Law & Order: Criminal Intent (2001) s03e20 Episode Script
D.A.W.
In New York City's war on crime, the worst criminal offenders are pursued by the detectives of the Major Case Squad.
These are their stories.
It's not anywhere.
We can't bury Mom without it.
Uh, Danielle, I told you.
She's not being buried.
Come on, Lawrence.
Pauline looked so peaceful when she passed.
I only wish I could've gotten to her sooner.
Some things are still out of our hands, Doctor.
- Apparently.
- Here you are, Doctor.
This is Lawrence, my fiance.
How are you doing, Doctor? Janette's told me all about you.
I didn't say they were thieves, but maybe they saw it when they picked my mother up.
I just wanna talk to them.
Please.
She can't be buried without that ring.
I will talk with my employees.
And as far as a burial? That's not what we have down for your mother.
I don't care what you have down.
She's getting a burial.
I'm not accusing Janette.
- But her fiance - Right.
Lawrence the one with the criminal record.
Now, this local number for you, it's good until when? Maybe a week.
Then I'm goin' back to Baltimore.
This ring was very important to my mother.
I'll look into it.
Now, if it should turn up in the meantime, Miss Pearce, you be sure to call me.
If you could talk to her, Doctor.
I don't want to cause her trouble.
Danielle, you went to the police.
Wouldn't you call that causing her trouble? Doctor, will you talk to my sister about the ring? Please, she'll listen to you.
I'll do what I can.
Larry, you got a personal call.
Said he's a detective.
This is Larry Belling.
Hello? Hello.
Hey, watch out! Call 911! They ran her over! Three of'em! I saw 'em! - What happened? - They killed her.
Law & Order CI One victim: Three hit-and-runs.
Has to be a record.
That's why we're here.
Anybody get the license plates? No.
First car tried to avoid her, but the other two swerved into her lane.
Witness said they were goin' around a car in the intersection.
There's vomit in her shirt.
Probably happened before the impact.
Train ticket: Baltimore-New York, four days ago.
We got needle marks.
They're healed scarred over.
- She hasn't used in a long time.
- Until tonight.
The vomit, the foaming she overdosed? Fingernails on her right hand are broken off.
The car that blocked the intersection it came from the underpass? Fresh vomit here.
It's a broken fingernail.
The vomit, it-it fell in her shirt.
She might've been sitting in a car on the passenger side when she was overdosing.
She tried to get out.
She broke her nails grabbing at the door latch.
She gets out, throws up, wanders into the street.
If she was in a car, it could be the same one in the intersection.
Detectives.
One of the hit-and-run drivers turned himself in.
I thought I had run over an animal or a garbage bag.
I just The guy in front of me had already run over it.
And in that neighborhood, I You didn't wanna stop and check.
Well, no.
I didn't.
So you swerved into the right lane to avoid hitting a car in the intersection.
Yes.
Was this car moving? No.
I saw it from a distance.
It was a dark-colored car, and it had nosed into the left lane and just stopped for no reason.
It just stopped for no reason.
Yes.
And then, I had to go around it.
All right, Mr.
Lafond.
We're done with you.
The Accident Investigation Unit will want to talk to you.
The first impact, uh, it didn't kill her.
The other cars might have avoided her if this car hadn't blocked the left lane.
But it just sat there to make sure that she got hit.
The M.
E.
Found a fresh needle mark on the left side of her abdomen, not the obvious place for a junkie to shoot up.
But somebody sitting next to her, they might have put the needle into her.
Maybe they tried to kill her with an overdose.
She got away, and they made sure the traffic got her.
Baltimore P.
D.
Got a hit on the prints.
Danielle Pearce, 32, part-time schoolteacher.
She had a drug beef two years ago.
Her mother lives uptown.
Detective.
It's the tox report.
Positive for heroin.
APARTMENT OF JANETTE PEARCE THURSDAY, APRIL 8 They had the wake three days ago.
They were supposed to have everything packed up and cleared out by the end of next week.
You pretty much see everything that goes on around here.
Yes, I do.
Did you see the younger daughter yesterday? Yes.
Her and her sister, out on the landing.
Pretty much hear everything too, huh? Well, the younger girl was making trouble forJanette's fiance.
I don't know what.
Mrs.
Pearce ever say anything about this fiance? Well, she didn't think Lawrence was much of a catch.
I mean, he's a car jockey in a parking garage.
Thank you, Mr.
Hawks.
We'll check in with you before we leave.
Looks like there was more searching than packing going on.
That stack over there looks like Mom's jewelry gold ring, pearls, the rest looks like paste.
"Suzanne Belperron.
" She was a jewelry designer in the 1930s.
This stuff is very valuable.
This doesn't look like one of her pieces.
But this does.
Somebody switched the rings in the box.
Danielle, my sweet baby.
Somebody must've done somethin' to her.
She wouldn't get high.
She was clean.
She had been in a program since last year.
The super at your mother's apartment said he heard you and Danielle talking yesterday.
We had an argument over my mother's things.
It's silly.
The argument between you and your sister was about a specific thing.
A ring.
We couldn't find it.
Is this the one? Yes.
It was my great-grandmother's The ring isn't worth much, just sentimental.
All those emeralds and rubies it is very valuable.
It was made by a well-known French designer.
The super said that he overheard you say that Danielle was making trouble for Lawrence.
She accused him of taking the ring.
She's wrong.
But she had a detective call him at work.
And what did you say to the detective? Nothin; By the time I got to the phone, he had already hung up, and he didn't leave a name or a number.
Uh, I'm sorry.
How-How did you know he was a detective? He told my boss when he answered.
Did Danielle say she went to the police? Yes, to a precinct on Broadway.
FRIDAY, APRIL 9 He had a pretty common name no birth date, no social.
I had his complaint on my desk this morning if you just give me a minute.
Did you send a description of the ring to the N.
C.
I.
C.
? I was gonna get to that today.
Maybe it was because you saw the tracks on her arm? You didn't actually write it up, did you? I thought the ring would just show up.
- A $200 ring.
- Try 30,000.
That's a lot of money to put in the ground.
Well, what do you mean, "put in the ground"? Well, she wanted to bury her mother with it.
That was the most important thing to her.
Maybe you thought you'd call Lawrence at work, shake him up, he'd cough up the ring? Young lady didn't even know where he worked.
If somebody called him, it wasn't me.
Well, the best thing about Sharm-el-Sheik is the wall diving.
Oh, and the fan coral's spectacular.
There's tons of it in Belize.
Have you thought of switching to nitrox.
As a physician, I'd recommend it.
I'll read up on it.
How long have you been diving, Doctor? I got certified last year.
Will you excuse me? I need to freshen up.
- Isabel? - Oh, yes.
Excuse us.
Well, it's been three months.
You seem to be getting along well.
Claudia, I'm so glad you introduced us.
He is so smart.
He's so selfless.
You should see how much his patients appreciate him.
All these years, my wife's been your patient.
Glad we finally had the chance to meet, Doctor.
Claudia's a terrific young woman.
Yeah.
I'm a lucky guy.
But you should have seen her when she was 24.
What was Lawrence's alibi at the time of the murder? He was at home canoodling with his bride-to-be.
As an alibi, it's not terrific.
Let's go with it for now, and let's assume Danielle wasn't behind that call.
Who was? Somebody who wanted to throw suspicion on Lawrence? It worked, far as it went.
Maybe the ring isn't the reason why Danielle was killed.
I found this in Mrs.
Pearce's personal papers.
It's a receipt from the funeral home for a prepaid cremation.
The old gal was planning ahead.
She was on Medicaid.
To qualify, she had to spend down her assets.
That's what my mother had to do.
One way is to prepay funeral expenses.
Now, Danielle told the detective her mother was going to be buried.
That's why she needed the ring.
Cremation she was in the way.
Now, the name of the funeral home is right on that receipt.
It's the Hemmerick Brothers on Clayton Powell.
My secretary gave me the message that you wanted to inspect Mrs.
Pearce's remains.
They're right over here.
They came from the crematorium just this morning.
Can I ask what you're hopin' to find? Evidence of another murder.
Here's a copy of Mrs.
Pearce's death certificate.
The cause of death was a stroke.
One of the daughters was insisting on a burial, is that right? Was anybody in particular pushing for a cremation? Mrs.
Pearce had made her wishes known by purchasing the cremation contract.
The doctor who signed the death certificate Dr.
Lindgard.
Do you know who he is? I believe he's Mrs.
Pearce's doctor.
He was called to her home.
Yeah.
Since he determined that she died of natural causes, the M.
E.
Would've signed off on the cremation without an autopsy.
If you want to avoid an autopsy, don't call 911.
Call the family doctor.
OFFICE OF DR.
LINDGARD, MANHATTAN HOSPITAL TUESDAY, APRIL 12 I saw her earlier that day.
She complained of fatigue.
I decided to change her medication.
I told her I'd come back and sample her.
"Sample her"What does that mean? I brought her drug samples from my office.
So, I called to say I was on my way, and when she didn't answer, I got concerned.
I called for an ambulance.
And then you found Mrs.
Pearce dead? Her home care attendant was there.
She'd been knocking on the door for 15 minutes or so she said.
The super finally let us in.
You diagnosed a stroke.
How much of an examination did you perform? I didn't cut her open right there on the living room floor.
I relied on 30 years of medical practice to make my determination.
Any chance you missed something? No.
It all made sense.
- Because? - For the obvious reason.
Oh, I'll have a a guess.
Uh, she had a preexisting condition.
Atrial fibrillation.
Do you want me to explain what that is? It's an arrythmia.
Isn't it? And the home care attendant, you didn't believe her story about knocking for 15 minutes.
Who knocks on the door for 15 minutes? Right.
Who does? You have her name? Oh, it's probably in Mrs.
Pearce's file.
So, Detective, 10 rounds or 15? Your sidearm.
Ten.
Mm.
Fifteen's too heavy.
Hard to maintain proper control of your weapon.
You're a gun enthusiast, Doctor? I find target shooting very relaxing.
Really? Firing a weapon never has that effect on me.
I'm surprised you have time for hobbies, Doctor.
You have such a busy practice here at the hospital.
And your house calls.
I'll bet not many of your colleagues still do house calls.
I devote two days a week to visiting my elderly patients.
I'm surprised your office isn't wall-to-wall plaques and awards.
That's not what I'm about.
Well, you're a dying breed, Doctor.
Thank you.
Well, of course I knocked for 15 minutes.
Mrs.
Pearce was hard of hearing, and if she was in the bathroom And once you entered the apartment, Dr.
Lindgard, what did he do? Dr.
Lindgard checked Mrs.
Pearce for a pulse.
I was about to call 911, but he said, "Don't bother.
" Did he call anybody? He got on the phone with Jonas Memorial Hospital.
He kept telling me to wait.
For what? He told the hospital he was canceling an ambulance he ordered.
And that's why he wanted you to wait? It must have been.
Because then he just sat down and started fillin' out forms.
Jonas Memorial has a record of a call canceling an ambulance run to Mrs.
Pearce's address.
But no record of any ambulance being ordered in the first place.
Well, the call to cancel was all for show to cover the fact that he never ordered an ambulance.
Probably because Mrs.
Pearce was already dead from the first time he saw her, maybe from malpractice.
A blowhard like him wouldn't want to admit he was incompetent.
He might try to cover it up with a cremation.
Mrs.
Pearce's Medicaid records are consistent with what he told us.
He diagnosed her with atrial fibrillation four months ago.
And then, there's the ring.
He stole it.
Probably to distract us from malpractice.
Eames, look at this.
The photograph was printed January 15.
On the 23rd, Lindgard diagnosed her with atrial fibrillation.
February 1, she signed up for prepaid cremation.
He sees the ring.
He lays the groundwork for a cause of death.
And a means of disposing of the body.
And I thought he was just incompetent.
The certificate was notarized.
Look at the notary's address.
Lindgard's hospital.
ACCOUNTS OFFICE MANHATTAN HOSPITAL TUESDAY, APRIL 13 Oh, yes.
That's me.
I notarize all sorts of documents.
Thanks to my notary's license, I meet so many nice people.
Including Mrs.
Pearce? Dr.
Lindgard bring her in? Do you keep a notary book? Can we see her entry? February 1, here she is.
Oh, uh, is that her thumbprint there? Yes.
Oh, it doesn't have a scar.
Mrs.
Pearce had a scar on her thumb.
This, uh, thumbprint has no scar.
Oh, darn.
Dr.
Lindgard told me she was too sick to come to the hospital herself.
It-It-It's never been a problem before.
Before? You've notarized other cremation certificates for Dr.
Lindgard? How many? Well, I've been here eight years, so Claudia said she had fun the other night.
Yeah? Well, her husband's a shrimp.
Oh, Edwin.
Don't be mean.
Hope we don't have to wait too long for a cab.
Thought we could walk.
To Lincoln Center? I'm wearing heels.
So, we'll take the subway.
Edwin, you have to spend a little to get a little.
Well, now that you mention it.
I have something for you.
Oh, my! Edwin, that's beautiful.
All those emeralds and rubies! Ooh! Oh, nobody's ever given me anything like this.
I designed that setting myself.
Thank you.
Isabel? Let's stay in tonight.
I guarantee you a night to remember.
I explained to you, Edwin.
L I'm just not ready to go that far.
- Not yet.
- All right.
No intercourse.
Maybe just some oral pleasure.
Let's just go to the concert.
Please? All in, we found 673 prepaid cremations bought over the last 25 years by Lindgard's patients with his help.
Of those, a third are still alive, a third died in accidents or in hospitals Then, there's the other third.
All of them died at home.
All of them had their death certificates signed by Lindgard.
How many exactly? Two hundred and forty-eight.
Has the M.
E.
Looked at this yet? No.
But with all the victims cremated, it'll be tough making the true cause of death.
And ifhe has the same M.
O.
He always has, he'll make sure there's always a witness to testify that he checked the body for a pulse, did all the things a good doctor does He killed 248 people just to pilfer their jewelry boxes? Or he kills because he can.
All the deaths were listed as strokes, and all the victims had been diagnosed with heart conditions.
All diagnosed by Lindgard.
This guy was Johnny-on-the-spot, finding bodies, signing death certificates.
Why didn't he set off alarm bells? Well, if he'd signed more than four certificates a month, our computer would've flagged him.
But ten, 12 a year, with credible diagnoses? Well, you wouldn't wanna leave any visible signs of violence.
The method of death was probably a poison, maybe an opiate.
he's a doctor in a hospital.
He's got an embarrassment of riches to choose from.
Any way to trip this guy up? What about the Medicaid billings? Any inconsistencies? Well, one treatment for heart disease is drug therapy.
But there's no record these people ever filled a prescription.
That's in case anyone challenged his findings.
He would have to document his victims' deteriorating heart disease.
He'd have to doctor his patients' records.
Dr.
Lindgard wants you to wait until he gets back.
He's a funny doctor.
Is there anything you need to save off the computer before we, you know, yank the plug? What's that? Hmm? What, dinner invitations? A drug company asked Dr.
Lindgard to host a dinner for the hospital's chiefs of staff.
Dr.
Lindgard is very highly regarded.
Does he ever work on your computer? Dr.
Lindgard knows more about computers than I do.
One day he just sat down and mastered the entire system.
One day? What inspired him to do that? Our whole system crashed four years ago.
We lost all the patients' records.
I had to reenter all the data by hand.
Four years ago.
Do you remember the month? Oh, July.
Um, mid-July, after the 12th? APARTMENT OF ALFRED & VALERIE PERRET QUEENS, NEW YORK THURSDAY, APRIL 15 I called my mom to see how she was gettin'along with the heat, and she said she was fine.
And then later, we got a call to come over.
Dr.
Lindgard was there.
He told us her heart gave out.
You had a problem with Dr.
Lindgard's diagnosis? No.
With his attitude.
He never actually came out and said she was dead.
He was, uh, playing a little game.
He made you guess.
Yeah, that's right.
He said something was wrong with my mother, and then I said, "Shall we call 911?" And then he said, "No, it's not necessary.
" - I asked him why, and he said - He said, "For the obvious reasons.
" Yes.
I see that your mother is wearing a Star of David around her neck.
She was religious? Yes.
- She would've wanted a burial.
- Oh, of course.
Our records show she prepaid for a cremation.
Did this cause problems with Dr.
Lindgard? He wanted us to go ahead with the cremation, but I wouldn't let Alfred do it.
His mother got her religious burial.
- Al, you wanna help me with this.
- Sure.
Excuse me.
So, Dr.
Lindgard was worried that if the body was ever exhumed, the autopsy would show that the cause of death was inconsistent with what he had in her file.
He had to delete her file, so he crashed his computer to cover it up.
There's still the body.
Which, according toJewish tradition, would've been buried without embalming in a plain box.
Odds are there's not enough of it left for a tox exam.
You think Lindgard knows the odds? Hiya, Doc.
You goin'to the office or is this one of your Marcus Welby days? I'd prefer if you call me "doctor," and if you want to talk to me, call my office for an appointment.
We just have a couple of questions about the patient records we took the other day.
So does my attorney.
He'd like to know when I can have them back.
You don't like garages? Not at 600 a month.
So, what are your questions? We noticed the patients whose death certificates you signed never billed Medicaid for prescriptions.
That's because I sampled them, just like Mrs.
Pearce.
And where my elderly patients live, there aren't many pharmacies or they don't deliver.
Anyway, at that age, it's all about care not cure making sure they eat well, getting the right vitamins.
That's how you get results.
Prepaid cremations, is that another part of the Lindgard treatment? It's all done with the patient's consent.
What's that? The Hudson Valley Bed and Breakfast Guide.
Are you goin' on a weekend getaway? Not alone, we hope.
She the one that gave you that tie? What makes you think anybody bought my tie? It's silk, right? Hermes? It's probably worth about $200.
You won't even pay for a parking garage for your car.
But you paid to have the car cleaned recently.
Someone have an accident in here, maybe got sick? No.
I have my car cleaned once a week.
Look, is there anything else? Just one more thing.
We noticed, uh, one of your patient's files missing from your computer.
Mrs.
Ruth Perret, she died four years ago.
Oh, I lost all my files four years ago.
Didn't my assistant tell you, computer meltdown? We exhumed the body last night.
The M.
E.
Is doing an autopsy today.
As I remember, Ruth Perret was Jewish.
There was no embalming.
Did you know they use a plain pine box with holes drilled in the bottom to accelerate the decomposition? And after four years in the cold, wet soil of the cemetery in Queens, I can't imagine there'd be anything more than bones to work with, hardly enough to determine the cause of death.
He called our bluff.
We might as well have invited him to the exhumation.
Maybe there's one base he hasn't covered.
Well, Friday night, Dr.
Lindgard and I saw a Moroccan film at Alice Tully Hall.
- Then he walked me home.
- What time did he leave here? Gosh, it was late.
God, I don't remember the time.
Is that the kind of man Dr.
Lindgard is, he makes a woman forget the time? Well, it's obvious how much you like him.
That was a beautiful tie that you bought him.
For our three-month anniversary.
What did he get you, somethin' nice? Jewelry? Maybe a ring? I don't think I have to tell you that.
Is that because he went the cheap route? Makes you walk home, doesn't pay for a cab.
He's careful.
He has to be.
He still has obligations to his ex-wife.
He's not one of those millionaire doctors with rich patients.
He works with poor people.
Ms.
Dawson, we understand your feelings for Dr.
Lindgard.
But he's not what he seems.
No, he's kind.
He's completely in tune with me.
I don't have to explain myself to him.
Explain yourself? You mean, that you're a recovering alcoholic? Twelve-stepper's Prayer.
Dr.
Lindgard, is he also A.
A.
? He doesn't have a problem with alcohol.
Somethin' else? I'm sorry.
I'm not getting into this.
Now, please leave us alone.
His girlfriend alluded to him having a substance abuse problem.
The only thing we found dates from 30 years ago when he was working at a clinic up in Hopewell.
He put a car in a ditch? They do a Breathalyzer or blood test? Just a Breathalyzer.
He passed.
But the following week, he resigned from the clinic.
Thank you.
Pethidine.
It's a synthetic opioid.
The clinic in Hopewell said that Lindgard was overprescribing it To patients who weren't receiving it.
Let me guess.
He was putting it up his veins.
That's what they suspected, but they couldn't prove it.
Call just came in to 911.
Possible D.
O.
A.
On 137 th.
The address matches one of Lindgard's patients.
- Where's the patient? - In the kitchen.
She's fine.
We got the call she was D.
O.
A.
Yeah, that's how it came in.
Lucky for her her doctor was in the building visiting another patient.
The guy saved her life.
Well, look who's here.
Eames and Goren.
Detectives.
They probably thought you needed protection from me.
- Why, that's silly.
- Oh, of course, dear.
Just an irregular heartbeat, nothing more serious than that.
Smug bastard got us.
This is better than pethidine.
He's addicted to power now over life and death.
My office has received calls from a dozen community leaders and public health advocates who think Lindgard is being unfairly targeted.
Of course, if I could show them why their faith in him is misplaced.
He got rid of any evidence.
He tampered with his computer records.
What about the method of death? Uh, he used, uh, pethidine on himself.
He's familiar with narcotics.
It's probably the weapon of his choice.
Where's he getting it the hospital dispensary? There's no evidence of that.
Well, then, until you do have evidence, stay away from Dr.
Lindgard.
You're not letting up on this guy.
This is, uh, Lindgard's divorce decree.
He's been paying alimony to his ex-wife for 25 years.
But he hasn't, uh, claimed the alimony as a deduction on his taxes.
Which means she doesn't have to pay taxes on it.
Heck of a nice gift.
What did she do to deserve that? Uh, the fact that, uh, she's a pharmacist might have something to do with it.
C&B PHARMACY WHITE PLAINS, NEW YORK WEDNESDAY, APRIL 21 The subpoena's a final boarding call, Ms.
Cruthers.
Once we start our search, anybody not on the train'll be left behind.
You were supplying your husband drugs in return for a tax break on your alimony.
Oh, God! How long have you been supplying him? Twenty years.
Once a month, just enough for his personal use.
"His personal use.
" He told you that he was an addict? And admit something's stronger than him? The great man's incapable of that.
He was shooting up pethidine 30 years ago.
It nearly cost him his life.
Not that he'd admit any of it's his fault.
He blames you? Me, his dead mother, even her visiting nurse.
Oh, what did she do to him? When Edwin was a teenager, his mother died of cancer at home.
He said the nurse came and gave her morphine every day and taught him to use a syringe.
I was about to give his mother an injection one day, and Eddie asked me if I'd let him do it.
He was 16, and he really needed to feel that he was helping his mother.
- So, I showed him how.
- Her pain was severe.
Oh, yes.
Bone marrow cancer.
In 1959, they just sent her home to die.
I came by in the morning, before Eddie went off to school.
He would've been up all night, watching her in her agony.
He hadn't slept.
He was afraid.
Oh, I'll bet he was happy to see you.
Oh, yes.
He was.
Once, I had given her the injection, and-and she quieted down, he was able to get a little sleep before he went off to school.
Was Mrs.
Lindgard aware of what her son did for her? Oh, yes.
That boy walked with the angels as far as she was concerned.
She had high hopes for him.
Thank you, Mrs.
Morse.
I can't imagine watching his mother suffer through the night for eight months.
And then find relief in the morning.
It's a scene that he can't stop reliving.
His experience was about being powerless.
He had no control over his mother's suffering, over life and death.
Now he does, thanks to a loaded hypodermic needle.
All we can do at this point is take the needle out of his hands.
His ex-wife's testimony is only sufficient to yank his medical license.
So then he goes into rehab and pops up somewhere else with a new license? No, if we wanna get him, his loss of power has to be complete and public.
We need to find a dinner invitation.
Edwin? Go inside, Isabel.
I'll be right with you.
Meryl, what are you doing here? Your office told me where you'd be.
The police came to the pharmacy to talk to me about you.
What did you tell them? Nothing.
But I had this at home to send to you.
I don't want it around anymore.
- I don't feel safe.
- You're giving this to me here? This is very inconvenient.
Good-bye, Edwin.
I want to take this opportunity to acknowledge our host tonight, even though Appian Pharmaceutical is picking up the tab.
Uh, sorry to barge in.
We're here for Dr.
Lindgard.
Uh, Doctor.
- We wanna see you outside.
- You're ordering me? I'll-I'll talk to you when we have finished with our meal.
All right, then, we'll do it here.
Please stand up and empty your pockets.
You've got no right to search me! You'd be surprised.
What's that supposed to mean? Well, you like guessing games.
Try guessin'.
Okay, I'm calling my lawyer.
What? Oh.
Thanks.
Well, that's not gonna do you any good.
- And why is that? - The obvious reason.
Probable cause, Doc.
We arrested your ex-wife 20 minutes ago.
She told us she gave you something.
Could we continue this outside? Too late for that.
Your pockets? This is what she gave me.
- Oh, that's morphine.
- What? What? She said she's been feeding your habit for 20 years.
I don't have a habit.
You got hooked on pethidine straight out of med school.
You have no proof of that.
- You kicked that habit and moved on to morphine.
- That's slander.
Damn it! I'm not a junkie! Ask anyone here.
Ask Isabel.
She knows me.
Oh, Edwin's nothing like a drug addict.
I mean, I would know if he was.
Actually, if one can maintain their supply, then a morphine habit is very easy to hide.
That's a lovely brooch, all those rubies and emeralds.
But you say that you're not an addict.
Then what are you gonna do with all this morphine? Where's it goin'? To my patients.
I have elderly patients, many of whom are longtime heroin addicts.
Quitting is out of the question.
The withdrawal alone would kill them.
So rather than see them spend their last dime on drugs, I decide to give them maintenance doses.
You decide to keep them hooked.
Call it unethical, but it relieves their suffering.
Like the visiting nurse who relieved your mother.
That's where you get your altruistic zeal from watching her.
You think you know me well.
Yes.
That's where I learnedwhat a godsend drugs are to a suffering patient.
You know, we have his patient list right here.
Why don't you tell us which of your patients get this, uh, godsent morphine.
You are entering an area of doctor-patient confidentiality.
Handing out narcotics without a prescription isn't covered.
Ask your colleagues.
You know, the fact that you thought you could hide evidence of your own addictionwhen it's right there in the quality of your work There's nothing wrong with my work.
Your heart patients keeling over six months after you diagnosed them.
- That's not unusual.
- No, really, so many 248.
They were probably sick for years.
You werejust too stoned to catch it.
I told you those drugs were for my patients.
- Drug addicts - That's what their medical records will say.
If we have a look, it's gonna say that they're drug addicts? It's back to you, Doc, you and your drug habit.
You know, you fit the profile of a workin'junkie.
Negligent, incompetent even steals from his patients.
You know, I can't get over that brooch.
That was the anniversary gift that Dr.
Lindgard gave you, isn't it? - Do you know where he bought it? - He had it made.
You said you designed the setting yourself.
Wow.
Healer, gun enthusiast, jewelry designer There is nothin' that Dr.
Lindgard can't do.
Would you like to see where he got the stones for that brooch? This ring four rubies, four emeralds just like your brooch.
Now he stole this ring from a woman whose wake you attended.
The woman whose daughter was killed a day after she complained about her mother's missing ring.
- Isabel, don't - You stole her ring.
Then you strutted around her parlor to show me how much her family admired you.
You feel it slippin'away from you, Doc? Feel yourself, you know, losin' control? The ground shiftin' under you? It's familiar, isn't it, that panic growin' in your gut? It's the same panic that you you felt in the early hours of dawn when your mother's pain was at its worst.
Her body shuddering with spasms, and you couldn't stop it.
Her fair-haired boy she had all her hopes pinned on you.
You couldn't control her disease.
You couldn't spare her one moment of agony.
Well, you're still that powerless boy.
Your life is controlled by morphine.
You can't even read a pulse.
You're just a fumbling, preening - god of medicine.
- That's not true! Oh, come on.
! Your patients dying because of your carelessness, and you just stand there, mystified by it all.
You're a victim of your own addiction.
Impotent fool people dyin' all around you, no reason why or when - I decide when! - It's not up to you! I'm in control! I take their lives! I give them their deaths! I decide.
I choose when.
That's what the morphine's for.
! - You don't get off that easily.
- You're under arrest, Doc.
He won't be walkin' with the angels anytime soon.
These are their stories.
It's not anywhere.
We can't bury Mom without it.
Uh, Danielle, I told you.
She's not being buried.
Come on, Lawrence.
Pauline looked so peaceful when she passed.
I only wish I could've gotten to her sooner.
Some things are still out of our hands, Doctor.
- Apparently.
- Here you are, Doctor.
This is Lawrence, my fiance.
How are you doing, Doctor? Janette's told me all about you.
I didn't say they were thieves, but maybe they saw it when they picked my mother up.
I just wanna talk to them.
Please.
She can't be buried without that ring.
I will talk with my employees.
And as far as a burial? That's not what we have down for your mother.
I don't care what you have down.
She's getting a burial.
I'm not accusing Janette.
- But her fiance - Right.
Lawrence the one with the criminal record.
Now, this local number for you, it's good until when? Maybe a week.
Then I'm goin' back to Baltimore.
This ring was very important to my mother.
I'll look into it.
Now, if it should turn up in the meantime, Miss Pearce, you be sure to call me.
If you could talk to her, Doctor.
I don't want to cause her trouble.
Danielle, you went to the police.
Wouldn't you call that causing her trouble? Doctor, will you talk to my sister about the ring? Please, she'll listen to you.
I'll do what I can.
Larry, you got a personal call.
Said he's a detective.
This is Larry Belling.
Hello? Hello.
Hey, watch out! Call 911! They ran her over! Three of'em! I saw 'em! - What happened? - They killed her.
Law & Order CI One victim: Three hit-and-runs.
Has to be a record.
That's why we're here.
Anybody get the license plates? No.
First car tried to avoid her, but the other two swerved into her lane.
Witness said they were goin' around a car in the intersection.
There's vomit in her shirt.
Probably happened before the impact.
Train ticket: Baltimore-New York, four days ago.
We got needle marks.
They're healed scarred over.
- She hasn't used in a long time.
- Until tonight.
The vomit, the foaming she overdosed? Fingernails on her right hand are broken off.
The car that blocked the intersection it came from the underpass? Fresh vomit here.
It's a broken fingernail.
The vomit, it-it fell in her shirt.
She might've been sitting in a car on the passenger side when she was overdosing.
She tried to get out.
She broke her nails grabbing at the door latch.
She gets out, throws up, wanders into the street.
If she was in a car, it could be the same one in the intersection.
Detectives.
One of the hit-and-run drivers turned himself in.
I thought I had run over an animal or a garbage bag.
I just The guy in front of me had already run over it.
And in that neighborhood, I You didn't wanna stop and check.
Well, no.
I didn't.
So you swerved into the right lane to avoid hitting a car in the intersection.
Yes.
Was this car moving? No.
I saw it from a distance.
It was a dark-colored car, and it had nosed into the left lane and just stopped for no reason.
It just stopped for no reason.
Yes.
And then, I had to go around it.
All right, Mr.
Lafond.
We're done with you.
The Accident Investigation Unit will want to talk to you.
The first impact, uh, it didn't kill her.
The other cars might have avoided her if this car hadn't blocked the left lane.
But it just sat there to make sure that she got hit.
The M.
E.
Found a fresh needle mark on the left side of her abdomen, not the obvious place for a junkie to shoot up.
But somebody sitting next to her, they might have put the needle into her.
Maybe they tried to kill her with an overdose.
She got away, and they made sure the traffic got her.
Baltimore P.
D.
Got a hit on the prints.
Danielle Pearce, 32, part-time schoolteacher.
She had a drug beef two years ago.
Her mother lives uptown.
Detective.
It's the tox report.
Positive for heroin.
APARTMENT OF JANETTE PEARCE THURSDAY, APRIL 8 They had the wake three days ago.
They were supposed to have everything packed up and cleared out by the end of next week.
You pretty much see everything that goes on around here.
Yes, I do.
Did you see the younger daughter yesterday? Yes.
Her and her sister, out on the landing.
Pretty much hear everything too, huh? Well, the younger girl was making trouble forJanette's fiance.
I don't know what.
Mrs.
Pearce ever say anything about this fiance? Well, she didn't think Lawrence was much of a catch.
I mean, he's a car jockey in a parking garage.
Thank you, Mr.
Hawks.
We'll check in with you before we leave.
Looks like there was more searching than packing going on.
That stack over there looks like Mom's jewelry gold ring, pearls, the rest looks like paste.
"Suzanne Belperron.
" She was a jewelry designer in the 1930s.
This stuff is very valuable.
This doesn't look like one of her pieces.
But this does.
Somebody switched the rings in the box.
Danielle, my sweet baby.
Somebody must've done somethin' to her.
She wouldn't get high.
She was clean.
She had been in a program since last year.
The super at your mother's apartment said he heard you and Danielle talking yesterday.
We had an argument over my mother's things.
It's silly.
The argument between you and your sister was about a specific thing.
A ring.
We couldn't find it.
Is this the one? Yes.
It was my great-grandmother's The ring isn't worth much, just sentimental.
All those emeralds and rubies it is very valuable.
It was made by a well-known French designer.
The super said that he overheard you say that Danielle was making trouble for Lawrence.
She accused him of taking the ring.
She's wrong.
But she had a detective call him at work.
And what did you say to the detective? Nothin; By the time I got to the phone, he had already hung up, and he didn't leave a name or a number.
Uh, I'm sorry.
How-How did you know he was a detective? He told my boss when he answered.
Did Danielle say she went to the police? Yes, to a precinct on Broadway.
FRIDAY, APRIL 9 He had a pretty common name no birth date, no social.
I had his complaint on my desk this morning if you just give me a minute.
Did you send a description of the ring to the N.
C.
I.
C.
? I was gonna get to that today.
Maybe it was because you saw the tracks on her arm? You didn't actually write it up, did you? I thought the ring would just show up.
- A $200 ring.
- Try 30,000.
That's a lot of money to put in the ground.
Well, what do you mean, "put in the ground"? Well, she wanted to bury her mother with it.
That was the most important thing to her.
Maybe you thought you'd call Lawrence at work, shake him up, he'd cough up the ring? Young lady didn't even know where he worked.
If somebody called him, it wasn't me.
Well, the best thing about Sharm-el-Sheik is the wall diving.
Oh, and the fan coral's spectacular.
There's tons of it in Belize.
Have you thought of switching to nitrox.
As a physician, I'd recommend it.
I'll read up on it.
How long have you been diving, Doctor? I got certified last year.
Will you excuse me? I need to freshen up.
- Isabel? - Oh, yes.
Excuse us.
Well, it's been three months.
You seem to be getting along well.
Claudia, I'm so glad you introduced us.
He is so smart.
He's so selfless.
You should see how much his patients appreciate him.
All these years, my wife's been your patient.
Glad we finally had the chance to meet, Doctor.
Claudia's a terrific young woman.
Yeah.
I'm a lucky guy.
But you should have seen her when she was 24.
What was Lawrence's alibi at the time of the murder? He was at home canoodling with his bride-to-be.
As an alibi, it's not terrific.
Let's go with it for now, and let's assume Danielle wasn't behind that call.
Who was? Somebody who wanted to throw suspicion on Lawrence? It worked, far as it went.
Maybe the ring isn't the reason why Danielle was killed.
I found this in Mrs.
Pearce's personal papers.
It's a receipt from the funeral home for a prepaid cremation.
The old gal was planning ahead.
She was on Medicaid.
To qualify, she had to spend down her assets.
That's what my mother had to do.
One way is to prepay funeral expenses.
Now, Danielle told the detective her mother was going to be buried.
That's why she needed the ring.
Cremation she was in the way.
Now, the name of the funeral home is right on that receipt.
It's the Hemmerick Brothers on Clayton Powell.
My secretary gave me the message that you wanted to inspect Mrs.
Pearce's remains.
They're right over here.
They came from the crematorium just this morning.
Can I ask what you're hopin' to find? Evidence of another murder.
Here's a copy of Mrs.
Pearce's death certificate.
The cause of death was a stroke.
One of the daughters was insisting on a burial, is that right? Was anybody in particular pushing for a cremation? Mrs.
Pearce had made her wishes known by purchasing the cremation contract.
The doctor who signed the death certificate Dr.
Lindgard.
Do you know who he is? I believe he's Mrs.
Pearce's doctor.
He was called to her home.
Yeah.
Since he determined that she died of natural causes, the M.
E.
Would've signed off on the cremation without an autopsy.
If you want to avoid an autopsy, don't call 911.
Call the family doctor.
OFFICE OF DR.
LINDGARD, MANHATTAN HOSPITAL TUESDAY, APRIL 12 I saw her earlier that day.
She complained of fatigue.
I decided to change her medication.
I told her I'd come back and sample her.
"Sample her"What does that mean? I brought her drug samples from my office.
So, I called to say I was on my way, and when she didn't answer, I got concerned.
I called for an ambulance.
And then you found Mrs.
Pearce dead? Her home care attendant was there.
She'd been knocking on the door for 15 minutes or so she said.
The super finally let us in.
You diagnosed a stroke.
How much of an examination did you perform? I didn't cut her open right there on the living room floor.
I relied on 30 years of medical practice to make my determination.
Any chance you missed something? No.
It all made sense.
- Because? - For the obvious reason.
Oh, I'll have a a guess.
Uh, she had a preexisting condition.
Atrial fibrillation.
Do you want me to explain what that is? It's an arrythmia.
Isn't it? And the home care attendant, you didn't believe her story about knocking for 15 minutes.
Who knocks on the door for 15 minutes? Right.
Who does? You have her name? Oh, it's probably in Mrs.
Pearce's file.
So, Detective, 10 rounds or 15? Your sidearm.
Ten.
Mm.
Fifteen's too heavy.
Hard to maintain proper control of your weapon.
You're a gun enthusiast, Doctor? I find target shooting very relaxing.
Really? Firing a weapon never has that effect on me.
I'm surprised you have time for hobbies, Doctor.
You have such a busy practice here at the hospital.
And your house calls.
I'll bet not many of your colleagues still do house calls.
I devote two days a week to visiting my elderly patients.
I'm surprised your office isn't wall-to-wall plaques and awards.
That's not what I'm about.
Well, you're a dying breed, Doctor.
Thank you.
Well, of course I knocked for 15 minutes.
Mrs.
Pearce was hard of hearing, and if she was in the bathroom And once you entered the apartment, Dr.
Lindgard, what did he do? Dr.
Lindgard checked Mrs.
Pearce for a pulse.
I was about to call 911, but he said, "Don't bother.
" Did he call anybody? He got on the phone with Jonas Memorial Hospital.
He kept telling me to wait.
For what? He told the hospital he was canceling an ambulance he ordered.
And that's why he wanted you to wait? It must have been.
Because then he just sat down and started fillin' out forms.
Jonas Memorial has a record of a call canceling an ambulance run to Mrs.
Pearce's address.
But no record of any ambulance being ordered in the first place.
Well, the call to cancel was all for show to cover the fact that he never ordered an ambulance.
Probably because Mrs.
Pearce was already dead from the first time he saw her, maybe from malpractice.
A blowhard like him wouldn't want to admit he was incompetent.
He might try to cover it up with a cremation.
Mrs.
Pearce's Medicaid records are consistent with what he told us.
He diagnosed her with atrial fibrillation four months ago.
And then, there's the ring.
He stole it.
Probably to distract us from malpractice.
Eames, look at this.
The photograph was printed January 15.
On the 23rd, Lindgard diagnosed her with atrial fibrillation.
February 1, she signed up for prepaid cremation.
He sees the ring.
He lays the groundwork for a cause of death.
And a means of disposing of the body.
And I thought he was just incompetent.
The certificate was notarized.
Look at the notary's address.
Lindgard's hospital.
ACCOUNTS OFFICE MANHATTAN HOSPITAL TUESDAY, APRIL 13 Oh, yes.
That's me.
I notarize all sorts of documents.
Thanks to my notary's license, I meet so many nice people.
Including Mrs.
Pearce? Dr.
Lindgard bring her in? Do you keep a notary book? Can we see her entry? February 1, here she is.
Oh, uh, is that her thumbprint there? Yes.
Oh, it doesn't have a scar.
Mrs.
Pearce had a scar on her thumb.
This, uh, thumbprint has no scar.
Oh, darn.
Dr.
Lindgard told me she was too sick to come to the hospital herself.
It-It-It's never been a problem before.
Before? You've notarized other cremation certificates for Dr.
Lindgard? How many? Well, I've been here eight years, so Claudia said she had fun the other night.
Yeah? Well, her husband's a shrimp.
Oh, Edwin.
Don't be mean.
Hope we don't have to wait too long for a cab.
Thought we could walk.
To Lincoln Center? I'm wearing heels.
So, we'll take the subway.
Edwin, you have to spend a little to get a little.
Well, now that you mention it.
I have something for you.
Oh, my! Edwin, that's beautiful.
All those emeralds and rubies! Ooh! Oh, nobody's ever given me anything like this.
I designed that setting myself.
Thank you.
Isabel? Let's stay in tonight.
I guarantee you a night to remember.
I explained to you, Edwin.
L I'm just not ready to go that far.
- Not yet.
- All right.
No intercourse.
Maybe just some oral pleasure.
Let's just go to the concert.
Please? All in, we found 673 prepaid cremations bought over the last 25 years by Lindgard's patients with his help.
Of those, a third are still alive, a third died in accidents or in hospitals Then, there's the other third.
All of them died at home.
All of them had their death certificates signed by Lindgard.
How many exactly? Two hundred and forty-eight.
Has the M.
E.
Looked at this yet? No.
But with all the victims cremated, it'll be tough making the true cause of death.
And ifhe has the same M.
O.
He always has, he'll make sure there's always a witness to testify that he checked the body for a pulse, did all the things a good doctor does He killed 248 people just to pilfer their jewelry boxes? Or he kills because he can.
All the deaths were listed as strokes, and all the victims had been diagnosed with heart conditions.
All diagnosed by Lindgard.
This guy was Johnny-on-the-spot, finding bodies, signing death certificates.
Why didn't he set off alarm bells? Well, if he'd signed more than four certificates a month, our computer would've flagged him.
But ten, 12 a year, with credible diagnoses? Well, you wouldn't wanna leave any visible signs of violence.
The method of death was probably a poison, maybe an opiate.
he's a doctor in a hospital.
He's got an embarrassment of riches to choose from.
Any way to trip this guy up? What about the Medicaid billings? Any inconsistencies? Well, one treatment for heart disease is drug therapy.
But there's no record these people ever filled a prescription.
That's in case anyone challenged his findings.
He would have to document his victims' deteriorating heart disease.
He'd have to doctor his patients' records.
Dr.
Lindgard wants you to wait until he gets back.
He's a funny doctor.
Is there anything you need to save off the computer before we, you know, yank the plug? What's that? Hmm? What, dinner invitations? A drug company asked Dr.
Lindgard to host a dinner for the hospital's chiefs of staff.
Dr.
Lindgard is very highly regarded.
Does he ever work on your computer? Dr.
Lindgard knows more about computers than I do.
One day he just sat down and mastered the entire system.
One day? What inspired him to do that? Our whole system crashed four years ago.
We lost all the patients' records.
I had to reenter all the data by hand.
Four years ago.
Do you remember the month? Oh, July.
Um, mid-July, after the 12th? APARTMENT OF ALFRED & VALERIE PERRET QUEENS, NEW YORK THURSDAY, APRIL 15 I called my mom to see how she was gettin'along with the heat, and she said she was fine.
And then later, we got a call to come over.
Dr.
Lindgard was there.
He told us her heart gave out.
You had a problem with Dr.
Lindgard's diagnosis? No.
With his attitude.
He never actually came out and said she was dead.
He was, uh, playing a little game.
He made you guess.
Yeah, that's right.
He said something was wrong with my mother, and then I said, "Shall we call 911?" And then he said, "No, it's not necessary.
" - I asked him why, and he said - He said, "For the obvious reasons.
" Yes.
I see that your mother is wearing a Star of David around her neck.
She was religious? Yes.
- She would've wanted a burial.
- Oh, of course.
Our records show she prepaid for a cremation.
Did this cause problems with Dr.
Lindgard? He wanted us to go ahead with the cremation, but I wouldn't let Alfred do it.
His mother got her religious burial.
- Al, you wanna help me with this.
- Sure.
Excuse me.
So, Dr.
Lindgard was worried that if the body was ever exhumed, the autopsy would show that the cause of death was inconsistent with what he had in her file.
He had to delete her file, so he crashed his computer to cover it up.
There's still the body.
Which, according toJewish tradition, would've been buried without embalming in a plain box.
Odds are there's not enough of it left for a tox exam.
You think Lindgard knows the odds? Hiya, Doc.
You goin'to the office or is this one of your Marcus Welby days? I'd prefer if you call me "doctor," and if you want to talk to me, call my office for an appointment.
We just have a couple of questions about the patient records we took the other day.
So does my attorney.
He'd like to know when I can have them back.
You don't like garages? Not at 600 a month.
So, what are your questions? We noticed the patients whose death certificates you signed never billed Medicaid for prescriptions.
That's because I sampled them, just like Mrs.
Pearce.
And where my elderly patients live, there aren't many pharmacies or they don't deliver.
Anyway, at that age, it's all about care not cure making sure they eat well, getting the right vitamins.
That's how you get results.
Prepaid cremations, is that another part of the Lindgard treatment? It's all done with the patient's consent.
What's that? The Hudson Valley Bed and Breakfast Guide.
Are you goin' on a weekend getaway? Not alone, we hope.
She the one that gave you that tie? What makes you think anybody bought my tie? It's silk, right? Hermes? It's probably worth about $200.
You won't even pay for a parking garage for your car.
But you paid to have the car cleaned recently.
Someone have an accident in here, maybe got sick? No.
I have my car cleaned once a week.
Look, is there anything else? Just one more thing.
We noticed, uh, one of your patient's files missing from your computer.
Mrs.
Ruth Perret, she died four years ago.
Oh, I lost all my files four years ago.
Didn't my assistant tell you, computer meltdown? We exhumed the body last night.
The M.
E.
Is doing an autopsy today.
As I remember, Ruth Perret was Jewish.
There was no embalming.
Did you know they use a plain pine box with holes drilled in the bottom to accelerate the decomposition? And after four years in the cold, wet soil of the cemetery in Queens, I can't imagine there'd be anything more than bones to work with, hardly enough to determine the cause of death.
He called our bluff.
We might as well have invited him to the exhumation.
Maybe there's one base he hasn't covered.
Well, Friday night, Dr.
Lindgard and I saw a Moroccan film at Alice Tully Hall.
- Then he walked me home.
- What time did he leave here? Gosh, it was late.
God, I don't remember the time.
Is that the kind of man Dr.
Lindgard is, he makes a woman forget the time? Well, it's obvious how much you like him.
That was a beautiful tie that you bought him.
For our three-month anniversary.
What did he get you, somethin' nice? Jewelry? Maybe a ring? I don't think I have to tell you that.
Is that because he went the cheap route? Makes you walk home, doesn't pay for a cab.
He's careful.
He has to be.
He still has obligations to his ex-wife.
He's not one of those millionaire doctors with rich patients.
He works with poor people.
Ms.
Dawson, we understand your feelings for Dr.
Lindgard.
But he's not what he seems.
No, he's kind.
He's completely in tune with me.
I don't have to explain myself to him.
Explain yourself? You mean, that you're a recovering alcoholic? Twelve-stepper's Prayer.
Dr.
Lindgard, is he also A.
A.
? He doesn't have a problem with alcohol.
Somethin' else? I'm sorry.
I'm not getting into this.
Now, please leave us alone.
His girlfriend alluded to him having a substance abuse problem.
The only thing we found dates from 30 years ago when he was working at a clinic up in Hopewell.
He put a car in a ditch? They do a Breathalyzer or blood test? Just a Breathalyzer.
He passed.
But the following week, he resigned from the clinic.
Thank you.
Pethidine.
It's a synthetic opioid.
The clinic in Hopewell said that Lindgard was overprescribing it To patients who weren't receiving it.
Let me guess.
He was putting it up his veins.
That's what they suspected, but they couldn't prove it.
Call just came in to 911.
Possible D.
O.
A.
On 137 th.
The address matches one of Lindgard's patients.
- Where's the patient? - In the kitchen.
She's fine.
We got the call she was D.
O.
A.
Yeah, that's how it came in.
Lucky for her her doctor was in the building visiting another patient.
The guy saved her life.
Well, look who's here.
Eames and Goren.
Detectives.
They probably thought you needed protection from me.
- Why, that's silly.
- Oh, of course, dear.
Just an irregular heartbeat, nothing more serious than that.
Smug bastard got us.
This is better than pethidine.
He's addicted to power now over life and death.
My office has received calls from a dozen community leaders and public health advocates who think Lindgard is being unfairly targeted.
Of course, if I could show them why their faith in him is misplaced.
He got rid of any evidence.
He tampered with his computer records.
What about the method of death? Uh, he used, uh, pethidine on himself.
He's familiar with narcotics.
It's probably the weapon of his choice.
Where's he getting it the hospital dispensary? There's no evidence of that.
Well, then, until you do have evidence, stay away from Dr.
Lindgard.
You're not letting up on this guy.
This is, uh, Lindgard's divorce decree.
He's been paying alimony to his ex-wife for 25 years.
But he hasn't, uh, claimed the alimony as a deduction on his taxes.
Which means she doesn't have to pay taxes on it.
Heck of a nice gift.
What did she do to deserve that? Uh, the fact that, uh, she's a pharmacist might have something to do with it.
C&B PHARMACY WHITE PLAINS, NEW YORK WEDNESDAY, APRIL 21 The subpoena's a final boarding call, Ms.
Cruthers.
Once we start our search, anybody not on the train'll be left behind.
You were supplying your husband drugs in return for a tax break on your alimony.
Oh, God! How long have you been supplying him? Twenty years.
Once a month, just enough for his personal use.
"His personal use.
" He told you that he was an addict? And admit something's stronger than him? The great man's incapable of that.
He was shooting up pethidine 30 years ago.
It nearly cost him his life.
Not that he'd admit any of it's his fault.
He blames you? Me, his dead mother, even her visiting nurse.
Oh, what did she do to him? When Edwin was a teenager, his mother died of cancer at home.
He said the nurse came and gave her morphine every day and taught him to use a syringe.
I was about to give his mother an injection one day, and Eddie asked me if I'd let him do it.
He was 16, and he really needed to feel that he was helping his mother.
- So, I showed him how.
- Her pain was severe.
Oh, yes.
Bone marrow cancer.
In 1959, they just sent her home to die.
I came by in the morning, before Eddie went off to school.
He would've been up all night, watching her in her agony.
He hadn't slept.
He was afraid.
Oh, I'll bet he was happy to see you.
Oh, yes.
He was.
Once, I had given her the injection, and-and she quieted down, he was able to get a little sleep before he went off to school.
Was Mrs.
Lindgard aware of what her son did for her? Oh, yes.
That boy walked with the angels as far as she was concerned.
She had high hopes for him.
Thank you, Mrs.
Morse.
I can't imagine watching his mother suffer through the night for eight months.
And then find relief in the morning.
It's a scene that he can't stop reliving.
His experience was about being powerless.
He had no control over his mother's suffering, over life and death.
Now he does, thanks to a loaded hypodermic needle.
All we can do at this point is take the needle out of his hands.
His ex-wife's testimony is only sufficient to yank his medical license.
So then he goes into rehab and pops up somewhere else with a new license? No, if we wanna get him, his loss of power has to be complete and public.
We need to find a dinner invitation.
Edwin? Go inside, Isabel.
I'll be right with you.
Meryl, what are you doing here? Your office told me where you'd be.
The police came to the pharmacy to talk to me about you.
What did you tell them? Nothing.
But I had this at home to send to you.
I don't want it around anymore.
- I don't feel safe.
- You're giving this to me here? This is very inconvenient.
Good-bye, Edwin.
I want to take this opportunity to acknowledge our host tonight, even though Appian Pharmaceutical is picking up the tab.
Uh, sorry to barge in.
We're here for Dr.
Lindgard.
Uh, Doctor.
- We wanna see you outside.
- You're ordering me? I'll-I'll talk to you when we have finished with our meal.
All right, then, we'll do it here.
Please stand up and empty your pockets.
You've got no right to search me! You'd be surprised.
What's that supposed to mean? Well, you like guessing games.
Try guessin'.
Okay, I'm calling my lawyer.
What? Oh.
Thanks.
Well, that's not gonna do you any good.
- And why is that? - The obvious reason.
Probable cause, Doc.
We arrested your ex-wife 20 minutes ago.
She told us she gave you something.
Could we continue this outside? Too late for that.
Your pockets? This is what she gave me.
- Oh, that's morphine.
- What? What? She said she's been feeding your habit for 20 years.
I don't have a habit.
You got hooked on pethidine straight out of med school.
You have no proof of that.
- You kicked that habit and moved on to morphine.
- That's slander.
Damn it! I'm not a junkie! Ask anyone here.
Ask Isabel.
She knows me.
Oh, Edwin's nothing like a drug addict.
I mean, I would know if he was.
Actually, if one can maintain their supply, then a morphine habit is very easy to hide.
That's a lovely brooch, all those rubies and emeralds.
But you say that you're not an addict.
Then what are you gonna do with all this morphine? Where's it goin'? To my patients.
I have elderly patients, many of whom are longtime heroin addicts.
Quitting is out of the question.
The withdrawal alone would kill them.
So rather than see them spend their last dime on drugs, I decide to give them maintenance doses.
You decide to keep them hooked.
Call it unethical, but it relieves their suffering.
Like the visiting nurse who relieved your mother.
That's where you get your altruistic zeal from watching her.
You think you know me well.
Yes.
That's where I learnedwhat a godsend drugs are to a suffering patient.
You know, we have his patient list right here.
Why don't you tell us which of your patients get this, uh, godsent morphine.
You are entering an area of doctor-patient confidentiality.
Handing out narcotics without a prescription isn't covered.
Ask your colleagues.
You know, the fact that you thought you could hide evidence of your own addictionwhen it's right there in the quality of your work There's nothing wrong with my work.
Your heart patients keeling over six months after you diagnosed them.
- That's not unusual.
- No, really, so many 248.
They were probably sick for years.
You werejust too stoned to catch it.
I told you those drugs were for my patients.
- Drug addicts - That's what their medical records will say.
If we have a look, it's gonna say that they're drug addicts? It's back to you, Doc, you and your drug habit.
You know, you fit the profile of a workin'junkie.
Negligent, incompetent even steals from his patients.
You know, I can't get over that brooch.
That was the anniversary gift that Dr.
Lindgard gave you, isn't it? - Do you know where he bought it? - He had it made.
You said you designed the setting yourself.
Wow.
Healer, gun enthusiast, jewelry designer There is nothin' that Dr.
Lindgard can't do.
Would you like to see where he got the stones for that brooch? This ring four rubies, four emeralds just like your brooch.
Now he stole this ring from a woman whose wake you attended.
The woman whose daughter was killed a day after she complained about her mother's missing ring.
- Isabel, don't - You stole her ring.
Then you strutted around her parlor to show me how much her family admired you.
You feel it slippin'away from you, Doc? Feel yourself, you know, losin' control? The ground shiftin' under you? It's familiar, isn't it, that panic growin' in your gut? It's the same panic that you you felt in the early hours of dawn when your mother's pain was at its worst.
Her body shuddering with spasms, and you couldn't stop it.
Her fair-haired boy she had all her hopes pinned on you.
You couldn't control her disease.
You couldn't spare her one moment of agony.
Well, you're still that powerless boy.
Your life is controlled by morphine.
You can't even read a pulse.
You're just a fumbling, preening - god of medicine.
- That's not true! Oh, come on.
! Your patients dying because of your carelessness, and you just stand there, mystified by it all.
You're a victim of your own addiction.
Impotent fool people dyin' all around you, no reason why or when - I decide when! - It's not up to you! I'm in control! I take their lives! I give them their deaths! I decide.
I choose when.
That's what the morphine's for.
! - You don't get off that easily.
- You're under arrest, Doc.
He won't be walkin' with the angels anytime soon.