Homicide: Life on the Street s05e01 Episode Script

I don't care.
Pembleton shouldn't be allowed back into the Homicide Unit.
We could assign him to Evidence Control.
Evidence Control is for the mopes the Department wants to bury.
Pembleton's and the Department's doctors have given him the OK.
- He's been greenlighted.
- It's just a medical recommendation.
They say he's able to return to work.
- Maybe physically.
- THEY say so.
What do doctors know about this job? And Russert gets herself knocked up by what, some French diplomat? Jeez Between her and Pembleton, another banner day for Homicide.
- I never heard Megan was pregnant.
- Why else would she fly off with him? What does Megan have to do with Pembleton's status? Well, what's next, Al? - A pregnant detective - Where do you get your information? Pembleton's gimped in the head.
Then what? - Lewis and Kellerman wearin' dresses? - Lewis in a dress? This interests you? The Department's own rules give Pembleton the right to return to duty.
- He was hurt on the job.
- He wasn't shot on the street.
He was hurt on the job.
We are obligated to give him every opportunity to demonstrate he can perform his duties on the job.
When it's convenient for you, you can quote Department regulations.
Otherwise, you make the rules as you go along.
The doctors said they're very optimistic about his progress.
And doctors are never wrong, are they? - So, Pembleton comes back - Gets himself worked up.
- You know how pissed off he gets.
- He has another stroke.
Yeah.
But this time he's not so lucky.
And he drops dead right in the squad room.
Then it'll be on you, Lieutenant.
You know, Al, it's a good thing Russert runs off.
Between her and Pembleton, it's like an episode of "Nash Bridges" here.
So we let him flop around on the deck like a trout? What a way to celebrate Frank's first day back on the gig.
If he has another seizure, he should be allowed to complete it.
- Allowed? Says who? - The experts.
Keep him away from glass and anything else he can hurt himself with He'll have problems talking and slur his words, and at times he won't remember something.
- We all have those.
He'll slur his words? - Yeah.
- So he'll talk like you? - I don't slur.
I mumble.
You buy this bundt cake when you know I can't stand anything with nuts on it? - I forgot, all right? - No, it's not all right, all right? - All right.
- All right.
Frank's gotta be on some kind of medication, right? - Yeah.
- All right.
Let's say he short-circuits and does the mambo-fandango.
We pop a pill in his mouth and everything'll be copacetic.
Not when he's havin' a seizure.
You'd lose your fingers, snap 'em off.
- Guys - Hey, Tim.
Big Day.
Yeah, big day.
Where the hell's the donuts? Exactly.
Pembleton would've brought donuts.
No.
Wouldn't have brought this bundt cake either.
If you can do better, knock yourselves out.
I ain't here on this planet to make life à la carte for you.
- You're a sadist.
- No! - Mornin', Detective.
- Sarge.
Tim? Tim? - Big day for Frank, hey? - Well, we'll see.
Fine, Tim.
How are you? What's on your mind today? Nice talkin' to ya.
- Bayliss a little jumpy or what? - I guess.
It didn't take a wizard to figure out that Pembleton was headed for a stroke.
He let the job eat him up.
What's he trying to prove by coming back? Probably the same thing I'd do.
Prove I'm still a good detective.
You want a cup of coffee there, John? That's the first time in weeks, no, months, that a woman has asked me if I had any needs.
The offer was a cup of coffee, not a vestal virgin.
More's the pity.
A splash of milk.
- Two Sweet'n Lows coming up.
- Thank you.
- He here? - No, not yet.
- Where is he then? - Er Mary's bringing him in.
- Frank doesn't need special treatment.
- Oh, this? This er it's for me.
Yeah, Homicide.
OK, Kuper and what? All right, we'll be right there.
When Frank gets in, tell him to see me first.
Yeah, I'll leave a note.
John, take a little ride with me? - So now I'm good enough to talk to? - Forget it.
- Lewis! - I didn't say no, Tim.
- Lewis! - Who's yellin' for me now? - Got a victim in Sowebo.
- I said I'd go.
- I got Lewis.
- I got it, Meldrick.
- Who's going? - Who's going? - I'm going.
- You're going? So go.
- I'm going.
Here I come.
- Let's go.
- Brodie! - Yeah, what? Come on, come on, come on, come on.
If he wants to punish himself, that's OK, but Pembleton shouldn't put the load on us.
He'll recover quickest by gettin' back to his routine.
Since when do you have an opinion about anything? Take a walk.
We're running a homicide unit, not a rehab program for Frank.
- What's your problem? - Your problem, not mine.
Detectives, the victim is a woman, Frances Uba.
- I'm saying what everybody's thinking.
- No sign of forcible entry.
So, what? You're the voice of the people now? - The backdoor locks are OK, too.
- Oh.
- Where's the old lady? - In the kitchen.
Watch out, it stinks.
What stinks is my partner gets shot, he gets hurt, and where's Pembleton then, huh? - I visited Stan.
- I'm talking about Pembleton.
He didn't visit.
They weren't drinking buddies but Stanley retires, Pembleton doesn't give him a call, and now we should be all touchy-feely about your partner? You want to bitch about Frank? Is that it? Why don't we meet somewhere after work and you can suck my wind then, all right? Eugh, smells terrible.
A single bullet to the chest.
Yeah, there's stippling where the bullet entered.
- See this, pinpoint haemorrhages? - Yeah, from the powder burns.
Uh-huh.
And the powder comes off easily, so the gun was near her when she was shot.
OK, we should hold her clothes for the lab.
Open that door, will you please? Why does the victim smell so bad? - It's not from the victim.
- It's emanating from over here.
Oh! Is that a pig? What are you expecting, a striped pony? - What's a pig doing here? - You're the detective, Detective.
I think we have our motive.
Bacon.
Our porcine buddy was about to join these eggs in the morning repast.
- Is it a he or a she? - The way it's hung, he's definitely a he.
His name is er Let me see.
An Angie.
Angie's a girl's name.
Hey, Angie.
What do you think? Should we read him his rights? - It's a pig.
- Who could be the perp.
Look at the beady, shifty little eyes on this guy.
You know, I'm just surrounded by genius.
OK, and you've been Mrs Uba's neighbour for how long? For forever.
Well, we grew up together on this street.
Me and Frances were just at the flea market yesterday.
Look at this.
A Milliken original.
Ten bucks.
- Bargain, huh? - Even at twice the price.
You wait a season, the world is your oyster.
- It pays to have patience.
- Sure.
So you didn't hear anything unusual coming from the Ubas' household this morning, any shouting, yelling? No, not at all.
They were always yelling and screamin' at each other.
The deceased and her son, you say his name's Gerry? Yeah, Gerry Uba.
They were always hollering about the pig.
But the pig was OK with me.
He never pooped on my steps.
- Yeah, I hate dogs, too.
- No, I'm talkin' about Gerry.
And does Gerry have a girlfriend? I see him hangin' out with this older woman all the time.
- Oh, what was this woman's name? - I don't remember.
But I do remember talking to her once about Gerry and his pig.
- I think she might work over at the zoo.
- The zoo OK.
Giverny? Where's that? Somewhere in France.
Bon, bon, bon.
That's where Megan ran off to? Yeah, well, the story I got is that Tim Russert That's her cousin, that hotshot, Mr Meet-The-Press, he introduced her to some French diplomat in DC.
Next thing, she runs off with the guy.
- When was that? - About a week ago.
- I didn't hear anything about this.
- Trust me.
Around here, the less you know, the better off you are.
Why the hell do I have to clean out her damn desk? Because you're the sergeant, Sergeant.
Yeah, it's a union thing.
It comes with the territory.
Let me help you.
Get outta there.
You know, this desk is bad luck.
Huh? Russert, Bolander and before him, remember Slackjaw Johnson? Slackjaw Johnson? What's his story? Well, the name says it all.
This desk is cursed.
Whoever sits here is doomed.
- Well, I'm sittin' in a dead man's spot.
- Why you want to say that for? Why? You're evil.
Where's Pembleton? His shift started an hour ago.
We've got a damn revolving door.
Megan runs off with Pepe Le Pew, Stan retires, Pembleton's late.
Pembleton was always late, why should now be any different? - Maybe something happened to him.
- Don't say that.
He'll be here.
He'll be here, all right? This street holds its secrets Like a cobra holds its kill This street minds its business Like a jailer minds his jail That house there is haunted That door's a portal to hell This street holds its secrets very well That man wears his skin Like a dancer wears her veils That man stalks his victims Like a cancer stalks a cell That man's soul has left him his hearts As deadly as a rusty nail That man sheds his skin like a veil Do you think Frank's gonna talk like this? Maybe he'll talk like this.
N-N-No.
L-Li Like this.
No, like this.
No, like this.
Welcome back.
- Hey, Frank.
- Good to see you, Frank.
You, too Mike.
You you look disappointed.
- No.
- You were expecting what? - Something - No.
- I'd talk funny? - No.
You sound great.
Y-you sound great.
Yeah, er I like your I like your look.
Your your hairdo, y-your hair.
L-l-I didn't want want you to have to to see the scars.
Frank You guys got somethin' to do? Check, please.
There was no sign of forcible entry.
This is not a burglary.
Gerry's mum had problems with him.
This is a mother-son thing.
Some neighbours say they got along famously.
Maybe too famously.
Poor Angie, she's suffering from anxiety displacement.
What? Anxiety displacement.
You know, the legend of Pigtown.
They used to run the pigs through these streets on the way to the slaughterhouses and the locals would hide in their cellars and try to grab a pig for dinner.
Angie's reliving that nightmare.
The only nightmare here is a woman's shot dead while she's makin' breakfast.
Keep walking.
L-I have had enough.
If the doctors tell you to walk, walk.
- Pick up the pace.
- I'm trying.
L-I have 85% of my strength back in my arm.
A-a-almost a full range of motion, see? Y-you give me a couple of weeks, Gee, I'll be as good as new.
Regulations restrict you from going on the street till you can draw and fire your weapon.
I have to show that I can can handle my weapon? You've got to qualify on the range all over again.
I've always been a l-Iousy shot, Gee.
What difference should that make? You'll be working in half-shifts during the day until then.
L-I still work cases? If I can't put you back on the streets, how can you work a case, Frank? - So I'm stuck in the squad room? - Yes.
- Chained to my desk.
- No, you'll walk and get better.
- I answer phones? - Yes.
And er what? What else? There'll be times when your fellow detectives will run a case by you.
For your advice.
You'll give them the benefit of your experience.
A-and after my experience, after my advice, I er I'll run run and get coffee? Uh, uh, I er do do the mail? I er re-re-refill the er um um The the the the copy machine, huh? You assume you have the right to be here.
L-I earned the right to be here.
I put my ass on the line, thirteen thirteen years.
I don't owe any anybody anything.
L-l-I chose this to happen to me? I go through I go through this! You go through this alone, Frank? - Who calls your doctor every day? - When? Who checks with your physio to track your progress? When? When is this? The Department wants you out of Homicide into Evidence Control.
Who covers your back, Frank? Who? Evidence Control? You don't have enemies, Frank? Huh? Not one, Frank? Lieutenant! I've cashed in all my chips on this one, I've burned all my IOUs, so don't you believe that it's just your ass on the line.
There's been a shooting at a school.
The shooter's barricaded himself inside.
- He's got hostages.
- What? Come on.
Two dead on the scene unconfirmed.
- Where's Howard? - Shipping Russert's stuff.
- Judy, tell Howard to meet me.
- Parkview School, National Boulevard.
- How many hostages? - We don't know.
QRT's responding.
- What kind of school? - A middle school.
6th, 7th, 8th graders.
It wasn't appropriate leaving Brodie there.
Leaving Brodie with a pig, what's wrong with that? It's not his job to pig-sit.
I wasn't gonna wait around all day for Animal Control.
Anyway, he and the pig were getting along.
- Notice the eye contact? - With the pig? Yeah, Brodie charmed the pig.
He was touching the snout, kissing him.
Is that what the glistening was? The pig was charmed? A big age difference.
- The pig's older or younger? - Oh, much older, oh, yeah.
- So you got the girlfriend's name? - Yeah, it's Maureen Tarkoff.
She's supposed to work at the zoo.
Anyway, you check her out.
I'll take the son, this er Gerry Uba.
- What kind of name is Uba? Italian? - What do I know? Hey, hey, partner.
How's it going? Welcome back.
Hey, look at this.
Come on.
Try it out.
It's a present.
L-l-I don't want a present.
- I talk funny when I'm tired.
- I can understand you just fine, Frank.
- You got some uh - Er l-l-I'm I'm all right.
Come on, Frank.
You're all sweated up.
Come on, do it.
Here.
- Drink this.
- Lf if If I wanted water, I could get my own water.
OK, Frank.
You need to replenish your fluids.
There you go.
Drink it slow.
Drink it slow, slow, slow, slow.
- You're you're you're a pain.
- You take your medicine? - What are you workin' on? - You know, routine case.
- How soon before you? - Agh! Bayliss.
- What? Did you take your medicine? - I know when to take my medicine.
Good.
Frank.
If you're not too busy, er Tim and I have a very difficult case.
We've got an uncooperative witness.
Could you call Animal Control? - OK, knock it off, Munch.
- Well, let Frank take a shot at Angie.
See if he still has his crackerjack interview skills.
- You still walk on water, don't you? - Munch, line five.
Who who who's Angie? Who's Angie? No one.
You know, Munch is just wising off.
L-l-I can't hear what you're working on? Huh? Well, it's some woman, and she was shot, Frank.
You you you you have a witness.
- No.
- He says you have a witness! Hey it's a pig.
A pig? What what what do what do you mean, a"pig" pig? A pig, you know Yeah.
A real one, a "pig" pig.
Y-y-you! You! You're the one you're the wise-off, you.
I swear, it's it's a pig.
Tim, that was the zoo.
That Tarkoff woman is working today.
- Want to go, Dr Bayliss? - Oh.
Yeah, sure.
Would you like to talk to a woman who loves a man who loves a pig? Sure would.
Frank, take your medicine.
Someone's looking out behind the shade, third floor, second to the last window.
We're too far back in the command post.
We have no clear line of sight.
Do you have a clear target? Negative.
I can't make out exactly who it is.
We have no line of sight, so you're our eyes.
You're in the clear.
You're not in the field of fire.
He's gone now.
Keep me informed of whatever you observe from your position.
Colonel Jasper, the Homicide Unit's here.
Great, that's all I need.
Any life in the body in the field? Negative.
He's dead.
Officer Berti, my men on the roof tell me the man out there is dead.
- What about that woman, Jasper? - Eye in the sky reports no movement.
- She could be alive.
- We're picking up no sounds from her.
You can't have her out in the open with all the kids around.
Do we have contact with who's holding the hostages? - No.
- That's why we haven't gone in.
We can only maintain the perimeter.
Did your people on the roof hit anyone in the building who may have been hurt? - We're working on that.
- Start workin' on that woman.
She's dead.
We have to look at her as a piece of broken furniture.
We should focus on the hostages.
We'll get to her when we can.
- Yeah, when you have a minute.
- This is QRT's call, not Homicide's.
You're a guest here, so don't get in the way.
Who are you to talk to my detective like that? - Al, just a second.
- This is QRT's red ball.
Homicide can go home.
- You'll be notified when we've finished.
- To clean up your mess? Wait! I'm not gonna listen to any pissing contest! Jasper, it's your show.
Al, lend support.
Get your detectives going on finding witnesses to what happened inside.
OK, Colonel.
Sergeant Howard, tell Lewis and Kellerman to interview witnesses.
So we don't know how many hostages there are.
Do we know who they are? Mostly kids.
- Was it a rifle? - No.
He was holding a gun in his hands.
It was grey and black.
And what about the man? Did you see him? Young.
I think he had brown hair.
I'm not sure about his clothes.
There were shots, like firecrackers, then someone comes into the room, Mr Jenkins, the Assistant Principal.
He yells at us, "Get up and run," to get out of the school, so I hustle the kids out the door, and we're runnin' and then I see him.
He looks me right in the eye.
Why didn't he shoot me? I was looking over the football field, and there was this guy.
He was arguing with Tom Maggio.
Er Tom, he's our janitor.
- Then I saw him with this gun.
- Describe the gun.
What's your name? It's OK.
You can tell me your name.
My name is Mike.
I understand how you feel, but it's important that you and I talk.
I need to know what you saw so we can help everyone, all right? Come on, just tell me your name.
Tell me what grade you're in.
Are you filming this? Yeah.
You're making a movie? - Tell us your name.
- Are you making a movie? Um yes.
Cool.
Then this isn't really happening, is it? This isn't real.
This isn't really happening.
This isn't really happening.
This isn't real.
This isn't real.
This isn't real.
All my friends, they're not hurt, are they? Rachel, come on, get up.
This is just a movie.
- Let them do their thing.
- You lied to me.
OK, homes.
Let's go find your teacher.
Come on.
l-I understand.
Yeah yeah, the the the host hostage situation, uh-huh.
Oh, you're t-the uncle of one of the students? - You can't contact the family? - You're calling a lunch order, right? H-h-hang on hang on one second.
- What? - The lunch order.
- I'm talkin' to somebody here! - OK.
OK.
Hello? Um T-t-to who whom am I speaking, please? You're who? No, I Excuse me.
Excuse Hey! Huh? Excuse me.
You're gonna have to exp - He hung up.
- Everybody wants pizza for lunch.
L-I get the? I? Oh, OK.
OK Here's everyone's money.
I think there's enough for a tip.
Right Pizza P-E-T P-E-T-E-S-A P-peetz Peetz - Gerry's mother's dead? - She was shot.
Uh Maureen Tarkoff? How do you spell that? T-A-R-K-O-F-F.
It's Russian.
How long you and Gerry been goin' together? - Oh, I'm not his girlfriend.
- That's not what the neighbours said.
He'd come around to see me.
I felt sorry for him.
- You the hippo custodian? - I'm the mammals curator.
- Do you curate Gerry's pig? - Gerry bought Angie to help him sleep.
Well, Angie is certainly no name for a boy pig.
Oh, the formal name is Andrzej.
It's Polish for Andrew.
- She's Peaches.
- She sure is.
Hippos and pigs are related.
That's why Gerry came to me.
He said we're of the same soul.
So Gerry and Angie are sleeping together? Yeah, after Gerry's father committed suicide last year Wait a minute, wait a minute.
The father was a suicide? The neighbours we talked to never mentioned suicide.
They just said the father had died.
Put his head in the oven, turned on the gas.
In my book, that's suicide.
Me and Gerry came by and found him dead.
Gerry saw his father lyin' half-way out of the oven, calls 911 and goes out and starts to mow the lawn.
No emotion at all.
- Where is Gerry now? - I don't know.
If you had to find him, you'd know where to look? I'd have no idea.
He feeds Angie at 12:00 sharp, and Angie knows when it's 12:00.
- Pigs are the smartest animals around.
- Gerry would go back to feed the pig? Angie's smart, but not smart enough to feed himself.
- Thank you.
- Thank you.
The man is? It's Tom Maggio, our janitor.
- And the woman? - Jennifer Clark, the dietician.
I saw her just 10 minutes before this started.
We talked about lunch menus.
How do we notify of next of kin? I wanna hold off on that till we have this under control.
We should reach the families before the media get hold of that info.
- You can help us with phone numbers? - Yes.
- How many are wounded? - Six.
- How many critical? - We're waitin' to hear from the hospital.
Sergeant, work on notification to the families of the confirmed dead.
OK, sure.
Hostage negotiators got contact with the guy inside.
- The kids are OK? - We don't know.
- Do we have a face-to-face with him? - Nah, he got them on a cell phone.
- He did what? - He put a call into headquarters.
- Downtown patched him through.
- Do we know it's real? Could be a crank call.
He says he's using the phone of a Mrs Digrazi.
- D-l-G-R-A-Z - Digrazi, sure.
My 6th grade history.
He says Digrazi's making him nervous.
Let me have the phone to speak to the Commissioner.
- Who are we talking to? - He won't identify himself.
He's already murdered two people.
Why's he shy? He's holed up there with one teacher and 15 kids.
- He's got 15? - Yes.
- Are we in contact with him now? - Not at the moment.
- What's he want? - Nothing.
Well, he must want something.
- Any word on the hostages' condition? - I've asked.
He won't answer.
- Do we know who the kids are? - We're checkin' on that right now.
- It's this history teacher's class? - Yeah, Digrazi's.
She's got 176th-graders during the period the shooter went in.
- You said he was holding 15.
- That's what he told me.
Why say 15 when he's holding 17? - Maybe two of the kids are absent.
- Find out.
That'll be tough.
Attendance records are inside.
Maybe he's saying he's holding two kids are dead.
- Maybe they're hurt.
We need to know exactly the number of the kids in that class.
- Get the principal, what's her name? - Smith.
Tell her it's essential we know the names of the kids in that class, then have Howard interview the teachers and students to find out if any of Digrazi's kids got out.
- Maybe we can find the absent kids.
- By process of elimination.
- Lousy choice of words! - Knew it as I said it, Gee.
So Uba comes up clean, huh? Except for a bunch of tickets for walkin' his pig without a leash.
Huh.
- Hey, Frank.
Heading home early? - Yeah.
Must be sweet to work half-days, Frank.
Can I have that job? All right, OK.
That's it, all right? Appreciate you returning all my calls.
What? When you were home, laid up sick.
If I called 50 times, I called once.
I sent flowers, I talked to your wife.
L-I heard you called.
I yelled for a doctor when you went down with the stroke.
You can't even return a phone call? L-I didn't I didn't think it was important to you.
Why would you? It's always all about you.
Do you have a clear sight of him? The windows, where the gunman is, face west.
With the sun as it is, we've got nothing but glare.
You have Polaroid lenses on your scopes? No such animal exists, sir.
The Commissioner wants to know if we need Governor involved.
If they can get the hostages out safely, get their asses down here.
They couldn't find their asses with a road map! We can't get the names of kids inside the school.
There's too much confusion going on.
Let's go.
Go where? - You you find this guy? - Gerry Uba? - No, he never returned home.
- Let's go find him.
Frank, you know that I can't use you on this case.
It's OK.
I know l-I talk funny.
I walk funny.
I'm a little bit slow.
But I still know this job.
Me and you, we we can find this guy.
Frank, go home.
OK? You just gotta take it light and easy for now.
Hmm? Does he have a girl? Why, she call in? Girls never give up the boy.
We go to her place, we can find him.
Nine times out of ten, huh? - Huh? - Frank, go home.
You you don't you don't think I'm good enough to be your partner.
- Do you? - That's not true.
L-I'm the same man.
- Frank.
- I'm the same man.
You you you don't think I'm the same man, do you? Do you think I'm never gonna be the same? You kiss my ass.
And Olivia turned her head and watched me walk across the room.
Hmm.
That was great.
Yeah.
She's getting so big.
How was your day? - It was there there.
- Mmm.
- Take a right.
- A right? You mean left.
- Go right.
- Frank, home is left.
Mary, would you take a right turn? OK.
- We have contact.
- We got him on speaker? 'I want beer.
' - He wants what? - Beer.
- This is new news.
- 'I want a six-pack of beer, cold.
' Come on, talk to him.
Talk to the man.
- You want beer? Is that correct? - 'Are you deaf? ' It's difficult to hear you.
We're having problems with the connection.
- 'What's wrong with your phone? ' - Listen, hey, hey, hey.
Talk to me now.
'My phone is going out because of the battery.
'The moron didn't charge up the battery! ' All this can be worked out.
Don't worry about the battery.
We'll get you another phone, fully powered, brand new.
'I don't want a phone.
I want a six-pack.
' Your call, sir.
We want him to release the kids and the teacher.
OK, you want beer, all right, I'm working on that.
But when I get you your beer, I need you to show me some good faith, OK? 'What the hell are you talking about? ' - He has to release the hostages.
- You don't need those kids.
- 'Is that right? ' - Hello.
Are you still there? - Lose him? - Bring the throw phone.
Get a squawk box so we can talk this bastard into taking the phone.
I I can I can get get out of a car, Mary.
I don't know why you're doing this.
The doctors told you to take it slow.
Frank, there is time for all of this later.
I I won't be long.
Lis um lis um lis-s-s Uh, swi swi uh swing by in an hour and um we'II we'll take uh Olivia out to dinner um to to celebrate her her big day.
All right, so you give him the beer and then the throw phone.
That's in the order he wants.
He asks for a six-pack and you give him one lousy bump? He shows good faith, he can negotiate a whole brewery.
I'm not sure about the beer.
He gets crazy, he'll shoot the hostages.
The Commissioner wants to know if we could take him by force.
- Yes, sir.
- And night time is best? We'd operate better under the cover of darkness.
He's already killed two people.
We don't know how many are dead inside.
He'll kill more hostages if we storm the place.
We gotta keep talking to this guy.
- Maybe he'll pass out.
- What, on one beer? - Maybe he's a cheap drunk.
- It'll buy us time.
- So what we gonna do now, Gee? - We wait.