Law & Order: Criminal Intent (2001) s04e20 Episode Script
No Exit
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.
Everyone's good for Thursday.
Then we're all set.
Pick up Carmine on the way.
He's too busy to show up today? They're leaning on him pretty hard at work.
What's he afraid of, getting fired? No.
Try that one.
Perfect.
I'm getting scared, Nicky.
Don't, baby.
I'll be right next to you.
Three months, in advance? Mr.
Richmond, I do not wish to be cruel, but I'm not sure she has that long.
I'm not sure she doesn't.
And I'll be out of touch for a while.
Coverage is only another $9 a day.
Initial here and here, sign here.
I'll get the keys.
You need a map? We know where we're going.
Not tonight.
I got something to do.
But Timmons says he wants the numbers crunched by tomorrow morning.
What do you want me to do, hold your hand? Steve, can I tell him you'll be done? First thing, Mr.
Skoller.
You know, Carmine, I'd catch your back if you needed help.
Don't kid yourself.
Carmine? I'm Drew, this is Wes.
It's freezing.
You're late.
We've got time.
Hey, are you sure we're in the right place? We're sure.
This is it.
Turn here.
Hey, man, it's almost We're on time.
Hey, quit Quit fooling around.
Hey.
Hey! Stop! I was working the gate over at Larrabee Trucking, I saw this car stopped at the crossing.
Their headlights went out.
I thought they were stalled, maybe their battery died.
Anybody get out of the car? No, ma'am.
I could make out people inside.
They must have heard the train.
They kept blowing the horn and didn't Thank you, Mr.
Clemente, this officer will take your statement.
Maybe we can get a shot of what happened from the security cameras on those warehouses.
This train come through here every night? Twice weekly.
We're lucky tonight it was deadheading.
Normally it's carrying a load of chlorine gas.
Nice.
Believe it or not, it could have been worse.
Any other week, we would have been looking at a toxic gas cloud over the Bronx.
There's no key in the ignition.
The impact wouldn't have knocked it out.
Someone removed it.
That fits what the eyewitness saw.
He said the headlights went off.
So the engineer wouldn't see the car.
Somebody was trying to cause a toxic spill.
A suicide mission? It's gonna take days to ID these people.
Can we get a shot of this, please? Make sure that the lab does a workup on these glass fragments.
It's a rental.
To a Drew Esterhaus.
He took the collision insurance.
Money well spent.
Esterhaus didn't show up this morning.
Can I ask why you need his info? We think he was killed in an accident last night.
He gave your law firm's address to a car rental company.
This is his desk.
So what happened? We're not sure.
Well, it doesn't look like he worked here very long.
Six months.
He moved from Oregon.
The home address we have for him is 347 East 41st Street.
That's the Y.
Esterhaus ever mention any environmental issues? Maybe that's an area your law firm specializes in? No.
We do trusts and estates.
Why? What exactly did you hire him to do? Research.
Any reason why he looked up regulations on "do not resuscitate" orders? He was drafting instructions to a hospital for a friend.
He asked me to look it over.
You remember the name of this friend, or the hospital? He said he might be out of touch for a while.
He pre-paid his mother's care for the next three months.
His mother is very ill.
What's wrong with her? She's in the last stages of Huntington's disease.
Huntington's disease is inherited, isn't that right? Right.
Did Mr.
Richmond know that? Yes.
Richmond's HMO said he had himself tested for the Huntington's gene a month ago.
We don't know the results.
Anybody we can ask? He lived alone, divorced, no kids, no girlfriend.
If you have the gene, you get the disease.
There's no cure.
So maybe he's somebody who'd look for a quick way out.
What about Esterhaus? He's got one arrest at an anti-Big Lumber protest in Portland.
He dropped out of law school.
No fixed address for the last three years.
Neither of these guys left much of a vapor trail.
It's hard to fathom what their ultimate motive was.
That helps with the Bell's palsy? I don't know.
I just gotta wait it out.
The ME just ID'd the other passengers.
All right, after you do the notifications, bring in their next of kin.
No, our daughter never mentioned these men.
How about your son, Mr.
Rozakis, he ever talk about them? Drew Esterhaus, Wes Richmond, Carmine Ruggiero? Any of them active in environmental causes? Eugenie always made sure we recycled, but, no, she wasn't active.
Unless Nicholas got her involved in something.
My son didn't have time for that stuff.
He was looking for work.
Carmine was totally focused on his job.
He told me that he was going to a party later.
He needed a break, he'd been working so hard.
Mr.
Rozakis, is there anything that you can tell us about Nicholas and Eugenie? They were just two kids in love.
Eugenie was very immature.
She didn't know what love is.
Nick told me they'd stop paying for Eugenie's college if she kept seeing him.
If she'd just listened to us, she never would've been killed in this accident.
That's not true.
You can't control what happens.
Folks, thank you for coming in.
We'll be in touch with you.
Again, we're very sorry for your loss.
We need a minute, Mr.
Rozakis.
Why? I told you what I know.
You know it wasn't an accident.
What do you want from me? My son's dead.
Mr.
Rozakis, if you know it was a suicide, you have to tell us.
God, I should've known.
He attempted suicide before? After his mother died.
I tried to help him toughen up.
And this time, you have no doubt it was a suicide.
Why? Did Nick leave a note? It wasn't a note.
I just can't I can't live without Genie, and she can't live without me.
Don't blame yourself, Pop.
It's nobody's fault.
And don't blame Drew and Wes.
We all got together and talked it out.
This is the way it's gotta be.
I love you, Pop.
Goodbye.
He recorded it with his cell phone and e-mailed it to his father.
Yeah, he makes it sound so damn normal.
They discussed it like a meeting of the suicide club.
There's other voices at the end.
I love you, Pop.
Goodbye.
Carmine? I'm Drew, this is Wes.
It's freezing.
You're late.
Doesn't sound like Carmine and the others knew each other by sight.
The glass in the shoe, it's Carmine.
I want a graph showing eight quarters of income, not four.
Do it over.
Leonard? What? Carmine Ruggiero's family called.
He was in the car that train crashed into Thursday night.
I told his family I'd send them his personal effects.
No, bring everything to me, his files, his computer, I'll sort through it.
Whatever you say, Leonard.
It's safety glass from the car's rear window.
The way it's pressed deep into the treads, it's not from the collision.
He was trying to kick his way out of the car.
That's why most of the glass is embedded in his heel.
Thanks.
Maybe when he saw that train bearing down, Carmine had a change of heart.
The people in the car, if he'd never met them face to face, if he didn't know them, it's possible that he had no idea what they were planning.
A suicide club, and Carmine didn't know he was a member.
Carmine had flyers in his apartment for parties at secret locations.
They send e-mails telling people where to catch a ride to the party.
That might be where Carmine thought he was going.
Who set him up? One of the other four? No evidence they knew Carmine or each other before this week.
Four suicidal people don't just bump into each other on the street.
We're also wondering how they ended up at the railroad crossing.
None of them ever lived or worked in the area.
They knew the train schedule almost down to the second.
Look.
This is from the surveillance cameras, 50 yards away.
Now, less than a minute after they stop on the tracks, the train comes through.
Find who provided this information, maybe you'll find who trapped Mr.
Ruggiero.
This camera is hooked up to a network, right? For remote monitoring? To a dispatch office in Port Elizabeth.
The images are sent over the Internet.
If it's unsecured, anyone can tap in? With the right search words.
Here we go.
Somebody at their home computer could have watched this long enough to figure out the train schedule.
Can we do a search for this image, see if it's on any other websites? Anything's possible.
That one? There's ours, and the train schedule.
And five other local railroad crossings.
"High places.
" The numbers under each building, maybe punch-key access codes for the door to the roof? Counselor? Counselor, you have to see this.
This is a website, it's a suicide how-to.
Could be how they found the railroad crossing.
There's a chat room and a message board.
"Joanie and Chachi caught the train Thursday night.
"They were in fine company.
" Joanie and Chachi, screen names for Nicholas and Eugenie? This is where the four of them met.
Five.
Whoever set up Carmine had to be on here posing as him to talk to the others.
I'll subpoena their records.
A matchmaking service for suicides.
It was bound to happen.
I'll dance in hell before I turn over anything.
The people who log on to my website aren't breaking any laws.
Mr.
Smythe, we're interested only in conversations pertaining to the individuals who died last Thursday.
Any conversation on my client's website is protected by the First Amendment.
Those individuals exercised not only their free speech, but their free will.
I have a better idea, Mr.
Smythe.
I'll have you indicted on four counts of manslaughter for aiding a suicide.
You can't scare me.
I've fought this battle before.
I'm invoking my right to testify before your grand jury.
Be my guest.
My website is a forum for the free exchange of ideas.
I do not give advice one way or the other.
I respect the right of individuals to live their life, or end it, with dignity.
Thank you.
Mr.
Smythe, is this really your idea of a dignified end to a life? If it's the end they chose for themselves.
Myself, I'd probably go another way.
How? Off a roof in Midtown? Or the George Washington Bridge? Or maybe a poison? Your website provides information for each of these methods of suicide.
I don't offer anything that isn't freely available elsewhere.
At the public library, for example.
Really? They have a section called "Suicide For Dummies"? The people who come to my site aren't dummies, Mr.
Carver.
They've made an informed decision.
You don't even know how old they are.
They could be children.
Do you offer them another perspective? Do you list the numbers of suicide hotlines? That's not my responsibility.
What is your responsibility, Mr.
Smythe? I just post neutral information, as is my right under the First Amendment.
Are you telling us you did not foresee that your information would be used by these people to kill themselves, to give them that final push over the edge? No one who comes to my website is asking to have their life saved by me or by Big Brother.
All they want is respect.
And all they get from you, Mr.
Smythe, is indifference.
You're excused.
At this time, the People ask that the grand jury consider the charges previously submitted to you.
Yes? Mr.
Carver, the statute says a person is guilty of second-degree manslaughter if they intentionally help another person commit suicide.
But if they're just providing information anyone can get at the public library, how is that a crime? Mr.
Smythe speaks of a free exchange of ideas.
There's only one idea on his website, that suicide is in every case a reasonable answer.
He talks of neutral information.
There are no neutral acts.
By assembling this information in one place, he facilitates suicide.
His website offers them no alternative.
He says that's not his responsibility.
Well, if you see a bleeding man, it is your responsibility to help.
You can't look away and do nothing.
It is not your responsibility to grease the skids of his demise.
Doing that is criminal.
Four counts of manslaughter.
What I get for overestimating the intelligence of a grand jury.
Just be grateful the D.
A.
Let you off with a plea bargain.
I don't consider shutting down my website a bargain.
All right.
Joanie and Chachi, right? This is the last chat I have for them.
Thank you.
You can go do your little dance in hell now.
All right, we've got Chachi chatting with Lawboy and Flix134.
If Chachi's Nicholas, Lawboy might be Drew Esterhaus at the law firm.
They're setting up a meeting.
Whitestone.
The hospice for Wes Richmond's mother.
So he's Flix134.
Well, we got a new addition here.
"Carm00.
" Carmine, or somebody posing as him, begging off from a face-to-face before the big night.
Can we search for just Carm00's entries? Carm00 and Lawboy.
Edie.
A girl at Carmine's work? Well, she's mentioned for a reason.
Maybe the reason Carmine was killed.
We're all still in shock about Carmine.
Such a terrible waste.
You're his immediate supervisor.
You knew him well? Not very.
We have a high turnover.
He was very driven, one of our most promising finance specialists.
Mr.
Skoller, it's your wife.
She's downstairs in the car.
Tell her I'll be a few minutes.
Mrs.
Skoller Taking the family skiing for the weekend.
There's just one more thing.
We need to speak with one of his coworkers, a woman named Edie? Edie Elverson? I'm afraid Edie passed away.
She took her own life five months ago.
I really should go.
Talk about turnover.
A murder and a suicide? Or two murders.
Hello? Hubert, I've been going through Ruggiero's laptop and I've found some disturbing things.
I need you in here tomorrow morning.
But, Leonard, I'm with my family in the Berkshires.
We just got here.
Your family can stay up there, Hubert.
I need you in here tomorrow morning, first thing.
I work, you work.
Edie Elverson took a dive off a high-rise.
No evidence of a struggle, only her prints on the keypad for the roof door alarm and only her prints on a bottle of wine found on the roof.
She'd been drinking? Blood alcohol of 0.
05.
Her parents said she'd been depressed.
The roof alarm code was on the suicide website.
No coincidence Carmine's killer used the same website to set him up.
He wants to draw a parallel between the two deaths.
This is a message written under Carmine's name, "So much guilt.
What kind of person am I? "Too late for apologies, that's the worst.
" Now, Carmine did something to her maybe that led to her suicide.
Killing him could be payback.
Carmine Ruggiero? We know who he is.
He worked with our daughter.
Do you know how they got along? Edie never said they didn't.
Did they have a relationship outside of work? No.
She wasn't seeing anyone.
Did you ask Ruggiero these questions? No.
He was killed a week ago, in a collision with a train.
Those kids in that car? I heard it was some kind of suicide pact.
We're still sorting that out.
But you're asking us about Edie? Well, we found a message, attributed to Carmine, expressing regret about something he might've done to her.
The police said Edie committed suicide.
Maybe Carmine contributed to her state of mind.
Now, you told the police she was depressed.
It was that job.
She worked her heart out.
Even weekends.
She'd be over for Sunday brunch and get called away.
Seven-day work weeks are standard.
Loans to companies in trouble are deadline driven, and we have a young staff with plenty of energy, and the more they burn, the more they earn.
Or burn out, Mr.
Timmons, like Edie Elverson? This isn't work for the faint-hearted.
Character weaknesses bubble up to the surface pretty fast.
Carmine Ruggiero, was that one of Edie's weaknesses? I never heard that.
Excuse me.
We're waiting, where is he? Oh.
There you are.
Hubert'll answer all your questions.
These files cover Edie's last two months of work.
Performance review, loans in progress.
And these are Carmine's.
Edie's performance, how was it? Her family said that she worked long hours.
She got the work done, but she kept missing deadlines.
Any way Carmine could've submarined her? No, I would've caught on.
Mr.
Skoller, maybe you can explain this.
There are eight revisions of this loan analysis that Edie prepared.
Except, each draft doesn't seem all that different from the previous.
There's new punctuation marks, the graph's a little bigger Were these changes your idea? No.
Mr.
Timmons reviewed these.
A lot of busywork for nothing.
That would be contrary to the company policy outlined in our human resource document that every employee has to review and sign once a year.
If we find any other files, I'll make sure you get them right away.
Each report that Edie wrote was revised over and over again.
She was called out for minor mistakes and dragged in to work weekends.
Somebody had it in for her.
Well, it's a hostile work environment.
Maybe that's the reason for Skoller's legal-speak.
The company being sued for Edie's suicide.
Edie Elverson's parents were preparing for a wrongful death suit two months ago.
They took depositions, including Carmine Ruggiero.
I convinced the Elversons' lawyer to give us a copy.
Short deposition.
The lawyer had scheduled two hours with Ruggiero, but she cut it short.
Did Longbridge settle with the Elversons? The lawsuit was never filed.
My impression is that the Elversons decided to drop it.
Maybe this is why.
"Question.
Was Ms.
Elverson asked to work more hours than other employees? "Ruggiero.
No.
She told me she came in to work "because she hated being at home alone.
"She was uncomfortable around her family.
"Question.
Did she explain what she meant? "Ruggiero.
She was drinking a lot.
"She was afraid they'd find out.
"Question.
Isn't it true she was asked to redo her work for no reason? "Ruggiero.
No.
It was her idea.
"She said she was afraid Timmons "would notice she was making mistakes "because of her drinking and fire her.
" "I came in one Saturday, I found her in the bathroom, getting sick.
"She was drunk, she was crying.
"She told me she tried to kill herself in college by taking pills.
"She said no one knew.
" This is how Carmine let her down.
He lied in his deposition, like a good company man, and he sank the Elversons' lawsuit.
But if he dies an apparent suicide because he felt guilty about lying It might help the Elversons' lawsuit get back on track.
I can think of one person that would make happy.
I came across these in my office.
I thought Mrs.
Elverson might want them.
I'm sure she'll appreciate the thought.
I have to tell you again how sorry I am about Edie.
We lost another young person a couple of weeks ago.
Carmine Ruggiero.
Took his own life.
The stress in that office, it's inhuman.
That's not what the police think.
What do you mean? They talked to me and my lawyer about Edie and the lawsuit.
Like they think I had something to do with Ruggiero.
Thanks for the pictures, Mr.
Skoller.
What's all this? Our friends at Longbridge sent us the contents of Carmine's desk.
Day planner.
See what he had down for that Thursday.
Something for Edie? Leonard Timmons? I'm seeing something sheer and sexy.
Edie Elverson was having an affair with her boss.
No wonder she felt harassed.
Not to mention suicidal.
Carmine had proof of the affair.
It's probably stolen from Edie's desk.
It's considerable leverage over Timmons.
If I were Timmons, I might've started looking at train schedules myself.
I'm a married man.
I'm not stupid.
I saw what happened at Boeing, people getting fired even for having consensual affairs.
"Saw this and thought of you.
Can't wait to see you in it.
Len.
" We had Secret Santa last Christmas.
I drew Edie's name, I bought her a funny hat.
The detectives tell me they can trace this gift card to the lingerie store it came from.
That wouldn't prove anything.
You're curious where we found it, aren't you? Maybe he already knows.
Carmine Ruggiero had it.
Now, he was blackmailing you over your affair? It's why Edie was called in to the office on the weekends.
It's why she felt sexually harassed.
She wasn't sexually harassed.
She wanted to break it off, and that's when you turned on her, more work, more scrutiny, until she'd capitulate to you.
That's rubbish.
She felt trapped.
Miss Elverson was already a troubled young woman.
That lawsuit, that could've gotten very messy for you, if it weren't for Carmine.
There was no affair.
You can ask anyone We'd ask Carmine, but someone put him in front of a train.
We didn't come here to be ambushed.
Leonard, let's go.
Secret Santa, that's a new one.
Prove him a liar.
Find the gift that went with the card.
Designer lingerie.
I see marks from garter belt hooks.
But no garter belts and no matching stocking.
Everything here's rated PG.
You'd think Timmons would shower her with negligees, sexy bras Mr.
Elverson, did Edie have a laptop? We didn't find one.
She have a diary or electronic organizer, anything like that? No.
Just old letters, and a photo album with pictures of her friends.
Could we see that? I had it out a couple of days ago.
No lingerie, no computer, maybe Timmons cleaned her place out after she died.
You were with the police when they went into Edie's place? How did it look? It looked all right, a little messy.
You just looked at these a couple of days ago? I just added those office pictures.
Edie's supervisor dropped them off last Tuesday.
Hubert Skoller? Out of the blue? Yes.
And he told me about Carmine Ruggiero.
He thinks it was a suicide.
Well, what did you say about that? I told him you people seemed to think that I had something to do with the kid's death.
Okay, thank you, Mr.
Elverson.
We'll call you when we're done.
Hubert hears Elverson's a murder suspect.
The next day, we coincidentally find a gift tag that implicates Timmons.
Hubert Skoller, office enigma.
Timmons found out she suicided, he must've sent his right-hand guy to clean out her apartment.
Which would explain how Hubert got the gift card he planted in Carmine's day planner.
Implicating your boss in a murder isn't usually what right-hand guys do.
Thank you.
Well, this might explain his change of heart.
His deposition in the Elverson suit.
"Question.
Did Miss Elverson complain "to you about her work hours and workload? "Skoller.
No.
Question.
When her work was "constantly sent back for revisions, "didn't it occur to you something was wrong? Skoller.
No.
"If I thought she was being victimized, that she was suicidal, "and I had done nothing, what kind of person would that make me?" That has a familiar ring to it.
"I see Edie's shadow everywhere at work.
"So much guilt.
What kind of person am I?" It was Hubert pretending to be Carmine on the website.
He feels guilt about what happened to Edie.
He knows what kind of person he is, and he doesn't like it.
He's trying to put things right.
Killing Carmine, exposing Timmons' affair Maybe Hubert kept other souvenirs from Edie's place.
You gonna finish it for him? Hubert does beautiful work.
But it's dusty.
Looks like he hasn't touched it in months.
No time.
Between the mortgage and three kids in private school, he'd better keep it to the grindstone.
And all of his bills are past due.
Small ones.
$60 for his cable TV, $50 for his kid's ballet lessons.
His alumni association wanted to honor him for his work mentoring undergrads.
But he never responded.
He's letting it all slide, even the things that matter to him.
He's sinking into depression.
He hasn't let everything slide.
Recent bank and brokerage statements organized by institution, insurance policies with canceled checks attached.
A key to his safe-deposit box.
For his wife? Looks like Hubert is getting all his affairs in order.
Mr.
Skoller, it's the Carmichael loan, I can't make the numbers work.
I didn't mean to interrupt you.
It's nothing.
Just deleting old files.
Let's take a look at those numbers, Steven.
I appreciate that you think he might be suicidal, but my interest here is putting whoever killed Carmine Ruggiero behind bars.
If Hubert Skoller dies before we can get the truth, no one's interest is served.
If he wanted to make things right, why not just expose Timmons' affair? He helped Timmons cover up, he lied in the deposition.
He'd lose his job.
This guy can't afford it.
He probably thought that Carmine's apparent suicide would bolster the Elversons' claim that Longbridge was a hostile work environment.
That's who he was trying to help.
But now it's falling apart on him.
Look, if we give him a way out He panicked the last time he thought that we were going after the wrong man.
I'll calendar the grand jury in the morning to consider a bill of indictment against Frank Elverson, by which time you should be serving this subpoena on Mr.
Skoller.
That is what you have in mind, isn't it? Almost.
We'll need another one for Len Timmons.
Perfect.
So they roped you in, too.
Do you know what it's about? Well, it says right here on the subpoena, "People versus Elverson.
" Seems pretty clear to me.
They're indicting Frank Elverson for the murder of Carmine Ruggiero.
Oh, my God.
Hubert, my lawyer has some advice on handling the D.
A.
's questions.
It's important your answers stay on point.
Don't volunteer anything.
You got that, Hubert? Stay on point.
Don't embarrass the company.
Good, you're both here.
Before you testify, I need you to sign these waivers of immunity.
You'll be testifying before a grand jury assembled to consider a bill of indictment against Frank Elverson for the murder of Carmine Ruggiero.
You're expected to answer truthfully and to the best of your knowledge.
I don't think I have anything relevant to offer.
You let me worry about that, Mr.
Skoller.
Well, there are some things we need to go over to help Mr.
Carver prepare for your testimony.
Why does he think Mr.
Elverson killed Carmine? Now, I've met Mr.
Elverson, he didn't seem the type.
We can't discuss evidence with you.
Except evidence they already know about.
You know, the lawsuit.
Carmine's deposition blew it out of the water.
With Elverson, it's all about money.
It's like what you said about his daughter in your deposition, she's aloof, not a team player That's right.
Very standoffish.
Usually a sign of personality problems.
Did you ever get the box of materials from Carmine's desk? Got it the same day you sent it.
That's how we found your card to Edie.
Really? Tucked into Carmine's day planner.
Mr.
Timmons said that it was from his Secret Santa gift.
A funny hat, right? That's right, a hat.
You remember, Hubert, at the Christmas party? Yes, Leonard, I remember.
I'm sure Edie didn't need a hat.
She was probably already wearing a lampshade.
Yeah, that's the impression we got of her from Carmine's deposition.
She had a drinking problem.
That had to be hard for Elverson to hear from Carmine.
No wonder he went after the kid.
I never saw any evidence of drinking.
Hmm.
How about you, Mr.
Timmons, you ever notice anything? Unfortunately, yes.
I saw her come out of a bar near the office on a couple of occasions, in the middle of the day.
Edie's funny hat, you know We never What did it look like? It was green, like for a Christmas elf.
If you knew Edie was drinking during work, why didn't you reprimand her? Yeah, Hubert'll tell you, I'm no hard-ass.
I gave her a chance.
I just had no idea how bad it was.
You had no idea? That's what Hubert said in his deposition.
Because if he had an idea how suicidal she was, and he did nothing, what kind of person would that make him? Exactly right.
A green Christmas elf hat, is that That's really what he gave her? Come on, Hubert, you can't take this anymore, man.
There was no damned funny hat.
He gave her red stockings, garter belts, all kinds of lingerie.
He was having an affair with her.
Hubert, what the hell are you talking about? I can't listen to any more of your lies.
After she died, Len gave me a key to her apartment and a list of everything he'd given her, and he told me to take it all.
You bastard.
You're finished.
Finished! The affair, that's why he harassed her, that's why he victimized her? Yes, when she wouldn't sleep with him anymore.
He said he'd crush her.
He kept punishing her and punishing her till she couldn't take it anymore.
And she came to you for help, didn't she? She was too ashamed to file a complaint.
She asked me to talk to him.
What did you do? Nothing.
I was afraid of Leonard, of losing my job.
I told her she'd have to tough it out.
You shut the door on her.
That did it.
Even so, Hubert, it doesn't change anything.
You still have to testify in the Elverson case.
It changes everything.
He's the one with a reason to kill Carmine.
Carmine knew about the affair.
What was Carmine gonna say about it? He'd already lied under oath.
He was no threat to Timmons.
You see, Elverson's still got the better motive.
The D.
A.
's not gonna back off on prosecuting him.
Oh, God.
Oh, God.
I got to get out of here.
Hubert, do not leave.
Please, I just need some air.
Now you know how Edie felt.
Trapped, no way out.
We found that box with your papers neatly arranged, the key to the safety deposit.
We know what you're planning to do.
And then what? Frank Elverson takes the rap for killing Carmine? What about you wanting to set things right? What, does that become an empty gesture? You end up hurting Edie's parents, the very people you tried to help.
I don't know what to do.
Yeah, you do.
I don't know what to do.
Make things right! I tried, but look what happened! You tried because you wanted to be a good person.
Make things right.
Well, be a good person now.
Hey, look at me! A good person, Hubert.
Because you're better than him.
Oh, God.
Be a good person.
You make things right.
I put Carmine in that car.
I knew what would happen to him.
You made him one of your guys.
He lied for you, and so did I, until I couldn't.
I couldn't Okay, Hubert.
Okay.
Now you're under arrest.
You use, you use, you use Fifteen years I've watched you use them up, all the Edies and Carmines.
Well, no more.
No more! No more! I'll be talking to you, Mr.
Timmons.
In the meantime, you might familiarize yourself with such legal terms as obstruction and perjury.
Killing Carmine, he was really killing himself.
It's a step he should've skipped.
These are their stories.
Everyone's good for Thursday.
Then we're all set.
Pick up Carmine on the way.
He's too busy to show up today? They're leaning on him pretty hard at work.
What's he afraid of, getting fired? No.
Try that one.
Perfect.
I'm getting scared, Nicky.
Don't, baby.
I'll be right next to you.
Three months, in advance? Mr.
Richmond, I do not wish to be cruel, but I'm not sure she has that long.
I'm not sure she doesn't.
And I'll be out of touch for a while.
Coverage is only another $9 a day.
Initial here and here, sign here.
I'll get the keys.
You need a map? We know where we're going.
Not tonight.
I got something to do.
But Timmons says he wants the numbers crunched by tomorrow morning.
What do you want me to do, hold your hand? Steve, can I tell him you'll be done? First thing, Mr.
Skoller.
You know, Carmine, I'd catch your back if you needed help.
Don't kid yourself.
Carmine? I'm Drew, this is Wes.
It's freezing.
You're late.
We've got time.
Hey, are you sure we're in the right place? We're sure.
This is it.
Turn here.
Hey, man, it's almost We're on time.
Hey, quit Quit fooling around.
Hey.
Hey! Stop! I was working the gate over at Larrabee Trucking, I saw this car stopped at the crossing.
Their headlights went out.
I thought they were stalled, maybe their battery died.
Anybody get out of the car? No, ma'am.
I could make out people inside.
They must have heard the train.
They kept blowing the horn and didn't Thank you, Mr.
Clemente, this officer will take your statement.
Maybe we can get a shot of what happened from the security cameras on those warehouses.
This train come through here every night? Twice weekly.
We're lucky tonight it was deadheading.
Normally it's carrying a load of chlorine gas.
Nice.
Believe it or not, it could have been worse.
Any other week, we would have been looking at a toxic gas cloud over the Bronx.
There's no key in the ignition.
The impact wouldn't have knocked it out.
Someone removed it.
That fits what the eyewitness saw.
He said the headlights went off.
So the engineer wouldn't see the car.
Somebody was trying to cause a toxic spill.
A suicide mission? It's gonna take days to ID these people.
Can we get a shot of this, please? Make sure that the lab does a workup on these glass fragments.
It's a rental.
To a Drew Esterhaus.
He took the collision insurance.
Money well spent.
Esterhaus didn't show up this morning.
Can I ask why you need his info? We think he was killed in an accident last night.
He gave your law firm's address to a car rental company.
This is his desk.
So what happened? We're not sure.
Well, it doesn't look like he worked here very long.
Six months.
He moved from Oregon.
The home address we have for him is 347 East 41st Street.
That's the Y.
Esterhaus ever mention any environmental issues? Maybe that's an area your law firm specializes in? No.
We do trusts and estates.
Why? What exactly did you hire him to do? Research.
Any reason why he looked up regulations on "do not resuscitate" orders? He was drafting instructions to a hospital for a friend.
He asked me to look it over.
You remember the name of this friend, or the hospital? He said he might be out of touch for a while.
He pre-paid his mother's care for the next three months.
His mother is very ill.
What's wrong with her? She's in the last stages of Huntington's disease.
Huntington's disease is inherited, isn't that right? Right.
Did Mr.
Richmond know that? Yes.
Richmond's HMO said he had himself tested for the Huntington's gene a month ago.
We don't know the results.
Anybody we can ask? He lived alone, divorced, no kids, no girlfriend.
If you have the gene, you get the disease.
There's no cure.
So maybe he's somebody who'd look for a quick way out.
What about Esterhaus? He's got one arrest at an anti-Big Lumber protest in Portland.
He dropped out of law school.
No fixed address for the last three years.
Neither of these guys left much of a vapor trail.
It's hard to fathom what their ultimate motive was.
That helps with the Bell's palsy? I don't know.
I just gotta wait it out.
The ME just ID'd the other passengers.
All right, after you do the notifications, bring in their next of kin.
No, our daughter never mentioned these men.
How about your son, Mr.
Rozakis, he ever talk about them? Drew Esterhaus, Wes Richmond, Carmine Ruggiero? Any of them active in environmental causes? Eugenie always made sure we recycled, but, no, she wasn't active.
Unless Nicholas got her involved in something.
My son didn't have time for that stuff.
He was looking for work.
Carmine was totally focused on his job.
He told me that he was going to a party later.
He needed a break, he'd been working so hard.
Mr.
Rozakis, is there anything that you can tell us about Nicholas and Eugenie? They were just two kids in love.
Eugenie was very immature.
She didn't know what love is.
Nick told me they'd stop paying for Eugenie's college if she kept seeing him.
If she'd just listened to us, she never would've been killed in this accident.
That's not true.
You can't control what happens.
Folks, thank you for coming in.
We'll be in touch with you.
Again, we're very sorry for your loss.
We need a minute, Mr.
Rozakis.
Why? I told you what I know.
You know it wasn't an accident.
What do you want from me? My son's dead.
Mr.
Rozakis, if you know it was a suicide, you have to tell us.
God, I should've known.
He attempted suicide before? After his mother died.
I tried to help him toughen up.
And this time, you have no doubt it was a suicide.
Why? Did Nick leave a note? It wasn't a note.
I just can't I can't live without Genie, and she can't live without me.
Don't blame yourself, Pop.
It's nobody's fault.
And don't blame Drew and Wes.
We all got together and talked it out.
This is the way it's gotta be.
I love you, Pop.
Goodbye.
He recorded it with his cell phone and e-mailed it to his father.
Yeah, he makes it sound so damn normal.
They discussed it like a meeting of the suicide club.
There's other voices at the end.
I love you, Pop.
Goodbye.
Carmine? I'm Drew, this is Wes.
It's freezing.
You're late.
Doesn't sound like Carmine and the others knew each other by sight.
The glass in the shoe, it's Carmine.
I want a graph showing eight quarters of income, not four.
Do it over.
Leonard? What? Carmine Ruggiero's family called.
He was in the car that train crashed into Thursday night.
I told his family I'd send them his personal effects.
No, bring everything to me, his files, his computer, I'll sort through it.
Whatever you say, Leonard.
It's safety glass from the car's rear window.
The way it's pressed deep into the treads, it's not from the collision.
He was trying to kick his way out of the car.
That's why most of the glass is embedded in his heel.
Thanks.
Maybe when he saw that train bearing down, Carmine had a change of heart.
The people in the car, if he'd never met them face to face, if he didn't know them, it's possible that he had no idea what they were planning.
A suicide club, and Carmine didn't know he was a member.
Carmine had flyers in his apartment for parties at secret locations.
They send e-mails telling people where to catch a ride to the party.
That might be where Carmine thought he was going.
Who set him up? One of the other four? No evidence they knew Carmine or each other before this week.
Four suicidal people don't just bump into each other on the street.
We're also wondering how they ended up at the railroad crossing.
None of them ever lived or worked in the area.
They knew the train schedule almost down to the second.
Look.
This is from the surveillance cameras, 50 yards away.
Now, less than a minute after they stop on the tracks, the train comes through.
Find who provided this information, maybe you'll find who trapped Mr.
Ruggiero.
This camera is hooked up to a network, right? For remote monitoring? To a dispatch office in Port Elizabeth.
The images are sent over the Internet.
If it's unsecured, anyone can tap in? With the right search words.
Here we go.
Somebody at their home computer could have watched this long enough to figure out the train schedule.
Can we do a search for this image, see if it's on any other websites? Anything's possible.
That one? There's ours, and the train schedule.
And five other local railroad crossings.
"High places.
" The numbers under each building, maybe punch-key access codes for the door to the roof? Counselor? Counselor, you have to see this.
This is a website, it's a suicide how-to.
Could be how they found the railroad crossing.
There's a chat room and a message board.
"Joanie and Chachi caught the train Thursday night.
"They were in fine company.
" Joanie and Chachi, screen names for Nicholas and Eugenie? This is where the four of them met.
Five.
Whoever set up Carmine had to be on here posing as him to talk to the others.
I'll subpoena their records.
A matchmaking service for suicides.
It was bound to happen.
I'll dance in hell before I turn over anything.
The people who log on to my website aren't breaking any laws.
Mr.
Smythe, we're interested only in conversations pertaining to the individuals who died last Thursday.
Any conversation on my client's website is protected by the First Amendment.
Those individuals exercised not only their free speech, but their free will.
I have a better idea, Mr.
Smythe.
I'll have you indicted on four counts of manslaughter for aiding a suicide.
You can't scare me.
I've fought this battle before.
I'm invoking my right to testify before your grand jury.
Be my guest.
My website is a forum for the free exchange of ideas.
I do not give advice one way or the other.
I respect the right of individuals to live their life, or end it, with dignity.
Thank you.
Mr.
Smythe, is this really your idea of a dignified end to a life? If it's the end they chose for themselves.
Myself, I'd probably go another way.
How? Off a roof in Midtown? Or the George Washington Bridge? Or maybe a poison? Your website provides information for each of these methods of suicide.
I don't offer anything that isn't freely available elsewhere.
At the public library, for example.
Really? They have a section called "Suicide For Dummies"? The people who come to my site aren't dummies, Mr.
Carver.
They've made an informed decision.
You don't even know how old they are.
They could be children.
Do you offer them another perspective? Do you list the numbers of suicide hotlines? That's not my responsibility.
What is your responsibility, Mr.
Smythe? I just post neutral information, as is my right under the First Amendment.
Are you telling us you did not foresee that your information would be used by these people to kill themselves, to give them that final push over the edge? No one who comes to my website is asking to have their life saved by me or by Big Brother.
All they want is respect.
And all they get from you, Mr.
Smythe, is indifference.
You're excused.
At this time, the People ask that the grand jury consider the charges previously submitted to you.
Yes? Mr.
Carver, the statute says a person is guilty of second-degree manslaughter if they intentionally help another person commit suicide.
But if they're just providing information anyone can get at the public library, how is that a crime? Mr.
Smythe speaks of a free exchange of ideas.
There's only one idea on his website, that suicide is in every case a reasonable answer.
He talks of neutral information.
There are no neutral acts.
By assembling this information in one place, he facilitates suicide.
His website offers them no alternative.
He says that's not his responsibility.
Well, if you see a bleeding man, it is your responsibility to help.
You can't look away and do nothing.
It is not your responsibility to grease the skids of his demise.
Doing that is criminal.
Four counts of manslaughter.
What I get for overestimating the intelligence of a grand jury.
Just be grateful the D.
A.
Let you off with a plea bargain.
I don't consider shutting down my website a bargain.
All right.
Joanie and Chachi, right? This is the last chat I have for them.
Thank you.
You can go do your little dance in hell now.
All right, we've got Chachi chatting with Lawboy and Flix134.
If Chachi's Nicholas, Lawboy might be Drew Esterhaus at the law firm.
They're setting up a meeting.
Whitestone.
The hospice for Wes Richmond's mother.
So he's Flix134.
Well, we got a new addition here.
"Carm00.
" Carmine, or somebody posing as him, begging off from a face-to-face before the big night.
Can we search for just Carm00's entries? Carm00 and Lawboy.
Edie.
A girl at Carmine's work? Well, she's mentioned for a reason.
Maybe the reason Carmine was killed.
We're all still in shock about Carmine.
Such a terrible waste.
You're his immediate supervisor.
You knew him well? Not very.
We have a high turnover.
He was very driven, one of our most promising finance specialists.
Mr.
Skoller, it's your wife.
She's downstairs in the car.
Tell her I'll be a few minutes.
Mrs.
Skoller Taking the family skiing for the weekend.
There's just one more thing.
We need to speak with one of his coworkers, a woman named Edie? Edie Elverson? I'm afraid Edie passed away.
She took her own life five months ago.
I really should go.
Talk about turnover.
A murder and a suicide? Or two murders.
Hello? Hubert, I've been going through Ruggiero's laptop and I've found some disturbing things.
I need you in here tomorrow morning.
But, Leonard, I'm with my family in the Berkshires.
We just got here.
Your family can stay up there, Hubert.
I need you in here tomorrow morning, first thing.
I work, you work.
Edie Elverson took a dive off a high-rise.
No evidence of a struggle, only her prints on the keypad for the roof door alarm and only her prints on a bottle of wine found on the roof.
She'd been drinking? Blood alcohol of 0.
05.
Her parents said she'd been depressed.
The roof alarm code was on the suicide website.
No coincidence Carmine's killer used the same website to set him up.
He wants to draw a parallel between the two deaths.
This is a message written under Carmine's name, "So much guilt.
What kind of person am I? "Too late for apologies, that's the worst.
" Now, Carmine did something to her maybe that led to her suicide.
Killing him could be payback.
Carmine Ruggiero? We know who he is.
He worked with our daughter.
Do you know how they got along? Edie never said they didn't.
Did they have a relationship outside of work? No.
She wasn't seeing anyone.
Did you ask Ruggiero these questions? No.
He was killed a week ago, in a collision with a train.
Those kids in that car? I heard it was some kind of suicide pact.
We're still sorting that out.
But you're asking us about Edie? Well, we found a message, attributed to Carmine, expressing regret about something he might've done to her.
The police said Edie committed suicide.
Maybe Carmine contributed to her state of mind.
Now, you told the police she was depressed.
It was that job.
She worked her heart out.
Even weekends.
She'd be over for Sunday brunch and get called away.
Seven-day work weeks are standard.
Loans to companies in trouble are deadline driven, and we have a young staff with plenty of energy, and the more they burn, the more they earn.
Or burn out, Mr.
Timmons, like Edie Elverson? This isn't work for the faint-hearted.
Character weaknesses bubble up to the surface pretty fast.
Carmine Ruggiero, was that one of Edie's weaknesses? I never heard that.
Excuse me.
We're waiting, where is he? Oh.
There you are.
Hubert'll answer all your questions.
These files cover Edie's last two months of work.
Performance review, loans in progress.
And these are Carmine's.
Edie's performance, how was it? Her family said that she worked long hours.
She got the work done, but she kept missing deadlines.
Any way Carmine could've submarined her? No, I would've caught on.
Mr.
Skoller, maybe you can explain this.
There are eight revisions of this loan analysis that Edie prepared.
Except, each draft doesn't seem all that different from the previous.
There's new punctuation marks, the graph's a little bigger Were these changes your idea? No.
Mr.
Timmons reviewed these.
A lot of busywork for nothing.
That would be contrary to the company policy outlined in our human resource document that every employee has to review and sign once a year.
If we find any other files, I'll make sure you get them right away.
Each report that Edie wrote was revised over and over again.
She was called out for minor mistakes and dragged in to work weekends.
Somebody had it in for her.
Well, it's a hostile work environment.
Maybe that's the reason for Skoller's legal-speak.
The company being sued for Edie's suicide.
Edie Elverson's parents were preparing for a wrongful death suit two months ago.
They took depositions, including Carmine Ruggiero.
I convinced the Elversons' lawyer to give us a copy.
Short deposition.
The lawyer had scheduled two hours with Ruggiero, but she cut it short.
Did Longbridge settle with the Elversons? The lawsuit was never filed.
My impression is that the Elversons decided to drop it.
Maybe this is why.
"Question.
Was Ms.
Elverson asked to work more hours than other employees? "Ruggiero.
No.
She told me she came in to work "because she hated being at home alone.
"She was uncomfortable around her family.
"Question.
Did she explain what she meant? "Ruggiero.
She was drinking a lot.
"She was afraid they'd find out.
"Question.
Isn't it true she was asked to redo her work for no reason? "Ruggiero.
No.
It was her idea.
"She said she was afraid Timmons "would notice she was making mistakes "because of her drinking and fire her.
" "I came in one Saturday, I found her in the bathroom, getting sick.
"She was drunk, she was crying.
"She told me she tried to kill herself in college by taking pills.
"She said no one knew.
" This is how Carmine let her down.
He lied in his deposition, like a good company man, and he sank the Elversons' lawsuit.
But if he dies an apparent suicide because he felt guilty about lying It might help the Elversons' lawsuit get back on track.
I can think of one person that would make happy.
I came across these in my office.
I thought Mrs.
Elverson might want them.
I'm sure she'll appreciate the thought.
I have to tell you again how sorry I am about Edie.
We lost another young person a couple of weeks ago.
Carmine Ruggiero.
Took his own life.
The stress in that office, it's inhuman.
That's not what the police think.
What do you mean? They talked to me and my lawyer about Edie and the lawsuit.
Like they think I had something to do with Ruggiero.
Thanks for the pictures, Mr.
Skoller.
What's all this? Our friends at Longbridge sent us the contents of Carmine's desk.
Day planner.
See what he had down for that Thursday.
Something for Edie? Leonard Timmons? I'm seeing something sheer and sexy.
Edie Elverson was having an affair with her boss.
No wonder she felt harassed.
Not to mention suicidal.
Carmine had proof of the affair.
It's probably stolen from Edie's desk.
It's considerable leverage over Timmons.
If I were Timmons, I might've started looking at train schedules myself.
I'm a married man.
I'm not stupid.
I saw what happened at Boeing, people getting fired even for having consensual affairs.
"Saw this and thought of you.
Can't wait to see you in it.
Len.
" We had Secret Santa last Christmas.
I drew Edie's name, I bought her a funny hat.
The detectives tell me they can trace this gift card to the lingerie store it came from.
That wouldn't prove anything.
You're curious where we found it, aren't you? Maybe he already knows.
Carmine Ruggiero had it.
Now, he was blackmailing you over your affair? It's why Edie was called in to the office on the weekends.
It's why she felt sexually harassed.
She wasn't sexually harassed.
She wanted to break it off, and that's when you turned on her, more work, more scrutiny, until she'd capitulate to you.
That's rubbish.
She felt trapped.
Miss Elverson was already a troubled young woman.
That lawsuit, that could've gotten very messy for you, if it weren't for Carmine.
There was no affair.
You can ask anyone We'd ask Carmine, but someone put him in front of a train.
We didn't come here to be ambushed.
Leonard, let's go.
Secret Santa, that's a new one.
Prove him a liar.
Find the gift that went with the card.
Designer lingerie.
I see marks from garter belt hooks.
But no garter belts and no matching stocking.
Everything here's rated PG.
You'd think Timmons would shower her with negligees, sexy bras Mr.
Elverson, did Edie have a laptop? We didn't find one.
She have a diary or electronic organizer, anything like that? No.
Just old letters, and a photo album with pictures of her friends.
Could we see that? I had it out a couple of days ago.
No lingerie, no computer, maybe Timmons cleaned her place out after she died.
You were with the police when they went into Edie's place? How did it look? It looked all right, a little messy.
You just looked at these a couple of days ago? I just added those office pictures.
Edie's supervisor dropped them off last Tuesday.
Hubert Skoller? Out of the blue? Yes.
And he told me about Carmine Ruggiero.
He thinks it was a suicide.
Well, what did you say about that? I told him you people seemed to think that I had something to do with the kid's death.
Okay, thank you, Mr.
Elverson.
We'll call you when we're done.
Hubert hears Elverson's a murder suspect.
The next day, we coincidentally find a gift tag that implicates Timmons.
Hubert Skoller, office enigma.
Timmons found out she suicided, he must've sent his right-hand guy to clean out her apartment.
Which would explain how Hubert got the gift card he planted in Carmine's day planner.
Implicating your boss in a murder isn't usually what right-hand guys do.
Thank you.
Well, this might explain his change of heart.
His deposition in the Elverson suit.
"Question.
Did Miss Elverson complain "to you about her work hours and workload? "Skoller.
No.
Question.
When her work was "constantly sent back for revisions, "didn't it occur to you something was wrong? Skoller.
No.
"If I thought she was being victimized, that she was suicidal, "and I had done nothing, what kind of person would that make me?" That has a familiar ring to it.
"I see Edie's shadow everywhere at work.
"So much guilt.
What kind of person am I?" It was Hubert pretending to be Carmine on the website.
He feels guilt about what happened to Edie.
He knows what kind of person he is, and he doesn't like it.
He's trying to put things right.
Killing Carmine, exposing Timmons' affair Maybe Hubert kept other souvenirs from Edie's place.
You gonna finish it for him? Hubert does beautiful work.
But it's dusty.
Looks like he hasn't touched it in months.
No time.
Between the mortgage and three kids in private school, he'd better keep it to the grindstone.
And all of his bills are past due.
Small ones.
$60 for his cable TV, $50 for his kid's ballet lessons.
His alumni association wanted to honor him for his work mentoring undergrads.
But he never responded.
He's letting it all slide, even the things that matter to him.
He's sinking into depression.
He hasn't let everything slide.
Recent bank and brokerage statements organized by institution, insurance policies with canceled checks attached.
A key to his safe-deposit box.
For his wife? Looks like Hubert is getting all his affairs in order.
Mr.
Skoller, it's the Carmichael loan, I can't make the numbers work.
I didn't mean to interrupt you.
It's nothing.
Just deleting old files.
Let's take a look at those numbers, Steven.
I appreciate that you think he might be suicidal, but my interest here is putting whoever killed Carmine Ruggiero behind bars.
If Hubert Skoller dies before we can get the truth, no one's interest is served.
If he wanted to make things right, why not just expose Timmons' affair? He helped Timmons cover up, he lied in the deposition.
He'd lose his job.
This guy can't afford it.
He probably thought that Carmine's apparent suicide would bolster the Elversons' claim that Longbridge was a hostile work environment.
That's who he was trying to help.
But now it's falling apart on him.
Look, if we give him a way out He panicked the last time he thought that we were going after the wrong man.
I'll calendar the grand jury in the morning to consider a bill of indictment against Frank Elverson, by which time you should be serving this subpoena on Mr.
Skoller.
That is what you have in mind, isn't it? Almost.
We'll need another one for Len Timmons.
Perfect.
So they roped you in, too.
Do you know what it's about? Well, it says right here on the subpoena, "People versus Elverson.
" Seems pretty clear to me.
They're indicting Frank Elverson for the murder of Carmine Ruggiero.
Oh, my God.
Hubert, my lawyer has some advice on handling the D.
A.
's questions.
It's important your answers stay on point.
Don't volunteer anything.
You got that, Hubert? Stay on point.
Don't embarrass the company.
Good, you're both here.
Before you testify, I need you to sign these waivers of immunity.
You'll be testifying before a grand jury assembled to consider a bill of indictment against Frank Elverson for the murder of Carmine Ruggiero.
You're expected to answer truthfully and to the best of your knowledge.
I don't think I have anything relevant to offer.
You let me worry about that, Mr.
Skoller.
Well, there are some things we need to go over to help Mr.
Carver prepare for your testimony.
Why does he think Mr.
Elverson killed Carmine? Now, I've met Mr.
Elverson, he didn't seem the type.
We can't discuss evidence with you.
Except evidence they already know about.
You know, the lawsuit.
Carmine's deposition blew it out of the water.
With Elverson, it's all about money.
It's like what you said about his daughter in your deposition, she's aloof, not a team player That's right.
Very standoffish.
Usually a sign of personality problems.
Did you ever get the box of materials from Carmine's desk? Got it the same day you sent it.
That's how we found your card to Edie.
Really? Tucked into Carmine's day planner.
Mr.
Timmons said that it was from his Secret Santa gift.
A funny hat, right? That's right, a hat.
You remember, Hubert, at the Christmas party? Yes, Leonard, I remember.
I'm sure Edie didn't need a hat.
She was probably already wearing a lampshade.
Yeah, that's the impression we got of her from Carmine's deposition.
She had a drinking problem.
That had to be hard for Elverson to hear from Carmine.
No wonder he went after the kid.
I never saw any evidence of drinking.
Hmm.
How about you, Mr.
Timmons, you ever notice anything? Unfortunately, yes.
I saw her come out of a bar near the office on a couple of occasions, in the middle of the day.
Edie's funny hat, you know We never What did it look like? It was green, like for a Christmas elf.
If you knew Edie was drinking during work, why didn't you reprimand her? Yeah, Hubert'll tell you, I'm no hard-ass.
I gave her a chance.
I just had no idea how bad it was.
You had no idea? That's what Hubert said in his deposition.
Because if he had an idea how suicidal she was, and he did nothing, what kind of person would that make him? Exactly right.
A green Christmas elf hat, is that That's really what he gave her? Come on, Hubert, you can't take this anymore, man.
There was no damned funny hat.
He gave her red stockings, garter belts, all kinds of lingerie.
He was having an affair with her.
Hubert, what the hell are you talking about? I can't listen to any more of your lies.
After she died, Len gave me a key to her apartment and a list of everything he'd given her, and he told me to take it all.
You bastard.
You're finished.
Finished! The affair, that's why he harassed her, that's why he victimized her? Yes, when she wouldn't sleep with him anymore.
He said he'd crush her.
He kept punishing her and punishing her till she couldn't take it anymore.
And she came to you for help, didn't she? She was too ashamed to file a complaint.
She asked me to talk to him.
What did you do? Nothing.
I was afraid of Leonard, of losing my job.
I told her she'd have to tough it out.
You shut the door on her.
That did it.
Even so, Hubert, it doesn't change anything.
You still have to testify in the Elverson case.
It changes everything.
He's the one with a reason to kill Carmine.
Carmine knew about the affair.
What was Carmine gonna say about it? He'd already lied under oath.
He was no threat to Timmons.
You see, Elverson's still got the better motive.
The D.
A.
's not gonna back off on prosecuting him.
Oh, God.
Oh, God.
I got to get out of here.
Hubert, do not leave.
Please, I just need some air.
Now you know how Edie felt.
Trapped, no way out.
We found that box with your papers neatly arranged, the key to the safety deposit.
We know what you're planning to do.
And then what? Frank Elverson takes the rap for killing Carmine? What about you wanting to set things right? What, does that become an empty gesture? You end up hurting Edie's parents, the very people you tried to help.
I don't know what to do.
Yeah, you do.
I don't know what to do.
Make things right! I tried, but look what happened! You tried because you wanted to be a good person.
Make things right.
Well, be a good person now.
Hey, look at me! A good person, Hubert.
Because you're better than him.
Oh, God.
Be a good person.
You make things right.
I put Carmine in that car.
I knew what would happen to him.
You made him one of your guys.
He lied for you, and so did I, until I couldn't.
I couldn't Okay, Hubert.
Okay.
Now you're under arrest.
You use, you use, you use Fifteen years I've watched you use them up, all the Edies and Carmines.
Well, no more.
No more! No more! I'll be talking to you, Mr.
Timmons.
In the meantime, you might familiarize yourself with such legal terms as obstruction and perjury.
Killing Carmine, he was really killing himself.
It's a step he should've skipped.