Law & Order (1990) s08e02 Episode Script
Denial
.
srt by GeirDM NARRATOR: 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.
(MOANING) WOMAN: Mr.
Feltz.
(MOANING) Mr.
Feltz.
(DOOR OPENING) Housekeeping.
Huh? What are you doing in here? WOMAN: Mr.
Feltz, do something! Get out of here! Señor, I'm sorry! Can't you read the sign? Señor, I'm sorry! I'm sorry! Don't you understand English! Get out.
Just shut that door and get out of here! Get out of here! (MIMICKING) "Mr.
Feltz, Mr.
Feltz!" (GIGGLING) I get next.
Housekeeping.
(WHISPERING) Mary? Mary? Call Mr.
Mendoza.
OFFICER: Somebody got attacked.
BRISCOE: No kidding.
Any witnesses? High turnover in this place.
Couple next door are just here for the "businessman's special.
" They didn't hear a thing.
How about you? I came on at 6:00.
I didn't see anybody leave this room.
Any blood trail? No blood in the hallways, elevators or fire escape.
Just in here and in the bathroom.
How much, you figure? Hard to say.
Over a pint.
So more than a nosebleed.
Somebody got hurt.
The room is registered to a Warren Talbert.
No address.
How'd he pay? Cash.
But we took a credit card imprint for incidentals.
Like sheets and mattresses? This is nothing.
Last year, we had an elderly couple from Tokyo.
Found a dead hooker under their bed.
Yeah, that's why the precinct holds its Christmas party here.
Gonna need that credit card number, all right? Yeah.
Well, I already checked under the bed.
He checked in before 10:00 last night.
My shift ends at 10:00.
He had a reservation.
What'd he look like? Early 20s, fairly tall, blonde.
He was pretty good-looking.
Okay.
You'll come down to the station and talk to a sketch artist.
Sure.
Was he with anybody? He might have been, but you can't see the elevators from here.
Thanks.
Credit card company says Warren Talbert is a 48-year-old architect, lives on the Upper East Side, pays off his bill each month.
Well, that Warren Talbert misses this Warren Talbert by about 30 years.
Card could be stolen.
Yeah, unless Warren had a friend check him in.
The credit card company called me, I guess after they spoke to you.
I checked my wallet, my desk.
I called my wife to look around at home.
The card's gone.
Anybody else have access to it? No.
When was the last time you used it? Oh, maybe over a month.
You know, I've had cards stolen before.
They never sent detectives.
A young man used your card at the Carrington Hotel.
He might be involved in a more serious crime.
Where were you last night, Mr.
Talbert? I was at the Met humming along to Rigoletto, with my wife and another couple.
My secretary will give you their names.
The other couple at the opera confirmed his story.
Nothing at the morgue.
We had a couple of bleeders walk into Saint Vincent's, but they were the wrong blood type.
Preliminaries from the lab said it's type O.
And we got a lot of prints in that hotel room.
We're going to need more help.
For stolen plastic? We'll mobilize the National Guard.
It's from the credit card company.
Thanks.
When did Talbert say he last used the card? About a month ago.
New Editions Bookstore.
$332.
Last weekend.
Sorry.
I couldn't tell you if I saw him.
Sunday night was very busy.
We had a reading of a cyber-novel by Carlton Van Dusen.
One Hand Typing.
Racy stuff.
Sure, until you see Van Dusen.
Cleaned out the pastry platter.
Well, our guy bought over $300 worth of books.
Hmm.
Still doesn't ring a bell.
You have his credit card number? (COMPUTER BEEPS) Here he is.
Warren Talbert, Sunday, 5:15 p.
m.
Thoreau, Walden, soft cover, $7.
95 plus tax.
Hegel, $8.
98.
There's another Could you print that out? Sure.
Look at this, Nietzsche, Wittgenstein, Kierkegaard.
Either we're looking for a philosophy student, or we got one very depressed criminal.
I wonder if Talbert has kids.
We have one daughter.
Christina.
She's 17.
She's on an academic scholarship at Hudson University.
Same neighborhood as the Carrington.
And you think my daughter's involved? Well, our credit card thief has an atypical spending pattern.
No electronics, no jewelry, no clothes.
Usually they max out the card, and not on books.
We're thinking this thief is a classmate of your daughter's.
I never gave her the card.
Is it possible she might have borrowed it, and lent it to a friend? No.
Not Christina.
Our daughter's a good girl.
She's very focused on her studies.
She wouldn't be mixed up in anything criminal.
I don't know who this is.
Take another look.
It could be anybody.
You know, I think Christina might be able to focus better without any distractions.
You mind? Thanks.
Christina, why don't you sit down here? Uh, right now, your father's credit card is our only connection to a crime.
Well, it's Dad's card.
I never use it.
How about you write down the names of your friends at Hudson University.
(LAUGHS) I don't want you bothering my friends.
Are we done here? Look, we start asking around campus, we'll get your class schedule, the clubs you belong to, everything you do there.
By this time tomorrow, we'll have a list of all your friends.
Dad! Okay.
Have it your way.
So what did she do? Hack her family to death in their sleep? Why would you think that? People who're wound that tight, you never know.
Exactly how tight are we talking? Christina answered an ad for freelancers.
I needed 500 words on the student's committee for Tibetan independence.
The next day, it was on my desk.
She wouldn't leave until I read it.
I changed six words.
She got mad.
Not at me, at herself.
Well, she didn't flip out, yet.
Actually, we need to speak to her friends.
Anyone in particular? Yeah.
Tom Horton.
He's her boyfriend, pre-med.
Oh, that's right, don't smile back, she might bite you.
Come on, Lennie, she's just a kid.
Maybe you'd rather wait in the car.
Can you check Tom Horton's room again, please? His roommate's looking for him in the games room.
Would you ring Tom Horton for me, please? Don't hold your breath.
Who are you? CURTIS: Detectives.
Your turn.
I'm Tom's lawyer.
I instructed him not to speak with you until I got here.
GARNETT: So the sketch vaguely resembles him.
He's young, he's blond.
So what? Well, if this is a case of mistaken identity, let's get him in a line up.
What's the charge, soiling linens? No, thank you.
Why didn't Christina tell us you were her boyfriend? GARNETT: Why don't you ask her? Hey, you mind if he answers a question every now and then? Be my guest.
Where were you Thursday night? I went to a fraternity party with Christina.
Which one? Alpha Phi Beta.
We left around 9:00.
She went to the library.
CURTIS: Where'd you go? I came back here to study.
You're sure you didn't meet up with another girl? Take her to a hotel? Okay.
He's answered your questions.
interview's over.
Tommy and Christina were the first ones through the door.
First ones out the door, too.
What time was that? Around 9:00.
You sure? Yeah.
It was half-time at the Knicks game.
We had it on the big screen.
And did Horton come back? I got pretty wasted that night.
Last thing I remember, I was booting into a trash can.
By the way, I am 21.
Don't worry.
We're not going to card you.
Any chance Tommy hooked up with somebody else? Tommy? No way.
No.
He's nuts about Christina.
Lots of guys are nuts about somebody.
Doesn't stop them.
Well, you don't know these Wisconsin boys.
They fall hard for those milkers.
Beg your pardon.
Haven't you seen her? She's on the chunky side of Ricki Lake.
We talking about the same girl? Christina Talbert? Yeah.
Baggy clothes, looks like she's packing some weight under there.
Yeah, she'd be real sweet, too, if she off-loaded a few pounds.
Maybe she did, the other night.
I think I would know if my own daughter was pregnant.
Christina was not pregnant.
VAN BUREN: Is that true, Christina? Yes.
The final lab report came in an hour ago.
Forensics found amniotic fluid in the mattress.
Do you know what that is? Yes.
It didn't come from me.
And the type O blood in the room, that didn't come from you either? No, it's not mine.
Then what was your boyfriend doing there? He wasn't there.
He was with me.
Christina, lying's only going to make things worse for you and Tommy.
If there was a baby involved, we need to know what happened, now.
Christina, say something.
Listen I have two kids I know what it's like to be pregnant.
It can make you do crazy things.
Especially if you're scared.
Christina? Morning.
I'd like to speak to my client.
Don't you represent the boyfriend? They're both my clients.
Good.
Maybe you can talk some sense into this one.
I'd like to talk to her alone.
Hard to believe she didn't know her own kid was pregnant.
She didn't.
You see the look she gave when you mentioned the blood type? Now she knows.
How can a mother miss something like that? Wait till your daughters grow up.
All right.
None of this gets back to her parents.
They find out and what, no TV for a month? Christina wants to be the one to tell them.
Fine.
Now she can tell us.
(SIGHING) Well, I live with my parents, and Tommy has a roommate.
We went to the hotel for privacy.
What happened in the hotel room? We started having sex, and I started bleeding, and I went into the bathroom, and all this tissue started coming out.
She miscarried.
I didn't even know I was pregnant.
How pregnant? I don't know.
Two or three months.
What did you do with the fetus? I flushed it in the toilet.
As you can imagine, this is now a private, family matter.
M.
E.
's report.
Too much blood, and too little amniotic fluid in the hotel room for it to be a first-trimester birth.
She thinks the fetus was probably seven or eight months along.
So we're still being lied to.
I'll call the D.
A.
to get an order for a medical exam of the girl.
A viable baby? That's ridiculous.
There's no medical standard for this.
So she bled a lot.
That's why you want a doctor to look up her dress? She's been traumatized enough.
Ms.
Ross, do you have anything besides the M.
E.
's opinion? Miss Talbert consistently lied to the police.
She didn't want her mother to know that she was having sex with her boyfriend.
Ms.
Ross, come back when you have actual evidence to justify invading this girl's privacy.
Tommy and I don't exactly talk.
No late-night heart-to-hearts over a keg? He talks to Christina.
Christina talks to him.
That's about it.
You see him on Thursday night? Yeah, at the frat house I got there about 11:00.
This was 11:00? You're sure? Everyone was pretty much wasted, except for him and Christina.
They were dancing alone in the middle of the floor to that dumb song, Endless Love.
it's their song.
(POLICE SIREN WAILS) CURTIS: We had a search of every alley and dumpster between the hotel and the university.
If we'd have found a baby, we would've told you.
She didn't tell anybody at school that she was pregnant.
The guy who would know, the boyfriend, won't talk to us.
You're 17, you're going to talk to somebody besides your boyfriend.
A doctor, a best friend.
We didn't get any cooperation from her parents, so unless we can get a peek at her address book No probable cause for a medical exam means no probable cause for a search warrant, right? Not necessarily.
Did Talbert file a report for the stolen credit card? BRISCOE: The card company did.
She bought books.
That's stolen goods.
Grounds for a search warrant.
We'll get two, his and hers.
My husband called the credit card company.
He told them it was a misunderstanding.
They consider it stolen.
This Dr.
Banks, that her gynecologist? And mine.
She hasn't seen him since her annual last August.
Ten months ago.
Rey.
Looks like blood.
Look at this.
Blank prescription forms.
Dr.
Glenda Allen, OB/GYN.
Oh, (CLEARING THROAT) Rey, Thoreau and the Germans.
Yes, Christina Talbert's a patient of mine.
I see a lot of students from the university.
When did she first come in? Two months ago.
If that.
She told us she was two or three months pregnant, and she miscarried.
Can you confirm that? Not without violating doctor-patient privilege.
Did she tell you I was her doctor? CURTIS: No.
We found blank sheets from your prescription pad in her room.
Any idea why she'd have these? No.
I don't understand.
I didn't prescribe her anything.
Well, you keep your prescription pad on your desk.
She helped herself.
Now, about this alleged miscarriage Look, even if she is a thief, I'm still not going to violate her privilege.
I'm sorry.
Gynecology, that's the business I should've gone into.
Hey, Lennie, she took those blank prescription forms for a reason.
Right, and I never heard of pharmacist-patient privilege.
Neither have I.
Christina Talbert, oh, here we go.
Syntocinon.
Five milliliter solution.
Two weeks ago.
What's it for? it's a nasal spray for mothers who have trouble breastfeeding.
What does it do for pregnant women? Makes them not pregnant.
It's contraindicated.
It induces labor.
Thanks.
The stain you found on the dress, it's blood, type O.
Just one blood type? (CHUCKLING) How many were you expecting? He was expecting a stork.
No baby blood, but baby feces.
Meconium.
Meaning? Probably full term.
Born alive? Since the meconium wasn't mixed with amniotic fluid it had to be excreted post-birth.
It was alive.
Thanks.
Well, they made a reservation, they induced the birth.
We got premeditation.
We got murder.
Yeah, but no body.
I say we get a warrant.
Let the D.
A.
make it stick.
Let's call Ross.
He rejected the traditional, American dream of success, and yet had as much disdain for mediocrity as he did Oh, don't let us interrupt, we're just auditing.
Stand up.
Stand up! Christina Talbert, Thomas Horton, you're under arrest for murder.
Don't worry.
Somebody else will take notes for you.
You have the right to remain silent.
Anything you say can and will be used "Case number 97942.
"People v.
Christina Talbert and Thomas Horton.
"Murder in the Second Degree.
" What are their pleas? Not guilty.
Not guilty.
The People request bail JUDGE: Mr.
Garnett, could you tell your clients they're not to hold hands in my courtroom.
GARNETT: Yes, Your Honor.
Go ahead, Ms.
Ross.
What do you wanton bail? They have no priors, Your Honor.
They're college students.
Who killed their newborn baby.
Where's the body? Where's the evidence? That's not my problem.
I'm setting bail at 200K for each.
Miss Talbert is not to leave her home except in the presence of a parent, and I strongly urge the defendants to refrain from contact outside the presence of counsel.
We can't even see each other? I don't want you making any more victims.
But we're in love.
Quiet! You don't seem to realize why you're here.
Ms.
Ross, I'm ordering a 730 examination, I'm not convinced these two are fit to stand trial.
Of course, I understand.
I'm being charged with murdering someone.
Not just someone.
Your child.
I don't have a child.
Do you understand it's wrong to kill? Yes.
Even babies? Yes.
How do your parents feel about you getting pregnant? My mother won't speak to me.
Why not? She's disappointed I got pregnant.
Do you think she's right? Yes.
Why? Only stupid girls get pregnant.
It's embarrassing.
Mom wants girl to be perfect.
Girl wants mom to be happy.
Baby spoils the equation.
ROSS: I don't see what she's afraid of.
There's no evidence of physical or emotional abuse.
This girl lives or dies by her mother's approval.
You take that away, she doesn't have much else.
She can't have much in the way of human feelings either.
They kill their baby, then grieve by taking a little spin around the dance floor.
Big surprise.
She's a narcissistic bitch.
Forget about remorse.
To her, that baby was like a peach pit passing through her system.
Yeah.
All very illuminating.
What're you telling the judge? She knows right from wrong, appreciates the consequences of her actions, can assist counsel.
She's cleared for take-off.
I'll send you my bill.
(DOOR CLOSING) This case gives me the creeps.
Yeah.
Without a body in evidence, you're pushing uphill.
You're not suggesting we offer the lovebirds a plea? Lousy kids.
Lousy case.
Talk to their lawyer.
JACK: I'm offering first degree manslaughter, eight-and-a-third-to-25.
How quickly can I say no? I'm putting aside the fact your clients premeditated this killing.
Says you.
You wouldn't have asked us here if your case had a snowball's chance.
You wouldn't be here if your clients were innocent.
GARNETT: The fetus, however old it was, was stillborn.
There's no crime.
You're taking the position a dead baby excreted meconium.
No.
I'm taking the position you didn't find any meconium.
Motion to suppress.
The search was conducted under false pretenses.
Let's go, before Mr.
McCoy charges you with heavy breathing.
GARNETT: The warrant specified, "books acquired with the use "of a stolen credit card or other relevant evidence related thereto.
" It said books.
They found books.
They seized them.
As an afterthought, Your Honor.
The books were on a bookshelf in plain sight the whole time they were there.
They searched a closet, a dresser, a desk.
I mean they were halfway out the door when they remembered to take the books.
So they seized the books last, instead of first.
Is there a special recipe they were supposed to follow? The warrant said books.
Instead, they took papers from an appointment book.
The warrant was a pretext.
That's per se abuse.
They went to Miss Talbert's room looking for evidence of one crime, they found evidence of another.
That's called luck.
It's called a scam.
The detectives knew the credit card wasn't in fact stolen.
They were acting on a complaint from the credit card company.
Yes, but they'd been told by the credit card holder it wasn't stolen, and they already suspected Miss Talbert in the murder case.
Isn't that right? Yes.
(SIGHING) All right.
You're all very clever, but don't tell me the meconium and the prescription forms relate to a stolen credit card.
Your Honor, the meconium was found on a dress in the closet.
A closet is a legitimate search area for a warrant for stolen goods.
You can't fault the police for finding and seizing blood-stained clothing.
I'll grant you the meconium, Ms.
Ross.
it's admissible.
The stolen prescription sheets are out.
You're rewarding Mr.
McCoy for his people's deception.
That's tough.
We're finished.
Nice save.
Without evidence that she took a drug to induce labor, there goes premeditation.
They did reserve a room.
The case was weak, now it's weaker.
Get one of them to roll on the other.
So which devil do we make our deal with? The girl has the motive.
She's the one who didn't want the baby.
Killing it was probably her idea.
And the boy is probably the one who actually killed it, and disposed of the body.
I flipped a coin in my head.
Came up tails.
Talk to the boy.
That brings up another problem, their lawyer.
He'll probably veto any settlement that implicates the girl.
Her father posted bail for both of them.
He's probably paying Garnett's fees.
Get around the lawyer.
JACK: We're prepared to offer him man two, three-to-six.
He won't even look out of place when he goes back to college.
You'll knock a murder charge down to a C felony? Let me guess, he testifies against Miss Talbert.
That's right.
I thought No.
Good day, counselors.
Thank you for coming by.
That's the answer I expected.
Ms.
Ross.
Our motion to remove you as Mr.
Horton's attorney of record.
What? We're conflicting you out, Counselor.
There is no conflict, Your Honor.
There's only one defense position.
That's because there's only one defense attorney.
My clients only want one defense attorney.
it's their decision to make.
Who's to tell them any different? Your Honor, I made a very fair offer to Mr.
Horton in return for his testimony against Miss Talbert.
How can he possibly give objective advice regarding this offer? So fair it could only have been made to get me yanked as Mr.
Horton's counsel.
Was this a genuine offer, or was it made solely to create a conflict? At the time, it was a genuine offer.
I see.
Well, Mr.
McCoy, now you're stuck with it.
Your offer is still on the table.
Now, I don't see how having his own counsel damages Mr.
Horton's interests.
Sorry, Mr.
Garnett, you're out.
SHELTON: it's a good offer, Tommy.
It gives you a chance to have a life.
Mr.
Garnett said they don't have much of a case.
That's why he doesn't represent you anymore.
He was right.
But there's a baby involved, you're its father, and I'm not talking out of school when I tell you a jury is going to be awfully tempted to reach its own conclusions and hold you responsible.
JACK: Mr.
Horton, if you take a plea, I believe Miss Talbert will take one, too.
And I'm a lot more generous than a trial judge will be.
You don't get it.
If I take this deal, I don't get a life.
I get a life without Christina.
Miss Shelton, you have to do whatever I tell you to, right? Yes.
We didn't do anything wrong.
The baby was alive when we left the room.
CURTIS: At first, Miss Talbert denied knowing Mr.
Horton.
Then they both denied being at the hotel.
Then Miss Talbert told us she'd been two months pregnant and had a miscarriage.
Was any of this true? No.
Forensics found traces of meconium on Miss Talbert's dress.
We were told by Forensics this was conclusive proof the baby was born alive.
Yes, as we just heard from the Medical Examiner.
What, if any, efforts did you make to find this baby? We conducted an exhaustive search of the area between the hotel and Hudson University.
We also questioned the Carrington Hotel staff and as many guests as we could track down.
As a result, can you tell us what happened to Miss Talbert and Mr.
Horton's baby? I can tell you what didn't happen.
It didn't crawl out of that room and it didn't turn up as a foundling.
It wasn't taken home by anyone who had access to that room.
Thank you.
Did your investigation include people who were registered at the hotel under false names or any of their guests? If they weren't there under their own names, no.
Well, the Carrington is the kind of place, isn't it, where people sometimes don't use their real names? Objection.
Sustained.
Could one of the people you weren't able to locate have taken the baby? Objection.
Calls for speculation.
You've made your point, Mr.
Garnett.
Move it along.
Detective, is there anyone in your precinct who's still working the case? CURTIS: Until we find a body, Detective Briscoe and I are still assigned.
Until that time, what is the baby's official status? Missing.
Presumed dead.
That's far short of dead beyond reasonable doubt.
Objection.
Withdrawn.
No more questions.
TOMMY: After he was born, Christina held him for a little while.
She really loved him.
She couldn't stop worrying about her mother.
So we wrapped him in a blanket, we left him on the bed, where the maid would find him.
Then we did the hardest thing we've ever done.
We walked out of the room.
Then we went back to the fraternity.
Christina, she felt sick, and she started to bleed.
She went to the bathroom, and passed the afterbirth, and then she wanted me to take her home.
What happened next? I didn't sleep all night.
I called Christina to make sure that she was okay.
We talked about the baby.
We decided that I should go back to the hotel.
But the police were already there, and I figured, for sure, they'd found the baby and it'd be all right.
Just so we understand you, you felt so upset, that you went back to a party at your fraternity house? Yes.
Didn't really know where else to go.
And you requested a song, Endless Love, isn't that right? It was a special song for us.
And you danced? We were just holding each other.
On the dance floor.
Isn't that called dancing? Yeah.
I guess.
We both felt really bad.
So you punished yourself for murder by having a little dance.
Objection.
JUDGE BARRY: Sustained.
Didn't it occur to you to call 911, and tell the police about your child? Yes.
Christina felt sick, and I had to get her home.
They don't have a phone at her house? I didn't want to wake up her parents.
How about on the way back to your dorm? I don't know.
I was just worried about Christina.
Can you tell us anything you did to suggest that you had a single thought about that child after it was born? I don't know.
You're pre-med, she's an honors student, you're intelligent, young people.
You must've given it some thought.
Objection.
Argumentative.
Sustained.
The truth is, you didn't give a damn about that child, did you? You had decided to kill your baby when you reserved the hotel room.
Objection! Enough, Mr.
McCoy.
The objection is sustained.
I don't have anything more for this witness.
The jury liked his Romeo-of-the-Dairyland routine.
I thought he got creamed.
Then we're tied going into closings.
You're a tough handicapper.
I'm handicapping the jury.
They keep looking over at Christina.
They like what they see.
Yeah.
When you're in love, the whole world's in love with you.
And she just can sit there, all sweet and innocent.
Garnett was smart not to put her on the stand.
(PAGER BEEPING) There goes the weekend.
It's Briscoe.
CURTIS: Gas company worker found it.
White, male baby.
Umbilical cord still attached.
Somebody dug deep to bury it.
Not really.
This is backfill dumped on top of the burial site.
We had a gas leak.
Had to undo a couple of months' worth of work.
He was wrapped in this.
Carrington Hotel.
M.
E.
's report, quick and dirty.
Baby boy.
Day old or less.
Born alive and healthy.
Manual strangulation, larynx was crushed.
Death was instantaneous.
Bastards.
They have a positive identification? They can pull some DNA from the amniotic fluid in the hotel room, but it's going to take a while to run a match.
I'll settle for a blood type match.
Have Detective Briscoe and the Medical Examiner ready to testify on Monday.
Notify Judge Barry we have rebuttal witnesses.
Jack, I think there's somebody else we might want to talk to first.
I spoke to the contractor.
He said the burial site was backfilled two days after the baby was killed.
You don't think those kids just got lucky? No one's that lucky.
I'm afraid the baby is dead.
The body was found buried about It's a commercial construction site near the West Side Highway.
You know anything about that, Mr.
Talbert? Should I? Your firm did the structural drillings.
So? There were 47 sub-contractors on that job.
And the contractor says you were one of only six individuals who had keys to the site at that time.
Warren, what did you do? Sarah No! I want to know what you did.
(SIGHS) You were asleep when they came home.
Christina didn't look well, and I knew something was wrong I made them tell me what happened.
They said they left the baby in the hotel, alive.
They wanted go back.
I told them it was too dangerous.
I told Tommy to go home.
I sent Christina to bed.
Then I drove to the hotel, and when I got there, it was on the bed, wrapped in a blanket.
It was wheezing.
It was in trouble.
I brought it to my car, but before I could get it to a hospital, it was dead.
(CRYING) I took it to the construction site and I buried it.
Our Medical Examiner has determined that the baby was strangled.
Someone choked it with their bare hands.
No! No! It died of natural causes.
Please, don't insult our intelligence.
The baby was dead when you found it, wasn't it? I better talk to my lawyer.
Mr.
Talbert's agreed to tell you what he knows.
He has only one condition.
Shoot.
You drop the charges against his daughter.
In return, he'll testify against the boy.
As far as we're concerned, they're equally guilty.
Her maybe more so.
Whatever.
You let the girl walk, no charges, no record.
Or he doesn't tell you squat.
Let's hear what he has to say first.
Off the record.
I found the baby in the trash can in the hotel room.
It was wrapped in a towel.
There was newspaper on top of it, to hide it.
It was dead.
I can't accept your terms.
I'll subpoena him.
He'll testify with no preconditions.
Absolutely not.
He'll take the Fifth.
I'm conferring immunity right now.
You're taking the stand tomorrow morning, Mr.
Talbert.
CARNEY: He won't testify.
Are you sure about that, Mr.
Talbert? I am not sending my daughter to jail.
CARNEY: What are you going to do, Mr.
McCoy? Cite him for contempt? He gets 30 days in jail, and you still get nothing.
For God's sake, he's just trying to save his daughter.
No deal.
Ms.
Ross, get an officer in here Mr.
Talbert, I'm having you arrested pending a contempt hearing.
CARNEY: McCoy I've had enough of him, his daughter and her boyfriend.
If I could indict him as a co-conspirator, I would.
This baby is dead.
I hope they all go to jail for it.
Place this man under arrest and get him out of my office.
BRISCOE: The baby was wrapped in a towel bearing the initials "CH.
" The Manager of the Carrington Hotel confirmed that it was in fact one of theirs.
Is this the towel, Detective? Yes.
That's my signature on the evidence bag.
People's 56, Your Honor.
No more questions.
Detective, do you know who disposed of the body at the construction site? Not for a fact.
Now that site's kept locked at night, isn't it? It's surrounded by an eight-foot chain-link fence topped by barbed wire? Yes.
It wouldn't be easy to climb over that, carrying a six-pound weight, would it? I guess not.
Do you know who had a key to the gate? Actually, there were six people.
Including my client's father, isn't that right? Objection.
Why? I have the right to put forth alternate theories of crime, Your Honor.
Not without evidence to support them.
That's what I'm trying to get at, Your Honor.
Evidence.
Overruled.
Answer the question, Detective.
Yes, he had a key, which his daughter could've borrowed.
Your Honor You asked the question, Mr.
Garnett.
Anything else? No, Your Honor.
No more questions.
Detective Briscoe, you may step down.
The People have no more rebuttal witnesses.
The defense does.
We'd like to call Mrs.
Sarah Talbert.
She was president of her history club in high school.
She was vice-president of the student council, and she was the editor of her high school yearbook, and she received the Hardiman Prize for geometry.
She has a very bright future ahead of her.
Her having an illegitimate child, was that something you and your husband had in mind? Objection.
Sustained.
Move along, Mr.
Garnett.
Mrs.
Talbert, this past Sunday morning, did you and your husband receive a visit from Mr.
McCoy and Ms.
Ross? Yes.
During that visit, did your husband make any admissions concerning the death and burial of your daughter's baby? Objection! Approach, Your Honor.
It's the People's position that Mr.
Talbert lied to protect his daughter.
That's his position, not mine Mr.
Talbert's credibility is an issue for the jury.
Then the person who should be testifying here is Mr.
Talbert.
Well, he isn't, because Mr.
McCoy has him in jail for contempt.
He advised counsel that if called, he would invoke his Fifth Amendment rights.
I immunized him.
He still refused to testify.
He'll stay in jail until he changes his mind.
Your Honor, I don't represent Mr.
Talbert.
I have no control over him.
To penalize my client and Mr.
Horton for Mr.
Talbert's actions amounts to a reversible error.
Your Honor, ask Mr How long have you had Mr.
Talbert locked up? A little over 36 hours.
He's not going to change his mind, Mr.
McCoy.
You're overruled.
The witness will answer.
Mrs.
Talbert? My husband said that he went to the hotel room, and he He found the baby there alive.
It was having trouble breathing.
GARNETT: What else? (CRYING) He said that it died before he could get to the hospital.
He decided to bury it.
We've heard testimony that your grandchild was strangled.
My husband did not kill that baby.
Well, are you saying that it was your daughter and her boyfriend? No! Christina's not a murderer.
She couldn't possibly harm a defenseless little baby.
Well, then you're saying your daughter must've allowed Mr.
Horton to strangle her child.
No, never.
Then it must've been your husband.
Objection.
I didn't say that.
Sustained.
You can't have it both ways, Mrs.
Talbert! Your Honor Your husband or your daughter! MRS.
TALBERT: I don't know.
Mr.
Garnett.
I don't know.
Mr.
Garnett.
Enough.
No more questions.
Now you've heard testimony about Christina Talbert's father.
He found the baby alive in the hotel room.
It died while in his care.
He buried it in a construction site.
Now, is he lying to protect his daughter or to protect himself? Even his own wife isn't sure, and Mr.
Talbert won't tell us because he'd rather sit in jail, than explain himself to you.
Now I want you to look at these two children.
These polite, bright, naive children.
If you think it's possible, that in an act of panic and confusion, they killed that baby, you must also admit that it's possible Warren Talbert killed it.
That's called reasonable doubt.
That's why there's only one right thing to do.
You must acquit.
As you retire to conduct your deliberations, some of you may take with you the image of Mrs.
Talbert on the stand, unable to choose between her husband and her daughter.
Could you point at your own daughter, and say that she killed her baby? The fact that Mrs.
Talbert couldn't isn't evidence.
It's emotional manipulation.
And that this girl could sit there, and let it happen to her own mother, tells you what you need to know about her.
I'd like you to take another image with you.
Picture these naive children dancing arm in arm in a frat house to a love song, minutes after they strangled their baby with their bare hands and left it wrapped in a blood-soaked towel.
Think about that, then cast your vote.
JUDGE BARRY: Madam Foreperson, has the jury reached a verdict? Yes, Your Honor, we have.
Will the defendants please rise.
For the defendant Thomas Horton, on the count of murder in the second degree, how do you find? We find the defendant Thomas Horton not guilty.
For the defendant Christina Talbert, on the count of murder in the second degree, how do you find? We find the defendant Christina Talbert not guilty.
Members of the jury, I thank you for your service.
You are now dismissed.
(GAVEL POUNDS) Baby's dead, and no one's responsible.
No one was responsible when it was alive either.
Warren Talbert's still in jail.
We could get him for obstruction of justice, destruction of evidence.
We got beat.
Just send him home to his family.
srt by GeirDM NARRATOR: 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.
(MOANING) WOMAN: Mr.
Feltz.
(MOANING) Mr.
Feltz.
(DOOR OPENING) Housekeeping.
Huh? What are you doing in here? WOMAN: Mr.
Feltz, do something! Get out of here! Señor, I'm sorry! Can't you read the sign? Señor, I'm sorry! I'm sorry! Don't you understand English! Get out.
Just shut that door and get out of here! Get out of here! (MIMICKING) "Mr.
Feltz, Mr.
Feltz!" (GIGGLING) I get next.
Housekeeping.
(WHISPERING) Mary? Mary? Call Mr.
Mendoza.
OFFICER: Somebody got attacked.
BRISCOE: No kidding.
Any witnesses? High turnover in this place.
Couple next door are just here for the "businessman's special.
" They didn't hear a thing.
How about you? I came on at 6:00.
I didn't see anybody leave this room.
Any blood trail? No blood in the hallways, elevators or fire escape.
Just in here and in the bathroom.
How much, you figure? Hard to say.
Over a pint.
So more than a nosebleed.
Somebody got hurt.
The room is registered to a Warren Talbert.
No address.
How'd he pay? Cash.
But we took a credit card imprint for incidentals.
Like sheets and mattresses? This is nothing.
Last year, we had an elderly couple from Tokyo.
Found a dead hooker under their bed.
Yeah, that's why the precinct holds its Christmas party here.
Gonna need that credit card number, all right? Yeah.
Well, I already checked under the bed.
He checked in before 10:00 last night.
My shift ends at 10:00.
He had a reservation.
What'd he look like? Early 20s, fairly tall, blonde.
He was pretty good-looking.
Okay.
You'll come down to the station and talk to a sketch artist.
Sure.
Was he with anybody? He might have been, but you can't see the elevators from here.
Thanks.
Credit card company says Warren Talbert is a 48-year-old architect, lives on the Upper East Side, pays off his bill each month.
Well, that Warren Talbert misses this Warren Talbert by about 30 years.
Card could be stolen.
Yeah, unless Warren had a friend check him in.
The credit card company called me, I guess after they spoke to you.
I checked my wallet, my desk.
I called my wife to look around at home.
The card's gone.
Anybody else have access to it? No.
When was the last time you used it? Oh, maybe over a month.
You know, I've had cards stolen before.
They never sent detectives.
A young man used your card at the Carrington Hotel.
He might be involved in a more serious crime.
Where were you last night, Mr.
Talbert? I was at the Met humming along to Rigoletto, with my wife and another couple.
My secretary will give you their names.
The other couple at the opera confirmed his story.
Nothing at the morgue.
We had a couple of bleeders walk into Saint Vincent's, but they were the wrong blood type.
Preliminaries from the lab said it's type O.
And we got a lot of prints in that hotel room.
We're going to need more help.
For stolen plastic? We'll mobilize the National Guard.
It's from the credit card company.
Thanks.
When did Talbert say he last used the card? About a month ago.
New Editions Bookstore.
$332.
Last weekend.
Sorry.
I couldn't tell you if I saw him.
Sunday night was very busy.
We had a reading of a cyber-novel by Carlton Van Dusen.
One Hand Typing.
Racy stuff.
Sure, until you see Van Dusen.
Cleaned out the pastry platter.
Well, our guy bought over $300 worth of books.
Hmm.
Still doesn't ring a bell.
You have his credit card number? (COMPUTER BEEPS) Here he is.
Warren Talbert, Sunday, 5:15 p.
m.
Thoreau, Walden, soft cover, $7.
95 plus tax.
Hegel, $8.
98.
There's another Could you print that out? Sure.
Look at this, Nietzsche, Wittgenstein, Kierkegaard.
Either we're looking for a philosophy student, or we got one very depressed criminal.
I wonder if Talbert has kids.
We have one daughter.
Christina.
She's 17.
She's on an academic scholarship at Hudson University.
Same neighborhood as the Carrington.
And you think my daughter's involved? Well, our credit card thief has an atypical spending pattern.
No electronics, no jewelry, no clothes.
Usually they max out the card, and not on books.
We're thinking this thief is a classmate of your daughter's.
I never gave her the card.
Is it possible she might have borrowed it, and lent it to a friend? No.
Not Christina.
Our daughter's a good girl.
She's very focused on her studies.
She wouldn't be mixed up in anything criminal.
I don't know who this is.
Take another look.
It could be anybody.
You know, I think Christina might be able to focus better without any distractions.
You mind? Thanks.
Christina, why don't you sit down here? Uh, right now, your father's credit card is our only connection to a crime.
Well, it's Dad's card.
I never use it.
How about you write down the names of your friends at Hudson University.
(LAUGHS) I don't want you bothering my friends.
Are we done here? Look, we start asking around campus, we'll get your class schedule, the clubs you belong to, everything you do there.
By this time tomorrow, we'll have a list of all your friends.
Dad! Okay.
Have it your way.
So what did she do? Hack her family to death in their sleep? Why would you think that? People who're wound that tight, you never know.
Exactly how tight are we talking? Christina answered an ad for freelancers.
I needed 500 words on the student's committee for Tibetan independence.
The next day, it was on my desk.
She wouldn't leave until I read it.
I changed six words.
She got mad.
Not at me, at herself.
Well, she didn't flip out, yet.
Actually, we need to speak to her friends.
Anyone in particular? Yeah.
Tom Horton.
He's her boyfriend, pre-med.
Oh, that's right, don't smile back, she might bite you.
Come on, Lennie, she's just a kid.
Maybe you'd rather wait in the car.
Can you check Tom Horton's room again, please? His roommate's looking for him in the games room.
Would you ring Tom Horton for me, please? Don't hold your breath.
Who are you? CURTIS: Detectives.
Your turn.
I'm Tom's lawyer.
I instructed him not to speak with you until I got here.
GARNETT: So the sketch vaguely resembles him.
He's young, he's blond.
So what? Well, if this is a case of mistaken identity, let's get him in a line up.
What's the charge, soiling linens? No, thank you.
Why didn't Christina tell us you were her boyfriend? GARNETT: Why don't you ask her? Hey, you mind if he answers a question every now and then? Be my guest.
Where were you Thursday night? I went to a fraternity party with Christina.
Which one? Alpha Phi Beta.
We left around 9:00.
She went to the library.
CURTIS: Where'd you go? I came back here to study.
You're sure you didn't meet up with another girl? Take her to a hotel? Okay.
He's answered your questions.
interview's over.
Tommy and Christina were the first ones through the door.
First ones out the door, too.
What time was that? Around 9:00.
You sure? Yeah.
It was half-time at the Knicks game.
We had it on the big screen.
And did Horton come back? I got pretty wasted that night.
Last thing I remember, I was booting into a trash can.
By the way, I am 21.
Don't worry.
We're not going to card you.
Any chance Tommy hooked up with somebody else? Tommy? No way.
No.
He's nuts about Christina.
Lots of guys are nuts about somebody.
Doesn't stop them.
Well, you don't know these Wisconsin boys.
They fall hard for those milkers.
Beg your pardon.
Haven't you seen her? She's on the chunky side of Ricki Lake.
We talking about the same girl? Christina Talbert? Yeah.
Baggy clothes, looks like she's packing some weight under there.
Yeah, she'd be real sweet, too, if she off-loaded a few pounds.
Maybe she did, the other night.
I think I would know if my own daughter was pregnant.
Christina was not pregnant.
VAN BUREN: Is that true, Christina? Yes.
The final lab report came in an hour ago.
Forensics found amniotic fluid in the mattress.
Do you know what that is? Yes.
It didn't come from me.
And the type O blood in the room, that didn't come from you either? No, it's not mine.
Then what was your boyfriend doing there? He wasn't there.
He was with me.
Christina, lying's only going to make things worse for you and Tommy.
If there was a baby involved, we need to know what happened, now.
Christina, say something.
Listen I have two kids I know what it's like to be pregnant.
It can make you do crazy things.
Especially if you're scared.
Christina? Morning.
I'd like to speak to my client.
Don't you represent the boyfriend? They're both my clients.
Good.
Maybe you can talk some sense into this one.
I'd like to talk to her alone.
Hard to believe she didn't know her own kid was pregnant.
She didn't.
You see the look she gave when you mentioned the blood type? Now she knows.
How can a mother miss something like that? Wait till your daughters grow up.
All right.
None of this gets back to her parents.
They find out and what, no TV for a month? Christina wants to be the one to tell them.
Fine.
Now she can tell us.
(SIGHING) Well, I live with my parents, and Tommy has a roommate.
We went to the hotel for privacy.
What happened in the hotel room? We started having sex, and I started bleeding, and I went into the bathroom, and all this tissue started coming out.
She miscarried.
I didn't even know I was pregnant.
How pregnant? I don't know.
Two or three months.
What did you do with the fetus? I flushed it in the toilet.
As you can imagine, this is now a private, family matter.
M.
E.
's report.
Too much blood, and too little amniotic fluid in the hotel room for it to be a first-trimester birth.
She thinks the fetus was probably seven or eight months along.
So we're still being lied to.
I'll call the D.
A.
to get an order for a medical exam of the girl.
A viable baby? That's ridiculous.
There's no medical standard for this.
So she bled a lot.
That's why you want a doctor to look up her dress? She's been traumatized enough.
Ms.
Ross, do you have anything besides the M.
E.
's opinion? Miss Talbert consistently lied to the police.
She didn't want her mother to know that she was having sex with her boyfriend.
Ms.
Ross, come back when you have actual evidence to justify invading this girl's privacy.
Tommy and I don't exactly talk.
No late-night heart-to-hearts over a keg? He talks to Christina.
Christina talks to him.
That's about it.
You see him on Thursday night? Yeah, at the frat house I got there about 11:00.
This was 11:00? You're sure? Everyone was pretty much wasted, except for him and Christina.
They were dancing alone in the middle of the floor to that dumb song, Endless Love.
it's their song.
(POLICE SIREN WAILS) CURTIS: We had a search of every alley and dumpster between the hotel and the university.
If we'd have found a baby, we would've told you.
She didn't tell anybody at school that she was pregnant.
The guy who would know, the boyfriend, won't talk to us.
You're 17, you're going to talk to somebody besides your boyfriend.
A doctor, a best friend.
We didn't get any cooperation from her parents, so unless we can get a peek at her address book No probable cause for a medical exam means no probable cause for a search warrant, right? Not necessarily.
Did Talbert file a report for the stolen credit card? BRISCOE: The card company did.
She bought books.
That's stolen goods.
Grounds for a search warrant.
We'll get two, his and hers.
My husband called the credit card company.
He told them it was a misunderstanding.
They consider it stolen.
This Dr.
Banks, that her gynecologist? And mine.
She hasn't seen him since her annual last August.
Ten months ago.
Rey.
Looks like blood.
Look at this.
Blank prescription forms.
Dr.
Glenda Allen, OB/GYN.
Oh, (CLEARING THROAT) Rey, Thoreau and the Germans.
Yes, Christina Talbert's a patient of mine.
I see a lot of students from the university.
When did she first come in? Two months ago.
If that.
She told us she was two or three months pregnant, and she miscarried.
Can you confirm that? Not without violating doctor-patient privilege.
Did she tell you I was her doctor? CURTIS: No.
We found blank sheets from your prescription pad in her room.
Any idea why she'd have these? No.
I don't understand.
I didn't prescribe her anything.
Well, you keep your prescription pad on your desk.
She helped herself.
Now, about this alleged miscarriage Look, even if she is a thief, I'm still not going to violate her privilege.
I'm sorry.
Gynecology, that's the business I should've gone into.
Hey, Lennie, she took those blank prescription forms for a reason.
Right, and I never heard of pharmacist-patient privilege.
Neither have I.
Christina Talbert, oh, here we go.
Syntocinon.
Five milliliter solution.
Two weeks ago.
What's it for? it's a nasal spray for mothers who have trouble breastfeeding.
What does it do for pregnant women? Makes them not pregnant.
It's contraindicated.
It induces labor.
Thanks.
The stain you found on the dress, it's blood, type O.
Just one blood type? (CHUCKLING) How many were you expecting? He was expecting a stork.
No baby blood, but baby feces.
Meconium.
Meaning? Probably full term.
Born alive? Since the meconium wasn't mixed with amniotic fluid it had to be excreted post-birth.
It was alive.
Thanks.
Well, they made a reservation, they induced the birth.
We got premeditation.
We got murder.
Yeah, but no body.
I say we get a warrant.
Let the D.
A.
make it stick.
Let's call Ross.
He rejected the traditional, American dream of success, and yet had as much disdain for mediocrity as he did Oh, don't let us interrupt, we're just auditing.
Stand up.
Stand up! Christina Talbert, Thomas Horton, you're under arrest for murder.
Don't worry.
Somebody else will take notes for you.
You have the right to remain silent.
Anything you say can and will be used "Case number 97942.
"People v.
Christina Talbert and Thomas Horton.
"Murder in the Second Degree.
" What are their pleas? Not guilty.
Not guilty.
The People request bail JUDGE: Mr.
Garnett, could you tell your clients they're not to hold hands in my courtroom.
GARNETT: Yes, Your Honor.
Go ahead, Ms.
Ross.
What do you wanton bail? They have no priors, Your Honor.
They're college students.
Who killed their newborn baby.
Where's the body? Where's the evidence? That's not my problem.
I'm setting bail at 200K for each.
Miss Talbert is not to leave her home except in the presence of a parent, and I strongly urge the defendants to refrain from contact outside the presence of counsel.
We can't even see each other? I don't want you making any more victims.
But we're in love.
Quiet! You don't seem to realize why you're here.
Ms.
Ross, I'm ordering a 730 examination, I'm not convinced these two are fit to stand trial.
Of course, I understand.
I'm being charged with murdering someone.
Not just someone.
Your child.
I don't have a child.
Do you understand it's wrong to kill? Yes.
Even babies? Yes.
How do your parents feel about you getting pregnant? My mother won't speak to me.
Why not? She's disappointed I got pregnant.
Do you think she's right? Yes.
Why? Only stupid girls get pregnant.
It's embarrassing.
Mom wants girl to be perfect.
Girl wants mom to be happy.
Baby spoils the equation.
ROSS: I don't see what she's afraid of.
There's no evidence of physical or emotional abuse.
This girl lives or dies by her mother's approval.
You take that away, she doesn't have much else.
She can't have much in the way of human feelings either.
They kill their baby, then grieve by taking a little spin around the dance floor.
Big surprise.
She's a narcissistic bitch.
Forget about remorse.
To her, that baby was like a peach pit passing through her system.
Yeah.
All very illuminating.
What're you telling the judge? She knows right from wrong, appreciates the consequences of her actions, can assist counsel.
She's cleared for take-off.
I'll send you my bill.
(DOOR CLOSING) This case gives me the creeps.
Yeah.
Without a body in evidence, you're pushing uphill.
You're not suggesting we offer the lovebirds a plea? Lousy kids.
Lousy case.
Talk to their lawyer.
JACK: I'm offering first degree manslaughter, eight-and-a-third-to-25.
How quickly can I say no? I'm putting aside the fact your clients premeditated this killing.
Says you.
You wouldn't have asked us here if your case had a snowball's chance.
You wouldn't be here if your clients were innocent.
GARNETT: The fetus, however old it was, was stillborn.
There's no crime.
You're taking the position a dead baby excreted meconium.
No.
I'm taking the position you didn't find any meconium.
Motion to suppress.
The search was conducted under false pretenses.
Let's go, before Mr.
McCoy charges you with heavy breathing.
GARNETT: The warrant specified, "books acquired with the use "of a stolen credit card or other relevant evidence related thereto.
" It said books.
They found books.
They seized them.
As an afterthought, Your Honor.
The books were on a bookshelf in plain sight the whole time they were there.
They searched a closet, a dresser, a desk.
I mean they were halfway out the door when they remembered to take the books.
So they seized the books last, instead of first.
Is there a special recipe they were supposed to follow? The warrant said books.
Instead, they took papers from an appointment book.
The warrant was a pretext.
That's per se abuse.
They went to Miss Talbert's room looking for evidence of one crime, they found evidence of another.
That's called luck.
It's called a scam.
The detectives knew the credit card wasn't in fact stolen.
They were acting on a complaint from the credit card company.
Yes, but they'd been told by the credit card holder it wasn't stolen, and they already suspected Miss Talbert in the murder case.
Isn't that right? Yes.
(SIGHING) All right.
You're all very clever, but don't tell me the meconium and the prescription forms relate to a stolen credit card.
Your Honor, the meconium was found on a dress in the closet.
A closet is a legitimate search area for a warrant for stolen goods.
You can't fault the police for finding and seizing blood-stained clothing.
I'll grant you the meconium, Ms.
Ross.
it's admissible.
The stolen prescription sheets are out.
You're rewarding Mr.
McCoy for his people's deception.
That's tough.
We're finished.
Nice save.
Without evidence that she took a drug to induce labor, there goes premeditation.
They did reserve a room.
The case was weak, now it's weaker.
Get one of them to roll on the other.
So which devil do we make our deal with? The girl has the motive.
She's the one who didn't want the baby.
Killing it was probably her idea.
And the boy is probably the one who actually killed it, and disposed of the body.
I flipped a coin in my head.
Came up tails.
Talk to the boy.
That brings up another problem, their lawyer.
He'll probably veto any settlement that implicates the girl.
Her father posted bail for both of them.
He's probably paying Garnett's fees.
Get around the lawyer.
JACK: We're prepared to offer him man two, three-to-six.
He won't even look out of place when he goes back to college.
You'll knock a murder charge down to a C felony? Let me guess, he testifies against Miss Talbert.
That's right.
I thought No.
Good day, counselors.
Thank you for coming by.
That's the answer I expected.
Ms.
Ross.
Our motion to remove you as Mr.
Horton's attorney of record.
What? We're conflicting you out, Counselor.
There is no conflict, Your Honor.
There's only one defense position.
That's because there's only one defense attorney.
My clients only want one defense attorney.
it's their decision to make.
Who's to tell them any different? Your Honor, I made a very fair offer to Mr.
Horton in return for his testimony against Miss Talbert.
How can he possibly give objective advice regarding this offer? So fair it could only have been made to get me yanked as Mr.
Horton's counsel.
Was this a genuine offer, or was it made solely to create a conflict? At the time, it was a genuine offer.
I see.
Well, Mr.
McCoy, now you're stuck with it.
Your offer is still on the table.
Now, I don't see how having his own counsel damages Mr.
Horton's interests.
Sorry, Mr.
Garnett, you're out.
SHELTON: it's a good offer, Tommy.
It gives you a chance to have a life.
Mr.
Garnett said they don't have much of a case.
That's why he doesn't represent you anymore.
He was right.
But there's a baby involved, you're its father, and I'm not talking out of school when I tell you a jury is going to be awfully tempted to reach its own conclusions and hold you responsible.
JACK: Mr.
Horton, if you take a plea, I believe Miss Talbert will take one, too.
And I'm a lot more generous than a trial judge will be.
You don't get it.
If I take this deal, I don't get a life.
I get a life without Christina.
Miss Shelton, you have to do whatever I tell you to, right? Yes.
We didn't do anything wrong.
The baby was alive when we left the room.
CURTIS: At first, Miss Talbert denied knowing Mr.
Horton.
Then they both denied being at the hotel.
Then Miss Talbert told us she'd been two months pregnant and had a miscarriage.
Was any of this true? No.
Forensics found traces of meconium on Miss Talbert's dress.
We were told by Forensics this was conclusive proof the baby was born alive.
Yes, as we just heard from the Medical Examiner.
What, if any, efforts did you make to find this baby? We conducted an exhaustive search of the area between the hotel and Hudson University.
We also questioned the Carrington Hotel staff and as many guests as we could track down.
As a result, can you tell us what happened to Miss Talbert and Mr.
Horton's baby? I can tell you what didn't happen.
It didn't crawl out of that room and it didn't turn up as a foundling.
It wasn't taken home by anyone who had access to that room.
Thank you.
Did your investigation include people who were registered at the hotel under false names or any of their guests? If they weren't there under their own names, no.
Well, the Carrington is the kind of place, isn't it, where people sometimes don't use their real names? Objection.
Sustained.
Could one of the people you weren't able to locate have taken the baby? Objection.
Calls for speculation.
You've made your point, Mr.
Garnett.
Move it along.
Detective, is there anyone in your precinct who's still working the case? CURTIS: Until we find a body, Detective Briscoe and I are still assigned.
Until that time, what is the baby's official status? Missing.
Presumed dead.
That's far short of dead beyond reasonable doubt.
Objection.
Withdrawn.
No more questions.
TOMMY: After he was born, Christina held him for a little while.
She really loved him.
She couldn't stop worrying about her mother.
So we wrapped him in a blanket, we left him on the bed, where the maid would find him.
Then we did the hardest thing we've ever done.
We walked out of the room.
Then we went back to the fraternity.
Christina, she felt sick, and she started to bleed.
She went to the bathroom, and passed the afterbirth, and then she wanted me to take her home.
What happened next? I didn't sleep all night.
I called Christina to make sure that she was okay.
We talked about the baby.
We decided that I should go back to the hotel.
But the police were already there, and I figured, for sure, they'd found the baby and it'd be all right.
Just so we understand you, you felt so upset, that you went back to a party at your fraternity house? Yes.
Didn't really know where else to go.
And you requested a song, Endless Love, isn't that right? It was a special song for us.
And you danced? We were just holding each other.
On the dance floor.
Isn't that called dancing? Yeah.
I guess.
We both felt really bad.
So you punished yourself for murder by having a little dance.
Objection.
JUDGE BARRY: Sustained.
Didn't it occur to you to call 911, and tell the police about your child? Yes.
Christina felt sick, and I had to get her home.
They don't have a phone at her house? I didn't want to wake up her parents.
How about on the way back to your dorm? I don't know.
I was just worried about Christina.
Can you tell us anything you did to suggest that you had a single thought about that child after it was born? I don't know.
You're pre-med, she's an honors student, you're intelligent, young people.
You must've given it some thought.
Objection.
Argumentative.
Sustained.
The truth is, you didn't give a damn about that child, did you? You had decided to kill your baby when you reserved the hotel room.
Objection! Enough, Mr.
McCoy.
The objection is sustained.
I don't have anything more for this witness.
The jury liked his Romeo-of-the-Dairyland routine.
I thought he got creamed.
Then we're tied going into closings.
You're a tough handicapper.
I'm handicapping the jury.
They keep looking over at Christina.
They like what they see.
Yeah.
When you're in love, the whole world's in love with you.
And she just can sit there, all sweet and innocent.
Garnett was smart not to put her on the stand.
(PAGER BEEPING) There goes the weekend.
It's Briscoe.
CURTIS: Gas company worker found it.
White, male baby.
Umbilical cord still attached.
Somebody dug deep to bury it.
Not really.
This is backfill dumped on top of the burial site.
We had a gas leak.
Had to undo a couple of months' worth of work.
He was wrapped in this.
Carrington Hotel.
M.
E.
's report, quick and dirty.
Baby boy.
Day old or less.
Born alive and healthy.
Manual strangulation, larynx was crushed.
Death was instantaneous.
Bastards.
They have a positive identification? They can pull some DNA from the amniotic fluid in the hotel room, but it's going to take a while to run a match.
I'll settle for a blood type match.
Have Detective Briscoe and the Medical Examiner ready to testify on Monday.
Notify Judge Barry we have rebuttal witnesses.
Jack, I think there's somebody else we might want to talk to first.
I spoke to the contractor.
He said the burial site was backfilled two days after the baby was killed.
You don't think those kids just got lucky? No one's that lucky.
I'm afraid the baby is dead.
The body was found buried about It's a commercial construction site near the West Side Highway.
You know anything about that, Mr.
Talbert? Should I? Your firm did the structural drillings.
So? There were 47 sub-contractors on that job.
And the contractor says you were one of only six individuals who had keys to the site at that time.
Warren, what did you do? Sarah No! I want to know what you did.
(SIGHS) You were asleep when they came home.
Christina didn't look well, and I knew something was wrong I made them tell me what happened.
They said they left the baby in the hotel, alive.
They wanted go back.
I told them it was too dangerous.
I told Tommy to go home.
I sent Christina to bed.
Then I drove to the hotel, and when I got there, it was on the bed, wrapped in a blanket.
It was wheezing.
It was in trouble.
I brought it to my car, but before I could get it to a hospital, it was dead.
(CRYING) I took it to the construction site and I buried it.
Our Medical Examiner has determined that the baby was strangled.
Someone choked it with their bare hands.
No! No! It died of natural causes.
Please, don't insult our intelligence.
The baby was dead when you found it, wasn't it? I better talk to my lawyer.
Mr.
Talbert's agreed to tell you what he knows.
He has only one condition.
Shoot.
You drop the charges against his daughter.
In return, he'll testify against the boy.
As far as we're concerned, they're equally guilty.
Her maybe more so.
Whatever.
You let the girl walk, no charges, no record.
Or he doesn't tell you squat.
Let's hear what he has to say first.
Off the record.
I found the baby in the trash can in the hotel room.
It was wrapped in a towel.
There was newspaper on top of it, to hide it.
It was dead.
I can't accept your terms.
I'll subpoena him.
He'll testify with no preconditions.
Absolutely not.
He'll take the Fifth.
I'm conferring immunity right now.
You're taking the stand tomorrow morning, Mr.
Talbert.
CARNEY: He won't testify.
Are you sure about that, Mr.
Talbert? I am not sending my daughter to jail.
CARNEY: What are you going to do, Mr.
McCoy? Cite him for contempt? He gets 30 days in jail, and you still get nothing.
For God's sake, he's just trying to save his daughter.
No deal.
Ms.
Ross, get an officer in here Mr.
Talbert, I'm having you arrested pending a contempt hearing.
CARNEY: McCoy I've had enough of him, his daughter and her boyfriend.
If I could indict him as a co-conspirator, I would.
This baby is dead.
I hope they all go to jail for it.
Place this man under arrest and get him out of my office.
BRISCOE: The baby was wrapped in a towel bearing the initials "CH.
" The Manager of the Carrington Hotel confirmed that it was in fact one of theirs.
Is this the towel, Detective? Yes.
That's my signature on the evidence bag.
People's 56, Your Honor.
No more questions.
Detective, do you know who disposed of the body at the construction site? Not for a fact.
Now that site's kept locked at night, isn't it? It's surrounded by an eight-foot chain-link fence topped by barbed wire? Yes.
It wouldn't be easy to climb over that, carrying a six-pound weight, would it? I guess not.
Do you know who had a key to the gate? Actually, there were six people.
Including my client's father, isn't that right? Objection.
Why? I have the right to put forth alternate theories of crime, Your Honor.
Not without evidence to support them.
That's what I'm trying to get at, Your Honor.
Evidence.
Overruled.
Answer the question, Detective.
Yes, he had a key, which his daughter could've borrowed.
Your Honor You asked the question, Mr.
Garnett.
Anything else? No, Your Honor.
No more questions.
Detective Briscoe, you may step down.
The People have no more rebuttal witnesses.
The defense does.
We'd like to call Mrs.
Sarah Talbert.
She was president of her history club in high school.
She was vice-president of the student council, and she was the editor of her high school yearbook, and she received the Hardiman Prize for geometry.
She has a very bright future ahead of her.
Her having an illegitimate child, was that something you and your husband had in mind? Objection.
Sustained.
Move along, Mr.
Garnett.
Mrs.
Talbert, this past Sunday morning, did you and your husband receive a visit from Mr.
McCoy and Ms.
Ross? Yes.
During that visit, did your husband make any admissions concerning the death and burial of your daughter's baby? Objection! Approach, Your Honor.
It's the People's position that Mr.
Talbert lied to protect his daughter.
That's his position, not mine Mr.
Talbert's credibility is an issue for the jury.
Then the person who should be testifying here is Mr.
Talbert.
Well, he isn't, because Mr.
McCoy has him in jail for contempt.
He advised counsel that if called, he would invoke his Fifth Amendment rights.
I immunized him.
He still refused to testify.
He'll stay in jail until he changes his mind.
Your Honor, I don't represent Mr.
Talbert.
I have no control over him.
To penalize my client and Mr.
Horton for Mr.
Talbert's actions amounts to a reversible error.
Your Honor, ask Mr How long have you had Mr.
Talbert locked up? A little over 36 hours.
He's not going to change his mind, Mr.
McCoy.
You're overruled.
The witness will answer.
Mrs.
Talbert? My husband said that he went to the hotel room, and he He found the baby there alive.
It was having trouble breathing.
GARNETT: What else? (CRYING) He said that it died before he could get to the hospital.
He decided to bury it.
We've heard testimony that your grandchild was strangled.
My husband did not kill that baby.
Well, are you saying that it was your daughter and her boyfriend? No! Christina's not a murderer.
She couldn't possibly harm a defenseless little baby.
Well, then you're saying your daughter must've allowed Mr.
Horton to strangle her child.
No, never.
Then it must've been your husband.
Objection.
I didn't say that.
Sustained.
You can't have it both ways, Mrs.
Talbert! Your Honor Your husband or your daughter! MRS.
TALBERT: I don't know.
Mr.
Garnett.
I don't know.
Mr.
Garnett.
Enough.
No more questions.
Now you've heard testimony about Christina Talbert's father.
He found the baby alive in the hotel room.
It died while in his care.
He buried it in a construction site.
Now, is he lying to protect his daughter or to protect himself? Even his own wife isn't sure, and Mr.
Talbert won't tell us because he'd rather sit in jail, than explain himself to you.
Now I want you to look at these two children.
These polite, bright, naive children.
If you think it's possible, that in an act of panic and confusion, they killed that baby, you must also admit that it's possible Warren Talbert killed it.
That's called reasonable doubt.
That's why there's only one right thing to do.
You must acquit.
As you retire to conduct your deliberations, some of you may take with you the image of Mrs.
Talbert on the stand, unable to choose between her husband and her daughter.
Could you point at your own daughter, and say that she killed her baby? The fact that Mrs.
Talbert couldn't isn't evidence.
It's emotional manipulation.
And that this girl could sit there, and let it happen to her own mother, tells you what you need to know about her.
I'd like you to take another image with you.
Picture these naive children dancing arm in arm in a frat house to a love song, minutes after they strangled their baby with their bare hands and left it wrapped in a blood-soaked towel.
Think about that, then cast your vote.
JUDGE BARRY: Madam Foreperson, has the jury reached a verdict? Yes, Your Honor, we have.
Will the defendants please rise.
For the defendant Thomas Horton, on the count of murder in the second degree, how do you find? We find the defendant Thomas Horton not guilty.
For the defendant Christina Talbert, on the count of murder in the second degree, how do you find? We find the defendant Christina Talbert not guilty.
Members of the jury, I thank you for your service.
You are now dismissed.
(GAVEL POUNDS) Baby's dead, and no one's responsible.
No one was responsible when it was alive either.
Warren Talbert's still in jail.
We could get him for obstruction of justice, destruction of evidence.
We got beat.
Just send him home to his family.