.
Let's search braddock's place.
@@@@@@ $$$$$$ Hey.
Oh.
Possession of stolen goods is a parole violation, which means you're going back to prison.
Is there anything you could do for me? That depends on what you have, james miller.
You fence his diamonds, yes or no? -For all his robberies? -Yeah.
Ones he and his lady did.
Darla.
You mean the woman that he took hostage.
Hostage? she ain't no hostage.
She was in on those jobs.
What does that mean? It means they did them together.
She picked the stores, he planned the heists.
Ask me, I think she got off on it.
Oh,that's insane.
I'm just telling you what I know-- and miller, he did whatever she wanted him to.
He was crazy in love with her.
I don't know what your concept of love is,mr.
Braddock, but I don't think physically abusing and torturing someone counts.
He never did that to her, no way.
Never laid a finger on that woman.
She's carrying his child.
-Darla's pregnant? -Yeah.
Miller was so damn excited about it he took some of the cash he made to do some estate planning.
You know? Open an account with an investment firm for darla and the youngster, in case anything ever happened to him.
Yes,I told him I was pregnant.
I might have even told him I loved him, but I was just trying to earn his sympathy.
I just wanted him to stop beating and raping and -are you pregnant? -No.
Did you plan the robberies? No.
No,I didn'T.
Stacey,go to your room.
Mom? Are you okay? Stacey,what did I say?! Darla.
That has got to stop.
-Mr.
Johnson.
-Look,I know you have a job to do, but I also know that miller confessed.
With all due respect, your wife's story has problems, and it doesn't help that she keeps leaving out crucial details every time we talk to her Darla is fragile.
She's not thinking straight.
She just needs to be left alone, she needs things to be normal for a while, so she can heal.
Your mom's a librarian, but she lets you underline in books? Things are sort of strange right now,huh? With your mom back? It's okay,it's normal.
It's been a crazy week for you, a crazy year.
I remember going through a really tough time when I was your age.
It wasn't easy.
My parents were splitting up.
-My parents aren't splitting up.
-I didn't say that.
Why? Is that something you think might happen? No.
You know,stacey,it's okay.
I think we all fear that.
We see things,interpret things.
Have you -seen things that make you think that? -I have homework.
Darla's telling the truth.
The hospital took blood samples from her right after her rescue.
We had them tested,they came up negative on the pregnancy.
So miller is estate-planning for a nonexistent kid.
you're not going to believe this.
After braddock told us that darla helped plan all the heists,I asked myself "why wasn't darla involved in the last one?" We traced the tip to the police to a phone booth across the street from the jewelry store.
There's a bank nearby with a surveillance camera.
You only get one guess who made the call.
It's time to stop lying,darla.
We know you phoned the police while miller was doing the robbery.
We know you turned him in.
She called just minutes before you were caught.
I did call.
So why hadn't you done that before? I couldn't before; I was scared.
It's a trick-- you altered that tape to make it look like her.
The only one playing tricks here is darla.
She's not pregnant.
We have her blood test-- see for yourself.
So why did you go back to the house and chain yourself up after you turned miller in? Because I was afraid the police might not catch him.
I was afraid he'd come back to the house and not find me there, and I was afraid he'd come looking for me and my family and kill us.
Darla lied to you.
She betrayed you.
Is stockholm syndrome going to be your answer to everything? You can't protect her anymore.
Why should you? If you know anything I'd like a lawyer now.
Good idea, because we're charging you with aiding and abetting in a prison escape, armed robbery,and murder.
I never kidnapped darla.
She ran away with me.
Fell in love the minute we laid eyes on each other.
First it was just small talk, and then it became more.
How were you able to communicate? Weren't there guards and other inmates around? She taught me this code using books.
We'd underline words on a page that, when read in a row, would add up to a message.
Do you recognize people's exhibit a? Those are some of the pages we marked up using the books in the prison library.
I'm handing you a transcript of the words that were underlined in the pages you identified.
I'd like you to read them to the jury.
"Dear love,I miss you.
"Each day that passes without seeing you feels like an eternity.
"Does it feel like that to you?" Darla wrote that message.
Why would she do that? She has a family, a husband a daughter.
Said she was bored with the kid.
She couldn't stand her husband.
She felt trapped.
Said she wanted excitement,adventure.
You're saying she was in on the escape? As the affair grew more intense, she said I should try to break out.
Supposed to say some of the cons threatened my life, make it look like that's why I did it.
She said she'd go with me.
She'd pose as my hostage.
What happened the day of the escape? Officer robbins and I entered the prison library that morning.
Darla was taking some new books out of a box.
Then she took out a knife that she'd snuck inside.
I never killed anyone.
So I didn't take it, the knife.
What happened then? She stabbed officer robbins.
Then she used his security card to get us out.
If this is true, I don't understand why she turned you in.
I wanted to settle down.
I wanted a family.
Maybe she felt like she was trapped with me.
After she told me she was pregnant, she came up with a plan, in case we got caught.
She'd pretend to have stockholm.
Said she'd read up on it.
That way,she'd be able to get away with the money for our baby.
All I had to do was say I did everything.
How do we know this isn't all a lie? That this just isn't some big,sick fantasy of yours? Objection.
Argumentative.
Sustained.
Mr.
Miller, you gave a prior,sworn,videotaped statement to the police,correct? Yes,but I in which you said exactly the opposite of what you're saying today.
Isn't that right? Why don't we just play the tape? So what happened after you entered the library Officer robbins turned his back to me, I took out my shiv, which I hid in my shoe.
And then you stabbed officer robbins with it.
Yes,I did.
How many times? I don't know.
A few times.
I don't remember exactly.
Definitely more than once,though.
What happened then? I told darla johnson she better do as I say or she was next.
Did you lie then, or are you lying now to get back at a woman who finally had the courage to turn you in? I didn't not kill officer robbins.
Did you have an affair with james miller? No,I did not.
Did you ever trade messages with him using coded book pages? Never.
And I I never did any of the things that he said I did.
I love my family.
Stacey,my husband dan-- I would never leave them.
And I would never allow for them to get hurt.
Is that the reason you stayed with james miller for so long without trying to escape, to protect them? Yes.
You wanted out of your marriage to dan johnson, because you wanted a more exciting life, -didn't you? -That's a lie.
And you faked stockholm syndrome so that you could get away with the money that you and james miller made from the robberies.
No,I didn'T.
But you don't deny you and mr.
Miller opened an investment account under your assumed names.
Because he forced me to.
And each of you were given separate passwords, so that you could access that account online.
Isn't that correct? I-I don't know.
I-I think so.
I have a document here from the investment firm that shows someone tried to cash out on that account just days after mr.
Miller was arrested.
That person used your password.
I was afraid if I didn't do it, he'd be angry.
He said if anything ever happened to him, that I should take the money and hide it.
I had to do it.
I was afraid of what would happen if I didn'T.
We went through the books that you bought for the prison library.
And among them were several on stockholm syndrome.
You checked those out, didn't you? I may have.
I read lots of books.
Have you ever underlined in a book? Yes,to note things.
How about to communicate with people? No.
Absolutely not.
The people would like to call stacey johnson to the stand.
stacey,did you ever see your mother underline in any books? -Yeah.
-When was the last time? Right before she went away I saw her do it.
She didn't know I was watching.
I looked in her books.
She'd underlined some words.
I didn't know why she had done that.
Until you heard mr.
Miller talk about it here in court? Yeah.
It used to be a game we played, mom and me, when I was younger.
She'd underline words in my books, like "I see you.
" It used to make me laugh.
Stacey,what was your home life like before your mom went away? It's okay.
You can tell us.
Mom always complained about dad.
Not to his face.
To me.
She said she was bored.
She said she hated her life.
She said she wished it had turned out different.
Thank you.
Stacey your mother has told us that prior to her kidnapping, you two used to argue a lot.
Is that true? I-I don't know.
-Not all the time.
-But you did argue, about going out with your friends, telephone time,homework.
I guess,sometimes.
-You didn't argue so much with your dad -No.
It's fair to say that you like your dad a lot more than you like your mom.
Yeah,but In fact,you like spending time with your dad all by yourself.
I guess so.
But now that mom's returned, you can't do that anymore-- spending time alone with your dad.
Now that she's returned, so have the arguments about going out, about telephone time,homework.
I didn't say that.
But it's true,isn't it? -Objection.
He's arguing with the witness -Overruled.
Stacey,you can say it.
You don't like it that your mother's back,do you? I love my mom.
And I'm happy she's alive.
But I don't like that she lied to my dad, that she hurt him the way she did.
Defendant will rise for the reading of the verdict.
"In the state of indiana versus darla johnson, "we the jury find the defendant "guilty of murder in the first degree.
"on the charge of aiding and abetting in the escape "from a lawful detention center, "we the jury find the defendant guilty.
"On the charge of armed robbery, "we the jury find the defendant guilty.
" Strange how you could be married to somebody for 11 years and not really know them.
You've been through such a terrible ordeal.
I just wish it could have ended differently.
I'm just glad it's ended.
We can finally get on with our lives.
Good luck,mr.
Johnson, to you and your little girl.
Thank you.
He built darla up as a fantasy wife and mother.
She could do no wrong.
She must have done something right, 'cause I think miller felt the same way.
It's a shame, 'cause it sounds like he really was trying to go straight.
Then he met darla.
Yeah,and now he's going away for life.