Law & Order (1990) s06e01 Episode Script
Bitter Fruit
NARRATOR: In the crímínal justíce system the people are represented by two separate yet equally ímportant groups, the políce who ínvestígate críme and the dístríct attorneys who prosecute the offenders.
These are theír storíes.
Thirty-four metal, twelve glass.
Thirty-four metal, twelve glass.
Thirty-five metal, twelve glass.
Thirty-five metal, twelve glass.
Thirty-five-and-a-half metal, twelve glass.
Thirty-five-and-a-half metal, twelve Oh, my God.
Oh, my God.
Come on, Dorothy, click your heels and wake up.
Come on.
Come Oh, my God! Help her! Help! What do you mean, ''How's it going?'' It's only been a month.
Come on, Lennie.
He's okay.
What? For a kid? l've got ties older than him and some shoes, too, l think.
l'd like it if you two really became partners.
Well, l'd like it if both my ex-wives got new partners.
No more alimony.
And l'd like at Ieast a token effort at the chain of command.
ls that all? That's all.
l'll see you in the morning.
Yes, l'll tell him.
Go to bed now, okay? l'll see you in the morning.
l love you.
My daughter says good night.
Right back at her.
She's funny.
She feels bad because you don't have anyone to tuck you in at night.
Oh, yeah? Now, Iet me guess where she got that idea.
Kids hear things out of context.
Right, because my particulars are the hot topic of conversation at your dinner table.
Lennie, you're my partner.
My wife worries about who's watching my back, that's all.
(PHONE RINGS) Briscoe.
Yeah.
Got it.
We're up.
You know, it's a funny thing Rey, while your wife worries about your back, l worry about mine.
(SIREN WAILING) One of our recycling kings found her about a half hour ago.
He was looking for soda cans, lifted up the plywood, and there she was.
Any ID? No.
l got a team looking for a schoolbag or purse.
Dietrich, what's the story? Time of death, Unknown cause.
We got a hematoma on the right side of her head, and abrasions on the palms of her hands.
Oh, man.
What is she, 12, 14? Somewhere in there.
Take a Polaroid, show it around, maybe somebody knows her from the neighborhood.
Not this neighborhood.
This blazer's from Paul Stuart.
Kid's a long way from home.
What's that smell? lt's mothballs from this sheet she was wrapped in.
All right.
Bag her hands and roll her.
And tell whoever's working the day shift l want this girl to be the first cut in the morning.
(SIGHS) Poor kid, from Paul Stuart blazers to this.
Yeah.
Not exactly what her folks had in mind.
Come on, Iet's see if we can scare up a witness.
(BABY CRYING) l told you, l wasn't Iooking outside.
l was trying to get my baby to sleep.
She's teething.
Yeah.
l'm sorry.
Look, l've been there.
Take my card.
lf you remember anything, give me a call, okay? Yeah, and who do l call to make a complaint about waking up my baby? (DOOR SLAMS SHUT) Bunch of cigar-store Indians down there.
No see 'em, no talk 'em.
Sorry.
Wooden Indians are your culture, Lennie, not my wife's.
Sorry to wake you, sir.
l'm Detective Curtis.
This is Detective Briscoe.
lf it's about that body they found, l can't help you.
l was in bed watching TV.
Least till the cavalry showed up.
You mind if l get myself a glass of water? l've been huffing up these stairs all night.
Make yourself at home.
Water's in the kitchen.
Uh-huh! Now what do you do for a living, Mr Krutsky.
Alan Krutsky.
l'm retired from the postal service.
Disability, on account of my feet.
Look, l wanna get back to my breakfast.
Oh, be my guest.
So, you stay home most of the time, huh? That's right, minding my own business.
Right.
And sitting in this chair and watching the world go by, huh? lt's a pretty nice roost.
Better than TV.
So did you happen to catch the play-by-play action in the vacant lot last night? Bums and drug addicts, l don't wanna mess with.
Can you leave now? l like eating in private.
Come on, Mr.
Krutsky, a little girl got killed.
You were a public servant once.
You wanna help us out here? All l saw was a couple of crackheads doing their thing.
They cleared out about 10:OO.
That's when l went to bed.
Anything out of the ordinary? Well, there was this van.
lt came by two or three times, just before 10:OO.
l thought maybe they were looking for drugs.
What kind of van? A white van.
l couldn't make out a license plate.
Okay? Goodbye now.
Off the bat, l don't see any signs of sexual trauma.
l guess killing her was traumatic enough.
Brain hemorrhage in the right temporal lobe.
Judging by the rate of seepage, death was within That being the bump on the right side of her head.
Mmm-hmm.
Hematoma's about the size of an adult fist, but she didn't go down without a fight.
There were bruises on her upper arms, probably from being pinned down.
And she had bruises on her knuckles.
So she got in a few punches.
Good for her.
Dietrich saw abrasions on her hands.
l found glass shards embedded in her palms and in her hair, and that's it, gents, quick and dirty.
Anything else you want to see? They ran her through Missing Persons.
Nothing yet.
l'm not worried.
Girl in a Paul Stuart blazer, somebody's bound to report her missing.
What about the doer, he leave a calling card? Well, the rape kit's negative.
Forensics has the girl's clothes and the sheet, and there was a white van reported in the area.
What about the sheet? The label's from a mail-order place.
Rey? The sheet? Oh! Blue and white queen flannel top sheet, part of a set.
The company stopped carrying it about four years ago.
They don't have any records.
Maybe we can match up the MO.
Go back a year, attempted abductions, reports of children being approached.
BRISCOE: Lot of overtime.
Lucky you.
Start with attempts on girls matching our Jane Doe.
These kinkos tend to favor a type.
(KNOCK ON DOOR) Detective Briscoe, there's a call.
Thanks.
Detective, close the door.
This thousand-yard stare Anything behind it l should be concerned about? No.
No.
It's just this kid.
l see her lying on the slab, and l can't help thinking it could be one of my But it isn't.
Look, if you're going to bug out over every vic, l can't use you.
Best therapy? Clear the case.
Missing Persons got a hit.
Jody Gaines, 12, domiciled at Father reported her missing last night.
Yes, that's her.
What happens now? Well, there's some forms to fill out.
Then we'd like to talk to you.
We'll also want to talk to your wife.
My ex-wife.
She doesn't know.
l wanted to wait until l was certain it was Jody.
ls there a phone? Yeah.
In the hallway.
She can meet us down at the precinct.
MR.
GAINES: On Wednesdays, Jody takes piano Iessons after school, on the West Side, on 76th.
The school bus drops her off.
How does she get home? Her piano teacher calls a car service for her.
Sounds like you had her covered.
l tried to protect my daughter.
Then when l got home at 7:OO, she wasn't there.
She was supposed to go to your place? MR.
GAINES: She lives with me.
The court gave me custody.
Anyway, l called her music teacher.
He said she never showed up for her lesson.
l called the school.
The vice-principal said she remembered seeing Jody get on the bus.
Mrs.
Gaines, could she have skipped her piano lesson and gone to visit you? No, she knows l work Iate.
l'm a buyer for Bloomingdale's.
Anyway, she wouldn't miss her lesson.
She loved to play piano.
She Did she ever mention that someone was watching her or following her? No.
She would've told me.
l warned my daughter about the kinds of people that are out there.
Who else knew about her schedule? My housekeeper.
Mr.
Behrens, piano teacher.
And the people at her school.
They have to be asking themselves the question.
What question is that? Well, if the family was still together, maybe the girl'd be alive.
How do you figure? Come on, divorced parents are so busy making a new life for themselves, the kids end up falling through the cracks.
So, you think they should've toughed it out together under the same roof? Studies prove it, Lennie.
Kids are better off.
Or we might be talking about two dead bodies instead of one.
Fourteen years on the job, l never lost a kid.
When you catch up with the pervert that did this, l'd like a few minutes with him.
Take a number.
Now, yesterday, where exactly on 76th Street did you drop her off? Right in front of the building where her piano teacher lives.
And you waited till she went inside? Yeah, sure.
l saw her open the door.
CURTIS: You didn't see anybody else on the street? No, l really didn't pay attention.
Well, maybe the other kids on the bus did.
lt was iust Jody and me.
She's my last drop-off on Wednesdays.
l do the East Side first, then l cut across the park to Columbus.
And you didn't see anything unusual, like maybe a car following you? No.
l went around the block to Amsterdam, then up to 76th.
Just the usual traffic.
l swear to you she never showed up.
Well, we have a witness who saw her enter your building.
Well, l don't know what to tell you.
She wasn't here.
One of your students skips her do-re-mi's, and you don't call her folks? (SIGHS) Well, the first time that it happened, l did.
Jody went to FAO Schwarz with her friends, you know.
She caught hell from her parents.
What about the second and third times? Look, you know, l'm as horrified as you are, but if l thought that something had happened to her, l would've called.
Just out of curiosity, what time was your next appointment after Jody? Right after her.
Mrs.
Deutsch.
All thumbs.
Unfortunately, she never misses a lesson.
So the girl waits until the bus leaves, then heads to the nearest video arcade.
Or any other favorite hangout for your neighborhood chicken hawks.
When l was a kid growing up around here, the worse thing that could happen to you was skinning your knee playing Johnny on the Pony.
Yeah, well, l don't remember things being so rosy when l was a kid.
Well, when was that, Iast week? Come on, Iet's see if anybody saw her.
So you've never seen her before, huh? Um No.
She wasn't in here.
All right.
Thanks.
No problem.
l got nothing, Lennie.
Yeah.
Same story here.
Nobody remembers seeing her.
Everybody's too busy.
Except those guys.
Hey, that's 75th.
Very good.
Now try reading that sign, it says ''Lunch Special.
'' No, Lennie, the bus driver said he came down Columbus, and went around the corner to come back up to 76th.
Which means he had to take 75th.
Hey, that's pretty good.
Mind if we tear you away from your work for a minute? Was this street open yesterday? WORKER: No.
Broken water main.
The street was flooded all day.
Okay.
Thanks.
l wonder if that bus driver remembers swimming down the street.
l'm not sure, maybe l cut across on 75th or 73rd.
Then l took 75th.
l don't know, Lennie, l'm pretty sure the broken main was on 75th.
You know Rey, now that l think of it, you're right.
Look, l just don't remember.
Oh, l sympathize with your problem, Charlie.
When l was married, l could never keep my lies straight.
Why you making such a big deal out of this? What difference what street l took? The deal is we think you took Jody on a little magical mystery tour.
Now, l'm not a fan, but maybe knee socks make you horny.
That's sick! l raised four kids of my own, for God's sake.
That's a lot a mouths to feed.
And you chauffeur those little rich darlings around for what, a puny 20-grand a year? ls that why you grabbed her, for the money? No, no! Yeah! You grabbed her.
Only she put up a fight.
And you had to hit her, only it was a little too hard This is crazy! No! l didn't do that.
Then lay it out for us, pal.
What happened? This could cost me my job.
For openers.
Okay, look, l dropped her off on the corner of 76th on Columbus.
The traffic was bad, she didn't want to sit on the bus while l went around the block.
Wait a minute.
Wait a minute.
That's your story? lt's true.
School policy is l drop them in front of the house, l wait till they're inside.
lf l just did what l was supposed to He's taking it pretty hard.
You believe him? l ran his name up and down the system.
Nothing, not even a moving violation.
Well, on that note, l'll give him some Kleenex and send him home.
Well, he told one lie.
He could be telling others.
l want to hold him until we check out his story.
Hey, we questioned every animate object in the neighborhood.
Nobody saw her.
Look, he said he dropped the girl at the corner on Columbus.
There's a bank there.
It's got a cash machine.
And cash machines have security cameras.
l cued up the tape to where you wanted, but there was only one customer during that period.
lt's not your customers we're interested in.
Here you go.
There, that's the bus.
BRISCOE: And there she goes.
Well, that gets him off the hook.
Wait, wait.
Lennie.
A minute after the girl walks down the street, that white van driving up 76th toward Columbus.
So, the mailman said he saw a white van cruising the vacant lot.
There's gotta be a million white vans.
You see the rack on the side of the van? It's carrying some kind of window.
Yeah.
It's a glazer's truck.
The girl had glass shards in her hands.
Same goobers built this camera built the Hubble.
You get better optics on an Instamatic.
Sorry, Richard Avedon wasn't available.
First off, these are all side shots, so no license plate.
l got the driver in profile for one frame.
Dark hair, maybe, caucasian or hispanic.
You even sure it's a he? No, just a politically incorrect assumption.
What about the lettering on the side panel, behind the rack there? SASABE: It's blurred because of distortion from the glass in the window.
Probably cheap stuff.
CURTIS: l don't know about the glass, but that window Iooks pretty expensive.
Can't be too many like it.
What this is, is an arch window dating from the mid-19th century.
Nice looking piece.
lt'd look good in my living room.
lf you could afford the townhouse that goes with it.
You have a particular one in mind? There must be nearly a hundred in Manhattan with this kind of window.
Who fixes these kind of windows? Well, any competent glazer can handle the job.
The trick is keeping the materials authentic.
Take the panes, it's float glass.
Just like the original.
That's why you have the distortion.
Going by the amount of waves, l'd say this glass was mouth-blown.
Doesn't sound like something a glazer would keep in stock.
lt has to be special ordered.
There's only one Iocal distributor, in Queens.
Float glass? Could be.
About a third of my business is in restoration.
Yeah.
The distributor said you ordered three sheets of it a couple of weeks ago.
Yeah.
That sounds about right.
Any chance it found its way into a 19th century arch window? Uh-huh! The job went out a couple of days ago.
Why, you guys thinking about remodeling the precinct? We leave the redecorating to our lieutenant.
ls this one of your trucks? You guys want to tell me what this is about? We asked first, Mr.
Sullivan.
Yeah, it's one of my trucks.
So? What gives? Hit-and-run? The driver might've been a witness to a crime over on the West Side, a couple of days ago.
We need to talk to him.
l've got over 30 employees, and off the top of my head, l don't know who handled the job.
Why don't you give me your card? l'll get back to you.
l see on the wall there you got a certificate from the Gardner Clinic.
Yeah.
l've been sober for over a year.
BRISCOE: Well, then you know how important it is to your self-esteem to do good works, and helping your local police certainly counts.
We'd really like that information now.
You know the Gardner? Yeah, l read their brochure between shots.
Carlos, yeah, who did the re-install on the Poundstone job? (CLEARS THROAT) Okay.
Nick Capetti.
He lives in Brooklyn, but he's on a job right now.
Sure, l was on 76th Street speccing out a job.
Broken skylight.
Who'd you talk to? Some old bag.
l don't remember her name.
But you wrote it down, though, right? l threw it out.
She accused me of gouging, so l told her, ''Fix it yourself.
'' And where'd you go then? The Poundstone place in the Village.
Traffic is nuts, so by the time l get down there, it's way past 6:OO, so l bagged it for the day, and headed for the Lincoln tunnel.
Oh, you took the scenic route back to Brooklyn? My mother lives in Newark.
She was expecting me for dinner.
Anybody else at the dinner table? No, iust me and my mother.
You guys done interrogating me now? BRISCOE: Hey, there's no interrogation.
When we interrogate you, believe me, you'll know it.
So what time did the party break up at your mom's? l don't know.
l watched the late news, and l left.
And l'm sure she could vouch for your whereabouts, right? Ask the Jersey State Troopers.
They gave me a speeding ticket on the way there.
All right, then? Mr.
Capetti's been in and out of the state bed-and-breakfast for the past 20 years.
Attempted rape, burglary, another attempted rape.
Killing little girls wouldn't be a stretch.
The youngest victim here's 22.
Last conviction was in '89 for assault on a shopkeeper.
He was muscle for a protection scam in Corona.
An all-round bad guy.
You confirm that ticket with the Jersey State Police? lt'd take a few days to put into the system.
lf he even got a ticket.
He's got a dead or dying girl in the back of his van.
Last thing he's gonna do is drive to Jersey for his mama's cannelloni.
Hey, a guy's gotta eat, right? Capetti's got history.
He was at the scene, that should be enough for us to search his van.
Find a iudge.
We went through the van three times, gentlemen.
l iust viewed the material under the scope.
No fibers from the flannel sheets, no fibers from the girl's clothes, not a strand of hair.
Nothing.
Capetti's had some experience with our methods, and plenty of time to clean up after himself.
The girl had cuts on her hands.
There must've been blood.
We didn't find any.
Best we came up with is this.
A teaspoon of glass.
Some of it's a general match with what was found on the girl.
(CELL PHONE RINGS) Thanks.
This is Rey.
What time? All right.
Thanks.
Confirmation on the speeding ticket.
Turnpike, coming from the Lincoln Tunnel.
Son of a bitch.
They write him up, and they don't even turn their heads a half an inch to see what's in the back of the van.
l don't get this guy, Lennie.
Hey.
Hey, he panicked when the girl kicked.
New plan, drive out to Mom's and sort things out.
While he's there, why not just ditch the body in Jersey? What? Right in his mom's backyard? Too easy to connect the dots.
No.
Better to dump the body in Manhattan after dinner.
Capetti put some thought into this.
l wonder how much he put into his alibi.
l made meatloaf.
Nicky loves my meatloaf.
You know what l like, Mrs.
Capetti? Meatloaf sandwich.
How about Nick, did he make himself one for the road? l don't know.
l went to bed.
CURTIS: About what time was that? After the news.
Which one do you like to watch, Mrs.
Capetti? The Chinese girl on Channel 5 or the old guy on Channel 4? (CHUCKLES) They all got the same bad news.
Oh, wow! l bet the Giants come in pretty good on this, huh? Nicky gave that to me for Christmas.
To watch the Jets.
What's in here, Mrs.
Capetti? lt's storage.
Just a lot of junk.
Junk made out of wool? Mothball.
You want to show us what's in the closet, Mrs.
Capetti? l don't have to.
Well, then you'd better put on a pot of coffee.
We're gonna call the Essex County D.
A.
and wait for him to come down here with a warrant.
We'll have to go room by room.
It'll be a hell of a mess.
Rey, flannel pillow cases, fitted sheet.
The rest of the matching set.
Hey, you! Hold it! COP: He's going around the back! He's going around the back! Hey! (GRUNTING) Where are you going? Easy, man! (SCREAMS) This ought to bring back fond memories, Nick.
You're under arrest, you have the right to remain silent, anything you do say can and will be used against you in a court of law.
Why her, Nick? Just dumb luck, she happened to be in the right place at the right time? Maybe you'd seen her before, you staked her out, right? CURTIS: A smart guy like you would do that.
Pay attention, genius, because now we are interrogating you.
l'm waiting for my lawyer.
Yeah.
We're Iooking for him.
But l gotta tell you, the only thing that's gonna help you now is your cooperation, some kind of statement you're sorry for what you did to that little girl.
lt's your only chance to dodge the needle, Nick.
Yeah, right.
You're bubbling over with concern for my welfare.
We're iust saying that if your intent wasn't to kill her, that changes things.
You know, last time l checked this was still the land of the red, white and blue.
l got rights.
Now, get me my lawyer.
(BELL DINGS) Mrs.
Gaines.
Am l too late? No.
They haven't brought him in yet.
Now, why don't you have a seat.
ATTORNEY: My client is on welfare.
How is he expected to meet bail? JUDGE: That's not my problem.
Bail is set at $50,OOO.
(GAVEL POUNDS) Next.
''Case number 622395.
People v.
Nícholas Capettí.
''Charges are murder in the first degree and kidnapping in the first degree.
'' JUDGE: Give me a plea.
Not guilty.
Miss Kincaid, what are the People Iooking for on this? The victim's a 1 2-year-old girl, Your Honor.
The defendant has a prior (GUNSHOTS) (PEOPLE SCREAMING) You bastard! Call EMS! MRS.
CAPETTl: Do something! Do something! Are you all right? No.
l'm okay.
l'm okay.
Are you sure? Yeah, l can't l didn't see what happened.
He killed Jody.
Karen, don't say another word.
l called the lawyer.
l'm sorry.
He's right, Mrs.
Gaines, listen to him.
Anything you say now puts us in an awkward position.
Capetti's DOA.
What're you doing to her? She's being charged with murder.
l'm sorry.
Curtis, Mirandize her.
Take her out the garage.
Karen Gaines, you're under arrest for the murder of Nicholas Capetti.
You have the right to remain silent.
You have the right to an attorney.
Wait for the Iawyer, Karen.
lf you can't afford an attorney That bastard killed Jody! How in the hell did she get that gun into the courthouse? l don't know.
You don't know.
Well, somebody better find out.
Normal-looking people out there taking the Iaw in their own hands.
With eight million taxpayers cheering them on.
They're lining up to pat Karen Gaines on the back.
Right.
Well, it doesn't take much effort to put yourself in her shoes.
Unfortunately, she's not the first parent to lose a child.
That can't justify premeditated murder.
You want to try her for murder two? She had the presence of mind to smuggle a loaded weapon into a courthouse.
l have 40 witnesses who saw her shoot Capetti.
l don't see what the problem is.
The problem is that your jury will wish that they pulled the trigger.
lf we don't come down hard on Karen Gaines, somebody else'll get the idea that it's okay to turn another courtroom into the OK Corral.
And if she gets acquitted, what message does that send? l'm not taking that chance.
You're talking to her lawyer.
Mrs.
Gaines serves a day in prison for this, that'll be the day l turn in my license.
As soon as the iury gets a look at Capetti's record, at the evidence against him, they'll line up to shake my client's hand and send her home.
Only if they ignore the fact she murdered someone.
Only one thing matters here.
Jody Gaines is dead because the system failed to keep a piece of crap like Nick Capetti behind bars.
Well, thanks to my client, Mr.
Capetti's crime spree is over for good.
A compelling argument, Mr.
Greer, but not half as compelling as the bullet that hit the wall three inches from the court reporter's head.
Mr.
McCoy GREER: Karen, please.
All l could think about was the last minutes of Jody's life.
How terrified she must've been.
lf l could undo everything, believe me, l would.
Man one.
She does six years.
We might go for man two.
One and a third years in minimum security.
Fine, let's not be reasonable.
We're on the side of the angels, Mr.
McCoy.
You force a trial, and you're in for a hard ride.
What if she pled to man one, and we request a sentencing hearing? CLAIRE: We let a judge decide the sentence.
We'd go along with that.
l'll get back to you.
Karen.
Greer knows we don't want this in front of a jury.
Neither does he.
l want her to serve time.
Man one carries mandatory imprisonment.
Right, a big two years.
At a minimum.
But, Jack, don't you think she's been punished enough? For God's sake, Claire! For shooting up a courtroom? Thanks to her, you had a near-death experience.
l'm surprised you're so magnanimous.
CLAIRE: Where in the canon of ethics does it say we can't show a little mercy? Because Nick Capetti was a man in need of killing? lt wasn't up to her to give him what he deserves.
Then why not Iet a judge decide what she deserves? Okay.
Start working on the sentence recommendation.
Nick was my only son.
He has three sisters.
After my husband died, he took care of us as best he could.
And thanks to that Mr.
Sullivan who gave him a job, Nick was supporting me.
Your son was convicted of committing violent crimes, isn't that right? He wasn't a saint.
l didn't say he was.
And if he had anything to do with that little girl, then he should've paid by the law.
Now, l could live with that, but not with this.
What gave you the right to shoot him like a dog? Mrs.
Capetti, please, address the court.
Her little girl is dead, and that's a tragedy for her.
But who is she to kill my son? What if she was wrong? What if he didn't do it? lt took three years of trying before we had Jody.
Karen called her our miracle baby.
She was very devoted to her.
At your divorce, isn't it true, the court awarded you custody of Jody? Yes.
They found Karen to be an unfit mother.
At the time, she was dealing with an addiction to pain killers.
She needed time for herself.
She cleaned up to become a better mother for Jody.
And after her recovery, what kind of a mother was she? She was fantastic.
Spent as much time with Jody as she could.
Then when the police called lf Jody had died in an accident, we would've found a way to deal with it.
But this He took our child.
And what did the police do? Gave him a speeding ticket with our Jody maybe still alive in his truck.
Karen had no faith in the system, Your Honor.
Not a parent in the world wouldn't have done what she did.
l'm only sorry l didn't have the guts to do it myself.
l've heard the testimony, l've read the pre-sentence report and Mrs.
Gaines' statement expressing remorse, but manslaughter in the first degree is a serious offense, and that's why the statutes require mandatory imprisonment.
The defendant will rise.
Karen Gaines, it is the sentence of this court that you serve a term of imprisonment of no more than two years.
Furthermore, this court will recommend that your sentence be served at a halfway house in the city of New York, and that you be allowed to participate in a work-release program.
Your Honor Sit down, Mr.
McCoy.
l'm within my discretion.
We're adiourned.
These are the witness statements connecting Capetti to the van and the lab reports connecting the girl to the van.
lt would've been a slam dunk.
Any evidence he had help? No.
And no evidence he'd ever even seen the girl until the day he grabbed her.
And you're absolutely sure he was the one? Oh, yeah.
l may not agree with Mrs.
Gaines' brand ofjustice, but she did not shoot an innocent bystander.
All right.
Close the case and send McCoy the final report.
lt might cheer him up.
From the looks of this, he'll be the only one gnashing his teeth.
Mrs.
Gaines is getting a lot of ink.
Rey, look at this.
She was treated for pill addiction a year ago at the Gardner Clinic.
So she went to Gardner.
So did half of Manhattan.
lncluding Capetti's boss, Frank Sullivan.
Yes, l remember Karen Gaines, and l remember Frank Sullivan.
They underwent treatment during the same four-week period last year.
Did they have much contact with each other? Sure.
They were in my therapy group, they shared meals.
During the group sessions, did they discuss their personal lives? Of course.
So Frank Sullivan would've found out that Mrs.
Gaines had a daughter and a rich ex-husband.
What are you getting at? Well, we suspect he might be involved in her daughter's kidnapping.
Whatever he knew about her circumstances, didn't have to come from the group sessions.
The last couple of weeks that they were here, they started having an affair.
Something that we actively discourage.
l had a talk with them, but they seemed pretty taken with each other.
Look, the doctor was wrong then, and he's wrong now.
There was nothing between us.
You gotta admit, it's a little strange you never bothered to tell us you knew her.
Yeah.
Well l didn't thi!nk it mattered.
Believe me, it matters.
How'd it go down, Frank? Business a little slow? You get behind on your payments? That's nuts.
You guys know Capetti did it.
Hey, the last time Capetti had an original idea, he left it swirling in the bowl.
You're the brain who thought this up.
As far as we're concerned, Mr.
Sullivan, you're good for it.
You think because l had an affair with her, that makes me a murderer? This is unbelievable.
Grand juries don't like coincidences.
(CHUCKLES) Read him his rights.
Come on.
On your feet.
Wait a minute.
Wait.
Look, you gotta understand, this wasn't my idea.
Elvis spoke to you through your car radio? lt was Karen.
Her ex is putting her through hell.
Wouldn't let her see her daughter.
Had her tied up with lawyers.
She asked me to help her, but l told her no, but she keeps pushing.
So l gave her Nick's number.
Your friendly neighborhood rapist? No, l swear we did not 'know about the rapes.
All she wanted to do was teach her ex a lesson about how it feels not to be able to see your own kid.
l thought of Karen when Jody first went missing, but when they found the body, l never imagined.
We're not saying she was involved.
We find it hard to believe she's capable of it.
ls it? My God, she shot a man in cold blood.
Something you wished you'd done yourself.
As l recall, Mr.
Gaines, you vouched for your ex-wife's good character in front of a packed courtroom.
l said what her Iawyer wanted me to say, l had no idea.
What makes you think Frank Sullivan isn't lying just to save his own skin? No.
It makes sense now.
Since the divorce, Karen's been after me to hurt me anyway she can.
She blames me for her addiction, for losing Jody, her toaster doesn't work, it's my fault.
She thinks l'm out to get her.
According to Sullivan, you were keeping Jody away from her.
Oh, no.
No.
That's not true.
That was Jody's idea.
She didn't want to see Karen anymore.
A couple of months ago, she was late bringing Jody home.
About 12 hours late.
l was going out of my mind, calling hospitals.
When she got home, Jody was in tears.
She wouldn't tell me why.
See, for the past year, Karen's been playing head games on both of us.
l had to send Jody to a child psychologist.
l never thought Karen'd go this far.
Like many kids in her situation, Jody was the designated adult in her family.
Making adult decisions, like not seeing her mother? Yes.
Jody loved her very much.
And at one time, Mrs.
Gaines probably even deserved that love.
Mr.
Gaines mentioned an incident that took place two months ago.
Mrs.
Gaines took Jody up to Tanglewood.
After, she refused to take her home.
They drove around all night.
Mrs.
Gaines was on a tear about her husband controlling her life, and how he was turning Jody against her.
Jody was still shaking when she saw me.
l'm not surprised her father got custody of her.
(CHUCKLES) He can dish it out.
A few months ago, Jody was excited about taking dance lessons near Mrs.
Gaines' work.
Mr.
Gaines stopped it, l think purely out of spite.
Two parents using their kid to destroy each other.
Wonderful world.
Two bad parents, but only one of them committed murder.
Whether she killed Capetti for revenge or to cover up her own involvement, jeopardy's attached.
We can't touch her.
We can for her daughter's murder.
You don't really think she intended or even thought Jody would be killed.
JACK: She hired a felon to toss her daughter into the back of a van.
That's kidnapping.
The daughter died as a result.
That's felony murder.
Abducting your own child.
lt's not a predicate crime.
Well, you'll say kidnapping, her lawyer'll say ''custodial interference.
'' And motive separates the two.
Frank Sullivan will testify that she did it to terrorize her husband.
That makes it kidnapping.
Uncorroborated accomplice testimony.
That and a dollar-twenty-five gets you on the subway.
Then we'll get corroboration.
l'm sure she told Capetti what her intentions were, and maybe he said something to his mother.
You hope.
Mrs.
Capetti, we know what happened.
There's no sense protecting your son anymore.
Leave him alone.
What good does it do anyway? He's dead.
And the woman who killed him will get away with another murder unless you help us.
What do you mean? Your son did tell you that Mrs.
Gaines hired him to kidnap her daughter? He didn't mean to kill the girl.
MRS.
CAPETTl: It was an accident.
He wanted her to be quiet.
JACK: l know.
Did he tell you why she wanted her kidnapped? Jack, she doesn't know Listen to me.
The more you can tell us about her involvement, the better chance we have of putting her in jail.
Jack.
lf your son said anything at all about her, please, tell me.
After the girl was hurt, he said he called Mrs.
Gaines to tell her that the girl was in trouble, and he wanted to take her to the hospital.
The lady told him no.
The lady told him they would all go to jail if anyone found out.
Nick was scared.
He did what she said.
Nick didn't want the girl to die.
It tore him up.
She told him not to go to the hospital.
It's depraved indifference.
Murder two.
lt'll be periury, Jack.
Mrs.
Capetti had no idea Karen Gaines was involved until we told her.
We can't confirm or deny her testimony.
l'm happy to take it at face value.
You practically put the words in her mouth.
Now, Karen Gaines killed her son, she has every reason to lie.
And she's very good at it.
l'm sure it's not the first time she's had to lie for her son.
l can't believe l'm hearing this.
Claire, l want two things, justice for the dead and respect from the living.
Mrs.
Gaines has to answer for what she did.
At any cost? You're talking about suborning perjury.
Just between you and me and the lamp post, l have no intention of putting Mrs.
Capetti on the stand.
All l want to do is survive a motion to dismiss.
As it is, unless we put the fear of God into Karen Gaines, she's gonna walk.
Have Curtis and Briscoe pick her up.
The People's latest murder charge rests solely on the testimony of Mrs.
Capetti.
lt's double hearsay, Your Honor, and therefore, inadmissible.
l admire your stamina, Mr.
McCoy, but let me get this, straight.
You want Mrs.
Capetti to tell us what her son told her the defendant told him? l'd rather Nick Capetti told us himself, but the defendant made him unavailable by shooting him in the back.
Even if he was here, his testimony would still be hearsay.
Statements against penal interest, exception to hearsay.
JACK: Even though Mrs.
Gaines knew her daughter was dying, she told Mr.
Capetti not to seek medical help.
According to Mrs.
Capetti, and there's not a shred of evidence to support her statement.
Can we even prove the call was made? JACK: l don't have to.
l have a pile of evidence on my desk to show that the defendant set in motion a reckless and callous chain of events.
Letting her daughter die was just the final depraved act.
JUDGE: Now, l've heard enough.
l'm gonna let a iury decide if Mrs.
Capetti is telling the truth.
The hearsay exception applies.
Her statements are admissible.
JUDGE: Motion to dismiss is denied.
My client is prepared to plead to custodial interference.
Period.
An E Felony? l hurt myself more shaving.
You're swinging without a net on murder two.
You think your star witness, Mrs.
Capetti, will hold up on cross? When the iury hears how your client paid a convicted rapist to kidnap her own daughter, they'll believe her capable of anything.
He never called me.
How can you think for a minute that l would Iet my own child die? What kind of a mother do you think l am? You don't know what l did for her.
For 10 years, l stayed in a nightmare marriage just so she could have a real home.
l fought for custody for her, but he had more money, more lawyers.
He turned me into an addict and then used it against me! That bastard, he stole her away from me.
He told her lies about me.
He made her afraid of me.
l loved her.
But you hated your husband more.
l never meant any of this to happen.
At most, her conduct was reckless.
Man two.
Tack on another year to the time she's already serving.
Man one.
She does six years.
And not one day of it in a halfway house.
Sorry.
lt never ends.
Mr.
Gaines is suing his ex-wife for wrongful death.
What does he want from her? The dollar an hour she gets folding prison laundry? lt's hard to believe those two were ever in love.
Passionately, l'd say.
Where do you think all the hate comes from?
These are theír storíes.
Thirty-four metal, twelve glass.
Thirty-four metal, twelve glass.
Thirty-five metal, twelve glass.
Thirty-five metal, twelve glass.
Thirty-five-and-a-half metal, twelve glass.
Thirty-five-and-a-half metal, twelve Oh, my God.
Oh, my God.
Come on, Dorothy, click your heels and wake up.
Come on.
Come Oh, my God! Help her! Help! What do you mean, ''How's it going?'' It's only been a month.
Come on, Lennie.
He's okay.
What? For a kid? l've got ties older than him and some shoes, too, l think.
l'd like it if you two really became partners.
Well, l'd like it if both my ex-wives got new partners.
No more alimony.
And l'd like at Ieast a token effort at the chain of command.
ls that all? That's all.
l'll see you in the morning.
Yes, l'll tell him.
Go to bed now, okay? l'll see you in the morning.
l love you.
My daughter says good night.
Right back at her.
She's funny.
She feels bad because you don't have anyone to tuck you in at night.
Oh, yeah? Now, Iet me guess where she got that idea.
Kids hear things out of context.
Right, because my particulars are the hot topic of conversation at your dinner table.
Lennie, you're my partner.
My wife worries about who's watching my back, that's all.
(PHONE RINGS) Briscoe.
Yeah.
Got it.
We're up.
You know, it's a funny thing Rey, while your wife worries about your back, l worry about mine.
(SIREN WAILING) One of our recycling kings found her about a half hour ago.
He was looking for soda cans, lifted up the plywood, and there she was.
Any ID? No.
l got a team looking for a schoolbag or purse.
Dietrich, what's the story? Time of death, Unknown cause.
We got a hematoma on the right side of her head, and abrasions on the palms of her hands.
Oh, man.
What is she, 12, 14? Somewhere in there.
Take a Polaroid, show it around, maybe somebody knows her from the neighborhood.
Not this neighborhood.
This blazer's from Paul Stuart.
Kid's a long way from home.
What's that smell? lt's mothballs from this sheet she was wrapped in.
All right.
Bag her hands and roll her.
And tell whoever's working the day shift l want this girl to be the first cut in the morning.
(SIGHS) Poor kid, from Paul Stuart blazers to this.
Yeah.
Not exactly what her folks had in mind.
Come on, Iet's see if we can scare up a witness.
(BABY CRYING) l told you, l wasn't Iooking outside.
l was trying to get my baby to sleep.
She's teething.
Yeah.
l'm sorry.
Look, l've been there.
Take my card.
lf you remember anything, give me a call, okay? Yeah, and who do l call to make a complaint about waking up my baby? (DOOR SLAMS SHUT) Bunch of cigar-store Indians down there.
No see 'em, no talk 'em.
Sorry.
Wooden Indians are your culture, Lennie, not my wife's.
Sorry to wake you, sir.
l'm Detective Curtis.
This is Detective Briscoe.
lf it's about that body they found, l can't help you.
l was in bed watching TV.
Least till the cavalry showed up.
You mind if l get myself a glass of water? l've been huffing up these stairs all night.
Make yourself at home.
Water's in the kitchen.
Uh-huh! Now what do you do for a living, Mr Krutsky.
Alan Krutsky.
l'm retired from the postal service.
Disability, on account of my feet.
Look, l wanna get back to my breakfast.
Oh, be my guest.
So, you stay home most of the time, huh? That's right, minding my own business.
Right.
And sitting in this chair and watching the world go by, huh? lt's a pretty nice roost.
Better than TV.
So did you happen to catch the play-by-play action in the vacant lot last night? Bums and drug addicts, l don't wanna mess with.
Can you leave now? l like eating in private.
Come on, Mr.
Krutsky, a little girl got killed.
You were a public servant once.
You wanna help us out here? All l saw was a couple of crackheads doing their thing.
They cleared out about 10:OO.
That's when l went to bed.
Anything out of the ordinary? Well, there was this van.
lt came by two or three times, just before 10:OO.
l thought maybe they were looking for drugs.
What kind of van? A white van.
l couldn't make out a license plate.
Okay? Goodbye now.
Off the bat, l don't see any signs of sexual trauma.
l guess killing her was traumatic enough.
Brain hemorrhage in the right temporal lobe.
Judging by the rate of seepage, death was within That being the bump on the right side of her head.
Mmm-hmm.
Hematoma's about the size of an adult fist, but she didn't go down without a fight.
There were bruises on her upper arms, probably from being pinned down.
And she had bruises on her knuckles.
So she got in a few punches.
Good for her.
Dietrich saw abrasions on her hands.
l found glass shards embedded in her palms and in her hair, and that's it, gents, quick and dirty.
Anything else you want to see? They ran her through Missing Persons.
Nothing yet.
l'm not worried.
Girl in a Paul Stuart blazer, somebody's bound to report her missing.
What about the doer, he leave a calling card? Well, the rape kit's negative.
Forensics has the girl's clothes and the sheet, and there was a white van reported in the area.
What about the sheet? The label's from a mail-order place.
Rey? The sheet? Oh! Blue and white queen flannel top sheet, part of a set.
The company stopped carrying it about four years ago.
They don't have any records.
Maybe we can match up the MO.
Go back a year, attempted abductions, reports of children being approached.
BRISCOE: Lot of overtime.
Lucky you.
Start with attempts on girls matching our Jane Doe.
These kinkos tend to favor a type.
(KNOCK ON DOOR) Detective Briscoe, there's a call.
Thanks.
Detective, close the door.
This thousand-yard stare Anything behind it l should be concerned about? No.
No.
It's just this kid.
l see her lying on the slab, and l can't help thinking it could be one of my But it isn't.
Look, if you're going to bug out over every vic, l can't use you.
Best therapy? Clear the case.
Missing Persons got a hit.
Jody Gaines, 12, domiciled at Father reported her missing last night.
Yes, that's her.
What happens now? Well, there's some forms to fill out.
Then we'd like to talk to you.
We'll also want to talk to your wife.
My ex-wife.
She doesn't know.
l wanted to wait until l was certain it was Jody.
ls there a phone? Yeah.
In the hallway.
She can meet us down at the precinct.
MR.
GAINES: On Wednesdays, Jody takes piano Iessons after school, on the West Side, on 76th.
The school bus drops her off.
How does she get home? Her piano teacher calls a car service for her.
Sounds like you had her covered.
l tried to protect my daughter.
Then when l got home at 7:OO, she wasn't there.
She was supposed to go to your place? MR.
GAINES: She lives with me.
The court gave me custody.
Anyway, l called her music teacher.
He said she never showed up for her lesson.
l called the school.
The vice-principal said she remembered seeing Jody get on the bus.
Mrs.
Gaines, could she have skipped her piano lesson and gone to visit you? No, she knows l work Iate.
l'm a buyer for Bloomingdale's.
Anyway, she wouldn't miss her lesson.
She loved to play piano.
She Did she ever mention that someone was watching her or following her? No.
She would've told me.
l warned my daughter about the kinds of people that are out there.
Who else knew about her schedule? My housekeeper.
Mr.
Behrens, piano teacher.
And the people at her school.
They have to be asking themselves the question.
What question is that? Well, if the family was still together, maybe the girl'd be alive.
How do you figure? Come on, divorced parents are so busy making a new life for themselves, the kids end up falling through the cracks.
So, you think they should've toughed it out together under the same roof? Studies prove it, Lennie.
Kids are better off.
Or we might be talking about two dead bodies instead of one.
Fourteen years on the job, l never lost a kid.
When you catch up with the pervert that did this, l'd like a few minutes with him.
Take a number.
Now, yesterday, where exactly on 76th Street did you drop her off? Right in front of the building where her piano teacher lives.
And you waited till she went inside? Yeah, sure.
l saw her open the door.
CURTIS: You didn't see anybody else on the street? No, l really didn't pay attention.
Well, maybe the other kids on the bus did.
lt was iust Jody and me.
She's my last drop-off on Wednesdays.
l do the East Side first, then l cut across the park to Columbus.
And you didn't see anything unusual, like maybe a car following you? No.
l went around the block to Amsterdam, then up to 76th.
Just the usual traffic.
l swear to you she never showed up.
Well, we have a witness who saw her enter your building.
Well, l don't know what to tell you.
She wasn't here.
One of your students skips her do-re-mi's, and you don't call her folks? (SIGHS) Well, the first time that it happened, l did.
Jody went to FAO Schwarz with her friends, you know.
She caught hell from her parents.
What about the second and third times? Look, you know, l'm as horrified as you are, but if l thought that something had happened to her, l would've called.
Just out of curiosity, what time was your next appointment after Jody? Right after her.
Mrs.
Deutsch.
All thumbs.
Unfortunately, she never misses a lesson.
So the girl waits until the bus leaves, then heads to the nearest video arcade.
Or any other favorite hangout for your neighborhood chicken hawks.
When l was a kid growing up around here, the worse thing that could happen to you was skinning your knee playing Johnny on the Pony.
Yeah, well, l don't remember things being so rosy when l was a kid.
Well, when was that, Iast week? Come on, Iet's see if anybody saw her.
So you've never seen her before, huh? Um No.
She wasn't in here.
All right.
Thanks.
No problem.
l got nothing, Lennie.
Yeah.
Same story here.
Nobody remembers seeing her.
Everybody's too busy.
Except those guys.
Hey, that's 75th.
Very good.
Now try reading that sign, it says ''Lunch Special.
'' No, Lennie, the bus driver said he came down Columbus, and went around the corner to come back up to 76th.
Which means he had to take 75th.
Hey, that's pretty good.
Mind if we tear you away from your work for a minute? Was this street open yesterday? WORKER: No.
Broken water main.
The street was flooded all day.
Okay.
Thanks.
l wonder if that bus driver remembers swimming down the street.
l'm not sure, maybe l cut across on 75th or 73rd.
Then l took 75th.
l don't know, Lennie, l'm pretty sure the broken main was on 75th.
You know Rey, now that l think of it, you're right.
Look, l just don't remember.
Oh, l sympathize with your problem, Charlie.
When l was married, l could never keep my lies straight.
Why you making such a big deal out of this? What difference what street l took? The deal is we think you took Jody on a little magical mystery tour.
Now, l'm not a fan, but maybe knee socks make you horny.
That's sick! l raised four kids of my own, for God's sake.
That's a lot a mouths to feed.
And you chauffeur those little rich darlings around for what, a puny 20-grand a year? ls that why you grabbed her, for the money? No, no! Yeah! You grabbed her.
Only she put up a fight.
And you had to hit her, only it was a little too hard This is crazy! No! l didn't do that.
Then lay it out for us, pal.
What happened? This could cost me my job.
For openers.
Okay, look, l dropped her off on the corner of 76th on Columbus.
The traffic was bad, she didn't want to sit on the bus while l went around the block.
Wait a minute.
Wait a minute.
That's your story? lt's true.
School policy is l drop them in front of the house, l wait till they're inside.
lf l just did what l was supposed to He's taking it pretty hard.
You believe him? l ran his name up and down the system.
Nothing, not even a moving violation.
Well, on that note, l'll give him some Kleenex and send him home.
Well, he told one lie.
He could be telling others.
l want to hold him until we check out his story.
Hey, we questioned every animate object in the neighborhood.
Nobody saw her.
Look, he said he dropped the girl at the corner on Columbus.
There's a bank there.
It's got a cash machine.
And cash machines have security cameras.
l cued up the tape to where you wanted, but there was only one customer during that period.
lt's not your customers we're interested in.
Here you go.
There, that's the bus.
BRISCOE: And there she goes.
Well, that gets him off the hook.
Wait, wait.
Lennie.
A minute after the girl walks down the street, that white van driving up 76th toward Columbus.
So, the mailman said he saw a white van cruising the vacant lot.
There's gotta be a million white vans.
You see the rack on the side of the van? It's carrying some kind of window.
Yeah.
It's a glazer's truck.
The girl had glass shards in her hands.
Same goobers built this camera built the Hubble.
You get better optics on an Instamatic.
Sorry, Richard Avedon wasn't available.
First off, these are all side shots, so no license plate.
l got the driver in profile for one frame.
Dark hair, maybe, caucasian or hispanic.
You even sure it's a he? No, just a politically incorrect assumption.
What about the lettering on the side panel, behind the rack there? SASABE: It's blurred because of distortion from the glass in the window.
Probably cheap stuff.
CURTIS: l don't know about the glass, but that window Iooks pretty expensive.
Can't be too many like it.
What this is, is an arch window dating from the mid-19th century.
Nice looking piece.
lt'd look good in my living room.
lf you could afford the townhouse that goes with it.
You have a particular one in mind? There must be nearly a hundred in Manhattan with this kind of window.
Who fixes these kind of windows? Well, any competent glazer can handle the job.
The trick is keeping the materials authentic.
Take the panes, it's float glass.
Just like the original.
That's why you have the distortion.
Going by the amount of waves, l'd say this glass was mouth-blown.
Doesn't sound like something a glazer would keep in stock.
lt has to be special ordered.
There's only one Iocal distributor, in Queens.
Float glass? Could be.
About a third of my business is in restoration.
Yeah.
The distributor said you ordered three sheets of it a couple of weeks ago.
Yeah.
That sounds about right.
Any chance it found its way into a 19th century arch window? Uh-huh! The job went out a couple of days ago.
Why, you guys thinking about remodeling the precinct? We leave the redecorating to our lieutenant.
ls this one of your trucks? You guys want to tell me what this is about? We asked first, Mr.
Sullivan.
Yeah, it's one of my trucks.
So? What gives? Hit-and-run? The driver might've been a witness to a crime over on the West Side, a couple of days ago.
We need to talk to him.
l've got over 30 employees, and off the top of my head, l don't know who handled the job.
Why don't you give me your card? l'll get back to you.
l see on the wall there you got a certificate from the Gardner Clinic.
Yeah.
l've been sober for over a year.
BRISCOE: Well, then you know how important it is to your self-esteem to do good works, and helping your local police certainly counts.
We'd really like that information now.
You know the Gardner? Yeah, l read their brochure between shots.
Carlos, yeah, who did the re-install on the Poundstone job? (CLEARS THROAT) Okay.
Nick Capetti.
He lives in Brooklyn, but he's on a job right now.
Sure, l was on 76th Street speccing out a job.
Broken skylight.
Who'd you talk to? Some old bag.
l don't remember her name.
But you wrote it down, though, right? l threw it out.
She accused me of gouging, so l told her, ''Fix it yourself.
'' And where'd you go then? The Poundstone place in the Village.
Traffic is nuts, so by the time l get down there, it's way past 6:OO, so l bagged it for the day, and headed for the Lincoln tunnel.
Oh, you took the scenic route back to Brooklyn? My mother lives in Newark.
She was expecting me for dinner.
Anybody else at the dinner table? No, iust me and my mother.
You guys done interrogating me now? BRISCOE: Hey, there's no interrogation.
When we interrogate you, believe me, you'll know it.
So what time did the party break up at your mom's? l don't know.
l watched the late news, and l left.
And l'm sure she could vouch for your whereabouts, right? Ask the Jersey State Troopers.
They gave me a speeding ticket on the way there.
All right, then? Mr.
Capetti's been in and out of the state bed-and-breakfast for the past 20 years.
Attempted rape, burglary, another attempted rape.
Killing little girls wouldn't be a stretch.
The youngest victim here's 22.
Last conviction was in '89 for assault on a shopkeeper.
He was muscle for a protection scam in Corona.
An all-round bad guy.
You confirm that ticket with the Jersey State Police? lt'd take a few days to put into the system.
lf he even got a ticket.
He's got a dead or dying girl in the back of his van.
Last thing he's gonna do is drive to Jersey for his mama's cannelloni.
Hey, a guy's gotta eat, right? Capetti's got history.
He was at the scene, that should be enough for us to search his van.
Find a iudge.
We went through the van three times, gentlemen.
l iust viewed the material under the scope.
No fibers from the flannel sheets, no fibers from the girl's clothes, not a strand of hair.
Nothing.
Capetti's had some experience with our methods, and plenty of time to clean up after himself.
The girl had cuts on her hands.
There must've been blood.
We didn't find any.
Best we came up with is this.
A teaspoon of glass.
Some of it's a general match with what was found on the girl.
(CELL PHONE RINGS) Thanks.
This is Rey.
What time? All right.
Thanks.
Confirmation on the speeding ticket.
Turnpike, coming from the Lincoln Tunnel.
Son of a bitch.
They write him up, and they don't even turn their heads a half an inch to see what's in the back of the van.
l don't get this guy, Lennie.
Hey.
Hey, he panicked when the girl kicked.
New plan, drive out to Mom's and sort things out.
While he's there, why not just ditch the body in Jersey? What? Right in his mom's backyard? Too easy to connect the dots.
No.
Better to dump the body in Manhattan after dinner.
Capetti put some thought into this.
l wonder how much he put into his alibi.
l made meatloaf.
Nicky loves my meatloaf.
You know what l like, Mrs.
Capetti? Meatloaf sandwich.
How about Nick, did he make himself one for the road? l don't know.
l went to bed.
CURTIS: About what time was that? After the news.
Which one do you like to watch, Mrs.
Capetti? The Chinese girl on Channel 5 or the old guy on Channel 4? (CHUCKLES) They all got the same bad news.
Oh, wow! l bet the Giants come in pretty good on this, huh? Nicky gave that to me for Christmas.
To watch the Jets.
What's in here, Mrs.
Capetti? lt's storage.
Just a lot of junk.
Junk made out of wool? Mothball.
You want to show us what's in the closet, Mrs.
Capetti? l don't have to.
Well, then you'd better put on a pot of coffee.
We're gonna call the Essex County D.
A.
and wait for him to come down here with a warrant.
We'll have to go room by room.
It'll be a hell of a mess.
Rey, flannel pillow cases, fitted sheet.
The rest of the matching set.
Hey, you! Hold it! COP: He's going around the back! He's going around the back! Hey! (GRUNTING) Where are you going? Easy, man! (SCREAMS) This ought to bring back fond memories, Nick.
You're under arrest, you have the right to remain silent, anything you do say can and will be used against you in a court of law.
Why her, Nick? Just dumb luck, she happened to be in the right place at the right time? Maybe you'd seen her before, you staked her out, right? CURTIS: A smart guy like you would do that.
Pay attention, genius, because now we are interrogating you.
l'm waiting for my lawyer.
Yeah.
We're Iooking for him.
But l gotta tell you, the only thing that's gonna help you now is your cooperation, some kind of statement you're sorry for what you did to that little girl.
lt's your only chance to dodge the needle, Nick.
Yeah, right.
You're bubbling over with concern for my welfare.
We're iust saying that if your intent wasn't to kill her, that changes things.
You know, last time l checked this was still the land of the red, white and blue.
l got rights.
Now, get me my lawyer.
(BELL DINGS) Mrs.
Gaines.
Am l too late? No.
They haven't brought him in yet.
Now, why don't you have a seat.
ATTORNEY: My client is on welfare.
How is he expected to meet bail? JUDGE: That's not my problem.
Bail is set at $50,OOO.
(GAVEL POUNDS) Next.
''Case number 622395.
People v.
Nícholas Capettí.
''Charges are murder in the first degree and kidnapping in the first degree.
'' JUDGE: Give me a plea.
Not guilty.
Miss Kincaid, what are the People Iooking for on this? The victim's a 1 2-year-old girl, Your Honor.
The defendant has a prior (GUNSHOTS) (PEOPLE SCREAMING) You bastard! Call EMS! MRS.
CAPETTl: Do something! Do something! Are you all right? No.
l'm okay.
l'm okay.
Are you sure? Yeah, l can't l didn't see what happened.
He killed Jody.
Karen, don't say another word.
l called the lawyer.
l'm sorry.
He's right, Mrs.
Gaines, listen to him.
Anything you say now puts us in an awkward position.
Capetti's DOA.
What're you doing to her? She's being charged with murder.
l'm sorry.
Curtis, Mirandize her.
Take her out the garage.
Karen Gaines, you're under arrest for the murder of Nicholas Capetti.
You have the right to remain silent.
You have the right to an attorney.
Wait for the Iawyer, Karen.
lf you can't afford an attorney That bastard killed Jody! How in the hell did she get that gun into the courthouse? l don't know.
You don't know.
Well, somebody better find out.
Normal-looking people out there taking the Iaw in their own hands.
With eight million taxpayers cheering them on.
They're lining up to pat Karen Gaines on the back.
Right.
Well, it doesn't take much effort to put yourself in her shoes.
Unfortunately, she's not the first parent to lose a child.
That can't justify premeditated murder.
You want to try her for murder two? She had the presence of mind to smuggle a loaded weapon into a courthouse.
l have 40 witnesses who saw her shoot Capetti.
l don't see what the problem is.
The problem is that your jury will wish that they pulled the trigger.
lf we don't come down hard on Karen Gaines, somebody else'll get the idea that it's okay to turn another courtroom into the OK Corral.
And if she gets acquitted, what message does that send? l'm not taking that chance.
You're talking to her lawyer.
Mrs.
Gaines serves a day in prison for this, that'll be the day l turn in my license.
As soon as the iury gets a look at Capetti's record, at the evidence against him, they'll line up to shake my client's hand and send her home.
Only if they ignore the fact she murdered someone.
Only one thing matters here.
Jody Gaines is dead because the system failed to keep a piece of crap like Nick Capetti behind bars.
Well, thanks to my client, Mr.
Capetti's crime spree is over for good.
A compelling argument, Mr.
Greer, but not half as compelling as the bullet that hit the wall three inches from the court reporter's head.
Mr.
McCoy GREER: Karen, please.
All l could think about was the last minutes of Jody's life.
How terrified she must've been.
lf l could undo everything, believe me, l would.
Man one.
She does six years.
We might go for man two.
One and a third years in minimum security.
Fine, let's not be reasonable.
We're on the side of the angels, Mr.
McCoy.
You force a trial, and you're in for a hard ride.
What if she pled to man one, and we request a sentencing hearing? CLAIRE: We let a judge decide the sentence.
We'd go along with that.
l'll get back to you.
Karen.
Greer knows we don't want this in front of a jury.
Neither does he.
l want her to serve time.
Man one carries mandatory imprisonment.
Right, a big two years.
At a minimum.
But, Jack, don't you think she's been punished enough? For God's sake, Claire! For shooting up a courtroom? Thanks to her, you had a near-death experience.
l'm surprised you're so magnanimous.
CLAIRE: Where in the canon of ethics does it say we can't show a little mercy? Because Nick Capetti was a man in need of killing? lt wasn't up to her to give him what he deserves.
Then why not Iet a judge decide what she deserves? Okay.
Start working on the sentence recommendation.
Nick was my only son.
He has three sisters.
After my husband died, he took care of us as best he could.
And thanks to that Mr.
Sullivan who gave him a job, Nick was supporting me.
Your son was convicted of committing violent crimes, isn't that right? He wasn't a saint.
l didn't say he was.
And if he had anything to do with that little girl, then he should've paid by the law.
Now, l could live with that, but not with this.
What gave you the right to shoot him like a dog? Mrs.
Capetti, please, address the court.
Her little girl is dead, and that's a tragedy for her.
But who is she to kill my son? What if she was wrong? What if he didn't do it? lt took three years of trying before we had Jody.
Karen called her our miracle baby.
She was very devoted to her.
At your divorce, isn't it true, the court awarded you custody of Jody? Yes.
They found Karen to be an unfit mother.
At the time, she was dealing with an addiction to pain killers.
She needed time for herself.
She cleaned up to become a better mother for Jody.
And after her recovery, what kind of a mother was she? She was fantastic.
Spent as much time with Jody as she could.
Then when the police called lf Jody had died in an accident, we would've found a way to deal with it.
But this He took our child.
And what did the police do? Gave him a speeding ticket with our Jody maybe still alive in his truck.
Karen had no faith in the system, Your Honor.
Not a parent in the world wouldn't have done what she did.
l'm only sorry l didn't have the guts to do it myself.
l've heard the testimony, l've read the pre-sentence report and Mrs.
Gaines' statement expressing remorse, but manslaughter in the first degree is a serious offense, and that's why the statutes require mandatory imprisonment.
The defendant will rise.
Karen Gaines, it is the sentence of this court that you serve a term of imprisonment of no more than two years.
Furthermore, this court will recommend that your sentence be served at a halfway house in the city of New York, and that you be allowed to participate in a work-release program.
Your Honor Sit down, Mr.
McCoy.
l'm within my discretion.
We're adiourned.
These are the witness statements connecting Capetti to the van and the lab reports connecting the girl to the van.
lt would've been a slam dunk.
Any evidence he had help? No.
And no evidence he'd ever even seen the girl until the day he grabbed her.
And you're absolutely sure he was the one? Oh, yeah.
l may not agree with Mrs.
Gaines' brand ofjustice, but she did not shoot an innocent bystander.
All right.
Close the case and send McCoy the final report.
lt might cheer him up.
From the looks of this, he'll be the only one gnashing his teeth.
Mrs.
Gaines is getting a lot of ink.
Rey, look at this.
She was treated for pill addiction a year ago at the Gardner Clinic.
So she went to Gardner.
So did half of Manhattan.
lncluding Capetti's boss, Frank Sullivan.
Yes, l remember Karen Gaines, and l remember Frank Sullivan.
They underwent treatment during the same four-week period last year.
Did they have much contact with each other? Sure.
They were in my therapy group, they shared meals.
During the group sessions, did they discuss their personal lives? Of course.
So Frank Sullivan would've found out that Mrs.
Gaines had a daughter and a rich ex-husband.
What are you getting at? Well, we suspect he might be involved in her daughter's kidnapping.
Whatever he knew about her circumstances, didn't have to come from the group sessions.
The last couple of weeks that they were here, they started having an affair.
Something that we actively discourage.
l had a talk with them, but they seemed pretty taken with each other.
Look, the doctor was wrong then, and he's wrong now.
There was nothing between us.
You gotta admit, it's a little strange you never bothered to tell us you knew her.
Yeah.
Well l didn't thi!nk it mattered.
Believe me, it matters.
How'd it go down, Frank? Business a little slow? You get behind on your payments? That's nuts.
You guys know Capetti did it.
Hey, the last time Capetti had an original idea, he left it swirling in the bowl.
You're the brain who thought this up.
As far as we're concerned, Mr.
Sullivan, you're good for it.
You think because l had an affair with her, that makes me a murderer? This is unbelievable.
Grand juries don't like coincidences.
(CHUCKLES) Read him his rights.
Come on.
On your feet.
Wait a minute.
Wait.
Look, you gotta understand, this wasn't my idea.
Elvis spoke to you through your car radio? lt was Karen.
Her ex is putting her through hell.
Wouldn't let her see her daughter.
Had her tied up with lawyers.
She asked me to help her, but l told her no, but she keeps pushing.
So l gave her Nick's number.
Your friendly neighborhood rapist? No, l swear we did not 'know about the rapes.
All she wanted to do was teach her ex a lesson about how it feels not to be able to see your own kid.
l thought of Karen when Jody first went missing, but when they found the body, l never imagined.
We're not saying she was involved.
We find it hard to believe she's capable of it.
ls it? My God, she shot a man in cold blood.
Something you wished you'd done yourself.
As l recall, Mr.
Gaines, you vouched for your ex-wife's good character in front of a packed courtroom.
l said what her Iawyer wanted me to say, l had no idea.
What makes you think Frank Sullivan isn't lying just to save his own skin? No.
It makes sense now.
Since the divorce, Karen's been after me to hurt me anyway she can.
She blames me for her addiction, for losing Jody, her toaster doesn't work, it's my fault.
She thinks l'm out to get her.
According to Sullivan, you were keeping Jody away from her.
Oh, no.
No.
That's not true.
That was Jody's idea.
She didn't want to see Karen anymore.
A couple of months ago, she was late bringing Jody home.
About 12 hours late.
l was going out of my mind, calling hospitals.
When she got home, Jody was in tears.
She wouldn't tell me why.
See, for the past year, Karen's been playing head games on both of us.
l had to send Jody to a child psychologist.
l never thought Karen'd go this far.
Like many kids in her situation, Jody was the designated adult in her family.
Making adult decisions, like not seeing her mother? Yes.
Jody loved her very much.
And at one time, Mrs.
Gaines probably even deserved that love.
Mr.
Gaines mentioned an incident that took place two months ago.
Mrs.
Gaines took Jody up to Tanglewood.
After, she refused to take her home.
They drove around all night.
Mrs.
Gaines was on a tear about her husband controlling her life, and how he was turning Jody against her.
Jody was still shaking when she saw me.
l'm not surprised her father got custody of her.
(CHUCKLES) He can dish it out.
A few months ago, Jody was excited about taking dance lessons near Mrs.
Gaines' work.
Mr.
Gaines stopped it, l think purely out of spite.
Two parents using their kid to destroy each other.
Wonderful world.
Two bad parents, but only one of them committed murder.
Whether she killed Capetti for revenge or to cover up her own involvement, jeopardy's attached.
We can't touch her.
We can for her daughter's murder.
You don't really think she intended or even thought Jody would be killed.
JACK: She hired a felon to toss her daughter into the back of a van.
That's kidnapping.
The daughter died as a result.
That's felony murder.
Abducting your own child.
lt's not a predicate crime.
Well, you'll say kidnapping, her lawyer'll say ''custodial interference.
'' And motive separates the two.
Frank Sullivan will testify that she did it to terrorize her husband.
That makes it kidnapping.
Uncorroborated accomplice testimony.
That and a dollar-twenty-five gets you on the subway.
Then we'll get corroboration.
l'm sure she told Capetti what her intentions were, and maybe he said something to his mother.
You hope.
Mrs.
Capetti, we know what happened.
There's no sense protecting your son anymore.
Leave him alone.
What good does it do anyway? He's dead.
And the woman who killed him will get away with another murder unless you help us.
What do you mean? Your son did tell you that Mrs.
Gaines hired him to kidnap her daughter? He didn't mean to kill the girl.
MRS.
CAPETTl: It was an accident.
He wanted her to be quiet.
JACK: l know.
Did he tell you why she wanted her kidnapped? Jack, she doesn't know Listen to me.
The more you can tell us about her involvement, the better chance we have of putting her in jail.
Jack.
lf your son said anything at all about her, please, tell me.
After the girl was hurt, he said he called Mrs.
Gaines to tell her that the girl was in trouble, and he wanted to take her to the hospital.
The lady told him no.
The lady told him they would all go to jail if anyone found out.
Nick was scared.
He did what she said.
Nick didn't want the girl to die.
It tore him up.
She told him not to go to the hospital.
It's depraved indifference.
Murder two.
lt'll be periury, Jack.
Mrs.
Capetti had no idea Karen Gaines was involved until we told her.
We can't confirm or deny her testimony.
l'm happy to take it at face value.
You practically put the words in her mouth.
Now, Karen Gaines killed her son, she has every reason to lie.
And she's very good at it.
l'm sure it's not the first time she's had to lie for her son.
l can't believe l'm hearing this.
Claire, l want two things, justice for the dead and respect from the living.
Mrs.
Gaines has to answer for what she did.
At any cost? You're talking about suborning perjury.
Just between you and me and the lamp post, l have no intention of putting Mrs.
Capetti on the stand.
All l want to do is survive a motion to dismiss.
As it is, unless we put the fear of God into Karen Gaines, she's gonna walk.
Have Curtis and Briscoe pick her up.
The People's latest murder charge rests solely on the testimony of Mrs.
Capetti.
lt's double hearsay, Your Honor, and therefore, inadmissible.
l admire your stamina, Mr.
McCoy, but let me get this, straight.
You want Mrs.
Capetti to tell us what her son told her the defendant told him? l'd rather Nick Capetti told us himself, but the defendant made him unavailable by shooting him in the back.
Even if he was here, his testimony would still be hearsay.
Statements against penal interest, exception to hearsay.
JACK: Even though Mrs.
Gaines knew her daughter was dying, she told Mr.
Capetti not to seek medical help.
According to Mrs.
Capetti, and there's not a shred of evidence to support her statement.
Can we even prove the call was made? JACK: l don't have to.
l have a pile of evidence on my desk to show that the defendant set in motion a reckless and callous chain of events.
Letting her daughter die was just the final depraved act.
JUDGE: Now, l've heard enough.
l'm gonna let a iury decide if Mrs.
Capetti is telling the truth.
The hearsay exception applies.
Her statements are admissible.
JUDGE: Motion to dismiss is denied.
My client is prepared to plead to custodial interference.
Period.
An E Felony? l hurt myself more shaving.
You're swinging without a net on murder two.
You think your star witness, Mrs.
Capetti, will hold up on cross? When the iury hears how your client paid a convicted rapist to kidnap her own daughter, they'll believe her capable of anything.
He never called me.
How can you think for a minute that l would Iet my own child die? What kind of a mother do you think l am? You don't know what l did for her.
For 10 years, l stayed in a nightmare marriage just so she could have a real home.
l fought for custody for her, but he had more money, more lawyers.
He turned me into an addict and then used it against me! That bastard, he stole her away from me.
He told her lies about me.
He made her afraid of me.
l loved her.
But you hated your husband more.
l never meant any of this to happen.
At most, her conduct was reckless.
Man two.
Tack on another year to the time she's already serving.
Man one.
She does six years.
And not one day of it in a halfway house.
Sorry.
lt never ends.
Mr.
Gaines is suing his ex-wife for wrongful death.
What does he want from her? The dollar an hour she gets folding prison laundry? lt's hard to believe those two were ever in love.
Passionately, l'd say.
Where do you think all the hate comes from?