Bull (2016) s04e03 Episode Script
Rectify
1 Hey, hey, hey, flag on the play! So you tell me that you're broke and I front you some product, but now you got money to buy from him? You owe me money.
You owe Leon money.
And who the hell are you? Does Leon know you're selling bags in his territory? This is Leon's territory.
We all work for Leon.
You can't just blow in here and start hustling without getting the nod from Leon.
Now, get your money back and give it to me.
Give the man back his drugs.
Get your money and give it to me.
Put your hands above your head, man.
Come on.
How old are you? Oh Tsk, tsk, tsk, tsk.
It's empty.
So look, little man.
You need to walk out of here and never come back.
This is my territory now.
The end of June, we are almost halfway through the year, and it's 87 degrees in the city that never sleeps.
According to his ID he's Marcus Lott.
26 years old.
Bunch of priors for possession and distribution.
As you can see, somebody emptied a whole lot of ammo into Mr.
Lott, who, by the way, had a lot of cash and illegal drugs in his possession.
And who is she? Name is Karla Angel.
24.
Cause of death appears to be a single gunshot wound to the abdomen.
Must have been expecting a boy.
Neighbors say she worked at the 24-hour gym up the street.
Came down here a couple times a night to wash towels whenever the machines were full at the gym.
And these drug dealers good news is they're killing each other.
Bad news not fast enough.
It's funny you should say that.
Customer from last night said that Mr.
Lott was with a kid from the neighborhood.
His name's, uh Eddie Mitchell.
Doesn't have any priors, but everyone around here knew he sold nickel bags and apparently carried a gun.
Hey, I remember you.
Hi, Dad.
Hey, I've been leaving messages for you all over the place.
I know.
And I'm sorry, I just I got a lot going on.
Well, yeah.
I mean, big journalism scholarship, going to Jordan for a semester.
Crazy-proud father to deal with.
You want to have dinner? Sure.
Absolutely.
Thing is, uh, I'm about to start this case, and I don't know which night.
Okay if I get back to you? Sure, Dad.
I just I want to do it soon.
I do too.
I love you.
Mr.
Palmer? Eddie Mitchell? Convicted in 2002 of the triple murder of Marcus Lott, Karla Angel, and the unborn child of Karla Angel.
You're the lawyer from the clinic? You're here 'cause of the letter? Well, yeah.
We got it.
But full disclosure I'm not a real lawyer.
I'm a law student.
I'm working with the Hudson University Legal Aid clinic as part of my studies.
My professor Dr.
Upton he's a real lawyer.
And, from time to time, he chooses to take on a case like yours, and then students like me get to assist him, go to court with him and participate in the trial.
That is, if we can win you the right to a new trial, which I think we can.
You okay? You know, I've written so many letters.
To the warden, to the D.
A.
, to that public defender who just sat there and let me get convicted in the first place.
You said you think a witness lied during the trial? - Yeah.
- Now that was 17 years ago.
You're just realizing that now? Well, there-there was this lady.
She was a prostitute.
And she'd be out on the street all hours of the night.
Said she was looking through the window of the laundromat and saw me shoot those people.
But I didn't shoot anybody.
So she had to be lying, right? Yeah, uh, okay.
But again, how is this different than 17 years ago? Well, about three months ago, I was out in the yard here, and I'm talking to this guy, Terrence.
And we're talking about our cases, and Terrence tells me there's a prostitute testified against him.
Said she saw him knife a dude.
But she couldn't have, because he didn't do it.
And-and I asked him what her name was, and he said Heather Bent.
Same name as my prostitute.
Okay.
Well, look, I can understand how that kind of coincidence would make you suspicious, but that's not proof that she was lying.
Yeah, well what if I told you it was the exact same cop? The exact same cop, and the exact same witness.
Two different murders.
You tell me what are the chances? I'm telling you, the walls shake.
I don't want to have this conversation, Bull.
It's my sister we're talking about.
It's like a freight train, Benny.
Night falls, we slip into bed, she sleeps and I hold on for dear life.
I looked it up.
Pregnant women snore.
That's just what they do.
But I need to sleep.
Don't look at me.
I don't know what to tell you.
Dr.
Bull.
Any way I could get, uh, five minutes? Hmm, I'm jealous.
Sounds fascinating.
I can't lie.
So far, it has been pretty damn thrilling.
I mean, we won our motion.
We won our client the right to a new trial.
Anyway, my professor asked me to second chair for him.
And I'm thinking it's a commitment of two, three weeks.
Of course, you know these things.
Could be over in a day.
Anyway, I'd really like to do it.
Hey.
Bull said you got a live one.
- He told you about it, huh? - Ha, ha, he sure did.
How'd you get the judge to order a new trial? Actually, the client did all the heavy lifting.
He realized that he and another inmate were convicted based on eyewitness testimony from the same witness.
And then, once I did a little digging, the same woman testified in five different murder trials.
Oops.
Pretty damn convenient.
You gonna get her to recant? I would if I could, but she died a while back.
The good news is is that the judge agreed that it was highly probable that the witness perjured herself.
Especially once we realized that she testified in five different cases for the same detective.
Wow.
That's some pretty flagrant misconduct.
How'd the D.
A.
's office miss this? Cases span seven years.
Different A.
D.
A.
s in each case.
I'm sure they're gonna say that it's plausible that they had no idea this one witness was making the rounds.
I hear you.
Well, it's not like my client's case got a lot of attention.
Drug dealer guns down another dealer in a Bronx laundromat? Wait a second, what's your client's name? Eddie Mitchell.
Seriously? Eddie Mitchell? You have been snookered, my friend.
Eddie Mitchell's as guilty as they come.
Killed three people, one of them not even born yet.
That guy deserves to be in prison.
You know this case? Yeah, I know this case.
It's my case.
No.
No, it says right here that Bradley Freeman was the prosecutor in Eddie's first trial.
I was second chair.
My name might not be on that file, but I was there.
It was my first murder trial.
See, here's what you're not getting, Chunk.
It wasn't just the eyewitness testimony that put Eddie away.
There's lots of evidence against him.
Fiber from Eddie's clothing underneath one of the victim's fingernails.
A fight with one of the victims earlier that evening, witnessed by a whole different group of people.
That young punk moved a lot of product through his neighborhood.
Well, be that as it may, without the eyewitness testimony, I think the case against Eddie is purely circumstantial, and I think we can win.
And more importantly, I believe Eddie's innocent.
Well, it's good to believe in things.
Five cases.
Same witness, same detective.
Heard you the first time.
My God.
Benjamin Colón.
I don't think you've aged a day.
Valerie.
Been a long time.
Ah.
Fancy suit, fancy haircut.
You've come up in the world, Benny.
Please.
So, what brings you out to a cop bar at 2:00 in the morning? Ooh, uh couldn't sleep.
I had a question, need an answer.
Eddie Mitchell? The D.
A.
's rattling your cage too? How 'bout we worry about the crimes from this decade? A-Actually, I heard about it a different way, but, uh, I just I just need to ask you.
I need you to tell me.
That was a righteous conviction, wasn't it, Valerie? What are you talking about? Of course it was.
Absolutely.
And-and tell me about this woman.
This sex worker.
She testified for you, what five times in five different cases? She was a source, Benny.
She was a streetwalker.
You walk the streets, you see things.
I know, I know.
Um But you wouldn't you wouldn't encourage her to lie, would you? Help to make the case go down easy? What are you doing? Are you wearing a wire for the D.
A.
now? - What? - Do you not remember? This 16-year-old kid was selling drugs and carrying a gun.
It was always pretty open-and-shut.
A-Are you worried that someone's gonna drag you into this? You were second chair.
You were invisible, my friend.
No one even knows you were there.
Don't worry.
I'll take the heat for this, which I am fine with.
'Cause I know that conviction is just, no matter how I got it, 'cause I know what that little punk did.
Wait a second.
Uh Now it you sounds like you're contradicting yourself.
I am not contradicting anything.
I'm telling you I know what that little bastard did.
But how? 'Cause your source told you or you told your source? Here's the thing.
My source is dead.
So, no matter what this little crybaby says in court, it is what I say it is.
Oh, Valerie.
Sorry.
Haven't had my coffee yet.
So, tell me what's going on.
You ever notice that there are babies everywhere? Kids, kids, kids, kids.
My boss is having one.
And another fellow I work with he's got an older one.
Well, you know, it's, uh it's definitely going around.
Um, what does this have to do with you, Marissa? I lied to my husband.
We were all set to try.
IVF.
Artificial insemination.
Both got tested.
And I was terrified.
Convinced I was barren.
Does anybody say that word anymore? Barren? It's a horrible word.
And anyway, it turned out that he was the one that was barren.
Mm-hmm.
How did he take it? I never told him.
I lied.
Told him I changed my mind about the whole thing.
Well, it's, um It's kind of a sweet lie.
I know, right? Except Of course he doesn't know I lied.
I'm I'm sorry.
I'm confused.
Why are you upset and-and 'Cause he's acting like he hates me.
Hates you? Wh-Why would he hate you? For changing my mind, I guess.
He barely speaks to me, doesn't touch me.
I may have misspoken last night.
Maybe I can testify for you.
Testify to what? You weren't there.
Well, I can't just let it stand.
The victims were shot with a Glock 19.
And we know that Eddie had an empty Glock on him when he went toe-to-toe with Marcus earlier that night.
That's funny.
I don't remember seeing that weapon on the evidence list.
Ah.
I remember now.
He threw it in the river.
My client threw his gun in the river? Oh, yeah.
Yeah.
Cops saw him do it.
They were chasing him at the time.
Three days after the murder.
I don't get it.
Why would he wait three days to get rid of the murder weapon? And why would he do it where the police could see him? Because, as I recall, he didn't even know it was a murder weapon.
He was 16 years old and he was worrying about getting busted for carrying an unlicensed firearm.
I The public defender actually put him on the stand.
You almost never put the accused on the stand in a murder case.
Man, they sold him out.
We all sold him out.
Anyway.
I will get out of your hair and let you do your work.
Hey, uh That professor of yours he any good? Why do you ask? That would be a no.
A no? You guys are crazy.
No, not us guys.
This was all his idea.
17 years, Bull.
Think of everything you've done the last 17 years.
Think-think of everything that's happened to you between the ages of 16 and 33.
No.
I don't want to think about that.
It is a lifetime, Bull.
And I helped steal it from this young man.
I want to represent him.
I need to represent him.
I need to right this wrong.
What are you talking about? I'm not even sure it's your wrong to right.
In fact, I'm pretty damn sure this isn't even your case.
Well, Chunk's gonna speak to his professor.
I am? Help me, Chunk.
Tell me your professor will never go along with this.
Oh, he'll definitely go for it.
The clinic has more cases than it can handle.
It's me I'm worried about.
I don't want to give up second chair.
You don't have to give up second chair.
Like I said, I'm Team Benny.
Always was, always will be.
Look, Bull, let's just go meet with the guy.
Let's look him in the eye.
See how we feel about him, see how he feels about us.
I don't understand.
I thought you and your professor were gonna represent me.
Absolutely.
If you want the legal aid clinic to represent you, that is your right, and we stand ready to do it.
But I wouldn't be asking you to consider Mr.
Colón if I didn't think he was the absolute best shot you have of getting out of here.
And I'll still be on your team.
I'll be with you every step of the way.
I know you said you were there.
I know you said you feel badly.
Truth is I don't even remember you.
Maybe that's a good thing.
Doesn't change the fact that I regret what I did.
Doesn't change the fact that I want to make it right.
You say he the best? He is.
Well, then let's do this thing.
Uh, I know it's kind of late to bring this up, but switching sides it just occurred to me I don't think I've ever heard of it being done before.
Ever.
So, I'm gonna go outside and call my office and see if we can't arrange an appointment with the judge this afternoon.
What for? Because if we really want to do this, we're gonna need to go to court and ask permission.
Somebody tell me why we're here.
Well, as you are aware, Your Honor, Eddie Mitchell has won the right to a new trial on the murder charges brought against him in 2002.
And while that right to a new trial was won by the attorneys at the Hudson University Legal Aid Clinic, at this time, Mr.
Mitchell is requesting that I assume the role of his principal counsel.
We are simply seeking the court's permission to make that change.
And is there some reason why we shouldn't approve such a change? Mr.
Colón is failing to mention that in the original trial some 17 years ago, he was part of the prosecution team that actually put Mr.
Mitchell away.
Fascinating omission, Mr.
Colón.
I was getting to it, Your Honor.
You want to switch sides? Never heard of such a thing.
We might be making a little history here today, folks.
And does the current prosecutorial team have any reason to object? Let's start with Rule 1.
7 and 1.
11 of the American Bar Association Rules of Professional Conduct, which expressly prohibit this kind of thing.
I am aware of that, Your Honor.
But I-I'd like to call the A.
D.
A.
and the court's attention to Rule 3.
8, which implores a prosecutor, if he or she is made aware of a faulty conviction, to do everything in their power to rectify it.
And since the current occupants of the D.
A.
's office have not seen fit to answer Mr.
Mitchell's letters, that duty falls to me.
Now, I believe a great injustice has occurred.
Now, I can't give this man back the years he lost, but I can do everything in my power to see to it that he does not spend a day longer than necessary in prison.
I share your sense of outrage over what appears to be a likely act of perjury.
If not in regard to this case, then certainly in one of the five others the eyewitness in question testified.
I'm going to allow Mr.
Colón to switch sides, though I'm not certain I'm doing either him or his client a favor.
Let me be clear.
Since the eyewitness in question is no longer alive and cannot testify as to her truthfulness or lack thereof, mention of her or her testimony is strictly forbidden.
Is that understood? - Yes, Your Honor.
- Understood, Your Honor.
You still you want the job? Yes, Your Honor.
Well, since this case has been tried before, I decided to track down as many of the jurors from the first trial as I could find to try and ask them why they found Eddie guilty.
And it seemed to them he had a motive for killing Marcus Lott.
Lott was the competition.
I was reading the transcript, and that original prosecutor made Eddie sound like a hardened criminal.
And his public defender did nothing to counter that.
I mean, he was 16, selling nickel bags.
Maybe making a couple hundred a night.
Not that that's not a crime, it's just hard to believe he killed another man over that.
Most of the jurors I polled said the main reason it was so easy for them to believe that Eddie was the killer was because the defense presented no other suspects.
Bull thinks that our best strategy is to find someone anyone to present as an alternative suspect.
What about that guy Eddie worked for? What was his name? Leon.
According to what I read, he was in Miami with his family when the shooting occurred.
Rock-solid alibi.
Yeah.
Still.
The victim was a drug dealer, too.
And he was the real deal, with the rap sheet to prove it.
There must have been someone besides Eddie who had a beef with him.
Let me see what I can dig up through my old vice contacts.
So you wanted to buy some drugs, but you knew if the defendant saw you had money, he wouldn't sell you anything.
He would just take the money to cover the loans he had already made you.
- Yes, sir.
- So then what happened? So then I heard there was a new guy around, working out of the laundromat, so I went over.
And was he willing to sell you drugs? Sure.
And this was sometime around 1:00 in the morning? Yes, sir.
And while you were buying drugs from this new dealer, did anything of note happen? Yeah.
Eddie came in.
He was mad that this new guy was selling on his turf, and he was mad that I actually had money and was buying from someone else instead of paying him back.
- And did the two men argue? - Yeah.
I mean, no one hit anyone, but it was tense.
And then Marcus pulled his gun on Eddie.
Put it in his face.
Took his drugs and his cash.
Now, did Eddie have a gun? He had one with him, but, I mean, he didn't show it.
Marcus found it.
And it was empty.
And did you see what type of gun it was? Yeah.
It was a Glock.
Are you aware that Marcus Lott and Karla Angel were shot with a Glock 19? Yeah.
I heard that.
Thank you, Mr.
Grant.
I have no further questions for this witness, Your Honor.
Your witness, Mr.
Colón.
Thank you, Your Honor.
Mr.
Grant, uh, 17 years ago, how would you have described the neighborhood where that laundromat was located? Well, I mean, it was pretty sketchy back then.
And the night that Marcus Lott died, you said he was selling drugs.
Is that correct? Yes.
He was.
And when you bought drugs from Marcus Lott, didn't you mention you paid in cash? I did.
So Marcus Lott was hanging around in this dangerous neighborhood with drugs and cash.
I-Isn't it possible that maybe he was shot by a mugger or another addict someone who might have been interested in his drugs or cash? Objection Your Honor.
Calls for speculation.
Sustained.
The jury will disregard the question.
My apologies, Your Honor.
I will move on.
They never disregard a question.
Want to grab a bite before we head back to the office? By all means.
Uh you know what, guys, give me a minute.
I'll meet you guys back at the car.
Mr.
and Mrs.
Garcia.
Why are you making us relive this? Uh Mr.
and Mrs.
Garcia, believe me, I-I would never ask you to go through this unless Unless what? 17 years ago you said that man killed my sister.
My unborn nephew.
Now you're saying that he didn't? You're absolutely right.
I should have reached out to you, I should have explained what I had discovered and what I planned to do about it.
I apologize.
I'm deeply, deeply sorry.
But if you two have a moment right now, I'd be happy to walk you through Walk us through what? Your imaginary mugger theory? Your "anybody but Eddie" defense? You should be ashamed of yourself.
Hey, Benny, it's almost 2:00 in the morning.
We should call it a night.
You ever look at this photo and wonder what was going on here? 4:00 in the morning, this girl's about to have a baby.
Look at this baby blanket, all these baby clothes.
You think someone at work gave her their old baby stuff? She was thinking, "Today is one of the best days of my life.
Today is really something.
" A couple of minutes later, she was dead.
Baby was dead.
What the hell is wrong with people? I don't know, man, but it's getting late, Benny.
We got to be in court at 9:00 a.
m.
If Eddie didn't do this thing, then why can't we figure out how to prove it? Someone else did it.
Why can't we see it? Okay.
Call us a car.
Our side doing any better today? No.
But the good news is we couldn't do much worse.
You know what I don't miss about being a cop? Did you just feel the subject change? I did.
I don't know, Danny.
What don't you miss about being a cop? - The uniform? - No.
I looked good in that uniform.
I'll tell you what I don't miss.
Cop bars.
I don't miss cop bars.
They're just so full of cops.
And what's wrong with cops? I need to know this.
I'm single.
Well, they all want to buy you drinks.
That sounds fantastic.
Oh, they all want to know where you live.
And why is that? So they can go there with you.
Clearly, we're just gonna have to agree to disagree on this one.
Can you get me in? Why were you at a cop bar? Working my old contacts.
I found out that Eddie wasn't the only drug dealer that Marcus Lott ticked off back then.
A friend of Marcus' told Detective Cobb that Marcus had an issue with a dealer named George Moran.
Apparently George here was telling anyone who would listen Marcus stole his stash and that he was gonna "put the hurt on him.
" Oh Bull is gonna be beside himself.
This is exactly what he was hoping for.
Well, maybe not exactly.
What do you mean? Well, George Moran died ten years ago.
A car hit him while he was crossing Yellowstone Boulevard in Queens.
The car was never found, the driver was never caught.
You can draw your own conclusions.
The point is Benny can't put him on the stand and he can't paint him as someone with a motive to kill Marcus Lott.
At least, not with the evidence that we have.
Six foot, three.
That's a lot of guy.
It sure is.
Danny, how tall is Eddie? Five, eight.
Five, nine, tops.
Why? We thought it was the three of you.
We've got something we want to show you.
So, Marissa had this great idea that maybe we could use Eddie's height to prove that he couldn't have been the killer.
So I did a 3-D model of the crime scene.
Now, based on the trajectory of the shots and the angle of the bullet wounds, the computer seems to feel that our shooter was most likely between five, eight and five, ten.
What am I missing? That sounds like Eddie.
Great, so I'm gonna be in a coma on my couch.
Oh, oh, not so fast.
But then we took another look at the blood splatter reports and Taylor put them into the computer model and we realized something didn't make sense.
What didn't make sense? Well, there was blood all over Karla's back.
- Yeah? So? - So, at Danny's suggestion, Taylor added in motion so we could work backward and make sense of the blood splatter.
That's obviously supposed to be Karla Angel.
And as you can see, Karla was shot at very close range, in the stomach.
I don't get it.
Why'd you have the guy shot her first? Shh.
It's All right.
Let's say this is Marcus Lott.
And let's assume that he came out of this doorway here, which is the bathroom, and that he was surprised by the shooter.
Now, here's what we figured out.
Based on where Marcus's body was found, but also based on the blood splatter found on Karla's back Yeah? Karla would have had to have been down before Marcus got shot.
Ah.
Because how else would the blood have gotten there? So you think Karla Angel was shot first? It's the only thing that makes sense.
Think about it.
None of Karla's blood was on Marcus, which is why we can assume that he was still in the bathroom when she got shot.
So Karla wasn't just collateral damage like everyone assumed? You're suggesting she was the primary target? Well, that sure as hell shoots the prosecutor's theory about Eddie out of the water.
Uh, Eddie didn't have a motive for killing Karla.
He didn't even know Karla.
Great.
So now all we have to do is find someone between five, eight and five, ten who wanted to kill Karla Angel.
Preferably before tomorrow.
Good morning, Mr.
Garcia.
I apologize for knocking on your door so early.
There's been a development in the case, and I was hoping that I could speak to your wife about it.
What are you talking about? What kind of development? Well, we've uncovered some evidence indicating that your wife's sister might actually have been the target the night of the killings.
I know.
Seems kind of out of the blue.
No, it seems kind of crazy.
That makes no sense.
Everybody loved Karla.
Who would want to kill Karla? You'll say anything to get that killer out of jail.
No, Mr.
Garcia Get away from my door.
Come on, Eddie.
That laundromat was your turf.
You had to be there pretty much every night.
We know Karla was there at least three nights a week washing towels.
And she didn't talk to anybody, nobody talked to her? Well, she was on her cell phone most of the time.
I mean, I remember because at first I thought maybe she was calling the cops on me.
But then I realized she was smiling, giggling.
Saying "I love you," talking about "our baby this," "our baby that.
" Talking to her boyfriend, I guess.
Boyfriend? No.
I went through all the witness statements last night.
Her sister said Karla didn't have a boyfriend.
Said that the baby was the result of a one-night stand.
You said you were reviewing the case files last night.
You didn't happen to see Karla's phone records in there, did you? Mr.
Garcia, can you please tell the jury the exact nature of your relationship with the victim, Karla Angel? Sure.
She was my wife's sister.
My sister-in-law.
Anything else? What do you mean? I don't know.
I mean, other than that? Did you two ever do anything special together? Maybe just by yourselves? Without your wife? Play cards? Go to the movies? Make love? Order, please.
Don't make me clear the courtroom.
Mr.
Garcia would you please look at these and tell me if you recognize any of the highlighted numbers.
This is the phone number for my house.
Karla was always calling my wife.
They were sisters.
They were very close.
Thank you, Mr.
Garcia, but, eh, look again.
As you can see, a great number of these calls were made after 9:00 PM.
And isn't it true that your wife worked the night shift? As a nurse? Yes.
So explain this to me.
If your wife was at work, who was Karla talking to? At your house? Every night? For hmm 46 minutes an hour and 12 minutes over two hours? Me.
Karla was talking to me.
I'm sorry.
Thank you, Mr.
Garcia.
You didn't want to hurt your wife, and we understand that.
But could that be the reason why you killed her sister? Your sister-in-law? Because you didn't want Mrs.
Garcia to know that she was carrying your child? Mr.
Colón, you are way out of bounds.
Fair warning next time I'm citing you for contempt.
I apologize, Your Honor.
Let me wrap this up.
Isn't it true, Mr.
Garcia, that you purchased a Glock 19 the same type of gun used to kill Karla Angel and Marcus Lott a year prior to the murders? I bought it for my wife.
She worked nights.
It was a bad neighborhood.
I wanted her to be able to protect herself.
But as God is my witness, I didn't kill Karla.
I couldn't kill Karla.
I loved Karla.
One last question.
Can you actually account for your whereabouts on the night in question? I was in a motel in Maryland.
How did we not know that? I'd driven my son to the Naval Academy the day before.
My wife called me that morning, right after the police called her.
Karla and the baby were dead.
I wasn't there for Karla.
I wasn't there for my wife.
I wasn't there for anyone.
How do we not know that? Mm.
Okay walk me through this again.
Based on what I saw, Isaac seemed pretty convinced his wife knew nothing about his affair.
But his wife's reaction there was no shock.
No surprise.
Just fear and anger.
You think she would really do that? Kill her own sister over a man? We need to put Maria on the stand.
Yeah, I get it.
I just wish we had something.
Anything to actually tie her to the crime scene.
Hey, what if we're wrong about these clothes? What are you talking about? Uh, the gifts.
The baby clothes.
What if she didn't get them from people at work? I don't know.
What difference does that make? Might make all the difference.
This is your son's baby blanket, isn't it? Yeah? Is that your, uh, son's initials? WMG William Michael Garcia? Right there in the corner, right? Yes.
That looks like my son's blanket.
Now take a look at this photo.
See all the baby clothes on the floor? Gift bag there on the side? You give these to your sister too? Maybe.
I I don't know why.
It was 17 years ago.
Well you mean you don't remember? I mean, it was 4:00 in the morning, for goodness' sake.
How often do you go to the laundromat at 4:00 in the morning? Mrs.
Garcia, you see where I'm going with this, right? Your marriage is falling apart.
Your son was leaving home.
You just got off of work.
You didn't want to be alone in an empty house, so you wanted to talk to the person you trusted most in the world.
You wanted to talk to your sister.
Isn't that right? - I guess.
- So, you put this bag together of baby things, and she told you to meet her in the laundromat.
Again, it was 17 years ago.
But when you gave Karla that blanket that blanket, your baby's blanket she must've felt incredibly guilty.
I mean, after all, she was carrying your husband's child.
Objection.
Is the attorney gonna ask a question? Ask a question, Mr.
Colón.
She told you about the affair, didn't she? She told me she loved him.
She said she loved Isaac.
And then she told you she was carrying Isaac's baby, didn't she? I mean, your baby was leaving home, and she was coming to take your husband, too.
So you pulled out your gun and you killed your sister.
Didn't you? And you let that innocent man go to prison for 17 years.
Congratulations, Eddie.
Very happy for you.
Uh, thank you.
All of you.
Wish I could somehow give you back those 17 years.
Uh, it's okay.
You gave me back the next 40.
Least I could do.
Well, so now that you're a free man, what's the first thing you're gonna do? Uh, truthfully? I think I just want to walk around.
Just walk around and not have somebody tell me it's time to get up, time for lights out, time to eat, time to shower, just walk around.
As long as I want.
Well, when you are done doing that, I know the city gave you a check for $3,700 the money you made when you were behind bars but I hope you will come and see us, so we can refer you to an attorney who will help you sue for wrongful imprisonment.
And I would love to put you in touch with some folks who might help you get reacquainted with the world.
Maybe help you find some work.
You know, actually, right now I really just want to walk.
But thank you.
As you wish.
You guys mind if I I've been trying to set up a dinner with my daughter for This is the first free night I have in a long time, and I would Go, go, go.
Okay.
Thanks, Benny.
Ah, Benny.
Thanks for letting me do this.
Oh, come on.
Benny! From me to you.
Okay, I give up.
You see, you put 'em in your ears whenever Izzy snores.
Just don't tell her I gave them to you.
Thank you, Uncle Benny.
Don't ever say I never gave you anything.
You never gave me anything.
Ah, you're so predictable.
You owe Leon money.
And who the hell are you? Does Leon know you're selling bags in his territory? This is Leon's territory.
We all work for Leon.
You can't just blow in here and start hustling without getting the nod from Leon.
Now, get your money back and give it to me.
Give the man back his drugs.
Get your money and give it to me.
Put your hands above your head, man.
Come on.
How old are you? Oh Tsk, tsk, tsk, tsk.
It's empty.
So look, little man.
You need to walk out of here and never come back.
This is my territory now.
The end of June, we are almost halfway through the year, and it's 87 degrees in the city that never sleeps.
According to his ID he's Marcus Lott.
26 years old.
Bunch of priors for possession and distribution.
As you can see, somebody emptied a whole lot of ammo into Mr.
Lott, who, by the way, had a lot of cash and illegal drugs in his possession.
And who is she? Name is Karla Angel.
24.
Cause of death appears to be a single gunshot wound to the abdomen.
Must have been expecting a boy.
Neighbors say she worked at the 24-hour gym up the street.
Came down here a couple times a night to wash towels whenever the machines were full at the gym.
And these drug dealers good news is they're killing each other.
Bad news not fast enough.
It's funny you should say that.
Customer from last night said that Mr.
Lott was with a kid from the neighborhood.
His name's, uh Eddie Mitchell.
Doesn't have any priors, but everyone around here knew he sold nickel bags and apparently carried a gun.
Hey, I remember you.
Hi, Dad.
Hey, I've been leaving messages for you all over the place.
I know.
And I'm sorry, I just I got a lot going on.
Well, yeah.
I mean, big journalism scholarship, going to Jordan for a semester.
Crazy-proud father to deal with.
You want to have dinner? Sure.
Absolutely.
Thing is, uh, I'm about to start this case, and I don't know which night.
Okay if I get back to you? Sure, Dad.
I just I want to do it soon.
I do too.
I love you.
Mr.
Palmer? Eddie Mitchell? Convicted in 2002 of the triple murder of Marcus Lott, Karla Angel, and the unborn child of Karla Angel.
You're the lawyer from the clinic? You're here 'cause of the letter? Well, yeah.
We got it.
But full disclosure I'm not a real lawyer.
I'm a law student.
I'm working with the Hudson University Legal Aid clinic as part of my studies.
My professor Dr.
Upton he's a real lawyer.
And, from time to time, he chooses to take on a case like yours, and then students like me get to assist him, go to court with him and participate in the trial.
That is, if we can win you the right to a new trial, which I think we can.
You okay? You know, I've written so many letters.
To the warden, to the D.
A.
, to that public defender who just sat there and let me get convicted in the first place.
You said you think a witness lied during the trial? - Yeah.
- Now that was 17 years ago.
You're just realizing that now? Well, there-there was this lady.
She was a prostitute.
And she'd be out on the street all hours of the night.
Said she was looking through the window of the laundromat and saw me shoot those people.
But I didn't shoot anybody.
So she had to be lying, right? Yeah, uh, okay.
But again, how is this different than 17 years ago? Well, about three months ago, I was out in the yard here, and I'm talking to this guy, Terrence.
And we're talking about our cases, and Terrence tells me there's a prostitute testified against him.
Said she saw him knife a dude.
But she couldn't have, because he didn't do it.
And-and I asked him what her name was, and he said Heather Bent.
Same name as my prostitute.
Okay.
Well, look, I can understand how that kind of coincidence would make you suspicious, but that's not proof that she was lying.
Yeah, well what if I told you it was the exact same cop? The exact same cop, and the exact same witness.
Two different murders.
You tell me what are the chances? I'm telling you, the walls shake.
I don't want to have this conversation, Bull.
It's my sister we're talking about.
It's like a freight train, Benny.
Night falls, we slip into bed, she sleeps and I hold on for dear life.
I looked it up.
Pregnant women snore.
That's just what they do.
But I need to sleep.
Don't look at me.
I don't know what to tell you.
Dr.
Bull.
Any way I could get, uh, five minutes? Hmm, I'm jealous.
Sounds fascinating.
I can't lie.
So far, it has been pretty damn thrilling.
I mean, we won our motion.
We won our client the right to a new trial.
Anyway, my professor asked me to second chair for him.
And I'm thinking it's a commitment of two, three weeks.
Of course, you know these things.
Could be over in a day.
Anyway, I'd really like to do it.
Hey.
Bull said you got a live one.
- He told you about it, huh? - Ha, ha, he sure did.
How'd you get the judge to order a new trial? Actually, the client did all the heavy lifting.
He realized that he and another inmate were convicted based on eyewitness testimony from the same witness.
And then, once I did a little digging, the same woman testified in five different murder trials.
Oops.
Pretty damn convenient.
You gonna get her to recant? I would if I could, but she died a while back.
The good news is is that the judge agreed that it was highly probable that the witness perjured herself.
Especially once we realized that she testified in five different cases for the same detective.
Wow.
That's some pretty flagrant misconduct.
How'd the D.
A.
's office miss this? Cases span seven years.
Different A.
D.
A.
s in each case.
I'm sure they're gonna say that it's plausible that they had no idea this one witness was making the rounds.
I hear you.
Well, it's not like my client's case got a lot of attention.
Drug dealer guns down another dealer in a Bronx laundromat? Wait a second, what's your client's name? Eddie Mitchell.
Seriously? Eddie Mitchell? You have been snookered, my friend.
Eddie Mitchell's as guilty as they come.
Killed three people, one of them not even born yet.
That guy deserves to be in prison.
You know this case? Yeah, I know this case.
It's my case.
No.
No, it says right here that Bradley Freeman was the prosecutor in Eddie's first trial.
I was second chair.
My name might not be on that file, but I was there.
It was my first murder trial.
See, here's what you're not getting, Chunk.
It wasn't just the eyewitness testimony that put Eddie away.
There's lots of evidence against him.
Fiber from Eddie's clothing underneath one of the victim's fingernails.
A fight with one of the victims earlier that evening, witnessed by a whole different group of people.
That young punk moved a lot of product through his neighborhood.
Well, be that as it may, without the eyewitness testimony, I think the case against Eddie is purely circumstantial, and I think we can win.
And more importantly, I believe Eddie's innocent.
Well, it's good to believe in things.
Five cases.
Same witness, same detective.
Heard you the first time.
My God.
Benjamin Colón.
I don't think you've aged a day.
Valerie.
Been a long time.
Ah.
Fancy suit, fancy haircut.
You've come up in the world, Benny.
Please.
So, what brings you out to a cop bar at 2:00 in the morning? Ooh, uh couldn't sleep.
I had a question, need an answer.
Eddie Mitchell? The D.
A.
's rattling your cage too? How 'bout we worry about the crimes from this decade? A-Actually, I heard about it a different way, but, uh, I just I just need to ask you.
I need you to tell me.
That was a righteous conviction, wasn't it, Valerie? What are you talking about? Of course it was.
Absolutely.
And-and tell me about this woman.
This sex worker.
She testified for you, what five times in five different cases? She was a source, Benny.
She was a streetwalker.
You walk the streets, you see things.
I know, I know.
Um But you wouldn't you wouldn't encourage her to lie, would you? Help to make the case go down easy? What are you doing? Are you wearing a wire for the D.
A.
now? - What? - Do you not remember? This 16-year-old kid was selling drugs and carrying a gun.
It was always pretty open-and-shut.
A-Are you worried that someone's gonna drag you into this? You were second chair.
You were invisible, my friend.
No one even knows you were there.
Don't worry.
I'll take the heat for this, which I am fine with.
'Cause I know that conviction is just, no matter how I got it, 'cause I know what that little punk did.
Wait a second.
Uh Now it you sounds like you're contradicting yourself.
I am not contradicting anything.
I'm telling you I know what that little bastard did.
But how? 'Cause your source told you or you told your source? Here's the thing.
My source is dead.
So, no matter what this little crybaby says in court, it is what I say it is.
Oh, Valerie.
Sorry.
Haven't had my coffee yet.
So, tell me what's going on.
You ever notice that there are babies everywhere? Kids, kids, kids, kids.
My boss is having one.
And another fellow I work with he's got an older one.
Well, you know, it's, uh it's definitely going around.
Um, what does this have to do with you, Marissa? I lied to my husband.
We were all set to try.
IVF.
Artificial insemination.
Both got tested.
And I was terrified.
Convinced I was barren.
Does anybody say that word anymore? Barren? It's a horrible word.
And anyway, it turned out that he was the one that was barren.
Mm-hmm.
How did he take it? I never told him.
I lied.
Told him I changed my mind about the whole thing.
Well, it's, um It's kind of a sweet lie.
I know, right? Except Of course he doesn't know I lied.
I'm I'm sorry.
I'm confused.
Why are you upset and-and 'Cause he's acting like he hates me.
Hates you? Wh-Why would he hate you? For changing my mind, I guess.
He barely speaks to me, doesn't touch me.
I may have misspoken last night.
Maybe I can testify for you.
Testify to what? You weren't there.
Well, I can't just let it stand.
The victims were shot with a Glock 19.
And we know that Eddie had an empty Glock on him when he went toe-to-toe with Marcus earlier that night.
That's funny.
I don't remember seeing that weapon on the evidence list.
Ah.
I remember now.
He threw it in the river.
My client threw his gun in the river? Oh, yeah.
Yeah.
Cops saw him do it.
They were chasing him at the time.
Three days after the murder.
I don't get it.
Why would he wait three days to get rid of the murder weapon? And why would he do it where the police could see him? Because, as I recall, he didn't even know it was a murder weapon.
He was 16 years old and he was worrying about getting busted for carrying an unlicensed firearm.
I The public defender actually put him on the stand.
You almost never put the accused on the stand in a murder case.
Man, they sold him out.
We all sold him out.
Anyway.
I will get out of your hair and let you do your work.
Hey, uh That professor of yours he any good? Why do you ask? That would be a no.
A no? You guys are crazy.
No, not us guys.
This was all his idea.
17 years, Bull.
Think of everything you've done the last 17 years.
Think-think of everything that's happened to you between the ages of 16 and 33.
No.
I don't want to think about that.
It is a lifetime, Bull.
And I helped steal it from this young man.
I want to represent him.
I need to represent him.
I need to right this wrong.
What are you talking about? I'm not even sure it's your wrong to right.
In fact, I'm pretty damn sure this isn't even your case.
Well, Chunk's gonna speak to his professor.
I am? Help me, Chunk.
Tell me your professor will never go along with this.
Oh, he'll definitely go for it.
The clinic has more cases than it can handle.
It's me I'm worried about.
I don't want to give up second chair.
You don't have to give up second chair.
Like I said, I'm Team Benny.
Always was, always will be.
Look, Bull, let's just go meet with the guy.
Let's look him in the eye.
See how we feel about him, see how he feels about us.
I don't understand.
I thought you and your professor were gonna represent me.
Absolutely.
If you want the legal aid clinic to represent you, that is your right, and we stand ready to do it.
But I wouldn't be asking you to consider Mr.
Colón if I didn't think he was the absolute best shot you have of getting out of here.
And I'll still be on your team.
I'll be with you every step of the way.
I know you said you were there.
I know you said you feel badly.
Truth is I don't even remember you.
Maybe that's a good thing.
Doesn't change the fact that I regret what I did.
Doesn't change the fact that I want to make it right.
You say he the best? He is.
Well, then let's do this thing.
Uh, I know it's kind of late to bring this up, but switching sides it just occurred to me I don't think I've ever heard of it being done before.
Ever.
So, I'm gonna go outside and call my office and see if we can't arrange an appointment with the judge this afternoon.
What for? Because if we really want to do this, we're gonna need to go to court and ask permission.
Somebody tell me why we're here.
Well, as you are aware, Your Honor, Eddie Mitchell has won the right to a new trial on the murder charges brought against him in 2002.
And while that right to a new trial was won by the attorneys at the Hudson University Legal Aid Clinic, at this time, Mr.
Mitchell is requesting that I assume the role of his principal counsel.
We are simply seeking the court's permission to make that change.
And is there some reason why we shouldn't approve such a change? Mr.
Colón is failing to mention that in the original trial some 17 years ago, he was part of the prosecution team that actually put Mr.
Mitchell away.
Fascinating omission, Mr.
Colón.
I was getting to it, Your Honor.
You want to switch sides? Never heard of such a thing.
We might be making a little history here today, folks.
And does the current prosecutorial team have any reason to object? Let's start with Rule 1.
7 and 1.
11 of the American Bar Association Rules of Professional Conduct, which expressly prohibit this kind of thing.
I am aware of that, Your Honor.
But I-I'd like to call the A.
D.
A.
and the court's attention to Rule 3.
8, which implores a prosecutor, if he or she is made aware of a faulty conviction, to do everything in their power to rectify it.
And since the current occupants of the D.
A.
's office have not seen fit to answer Mr.
Mitchell's letters, that duty falls to me.
Now, I believe a great injustice has occurred.
Now, I can't give this man back the years he lost, but I can do everything in my power to see to it that he does not spend a day longer than necessary in prison.
I share your sense of outrage over what appears to be a likely act of perjury.
If not in regard to this case, then certainly in one of the five others the eyewitness in question testified.
I'm going to allow Mr.
Colón to switch sides, though I'm not certain I'm doing either him or his client a favor.
Let me be clear.
Since the eyewitness in question is no longer alive and cannot testify as to her truthfulness or lack thereof, mention of her or her testimony is strictly forbidden.
Is that understood? - Yes, Your Honor.
- Understood, Your Honor.
You still you want the job? Yes, Your Honor.
Well, since this case has been tried before, I decided to track down as many of the jurors from the first trial as I could find to try and ask them why they found Eddie guilty.
And it seemed to them he had a motive for killing Marcus Lott.
Lott was the competition.
I was reading the transcript, and that original prosecutor made Eddie sound like a hardened criminal.
And his public defender did nothing to counter that.
I mean, he was 16, selling nickel bags.
Maybe making a couple hundred a night.
Not that that's not a crime, it's just hard to believe he killed another man over that.
Most of the jurors I polled said the main reason it was so easy for them to believe that Eddie was the killer was because the defense presented no other suspects.
Bull thinks that our best strategy is to find someone anyone to present as an alternative suspect.
What about that guy Eddie worked for? What was his name? Leon.
According to what I read, he was in Miami with his family when the shooting occurred.
Rock-solid alibi.
Yeah.
Still.
The victim was a drug dealer, too.
And he was the real deal, with the rap sheet to prove it.
There must have been someone besides Eddie who had a beef with him.
Let me see what I can dig up through my old vice contacts.
So you wanted to buy some drugs, but you knew if the defendant saw you had money, he wouldn't sell you anything.
He would just take the money to cover the loans he had already made you.
- Yes, sir.
- So then what happened? So then I heard there was a new guy around, working out of the laundromat, so I went over.
And was he willing to sell you drugs? Sure.
And this was sometime around 1:00 in the morning? Yes, sir.
And while you were buying drugs from this new dealer, did anything of note happen? Yeah.
Eddie came in.
He was mad that this new guy was selling on his turf, and he was mad that I actually had money and was buying from someone else instead of paying him back.
- And did the two men argue? - Yeah.
I mean, no one hit anyone, but it was tense.
And then Marcus pulled his gun on Eddie.
Put it in his face.
Took his drugs and his cash.
Now, did Eddie have a gun? He had one with him, but, I mean, he didn't show it.
Marcus found it.
And it was empty.
And did you see what type of gun it was? Yeah.
It was a Glock.
Are you aware that Marcus Lott and Karla Angel were shot with a Glock 19? Yeah.
I heard that.
Thank you, Mr.
Grant.
I have no further questions for this witness, Your Honor.
Your witness, Mr.
Colón.
Thank you, Your Honor.
Mr.
Grant, uh, 17 years ago, how would you have described the neighborhood where that laundromat was located? Well, I mean, it was pretty sketchy back then.
And the night that Marcus Lott died, you said he was selling drugs.
Is that correct? Yes.
He was.
And when you bought drugs from Marcus Lott, didn't you mention you paid in cash? I did.
So Marcus Lott was hanging around in this dangerous neighborhood with drugs and cash.
I-Isn't it possible that maybe he was shot by a mugger or another addict someone who might have been interested in his drugs or cash? Objection Your Honor.
Calls for speculation.
Sustained.
The jury will disregard the question.
My apologies, Your Honor.
I will move on.
They never disregard a question.
Want to grab a bite before we head back to the office? By all means.
Uh you know what, guys, give me a minute.
I'll meet you guys back at the car.
Mr.
and Mrs.
Garcia.
Why are you making us relive this? Uh Mr.
and Mrs.
Garcia, believe me, I-I would never ask you to go through this unless Unless what? 17 years ago you said that man killed my sister.
My unborn nephew.
Now you're saying that he didn't? You're absolutely right.
I should have reached out to you, I should have explained what I had discovered and what I planned to do about it.
I apologize.
I'm deeply, deeply sorry.
But if you two have a moment right now, I'd be happy to walk you through Walk us through what? Your imaginary mugger theory? Your "anybody but Eddie" defense? You should be ashamed of yourself.
Hey, Benny, it's almost 2:00 in the morning.
We should call it a night.
You ever look at this photo and wonder what was going on here? 4:00 in the morning, this girl's about to have a baby.
Look at this baby blanket, all these baby clothes.
You think someone at work gave her their old baby stuff? She was thinking, "Today is one of the best days of my life.
Today is really something.
" A couple of minutes later, she was dead.
Baby was dead.
What the hell is wrong with people? I don't know, man, but it's getting late, Benny.
We got to be in court at 9:00 a.
m.
If Eddie didn't do this thing, then why can't we figure out how to prove it? Someone else did it.
Why can't we see it? Okay.
Call us a car.
Our side doing any better today? No.
But the good news is we couldn't do much worse.
You know what I don't miss about being a cop? Did you just feel the subject change? I did.
I don't know, Danny.
What don't you miss about being a cop? - The uniform? - No.
I looked good in that uniform.
I'll tell you what I don't miss.
Cop bars.
I don't miss cop bars.
They're just so full of cops.
And what's wrong with cops? I need to know this.
I'm single.
Well, they all want to buy you drinks.
That sounds fantastic.
Oh, they all want to know where you live.
And why is that? So they can go there with you.
Clearly, we're just gonna have to agree to disagree on this one.
Can you get me in? Why were you at a cop bar? Working my old contacts.
I found out that Eddie wasn't the only drug dealer that Marcus Lott ticked off back then.
A friend of Marcus' told Detective Cobb that Marcus had an issue with a dealer named George Moran.
Apparently George here was telling anyone who would listen Marcus stole his stash and that he was gonna "put the hurt on him.
" Oh Bull is gonna be beside himself.
This is exactly what he was hoping for.
Well, maybe not exactly.
What do you mean? Well, George Moran died ten years ago.
A car hit him while he was crossing Yellowstone Boulevard in Queens.
The car was never found, the driver was never caught.
You can draw your own conclusions.
The point is Benny can't put him on the stand and he can't paint him as someone with a motive to kill Marcus Lott.
At least, not with the evidence that we have.
Six foot, three.
That's a lot of guy.
It sure is.
Danny, how tall is Eddie? Five, eight.
Five, nine, tops.
Why? We thought it was the three of you.
We've got something we want to show you.
So, Marissa had this great idea that maybe we could use Eddie's height to prove that he couldn't have been the killer.
So I did a 3-D model of the crime scene.
Now, based on the trajectory of the shots and the angle of the bullet wounds, the computer seems to feel that our shooter was most likely between five, eight and five, ten.
What am I missing? That sounds like Eddie.
Great, so I'm gonna be in a coma on my couch.
Oh, oh, not so fast.
But then we took another look at the blood splatter reports and Taylor put them into the computer model and we realized something didn't make sense.
What didn't make sense? Well, there was blood all over Karla's back.
- Yeah? So? - So, at Danny's suggestion, Taylor added in motion so we could work backward and make sense of the blood splatter.
That's obviously supposed to be Karla Angel.
And as you can see, Karla was shot at very close range, in the stomach.
I don't get it.
Why'd you have the guy shot her first? Shh.
It's All right.
Let's say this is Marcus Lott.
And let's assume that he came out of this doorway here, which is the bathroom, and that he was surprised by the shooter.
Now, here's what we figured out.
Based on where Marcus's body was found, but also based on the blood splatter found on Karla's back Yeah? Karla would have had to have been down before Marcus got shot.
Ah.
Because how else would the blood have gotten there? So you think Karla Angel was shot first? It's the only thing that makes sense.
Think about it.
None of Karla's blood was on Marcus, which is why we can assume that he was still in the bathroom when she got shot.
So Karla wasn't just collateral damage like everyone assumed? You're suggesting she was the primary target? Well, that sure as hell shoots the prosecutor's theory about Eddie out of the water.
Uh, Eddie didn't have a motive for killing Karla.
He didn't even know Karla.
Great.
So now all we have to do is find someone between five, eight and five, ten who wanted to kill Karla Angel.
Preferably before tomorrow.
Good morning, Mr.
Garcia.
I apologize for knocking on your door so early.
There's been a development in the case, and I was hoping that I could speak to your wife about it.
What are you talking about? What kind of development? Well, we've uncovered some evidence indicating that your wife's sister might actually have been the target the night of the killings.
I know.
Seems kind of out of the blue.
No, it seems kind of crazy.
That makes no sense.
Everybody loved Karla.
Who would want to kill Karla? You'll say anything to get that killer out of jail.
No, Mr.
Garcia Get away from my door.
Come on, Eddie.
That laundromat was your turf.
You had to be there pretty much every night.
We know Karla was there at least three nights a week washing towels.
And she didn't talk to anybody, nobody talked to her? Well, she was on her cell phone most of the time.
I mean, I remember because at first I thought maybe she was calling the cops on me.
But then I realized she was smiling, giggling.
Saying "I love you," talking about "our baby this," "our baby that.
" Talking to her boyfriend, I guess.
Boyfriend? No.
I went through all the witness statements last night.
Her sister said Karla didn't have a boyfriend.
Said that the baby was the result of a one-night stand.
You said you were reviewing the case files last night.
You didn't happen to see Karla's phone records in there, did you? Mr.
Garcia, can you please tell the jury the exact nature of your relationship with the victim, Karla Angel? Sure.
She was my wife's sister.
My sister-in-law.
Anything else? What do you mean? I don't know.
I mean, other than that? Did you two ever do anything special together? Maybe just by yourselves? Without your wife? Play cards? Go to the movies? Make love? Order, please.
Don't make me clear the courtroom.
Mr.
Garcia would you please look at these and tell me if you recognize any of the highlighted numbers.
This is the phone number for my house.
Karla was always calling my wife.
They were sisters.
They were very close.
Thank you, Mr.
Garcia, but, eh, look again.
As you can see, a great number of these calls were made after 9:00 PM.
And isn't it true that your wife worked the night shift? As a nurse? Yes.
So explain this to me.
If your wife was at work, who was Karla talking to? At your house? Every night? For hmm 46 minutes an hour and 12 minutes over two hours? Me.
Karla was talking to me.
I'm sorry.
Thank you, Mr.
Garcia.
You didn't want to hurt your wife, and we understand that.
But could that be the reason why you killed her sister? Your sister-in-law? Because you didn't want Mrs.
Garcia to know that she was carrying your child? Mr.
Colón, you are way out of bounds.
Fair warning next time I'm citing you for contempt.
I apologize, Your Honor.
Let me wrap this up.
Isn't it true, Mr.
Garcia, that you purchased a Glock 19 the same type of gun used to kill Karla Angel and Marcus Lott a year prior to the murders? I bought it for my wife.
She worked nights.
It was a bad neighborhood.
I wanted her to be able to protect herself.
But as God is my witness, I didn't kill Karla.
I couldn't kill Karla.
I loved Karla.
One last question.
Can you actually account for your whereabouts on the night in question? I was in a motel in Maryland.
How did we not know that? I'd driven my son to the Naval Academy the day before.
My wife called me that morning, right after the police called her.
Karla and the baby were dead.
I wasn't there for Karla.
I wasn't there for my wife.
I wasn't there for anyone.
How do we not know that? Mm.
Okay walk me through this again.
Based on what I saw, Isaac seemed pretty convinced his wife knew nothing about his affair.
But his wife's reaction there was no shock.
No surprise.
Just fear and anger.
You think she would really do that? Kill her own sister over a man? We need to put Maria on the stand.
Yeah, I get it.
I just wish we had something.
Anything to actually tie her to the crime scene.
Hey, what if we're wrong about these clothes? What are you talking about? Uh, the gifts.
The baby clothes.
What if she didn't get them from people at work? I don't know.
What difference does that make? Might make all the difference.
This is your son's baby blanket, isn't it? Yeah? Is that your, uh, son's initials? WMG William Michael Garcia? Right there in the corner, right? Yes.
That looks like my son's blanket.
Now take a look at this photo.
See all the baby clothes on the floor? Gift bag there on the side? You give these to your sister too? Maybe.
I I don't know why.
It was 17 years ago.
Well you mean you don't remember? I mean, it was 4:00 in the morning, for goodness' sake.
How often do you go to the laundromat at 4:00 in the morning? Mrs.
Garcia, you see where I'm going with this, right? Your marriage is falling apart.
Your son was leaving home.
You just got off of work.
You didn't want to be alone in an empty house, so you wanted to talk to the person you trusted most in the world.
You wanted to talk to your sister.
Isn't that right? - I guess.
- So, you put this bag together of baby things, and she told you to meet her in the laundromat.
Again, it was 17 years ago.
But when you gave Karla that blanket that blanket, your baby's blanket she must've felt incredibly guilty.
I mean, after all, she was carrying your husband's child.
Objection.
Is the attorney gonna ask a question? Ask a question, Mr.
Colón.
She told you about the affair, didn't she? She told me she loved him.
She said she loved Isaac.
And then she told you she was carrying Isaac's baby, didn't she? I mean, your baby was leaving home, and she was coming to take your husband, too.
So you pulled out your gun and you killed your sister.
Didn't you? And you let that innocent man go to prison for 17 years.
Congratulations, Eddie.
Very happy for you.
Uh, thank you.
All of you.
Wish I could somehow give you back those 17 years.
Uh, it's okay.
You gave me back the next 40.
Least I could do.
Well, so now that you're a free man, what's the first thing you're gonna do? Uh, truthfully? I think I just want to walk around.
Just walk around and not have somebody tell me it's time to get up, time for lights out, time to eat, time to shower, just walk around.
As long as I want.
Well, when you are done doing that, I know the city gave you a check for $3,700 the money you made when you were behind bars but I hope you will come and see us, so we can refer you to an attorney who will help you sue for wrongful imprisonment.
And I would love to put you in touch with some folks who might help you get reacquainted with the world.
Maybe help you find some work.
You know, actually, right now I really just want to walk.
But thank you.
As you wish.
You guys mind if I I've been trying to set up a dinner with my daughter for This is the first free night I have in a long time, and I would Go, go, go.
Okay.
Thanks, Benny.
Ah, Benny.
Thanks for letting me do this.
Oh, come on.
Benny! From me to you.
Okay, I give up.
You see, you put 'em in your ears whenever Izzy snores.
Just don't tell her I gave them to you.
Thank you, Uncle Benny.
Don't ever say I never gave you anything.
You never gave me anything.
Ah, you're so predictable.