Law & Order (1990) s07e18 Episode Script
Mad Dog
In the criminal justice system the people are represented by two separate yet equally important groups, the police who investigate crime and the district attorneys who prosecute the offenders.
These are their stories.
I served 18 years with a clean conduct record.
The last six, I worked in the heating plant without any supervision whatsoever.
I got my GED and I finished two years of college by correspondence.
That's very good.
What we'd like to know, Mr.
Darnell, is if you're released today, how can we trust you won't get in trouble again? I'm not the same man I was 18 years ago.
I've had therapy.
I've got discipline.
I understand myself.
I'm responsible for my actions.
What does that mean to you, to act responsibly? If you grant me parole, I plan to work hard and support my daughter and my grandchildren.
I plan to make restitution to the people I hurt.
Nobody owes me a second chance.
I'm not saying I deserve one.
But I'm giving it to you straight here, I know in my own mind, I will never harm anybody again.
Thank you, Mr.
Darnell.
Mr.
McCoy? Thank you.
I don't think Mr.
Darnell's changed at all.
I think he's just as dangerous as he was when I prosecuted him.
He was found guilty of six vicious rapes.
He was a suspect in seven others.
He raped young women, mostly teenagers, at knife point, in broad daylight, in their own bedrooms.
He wrapped a pillowcase around their faces, to terrorize them and heighten his pleasure.
I have here letters from those women.
They don't want his restitution.
They don't want anything from him.
All they ask is that we keep him behind bars for the next 12 years, to serve out the rest of his sentence.
This is the third time he's applied for release, the third time I've come here to oppose it.
I ask you now to again deny him parole.
Let him pay his debt to society in full.
Thank you, Mr.
McCoy.
Mr.
Darnell, we have taken into account your psychiatric evaluation, your conduct report, and Warden Davies' recommendation.
Though we are mindful of Mr.
McCoy's concerns, we hereby grant your request for early release.
The mother, Mrs.
Perez, found her in bed when she got home from work.
She thought she was sleeping.
At 3:00 in the afternoon? The girl had the flu.
She was staying home from school.
You check the doors and windows? No sign of forced entry.
But Mrs.
Perez says the front door Was locked with the latch.
And the building? Well, the door to the roof is padlocked from the inside.
The only way in is through the main door, and the super swears it's always locked.
Now, the canvass turned up a friend who saw her around noon.
She was going to the basement to do laundry.
That's it right there.
Is this how Mom found her? She was on her side, facing the wall.
Any injuries? There's a bruise on her right hand, a small nick on her neck.
For all I know, she stroked out or had an aneurysm.
Well, what are we doing here? Ask the mother.
She says the girl must've been raped, because she never sleeps naked.
And you say? Yesterday, I found out my I think this girl just outgrew her Dr.
Denton's.
Except it's February and she had the flu.
I didn't see anything forcible.
Do ripped panties count? You told the officer that the front door Was locked when you got home? Yes.
Just with the handle, though.
Well, it locks by itself when you close the door? Yes.
Did Teresa have a boyfriend? She didn't have time.
She was too busy with school.
Isn't it possible that she could've found the time? I wouldn't let her.
When I was her age, I was pregnant with Teresa.
I didn't want that for her.
Oh, God, my baby's dead! My beautiful baby.
I met her coming down the stairs, I thought she was gonna pass out.
She was sweating and coughing.
I helped her carry her wash down to the basement.
What time was this? I don't know.
It was just before I went to the store with my mom, maybe around 11:30.
Mmm-hmm.
Did Teresa say she was expecting company later? Her boyfriend, maybe? No, she wasn't expecting anybody.
But she did have a boyfriend, right? She didn't want her mother to know.
It's Raymond Cartena.
He lives in the building next door.
Was she Was she having sex with him? No.
Teresa said they talked about doing it.
He wanted to, but she was scared.
I called her this morning to see if she was feeling better.
We were trying to make arrangements to get with each other.
And do what, go to the ballet? The movies, you know? I mean, something like that.
That's funny, because we heard you had something else in mind for her.
What's that supposed to mean? She was found naked in her bed.
Did you do that, Raymond? No! Come on, Raymond, we're all fellows here.
We know how it is.
You're popping wood and she's giving you the red light, right? I did not do that.
No way.
Where were you today? On West 83, making a shower pan.
I'm gonna need that contractor's number, all right? You're sure about the times? Okay, thank you very much.
Well, he got there at 10:00 a.
M.
, left just after 3:00.
Had lunch on the premises.
Well, he'll be relieved to hear he didn't do it.
Plan B, it was an inside job.
The super said Teresa's building was locked tighter than Fort Knox.
Yeah, unlike this place.
The lock's busted.
Anybody can get in.
Question is, can you get from this building to hers? If any of that garbage from next door got into my building, I want to kill him.
What's in there? People used to keep their strollers in there, but we don't use it anymore.
It's locked.
Hey, Lennie.
What's that? Could be a conduit.
The city used to have pipes running between the buildings.
It isn't nailed, just jammed in.
Well? The boiler room next door.
The bruise on her wrist might be a restraint wound.
What about the cut on her throat? I've done worse shaving my legs.
It's probably a small knife or scissors.
You want to take a flyer on how she died? Suffocation, possibly.
There was petechial spotting on the outer lining of her heart and lungs.
That and a confession gets you cause of death.
We assumed there's a sexual angle.
No, I checked all three ports of entry.
No fluids, but the cervix was bruised.
Same timeframe as her death? I'd say during.
That's the whole point, isn't it? Raping her while she's in the throes of death? It's not the same MO.
A young woman raped in her own bed in the middle of the day at knifepoint.
There's no evidence Darnell ever tried to kill any of his victims.
Maybe 18 years in prison taught him not to leave any witnesses.
And to leave his pillowcase at home? Wasn't that his fetish? He found a new one.
Death.
I want him investigated.
In the six weeks he's been out, he's made all his meetings with his parole officer every morning at 8:00.
He cuts sheet metal in the village from 9:00 to 6:00.
His PO says he's got a perfect attendance record.
He lives on West 50th with his daughter and her two kids.
His PO checks in with him every night at 7:00.
Have you talked to his boss yet? Not yet.
We're still checking on a few other mutts in the victim's neighborhood.
McCoy thinks Darnell's a hot lead.
Yeah, well, maybe the victim profile's on the money, but from what I know, these deviants find something that gets them off, like a pillowcase, they usually stick with it.
Besides, the perp would have to know that building to get in, and Darnell grew up in Ohio, and there's no record of him ever having lived in that building as an adult.
Except that 20 years ago, he committed two rapes within five blocks of there.
I guess we're talking to his boss, huh? I've got five parolees working for me, including my fiancée.
The blonde file clerk? Yeah.
Twelve months in Bedford for passing bad checks.
The heart wants what it wants.
Yeah, I guess if you're gonna get cleaned out, it might as well be by a pro, huh? So, is Lewis Darnell invited to the wedding? He's here six weeks.
Not a big social mixer, but he's polite, he's helpful.
So he can be an usher.
Was he here all day on Wednesday? Uh-huh.
Except for lunch.
The guys usually go down the street to Feldman's Delicatessen.
What time was that? We knock off But Wednesday, Darnell said he had to run an errand for his daughter.
Came back about Oh, that poor girl! It's so dangerous here.
Look at my locks.
You think they're any good? Yeah, they're fine.
Please, ma'am, if you could just look at these pictures.
I've got a chain, too.
Maybe I should get a dog.
What do you think? I think you should tell me if you saw any of these men on Wednesday.
No, I've never seen them.
How about for windows? What do you recommend? Moving.
Look at each picture.
No, I didn't see them.
Did one of them kill Teresa Perez? We don't know.
She was nice.
I saw her that day in the basement.
She was folding her laundry.
She was sick, but she helped me put my clothes in the dryer.
It's so sad.
Yeah, it is.
Okay, thanks.
Wrong MO, no eyewitness, and no murder weapon.
This gets better all the time.
The laundry in the girl's room, did it look folded to you? What, the stuff in the garbage bag? No.
There's nothing remarkable about the laundry itself.
But I can tell you what brand of fabric softener they use.
Pass.
We're thinking the perp might've handled the garbage bag.
Latent found only the victim's prints on it.
But I noticed what looked like the imprint of an ear in the plastic.
I side-lit the bag to highlight any indentations and took a photo.
Want to dim the lights? Here's what showed up.
I compared this image to the autopsy photo of your victim.
They match.
Her face made an impression on the bag while she was being suffocated.
Looks like Darnell found a bigger thrill than pillowcases.
It still doesn't prove anything.
Unless we can put him in her building, we're nowhere.
What about his alibi? Well, the guy at the deli remembers him getting a sandwich to go.
Leaves him just over an hour unaccounted for.
Enough time to get to the Perez place and back.
Depends what his daughter says about this so-called errand he did for her.
Let me know.
Dad picked up some clippers I brought in to get fixed.
There's a repair shop near his work.
Can't be that close.
His supervisor says he was 20 minutes late getting back.
So maybe he had to wait.
Clipper repair, that's a tax-deductible expense, right? Yeah.
So you have the receipt? Is there some problem with his parole 'cause he was late? Oh, we don't get out of bed for parole violations.
See, Wednesday, a young girl was raped and murdered on the Lower East Side.
And naturally you thought of my father.
He's not a murderer.
He happens to be a convicted rapist.
Those are all lies.
If you could see him with my kids, you would realize that he's not that kind of man.
Miss, you want to look for the receipt? Cute photos.
Who's this? That's my father, when he was seven, with my grandma.
He reminds me of my little boy.
Lennie, the statue in the background.
Looks like Union Square.
Was this taken in New York? I don't know.
Here it is.
Right there.
The date, it's Wednesday.
There's no time stamped on it.
He could've gone there after work.
My father doesn't get off work till 6:00.
The repair shop closes at 5:00, all right? Now, I've got customers waiting, okay? Do you mind? Go to prison and win your daughter's undying love.
If only I'd known.
So what do you make of that picture? Darnell's file has him growing up in Ohio.
He's got a juvie record there.
Well, where was he before he got a record? Lewis Darnell, the lost years.
Darnell's mother was a war widow.
She wasn't in any of the old city directories, but Uncle Sam sent her GI survivor benefits until she remarried in 1953 and moved to Ohio.
Until then, she shared an apartment with her sister.
In the building next to Teresa Perez.
What does Judge Richler say about a search warrant for Darnell? He turned us down.
Darnell's connection to the building wasn't compelling enough to support probable cause.
He wants to know how many other rapists lived in the building in the last 50 years.
Can't Darnell's parole officer order a search? We can always ask.
Get on it.
And I want him examined for scratches and bite marks.
If we're lucky, the girl put up a fight.
Do I look like Sandra Day O'Connor? A judge already dinged the search warrant.
I can't overrule that.
Maybe, if you'd have come to me first.
Hey, isn't busting your parolees' chops part of your job? Unfortunately, only for cause.
The judge said there isn't any.
Should've talked to me first.
See, I told you, Lennie.
It was a mistake listening to Ross.
Who's that? Ah, she's an A.
D.
A.
, doesn't know her ass from her elbow.
She's the one who had the bright idea to take it to a judge.
Yeah.
I tried to tell her there was a better way, but you know how these pushy career women are.
Yep.
I work for one.
Look, I'd really like to help you guys.
You know, I just thought of something.
Can you pull Darnell in for a physical exam? Sure, if I suspect drug use.
Should I suspect drug use? Absolutely.
I don't need you to agree, Lewis.
Drug use is a violation of your parole.
You are required to submit to an examination.
Fine.
I'll pee in a cup and I'll get out of here.
After the doctor checks you for needle marks.
If you refuse, I'll violate you right back to prison.
He says the word, you're on the next bus to Sing Sing.
He had some minor cuts on his hands and forearms, but that's normal for someone who works with sheet metal.
Other than that, there were no scratches, nail gouges or bite marks.
Bruises? Nothing consistent with a struggle.
But this bird has some peculiar habits.
Like what? Mr.
Darnell has no body hair.
He told me he shaves it for personal hygiene.
Said it was a habit he picked up in prison.
Explains why we didn't find any of his hair on the girl.
Hey, if rape was my business, I'd shave before going to work, too.
Sounds like Mr.
Darnell just gave you cause to search his premises.
Here you go, pal.
Go see Mommy.
Thank you.
Come here, Jared.
Come here, sweetie.
Tami, can you take them over to your place for a second? Sure.
Let's go, kids.
We can watch cartoons at my place, okay? You've got no right to do this.
Take it up with him.
Uh, Detective.
I found these in a cupboard under the sink.
A few pair missing.
What? I use those to color hair! What's the hair salon for, coffee klatches? Bag it.
Hey, Lennie, in here.
No trophies from the Perez girl, but I found his stroke material.
Check out the titles.
"Of Female Bondage," "Get On the Bitch," "Erase Her.
" Yeah, and in case his VCR is on the fritz, he's got magazines.
Page after page of rape scenes.
So much for 18 years of therapy.
What can I say? Some people like vanilla, I like rocky road.
Yeah.
I look at pictures of ice cream, I get hungry.
Do these make you hungry, Lewis? I learned in therapy to control my urges.
This material helps me relieve the pressure so it won't preoccupy my thoughts.
What you learned is a fancy way to blow smoke up our ass, Lewis.
I have myself under control.
I see a state shrink every week.
Yeah? You tell him how you did that Kojak number on your privates? That's about hygiene.
It's about two body hairs found in Deborah Rourke's bed.
That's what got you convicted the first time.
So you didn't want to make that mistake again.
That's a long time ago.
I want to talk about today.
I'm not under arrest, but here I am.
You're detaining me illegally.
You're being detained at the request of your parole officer.
This is one hell of a system.
Well, it wasn't designed for your enjoyment, Lewis.
You ever wear disposable gloves? No.
You sure? 'Cause your prints were found on a box of gloves in your kitchen.
Perhaps I had to move it.
What about your silver penknife, where's that? I never had a penknife.
Somebody saw you with it at work.
It's not in your locker, it's not at home.
I never owned one.
Anything else? Yeah.
Teresa Perez.
Who? You'd know her better as the girl you raped and murdered last Wednesday on your lunch break.
I did no such thing.
I was running errands.
We know.
You got a sandwich and you picked up the clippers.
What'd you do with the rest of the time? I walked and I ate.
Write down where you went.
I don't remember.
Ever been to 122A East 11th Street? Doesn't ring a bell.
Are you sure? It's next door to where Ms.
Perez lived.
No, sorry.
You never went down to the basement? No.
Not even when you were seven? I don't have a clear memory of my childhood.
So you don't remember climbing through a hole in that basement? No.
But you do remember that basement, right? I don't want to talk anymore.
It's not up for a vote.
If you had anything on me, I'd be under arrest right now.
I don't care if you violate me, I'm going home.
Sit down.
Detective.
Now arrest him! Hey, hump, you're in.
You just violated your parole.
You have the right to remain silent.
Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law.
I can stall a hearing on his parole violation for 90 days, but that's it.
What are his chances at the hearing? Well, he was late for work and he walked out of a police interview.
In the world of parolees, gets him the good citizen's award.
Mr.
Munro, I'd like to know we're on the same page here.
The object is to keep him behind bars until we can make a murder case against him.
I'll talk to the hearing officer, I'll show him your file on the Perez girl, but I can't promise anything.
Sounds like Darnell can start planning his welcome home party.
It's three months he won't be on the hunt.
Mr.
McCoy? This just came by messenger.
Darnell filed a writ of habeas corpus.
Mr.
Darnell's parole officer signed off on his arrest.
With a 400-pound gorilla named Jack McCoy breathing down his neck.
Your Honor, these Mickey Mouse violations are a pretext to keep my client in prison while Mr.
McCoy investigates a crime totally unrelated to his parole.
What crime is that? A brutal rape and murder committed with Mr.
Darnell's signature on it.
It must've been in disappearing ink.
There's no evidence he was involved.
That's immaterial.
His parole conditions require him to cooperate with the authorities.
He consented to a physical exam.
He consented to an interrogation.
He tried to leave.
After two hours of questioning.
It does seem unreasonable, Mr.
McCoy.
Your Honor, that's for a parole hearing to determine.
With all due respect, he doesn't have a remedy in this court.
He does, Your Honor, if the detention is illegal.
I agree.
Mr.
McCoy, I don't see a significant parole violation here.
I'm ordering Mr.
Darnell's release.
Isn't it heartening? Even the rights of a disturbed serial rapist are protected.
How disturbed is he? There is a procedure for committing dangerous people against their will.
Maybe we've just been in the wrong court.
I've read the mental hygiene law, Your Honor.
There's no way my client qualifies for commitment.
He's a diagnosed serial rapist.
He's a danger to others.
You don't even have standing to make this application.
Mr.
Darnell's state-appointed therapist does.
Your Honor, he's trying to use a civil statute to impose criminal sanctions on my client.
It's outrageous.
I'm within the letter of the law.
No.
Maybe within the spirit, Mr.
McCoy.
Now, I'll hear arguments Thursday morning.
Mr.
Darnell is scheduled for release from Rikers this afternoon.
I want him held for observation until the hearing.
That's fine with me.
Have the papers on my desk after lunch.
I don't see a problem, Elizabeth.
His own therapist has agreed to support the application.
A therapist with 300 court-ordered clients.
I doubt he could even pick Darnell out of a lineup, and I doubt it ever occurred to him to have him committed until you brought it up.
Darnell rapes and kills.
Isn't that a sign something's wrong with him? Like it or not, his abnormality is not a recognized mental illness.
If you want to commit him, petition the American Psychiatric Association, not a judge.
We're not reinventing the wheel here.
Six states have laws to commit sexual predators.
And they're all being appealed to the Supreme Court.
Until the nine Supremes rule otherwise, I'm having Darnell locked up.
The same way the Soviets filled the gulag.
It's using psychiatry to punish people.
Hey! It's legally brilliant.
Bound to be a hit with the public.
And you've no business doing it.
You're an assistant district attorney.
You work in criminal term.
If you can't beat them there, that's it.
That's the end of the story.
You don't get psychiatrists to front for you in civil term.
I'm leaning on the police, but it could be months before we have enough evidence for a murder conviction.
Where do you want him until then? I'm on the side of the angels here.
If I can stretch the mental hygiene law, it's worth doing to keep him off the street! Hopefully for good.
After examining his file, I'd say Mr.
Darnell has a sexual deviation known as preferential rape.
He'd rather rape than have a normal sexual encounter.
He finds the force and fear of rape sexually exciting.
What provokes him? Any number of stress factors.
Work, family, even waiting in line at the grocery store.
The pressure builds until he feels a compulsion to rape.
After he does, what happens? The pressures start to build again and the cycle repeats itself.
Is his abnormality treatable? Drugs can decrease his sex drive.
His arousal can be reconditioned.
But left untreated, do you agree with Mr.
Darnell's therapist that he'll continue to rape? Yes.
I have no doubt.
Thank you.
Dr.
Olivet, what's the characteristic of my client's abnormality? He commits sex crimes.
So he's abnormal because he commits crimes.
Can't the same be said of a thief or a mugger? I don't know of any reported case of compulsive mugging.
The treatments you mentioned, are they effective in controlling my client's abnormality? Yes, to varying degrees.
In other words, there's no meaningful, long-lasting treatment for serial rapists, is there? No.
There's no cure, and there's no guarantee that he won't re-offend.
Thank you.
Before they got divorced, my mom would take me to visit him every month, and then later, when I was older, I would go out by myself on the train every other week.
I waited 18 years to get my father back.
Now, he served his sentence, and I don't think they should just be able to take him away again for doing absolutely nothing.
Would you describe your father as loving and supportive? Yes.
Yeah.
He always told me to stay in school and to get good grades, and after my divorce he encouraged me to start my own business, and you should see him with my kids.
He plays with them and he reads stories to them.
Do you feel they're safe with him? Yes.
Yeah, of course.
Look, my father is a very gentle man.
Thank you.
Ms.
Darnell, did you know that this "gentle man" kept violent, sexually-explicit magazines in his room? Those aren't real, Mr.
McCoy.
Those women are models.
It's fantasies.
You can't lock people up for their fantasies.
I want you to look at these photos.
Those wounds aren't fantasies.
Those women aren't models.
Those are your father's victims.
Objection.
Goes to credibility, Your Honor.
I'll allow it.
Go on.
My father didn't do this.
He told his prison therapist that he raped them.
He admitted his guilt to the parole board.
Because he had to, or they would have never let him out.
Did he tell you that he lied? No.
He didn't have to tell me.
I just know he never raped anybody.
Then how do you account for the evidence used to convict him? I have read where people get convicted of rape, and then years later they're found innocent.
Experts make mistakes, Mr.
McCoy.
Witnesses lie.
Yes, Ms.
Darnell, and they can be deceived.
The whole time in prison.
I conducted myself in a responsible way.
That's why I was recommended for early parole.
While you were in prison, were you ever hospitalized for psychiatric reasons? No, sir.
- Did you receive any kind of counseling? I volunteered for group therapy.
To change my attitudes toward women and to learn how to express emotions in constructive ways.
Did you achieve those goals? Yes.
Your Honor, I spent because Mr.
McCoy said I had a debt to pay to society.
Well, I paid that debt.
I shouldn't have to pay it again.
No more questions.
Mr.
Darnell, when was the last time you had consensual sex with a woman? I don't know.
Oh, come on.
You were released from prison more than two months ago.
By your own admission, you're now a healthy, normal male.
The opportunity must've presented itself.
Yes, I had sex.
Really? Who with? I don't know her name.
Did she help you act out your rape fantasies? No, sir.
Did she charge extra for the pillow case? Objection.
Withdrawn.
Mr.
Darnell, the truth is, you haven't changed at all, have you? No, I have changed.
How? You still have fantasies about rape, don't you? That's just in my head.
So, you think about it constantly? No, sir.
But you still have the urge to rape.
I am not interested in raping anyone! In prison, I learned to control myself.
In prison there were no women available, were there? I'm controlling myself out here, too.
By sheer force of will? Yes.
That works for you, despite all the medical evidence to the contrary? Yes.
Even though you still are turned on by depictions of rape? Yes.
Despite your history of 13 rapes? Despite being investigated for the rape and murder of Teresa Perez two weeks ago? I had nothing to do with that.
You're saying that you can control yourself for the rest of your life? That's what I'm saying.
You're lying.
Objection.
You lied to the parole board, you lied to your prison psychiatrist, you even lied to your own daughter.
Sustained, Mr.
McCoy.
You want me locked up because of something I might do.
You can't do that! It isn't right! You roaming the streets isn't right, Mr.
Darnell.
Mr.
McCoy! Withdrawn.
I'm through with this witness.
Even if we grant that Mr.
Darnell is a serial rapist and suffers from a compulsion to rape, Mr.
McCoy still has no right to lock him up.
I don't understand, Mr.
Granick.
Mr.
McCoy has a medical justification, and he can prove a continuing threat.
Isn't that what the mental hygiene law envisions? The statute mandates commitment for the purpose of treatment with the expectation of eventual release.
The people's own witnesses concede there is no cure for serial rapists.
Mr.
McCoy is seeking indefinite confinement for my client.
That's a gross violation of the Eighth Amendment prohibition against cruel and unusual punishment.
If he's dangerous and incurable, all the more reason to commit him.
Commit him because he can't be cured.
He can't be cured, so don't commit him.
This is a catch-22, gentlemen.
It's Mr.
McCoy looking for a second bite at the confinement apple.
Mr.
Darnell has already served his time in prison.
Your Honor, the mental hygiene law can be applied as broadly or as narrowly as you see fit.
We have a chance here to take a serial rapist off the street, to offer him some measure of treatment, and to protect society.
Your Honor, if you grant this application, it will not stop at serial rapists.
Anybody that they can't convict in criminal court, they'll ship off to Bellevue.
There's no slippery slope here, Your Honor.
This is sui generis.
Mr.
Darnell is an exceptional and egregious case.
Thank you, Counselors.
I'll certainly consider your arguments and render a decision when we reconvene.
Court will recess until The Supreme Court is presently considering in Kansas v.
Hendricks the very issues that you raised.
I'm loathe to precede Mr.
Rehnquist and his brethren into uncharted territory.
Mr.
McCoy, what you propose is very tempting, but I suspect very perilous.
I'm going to deny your application.
Mr.
Darnell is ordered released forthwith.
No! No! No! We conducted nearly 300 interviews, we showed his photo to everyone in the girl's neighborhood, we canvassed subway stations, bus stops, cab companies.
The man blends in like warm butter.
I want follow-up interviews.
And keep showing his photo.
That's the plan.
Forensics compared every kind of fiber from Darnell's work and home, from clothing to carpeting, to what was found at the Perez place.
Nothing matched.
That's not good enough.
I beg your pardon? You've had this case for weeks.
You haven't given me a single piece of evidence I can hang an arrest warrant on.
Mr.
McCoy, when my detectives get back from their needlepoint classes, I'll put them on the case.
Anything else? Yes.
Starting today, I want round-the-clock surveillance on Darnell.
That was some motivational speech.
Soon as we convict Darnell, I'll send her flowers.
Open the case before the grand jury and let's get them busy.
Doing what? Start by subpoenaing everyone Darnell's talked to in the last six weeks.
And I want a summary of the Sex Offender Registration Act on my desk by tomorrow morning.
Megan's Law? I'm gonna give Darnell something to think about besides rape.
By the time I'm through, he'll run back to Sing Sing.
We've got a warrant to search Mr.
Darnell's locker.
Again? We're still looking for a penknife.
You mind showing these officers the way? The warrant's also good to search your work area, which pretty much covers the entire place.
Start right here.
Okay! Everybody gather around for mail call.
Do we have a Christopher White here? Right here.
Here you go.
It's an invitation from the grand jury.
They want to talk to you about your friendly neighborhood serial rapist.
Neal Dawson? Yeah, that's me.
Neal.
Anybody who doesn't show up gets cited for contempt.
I'm sure you'll all want to thank your friend Lewis in a big way.
Rob McAllister? We're finished with the search.
Sorry for the bother.
What about this? You're dragging my neighbors into court.
It's not court, it's the grand jury.
Yeah, well, I don't give a damn what you call it.
This is harassment.
We're conducting a lawful investigation.
You live with a rapist and a murderer, you have to put up with a few minor inconveniences.
This might be lawful in Peking or in Havana, but we're talking about New York City here! Look.
Look at this! Look at this crap! You've got our phone number and our address on here! You have no right to do this! That didn't come from the department or the D.
A.
's office.
Yeah? Whoever did this got the information from somewhere.
Hey, Megan's Law says we have to inform local agencies that there's a sex offender living in their area.
You got a problem with that, call Governor Pataki.
Hey, Lewis! Look at you.
Twenty-five blocks and hardly a drop of sweat.
I guess all that walking around the yard in Sing Sing really paid off, huh? So, what's the matter? Your local bodega ran out of your favorite breakfast drink? Hey, Rey, look what I found on the floor.
Must have fallen off the board.
You know, that's a really good likeness, Lewis.
He was hounded from his job.
He hasn't been able to find a new employer.
His face has been plastered all over the West Side.
He's a virtual pariah in his neighborhood.
He has no choice but to apply for a change of residence.
Who do you know in Binghamton, Lewis? A cousin.
He owns a pizzeria.
He said he can give me a job making deliveries.
Mr.
Munro, I notified the Broome County District Attorney's office.
He plans to oppose his relocation.
Lewis, is there anywhere else in New York State? We sent notifications to every county in the state.
No one wants him.
Mr.
Darnell's been in contact with a relative outside Akron.
Yes.
George Radford in Greensburg.
The Summit County D.
A.
Doesn't want Mr.
Darnell in his jurisdiction, either.
How did you know about Radford? We have a court-approved wiretap on your client's phone.
Now, if Mr.
Darnell finds life in New York so intolerable, he can live on the grounds of the Camp Gabriel's work farm.
I'm not going back to prison.
You wouldn't be an inmate.
You'd be on work release.
Work where? It's in the middle of the damn woods.
Screw your work release.
Knock it off, Lewis.
Mr.
Granick, my hands are tied here.
Until Lewis comes up with a community willing to take him, I have to deny his request.
You son of a bitch! I'm warning you.
You better step off, you understand? You leave me the hell alone! There's only three ways that's gonna happen, Mr.
Darnell.
Either you'll kill me, kill yourself or go back to prison.
Here's one from the director of the division of parole.
You're interfering with the proper administration of their field services.
It was their brilliant idea to grant him parole in the first place.
Save your witticisms for the police commissioner.
His office thinks that your little operation is costing too much overtime.
I'm prosecuting a murder.
I'm not looking to save pennies.
By the way, how is that case going? He hasn't led his police escort to a secret stash of evidence? I'm stunned.
What am I supposed to do, Adam? Darnell won't oblige me with a confession.
I need to tell these people what you're doing serves some legitimate purpose.
I'm pushing hard to break a suspect.
Is that good enough? Darnell isn't going back to prison quietly.
He got the Southern District Court to issue a restraining order.
How bad is it? He's putting us out of business.
And he's got the A.
C.
L.
U.
On board.
A.
C Oh, boy.
Forty-seven subpoenas, six search warrants, three wiretap warrants, It's abusive.
It's entirely within the scope of my prosecutorial authority.
Your Honor, an independent magistrate signed off on each and every warrant.
The Gambinos never got this kind of attention, Your Honor.
Mr.
McCoy, is there a realistic hope of uncovering relevant evidence here? We're looking for the knife used in the crime, the clothes worn by Mr.
Darnell, and any person he might've spoken to about the crime.
Some of these witnesses have been called before the grand jury four times.
Mr.
Darnell's home and workplace have been searched on three separate occasions.
When does this stop? When I'm satisfied all leads have been exhausted.
I don't take a lot of comfort from that, Mr.
McCoy, but Mr.
Granick, I don't see where your client's civil rights have been violated, no matter what the A.
C.
L.
U.
May have told you.
With due respect, Your Honor, you're missing the big picture.
Now Mr.
Darnell's name, address and prison record have been distributed throughout his neighborhood and made available on a 900 number.
Now, the neighborhood watch, school boards, women's groups have all been notified of the same All of which is required under the Sex Offender Registration Act.
It's a high-tech scarlet letter.
Now, the state punished Mr.
Darnell once.
It shouldn't have the right to punish him again for the same crimes.
This is not punishment.
It's fair warning to his neighbors.
Mr.
McCoy, my legal sense tells me you're treading pretty close to an injudicious use of prosecutorial power.
I'm simply using the tools the state has made available to me.
Yes, you are.
And I'm gonna be watching you very carefully.
Mr.
Granick, the restraining order is lifted and your application for an injunction is denied.
Step lightly, Mr.
McCoy.
"9:00 a.
m.
Subject exited premises to purchase a newspaper.
"2:26 p.
m.
Subject exited premises for cigarettes.
"2:29 p.
m.
Subject looked in the direction of the surveillance car "and made an obscene gesture.
" At least he's keeping his sense of humor.
Somebody isn't.
About once a day his daughter comes by to spit on the car.
I'm sorry she's caught in the middle of this.
Counselor, this turning of the screws, is this an open-ended arrangement? That's up to Mr.
Darnell.
The girl told her mother just a few days ago.
Why did she wait so long? She didn't want her mother to know she'd ditched school that day, but when she saw the posters, she recognized Darnell, decided to do the right thing.
Ms.
Ross is from the district attorney's office.
Why don't you tell her what happened? It was last month.
Natalie was home from school.
She was in the kitchen.
She heard noises at the front door.
Natalie, tell her.
Someone was jiggling the lock.
I saw it was that man through the hole.
He said that the super wanted him to check the radiators.
He kept asking her to open the door.
Tell them what you said.
I told him that if he didn't go away, I'd call the cops.
That scared him off.
It's that man.
He's sick.
You gotta put him back in jail.
Thank you.
At the very least, it's attempted trespass.
We can violate Darnell.
And we can have this girl arrested for impersonating a witness.
She might as well have been reading off a teleprompter.
Hey, look, McCoy's been pushing us hard for a break.
This one just walked in.
If he wants to look behind the curtain, that's up to him.
Check out her story and get back to me.
The school had a note on file from the girl's mother for the same day the girl claims she ditched school.
It was for a dentist's appointment she had during lunch.
That note's probably a fake.
The school verified the mother's signature.
What does the dentist say? He confirmed there was an appointment that day.
So the girl went home instead of the dentist's.
They seem to remember she had her cavities filled.
"Seem to remember.
" What does the girl say? She and her mother swear they changed the appointment, but I think it's a non-starter.
Well, if this lie doesn't get Mr.
Darnell out of the neighborhood, try a lynch mob.
If there's evidence they're lying, it's up to Darnell's lawyer to present it to a jury.
You want to arrest him? You'll do nothing of the kind.
The girl's story is credible on its face.
My evidentiary burden is met.
I don't care.
You can thumb your nose at a federal judge, but I won't let you drag the law through a sewer to catch a rat.
It's not worth it.
To put him back in his box? We arrest him now, it'll be six months before a jury sorts it out.
Stop.
Listen to what you're suggesting.
An arrest you know is false.
The inquisition is over.
I'm sorry, Jack.
I should've kept my mouth shut.
It's okay.
He's right.
Mr.
McCoy, Detective Briscoe's on line one.
He said it's urgent.
She was on her way to her apartment when she saw the door was open.
She heard noises inside, so she came in.
The baseball bat was in the umbrella stand.
He was on top of her friend.
He had a knife to her throat, and that bag over her face.
She took two major-league swings.
One to the right temple, one to the forehead.
Her friend's in there.
She's got trauma from the rape and the partial suffocation.
E.
M.
S.
Says she'll be all right, considering.
I guess the pressure got to Darnell.
He had no place else to go.
Where is she? In here.
We'll get her statement back at the squad room.
Make it painless, and get her back home.
I'm sorry it had to happen this way.
Not all that sorry.
These are their stories.
I served 18 years with a clean conduct record.
The last six, I worked in the heating plant without any supervision whatsoever.
I got my GED and I finished two years of college by correspondence.
That's very good.
What we'd like to know, Mr.
Darnell, is if you're released today, how can we trust you won't get in trouble again? I'm not the same man I was 18 years ago.
I've had therapy.
I've got discipline.
I understand myself.
I'm responsible for my actions.
What does that mean to you, to act responsibly? If you grant me parole, I plan to work hard and support my daughter and my grandchildren.
I plan to make restitution to the people I hurt.
Nobody owes me a second chance.
I'm not saying I deserve one.
But I'm giving it to you straight here, I know in my own mind, I will never harm anybody again.
Thank you, Mr.
Darnell.
Mr.
McCoy? Thank you.
I don't think Mr.
Darnell's changed at all.
I think he's just as dangerous as he was when I prosecuted him.
He was found guilty of six vicious rapes.
He was a suspect in seven others.
He raped young women, mostly teenagers, at knife point, in broad daylight, in their own bedrooms.
He wrapped a pillowcase around their faces, to terrorize them and heighten his pleasure.
I have here letters from those women.
They don't want his restitution.
They don't want anything from him.
All they ask is that we keep him behind bars for the next 12 years, to serve out the rest of his sentence.
This is the third time he's applied for release, the third time I've come here to oppose it.
I ask you now to again deny him parole.
Let him pay his debt to society in full.
Thank you, Mr.
McCoy.
Mr.
Darnell, we have taken into account your psychiatric evaluation, your conduct report, and Warden Davies' recommendation.
Though we are mindful of Mr.
McCoy's concerns, we hereby grant your request for early release.
The mother, Mrs.
Perez, found her in bed when she got home from work.
She thought she was sleeping.
At 3:00 in the afternoon? The girl had the flu.
She was staying home from school.
You check the doors and windows? No sign of forced entry.
But Mrs.
Perez says the front door Was locked with the latch.
And the building? Well, the door to the roof is padlocked from the inside.
The only way in is through the main door, and the super swears it's always locked.
Now, the canvass turned up a friend who saw her around noon.
She was going to the basement to do laundry.
That's it right there.
Is this how Mom found her? She was on her side, facing the wall.
Any injuries? There's a bruise on her right hand, a small nick on her neck.
For all I know, she stroked out or had an aneurysm.
Well, what are we doing here? Ask the mother.
She says the girl must've been raped, because she never sleeps naked.
And you say? Yesterday, I found out my I think this girl just outgrew her Dr.
Denton's.
Except it's February and she had the flu.
I didn't see anything forcible.
Do ripped panties count? You told the officer that the front door Was locked when you got home? Yes.
Just with the handle, though.
Well, it locks by itself when you close the door? Yes.
Did Teresa have a boyfriend? She didn't have time.
She was too busy with school.
Isn't it possible that she could've found the time? I wouldn't let her.
When I was her age, I was pregnant with Teresa.
I didn't want that for her.
Oh, God, my baby's dead! My beautiful baby.
I met her coming down the stairs, I thought she was gonna pass out.
She was sweating and coughing.
I helped her carry her wash down to the basement.
What time was this? I don't know.
It was just before I went to the store with my mom, maybe around 11:30.
Mmm-hmm.
Did Teresa say she was expecting company later? Her boyfriend, maybe? No, she wasn't expecting anybody.
But she did have a boyfriend, right? She didn't want her mother to know.
It's Raymond Cartena.
He lives in the building next door.
Was she Was she having sex with him? No.
Teresa said they talked about doing it.
He wanted to, but she was scared.
I called her this morning to see if she was feeling better.
We were trying to make arrangements to get with each other.
And do what, go to the ballet? The movies, you know? I mean, something like that.
That's funny, because we heard you had something else in mind for her.
What's that supposed to mean? She was found naked in her bed.
Did you do that, Raymond? No! Come on, Raymond, we're all fellows here.
We know how it is.
You're popping wood and she's giving you the red light, right? I did not do that.
No way.
Where were you today? On West 83, making a shower pan.
I'm gonna need that contractor's number, all right? You're sure about the times? Okay, thank you very much.
Well, he got there at 10:00 a.
M.
, left just after 3:00.
Had lunch on the premises.
Well, he'll be relieved to hear he didn't do it.
Plan B, it was an inside job.
The super said Teresa's building was locked tighter than Fort Knox.
Yeah, unlike this place.
The lock's busted.
Anybody can get in.
Question is, can you get from this building to hers? If any of that garbage from next door got into my building, I want to kill him.
What's in there? People used to keep their strollers in there, but we don't use it anymore.
It's locked.
Hey, Lennie.
What's that? Could be a conduit.
The city used to have pipes running between the buildings.
It isn't nailed, just jammed in.
Well? The boiler room next door.
The bruise on her wrist might be a restraint wound.
What about the cut on her throat? I've done worse shaving my legs.
It's probably a small knife or scissors.
You want to take a flyer on how she died? Suffocation, possibly.
There was petechial spotting on the outer lining of her heart and lungs.
That and a confession gets you cause of death.
We assumed there's a sexual angle.
No, I checked all three ports of entry.
No fluids, but the cervix was bruised.
Same timeframe as her death? I'd say during.
That's the whole point, isn't it? Raping her while she's in the throes of death? It's not the same MO.
A young woman raped in her own bed in the middle of the day at knifepoint.
There's no evidence Darnell ever tried to kill any of his victims.
Maybe 18 years in prison taught him not to leave any witnesses.
And to leave his pillowcase at home? Wasn't that his fetish? He found a new one.
Death.
I want him investigated.
In the six weeks he's been out, he's made all his meetings with his parole officer every morning at 8:00.
He cuts sheet metal in the village from 9:00 to 6:00.
His PO says he's got a perfect attendance record.
He lives on West 50th with his daughter and her two kids.
His PO checks in with him every night at 7:00.
Have you talked to his boss yet? Not yet.
We're still checking on a few other mutts in the victim's neighborhood.
McCoy thinks Darnell's a hot lead.
Yeah, well, maybe the victim profile's on the money, but from what I know, these deviants find something that gets them off, like a pillowcase, they usually stick with it.
Besides, the perp would have to know that building to get in, and Darnell grew up in Ohio, and there's no record of him ever having lived in that building as an adult.
Except that 20 years ago, he committed two rapes within five blocks of there.
I guess we're talking to his boss, huh? I've got five parolees working for me, including my fiancée.
The blonde file clerk? Yeah.
Twelve months in Bedford for passing bad checks.
The heart wants what it wants.
Yeah, I guess if you're gonna get cleaned out, it might as well be by a pro, huh? So, is Lewis Darnell invited to the wedding? He's here six weeks.
Not a big social mixer, but he's polite, he's helpful.
So he can be an usher.
Was he here all day on Wednesday? Uh-huh.
Except for lunch.
The guys usually go down the street to Feldman's Delicatessen.
What time was that? We knock off But Wednesday, Darnell said he had to run an errand for his daughter.
Came back about Oh, that poor girl! It's so dangerous here.
Look at my locks.
You think they're any good? Yeah, they're fine.
Please, ma'am, if you could just look at these pictures.
I've got a chain, too.
Maybe I should get a dog.
What do you think? I think you should tell me if you saw any of these men on Wednesday.
No, I've never seen them.
How about for windows? What do you recommend? Moving.
Look at each picture.
No, I didn't see them.
Did one of them kill Teresa Perez? We don't know.
She was nice.
I saw her that day in the basement.
She was folding her laundry.
She was sick, but she helped me put my clothes in the dryer.
It's so sad.
Yeah, it is.
Okay, thanks.
Wrong MO, no eyewitness, and no murder weapon.
This gets better all the time.
The laundry in the girl's room, did it look folded to you? What, the stuff in the garbage bag? No.
There's nothing remarkable about the laundry itself.
But I can tell you what brand of fabric softener they use.
Pass.
We're thinking the perp might've handled the garbage bag.
Latent found only the victim's prints on it.
But I noticed what looked like the imprint of an ear in the plastic.
I side-lit the bag to highlight any indentations and took a photo.
Want to dim the lights? Here's what showed up.
I compared this image to the autopsy photo of your victim.
They match.
Her face made an impression on the bag while she was being suffocated.
Looks like Darnell found a bigger thrill than pillowcases.
It still doesn't prove anything.
Unless we can put him in her building, we're nowhere.
What about his alibi? Well, the guy at the deli remembers him getting a sandwich to go.
Leaves him just over an hour unaccounted for.
Enough time to get to the Perez place and back.
Depends what his daughter says about this so-called errand he did for her.
Let me know.
Dad picked up some clippers I brought in to get fixed.
There's a repair shop near his work.
Can't be that close.
His supervisor says he was 20 minutes late getting back.
So maybe he had to wait.
Clipper repair, that's a tax-deductible expense, right? Yeah.
So you have the receipt? Is there some problem with his parole 'cause he was late? Oh, we don't get out of bed for parole violations.
See, Wednesday, a young girl was raped and murdered on the Lower East Side.
And naturally you thought of my father.
He's not a murderer.
He happens to be a convicted rapist.
Those are all lies.
If you could see him with my kids, you would realize that he's not that kind of man.
Miss, you want to look for the receipt? Cute photos.
Who's this? That's my father, when he was seven, with my grandma.
He reminds me of my little boy.
Lennie, the statue in the background.
Looks like Union Square.
Was this taken in New York? I don't know.
Here it is.
Right there.
The date, it's Wednesday.
There's no time stamped on it.
He could've gone there after work.
My father doesn't get off work till 6:00.
The repair shop closes at 5:00, all right? Now, I've got customers waiting, okay? Do you mind? Go to prison and win your daughter's undying love.
If only I'd known.
So what do you make of that picture? Darnell's file has him growing up in Ohio.
He's got a juvie record there.
Well, where was he before he got a record? Lewis Darnell, the lost years.
Darnell's mother was a war widow.
She wasn't in any of the old city directories, but Uncle Sam sent her GI survivor benefits until she remarried in 1953 and moved to Ohio.
Until then, she shared an apartment with her sister.
In the building next to Teresa Perez.
What does Judge Richler say about a search warrant for Darnell? He turned us down.
Darnell's connection to the building wasn't compelling enough to support probable cause.
He wants to know how many other rapists lived in the building in the last 50 years.
Can't Darnell's parole officer order a search? We can always ask.
Get on it.
And I want him examined for scratches and bite marks.
If we're lucky, the girl put up a fight.
Do I look like Sandra Day O'Connor? A judge already dinged the search warrant.
I can't overrule that.
Maybe, if you'd have come to me first.
Hey, isn't busting your parolees' chops part of your job? Unfortunately, only for cause.
The judge said there isn't any.
Should've talked to me first.
See, I told you, Lennie.
It was a mistake listening to Ross.
Who's that? Ah, she's an A.
D.
A.
, doesn't know her ass from her elbow.
She's the one who had the bright idea to take it to a judge.
Yeah.
I tried to tell her there was a better way, but you know how these pushy career women are.
Yep.
I work for one.
Look, I'd really like to help you guys.
You know, I just thought of something.
Can you pull Darnell in for a physical exam? Sure, if I suspect drug use.
Should I suspect drug use? Absolutely.
I don't need you to agree, Lewis.
Drug use is a violation of your parole.
You are required to submit to an examination.
Fine.
I'll pee in a cup and I'll get out of here.
After the doctor checks you for needle marks.
If you refuse, I'll violate you right back to prison.
He says the word, you're on the next bus to Sing Sing.
He had some minor cuts on his hands and forearms, but that's normal for someone who works with sheet metal.
Other than that, there were no scratches, nail gouges or bite marks.
Bruises? Nothing consistent with a struggle.
But this bird has some peculiar habits.
Like what? Mr.
Darnell has no body hair.
He told me he shaves it for personal hygiene.
Said it was a habit he picked up in prison.
Explains why we didn't find any of his hair on the girl.
Hey, if rape was my business, I'd shave before going to work, too.
Sounds like Mr.
Darnell just gave you cause to search his premises.
Here you go, pal.
Go see Mommy.
Thank you.
Come here, Jared.
Come here, sweetie.
Tami, can you take them over to your place for a second? Sure.
Let's go, kids.
We can watch cartoons at my place, okay? You've got no right to do this.
Take it up with him.
Uh, Detective.
I found these in a cupboard under the sink.
A few pair missing.
What? I use those to color hair! What's the hair salon for, coffee klatches? Bag it.
Hey, Lennie, in here.
No trophies from the Perez girl, but I found his stroke material.
Check out the titles.
"Of Female Bondage," "Get On the Bitch," "Erase Her.
" Yeah, and in case his VCR is on the fritz, he's got magazines.
Page after page of rape scenes.
So much for 18 years of therapy.
What can I say? Some people like vanilla, I like rocky road.
Yeah.
I look at pictures of ice cream, I get hungry.
Do these make you hungry, Lewis? I learned in therapy to control my urges.
This material helps me relieve the pressure so it won't preoccupy my thoughts.
What you learned is a fancy way to blow smoke up our ass, Lewis.
I have myself under control.
I see a state shrink every week.
Yeah? You tell him how you did that Kojak number on your privates? That's about hygiene.
It's about two body hairs found in Deborah Rourke's bed.
That's what got you convicted the first time.
So you didn't want to make that mistake again.
That's a long time ago.
I want to talk about today.
I'm not under arrest, but here I am.
You're detaining me illegally.
You're being detained at the request of your parole officer.
This is one hell of a system.
Well, it wasn't designed for your enjoyment, Lewis.
You ever wear disposable gloves? No.
You sure? 'Cause your prints were found on a box of gloves in your kitchen.
Perhaps I had to move it.
What about your silver penknife, where's that? I never had a penknife.
Somebody saw you with it at work.
It's not in your locker, it's not at home.
I never owned one.
Anything else? Yeah.
Teresa Perez.
Who? You'd know her better as the girl you raped and murdered last Wednesday on your lunch break.
I did no such thing.
I was running errands.
We know.
You got a sandwich and you picked up the clippers.
What'd you do with the rest of the time? I walked and I ate.
Write down where you went.
I don't remember.
Ever been to 122A East 11th Street? Doesn't ring a bell.
Are you sure? It's next door to where Ms.
Perez lived.
No, sorry.
You never went down to the basement? No.
Not even when you were seven? I don't have a clear memory of my childhood.
So you don't remember climbing through a hole in that basement? No.
But you do remember that basement, right? I don't want to talk anymore.
It's not up for a vote.
If you had anything on me, I'd be under arrest right now.
I don't care if you violate me, I'm going home.
Sit down.
Detective.
Now arrest him! Hey, hump, you're in.
You just violated your parole.
You have the right to remain silent.
Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law.
I can stall a hearing on his parole violation for 90 days, but that's it.
What are his chances at the hearing? Well, he was late for work and he walked out of a police interview.
In the world of parolees, gets him the good citizen's award.
Mr.
Munro, I'd like to know we're on the same page here.
The object is to keep him behind bars until we can make a murder case against him.
I'll talk to the hearing officer, I'll show him your file on the Perez girl, but I can't promise anything.
Sounds like Darnell can start planning his welcome home party.
It's three months he won't be on the hunt.
Mr.
McCoy? This just came by messenger.
Darnell filed a writ of habeas corpus.
Mr.
Darnell's parole officer signed off on his arrest.
With a 400-pound gorilla named Jack McCoy breathing down his neck.
Your Honor, these Mickey Mouse violations are a pretext to keep my client in prison while Mr.
McCoy investigates a crime totally unrelated to his parole.
What crime is that? A brutal rape and murder committed with Mr.
Darnell's signature on it.
It must've been in disappearing ink.
There's no evidence he was involved.
That's immaterial.
His parole conditions require him to cooperate with the authorities.
He consented to a physical exam.
He consented to an interrogation.
He tried to leave.
After two hours of questioning.
It does seem unreasonable, Mr.
McCoy.
Your Honor, that's for a parole hearing to determine.
With all due respect, he doesn't have a remedy in this court.
He does, Your Honor, if the detention is illegal.
I agree.
Mr.
McCoy, I don't see a significant parole violation here.
I'm ordering Mr.
Darnell's release.
Isn't it heartening? Even the rights of a disturbed serial rapist are protected.
How disturbed is he? There is a procedure for committing dangerous people against their will.
Maybe we've just been in the wrong court.
I've read the mental hygiene law, Your Honor.
There's no way my client qualifies for commitment.
He's a diagnosed serial rapist.
He's a danger to others.
You don't even have standing to make this application.
Mr.
Darnell's state-appointed therapist does.
Your Honor, he's trying to use a civil statute to impose criminal sanctions on my client.
It's outrageous.
I'm within the letter of the law.
No.
Maybe within the spirit, Mr.
McCoy.
Now, I'll hear arguments Thursday morning.
Mr.
Darnell is scheduled for release from Rikers this afternoon.
I want him held for observation until the hearing.
That's fine with me.
Have the papers on my desk after lunch.
I don't see a problem, Elizabeth.
His own therapist has agreed to support the application.
A therapist with 300 court-ordered clients.
I doubt he could even pick Darnell out of a lineup, and I doubt it ever occurred to him to have him committed until you brought it up.
Darnell rapes and kills.
Isn't that a sign something's wrong with him? Like it or not, his abnormality is not a recognized mental illness.
If you want to commit him, petition the American Psychiatric Association, not a judge.
We're not reinventing the wheel here.
Six states have laws to commit sexual predators.
And they're all being appealed to the Supreme Court.
Until the nine Supremes rule otherwise, I'm having Darnell locked up.
The same way the Soviets filled the gulag.
It's using psychiatry to punish people.
Hey! It's legally brilliant.
Bound to be a hit with the public.
And you've no business doing it.
You're an assistant district attorney.
You work in criminal term.
If you can't beat them there, that's it.
That's the end of the story.
You don't get psychiatrists to front for you in civil term.
I'm leaning on the police, but it could be months before we have enough evidence for a murder conviction.
Where do you want him until then? I'm on the side of the angels here.
If I can stretch the mental hygiene law, it's worth doing to keep him off the street! Hopefully for good.
After examining his file, I'd say Mr.
Darnell has a sexual deviation known as preferential rape.
He'd rather rape than have a normal sexual encounter.
He finds the force and fear of rape sexually exciting.
What provokes him? Any number of stress factors.
Work, family, even waiting in line at the grocery store.
The pressure builds until he feels a compulsion to rape.
After he does, what happens? The pressures start to build again and the cycle repeats itself.
Is his abnormality treatable? Drugs can decrease his sex drive.
His arousal can be reconditioned.
But left untreated, do you agree with Mr.
Darnell's therapist that he'll continue to rape? Yes.
I have no doubt.
Thank you.
Dr.
Olivet, what's the characteristic of my client's abnormality? He commits sex crimes.
So he's abnormal because he commits crimes.
Can't the same be said of a thief or a mugger? I don't know of any reported case of compulsive mugging.
The treatments you mentioned, are they effective in controlling my client's abnormality? Yes, to varying degrees.
In other words, there's no meaningful, long-lasting treatment for serial rapists, is there? No.
There's no cure, and there's no guarantee that he won't re-offend.
Thank you.
Before they got divorced, my mom would take me to visit him every month, and then later, when I was older, I would go out by myself on the train every other week.
I waited 18 years to get my father back.
Now, he served his sentence, and I don't think they should just be able to take him away again for doing absolutely nothing.
Would you describe your father as loving and supportive? Yes.
Yeah.
He always told me to stay in school and to get good grades, and after my divorce he encouraged me to start my own business, and you should see him with my kids.
He plays with them and he reads stories to them.
Do you feel they're safe with him? Yes.
Yeah, of course.
Look, my father is a very gentle man.
Thank you.
Ms.
Darnell, did you know that this "gentle man" kept violent, sexually-explicit magazines in his room? Those aren't real, Mr.
McCoy.
Those women are models.
It's fantasies.
You can't lock people up for their fantasies.
I want you to look at these photos.
Those wounds aren't fantasies.
Those women aren't models.
Those are your father's victims.
Objection.
Goes to credibility, Your Honor.
I'll allow it.
Go on.
My father didn't do this.
He told his prison therapist that he raped them.
He admitted his guilt to the parole board.
Because he had to, or they would have never let him out.
Did he tell you that he lied? No.
He didn't have to tell me.
I just know he never raped anybody.
Then how do you account for the evidence used to convict him? I have read where people get convicted of rape, and then years later they're found innocent.
Experts make mistakes, Mr.
McCoy.
Witnesses lie.
Yes, Ms.
Darnell, and they can be deceived.
The whole time in prison.
I conducted myself in a responsible way.
That's why I was recommended for early parole.
While you were in prison, were you ever hospitalized for psychiatric reasons? No, sir.
- Did you receive any kind of counseling? I volunteered for group therapy.
To change my attitudes toward women and to learn how to express emotions in constructive ways.
Did you achieve those goals? Yes.
Your Honor, I spent because Mr.
McCoy said I had a debt to pay to society.
Well, I paid that debt.
I shouldn't have to pay it again.
No more questions.
Mr.
Darnell, when was the last time you had consensual sex with a woman? I don't know.
Oh, come on.
You were released from prison more than two months ago.
By your own admission, you're now a healthy, normal male.
The opportunity must've presented itself.
Yes, I had sex.
Really? Who with? I don't know her name.
Did she help you act out your rape fantasies? No, sir.
Did she charge extra for the pillow case? Objection.
Withdrawn.
Mr.
Darnell, the truth is, you haven't changed at all, have you? No, I have changed.
How? You still have fantasies about rape, don't you? That's just in my head.
So, you think about it constantly? No, sir.
But you still have the urge to rape.
I am not interested in raping anyone! In prison, I learned to control myself.
In prison there were no women available, were there? I'm controlling myself out here, too.
By sheer force of will? Yes.
That works for you, despite all the medical evidence to the contrary? Yes.
Even though you still are turned on by depictions of rape? Yes.
Despite your history of 13 rapes? Despite being investigated for the rape and murder of Teresa Perez two weeks ago? I had nothing to do with that.
You're saying that you can control yourself for the rest of your life? That's what I'm saying.
You're lying.
Objection.
You lied to the parole board, you lied to your prison psychiatrist, you even lied to your own daughter.
Sustained, Mr.
McCoy.
You want me locked up because of something I might do.
You can't do that! It isn't right! You roaming the streets isn't right, Mr.
Darnell.
Mr.
McCoy! Withdrawn.
I'm through with this witness.
Even if we grant that Mr.
Darnell is a serial rapist and suffers from a compulsion to rape, Mr.
McCoy still has no right to lock him up.
I don't understand, Mr.
Granick.
Mr.
McCoy has a medical justification, and he can prove a continuing threat.
Isn't that what the mental hygiene law envisions? The statute mandates commitment for the purpose of treatment with the expectation of eventual release.
The people's own witnesses concede there is no cure for serial rapists.
Mr.
McCoy is seeking indefinite confinement for my client.
That's a gross violation of the Eighth Amendment prohibition against cruel and unusual punishment.
If he's dangerous and incurable, all the more reason to commit him.
Commit him because he can't be cured.
He can't be cured, so don't commit him.
This is a catch-22, gentlemen.
It's Mr.
McCoy looking for a second bite at the confinement apple.
Mr.
Darnell has already served his time in prison.
Your Honor, the mental hygiene law can be applied as broadly or as narrowly as you see fit.
We have a chance here to take a serial rapist off the street, to offer him some measure of treatment, and to protect society.
Your Honor, if you grant this application, it will not stop at serial rapists.
Anybody that they can't convict in criminal court, they'll ship off to Bellevue.
There's no slippery slope here, Your Honor.
This is sui generis.
Mr.
Darnell is an exceptional and egregious case.
Thank you, Counselors.
I'll certainly consider your arguments and render a decision when we reconvene.
Court will recess until The Supreme Court is presently considering in Kansas v.
Hendricks the very issues that you raised.
I'm loathe to precede Mr.
Rehnquist and his brethren into uncharted territory.
Mr.
McCoy, what you propose is very tempting, but I suspect very perilous.
I'm going to deny your application.
Mr.
Darnell is ordered released forthwith.
No! No! No! We conducted nearly 300 interviews, we showed his photo to everyone in the girl's neighborhood, we canvassed subway stations, bus stops, cab companies.
The man blends in like warm butter.
I want follow-up interviews.
And keep showing his photo.
That's the plan.
Forensics compared every kind of fiber from Darnell's work and home, from clothing to carpeting, to what was found at the Perez place.
Nothing matched.
That's not good enough.
I beg your pardon? You've had this case for weeks.
You haven't given me a single piece of evidence I can hang an arrest warrant on.
Mr.
McCoy, when my detectives get back from their needlepoint classes, I'll put them on the case.
Anything else? Yes.
Starting today, I want round-the-clock surveillance on Darnell.
That was some motivational speech.
Soon as we convict Darnell, I'll send her flowers.
Open the case before the grand jury and let's get them busy.
Doing what? Start by subpoenaing everyone Darnell's talked to in the last six weeks.
And I want a summary of the Sex Offender Registration Act on my desk by tomorrow morning.
Megan's Law? I'm gonna give Darnell something to think about besides rape.
By the time I'm through, he'll run back to Sing Sing.
We've got a warrant to search Mr.
Darnell's locker.
Again? We're still looking for a penknife.
You mind showing these officers the way? The warrant's also good to search your work area, which pretty much covers the entire place.
Start right here.
Okay! Everybody gather around for mail call.
Do we have a Christopher White here? Right here.
Here you go.
It's an invitation from the grand jury.
They want to talk to you about your friendly neighborhood serial rapist.
Neal Dawson? Yeah, that's me.
Neal.
Anybody who doesn't show up gets cited for contempt.
I'm sure you'll all want to thank your friend Lewis in a big way.
Rob McAllister? We're finished with the search.
Sorry for the bother.
What about this? You're dragging my neighbors into court.
It's not court, it's the grand jury.
Yeah, well, I don't give a damn what you call it.
This is harassment.
We're conducting a lawful investigation.
You live with a rapist and a murderer, you have to put up with a few minor inconveniences.
This might be lawful in Peking or in Havana, but we're talking about New York City here! Look.
Look at this! Look at this crap! You've got our phone number and our address on here! You have no right to do this! That didn't come from the department or the D.
A.
's office.
Yeah? Whoever did this got the information from somewhere.
Hey, Megan's Law says we have to inform local agencies that there's a sex offender living in their area.
You got a problem with that, call Governor Pataki.
Hey, Lewis! Look at you.
Twenty-five blocks and hardly a drop of sweat.
I guess all that walking around the yard in Sing Sing really paid off, huh? So, what's the matter? Your local bodega ran out of your favorite breakfast drink? Hey, Rey, look what I found on the floor.
Must have fallen off the board.
You know, that's a really good likeness, Lewis.
He was hounded from his job.
He hasn't been able to find a new employer.
His face has been plastered all over the West Side.
He's a virtual pariah in his neighborhood.
He has no choice but to apply for a change of residence.
Who do you know in Binghamton, Lewis? A cousin.
He owns a pizzeria.
He said he can give me a job making deliveries.
Mr.
Munro, I notified the Broome County District Attorney's office.
He plans to oppose his relocation.
Lewis, is there anywhere else in New York State? We sent notifications to every county in the state.
No one wants him.
Mr.
Darnell's been in contact with a relative outside Akron.
Yes.
George Radford in Greensburg.
The Summit County D.
A.
Doesn't want Mr.
Darnell in his jurisdiction, either.
How did you know about Radford? We have a court-approved wiretap on your client's phone.
Now, if Mr.
Darnell finds life in New York so intolerable, he can live on the grounds of the Camp Gabriel's work farm.
I'm not going back to prison.
You wouldn't be an inmate.
You'd be on work release.
Work where? It's in the middle of the damn woods.
Screw your work release.
Knock it off, Lewis.
Mr.
Granick, my hands are tied here.
Until Lewis comes up with a community willing to take him, I have to deny his request.
You son of a bitch! I'm warning you.
You better step off, you understand? You leave me the hell alone! There's only three ways that's gonna happen, Mr.
Darnell.
Either you'll kill me, kill yourself or go back to prison.
Here's one from the director of the division of parole.
You're interfering with the proper administration of their field services.
It was their brilliant idea to grant him parole in the first place.
Save your witticisms for the police commissioner.
His office thinks that your little operation is costing too much overtime.
I'm prosecuting a murder.
I'm not looking to save pennies.
By the way, how is that case going? He hasn't led his police escort to a secret stash of evidence? I'm stunned.
What am I supposed to do, Adam? Darnell won't oblige me with a confession.
I need to tell these people what you're doing serves some legitimate purpose.
I'm pushing hard to break a suspect.
Is that good enough? Darnell isn't going back to prison quietly.
He got the Southern District Court to issue a restraining order.
How bad is it? He's putting us out of business.
And he's got the A.
C.
L.
U.
On board.
A.
C Oh, boy.
Forty-seven subpoenas, six search warrants, three wiretap warrants, It's abusive.
It's entirely within the scope of my prosecutorial authority.
Your Honor, an independent magistrate signed off on each and every warrant.
The Gambinos never got this kind of attention, Your Honor.
Mr.
McCoy, is there a realistic hope of uncovering relevant evidence here? We're looking for the knife used in the crime, the clothes worn by Mr.
Darnell, and any person he might've spoken to about the crime.
Some of these witnesses have been called before the grand jury four times.
Mr.
Darnell's home and workplace have been searched on three separate occasions.
When does this stop? When I'm satisfied all leads have been exhausted.
I don't take a lot of comfort from that, Mr.
McCoy, but Mr.
Granick, I don't see where your client's civil rights have been violated, no matter what the A.
C.
L.
U.
May have told you.
With due respect, Your Honor, you're missing the big picture.
Now Mr.
Darnell's name, address and prison record have been distributed throughout his neighborhood and made available on a 900 number.
Now, the neighborhood watch, school boards, women's groups have all been notified of the same All of which is required under the Sex Offender Registration Act.
It's a high-tech scarlet letter.
Now, the state punished Mr.
Darnell once.
It shouldn't have the right to punish him again for the same crimes.
This is not punishment.
It's fair warning to his neighbors.
Mr.
McCoy, my legal sense tells me you're treading pretty close to an injudicious use of prosecutorial power.
I'm simply using the tools the state has made available to me.
Yes, you are.
And I'm gonna be watching you very carefully.
Mr.
Granick, the restraining order is lifted and your application for an injunction is denied.
Step lightly, Mr.
McCoy.
"9:00 a.
m.
Subject exited premises to purchase a newspaper.
"2:26 p.
m.
Subject exited premises for cigarettes.
"2:29 p.
m.
Subject looked in the direction of the surveillance car "and made an obscene gesture.
" At least he's keeping his sense of humor.
Somebody isn't.
About once a day his daughter comes by to spit on the car.
I'm sorry she's caught in the middle of this.
Counselor, this turning of the screws, is this an open-ended arrangement? That's up to Mr.
Darnell.
The girl told her mother just a few days ago.
Why did she wait so long? She didn't want her mother to know she'd ditched school that day, but when she saw the posters, she recognized Darnell, decided to do the right thing.
Ms.
Ross is from the district attorney's office.
Why don't you tell her what happened? It was last month.
Natalie was home from school.
She was in the kitchen.
She heard noises at the front door.
Natalie, tell her.
Someone was jiggling the lock.
I saw it was that man through the hole.
He said that the super wanted him to check the radiators.
He kept asking her to open the door.
Tell them what you said.
I told him that if he didn't go away, I'd call the cops.
That scared him off.
It's that man.
He's sick.
You gotta put him back in jail.
Thank you.
At the very least, it's attempted trespass.
We can violate Darnell.
And we can have this girl arrested for impersonating a witness.
She might as well have been reading off a teleprompter.
Hey, look, McCoy's been pushing us hard for a break.
This one just walked in.
If he wants to look behind the curtain, that's up to him.
Check out her story and get back to me.
The school had a note on file from the girl's mother for the same day the girl claims she ditched school.
It was for a dentist's appointment she had during lunch.
That note's probably a fake.
The school verified the mother's signature.
What does the dentist say? He confirmed there was an appointment that day.
So the girl went home instead of the dentist's.
They seem to remember she had her cavities filled.
"Seem to remember.
" What does the girl say? She and her mother swear they changed the appointment, but I think it's a non-starter.
Well, if this lie doesn't get Mr.
Darnell out of the neighborhood, try a lynch mob.
If there's evidence they're lying, it's up to Darnell's lawyer to present it to a jury.
You want to arrest him? You'll do nothing of the kind.
The girl's story is credible on its face.
My evidentiary burden is met.
I don't care.
You can thumb your nose at a federal judge, but I won't let you drag the law through a sewer to catch a rat.
It's not worth it.
To put him back in his box? We arrest him now, it'll be six months before a jury sorts it out.
Stop.
Listen to what you're suggesting.
An arrest you know is false.
The inquisition is over.
I'm sorry, Jack.
I should've kept my mouth shut.
It's okay.
He's right.
Mr.
McCoy, Detective Briscoe's on line one.
He said it's urgent.
She was on her way to her apartment when she saw the door was open.
She heard noises inside, so she came in.
The baseball bat was in the umbrella stand.
He was on top of her friend.
He had a knife to her throat, and that bag over her face.
She took two major-league swings.
One to the right temple, one to the forehead.
Her friend's in there.
She's got trauma from the rape and the partial suffocation.
E.
M.
S.
Says she'll be all right, considering.
I guess the pressure got to Darnell.
He had no place else to go.
Where is she? In here.
We'll get her statement back at the squad room.
Make it painless, and get her back home.
I'm sorry it had to happen this way.
Not all that sorry.