Bull (2016) s05e08 Episode Script

1 (BEEPS) (TURBINE WHIRRING) (SIRENS WAILING) (TIRES SCREECHING) Sir! We're gonna need you to put that case down and put your hands in the air.
Put down the stolen property and put your hands in the air, sir.
This isn't stolen property.
I didn't steal anything! This is mine! (PHONE RINGING AND BUZZING) (GRUNTS SOFTLY) (GROANS) Oh, my God, Marissa, this better be important.
Okay, all right.
Well Do me a favor, call Benny, tell him that, uh, I'll pick him up.
And then send me an e-mail with who it is, what they did, and what they want.
BENNY: Dr.
Edwin Pruitt, undergrad at Caltech, PhD at MIT.
Widely considered one of the world's leading experts on Parkinson's disease.
Huh.
Wait a second.
Did Marissa explain to you what this man is being accused of? Not really.
Well, man's basically being accused of being a traitor.
So what exactly did he do? Broke into a place called Bressadyne Labs only hours after being fired.
Prosecutor's claiming he stole sensitive genetic materials, which he had arranged to sell for top dollar to a lab partially owned by the United Arab Emirates.
- Wow.
- (JAIL CELL DOOR CLOSES) I need you to understand, I am not a criminal.
I'm a scientist.
I just want to continue my work.
So tell us what you do.
What your work is for this Bressadyne Labs.
Well, my entire career has been devoted to the study of a single disease, Parkinson's.
Ten months ago, I found the answer.
Are you saying you found a cure? An actual cure for Parkinson's disease? That's what I'm saying.
I mean, certainly there's more work to be done before it's realized, but, yes, I found a path to the cure.
I know what to do.
Now it's just about having the resources and wherewithal to do it.
You understand what an audacious statement that is? I do, but I've spent my whole life fighting this disease.
I wouldn't risk my reputation on something that's not provable, something that's not certain.
Dr.
Pruitt, if that's the case, then why are you here? Sounds to me like you should be on the cover of Time magazine, not in federal lockup.
You'd think so.
When I showed Dr.
Alfred Latham, head of Bressadyne Labs, what it was I found, he was beside himself.
Then, a week after my presentation, everything changed.
Key members of my staff were transferred.
My funding was cut.
Authorizations for the most mundane tasks were held up.
My work ground to a crawl.
I believe Latham and Bressadyne's board of directors decided to kill my project.
That doesn't make any sense.
Why would they do that? Greed.
Think about it.
If you don't cure someone, they keep coming back to buy more treatment.
They're the perfect customer.
So, you're saying they killed the possibility of a cure for the money? As soon as I understood what was happening, what they were doing, I began searching for a new lab that would actually support my research.
As soon as Bressadyne realized that I was looking around, talking to other labs, they fired me.
Why did you talk to labs in foreign countries? I had to.
Every American lab I approached was terrified of the employment agreement I'd signed with Bressadyne Labs.
Why? Because basically it says Bressadyne owns my work.
All my work.
They're not saying they just own the work I did during my tenure with them.
They're saying they own every bit of Parkinson's knowledge in my head irrespective of when I acquired it.
They're claiming I assigned it all to them.
All of it! Did you? (CLEARS THROAT) We understand your position, Dr.
Pruitt.
But you signed the contract.
You read it.
And frankly, in your field, these types of invention assignment provisions are fairly standard.
I entered into that contract in good faith.
I, I certainly didn't agree to let them bury my work.
I mean, we're talking about a cure that could potentially help millions of people.
BULL: So, Bressadyne fired you, and then you broke back in to get your My studies, my samples, my research.
I need those genetic materials if I'm gonna complete my work.
Well, I respect the hell out of your dedication, Dr.
Pruitt, but there had to be another way.
Yeah, you could have sued Bressadyne, come to some sort of an arrangement.
Mr.
Colón, you said it yourself.
I signed that employment agreement with Bressadyne.
Even if I could have gotten out of that contract, you're a lawyer How long would that have taken? How many years? How much would it have cost? I'd be wasting valuable time inside a courtroom instead of a lab, which is where I need to be.
And I'm not a kid.
Halfway through my 50s.
Time is the one resource I really can't squander.
- Be that as it may - I was four years old.
When I was in the car with my grandfather, he drove right through a red light.
Barely missed hitting a woman walking her dog.
Turns out his foot went stiff.
He couldn't hit the brake.
It was early-onset Parkinson's.
He was 49.
My father was 47 when the symptoms first became apparent.
I've had mild tremors for about 18 months now.
I'm living on borrowed time, gentlemen.
I have all the genetic markers for the disease.
The date's already been set.
I just don't know when it is.
Will you help me? MAURICIO: But you promised we could watch a movie tonight.
I know, sweetie, but a man's in trouble and needs my help.
You'd want someone to help Mommy if she needed help, wouldn't you? We didn't even get to finish feeding the ducks.
- (KNOCKS ON DOOR) - We always feed the ducks on Saturday.
What if they get hungry? I bet if you ask your dad really nice, he'll take you back to give them the rest of the bread.
And (GASPS) What if we do a makeup Saturday? We'll pick a day and just turn it into a Saturday.
We'll feed the ducks, have pizza for breakfast, - watch a movie.
- (DOOR UNLOCKS) Oh, my goodness.
Now, which one of you is Mauricio? (LAUGHS) Oh.
Sorry.
I'm Rachel.
Taylor? It's a gift.
Uh, Erik's just finishing up a phone call.
But it's so great to meet you guys.
I've heard so many good stories.
- Really? - Yeah.
There's the boy.
(GROWLS PLAYFULLY) You guys got here quick.
Yeah.
Well, as soon as I got off the phone with you, I threw his things in his backpack.
So, you both met Rache.
You betcha, we did.
Can I speak to you for a sec? RACHEL: I was just baking cupcakes.
Would that interest you at all? - Little bit.
- RACHEL: A little bit? Come on.
We had a deal, remember? We said we wouldn't introduce Mauricio to anyone we hadn't been dating for at least six months, and we'd tell each other beforehand.
Hey, I didn't put this in motion.
You did.
Rachel was already here when you texted.
- (PHONE CHIMING) - And the way I read it, you needed a favor, and I said yes.
- I have to go.
- It's all right.
You can apologize and thank me later.
Thank you for taking my day at the last minute.
You're very welcome.
Bye, Mauricio! I love you, and I'll miss you! - I'll tell him.
- Sure, you will.
ROSENBERG: FBI Special Agent Braxton, - can you sum up your findings? - BRAXTON: Well, the Bureau concluded that Dr.
Pruitt had negotiated a deal to sell Bressadyne Labs' Parkinson's research along with his own services to a company called the Anzir Institute, a biotech lab in Dubai.
And can you tell us who the majority shareholder is in the Anzir Institute? The government of the United Arab Emirates.
And what are the potential ramifications of a sale of these types of sensitive biological materials to a foreign government? Well, most gene therapies that treat disease involve two elements: The payload and the transport.
The payload is typically the corrected gene material.
The treatment, if you will.
And the transport delivers this payload into the damaged organ.
And this was the case with Dr.
Pruitt's research? Yes.
In fact, Dr.
Pruitt was very much on the cutting edge.
He was using viruses as the transport mechanism.
Now, under most circumstances, these viruses would be very noncontagious.
But Parkinson's occurs in the brain.
And the brain has so many defenses that Dr.
Pruitt was forced to engineer a much more contagious virus to breach those defenses.
So are you saying these viruses can be weaponized? Absolutely.
If the wrong people got their hands on Dr.
Pruitt's viruses, it's entirely possible.
No further questions at this time, Your Honor.
Mr.
Colón, the witness is yours.
W-Weaponized viruses? That can't have gone over well.
O ye of little faith.
Nice to meet you, Agent Braxton.
- Nice to meet you.
- Yeah.
I-I'm-I'm confused, sir.
Uh, Dr.
Pruitt wasn't charged for the manufacture of a biological weapon under the Biological Weapons Anti-Terrorism Act, was he? Well, no, but That's because the virus he was using to develop a cure for Parkinson's isn't actually a weapon, is it? Not at the moment, no.
But No, no.
I mean, in fact, you would need an extraordinary amount of resources to weaponize that virus, wouldn't you? Well, yes.
You'd likely need an active bioweapons program at the very least.
Wow.
An "active bioweapons program.
" (INHALES) Whew.
Sounds like those are few and far between.
(SMACKS LIPS) Do you know if the UAE has one of those programs? No.
- No, they do not.
- Ah.
And does the U.
S.
government consider the UAE to be an enemy? To be hostile towards its interests? No.
No, we don't.
In fact, isn't it true that the UAE is actually one of our closest allies in the Middle East? I suppose, yes.
Under most circumstances, that would be a yes.
So, once again, just to be 100% clear, you're saying that the UAE is not our enemy? No, they are not.
So not only are they likely incapable of weaponizing this virus, eh, they really have no incentive to.
I suppose, yes.
That's correct.
All right.
Thank you.
No further questions, Your Honor.
Redirect, Your Honor? Agent Braxton, are you familiar with Boris Ivonsky? BRAXTON: I am.
He's a Russian oligarch and a major investor in the Anzir Institute in Dubai.
He's also known to have previously passed on sensitive manufacturing technology to the Kremlin.
(WHISPERS): I've never heard of this person.
ROSENBERG: Russia.
Now, they are our enemy, are they not? Without a doubt.
And does the Russian government have the resources to weaponize Dr.
Pruitt's viruses? Yes.
In fact, they have one of the most aggressive bioweapons campaigns in the world.
So, if Dr.
Pruitt had been successful in turning over his research as planned, the Russians could have conceivably gotten - their hands on it? - BENNY: Objection, Your Honor.
The prosecutor's question requires speculation.
I'm going to allow it.
Objection overruled.
ROSENBERG: I'll repeat the question.
If Dr.
Pruitt had been successful in turning over his research as planned, the Russians could have conceivably gotten their hands on it? Absolutely.
Ivonsky is one very small step away from the Kremlin itself.
And isn't it also true that once the Russians had possession, they could have weaponized it - and unleashed it on anyone? - Your Honor, this is inflammatory.
- Perhaps our troops - This is speculation.
- This is ridiculous.
- or even our civilian populations in a bio-attack? (MURMURING) So much for not being in bed with the enemy.
Marissa! I going to drop Benny off so he can prep for tomorrow, and then I am coming back into the office.
If you can get the team to hang around Edwin did what he did 'cause he had to.
Not 'cause he wanted to betray the United States, not 'cause he wanted to get rich selling cures to a foreign government.
He did what he did 'cause Bressadyne was gonna mothball all of his research, all of his hard work, and make sure a cure never became available.
And that is our narrative.
Now, let's talk about our first witness tomorrow.
Edwin's old boss, Dr.
Latham.
Here's a question Have we found anything to prove that Bressadyne intentionally shut down Edwin's cure? Also, is there anything we can ask this guy that'll force him to confess or perjure himself? I don't know what to tell you, Dr.
Bull.
I've been through everything the U.
S.
Attorney's Office received from Bressadyne, all the discovery, and so far I haven't found a single document that backs up Edwin's theory.
Okay, but Benny said something about making a request for additional discovery.
Do we know anything about that? I do.
The judge granted our motion, but Bressadyne's saying they have already turned over everything they have regarding the Parkinson's project.
Well, they can say that all they want, but I don't believe it.
Why not? Bressadyne does profit calculations on everything.
Constantly.
Including their Parkinson's project.
But ever since Edwin's breakthrough, there hasn't been a single projection on Parkinson's.
Not one.
I think the lab is either hiding them or they've deleted them.
I just can't prove it.
Now, wait a second.
Aren't you the one who's always telling me that nothing digital ever completely disappears? I've been known to say that.
So find them.
You mean hack Bressadyne? I can try.
The thing is, if I do find anything, I'll have obtained it illegally.
And don't you want to be able to use these documents in court? Well, for Bressadyne to allege that we obtained the documents illegally, they would have to admit that the documents actually exist.
And if the documents exist, that means they were withholding them from discovery.
So do it.
(TAPS KEYBOARD) (GROANS) (PHONE CHIMES) (SIGHS) At least someone's getting some sleep.
Look.
Erik just sent over a "good night, Mommy" pic from Mauricio.
(SIGHS) I feel so guilty, making him go to his father's again in the middle of the week.
Oh, come on.
He's with his father.
It's not like he's at the orphanage in Oliver Twist.
He probably got to stay up a half an hour later, watch a movie you'd never let him see, and sleep in his underwear.
(SIGHS) He has a girlfriend.
Mauricio? Isn't he a little young for that kind of thing? My ex.
And Mauricio's crazy about her.
And I think she's probably there all the time.
And I know nothing about her, except that she's young.
This will pass.
Girlfriends come and go.
Girlfriends get older.
- (CHUCKLES SOFTLY) - But Mauricio only has one mother.
And that is you.
There's nothing to be insecure about.
You have that job for life.
I know.
(EXHALES) Well, hello there.
Striking up a conversation with your computer? No, no.
I just found something.
I think it's some sort of hidden directory.
It doesn't appear on any of their sitemaps.
Whatever it is, they certainly didn't want anyone to see it.
I had to get through four internal firewalls to get here.
(BEEPING) We're in.
My God, how many files are they hiding? Dozens.
(BEEPING) Oh.
(GASPS) - Where'd they go? - Shipwreck.
They moved them.
Their system must have detected me.
It's released some sort of automatic countermeasure.
That doesn't sound good.
- It isn't.
- (BEEPING) They're following me back out.
Probably to plant some sort of malware on our system.
I've got to erase our trail before it gets to (GASPS) (ALARM BEEPING) What was that that you said before? Oh, shipwreck.
Great.
Thanks, Marissa.
(EXHALES) What's the good word? There is no good word.
The evidence we need (EXHALES) - Exists online.
- (SIGHS) But, apparently, our systems are down, so we can't retrieve it.
And according to Danny and Taylor, that is not a coincidence.
LATHAM: So, all told, Bressadyne Labs invested more than six years and close to $37 million in the research that Dr.
Pruitt participated in.
Dr.
Latham, you called it "the research Dr.
Pruitt participated in.
" I'm curious about your choice of words.
Clearly, you don't think of that as Dr.
Pruitt's research.
No.
It would never occur to me to think of it that way.
The research belongs to the people who paid to make it possible.
It's like a mechanic fixing your car and then deciding to drive it home because they suddenly think they own it.
ROSENBERG: No further questions, Your Honor.
Good morning, Dr.
Latham.
Now, isn't it true that when you originally recruited Dr.
Pruitt, you said you needed him on your team because you considered him to be the world's top Parkinson's researcher? I did.
And I do.
Dr.
Pruitt has always done really cutting-edge work.
Uh, he has, hasn't he? A-And do you recall a conversation you had with Dr.
Pruitt on March 27th of last year, where he informed you of a major breakthrough he had with the transport mechanism of his Parkinson's cure? I do.
Although I wouldn't characterize it as a major breakthrough.
Really? Huh.
Uh, uh Let me see if I understand this.
Dr.
Pruitt solves a problem that has been vexing researchers all over the world for years, and you don't consider that to be a major breakthrough? No.
Not really.
The transport mechanism is simply a component of a much larger and much more complicated system.
Now, I understood Dr.
Pruitt's excitement.
But his so-called breakthrough hardly constituted the discovery of a cure.
I mean, you'd be shocked at how many times a week one of our researchers comes to me with a "major breakthrough.
" Uh, psychologically, I understand they need to celebrate the little bits of progress.
And I expect that's because the path to real success is filled with so many setbacks.
But that's the nature of what we do.
I see, but here's the part I don't understand.
Only weeks after Dr.
Pruitt, the man you just testified you consider to be the world's top Parkinson's researcher, uh, made his "bit of progress," you reduced his staff by 83% and slashed his budget by about the same amount.
I mean, it sounds like you were trying to turn his bit of progress into a major setback.
Wouldn't you agree? No.
I wouldn't.
Bressadyne Labs is a very large company.
Parkinson's is one of 14 major drug groups that make up our firm.
We needed to shift that funding to other pharmaceutical initiatives that were at more critical junctures.
Projects that were on the cusp of greater progress, if you will.
And that's what we did.
Ah.
So this was a financial decision? Absolutely.
We might be in the business of saving lives, but we're still a business.
You know, that's really interesting, because according to the documents you handed over in discovery, you didn't do any financial forecasts with regards to Dr.
Pruitt's work before making these decisions.
- Well - In fact, you haven't performed any financial analysis of his work in ten months.
Well, as it happens, our accounting department is backed up lately.
People working from home, no support staff.
But sometimes sometimes you don't need a spreadsheet to tell you what you already know That a tough decision has to be made.
I promise you, Dr.
Pruitt's supposed breakthroughs were primarily theoretical, and we had very real and very pressing, practical reasons for moving the funding.
If you say so.
But apparently your accounting department wasn't too busy to generate a financial forecast for the lupus group.
I mean, hell, they generated a financial forecast for them every single month last year.
And they weren't too backed up for multiple sclerosis or Crohn's disease, for that matter.
According to the documents you surrendered to the government, they all got a monthly financial report.
So a skeptic would think that maybe you did run the numbers for Parkinson's and for some reason decided not to share them here with us today.
Any chance that might be the case, Dr.
Latham? No chance at all.
Really? You don't think that maybe you ran the numbers and discovered that selling treatments for Parkinson's disease was far more profitable than selling people a one-time cure? I'm asking you a question, Dr.
Latham.
Objection! Counsel is badgering.
I've spent my entire adult life doing medical research.
I'd never stand in the way of a cure! But you know who would? Your client Dr.
Pruitt.
In fact, it might interest you to know that the night he stole the refrigerated vials from our lab, he left the freezer open.
It was open all night.
We lost hundreds of samples, hundreds of thousands of dollars' worth of research in other treatments and cures destroyed.
BENNY: Objection, Your Honor.
This is the first time - I'm hearing about this.
- Dr.
Pruitt set us back years.
- He deliberately sabotaged us.
- No foundation has been laid - for this accusation.
- That's who you're defending! The witness can't just sit here and accuse my client - of anything he wants - A man doing everything he can - to put a great and storied - (GAVEL BANGS) - Order! Order in this courtroom! - pharmaceutical company out of business.
Dr.
Bull, there is no way on God's earth that I would leave that freezer door open.
I've been dealing with biological samples for 30 years.
It's like washing your hands before you eat.
You just do it.
You close the door without thinking.
There's got to be video.
There has got to be video.
I-I'm sure there is.
It's just a question of getting them to surrender it, getting it entered into evidence in time.
In time for what? In time to change their minds.
Marissa, I apologize, but I suddenly realized, I had to run out and pick up my son.
Don't worry about it.
We are all good here.
The entire system is behaving like nothing ever happened, thanks to you.
You're sweet to say that.
Oh, I should be back in about 45 minutes, and if it's okay with you, I'll be bringing my son.
No.
Why are you even coming back? We're all good here.
The boys are already halfway through court today, so just go get your little guy and go home.
Oh, no.
What's wrong? I just spotted my son, but his father is nowhere to be seen.
Looks like he left him with his new best friend Lolita.
Who? Oh, just someone he picked up at the last jailbait meet-and-greet.
I have to go.
(SIGHS) Mom! Hey, little You good? [40 Sec Video cut out.]
You're kidding.
He just left Mauricio with you? Yeah.
Well, we really like each other.
Still, that just doesn't seem very smart.
I mean, leaving my little boy with a stranger.
No offense.
- Uh - I mean, I barely know you.
Mauricio barely knows you.
MAURICIO: 914-555-0153.
914-555-0153.
(CHUCKLING): What's that? It's my phone number.
She's not a stranger, Mommy.
I know her phone number.
He asked me to help him memorize it in case he ever wanted to call me.
Why would he want to do that? (SCOFFS) Okay, can I just pay you? For what? - No, I don't - Thank you so much.
Come on, kiddo.
We got to go.
What are you mad about, Mommy? She's really nice.
I like her.
- I'm not mad.
- You look mad.
I'm not mad.
Dr.
Pruitt, would you ever intentionally put your research in the hands of a foreign government you believed wished to do harm to the United States? Of course not.
Would you ever intentionally destroy the work of a fellow scientist? God, no.
I, more than almost anyone, understand how painstaking and time-consuming it is to collect and cultivate samples.
Anyone who would knowingly sabotage that kind of effort Do you remember leaving that freezer door open? I do not.
And there are cameras all over that facility, and there are alarms on those freezer doors.
I find it hard to believe that if it was left open, it was for very long, and if I was the one that did it, why we haven't seen any video to back that up.
Score one for our team.
BENNY: Dr.
Pruitt, approximately how many people a year die from Parkinson's disease? About 230,000 worldwide.
So that's 18,000 a month, 4,000 a week, and 600 each and every single day? That's correct.
Wow.
Those are some big numbers.
But this is not just about statistics for you.
Your grandfather died of Parkinson's, didn't he? Yes, he did.
And your father he died of Parkinson's as well? Yes.
I lost him when I was only 32 years old.
But what was harder than losing him was watching him suffer for so many years prior to that.
It's hard to forget the first time you have to lower your father into a bathtub Or to feed your grandfather because he can no longer hold a spoon.
That's one of the reasons I've spent 20 years bent over a microscope.
And it's why I went back to Bressadyne that night to retrieve my research.
I just couldn't stand by and let them bury my work, not when so many are suffering the way my family suffered.
Thank you, Dr.
Pruitt.
No further questions, Your Honor.
Mr.
Rosenberg, the witness is yours.
Thank you for sharing that, Dr.
Pruitt.
But do you have any actual proof that your employers were trying to bury your work? Proof, not opinions? Proof, not conjecture? Well, as I believe has already been discussed, they stripped me of staff, slashed my budget.
Which proves nothing.
It's the job of a business to make sure their resources are properly allocated.
And while you may disagree with what they were doing, it's hardly proof that they intended to shelve or suppress your work.
No.
I-I'm talking about real proof.
Reports, e-mails.
Not theories, not suppositions.
Proof.
Do you have any of that, sir? - No, but if you could - So without any tangible proof, you believed you had the right to put on a ski mask and steal Bressadyne Laboratories' property? I retrieved my research, which I've been working on for three decades.
Research which I believe will someday save lives.
Well, I'm confused.
If your purpose is to save lives, then why aren't you making your research available to the medical community for free? Doctor, I asked you a question.
Isn't it true you solicited competitors of Bressadyne from all over the globe, seeking enormous sums for the privilege of acquiring what you keep calling "your work," the very work you stole from Bressadyne? The money I was seeking wasn't for me.
It's gonna require significant resources to complete the work necessary to arrive at a cure.
I needed to know that whatever company I brought my research to, they'd provide the capital necessary to get the job done.
Be that as it may, the Anzir Institute wasn't the only foreign lab that offered to purchase the research, was it? There was another pharmaceutical lab in Norway, wasn't there? One in Belgium, as well Is that correct? - They made offers - So you had other options to sell the research that didn't involve labs owned by Middle Eastern governments with alarming ties to Russia.
Isn't that correct? As I've said before, I was completely unaware of any Russian connection.
And the Anzir Institute far and away provided the most resources for the project.
The most resources for the project or the most resources for your bank account? In truth, the Anzir Institute offered you the largest salary More than double the next closest offer, didn't they? That was immaterial to me.
It was the money they were willing to commit to equipment, staffing and ongoing research Immaterial or not, you were poised to make millions more than had you remained at Bressadyne, isn't that correct? It was in no way the motivation for what I was You're not answering my question! By stealing Bressadyne's property and offering to deliver it to a competitor, you stood to personally make millions Yes or no? Yes.
So you're admitting it? You stole dangerous viruses, sold them to the highest bidder, and stood to profit handsomely for having done so.
Am I missing something? BENNY: Objection! Asked and answered.
Counsel is testifying.
Counsel is being argumentative.
Shall I go on? That's all right, I withdraw my question.
Mr.
Colón is right.
The jury already knows the answer.
I have no other questions for this witness, Your Honor.
So, when I hacked into Bressadyne's system, I got locked out before I had a chance to open any of the hidden files, but I was able to grab a screen shot of some of the file names.
And when I compared those to the material we received through discovery, I noticed there was one hidden document they actually did turn over.
The minutes from the April meeting of Bressadyne's board of directors? It's the meeting they held right after Edwin's breakthrough.
Maybe I'm missing something, but if they already turned it over, how does this help? I compared the file sizes.
This one, the one Bressadyne disclosed to us, is 75 kilobytes.
The one they're hiding is 182 kilobytes.
So you're saying they erased part of the minutes? Certainly looks that way.
Maybe the part having to do with Edwin - and his breakthrough.
- Exactly.
So then it occurred to me, if we can just find someone who was in that meeting to take the stand.
I don't think that's gonna happen.
I mean, CFO, CSO, general counsel.
Everyone in that room was senior management at Bressadyne.
Benny's right We're never gonna get anybody from the board of directors to take the stand and admit to any of this.
But aren't there usually other people in the room, too? People to actually take the minutes? Record the meeting? Mrs.
Rhineglass? Nera Rhineglass? My name is Danny James.
I'm an investigator working for Dr.
Pruitt's defense team.
I'd love to speak with you for a minute.
I believe you know what I'm talking about.
Actually, I'm not sure I do.
I believe you took the minutes for the board of directors meeting last April? I'm sorry, what is this about? We believe the minutes were altered before being handed over in discovery.
Altered? How? This is what they sent us.
The people that you work for.
We believe they deleted a considerable portion of the original document, removing any mention of Dr.
Pruitt or his work.
We believe they tampered with evidence.
That is a federal crime.
And I have a hunch that when we call the authorities' attention to it, the people that you work for will profess ignorance and tell us that the preparation of the minutes is your responsibility and that any impropriety in that preparation is your fault.
(GAVEL BANGS) BENNY: Mrs.
Rhineglass? As Dr.
Latham's executive assistant, did you record the minutes for the April 3 board meeting? - I did.
- Now, are these the complete and accurate minutes for that meeting? Mrs.
Rhineglass? The, um they They are accurate.
But they're not complete.
Pages are missing.
BENNY: What pages are missing? All the pages where they were discussing Dr.
Pruitt's Parkinson's project.
BENNY: Well, that's odd.
This is all Bressadyne Labs provided.
Mr.
Rosenberg, Mr.
Colón.
Can I see you at sidebar? I must say that I'm disturbed by what I'm hearing.
Mr.
Rosenberg, was your office aware that Bressadyne Labs intentionally withheld relevant documents? No, Your Honor, we were not.
In fact, I'm as interested in where this is going as you are.
Well, then, Mr.
Colón, let's proceed.
Okay, uh Mrs.
Rhineglass, since we don't have the completed minutes, would you please, uh, tell the court what the board discussed with regard to Dr.
Pruitt's project? - Well, they were all very excited.
- Mm-hmm.
Apparently Dr.
Pruitt had solved some big problem with this Parkinson's drug.
A bunch of them were saying how close he was to a cure.
Ah.
Sounds like it was a celebration.
Yeah, it was for a few minutes.
And then Dr.
Latham and our CFO distributed a financial analysis.
A financial analysis? On the Parkinson's project? Well, I don't recall seeing that in discovery.
So, uh they did run projections on Edwin's research? Of course.
All kinds of projections.
And they were talking about profit margins and year-over-year earnings and life expectancies.
And what did they conclude? Honestly, I didn't understand most of it, but I did get that the company was starting to realize that they would make more money treating Parkinson's rather than curing it.
BENNY: So Bressadyne's board knowingly edited these minutes so the world would never know how close they were to a cure? It would seem that way.
And if Edwin didn't take his research back, Bressadyne Labs would have successfully buried it and the world would have been that much further away from conquering this deadly disease? Yes.
It would seem that way.
BENNY: Thank you.
No further questions, Your Honor.
If we can't get my work back, it doesn't really matter.
Dr.
Pruitt, it's all a process, okay? It-it doesn't happen all at once.
I thought this was the process.
I thought we just completed the process.
I thought when the trial was over, the process was over.
Whoa, everything all right, Edwin? - You seem upset.
- Well, I am upset.
We just won this case.
You just told me that I was found not guilty.
But according to Mr.
Colón, I'm not getting my work back My samples, my research.
Well, that's not what happened today.
What happened today is the U.
S.
Attorney dismissed the charges against you.
Same thing.
And he's now going after Dr.
Latham for perjury and the board members of Bressadyne for tampering with evidence, and you got your freedom.
All in all, I'd say that's a win.
And obviously I'm happy about all that, but I need my work back.
My freedom means nothing to me if I can't continue if I, if I don't have the ability to continue my work.
Dr.
Pruitt, the AUSA does not have the power to do that.
No one does.
Legally Bressadyne Labs still owns your work.
They have since the moment you signed that contract.
Edwin, let me explain what's about to happen.
Tonight, tomorrow, websites, newspapers all over the world are gonna write about what happened today.
Bressadyne is a publicly traded company.
The public needs to trust that what they make is safe and effective That is fundamental to their continued success.
They don't want to go down in history as the company that came up with the cure for a major disease but then flushed it all down the toilet because they wanted to make more money selling you a pill you had to take every day for the rest of your life.
What does all that have to do with me? I'll make you a bet.
I'll bet you a million dollars that by the end of the day tomorrow, Bressadyne is going to call you and beg you to work with someone else, anyone else.
Because their reputation depends on you being released from your contractual obligations and your research returned to you so that you can find a cure.
You really believe that? I just said I'd bet a million dollars, didn't I? BENNY: It's like I said, everything's a process.
Just give us a day, please? Wow.
I'm impressed.
You're really putting your money where your mouth is.
Well, I know what I know.
And I believe what I believe.
Thank you, Dr.
Bull.
Thank you, Mr.
Colón.
I'm sorry if I seemed ungrateful.
I understand now.
I trust you.
Even if it takes more than a day.
Even if it takes a couple of days.
I know if you say it's gonna happen, it's gonna happen.
- It's gonna happen.
- Great.
So I guess we'll talk tomorrow? Or in a couple days.
So, you actually have a million dollars? You know I don't have a million dollars.
So, what if Bressadyne doesn't call? They'll call.
Yeah, but what if they don't? They'll call.
They have to call.
Their backs are to the wall.
Yeah, but what if they don't? Theoretically, I mean, what if they don't? Well, then I guess Edwin will have to sue me.
(LAUGHS) Wow, man.
You think he's gonna need a good lawyer? Maybe, do you know one? Hey, I could win that case.
What are you talking about? You don't even know how to get to the courthouse.
If I didn't pick you up every morning and bring you here, you'd be in a different line of work.
Yeah, what are you so afraid of, huh? You're my friend.
I'd go easy on you.
I'm not your friend.
I had a child with your sister.
Your highly successful sister.
And she pays me a lot of money to keep you employed.
A lot of money.