JAG s04e05 Episode Script

Dragon 2, Birdman, let's go home.
Roger that, Birdman.
Break right.
Break right.
Dragon 2, I'm hit.
Can you make the beach? No.
She's breaking up.
Get out of there, Birdman.
Get out of there.
Eject.
Eject.
You did it, Birdman.
You finally flew the nest.
Your visitor's here.
Name that tune, commander.
"Don't Fence Me In.
" Thank you.
I'll be at the door.
Thanks for arranging my bond.
Second-degree murder.
That's what a year in a psychiatric hospital has done? I forced a man to cough up his pills.
- Does that sound like murder to you? - He killed himself as a result.
That was not his intention.
Dick La Croix was a Vietnam Intruder pilot from 1967 to '70.
Flew 36 missions before a deck crash trapped him inside his cockpit for two hours.
He suffered posttraumatic stress disorder ever since.
All Dick would ever talk about was his last good memory of the war.
Three weeks earlier he'd been rescued after ejecting over the South China Sea.
Now, the other night, I didn't see anything, I was asleep, but the word was that Dick was shouting flyer lingo just before he went.
If he'd swallowed his pills, he wouldn't have been hallucinating.
No, no.
He would have done what he did every day: Drooled on his shirt and soiled his pants.
I gave the Birdman back his freewill.
You were playing God.
No, the doctors do that when they prescribe antipsychotics.
No matter what this wrought, commander, I did the right thing.
In a war-stress recovery unit, the patient doesn't get to determine treatment.
Call me a trendsetter.
Most of the patients in this ward have been medicated into submission.
That's what we're talking about here.
Self-determination, taking back control of one's life.
The state wants to put you in prison, Roscoe.
How much control are you gonna have there? Well, that's why I called you.
This is the second time Roscoe Martin has been your responsibility.
A man discharged from the military, what, 30 years ago? He has you in his pocket, commander.
The answer is, no.
I need you here.
- Sir-- - I can't keep granting you leave every time someone dies at his hand.
- Admiral, I under-- - What is going on between you two? Why do you keep coming to his rescue? What in God's name has he done to earn your loyalty? He fought a war, sir, just like you.
Like every man who went to Vietnam and came back to embarrassed looks.
Roscoe Martin is not every man.
He deserted his platoon and betrayed his fellow POWs.
And he spent the rest of his life, admiral, paying for those mistakes.
Sir, I admit Roscoe Martin is a handful.
I guess, to me, he represents the half million who were defined by that war.
Four years ago, commander of my old SEAL platoon started talking to himself in public.
After six months of outpatient treatment, he was admitted to the local VA hospital.
So I went to see him.
Took a armful of board games with me.
When I got there, he was all drugged up, kept falling asleep, so I left the board games with the nurse.
We put them on a table.
A few months later, I came back to see him.
By that time, he had stopped communicating completely.
The board games were exactly where I left them.
They had never been touched.
Last time I saw him, he was completely bedridden, wearing diapers.
Where is the respect? Permission to find out, sir.
- What's going on? - Housecleaning, sir.
United States Navy v.
Gentilli.
Apparently, you and I prosecuted.
Do you remember this? I don't remember what I had for breakfast, Mac.
- Pumpernickel bagel, sir.
- Thanks for noticing, Bud.
- I'll get those.
- That's okay.
I got it.
- Excuse me.
- Sure.
- Harriet, be careful.
- How about this one? District of Columbia v.
Roscoe L.
Martin.
Accordion playing, former POW, skewered his Vietcong captor on a Georgetown street.
- What was his motive? - Revenge.
He had been tricked into revealing the names of the camp's aviators.
He was then forced to watch as they executed the rest of them.
- Where'd he end up? - In trouble again.
He's in a war stress recovery unit in a local VA facility.
I'm trying to keep him out of prison.
Look, can you handle the Hinshaw case alone? - Yeah.
- Thank you.
Don't do it.
You just concluded 18 years of searching for your father.
Don't let Roscoe Martin drag you back into the jungle.
It's a matter of principle, Mac.
I owe it to the men of that war.
No, Harm.
It's deeper than that.
You are replacing one obsession with another.
You're overreacting, major.
This is me turning a negative into a positive.
I'm just trying to prevent one more man from paying for Vietnam with the rest of his life.
What about your life? What about a relationship, a child, your future after the Navy? Or is that just not as important? Those things are important to me.
This is one case, Mac.
- It's hardly an obsession.
- You could walk away at any time? - Any time.
- How about now? Dr.
Inge, as head of the war stress recovery unit at the Paley Medical Center, would you explain its function and that of Section B? WSR is an open-unit facility designed to help veterans overcome war-related disorders.
Section B is a secured ward for patients considered less stable, like Richard La Croix and Roscoe Martin.
What was Mr.
La Croix's clinical diagnosis and condition? He was suffering from long-term psychosis.
Medication was necessary to eliminate the hallucinations and to protect him from harming himself.
And Mr.
Martin? Roscoe Martin has paranoid personality disorder, which manifests itself as a pervasive distrust of others.
His programme is drug-free, relying instead on group and individual therapy.
How does Mr.
Martin relate to his environment? Aggressively.
He is the most disruptive patient in Section B.
Would you describe Mr.
Martin's relationship to Richard La Croix? He would badger him ceaselessly.
Your witness, counsellor.
Dr.
Inge, do you believe that a person has a right to his own mind? Not if he uses it to hurt himself or others.
Does the state have a right to take it from him or is it obligated to provide him the means to recover it? Recovery is always the goal.
Medication is used to control the symptoms, not to eliminate awareness.
Was Richard La Croix communicative? At times.
Isn't it true, doctor, that the only time he spoke was in the presence of Roscoe Martin? I believe so.
I'd like to enter into evidence, Your Honour, Defence Exhibit 1, a 1994 directive from the Veterans Administration, prescribing a 20 percent budget cutback at the Paley facility.
Doctor, was your division affected by these rollbacks? We coped.
By cutting staff and reducing programmes.
Well, some of that went on, yes.
Which resulted in more medication and less therapy.
More medication was prescribed but only as a consequence of patient behaviour.
They weren't responding to the reduced therapy? - Your Honour, objection.
- Withdrawn.
Doctor, if the ward was secured, how was it that Richard La Croix was able to jump ten storeys to his death? That morning, during activities in the common room, a patient threw a metal chair at the window gate and, unbeknownst to the staff, loosened the screws from the plaster wall.
Mr.
La Croix was able to pull it free.
It was not, as you are about to suggest, negligence on the part of the staff.
If they had known about it, they would have fixed it.
And if Mr.
La Croix had been on his medication, he would have been nowhere near it.
Mr.
Oakley, can you tell us what happened that night? I walked into the common room as La Croix was jumping.
What did you do? I ran over to the window, but it was too late.
Was there anyone else in the room with him at the time? Yeah.
There was someone in the back.
- Did you get a look at him? - I did.
It was Roscoe Martin.
He was in his wheelchair, watching.
I told you, I was asleep in my room.
- He's setting me up.
- Why would he lie? Because he doesn't like me, commander.
Haven't you noticed that? When I was first admitted to the hospital, he tried to confiscate my flag.
Told me it was against the rules.
Well, I informed him that this flag represents my right to challenge those rules.
He's lying to get at you? Look, you interviewed him before the trial, right? He never said a word about seeing me in that room, did he? He said he was having trouble remembering details.
There you go.
Doesn't mean he's lying, Roscoe.
But even if he is, how do I prove it? The independent psych eval I had done on you proves you have paranoid tendencies.
That's not a disorder.
It's his word against yours.
Who would you believe? Mr.
Oakley, you say you saw the defendant watching from his wheelchair.
- Were the lights on in the room? - They were off.
- So it was dark? - That's right.
Did you question the witness, ask him what he was doing there? No.
I went down to the street to check on La Croix.
Afterwards, perhaps? Well, he was gone by then.
Why wasn't this revelation in the police report, sir? Well, I remembered later.
Wasn't something that stuck with you.
Of the patients in Section B, how many are confined to motorized wheelchairs? - Three.
- Three.
And of these three, how many have access to the common room? All of them.
So how do you know it wasn't one of them? - It was Martin.
- Well, how do you know? He's always where the trouble is.
Good afternoon, gentlemen.
The reason I do that How are you guys doing? Excellent.
Good.
Happy here? Commander.
Men, say hello to Lieutenant Commander Harmon Rabb.
This is my gang.
Chodorowsky, Brookhurst, they both made it through Nam.
Been here ever since.
Mike.
Tell the commander how many men you killed.
Eat my shorts, Roscoe.
Got an anger problem.
Now, this fellow over here, this is Dastuge.
He's a Cajun.
He's like my kid brother.
He served in the Gulf.
Really? On the ground or in the air? It's okay.
Okay.
Don't you have people to drug? You know, I'm getting tired of you making me your problem.
Now, I just do what they tell me to do, you understand? Only too well.
Let's talk over here, commander.
This typical? No.
Usually there's ballroom dancing.
Listen, I want you to put me on the stand.
- Forget it.
- The jury isn't hearing - half of what goes on in this hole.
- Roscoe, this is a criminal trial.
It's not a civil negligence action brought against the VA.
Now, I'll work it in when I can.
You let me carry the voices of these patients into that courtroom, you let me speak for these men, and then you'll have a case.
It's too risky.
Yeah, you're right.
It's a risk.
And that's exactly why you're gonna let me do it.
You're a risk taker, commander.
You are emboldened by challenge.
I mean, how do you defend a paraplegic wild man with a dark past? Open me up, commander.
Let everybody have a peek at my dream.
Let them see that they share that dream, that they are me and I am them and we all want the same thing.
To be free to choose.
Free to choose.
- Hallelujah.
- Hallelujah.
Hallelujah.
- What are you doing? - Plugging in my new surge protector.
- But you're on your hands and knees.
- So? - Well, is that good for the baby? - It's only been 48 days.
Should you be exerting yourself? A century ago, women were working in fields and factories while carrying.
No big deal.
Yeah, and the rate of miscarriage was a lot higher then.
Now, look, if you need to do anything or have anything, just please ask me.
Do me a favour and don't make a big deal out of this.
Not here.
So many rules have been bent so we can be together.
I don't wanna make this pregnancy their problem.
- They don't mind.
- I mind.
No special treatments.
Were you in the common room the night La Croix jumped to his death? No, sir.
I was asleep in my room.
If you had been there, would you have attempted to stop him? I would.
The last thing I wanted was for Dick to die.
My intention was to bring him back to life.
Is that why you withheld medication from him? Yes, sir.
When I got there, he wasn't responding to much of anything.
I tried to encourage him to express himself.
It turned out he only had one story to tell.
The day he ejected over the South China Sea.
- Was this story meaningful to him? - Very.
It represented escape.
A powerful image for a man that's been locked up in 2,200 square feet.
I know what he was thinking when he went.
He wanted out.
Objection.
Speculation.
How could Mr.
Martin know what the victim was thinking? - Sustained.
- I know what he was thinking because I know what it's like to be held against my will.
- Mr.
Martin? - Until you've been in a POW camp or a locked hospital ward, I'm afraid you're just gonna have to trust me.
Sir, you must refrain from responding to counsel unless addressed.
Do you understand? Yup.
May I proceed, Your Honour? Please.
Mr.
Martin, I need to be clear about your motivation.
By withholding Richard La Croix's antipsychotic medication, you were giving him back his mind.
His subsequent leap from ten storeys was a reflection of his need to escape from those who would limit his consciousness.
Very well put.
Isn't it true, sir, that you really meant to punish and not to liberate? What? Your Honour, I'd like to read from Government Exhibits 5 and 6.
Excerpts from Attendant Oakley's daily observations and Dr.
Inge's subsequent response.
"March 16th, 1998.
I had to pull Martin away from La Croix after he suddenly began screaming at him, calling La Croix a coward and daring him to defend himself.
" I was just trying to get him to feel something.
I wanted to stop him from hiding behind the drugs.
This approach is based on your vast counselling experience? Objection, Your Honour.
I'm being harassed by my own lawyer.
Commander, are you sure you want to proceed in this manner? Yes, sir, I do.
Let me tell you how a professional called it.
According to Dr.
Inge's notes on the incident, you projected your shame on Richard La Croix.
A shame you felt in having deserted your unit in Vietnam, and the guilt experienced at having to watch as a camp full of POWs were executed.
Richard La Croix had two medals for valour.
You were threatened by him because he reminded you of your failure as a Marine.
- That's not true.
- You loathed and feared him because he was everything you were not.
No, sir.
I loved him for it.
The real tragedy of Dick La Croix wasn't his death.
It was the price he paid for serving his country.
Twenty-four years locked inside of himself.
He got so used to sitting in the same chair that his spine took on its shape.
When he ate, food bypassed his tongue, so he never got the pleasure of tasting it.
He had nobody.
His face was a mask, a shell.
Yeah, I screamed at him.
I screamed at him, not because I hated him, but because he was breaking my heart.
No more questions.
Who's there? Who's there? What are you doing in my room? Get out of my room.
Get out.
Get out.
Get out.
I'm telling you, it was Oakley.
- I know it.
- You saw him? No, I don't have to see him.
I can feel him.
He was right in that corner there, just staring at me, trying to scare me into keeping my mouth shut.
Look, look, look, Roscoe, be specific, okay? - Do you have something on him? - War crimes, commander.
He's a functionary.
A eunuch.
At Dong Ha, we used to call these guys clappers.
They're not the bell and they don't ring the bell, but they make the noise.
Has he ever physically threatened you? He's always watching me.
Every time I turn around, there he is, standing there, looking at me.
That's his job, Roscoe.
Hey, whose lawyer are you anyway? His or mine? Look, I need facts.
Without facts, there is no basis to file a complaint.
Even if there were, it's immaterial to the case at hand.
Unless he's hiding something - that he does not wanna reveal.
- What is he hiding? That's what we have to find out.
Considering I'm volunteering my time, the least you could do is not waste it.
You don't believe me? How do I know you're not just trying to get Oakley for accusing you of watching La Croix jump to his death? I have legitimate concerns here.
And so do I.
You're making it impossible to defend you.
Now calm down and let me do my job.
Something happening? It's a precaution.
One of the patients is agitated.
This a common occurrence? Look, man, don't go waving that silly-ass bait in front of my face.
You don't think someone with my skin colour understands what it means to have too much power over others? It bothers you, huh? What do you think? - So how do you deal with it? - Not very well.
Is it the job or this place? I have my issues with management.
Did you harass Roscoe Martin in his room last night? Screw you.
Your Honour, the defence-- Would like to recall Darren Oakley to the stand.
Your Honour, my client is confused.
That is not who I wish to call.
What now? I'm protecting my interests.
There have been attempts to silence me.
Counsellor, control your client.
- I have been harassed and terrorized.
- By whom? And I will not, as a citizen of this country, allow these offences to be ignored or swept under the rug.
- May I have a 30-minute recess? - What the hell is he talking about? Freedom.
That's what this charade is all about.
No, sir, you are wrong.
It's about justice.
Recess granted.
- Thank you, Your Honour.
- Justice? Is it just to kill a man's spirit? Is it just to crush his will? I will not bow to the Nurse Ratcheds of this world.
I'd rather be smothered by a big Indian with a pillow than to suffer any more indignities at the hands of this system! I guess I kind of overreacted.
You really did it this time.
You played right into their hands.
Your outburst has effectively killed our strategy.
I don't know why I did it.
I was never paranoid before I came here to that hospital.
I mean, that is my point, commander.
That the patients, they're the victims, - the victims of-- - the victims of a conspiracy.
Yeah.
A cult of bureaucrats who sacrifice vets to the altar of M-16s and combat helmets.
You're dysfunctional, Roscoe.
And, frankly, the only way to make this happen now is to play that angle, pursue an insanity defence based on mental defect.
You're gonna argue I'm crazy? Not mentally responsible.
You can't do that.
And what about the medication issue? Now it's not gonna have any meaning if it's attributed to the rantings of some nut ball.
Don't kid yourself.
You're already there.
They'll drug me.
I'm gonna ask the judge for 24 hours to re-strategise.
No arguments.
I'm gonna take the afternoon to figure this out.
If you need to speak to me, I'll be at home tonight.
Mac, hey, you pled a case once.
Paranoid petty officer on the flight crew of the Coral Sea.
He was convinced something was gonna happen to one of his pilots, he locked the lieutenant in his quarters prior to exercises.
You pled mental defect and got him off with a non-punitive letter of censure.
- You remember? - Right.
What was your argument? Well, Harm, that was hundreds of cases ago.
Can you review it for me? I'm changing Roscoe's plea.
I need all the help I can get.
I got an appellate hearing in 20 minutes.
Oh, all right.
I'll see if Mattoni has something.
Harm, I wanna help you.
I'm not resisting.
No, I understand.
You're busy.
Redecorating, ensign? There's already a coffee maker in the kitchen, so the admiral thought we could make better use of this space.
Oh, yeah? I vote for a hot tub.
Step aside, ensign.
Step aside.
It's just a little heavier than I thought.
I got it.
It's okay.
- You gonna be okay? - Yeah, I'm fine.
It's rolling now.
Thank you, sir.
You're supposed to be confined to your room.
Well, my bladder says otherwise.
That wasn't me last night.
And that wasn't me in the common room when La Croix took his flyer.
I've been thinking about that.
I admit, it's possible.
I don't remember seeing a flag on the back of that chair.
Could have been Saldana.
He never sleeps.
You were in my room.
No.
I was in mine, writing my letter of resignation.
Now that we're both leaving, maybe we'll see things a little more clearly.
Chodorowsky.
Chodorowsky.
Your sister still live in Nova Scotia? I'm gonna give you a quiz.
- Well, do I win something? - Your freedom.
- Do you know where you are? - On the good ship Lollipop? - Come on.
This guy's a lost cause.
- Shut up, Mike.
Do you like that place? - Yeah.
- What place do you hate? Section B.
How'd you like to move to Canada? - Okay.
- Do you know where that is? I'll follow you? Gentlemen, welcome to the Martin-Baker Fan Club.
What's that? The Martin-Baker company is the manufacturer of ejection seats.
Something Dick La Croix used to say.
Aviator slang for punching out.
Petty Officer Ryan Sobeleski had lost a brother in Mogadishu.
I argued the mental defect was triggered by personal experience and that he was coming from a place of love and protectiveness.
Come on in.
I'll make it worth your while.
Snifters.
It's vintage.
It's nice.
I learned it from Rusza.
It means, "May angels appear at your doorstep.
" We didn't have the dollars for a car.
But I figured you could dig one up for us, commander.
So we took a cab down here.
What are you doing, Roscoe? Well, I admit I should have thought things through a little better.
No, it's a good thing that you came here because I can arrange for you to go back without jeopardising your safety.
I like what you've done with this place.
I could live here.
We're going to Canada.
But we're going to Canada.
- You're going back to the hospital.
- No, sir.
We're moving on.
I'm teaching these boys self-determination.
I don't think so, Roscoe.
I think you're still trying to atone for mistakes you made in Vietnam, Now, somewhere, deep in your consciousness, you think you're springing these men from that POW camp at Dong Ha, you're saving their lives.
No, commander.
I have the purest of motives.
Me and the boys here intend to take back our future.
We need some cash and a car.
- That's not gonna happen.
- Then can I have a milkshake? Come on, Harriet, let's go.
It's almost 11.
So far the only offence committed is by the hospital for the breakdown of conditions that led to your escape.
I don't think you'll be punished.
I refuse to become another lost mind, commander.
We need your car.
It's a two-seater.
Then the major's.
We're not helping you escape.
Is that not clear yet? - I want those keys.
- Don't push it, Roscoe.
Up, up and away In my beautiful My beautiful balloon - It's a cop.
- Damn.
Go, go.
Go down the fire escape.
- Hey, hey, wait.
- Let them go, Mac.
They won't get far.
- Yes? - Lieutenant Commander Rabb? - That's right.
- I understand you represent - a Mr.
Roscoe Martin? - Correct.
Mr.
Martin and three other patients from the Paley Medical Facility escaped from a secured psychiatric ward a few hours ago.
Three? Hands on your head.
Take it easy, soldier.
Easy.
Okay.
Get out of here.
Get out of here.
Now! Hey, Mike.
They didn't have Canadian bacon.
I'm sorry.
Listen, Mike, we're gonna have to get out of here.
They're not gonna help us.
Maybe we should talk about that.
God, you're shaking so much, honey.
- Does it still hurt? - We're gonna lose the baby.
- No, no, baby.
We're not gonna lose-- - If I lose it, I'm sorry.
- For what, Harriet? It's not your fault.
- But it is.
There was a coffee machine today in the office and I tried to move it.
I felt something inside me pop.
- You tried to move a coffee machine? - Yes.
I'm so stupid.
I don't deserve to have a baby.
Sweetheart, it's gonna be okay.
It's gonna be all right.
Go.
Move.
Move.
Move.
Stand by.
This is Captain Tom Herrera.
Who do I talk to? This is Lieutenant Commander Harmon Rabb, United States Navy.
- You all right, commander? - We're fine.
We're in the middle of working this out, captain.
- What do they want? - Your butt on a spit.
Who the hell is that? Look, captain, if you could give us a little time.
Yeah, and 25,000 in Canadian dollars.
No, make that 50,000 - and a stripper with big casabas.
- Hey.
Do you have any idea what you are doing? - I'm negotiating.
- Yourself right into a coffin.
Roscoe.
- What's going on in there? - Just a minute, captain.
Roscoe, I need your help.
And I needed yours.
Now, let's start talking sense, fellas.
You two are gonna walk out of here in one piece.
You are going back to the hospital.
And I promise that I will do everything in my power to make sure that your issues are addressed.
All right.
But no more drugs.
No locked doors.
And I want everything in writing before we go.
I'm not going back.
No.
- Come on, let's go.
- No.
- Hold it.
- All right.
Now, everybody take a breath, okay? Brookhurst, put the weapon down.
- Put it down.
- Go ahead.
No! Oh, no, Roscoe.
- Roscoe.
- Get him out.
- I'm Captain Herrera.
- Get an ambulance.
Two bullets passed through his shoulder, causing no organ damage.
However, the phrenic nerve in his spinal column was nicked, putting his arms and lungs out of commission.
We have him on a respirator and he's able to talk and has use of his neck and shoulders.
Prognosis? There's been advancement in the field over the last few years, but given his age and his existing paralysis, I'd expect the worst.
- Doctor.
- Oh, excuse me.
Yeah.
Harriet? Bud? Mac, why don't you go check it out and I'll be in in a minute? - Okay.
- Dr.
Raymond, MICU.
Dr.
Raymond, MICU.
Hospital escorts to CCU.
Hospital escorts to CCU.
Commander? Hey.
Brookhurst? He's okay.
Good.
Real good.
That belongs to you now.
Roscoe, it's your mind that makes you what you are.
- What am I? - You're a man with something to say.
You know, that's where I keep going wrong with you.
I keep assuming that you need my advice, when all you ever wanted was my ear.
You don't need me to save you.
I told you that from the get-go.
I don't know why I ever thought you did.
Sure you do.
I wish I could play you a tune.
This hasn't all been for nought.
Your issue is on the table.
It's been heard.
And I promise you this, I will never refuse to defend a person who has been denied the freedom of his own mind.
Thank you.
Thank you, sir.
Lieutenant Roberts is here, with his wife.
She's pregnant.
I should check in on him, see how he's doing.
I'll be here.
I'll be back.
You should go.
You might get caught.
I'm not even sure I'm gonna be able to find this town.
It's been years.
You found me.
But that's because we watched them take you away.
Come here.
Don't you disappoint me.
Well, what about you? We'll all win.
Bring me my flag.
Now, put it-- Put it between my teeth.
Go.
Go.
As far as I can see, your problem is low HCG levels.
The physical activity had little to do with it, although I recommend you take it easy.
The shot should rebalance your hormones and I'll send you home with a prescription for progesterone.
- That should prevent any recurrence.
- It didn't hurt the baby? - I don't think so.
- Well, how do you know, doctor? You see that blip on the screen? It's a heartbeat.