Ransom (2017) s03e06 Episode Script
Stay of Execution
1 [BLUES MUSIC PLAYING.]
CARLOS: Give me another.
I was here.
Good for you.
Hey, didn't I see you outside Wichita? Fueling up off I-35? Wasn't me, amigo.
- I came up 75.
- Yeah? Hauling what? None of your business.
Hey.
It was a friendly question.
Then ask it to someone else.
We got some kind of problem here? Starting to, yeah.
All I asked is what you were hauling.
Well - MAN: Whoa, whoa, whoa.
- I'm not answering.
Hey.
Boys, hey.
Hey So get out of my face.
[BOTH GRUNTING.]
[GROANS.]
- [EXHALES.]
- MAN: Get him.
Pinche cabrón.
[GROANS.]
I see you again, I'll kill you! MAN: Settle down.
[ECHOING.]
: I'll kill you! I'll kill you! I'll kill you! ERIC: And you didn't know Lowell Schroeder before that night? CARLOS: Never even got his name.
Carlos didn't mean it.
The threat.
I had a temper then.
It was the kind of thing that I'd say when I was pissed.
Right, but you did kill him.
Yeah.
Later that night.
[LOWELL GRUNTING.]
The cops had a witness who said I came outside - and jumped him in the parking lot.
- Which meant he was making good on the death threat, which meant it was premeditated.
Which is why you're on death row.
And even though you admitted to killing him, you didn't go outside looking to do it? I was a brawler then, never denied that.
I was on my way back to my truck when he jumped me.
I had just a little bit too much to drink that night.
And when the police came to our house the next morning for Carlos, he still had Lowell's blood on his hands.
And with no evidence to prove your side of things, - it's an open-and-shut case.
- Until now.
Um, this ransom letter you mentioned on the phone, do you have it? Yeah.
Like I said, whoever sent this said they have evidence that can get Carlos off death row.
For $500,000.
OLIVER: "I have proof that Carlos was defending himself.
" Meaning he wasn't making good on the death threat.
If the killing wasn't premeditated, they can't execute him.
It's not a capital crime.
$500,000.
Do you have that kind of money? Nowhere close.
You have any idea what this evidence might be? No, man.
No clue.
But if it is true, it could save Carlos's life.
And, if we can prove self-defense, maybe the charge gets dropped down to manslaughter and Carlos gets out on time served.
But if it's not real, if it's just some criminal looking to extort us, we wasted what little money we have left on nothing but a prayer.
Stop thinking like that.
This is why we found Mr.
Beaumont.
Let's hear what he has to say.
You want to know if I think you should buy this evidence? And you need to decide fast.
'Cause there is something else.
They just signed my death warrant.
I'm being executed in 48 hours.
[SIGHS.]
Morning.
Good morning.
The, uh kitchen sink's backed up.
Uh, if I find a plumber, you think you could let him in? Hmm.
Depends when, sis.
- Got somewhere to be today.
- [JUICE POURS.]
Oh, a job interview? Meeting my parole officer.
Right.
Okay, well, uh don't worry about the sink.
I'll see you when I get back.
- ZARA: Morning.
- Hey, hey, Zara.
Morning.
Sorry, I would've invited you inside to wait, but ERIC: It's the maid's day off? Oh, hey, Eric.
Morning.
Good morning.
Are you up to speed on Carlos Perez? We're on his case pro bono.
ZARA: Yeah, I read the police report.
A bar full of people heard Carlos make that death threat.
He's lost four appeals over ten years, the Supreme Court just denied him leave.
So even if we do negotiate for the evidence on the off chance that it leads somewhere, - can we deploy it? - It could be possible to get an emergency stay, pending a petition for executive clemency.
According to his trial history, he's changed legal counsel several times.
So who's Carlos's lawyer now? Actually his wife, Donna.
Carlos had all these public defenders but none who really believed in him.
So you went to law school.
You mind sealing this? I'm contacting everyone on the governor's staff in case we need to reach her.
Took as many night classes as I could and with the help of student loans, we made it work.
And even with all that debt, you still managed to get money for this evidence? Fourth mortgage on the house.
- Wow.
- If Mr.
Beaumont could get him down on price, I have about $100,000.
I mean, he's very good at that.
But, Donna You don't believe us, either.
No, it's not that.
But the odds of new evidence changing anything, it's You sound just like Carlos.
Afraid to hope.
Like he doesn't deserve it.
Look I know that he made some mistakes when he was younger, but he is a good man.
He's been a father to his son, got his GED.
They write each other every day.
He helps him with his homework.
If Carlos dies [PHONE RINGING.]
It's him.
Hello? DISTORTED VOICE: Do you have the $500,000? First, we have a few questions.
Don't be alarmed, my name is Eric Beaumont.
I'm a private negotiator hired by Donna.
DISTORTED VOICE: They think I'm lying? Then don't pay.
ERIC: Nobody's saying that.
However, you're asking for a great deal of money.
How can we decide to pay if we don't know specifically what evidence you have? What I have shows the man on death row didn't start the fight outside the bar that night.
How did you come to possess this evidence? Let's just say I have it because I'm a Good Samaritan who's done answering questions.
All I'm trying to do is gather enough information to recommend to my client that she pay you.
You help me do that, and you'll get your money.
Sir? Watch the tape from October 3 carefully.
I'll call back in six hours.
DONNA: You said that he would get his money.
- I don't have anywhere near the 500.
- I know.
I know.
But if he's emotionally invested in this deal, he's more likely - to take less.
- OLIVER: He's volatile.
Coming forward, wasn't easy for him.
Maybe because hiding evidence is an obstruction of justice.
OLIVER: If he's been sitting on whatever this is, he probably wants to stay out of trouble.
You know what he meant by "the tape of October 3"? It was the night of the murder.
He must mean the security footage.
The bar only had one cam in 2009, and-and I've I've looked at it.
There's nothing to see.
Oh, he's saying there is.
Get ahold of Zara and Cynthia.
When they land, they should go to that bar and make sure all the tapes were handed over.
We'll go over the original tapes in State's evidence.
You don't have them, do you, Donna? No.
Not anymore, and given the district attorney is Heidi Ambrose, it's not gonna be easy to access them.
Okay.
OLIVER: Your staff explained why we're asking for State's evidence against Carlos Perez? Yes, but unfortunately, there's nothing to be found which will help him.
And given his numerous legal proceedings, Mr.
Perez has had plenty of chances to review that evidence.
Due process has been followed.
We don't dispute that.
I'm a negotiator, Ms.
Ambrose, looking for information to help us decide whether to negotiate.
That's all.
We didn't come here to make a legal plea.
You came here to make an emotional plea? Carlos is being executed tomorrow.
This is the last chance he'll have.
Vultures are drawn to last-minute death row cases.
I see it all the time.
Selling false hope, making families relive a nightmare.
If you're worried that we have some kind of financial stake in this, you should know Of course I am.
Donna Perez might be married to a killer, but I don't want to see her defrauded.
Nor the victim's father, who attended all the sentencing hearings demanding Carlos's execution.
The people I serve get to be emotional, not me.
All I can do is follow the law, and according to the law, Carlos deserves the death penalty.
I'm sorry.
This meeting's over.
All right, you mentioned the victim's father.
He had standing to speak at those hearings? He did.
Victims' families have participation and consultation rights, which I take seriously.
Oh, you don't have to let us see those tapes, but you do have discretion.
What if I get the victim's father to consent? He's never gonna agree to that.
He's been clamoring for your client's death for ten years now, loudly.
Well, if he says no, then, so be it.
Okay.
Well, if she can't be swayed by emotion, we need to find someone who can.
The owner's positive they turned over all their tapes to police at the time.
Given where the lone security camera was in 2009, it wouldn't even have shown the murder.
We're in view of it now, and Lowell's body was found around the corner.
Then it's no wonder the cam footage wasn't part of anyone's case.
Do you think we're being played? Possibly.
[PHONE RINGING.]
- Eric? - Uh, no.
Just give me a sec.
- Hey.
- Sure.
TYLER: Hey.
My, uh, parole officer wants to meet you.
Now? I'm in St.
Louis.
No.
I'm supposed to set a time.
Think you could come with me next Tuesday at 2:00? I'll try.
She also wants references.
- Think you could ask your boss? - Ask my boss for a reference on you? On you.
She needs to know I'm in a stable living condition, that sort of thing.
Uh Tyler, I might not even be in town on Tuesday.
They don't know about me, do they? - The people you work with.
- It's complicated.
Look, you lived your life.
I never questioned that.
But now? I figured you'd at least have my back.
Tyler I can't do this now.
ERIC: You drive? Used to.
Logistics supervisor now.
Must be tough.
Life on the road.
You said you had a question about my son's case.
Why not get to it? Lowell drove here, too? For a time.
[EXHALES.]
I'd like to say that he came to it honestly, but [SIGHS.]
Lowell wasn't much for, uh, an honest day's work.
You're aware the death warrant has been signed on Carlos Perez.
Mm-hmm.
We're here because an anonymous person has come forward with new evidence.
Someone what? You got to be and you thought that I would help you? Everything okay in here, boss? These men are asking about my boy.
Oh, yeah.
You want me to show 'em out? Mr.
Schroeder.
We don't know what this new evidence is.
In fact, there is a very good chance it isn't even real, and our job is to prove that.
Now, to do this, we'd like to review the State's case against Carlos.
But, look, we're not [CHUCKLES.]
we're not here to tell you the way it is.
We're here to ask your permission.
You have all the power.
If you don't want us pursuing it, we won't.
Get back to work.
You got to understand, I am counting the seconds to this execution.
And every time another appeal is dredged up You need closure.
We get that.
ERIC: I used to be FBI, and, uh, one year we caught a man accused of killing his wife.
It was a it was a gruesome murder.
He got the death penalty, but two years after he was executed, it turned out the forensic evidence was wrong.
We had the wrong man, and the victim's family had justice stolen from them.
We're not here to prove you wrong.
We're here to prove you right, so when this ends, it ends for good.
- Find anything? - ZARA: Nothing to find.
All the security tapes were handed over at the time.
- Our luck was better.
- The D.
A.
played ball? Well, it took some convincing.
Get over to the State's evidence room and watch that footage.
You're not coming? Uh, no, we're going back to Donna's.
Our Good Samaritan is calling in less than an hour.
Got it.
[EXHALES.]
12:01 a.
m.
, time of the murder, and there's nothing to see on this tape.
Problem is, anyone leaving the bar and heading away from the camera angle, wouldn't be seen anyway.
- Right.
So, if Carlos left undetected, what is this footage meant to be proving? We're not watching it for evidence of the crime.
We're watching it to prove our Samaritan's credibility.
Mm.
What did he say? Watch the tape carefully.
Scan through the whole day again.
Mm-hmm.
How long until he calls? - Two minutes.
- [PHONE RINGS.]
Zara, tell me you have something.
Eric? It rains on the tape.
We checked the weather.
It didn't rain once that day.
Police had the wrong tape.
Somehow it was mistaken or swapped for footage from another day.
Which means neither the State nor the defense has ever seen the right tape.
And if our Samaritan knows this, he just wanted us to know he has the right tape.
And possibly new evidence from the night of the murder.
How could I why did I not look for that before? We need to pay.
[PHONE RINGING.]
DISTORTED VOICE: So did you watch the tape? Do you have the real security footage from the night of the murder? Do we have a deal? We want to move forward.
But not at $500,000.
We can offer you $90,000.
You strung me along.
I'm sticking my neck out here.
We appreciate that, but Donna only has what she has.
$90,000 will bankrupt her.
And if I say the deal's off? I'd remind you that, as of tomorrow, that $90,000 tape you're sitting on loses all its value.
Yeah, and your client loses his life.
If that's what you want, then that is what will happen.
But I don't think it is.
Fine.
But we don't meet in person.
I'll text you a drop location.
After I count the money, I'll transfer the file.
[LINE DISCONNECTS.]
[CLICKING.]
That clicking noise.
Do you guys hear that? There, again.
[TYPING.]
And I'm picking up extra bandwidth on Donna's cell.
Somebody's tapping your phone.
CYNTHIA: So, this is it.
This is the real tape.
DONNA: That's Carlos's rig, which we couldn't see on the original tape, so we assumed that he parked it out of view.
CYNTHIA: It looks like Carlos is on his way home when he finds Lowell.
Is he breaking into his truck? OLIVER: Looks like that, anyway.
DONNA: Carlos was on his way home, just like he always said.
ERIC: They had words.
Things escalated from there.
Meaning the reason they started fighting again was because Carlos was trying to stop Lowell from robbing him.
This disproves premeditation.
If I can get in front of a judge, I can get a stay.
This tape could save Carlos's life.
Will you come with me to the courthouse? I might need some backup with the D.
A.
You got it.
Great.
Go see if the new footage jogs Carlos's memory.
Maybe there's more to what Lowell was doing that night we should know about.
ZARA: Speaking of the D.
A.
, do you think she's the one listening in? [CHUCKLES.]
With an election coming up, the politics of a last-second death row appeal doesn't exactly make for good PR.
Did you figure out how the phone was tapped? It was hacked remotely.
We found an app running in the background sending packets of audio data to a remote IP address.
ZARA: If we can trace and unmask the IP address, we can learn where the calls are being sent.
Okay, good.
- Stay on it.
- Yeah.
Okay.
CARLOS: I remember Lowell asking about my haul, but not breaking into my rig.
This is why we started scrapping again? Donna's managed to get an emergency hearing with a judge to argue just that.
So, if there is anything else coming back to you The video doesn't show who threw the first punch.
Yeah, but it goes to motivation, Carlos.
It's key to first-degree murder.
A few months ago, Donna was convinced the Supreme Court will hear our case.
When they said no, she almost didn't bounce back.
I can't have her going through that again.
And she spent 90 grand on this? You know the kind of hole my family's already in because of me? Donna should be thinking about the future.
She is.
Just one that includes you.
- I have made my decision, Ms.
Perez.
- Yes, I know, Your Honor.
If I could just have a few more minutes to explain.
ERIC: You opposed the motion.
Carlos is still being executed.
He is.
Look, I realize the new footage lacks audio and can be read in several ways, but doesn't it concern you that video evidence has been mishandled? It was sloppy police work, and that's unfortunate, but the judge and I agree to what you've just articulated.
The tape proves nothing.
Well, except potential obstruction of justice, which may be ongoing.
We've just learned that Donna's phone is being tapped.
She should file a police report.
Well, she plans to.
Mr.
Beaumont, these are the facts.
Carlos Perez committed violent crimes at ages 15, 20, and for a final time at age 26 when he vowed that Lowell Schroeder would die at his hands, only to make good on that promise an hour later.
Now, you're opposed to the death penalty.
Even if you witnessed Carlos commit this crime with your own eyes, you wouldn't think he deserves to die for it.
Tell me I'm wrong about that.
- You're not.
- I respect that perspective.
I'd defend your right to express it, but it doesn't change the law.
And unfortunately, all you've done is enable a scam artist and falsely raise Carlos's hope.
ZARA: Evidence was tampered with.
- Why would she ignore that? - I don't know.
Gather whatever information you can on prosecutor Heidi Ambrose.
My gut tells me this isn't over.
What did our Samaritan say on that call? "I'm sticking my neck out here.
" Now, he had that tape because he's complicit, most likely with Lowell, who obviously meant to rob Carlos that night.
Now, he may have even witnessed their fight.
He's afraid of implicating himself in a robbery, which is why he stayed anonymous.
But he held on to this tape all these years - because he's torn.
- And when Carlos lost his final appeal, he spoke up out of what? - Guilt? - Why was it so easy - to get him so far down on price? - Huh.
His motivation is actually to help.
Then why ask for money at all? I don't know that yet, but either way, we're dealing with a criminal with a conscience.
Okay.
So now what? We draw him out, get him on the record.
Now, he wasn't blocking his number, which means he's been calling from a drop phone.
Let's hope he still has it.
[PHONE CHIMES.]
[PHONE BEEPS, LINE RINGS.]
FEMALE VOICE: You have one new message.
ERIC: I know you stuck your neck out because you didn't want Carlos to die, but what you tried hasn't worked, and we need your help.
[KETTLE WHISTLING.]
How long do we wait before trying him again? Okay, you need to trust me.
Pushing too hard can backfire.
Hey.
We were able to trace the IP address of where the audio data from Donna's phones - are being sent.
- Does that mean we have a physical location on whoever's tapping Donna's calls? We do.
And it's not the D.
A.
who's been listening in.
Her calls are being sent to the company where Eddie Schroeder works.
- The victim's father.
- ZARA: Yeah, and all of this has been happening since around the time Carlos lost his last appeal.
[PHONE CHIMES.]
It's our Samaritan.
He won't meet tonight, but he can do tomorrow at 6:00 a.
m.
That's ten hours before the execution.
Where's Cynthia? Oh, she, um, she said she needed some air.
Okay.
[PHONE RINGING.]
Hello.
CYNTHIA [OVER PHONE.]
: Hello? You were right.
I wasn't there for you.
I didn't know how to be.
Instead of convincing myself of that fact [SIGHS.]
I just convinced myself there was nothing I could do.
You did what you had to do.
You did call one night, needing help.
Four years ago.
You'd been in a fight, you were in the infirmary, and you sounded terrible.
Yeah, I remember.
[WHIMPERS.]
Yeah, well, I I didn't know what to say.
I have no idea how you managed to keep going.
Well, there were things I I'd there were things I've done, things I wasn't too proud of.
Well, it's not your fault.
You were just protecting yourself.
I'm not talking about that.
I meant while I [CLEARS THROAT.]
I meant when I was inside.
Things I had to do to stay alive.
[CLEARS THROAT.]
It, it didn't matter what you said to me that night.
Hearing your voice reminded me that there was once a time when I was, I wasn't that guy who did those things.
That if I could stay alive, if I could make it through, I didn't have to be that guy ever again.
Thank you, Tyler.
I'll see you soon.
[SNIFFLES.]
Bye.
[PHONE BEEPS.]
[SHUDDERING.]
All right, don't come any closer.
ERIC: Can you give us your name? First name at least, so we know what to call you.
Jeremy.
Thank you for coming, Jeremy.
Look, I don't know what you guys want from me.
I've already done all I can.
Then why did you agree to meet? 'Cause it's eating at you.
You don't believe that Carlos deserves to die.
Neither do we.
ERIC: We think you were involved in a robbery the night of the murder and you're worried - about getting caught.
- But if we can get you immunity on that, will you talk to the D.
A.
? Because your testimony can stop this execution.
You don't understand, guys.
If I come forward, immunity on the robbery is not gonna help me.
You're implicated in something bigger than just a robbery.
You're implicated in the murder.
I didn't kill Lowell.
But you know who did, and it wasn't Carlos.
Carlos shouldn't even be in jail.
If he dies today, it'll be for a crime someone else committed.
ERIC: You said Carlos didn't kill Lowell, but he admitted it.
He had a hell of a lot to drink that night.
[ECHOING CHATTER.]
His memory is faulty.
They did fight again, but Carlos left Lowell alive and breathing.
[PANTING.]
When we found Lowell, he was awake.
Where were you five minutes ago? By the time I realized he'd come to kill him it was done.
ERIC: Who? Somebody you stole from? You were robbing trucks with Lowell.
- That's why he was killed? - Look, all you need to know is it wasn't me and it wasn't Carlos.
OLIVER: Then, someone you were working with.
Someone you're still afraid of.
We had a good thing going.
Lowell was a loudmouth.
Picking bar fights, not being careful.
He was gonna get us caught.
But I wasn't the one who thought he needed to die.
But you did swap the security tape with one from another day to cover it up.
And Carlos was made to take the fall for Lowell's death, given his public threat earlier that night.
Jeremy, Donna's phone's being tapped, and we don't know who's been listening, but someone heard you sell us that evidence.
It's not safe for you to go back to your place.
You should stay with us.
You just want me on the record.
Get me immunity, or no deal.
No, Oliver's right.
You need to take precautions.
You don't think I know that? I'm leaving town at 3:00.
I'll stop by here then.
If you have a deal we'll see.
Otherwise [ENGINE STARTS.]
Immunity on accessory to murder? He's afraid.
Now, he wants immunity but he needs protection.
Protection from the real killer.
If we can figure out who that is, we can save Carlos.
You said Eddie Schroeder, the victim's father, was the one listening to Donna's calls.
Oh, you don't think he killed his own son? No.
Remember what he said about Lowell? That his son wasn't much for an honest day's work? You think Eddie knew Lowell was robbing trucks? He knew his kid was up to something.
If Eddie had context of what his son was up to, who he was working with, maybe that leads us to the real killer.
Let's go find out.
DONNA: Carlos didn't kill him? No.
They fought, like you always said, Carlos, but when you left, Lowell was alive.
We're looking for the man who killed him.
DONNA: There's still time.
I can take this to the D.
A.
, I can ask about immunity.
Don't.
Don't try for immunity, don't talk to the D.
A.
, don't do anything.
Carlos, are you not listening to her? You didn't do it.
You have any proof? Yes.
The word of the witness.
You really think that matters? Ten years we've been through this.
Since when has the truth mattered? Baby, please I can't take it anymore.
Whether I killed him or not, I'm done.
It's cruel for this to come out now, Carlos, I get that.
But you didn't kill him.
Don't let them make you into the man who did.
ERIC: The tape clearly shows your son breaking into Carlos's truck.
If your son was mixed up in something, you should So that's what this is about for you? Dragging my son's name through the mud? No, but, Eddie, tapping Donna's calls I'm not tapping anyone's calls.
ERIC: We promised you closure.
We're still offering that, but you need to tell us what else you know.
Did my son usually go out looking for trouble? Yes, and I told the cops the truth about him.
They said that Lowell's death wasn't his fault.
Now you say it was, and that's supposed to give me closure? I'm not saying your son deserved to die.
I'm saying you deserve to know the truth about who killed him.
Let us make that happen.
They weren't robbing trucks, him and his buddies, not the way that you think.
If Lowell broke into a truck, it was just to suss out a good, good haul.
You know, televisions, copper wiring, whatever was easy to flip.
- Mm-hmm.
- And then they would sell that information to someone who would hijack the rig and steal the cargo.
When I found out about it, he promised to quit.
And I was dumb enough to believe him.
Lowell had two accomplices.
Could one of them work here? An ex-colleague? Because the audio from Donna's phone is being sent to this address, and that, that can't be a coincidence.
This man betrayed and murdered your son and is now tapping Donna's phone to stop the truth from coming out.
Dale.
Dale McIntosh.
Actually, he was here yesterday when we met.
- [PHONE RINGING.]
- God, I always knew he was a lowlife, but I never thought Did Donna speak to the D.
A.
? CYNTHIA: Yeah, she won't promise anything as far as immunity goes, but if we bring Jeremy in, she'll listen - to what he has to say.
- All right.
That'll have to do.
Dale's not here, but we have his address.
Okay.
[PHONE RINGING.]
Hello? It's 3:00.
You said you'd meet us back here.
I said I might.
I had to grab some things at home first.
You can't be at your place.
Your old partner, Dale McIntosh, he's the one who killed Lowell.
How did you know that? He's the one who's been tapping Donna's calls.
He knows you're selling us that footage, which means he knows you're betraying him.
Now, we're trying to track him down, but you need to leave now.
You are not safe there.
Okay.
I'm coming to meet you.
CARLOS: That kid is the best.
You did a good job.
We did a good job.
It's not over yet.
- Chaplain's waiting for me.
- No, no, no, no.
Don't go yet.
Not yet.
I got to go.
Jeremy.
Haven't seen you in years, but I knew, when Carlos lost his last appeal, that you would crack.
Now, I don't know what you think you heard, but I didn't sell you out, man.
I got you on tape, dumb-ass, literally selling evidence against me.
- I never gave them your name.
- But they got it.
Which means you and me got a problem.
All right, you want the cash? It's yours.
Just take it.
I'll leave, I'll never come back.
They want a witness, it won't be me.
Yeah? What are you reaching for, huh? [LOCK BUZZES, LATCH CLICKS.]
[DOOR OPENS.]
[CHAINS RATTLING.]
Jeremy's not picking up? - Better be on his way.
- Yeah, let's hope so because we need him on record.
It's Carlos's last shot.
[PHONE RINGS.]
Zara.
ZARA: We found Jeremy.
He's been shot, Eric.
Jeremy's dead.
Okay.
ERIC: We got one last shot at this.
We got to change the D.
A.
's mind, - get her to call the governor.
- With no evidence? How you gonna do that, Eric? She's a top prosecutor.
- She's brilliant.
- I'm gonna use that against her.
Thank you for doing this, sir.
CYNTHIA: You can't go through with this.
Our witness was murdered to cover up the truth.
Please, call the governor's office.
You're executing the wrong man.
Mr.
Schroeder is willing to testify that his son was involved in a criminal conspiracy the night - of his death.
- EDDIE: All I've ever wanted is justice for my son, Ms.
Ambrose.
ERIC: This conspiracy led to Lowell's murder at the hands of an accomplice, Dale McIntosh.
Do you have any hard evidence of what you're claiming? A sworn affidavit, a-a recording? Unfortunately not, no, the witness I know this is painful to face, but everything you're suggesting is circumstantial.
You've been prosecuting Carlos, uh, since he was a juvenile.
When this charge came across your desk, it was gonna be nothing but the harshest sentence possible.
My personal feelings have nothing to do with it.
We have three-strikes laws for a reason.
After his third conviction, Carlos's chances ran out.
The law has done its job.
You may not like it, but it's my job to see it through.
WARDEN: Mr.
Perez, do you wish to make any statements or last words? [VOICE SHAKING.]
: Please tell Donna I love her.
Tell Luke I-I love him.
Tell them Please tell everyone I'm sorry.
For the crime of murder in the first degree, Carlos William Perez is condemned to death.
All right, listen to me, ten years ago, the cops didn't realize that the security tape had been swapped, but you knew it was the wrong footage and you looked the other way.
When I told you about the tampered evidence yesterday, you barely flinched, and I wondered why.
You are highly meticulous, your reputation's perfect.
But it took my team all of an hour to figure out that it was the wrong tape, and you missed it completely? I don't think so.
DOCTOR: Injecting sedative.
ERIC: Carlos's conviction in 2009 helped propel you to D.
A.
You needed him to be guilty then, and with an upcoming election you need him guilty now.
If you're suggesting that I sent a man to prison for a crime I knew he didn't commit No, I'm not, I'm not.
I don't doubt your sincerity - or your sense of duty.
- That's right.
My only duty has been to the truth.
All right, then you look me in the eye and you tell me it's the truth you didn't know that the footage had been tampered with.
I did what I had to do.
Just the truth.
Did you know about the tampered footage? Everything else lined up But you knew.
You are too good of a prosecutor to let this one error of judgment tarnish everything that you stand for.
Please, for the love of God, do the right thing.
[CRYING.]
Get me the governor's office.
Tell him it's Heidi Ambrose.
Thank you so much for everything.
Did they tell you what happens next? If the governor is commuting, how long will you be in here? Actually, that's complicated.
They're not letting you out.
They're commuting the death sentence and leaving you in here.
Yes, but we're hopeful.
They're keeping you in here for a crime you didn't commit.
- It's okay.
- That's not okay.
It's a miscarriage of justice.
I'm filing a motion to vacate the conviction.
When they hear my case, they're not gonna be able to deny it.
They should be letting you out and compensating you for the years of your life you wasted because of them.
Ms.
Walker, I'm alive.
I owe you my life.
I'm gonna see my kid grow up because of you.
[LOCK BUZZES, LATCH CLICKS.]
The police picked up Dale McIntosh on Jeremy's murder.
And with Eddie's cooperation, they should have enough to tie him to Lowell's, too.
Is everything all right with you? - Uh - [LOCK BUZZES.]
[DOOR OPENS.]
I told you I was an only child.
That wasn't the truth.
[DOOR CLOSES.]
I have a brother.
He, uh, he was in prison for killing our foster father.
He's out now, and he's living with me.
I'm always here if you want to talk.
Thank you.
All right, coming through.
Open the gate.
[LOCK BUZZES, LATCH CLICKS.]
Welcome back.
Spaghetti and meatballs still your favorite? Is it out of a can, and will you heat it up for me like you used to? Well, I-it's $75 worth of pasta and-and a nice bottle of Pinot, but other than that, it will be just like old times.
- What do you say? - All right.
All right, let's do it.
Grab the plates.
Oh.
CARLOS: Give me another.
I was here.
Good for you.
Hey, didn't I see you outside Wichita? Fueling up off I-35? Wasn't me, amigo.
- I came up 75.
- Yeah? Hauling what? None of your business.
Hey.
It was a friendly question.
Then ask it to someone else.
We got some kind of problem here? Starting to, yeah.
All I asked is what you were hauling.
Well - MAN: Whoa, whoa, whoa.
- I'm not answering.
Hey.
Boys, hey.
Hey So get out of my face.
[BOTH GRUNTING.]
[GROANS.]
- [EXHALES.]
- MAN: Get him.
Pinche cabrón.
[GROANS.]
I see you again, I'll kill you! MAN: Settle down.
[ECHOING.]
: I'll kill you! I'll kill you! I'll kill you! ERIC: And you didn't know Lowell Schroeder before that night? CARLOS: Never even got his name.
Carlos didn't mean it.
The threat.
I had a temper then.
It was the kind of thing that I'd say when I was pissed.
Right, but you did kill him.
Yeah.
Later that night.
[LOWELL GRUNTING.]
The cops had a witness who said I came outside - and jumped him in the parking lot.
- Which meant he was making good on the death threat, which meant it was premeditated.
Which is why you're on death row.
And even though you admitted to killing him, you didn't go outside looking to do it? I was a brawler then, never denied that.
I was on my way back to my truck when he jumped me.
I had just a little bit too much to drink that night.
And when the police came to our house the next morning for Carlos, he still had Lowell's blood on his hands.
And with no evidence to prove your side of things, - it's an open-and-shut case.
- Until now.
Um, this ransom letter you mentioned on the phone, do you have it? Yeah.
Like I said, whoever sent this said they have evidence that can get Carlos off death row.
For $500,000.
OLIVER: "I have proof that Carlos was defending himself.
" Meaning he wasn't making good on the death threat.
If the killing wasn't premeditated, they can't execute him.
It's not a capital crime.
$500,000.
Do you have that kind of money? Nowhere close.
You have any idea what this evidence might be? No, man.
No clue.
But if it is true, it could save Carlos's life.
And, if we can prove self-defense, maybe the charge gets dropped down to manslaughter and Carlos gets out on time served.
But if it's not real, if it's just some criminal looking to extort us, we wasted what little money we have left on nothing but a prayer.
Stop thinking like that.
This is why we found Mr.
Beaumont.
Let's hear what he has to say.
You want to know if I think you should buy this evidence? And you need to decide fast.
'Cause there is something else.
They just signed my death warrant.
I'm being executed in 48 hours.
[SIGHS.]
Morning.
Good morning.
The, uh kitchen sink's backed up.
Uh, if I find a plumber, you think you could let him in? Hmm.
Depends when, sis.
- Got somewhere to be today.
- [JUICE POURS.]
Oh, a job interview? Meeting my parole officer.
Right.
Okay, well, uh don't worry about the sink.
I'll see you when I get back.
- ZARA: Morning.
- Hey, hey, Zara.
Morning.
Sorry, I would've invited you inside to wait, but ERIC: It's the maid's day off? Oh, hey, Eric.
Morning.
Good morning.
Are you up to speed on Carlos Perez? We're on his case pro bono.
ZARA: Yeah, I read the police report.
A bar full of people heard Carlos make that death threat.
He's lost four appeals over ten years, the Supreme Court just denied him leave.
So even if we do negotiate for the evidence on the off chance that it leads somewhere, - can we deploy it? - It could be possible to get an emergency stay, pending a petition for executive clemency.
According to his trial history, he's changed legal counsel several times.
So who's Carlos's lawyer now? Actually his wife, Donna.
Carlos had all these public defenders but none who really believed in him.
So you went to law school.
You mind sealing this? I'm contacting everyone on the governor's staff in case we need to reach her.
Took as many night classes as I could and with the help of student loans, we made it work.
And even with all that debt, you still managed to get money for this evidence? Fourth mortgage on the house.
- Wow.
- If Mr.
Beaumont could get him down on price, I have about $100,000.
I mean, he's very good at that.
But, Donna You don't believe us, either.
No, it's not that.
But the odds of new evidence changing anything, it's You sound just like Carlos.
Afraid to hope.
Like he doesn't deserve it.
Look I know that he made some mistakes when he was younger, but he is a good man.
He's been a father to his son, got his GED.
They write each other every day.
He helps him with his homework.
If Carlos dies [PHONE RINGING.]
It's him.
Hello? DISTORTED VOICE: Do you have the $500,000? First, we have a few questions.
Don't be alarmed, my name is Eric Beaumont.
I'm a private negotiator hired by Donna.
DISTORTED VOICE: They think I'm lying? Then don't pay.
ERIC: Nobody's saying that.
However, you're asking for a great deal of money.
How can we decide to pay if we don't know specifically what evidence you have? What I have shows the man on death row didn't start the fight outside the bar that night.
How did you come to possess this evidence? Let's just say I have it because I'm a Good Samaritan who's done answering questions.
All I'm trying to do is gather enough information to recommend to my client that she pay you.
You help me do that, and you'll get your money.
Sir? Watch the tape from October 3 carefully.
I'll call back in six hours.
DONNA: You said that he would get his money.
- I don't have anywhere near the 500.
- I know.
I know.
But if he's emotionally invested in this deal, he's more likely - to take less.
- OLIVER: He's volatile.
Coming forward, wasn't easy for him.
Maybe because hiding evidence is an obstruction of justice.
OLIVER: If he's been sitting on whatever this is, he probably wants to stay out of trouble.
You know what he meant by "the tape of October 3"? It was the night of the murder.
He must mean the security footage.
The bar only had one cam in 2009, and-and I've I've looked at it.
There's nothing to see.
Oh, he's saying there is.
Get ahold of Zara and Cynthia.
When they land, they should go to that bar and make sure all the tapes were handed over.
We'll go over the original tapes in State's evidence.
You don't have them, do you, Donna? No.
Not anymore, and given the district attorney is Heidi Ambrose, it's not gonna be easy to access them.
Okay.
OLIVER: Your staff explained why we're asking for State's evidence against Carlos Perez? Yes, but unfortunately, there's nothing to be found which will help him.
And given his numerous legal proceedings, Mr.
Perez has had plenty of chances to review that evidence.
Due process has been followed.
We don't dispute that.
I'm a negotiator, Ms.
Ambrose, looking for information to help us decide whether to negotiate.
That's all.
We didn't come here to make a legal plea.
You came here to make an emotional plea? Carlos is being executed tomorrow.
This is the last chance he'll have.
Vultures are drawn to last-minute death row cases.
I see it all the time.
Selling false hope, making families relive a nightmare.
If you're worried that we have some kind of financial stake in this, you should know Of course I am.
Donna Perez might be married to a killer, but I don't want to see her defrauded.
Nor the victim's father, who attended all the sentencing hearings demanding Carlos's execution.
The people I serve get to be emotional, not me.
All I can do is follow the law, and according to the law, Carlos deserves the death penalty.
I'm sorry.
This meeting's over.
All right, you mentioned the victim's father.
He had standing to speak at those hearings? He did.
Victims' families have participation and consultation rights, which I take seriously.
Oh, you don't have to let us see those tapes, but you do have discretion.
What if I get the victim's father to consent? He's never gonna agree to that.
He's been clamoring for your client's death for ten years now, loudly.
Well, if he says no, then, so be it.
Okay.
Well, if she can't be swayed by emotion, we need to find someone who can.
The owner's positive they turned over all their tapes to police at the time.
Given where the lone security camera was in 2009, it wouldn't even have shown the murder.
We're in view of it now, and Lowell's body was found around the corner.
Then it's no wonder the cam footage wasn't part of anyone's case.
Do you think we're being played? Possibly.
[PHONE RINGING.]
- Eric? - Uh, no.
Just give me a sec.
- Hey.
- Sure.
TYLER: Hey.
My, uh, parole officer wants to meet you.
Now? I'm in St.
Louis.
No.
I'm supposed to set a time.
Think you could come with me next Tuesday at 2:00? I'll try.
She also wants references.
- Think you could ask your boss? - Ask my boss for a reference on you? On you.
She needs to know I'm in a stable living condition, that sort of thing.
Uh Tyler, I might not even be in town on Tuesday.
They don't know about me, do they? - The people you work with.
- It's complicated.
Look, you lived your life.
I never questioned that.
But now? I figured you'd at least have my back.
Tyler I can't do this now.
ERIC: You drive? Used to.
Logistics supervisor now.
Must be tough.
Life on the road.
You said you had a question about my son's case.
Why not get to it? Lowell drove here, too? For a time.
[EXHALES.]
I'd like to say that he came to it honestly, but [SIGHS.]
Lowell wasn't much for, uh, an honest day's work.
You're aware the death warrant has been signed on Carlos Perez.
Mm-hmm.
We're here because an anonymous person has come forward with new evidence.
Someone what? You got to be and you thought that I would help you? Everything okay in here, boss? These men are asking about my boy.
Oh, yeah.
You want me to show 'em out? Mr.
Schroeder.
We don't know what this new evidence is.
In fact, there is a very good chance it isn't even real, and our job is to prove that.
Now, to do this, we'd like to review the State's case against Carlos.
But, look, we're not [CHUCKLES.]
we're not here to tell you the way it is.
We're here to ask your permission.
You have all the power.
If you don't want us pursuing it, we won't.
Get back to work.
You got to understand, I am counting the seconds to this execution.
And every time another appeal is dredged up You need closure.
We get that.
ERIC: I used to be FBI, and, uh, one year we caught a man accused of killing his wife.
It was a it was a gruesome murder.
He got the death penalty, but two years after he was executed, it turned out the forensic evidence was wrong.
We had the wrong man, and the victim's family had justice stolen from them.
We're not here to prove you wrong.
We're here to prove you right, so when this ends, it ends for good.
- Find anything? - ZARA: Nothing to find.
All the security tapes were handed over at the time.
- Our luck was better.
- The D.
A.
played ball? Well, it took some convincing.
Get over to the State's evidence room and watch that footage.
You're not coming? Uh, no, we're going back to Donna's.
Our Good Samaritan is calling in less than an hour.
Got it.
[EXHALES.]
12:01 a.
m.
, time of the murder, and there's nothing to see on this tape.
Problem is, anyone leaving the bar and heading away from the camera angle, wouldn't be seen anyway.
- Right.
So, if Carlos left undetected, what is this footage meant to be proving? We're not watching it for evidence of the crime.
We're watching it to prove our Samaritan's credibility.
Mm.
What did he say? Watch the tape carefully.
Scan through the whole day again.
Mm-hmm.
How long until he calls? - Two minutes.
- [PHONE RINGS.]
Zara, tell me you have something.
Eric? It rains on the tape.
We checked the weather.
It didn't rain once that day.
Police had the wrong tape.
Somehow it was mistaken or swapped for footage from another day.
Which means neither the State nor the defense has ever seen the right tape.
And if our Samaritan knows this, he just wanted us to know he has the right tape.
And possibly new evidence from the night of the murder.
How could I why did I not look for that before? We need to pay.
[PHONE RINGING.]
DISTORTED VOICE: So did you watch the tape? Do you have the real security footage from the night of the murder? Do we have a deal? We want to move forward.
But not at $500,000.
We can offer you $90,000.
You strung me along.
I'm sticking my neck out here.
We appreciate that, but Donna only has what she has.
$90,000 will bankrupt her.
And if I say the deal's off? I'd remind you that, as of tomorrow, that $90,000 tape you're sitting on loses all its value.
Yeah, and your client loses his life.
If that's what you want, then that is what will happen.
But I don't think it is.
Fine.
But we don't meet in person.
I'll text you a drop location.
After I count the money, I'll transfer the file.
[LINE DISCONNECTS.]
[CLICKING.]
That clicking noise.
Do you guys hear that? There, again.
[TYPING.]
And I'm picking up extra bandwidth on Donna's cell.
Somebody's tapping your phone.
CYNTHIA: So, this is it.
This is the real tape.
DONNA: That's Carlos's rig, which we couldn't see on the original tape, so we assumed that he parked it out of view.
CYNTHIA: It looks like Carlos is on his way home when he finds Lowell.
Is he breaking into his truck? OLIVER: Looks like that, anyway.
DONNA: Carlos was on his way home, just like he always said.
ERIC: They had words.
Things escalated from there.
Meaning the reason they started fighting again was because Carlos was trying to stop Lowell from robbing him.
This disproves premeditation.
If I can get in front of a judge, I can get a stay.
This tape could save Carlos's life.
Will you come with me to the courthouse? I might need some backup with the D.
A.
You got it.
Great.
Go see if the new footage jogs Carlos's memory.
Maybe there's more to what Lowell was doing that night we should know about.
ZARA: Speaking of the D.
A.
, do you think she's the one listening in? [CHUCKLES.]
With an election coming up, the politics of a last-second death row appeal doesn't exactly make for good PR.
Did you figure out how the phone was tapped? It was hacked remotely.
We found an app running in the background sending packets of audio data to a remote IP address.
ZARA: If we can trace and unmask the IP address, we can learn where the calls are being sent.
Okay, good.
- Stay on it.
- Yeah.
Okay.
CARLOS: I remember Lowell asking about my haul, but not breaking into my rig.
This is why we started scrapping again? Donna's managed to get an emergency hearing with a judge to argue just that.
So, if there is anything else coming back to you The video doesn't show who threw the first punch.
Yeah, but it goes to motivation, Carlos.
It's key to first-degree murder.
A few months ago, Donna was convinced the Supreme Court will hear our case.
When they said no, she almost didn't bounce back.
I can't have her going through that again.
And she spent 90 grand on this? You know the kind of hole my family's already in because of me? Donna should be thinking about the future.
She is.
Just one that includes you.
- I have made my decision, Ms.
Perez.
- Yes, I know, Your Honor.
If I could just have a few more minutes to explain.
ERIC: You opposed the motion.
Carlos is still being executed.
He is.
Look, I realize the new footage lacks audio and can be read in several ways, but doesn't it concern you that video evidence has been mishandled? It was sloppy police work, and that's unfortunate, but the judge and I agree to what you've just articulated.
The tape proves nothing.
Well, except potential obstruction of justice, which may be ongoing.
We've just learned that Donna's phone is being tapped.
She should file a police report.
Well, she plans to.
Mr.
Beaumont, these are the facts.
Carlos Perez committed violent crimes at ages 15, 20, and for a final time at age 26 when he vowed that Lowell Schroeder would die at his hands, only to make good on that promise an hour later.
Now, you're opposed to the death penalty.
Even if you witnessed Carlos commit this crime with your own eyes, you wouldn't think he deserves to die for it.
Tell me I'm wrong about that.
- You're not.
- I respect that perspective.
I'd defend your right to express it, but it doesn't change the law.
And unfortunately, all you've done is enable a scam artist and falsely raise Carlos's hope.
ZARA: Evidence was tampered with.
- Why would she ignore that? - I don't know.
Gather whatever information you can on prosecutor Heidi Ambrose.
My gut tells me this isn't over.
What did our Samaritan say on that call? "I'm sticking my neck out here.
" Now, he had that tape because he's complicit, most likely with Lowell, who obviously meant to rob Carlos that night.
Now, he may have even witnessed their fight.
He's afraid of implicating himself in a robbery, which is why he stayed anonymous.
But he held on to this tape all these years - because he's torn.
- And when Carlos lost his final appeal, he spoke up out of what? - Guilt? - Why was it so easy - to get him so far down on price? - Huh.
His motivation is actually to help.
Then why ask for money at all? I don't know that yet, but either way, we're dealing with a criminal with a conscience.
Okay.
So now what? We draw him out, get him on the record.
Now, he wasn't blocking his number, which means he's been calling from a drop phone.
Let's hope he still has it.
[PHONE CHIMES.]
[PHONE BEEPS, LINE RINGS.]
FEMALE VOICE: You have one new message.
ERIC: I know you stuck your neck out because you didn't want Carlos to die, but what you tried hasn't worked, and we need your help.
[KETTLE WHISTLING.]
How long do we wait before trying him again? Okay, you need to trust me.
Pushing too hard can backfire.
Hey.
We were able to trace the IP address of where the audio data from Donna's phones - are being sent.
- Does that mean we have a physical location on whoever's tapping Donna's calls? We do.
And it's not the D.
A.
who's been listening in.
Her calls are being sent to the company where Eddie Schroeder works.
- The victim's father.
- ZARA: Yeah, and all of this has been happening since around the time Carlos lost his last appeal.
[PHONE CHIMES.]
It's our Samaritan.
He won't meet tonight, but he can do tomorrow at 6:00 a.
m.
That's ten hours before the execution.
Where's Cynthia? Oh, she, um, she said she needed some air.
Okay.
[PHONE RINGING.]
Hello.
CYNTHIA [OVER PHONE.]
: Hello? You were right.
I wasn't there for you.
I didn't know how to be.
Instead of convincing myself of that fact [SIGHS.]
I just convinced myself there was nothing I could do.
You did what you had to do.
You did call one night, needing help.
Four years ago.
You'd been in a fight, you were in the infirmary, and you sounded terrible.
Yeah, I remember.
[WHIMPERS.]
Yeah, well, I I didn't know what to say.
I have no idea how you managed to keep going.
Well, there were things I I'd there were things I've done, things I wasn't too proud of.
Well, it's not your fault.
You were just protecting yourself.
I'm not talking about that.
I meant while I [CLEARS THROAT.]
I meant when I was inside.
Things I had to do to stay alive.
[CLEARS THROAT.]
It, it didn't matter what you said to me that night.
Hearing your voice reminded me that there was once a time when I was, I wasn't that guy who did those things.
That if I could stay alive, if I could make it through, I didn't have to be that guy ever again.
Thank you, Tyler.
I'll see you soon.
[SNIFFLES.]
Bye.
[PHONE BEEPS.]
[SHUDDERING.]
All right, don't come any closer.
ERIC: Can you give us your name? First name at least, so we know what to call you.
Jeremy.
Thank you for coming, Jeremy.
Look, I don't know what you guys want from me.
I've already done all I can.
Then why did you agree to meet? 'Cause it's eating at you.
You don't believe that Carlos deserves to die.
Neither do we.
ERIC: We think you were involved in a robbery the night of the murder and you're worried - about getting caught.
- But if we can get you immunity on that, will you talk to the D.
A.
? Because your testimony can stop this execution.
You don't understand, guys.
If I come forward, immunity on the robbery is not gonna help me.
You're implicated in something bigger than just a robbery.
You're implicated in the murder.
I didn't kill Lowell.
But you know who did, and it wasn't Carlos.
Carlos shouldn't even be in jail.
If he dies today, it'll be for a crime someone else committed.
ERIC: You said Carlos didn't kill Lowell, but he admitted it.
He had a hell of a lot to drink that night.
[ECHOING CHATTER.]
His memory is faulty.
They did fight again, but Carlos left Lowell alive and breathing.
[PANTING.]
When we found Lowell, he was awake.
Where were you five minutes ago? By the time I realized he'd come to kill him it was done.
ERIC: Who? Somebody you stole from? You were robbing trucks with Lowell.
- That's why he was killed? - Look, all you need to know is it wasn't me and it wasn't Carlos.
OLIVER: Then, someone you were working with.
Someone you're still afraid of.
We had a good thing going.
Lowell was a loudmouth.
Picking bar fights, not being careful.
He was gonna get us caught.
But I wasn't the one who thought he needed to die.
But you did swap the security tape with one from another day to cover it up.
And Carlos was made to take the fall for Lowell's death, given his public threat earlier that night.
Jeremy, Donna's phone's being tapped, and we don't know who's been listening, but someone heard you sell us that evidence.
It's not safe for you to go back to your place.
You should stay with us.
You just want me on the record.
Get me immunity, or no deal.
No, Oliver's right.
You need to take precautions.
You don't think I know that? I'm leaving town at 3:00.
I'll stop by here then.
If you have a deal we'll see.
Otherwise [ENGINE STARTS.]
Immunity on accessory to murder? He's afraid.
Now, he wants immunity but he needs protection.
Protection from the real killer.
If we can figure out who that is, we can save Carlos.
You said Eddie Schroeder, the victim's father, was the one listening to Donna's calls.
Oh, you don't think he killed his own son? No.
Remember what he said about Lowell? That his son wasn't much for an honest day's work? You think Eddie knew Lowell was robbing trucks? He knew his kid was up to something.
If Eddie had context of what his son was up to, who he was working with, maybe that leads us to the real killer.
Let's go find out.
DONNA: Carlos didn't kill him? No.
They fought, like you always said, Carlos, but when you left, Lowell was alive.
We're looking for the man who killed him.
DONNA: There's still time.
I can take this to the D.
A.
, I can ask about immunity.
Don't.
Don't try for immunity, don't talk to the D.
A.
, don't do anything.
Carlos, are you not listening to her? You didn't do it.
You have any proof? Yes.
The word of the witness.
You really think that matters? Ten years we've been through this.
Since when has the truth mattered? Baby, please I can't take it anymore.
Whether I killed him or not, I'm done.
It's cruel for this to come out now, Carlos, I get that.
But you didn't kill him.
Don't let them make you into the man who did.
ERIC: The tape clearly shows your son breaking into Carlos's truck.
If your son was mixed up in something, you should So that's what this is about for you? Dragging my son's name through the mud? No, but, Eddie, tapping Donna's calls I'm not tapping anyone's calls.
ERIC: We promised you closure.
We're still offering that, but you need to tell us what else you know.
Did my son usually go out looking for trouble? Yes, and I told the cops the truth about him.
They said that Lowell's death wasn't his fault.
Now you say it was, and that's supposed to give me closure? I'm not saying your son deserved to die.
I'm saying you deserve to know the truth about who killed him.
Let us make that happen.
They weren't robbing trucks, him and his buddies, not the way that you think.
If Lowell broke into a truck, it was just to suss out a good, good haul.
You know, televisions, copper wiring, whatever was easy to flip.
- Mm-hmm.
- And then they would sell that information to someone who would hijack the rig and steal the cargo.
When I found out about it, he promised to quit.
And I was dumb enough to believe him.
Lowell had two accomplices.
Could one of them work here? An ex-colleague? Because the audio from Donna's phone is being sent to this address, and that, that can't be a coincidence.
This man betrayed and murdered your son and is now tapping Donna's phone to stop the truth from coming out.
Dale.
Dale McIntosh.
Actually, he was here yesterday when we met.
- [PHONE RINGING.]
- God, I always knew he was a lowlife, but I never thought Did Donna speak to the D.
A.
? CYNTHIA: Yeah, she won't promise anything as far as immunity goes, but if we bring Jeremy in, she'll listen - to what he has to say.
- All right.
That'll have to do.
Dale's not here, but we have his address.
Okay.
[PHONE RINGING.]
Hello? It's 3:00.
You said you'd meet us back here.
I said I might.
I had to grab some things at home first.
You can't be at your place.
Your old partner, Dale McIntosh, he's the one who killed Lowell.
How did you know that? He's the one who's been tapping Donna's calls.
He knows you're selling us that footage, which means he knows you're betraying him.
Now, we're trying to track him down, but you need to leave now.
You are not safe there.
Okay.
I'm coming to meet you.
CARLOS: That kid is the best.
You did a good job.
We did a good job.
It's not over yet.
- Chaplain's waiting for me.
- No, no, no, no.
Don't go yet.
Not yet.
I got to go.
Jeremy.
Haven't seen you in years, but I knew, when Carlos lost his last appeal, that you would crack.
Now, I don't know what you think you heard, but I didn't sell you out, man.
I got you on tape, dumb-ass, literally selling evidence against me.
- I never gave them your name.
- But they got it.
Which means you and me got a problem.
All right, you want the cash? It's yours.
Just take it.
I'll leave, I'll never come back.
They want a witness, it won't be me.
Yeah? What are you reaching for, huh? [LOCK BUZZES, LATCH CLICKS.]
[DOOR OPENS.]
[CHAINS RATTLING.]
Jeremy's not picking up? - Better be on his way.
- Yeah, let's hope so because we need him on record.
It's Carlos's last shot.
[PHONE RINGS.]
Zara.
ZARA: We found Jeremy.
He's been shot, Eric.
Jeremy's dead.
Okay.
ERIC: We got one last shot at this.
We got to change the D.
A.
's mind, - get her to call the governor.
- With no evidence? How you gonna do that, Eric? She's a top prosecutor.
- She's brilliant.
- I'm gonna use that against her.
Thank you for doing this, sir.
CYNTHIA: You can't go through with this.
Our witness was murdered to cover up the truth.
Please, call the governor's office.
You're executing the wrong man.
Mr.
Schroeder is willing to testify that his son was involved in a criminal conspiracy the night - of his death.
- EDDIE: All I've ever wanted is justice for my son, Ms.
Ambrose.
ERIC: This conspiracy led to Lowell's murder at the hands of an accomplice, Dale McIntosh.
Do you have any hard evidence of what you're claiming? A sworn affidavit, a-a recording? Unfortunately not, no, the witness I know this is painful to face, but everything you're suggesting is circumstantial.
You've been prosecuting Carlos, uh, since he was a juvenile.
When this charge came across your desk, it was gonna be nothing but the harshest sentence possible.
My personal feelings have nothing to do with it.
We have three-strikes laws for a reason.
After his third conviction, Carlos's chances ran out.
The law has done its job.
You may not like it, but it's my job to see it through.
WARDEN: Mr.
Perez, do you wish to make any statements or last words? [VOICE SHAKING.]
: Please tell Donna I love her.
Tell Luke I-I love him.
Tell them Please tell everyone I'm sorry.
For the crime of murder in the first degree, Carlos William Perez is condemned to death.
All right, listen to me, ten years ago, the cops didn't realize that the security tape had been swapped, but you knew it was the wrong footage and you looked the other way.
When I told you about the tampered evidence yesterday, you barely flinched, and I wondered why.
You are highly meticulous, your reputation's perfect.
But it took my team all of an hour to figure out that it was the wrong tape, and you missed it completely? I don't think so.
DOCTOR: Injecting sedative.
ERIC: Carlos's conviction in 2009 helped propel you to D.
A.
You needed him to be guilty then, and with an upcoming election you need him guilty now.
If you're suggesting that I sent a man to prison for a crime I knew he didn't commit No, I'm not, I'm not.
I don't doubt your sincerity - or your sense of duty.
- That's right.
My only duty has been to the truth.
All right, then you look me in the eye and you tell me it's the truth you didn't know that the footage had been tampered with.
I did what I had to do.
Just the truth.
Did you know about the tampered footage? Everything else lined up But you knew.
You are too good of a prosecutor to let this one error of judgment tarnish everything that you stand for.
Please, for the love of God, do the right thing.
[CRYING.]
Get me the governor's office.
Tell him it's Heidi Ambrose.
Thank you so much for everything.
Did they tell you what happens next? If the governor is commuting, how long will you be in here? Actually, that's complicated.
They're not letting you out.
They're commuting the death sentence and leaving you in here.
Yes, but we're hopeful.
They're keeping you in here for a crime you didn't commit.
- It's okay.
- That's not okay.
It's a miscarriage of justice.
I'm filing a motion to vacate the conviction.
When they hear my case, they're not gonna be able to deny it.
They should be letting you out and compensating you for the years of your life you wasted because of them.
Ms.
Walker, I'm alive.
I owe you my life.
I'm gonna see my kid grow up because of you.
[LOCK BUZZES, LATCH CLICKS.]
The police picked up Dale McIntosh on Jeremy's murder.
And with Eddie's cooperation, they should have enough to tie him to Lowell's, too.
Is everything all right with you? - Uh - [LOCK BUZZES.]
[DOOR OPENS.]
I told you I was an only child.
That wasn't the truth.
[DOOR CLOSES.]
I have a brother.
He, uh, he was in prison for killing our foster father.
He's out now, and he's living with me.
I'm always here if you want to talk.
Thank you.
All right, coming through.
Open the gate.
[LOCK BUZZES, LATCH CLICKS.]
Welcome back.
Spaghetti and meatballs still your favorite? Is it out of a can, and will you heat it up for me like you used to? Well, I-it's $75 worth of pasta and-and a nice bottle of Pinot, but other than that, it will be just like old times.
- What do you say? - All right.
All right, let's do it.
Grab the plates.
Oh.