Law & Order (1990) s14e16 Episode Script
Can I Get a Witness?
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 feel stupid takin'him back.
Everybody knows I dumped him.
It's embarrassin'.
I mean, me and Tommy got back together.
I know.
I'm sorry, Chantal.
I didn't mean you guys.
Neighborhood kid.
Henry Ware, 19.
Shot twice in the chest.
Wallet, keys and this in his pockets.
Coke? Looks like.
Good luck.
We'll let you know how it turns out.
Meantime, voucher that.
Hey, are those the witnesses? The ones that stuck around.
Friends of the deceased.
Hey, uh, you want to tell us what happened over here? Man, I don't know.
We were just sittin' here, talkin' with Bigboy.
Bigboy? That's what we call Henry.
Anyway, we were just chillin' you know? Dude rides up outta nowhere, fires off a couple.
- The dude say anything to Bigboy? - Yeah, like, "Keep your hands off the goods.
" Something like that.
And then what happened? Then we were screamin' and stuff, and we couldn't believe it.
Henry just grabs his chest and falls down.
What about the shooter? Rode off that way.
You think they knew each other? I don't know.
Never seen him before.
What'd he look like? Kinda dark-skinned.
About our age.
Older, maybe.
Twenty, twenty-one.
Anything else? What? What's wrong? He had, like, a weird eye.
A weird eye? Somethin'wrong with it.
His right eye.
It was all white.
White? Messed up.
Kinda milky-looking.
You got any idea what this was about? No idea.
What about drugs? Was he dealing? Dealing? Nah.
No way.
Detectives? We got something here.
All right.
Stick around and give your numbers to the sergeant, all right? We gotta make sure these kids are on the level.
I mean, if he was dealing, this is an ordinary drug killing.
I got a C.
I.
in this neighborhood we could talk to.
Yeah, we got some pretty good tire tracks here.
Yeah.
That's where the witnesses said the shooter rode off that way.
Well, we can take pictures, make a cast.
Maybe we'll get something.
All right, cool.
Thanks.
Okay.
We might as well start canvassing the neighborhood.
See if anybody saw a kid on a bike? That oughta narrow it down.
Sorry.
I never seen a dude with a weird eye sellin' coke or smack or anything else around here.
What about this guy? Fat kid.
I seen him around.
Wait.
Uh, Bigboy.
That's what they call him.
Yeah.
But he's small time, nickel and dime.
You're right.
He was dealing.
I guess his friends were just trying to protect his good name.
Hey, any idea who'd wanna take him out? Like I said, that dude was small time.
"Keep your hands off the goods.
" Maybe Bigboy was stepping on somebody else's turf.
You know who controls the corner where he got shot? Bigboy never sold nothing, all right? Kid was strictly a mule.
We heard he was selling a little on the side.
Nickels and dimes.
His friends said he liked a little taste too, now and then, so maybe he was dipping into your goods.
Listen, I caught Bigboy skimmin' on my stuff, you think I would have some mook on a bicycle take him out? I'll slap him up and down the street myself, make an example out of him.
And what about the shooter? Don't know no black kid with a bad eye.
If we find out you were ever even on the same subway car with him, - you're gonna wish you never dropped out of high school.
- I look worried to you? You wanna keep working this drug angle? Much as I love mingling with the lower crust, why don't we find out if the lab's got anything on those bike tracks? All right.
These don't look at all alike.
How can you be sure they're from the same bike? You know, I thought the same thing, too, but after comparing mold offset, sipe pattern and center rib appearance- You passed out from boredom? I determined that they're both Sinclair CoolJ's.
The only difference between the two tracks is tread wear.
So one tire's less worn than the other.
Not less worn.
Brand-new.
Being as how you're such a cycling enthusiast, would you happen to have a list of all the places that sell these things? Milky, kinda cloudy? Right.
So, was he in here or not? Kid said it was glass.
You know what? I had a neighbor that had a glass eye.
If you looked at it in the right light, it was white.
Did you sell this kid a tire? A Sinclair CoolJ.
And while I'm taking it off the hook, he tries to stuff a couple of Shimano pedals under his jacket.
I told him if he ever came back, I'd stick a Kooka crank right up his you-know-what.
When was this? Three, four weeks ago.
I don't suppose he used a credit card.
Now, that's funny.
On the other hand, how many black males, These days, they're mostly acrylic plastic.
Same as everything else.
Glass eyes aren't glass.
They still have to be maintained.
Maintained? Well, you see, the eye's natural fluid eats away at the artificial eyeball.
Now, this guy's eye is white, kinda milky.
Oh, yeah.
That can happen if you try to clean it yourself with rubbing alcohol, for example.
- What kind of records do you keep? - Basic stuff:name, age.
Race? No, but we file by eye color.
Okay, brown-eyed patients, 16 to 25.
How many are we talking about? Here we go.
Uh, about 400-plus patients in that category.
Oh, God, I really thought this was gonna be a whole lot easier.
Now, this guy probably didn't have insurance.
You take those kind of cases? Oh, Medicaid? Sure.
Um, how's 50 or so sound? Prison guards don't talk to as many felons as we have today.
That's what you get for being so brilliant.
Yeah? We're looking for Foster Keyes.
He ain't in right now.
Who are you? I'm his cousin, man.
What's this all about? A shooting.
What you tryin' to say, Foster shot somebody? We think maybe that he saw something.
Hmm.
You got a card or something? I'll give it to him when I see him.
You happen to know where he is now? I'll tell him to give you a holler.
Yeah, you do that.
Mm-hmm.
You check out the prison tats on that dude? If Keyes is our man, Cousin Helpful here is gonna tip him off faster than you can say "aiding and abetting.
" Yo.
Hey, uh, what's up? Y'all know Foster Keyes? Look, we already know where he lives.
We just wanna know where he hangs out.
I hear he got a new girl.
You crazy? I ain't afraid of him.
I hate that punk.
Other day I was sitting right outside on the stoop, wasn't bothering nobody.
Fos, he come up and jack my Game Boy.
- You know the girl's name? - No, but I seen her hanging out at the projects on 168th.
Yo, am I gonna get my Game Boy back? We'll do our best.
Later, y'all.
I been here six years.
Believe me, if he lived here, I'd know.
Not him.
We think his girlfriend lives here.
Who is it? It's the police.
Can you open up? I just need to ask you a question.
Hold on.
Lennie.
Thanks anyway.
Never mind.
It's the police! Open the door! What's goin' on? Where is he? - Who? I'm the only one here.
- I heard voices.
Your boyfriend.
- Boyfriend? I ain't got no boyfriend.
- Foster Keyes! Where is he? Kitchen's clear.
Is that the bedroom? How long you known Foster? - Ed.
! - Stay right here.
I ain't do nothing.
Good.
Then you can come out of the closet.
The witnesses are waiting outside.
Yo-ho-ho and a bottle of rum.
What's up with the pirates? The witnesses said the shooter had a weird eye.
I figured this would rule out a bad I.
D.
Oh, hey, y'all.
This is Shayna.
Shayna, this is Lieutenant Van Buren.
Hey, Shayna.
They can't see me, right? Not even with two eyes.
Just take your time.
He wasn't wearing a patch when I saw him.
We know.
Take a good look.
You see the shooter? Number three.
You sure? That's the one.
He shot Bigboy.
I don't even need to see his bad eye.
That's him.
You'd be willing to say that in court? It's the truth.
It wasn't me.
Two witnesses saw you pull the trigger.
What were they, hallucinating? Maybe they're trying to frame me up.
Now, why would they do that? I don't know.
A mistaken identity? Yeah, right.
So where were you that day, around 3:30 in the afternoon? Hanging with my boys.
Hanging out where? La Guardia Houses.
That's 150th Street.
Yeah.
The whole time? All day, all night.
Till midnight almost.
You were there the whole time? You didn't go anywhere? No.
Okay.
So who was riding your bike I don't know.
Foster, you can't be two places at once.
See, we got a scientist who can prove that your bike made the tracks that we found at the crime scene.
And whoever was riding that bike shot and killed Bigboy.
And since we got two witnesses that saw you- Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa.
And unless you can prove it wasn't you- Well, how am I supposed to do that? You're going down.
Murder two.
That ain't right.
I can't help it if somebody took my bike! Then help us out here, man.
Maybe we can help you get out from under this.
Mr.
Keyes's attorney, Gerard Wills.
Foster thanks you for the hot coffee, but the interview's over, Detectives.
I heard about your charade of a lineup.
Two eyewitnesses identified Mr.
Keyes as the shooter.
How do you know they didn't see some guy with an eye patch pull the trigger? Mr.
Wills, their initial I.
D.
's said nothing about an eye patch.
They were all about a guy with a bad eye.
Milky white.
Sound like anyone you know? Argue misidentification until you're blue, Mr.
Wills.
Do you really think that a jury's going to believe your client with his record over two eyewitnesses who are solid citizens? Nobody else saw Mr.
Keyes allegedly in the park when Mr.
Ware got shot.
We got forensic evidence puts your client's bicycle at the scene.
Junk science.
Those tracks could have been made any time that day.
We found drugs on the dead boy, and your client has a well-documented history of dealing in narcotics.
Not in that neighborhood.
He never sold or bought drugs from Henry Ware.
Sounds like your two eyewitnesses are your whole case.
Tell your client that he would be smart to plead this one out.
I'll convey your offer, Miss Southerlyn.
Don't hold your breath.
We think this was about drugs.
Some sort of dispute over territory, customers.
We're still working it.
How good are your eyewitnesses? Jimmy Gordon's got a steady job and the other one, Shayna Rosario, is going part-time to Lower Manhattan Community College.
What about forensics? We never found the gun.
We have the bike tracks.
But Wills is right.
It really rests on these witnesses.
Teenagers.
You never know how they'll hold up in court.
Better shore up the drug angle.
I knew something like this would happen sooner or later.
I told Henry he needed to stop what he was doing and get a real job like his boyJimmy.
But you know kids.
They think they bulletproof.
They think they gonna live forever.
Do you know if your brother ever bought or sold drugs up at the 168th Street projects? I don't.
Sorry.
It's not like he would've told me if he did.
As far as I know, he didn't know anybody up there.
Why? It's where the police found Keyes.
Keyes? Foster Keyes.
The man charged with Henry's murder.
He was staying with some girl.
Jannette Richards? Jannette? Maybe Henry hung out with a girl named Jannette sometimes.
Um- AskJimmy.
- Jimmy Gordon.
- Yeah.
He and Henry have been best friends since forever.
If anybody would know, he would.
Yo, Ma, calm down.
I am not going to calm down, not after what happened this morning.
What happened this morning? First, he gets another one of those phone calls.
Jimmy, you've been threatened? Yeah.
Saying he's gonna die if he keeps talking to you all.
How many of these calls have you gotten? Three, four a week maybe, since they arrested the dude that shot Bigboy.
You recognize the voice? Just some guy.
I don't know who.
The calls are the least of it.
He's leaving the house this morning, some kid walks up to him with a gun, waving it in his face.
- Never seen him before.
- I've been telling him this is not worth dying for.
He won't be the only witness, Mrs.
Gordon.
Shayna Rosario has agreed to testify too.
If she wants to put her life on the line, that's her choice.
I gotta do this, Ma.
Bigboy was my best friend.
How would it look if Shayna testified and I didn't? We'll investigate the threats, Mrs.
Gordon.
I'll talk to the D.
A.
's office.
They'll arrange some protection for your son during the trial.
- What kind of protection? - He'll get a police escort to and from the courthouse.
That ain't much.
What about when he goes to the corner to get me a quart of milk? Is there anyone he could stay with for a while, outside the neighborhood? - You could go to your aunt's in Brooklyn.
- All right.
Now listen to me,Jimmy.
You need to stay at your aunt's till the trial is over.
Do not go back to your old neighborhood.
Do you hear what I'm sayin'? I ain't afraid of these guys.
Bunch of punks.
Jimmy.
All right.
Okay.
I heard they found the shooter hidin' in some girl's closet.
Jannette Richards.
Jannette? You know her? That's Foster's girl.
Bigboy was messin'with her the other night.
I told y'all it wasn't about no drugs.
I've changed my mind.
What happened, Shayna? Were you threatened? The more I thought about it, the more I realized I wasn't sure who pulled the trigger.
She just doesn't want the wrong guy goin' to jail.
We can protect you.
She doesn't need protection.
She's not testifying.
Shayna, how are you gonna feel if Henry's killer goes free? If he kills somebody else? You don't need me.
You gotJimmy.
I already told the lieutenant I ain't scared.
Yeah, well, it's all right if you are.
But I ain't.
The grand jury's gonna be the easy part.
There won't be a defense attorney there to attack your story and try and trip you up.
But when we get to the actual trial, Foster Keyes is gonna be there staring at you.
Yeah, with his one good eye.
And his friends and his family are gonna be there.
The defense attorney is really gonna go after you.
He's gonna practically call you a liar.
He'll challenge everything you say.
Bring it on.
I can handle it.
All I got to do is tell the truth, right? You'll be fine.
Bigboy was real easy-going.
Jannette just pushed him too far.
She kept saying he was so fat he could never hook up with a girl even if he did find one that would have him.
That's when he slapped her.
How did she react to that? She was angry? Real angry.
She kept screaming at him, saying he was gonna be sorry he ever laid a hand on her.
What else did she say? Said she was gonna tell her boyfriend.
He'd make it all right.
Was that the end of it? Couple weeks later, we were hangin'out in the park.
Dude rides up and shoots Bigboy.
I mean Henry.
Do you see that person in the courtroom? Him.
The defendant.
Foster Keyes.
Did Mr.
Keyes say anything before he shot your friend? He said, "Keep your hands off the goods.
" Then he shot him.
No more questions.
Where are the police on the threats toJimmy Gordon? All of the calls came from various pay phones.
There's no way to trace them.
As soon as we convict Mr.
Keyes of murdering Henry Ware, I'm going to indict him for witness intimidation.
Isn't that a little overkill? Keyes will be serving 20 to life.
We're sending a message.
We protect witnesses.
Go ahead.
Sorry.
Southerlyn.
Neighbor heard shots, saw a black male walking from the scene.
We found your card in the dead boy's pocket.
Thanks.
I told him to call me if he needed anything.
I wish he had.
Counselor! What the hell happened? We don't know yet.
Maybe he came back to see a girl.
I thought that the police were keeping an eye on him.
We were.
He was supposed to be in Brooklyn.
Your Honor,Jimmy Gordon's testimony was the crux of our case.
He was an eyewitness to the shooting and to the event that precipitated it.
Since I never had the opportunity of cross-examining him, his- His testimony can't come in.
Are there any more witnesses? There was one, but she was too frightened to appear before the grand jury.
I doubt she'll come forward now, in light of what's happened.
As I see it, Your Honor, Mr.
McCoy's just admitted he's got no case.
Consider this my motion to dismiss.
Motion to dismiss? Your client just added another murder to his rap sheet.
I'm afraid I'm going to have side with Mr.
Wills.
I still haveJimmy Gordon's grand jury testimony.
People v.
Hellenbrand.
The minutes of a witness's grand jury testimony can be read into evidence if the witness is no longer available.
Hellenbrand only applies if it's clear that the defendant is behind the witness's absence.
How much clearer could it be? What more do you want? A sign from God? I would settle for some proof.
Res ipsa loquitur, Your Honor.
That's Latin for "They got nothin'.
" If you want a few more days to shore up your case- A few days won't do me any good.
If you're not going to allow the grand jury testimony, at least give me leave to re-present when and if I have a new case.
Jeopardy has already attached, which means that the charges will have to be dismissed with prejudice.
Why not give the defendant a pat on the back on the way out? Out ofline, Mr.
McCoy.
If you find evidence that Mr.
Keyes was involved in the murder of this witness, you can charge him for it.
And if that happens, Mr.
Keyes better pray that he doesn't draw me as his judge.
Charges are dismissed.
Dismissed? You gotta be kidding me.
We'll keep workin' on him.
Try him again.
Double jeopardy.
He can't be tried again for killing Bigboy.
He has a witness killed, and he gets off? We have to prove he's involved.
Then we can ring him up for the murder ofJimmy Gordon.
But he walks on Henry Ware.
Fraid so.
Makes me wanna accidentally discharge my weapon.
The only way we're gonna get Foster Keyes is to tie him to whoever shotJimmy Gordon.
Aside from the description of a "young black male" and the two.
38 slugs they dug out of Gordon's back, we got zip from the crime scene.
What about the death threat list? Keyes's friends and associates? Keyes did a stint in juvie, a year in Attica, had three narcotics arrests.
I gotta say, the list goes on and on.
Let's start with the sign-in sheet at Rikers.
See if Keyes had any visitors while he was in custody for Bigboy's murder.
Maybe that's how they arranged the hit on Jimmy Gordon.
Who would've thought so many guys named "Bernard"visit prisons? I've seen three already.
Keyes was in custody for four weeks, and all we have so far on visits are who again? Three from his mom, one from Grandma, one from his sister.
Right, but no known felons.
Wait a minute.
"December 7, 3:06 p.
m.
Inmate: Foster Keyes.
Visitor- "X"- They signed with an "X"? So the security guard checked the driver's license and it had an "X" on it? Yeah, that and a picture of Benjamin Franklin was all the I.
D.
he needed.
Hmm.
Sometimes I'm doin' three things at once.
Maybe I didn't look at his signature close enough.
All right, bro, maybe we didn't make this clear.
Keyes may have hired your Mr.
X to kill a witness in his trial.
At best, you screwed up big time.
Besides losing your job and your pension, you might be looking at a civil suit, wrongful death- I swear, if I remembered anything about the guy- Think.
Is there any other way we can track him down? No.
These are the only records in here.
You know, some of the inmates arrange to bump into somebody on the way to the courthouse.
Or in the courthouse.
I only worked the first couple days of the Keyes trial.
Appendicitis.
Okay.
Sometimes the judge allows courtroom visitors.
Come to think of it, Keyes did have some family in the gallery.
Judge allowed them to visit for a few minutes one day before they sent Keyes back to Rikers.
Anybody look suspicious? They all did.
I recognized one of'em.
He was a defendant in another case.
About your complexion, maybe a little lighter, built like a tank, jailhouse tattoos.
Did he have one on his neck? Cousin Helpful.
You're in a world of trouble now, Mr.
X.
Why? 'Cause I went to go visit my little cousin? Because the only witness in your little cousin's case took two bullets.
You didn't think that was going to come back on you, genius? You've been arrested twice for homicide and the only reason you ain't spending time in a 6-by-9 now is those witnesses happened to go away.
Hey, that's- that's cute, man.
What, that's supposed to make me confess or something? You can laugh all you want to, but we don't need a confession from you.
And we're gonna add witness intimidation to your case.
The jury's gonna eat that up.
Man, I ain't intimidate nobody.
And I definitely ain't killed this Gordon kid you talkin' about.
You got an alibi? When'd it go down? Between 8:00 and 10:00 last night.
Boom.
I was hanging out up at Ray's Famous up on 126th.
Matter of fact, I'll even chill with you down at the station while you check on that, long as I ain't under arrest.
All right.
Boom.
Get your ass in the car.
He was at Ray's from 8:00 to midnight.
The counter man, the owner and two regulars all remember him.
He made sure everybody got a good look at him.
We sure he's the one behind Jimmy Gordon's shooting? He's Keyes's cousin.
Homey plays the system like a Stradivarius.
Visits Rikers under the table, has his crew intimidate witnesses.
He's got the whole neighborhood under his thumb.
You know what his street name is? Slug.
And it ain't 'cause he moves slow.
We've been lookin'through his arrest reports.
Any luck? A couple of years ago Slug was picked up for an armed robbery with a guy named Calvin Jacob Rivers.
They knocked over a bar.
Allegedly.
- Let me guess.
- Yup.
Two dozen witnesses suddenly developed simultaneous amnesia.
This guy's a walking epidemic.
- Yeah, he's a public health menace.
- Go lean on this Rivers character and see if we can use him to get any leverage on Mr.
Slug.
What's goin'on? You don't mind if we come in, do you, Mr.
Rivers? Your P.
O.
told us you'd be crashing at your grandma's crib.
Yeah.
She ain't here right now.
You know, you haven't talked to your P.
O.
in quite a while.
That's a parole violation.
You ought to give him a call.
I've been busy.
Yeah, murder has a way of screwing up your whole schedule, doesn't it? Murder? What are you talkin' about? Hey, where's he going? Oh, wejust wanna make sure you don't have any illegal substances stashed on the premises.
That's a parole violation too, remember? I ain't done nothing wrong.
Look what I found under the mattress: a.
38 and a stack of 20s.
Cat got your tongue? That's okay, 'cause you have the right to remain silent.
Anything you do say can and will be used against you in a court of law.
We have your client's prints all over the gun.
I have no doubt that ballistics will identify it as the weapon that killed Jimmy Gordon.
Even if you prove it is the gun, you can't connect it to my client.
The police found the gun under the mattress.
In his grandmother's apartment, not his.
So what, Granny did it? - What's the deal? - Shooting a witness is a capital crime in New York.
You give us Ronald Duggan, and I'll knock it down to murder two, 20 to life.
Who's Duggan? Slug.
Look, I'll be candid.
My client has certain- Let me put it this way.
He might not fully understand the ramifications here.
Ronald Duggan, a.
k.
a.
Slug, hired your client, Calvin Rivers, to murderJimmy Gordon, a witness against Foster Keyes, Duggan's cousin.
No, he didn't.
He testifies against Mr.
Duggan- - I ain't gonna do that.
- Calvin, please don't say anything.
This was all about a pair of kicks.
That's it.
Are you saying you killed Jimmy Gordon over a pair of shoes? Not another word.
I think this meeting's over.
Come.
Remind me again.
Who are the bad guys? Slug masterminded the intimidation of witnesses and the murder ofJimmy Gordon, the star witness in the Foster Keyes case.
Rivers was the triggerman.
You got the goods on Rivers? Ballistics identified the gun we found in his grandmother's apartment as the one used to shoot Gordon.
Can you connect him back to Slug and Keyes? Without his testimony, our case is thin.
We know that Rivers and Slug were accomplices in an armed robbery once.
Other than that- And Rivers won't deal? Apparently, he's more afraid of Slug than he is of the State of New York.
Who was that other witness? You know, the one that got cold feet before we could get her before a grand jury.
Shayna Rosario.
If Slug threatened her, and we can convince her to testify, we might be able to establish him as the mastermind behind theJimmy Gordon murder.
I'll take another crack at her.
Look, I told you.
Nobody threatened me.
As soon as you give us a statement, we can arrest Slug.
Jail won't stop him.
You don't think I know what happened toJimmy? As long as I keep my mouth shut, I'll be safe.
Not necessarily.
Slug may reach out and try to silence you on the chance you might testify.
Yeah, now he might, somebody sees you here.
- If my father knew you were here right now- - We're going to protect you.
Like you protected Jimmy? We'll move you and your family outside the city.
Someplace safe.
Police! Open up! Yo, hold on.
Now! All right, drop the cards and get your hands up.
Come on, man, I got aces over eights.
That's a Hickok.
A what? A dead man's hand.
Detective.
Train ticket.
Oh, you going someplace, Slug? Yeah.
I was gonna go visit my aunt in Virginia.
No, you ain't.
You're under arrest for the murder ofJimmy Gordon.
You too, Foster.
Man, I'm getting tired of you.
Well, you might as well get used to it 'cause we're gonna keep doin' this till you get it right.
Docket ending 235.
People v.
Calvin Rivers, Foster Keyes, Ronald Duggan.
Charges are murder in the first degree, witness intimidation and bribing a witness.
Defendants, how do you plead? Mr.
Rivers pleads not guilty.
Mr.
Keyes pleads not guilty.
I thought Mr.
Wills was representing Mr.
Keyes? Not anymore.
I'm Mr.
Keyes's attorney now, Your Honor.
Mr.
Wills, I assume you're here for a reason.
I'm representing Mr.
Duggan, who pleads not guilty, Your Honor.
People on bail? The police found a duffel bag and a train ticket in Mr.
Duggan's apartment.
He was going to visit his aunt.
Not today.
Defendants are remanded.
Your Honor, because of the nature of these crimes, we're going to request a lockdown.
I need to make a sealed record before you in support of that.
Your Honor, is that really necessary? Apparently so, Miss Xiao.
I'll hear from the People, ex parte.
You will hear how these three defendants, Ronald Duggan, Foster Keyes and Calvin Rivers, murdered Jimmy Gordon.
You will hear how Ronald Duggan, known on the street as "Slug, " arranged to have the State's star witness in the murder trial of his cousin, Foster Keyes, killed.
In order to accomplish this, he enlisted the third defendant, Calvin Rivers, to pull the trigger.
Their plan worked.
Jimmy Gordon was murdered before he could finish testifying, and the charges against Foster Keyes were dismissed.
This is a crime, the murder of a witness, that threatens the foundation of our judicial process.
A crime so heinous it is punishable by death in the State of New York.
Make no mistake.
All three men are guilty of this crime, which tears at the very fabric of our civil society and our system of laws.
But Ronald Duggan- Slug- is the man behind this murder.
A man who cast a pall of fear and violence over an entire neighborhood.
You will hear how he has bribed witnesses, intimidated them and finally killed them in furtherance of his criminal activities.
It's up to you to end his reign of terror.
Ms.
Rosario, when were you first approached about the murder of Henry Ware? A few weeks before I was supposed to testify before the grand jury.
Against Foster Keyes? Yes.
Did you recognize the man who approached you? No.
I'd never seen him before.
What did he say? Said he had a message.
Said somebody was gonna come talk to me and give me some money.
Did that in fact happen? Yes.
Did you recognize this second person who approached you? - No.
- What did he say to you? He started asking me about Bigboy's shooting, asking me what I saw.
Did you tell him? I tried to, but every time I said something about seeing the shooter with the weird eye, he said I was wrong, said I must've made a mistake.
He said you were mistaken about your identification of the man who shot Henry Ware? Said I picked the wrong man out of the lineup.
He said I should tell the police I didn't see who did it.
Do you see the man who intimidated you in the courtroom? Objection, Your Honor.
I never heard the witness say she was intimidated.
Rephrase, Mr.
McCoy.
Do you see the man who talked to you about Bigboy's murder, the man who said you were mistaken when you identified Foster Keyes as the person who shot Henry Ware? Ms.
Rosario, do you see the person who approached you? I'm not sure.
My chambers.
Now.
Ms.
Rosario, can you identify one of the defendants as the man who approached you or not? This morning I got a call on my cell.
What kind of a call? A threat.
He said I was gonna die.
Shayna, why didn't you tell us? Because if I thought about it, I knew I couldn't go through with this.
And then when I saw Slug sitting next to Mr.
Wills, I just- I don't understand, Ms.
Rosario.
What has Mr.
Wills got to do with this? Mr.
Wills, please step back in the courtroom.
Your Honor- Now! Take your colleagues with you.
What's this about? Slug was the one who talked to me about Bigboy's murder.
Mr.
Duggan.
Right.
And the last time I saw him, he took me to see Mr.
Wills.
Let me see if I understand this.
Mr.
Duggan took you to see Mr.
Wills while Mr.
Wills was representing Mr.
Keyes for murder.
- Yes.
- Your Honor- Let's gojoin Mr.
Wills in the courtroom, Mr.
McCoy.
What do you say? I want this on the record.
So do I.
A witness came to me and recanted.
It happens.
Slug was sitting next to her, telling her what to say.
What did you think was going on? I don't know who I'm more appalled by right now, Mr.
Wills, you or your clients.
I know who I'm more appalled by.
He said he was a friend ofhers, supporting her while she came forward to say that she had made a mistake.
He was not intimidating her.
Mr.
Wills, if you were complicit in any sort of witness intimidation- Absolutely not, Your Honor.
! And I will stake my professional reputation of 22 years on it! Whatever that's worth! I intend to question Ms.
Rosario about this meeting and about why she didn't identify the defendant on the stand! Ifhe is talking about this morning's alleged threatening phone call, he can't prove that it came from any of the defendants.
In fact, seeing as they were in lockdown, it would be impossible! Let's not be naive! It's obvious where the call came from! I'll give you a day, Mr.
McCoy.
If you can prove that the call originated from the witnesses or anyone acting on their behalf, you can question the witness about it tomorrow on the stand.
If not- Let's just hope she isn't dead by then.
Excuse me? That's what I thought.
At least he didn't charge you with contempt.
He knows my contempt is for Wills and his clients, not the court.
What about the girl? Will she be ready to testify? I'm gonna meet with her in the morning and go over everything one last time.
And the phone call? The police traced it to a disposable cell phone.
Well, so much for lockdown.
And they bribed the guard? Probably.
Which means we can't prove the defendants made the call.
Not before tomorrow anyway.
The jury won't hear about the threat.
Even with Shayna's testimony, Slug's insulated himself from Rivers.
If we're not careful, Rivers will end up taking the load for Slug and Keyes.
I'm sure that's exactly what they have in mind.
You'll have to remind the jury that Slug's calling the shots.
Yesterday you started to tell us about a man who talked to you about the murder of Henry Ware.
Do you see him here today? That's him.
Slug.
The codefendant, Ronald Duggan.
Between the time you identified Foster Keyes as the shooter to the police and when you decided not to testify before the grand jury, how many times did Mr.
Duggan come to see you? Five, maybe six.
Yesterday you mentioned money.
It was always the same deal.
Slug would come up to me on the street, act all friendly.
He'd talk to me about Bigboy's shooting, and then he'd walk away.
And when I got home, there'd be money in the mailbox or under my door.
- How much money? - In all, almost $3,000.
Ms.
Rosario, yesterday you failed to identify Mr.
Duggan.
When I saw Slug sitting with Mr.
Wills, it startled me.
You know, took me back.
Why? I met Mr.
Wills before.
Under what circumstances? Slug took me to his office.
I told Mr.
Wills what Slug wanted me to say- that I didn't see who shot Bigboy and that I made a mistake when I picked his cousin out of the lineup.
Were you scared? I felt like I was trapped.
I didn't want to lie to Mr.
Wills, but Slug was sitting right there.
So yesterday when I asked you to identify the man who approached you- It was partly seeing them together.
But mostly it was the way Slug looked at me, like I was already dead.
I don't think anyone's ever accused me of being scary before, Ms.
Rosario.
Are you sure you were scared when you were in my office that day? You didn't seem scared.
I was scared of Slug.
Did Mr.
Duggan ever say he was going to hurt you? He didn't have to.
I knew what it meant when he asked me to change what I saw and then gave me money.
He gave you the money personally? No.
Then how do you know where it came from? I just knew.
It was obvious.
One time he said I was pretty, said pretty girls needed pretty things.
Another time he said he heard my uncle was in the hospital, and he knew that it would cost a lot of money.
He always said stuff like that.
And every time after I talked to him, somebody left me money.
Did you ever see who left the money? No, but I knew it was him because he was asking me all the time about Bigboy's shooting, telling me I didn't see what I saw.
Doesn't it make sense that he'd want to know why his cousin was being falsely accused? It wasn't false.
I saw Foster Keyes shoot Bigboy.
That is not what you told me in my office.
Slug wanted me to say that.
He was friendly.
He never harmed you or threatened to harm you? No, butJimmy Gordon's dead, isn't he? Yes.
But Calvin Rivers's fingerprints are on that gun, not Mr.
Duggan's.
Have you reached a verdict? We have, Your Honor.
On the first count of the indictment, murder in the first degree, as to the defendant, Calvin Jacob Rivers, how do you find? We find the defendant guilty.
On the first count of the indictment, murder in the first degree, as to the defendant, Foster Keyes, how do you find? We find the defendant not guilty.
On the first count of the indictment, murder in the first degree, as to the defendant Ronald Duggan, how do you find? We find the defendant not guilty.
On the counts of intimidating a witness and bribing a witness, as to the defendant, Ronald Duggan, how do you find? We find the defendant, Ronald Duggan, not guilty.
These are their stories.
I feel stupid takin'him back.
Everybody knows I dumped him.
It's embarrassin'.
I mean, me and Tommy got back together.
I know.
I'm sorry, Chantal.
I didn't mean you guys.
Neighborhood kid.
Henry Ware, 19.
Shot twice in the chest.
Wallet, keys and this in his pockets.
Coke? Looks like.
Good luck.
We'll let you know how it turns out.
Meantime, voucher that.
Hey, are those the witnesses? The ones that stuck around.
Friends of the deceased.
Hey, uh, you want to tell us what happened over here? Man, I don't know.
We were just sittin' here, talkin' with Bigboy.
Bigboy? That's what we call Henry.
Anyway, we were just chillin' you know? Dude rides up outta nowhere, fires off a couple.
- The dude say anything to Bigboy? - Yeah, like, "Keep your hands off the goods.
" Something like that.
And then what happened? Then we were screamin' and stuff, and we couldn't believe it.
Henry just grabs his chest and falls down.
What about the shooter? Rode off that way.
You think they knew each other? I don't know.
Never seen him before.
What'd he look like? Kinda dark-skinned.
About our age.
Older, maybe.
Twenty, twenty-one.
Anything else? What? What's wrong? He had, like, a weird eye.
A weird eye? Somethin'wrong with it.
His right eye.
It was all white.
White? Messed up.
Kinda milky-looking.
You got any idea what this was about? No idea.
What about drugs? Was he dealing? Dealing? Nah.
No way.
Detectives? We got something here.
All right.
Stick around and give your numbers to the sergeant, all right? We gotta make sure these kids are on the level.
I mean, if he was dealing, this is an ordinary drug killing.
I got a C.
I.
in this neighborhood we could talk to.
Yeah, we got some pretty good tire tracks here.
Yeah.
That's where the witnesses said the shooter rode off that way.
Well, we can take pictures, make a cast.
Maybe we'll get something.
All right, cool.
Thanks.
Okay.
We might as well start canvassing the neighborhood.
See if anybody saw a kid on a bike? That oughta narrow it down.
Sorry.
I never seen a dude with a weird eye sellin' coke or smack or anything else around here.
What about this guy? Fat kid.
I seen him around.
Wait.
Uh, Bigboy.
That's what they call him.
Yeah.
But he's small time, nickel and dime.
You're right.
He was dealing.
I guess his friends were just trying to protect his good name.
Hey, any idea who'd wanna take him out? Like I said, that dude was small time.
"Keep your hands off the goods.
" Maybe Bigboy was stepping on somebody else's turf.
You know who controls the corner where he got shot? Bigboy never sold nothing, all right? Kid was strictly a mule.
We heard he was selling a little on the side.
Nickels and dimes.
His friends said he liked a little taste too, now and then, so maybe he was dipping into your goods.
Listen, I caught Bigboy skimmin' on my stuff, you think I would have some mook on a bicycle take him out? I'll slap him up and down the street myself, make an example out of him.
And what about the shooter? Don't know no black kid with a bad eye.
If we find out you were ever even on the same subway car with him, - you're gonna wish you never dropped out of high school.
- I look worried to you? You wanna keep working this drug angle? Much as I love mingling with the lower crust, why don't we find out if the lab's got anything on those bike tracks? All right.
These don't look at all alike.
How can you be sure they're from the same bike? You know, I thought the same thing, too, but after comparing mold offset, sipe pattern and center rib appearance- You passed out from boredom? I determined that they're both Sinclair CoolJ's.
The only difference between the two tracks is tread wear.
So one tire's less worn than the other.
Not less worn.
Brand-new.
Being as how you're such a cycling enthusiast, would you happen to have a list of all the places that sell these things? Milky, kinda cloudy? Right.
So, was he in here or not? Kid said it was glass.
You know what? I had a neighbor that had a glass eye.
If you looked at it in the right light, it was white.
Did you sell this kid a tire? A Sinclair CoolJ.
And while I'm taking it off the hook, he tries to stuff a couple of Shimano pedals under his jacket.
I told him if he ever came back, I'd stick a Kooka crank right up his you-know-what.
When was this? Three, four weeks ago.
I don't suppose he used a credit card.
Now, that's funny.
On the other hand, how many black males, These days, they're mostly acrylic plastic.
Same as everything else.
Glass eyes aren't glass.
They still have to be maintained.
Maintained? Well, you see, the eye's natural fluid eats away at the artificial eyeball.
Now, this guy's eye is white, kinda milky.
Oh, yeah.
That can happen if you try to clean it yourself with rubbing alcohol, for example.
- What kind of records do you keep? - Basic stuff:name, age.
Race? No, but we file by eye color.
Okay, brown-eyed patients, 16 to 25.
How many are we talking about? Here we go.
Uh, about 400-plus patients in that category.
Oh, God, I really thought this was gonna be a whole lot easier.
Now, this guy probably didn't have insurance.
You take those kind of cases? Oh, Medicaid? Sure.
Um, how's 50 or so sound? Prison guards don't talk to as many felons as we have today.
That's what you get for being so brilliant.
Yeah? We're looking for Foster Keyes.
He ain't in right now.
Who are you? I'm his cousin, man.
What's this all about? A shooting.
What you tryin' to say, Foster shot somebody? We think maybe that he saw something.
Hmm.
You got a card or something? I'll give it to him when I see him.
You happen to know where he is now? I'll tell him to give you a holler.
Yeah, you do that.
Mm-hmm.
You check out the prison tats on that dude? If Keyes is our man, Cousin Helpful here is gonna tip him off faster than you can say "aiding and abetting.
" Yo.
Hey, uh, what's up? Y'all know Foster Keyes? Look, we already know where he lives.
We just wanna know where he hangs out.
I hear he got a new girl.
You crazy? I ain't afraid of him.
I hate that punk.
Other day I was sitting right outside on the stoop, wasn't bothering nobody.
Fos, he come up and jack my Game Boy.
- You know the girl's name? - No, but I seen her hanging out at the projects on 168th.
Yo, am I gonna get my Game Boy back? We'll do our best.
Later, y'all.
I been here six years.
Believe me, if he lived here, I'd know.
Not him.
We think his girlfriend lives here.
Who is it? It's the police.
Can you open up? I just need to ask you a question.
Hold on.
Lennie.
Thanks anyway.
Never mind.
It's the police! Open the door! What's goin' on? Where is he? - Who? I'm the only one here.
- I heard voices.
Your boyfriend.
- Boyfriend? I ain't got no boyfriend.
- Foster Keyes! Where is he? Kitchen's clear.
Is that the bedroom? How long you known Foster? - Ed.
! - Stay right here.
I ain't do nothing.
Good.
Then you can come out of the closet.
The witnesses are waiting outside.
Yo-ho-ho and a bottle of rum.
What's up with the pirates? The witnesses said the shooter had a weird eye.
I figured this would rule out a bad I.
D.
Oh, hey, y'all.
This is Shayna.
Shayna, this is Lieutenant Van Buren.
Hey, Shayna.
They can't see me, right? Not even with two eyes.
Just take your time.
He wasn't wearing a patch when I saw him.
We know.
Take a good look.
You see the shooter? Number three.
You sure? That's the one.
He shot Bigboy.
I don't even need to see his bad eye.
That's him.
You'd be willing to say that in court? It's the truth.
It wasn't me.
Two witnesses saw you pull the trigger.
What were they, hallucinating? Maybe they're trying to frame me up.
Now, why would they do that? I don't know.
A mistaken identity? Yeah, right.
So where were you that day, around 3:30 in the afternoon? Hanging with my boys.
Hanging out where? La Guardia Houses.
That's 150th Street.
Yeah.
The whole time? All day, all night.
Till midnight almost.
You were there the whole time? You didn't go anywhere? No.
Okay.
So who was riding your bike I don't know.
Foster, you can't be two places at once.
See, we got a scientist who can prove that your bike made the tracks that we found at the crime scene.
And whoever was riding that bike shot and killed Bigboy.
And since we got two witnesses that saw you- Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa.
And unless you can prove it wasn't you- Well, how am I supposed to do that? You're going down.
Murder two.
That ain't right.
I can't help it if somebody took my bike! Then help us out here, man.
Maybe we can help you get out from under this.
Mr.
Keyes's attorney, Gerard Wills.
Foster thanks you for the hot coffee, but the interview's over, Detectives.
I heard about your charade of a lineup.
Two eyewitnesses identified Mr.
Keyes as the shooter.
How do you know they didn't see some guy with an eye patch pull the trigger? Mr.
Wills, their initial I.
D.
's said nothing about an eye patch.
They were all about a guy with a bad eye.
Milky white.
Sound like anyone you know? Argue misidentification until you're blue, Mr.
Wills.
Do you really think that a jury's going to believe your client with his record over two eyewitnesses who are solid citizens? Nobody else saw Mr.
Keyes allegedly in the park when Mr.
Ware got shot.
We got forensic evidence puts your client's bicycle at the scene.
Junk science.
Those tracks could have been made any time that day.
We found drugs on the dead boy, and your client has a well-documented history of dealing in narcotics.
Not in that neighborhood.
He never sold or bought drugs from Henry Ware.
Sounds like your two eyewitnesses are your whole case.
Tell your client that he would be smart to plead this one out.
I'll convey your offer, Miss Southerlyn.
Don't hold your breath.
We think this was about drugs.
Some sort of dispute over territory, customers.
We're still working it.
How good are your eyewitnesses? Jimmy Gordon's got a steady job and the other one, Shayna Rosario, is going part-time to Lower Manhattan Community College.
What about forensics? We never found the gun.
We have the bike tracks.
But Wills is right.
It really rests on these witnesses.
Teenagers.
You never know how they'll hold up in court.
Better shore up the drug angle.
I knew something like this would happen sooner or later.
I told Henry he needed to stop what he was doing and get a real job like his boyJimmy.
But you know kids.
They think they bulletproof.
They think they gonna live forever.
Do you know if your brother ever bought or sold drugs up at the 168th Street projects? I don't.
Sorry.
It's not like he would've told me if he did.
As far as I know, he didn't know anybody up there.
Why? It's where the police found Keyes.
Keyes? Foster Keyes.
The man charged with Henry's murder.
He was staying with some girl.
Jannette Richards? Jannette? Maybe Henry hung out with a girl named Jannette sometimes.
Um- AskJimmy.
- Jimmy Gordon.
- Yeah.
He and Henry have been best friends since forever.
If anybody would know, he would.
Yo, Ma, calm down.
I am not going to calm down, not after what happened this morning.
What happened this morning? First, he gets another one of those phone calls.
Jimmy, you've been threatened? Yeah.
Saying he's gonna die if he keeps talking to you all.
How many of these calls have you gotten? Three, four a week maybe, since they arrested the dude that shot Bigboy.
You recognize the voice? Just some guy.
I don't know who.
The calls are the least of it.
He's leaving the house this morning, some kid walks up to him with a gun, waving it in his face.
- Never seen him before.
- I've been telling him this is not worth dying for.
He won't be the only witness, Mrs.
Gordon.
Shayna Rosario has agreed to testify too.
If she wants to put her life on the line, that's her choice.
I gotta do this, Ma.
Bigboy was my best friend.
How would it look if Shayna testified and I didn't? We'll investigate the threats, Mrs.
Gordon.
I'll talk to the D.
A.
's office.
They'll arrange some protection for your son during the trial.
- What kind of protection? - He'll get a police escort to and from the courthouse.
That ain't much.
What about when he goes to the corner to get me a quart of milk? Is there anyone he could stay with for a while, outside the neighborhood? - You could go to your aunt's in Brooklyn.
- All right.
Now listen to me,Jimmy.
You need to stay at your aunt's till the trial is over.
Do not go back to your old neighborhood.
Do you hear what I'm sayin'? I ain't afraid of these guys.
Bunch of punks.
Jimmy.
All right.
Okay.
I heard they found the shooter hidin' in some girl's closet.
Jannette Richards.
Jannette? You know her? That's Foster's girl.
Bigboy was messin'with her the other night.
I told y'all it wasn't about no drugs.
I've changed my mind.
What happened, Shayna? Were you threatened? The more I thought about it, the more I realized I wasn't sure who pulled the trigger.
She just doesn't want the wrong guy goin' to jail.
We can protect you.
She doesn't need protection.
She's not testifying.
Shayna, how are you gonna feel if Henry's killer goes free? If he kills somebody else? You don't need me.
You gotJimmy.
I already told the lieutenant I ain't scared.
Yeah, well, it's all right if you are.
But I ain't.
The grand jury's gonna be the easy part.
There won't be a defense attorney there to attack your story and try and trip you up.
But when we get to the actual trial, Foster Keyes is gonna be there staring at you.
Yeah, with his one good eye.
And his friends and his family are gonna be there.
The defense attorney is really gonna go after you.
He's gonna practically call you a liar.
He'll challenge everything you say.
Bring it on.
I can handle it.
All I got to do is tell the truth, right? You'll be fine.
Bigboy was real easy-going.
Jannette just pushed him too far.
She kept saying he was so fat he could never hook up with a girl even if he did find one that would have him.
That's when he slapped her.
How did she react to that? She was angry? Real angry.
She kept screaming at him, saying he was gonna be sorry he ever laid a hand on her.
What else did she say? Said she was gonna tell her boyfriend.
He'd make it all right.
Was that the end of it? Couple weeks later, we were hangin'out in the park.
Dude rides up and shoots Bigboy.
I mean Henry.
Do you see that person in the courtroom? Him.
The defendant.
Foster Keyes.
Did Mr.
Keyes say anything before he shot your friend? He said, "Keep your hands off the goods.
" Then he shot him.
No more questions.
Where are the police on the threats toJimmy Gordon? All of the calls came from various pay phones.
There's no way to trace them.
As soon as we convict Mr.
Keyes of murdering Henry Ware, I'm going to indict him for witness intimidation.
Isn't that a little overkill? Keyes will be serving 20 to life.
We're sending a message.
We protect witnesses.
Go ahead.
Sorry.
Southerlyn.
Neighbor heard shots, saw a black male walking from the scene.
We found your card in the dead boy's pocket.
Thanks.
I told him to call me if he needed anything.
I wish he had.
Counselor! What the hell happened? We don't know yet.
Maybe he came back to see a girl.
I thought that the police were keeping an eye on him.
We were.
He was supposed to be in Brooklyn.
Your Honor,Jimmy Gordon's testimony was the crux of our case.
He was an eyewitness to the shooting and to the event that precipitated it.
Since I never had the opportunity of cross-examining him, his- His testimony can't come in.
Are there any more witnesses? There was one, but she was too frightened to appear before the grand jury.
I doubt she'll come forward now, in light of what's happened.
As I see it, Your Honor, Mr.
McCoy's just admitted he's got no case.
Consider this my motion to dismiss.
Motion to dismiss? Your client just added another murder to his rap sheet.
I'm afraid I'm going to have side with Mr.
Wills.
I still haveJimmy Gordon's grand jury testimony.
People v.
Hellenbrand.
The minutes of a witness's grand jury testimony can be read into evidence if the witness is no longer available.
Hellenbrand only applies if it's clear that the defendant is behind the witness's absence.
How much clearer could it be? What more do you want? A sign from God? I would settle for some proof.
Res ipsa loquitur, Your Honor.
That's Latin for "They got nothin'.
" If you want a few more days to shore up your case- A few days won't do me any good.
If you're not going to allow the grand jury testimony, at least give me leave to re-present when and if I have a new case.
Jeopardy has already attached, which means that the charges will have to be dismissed with prejudice.
Why not give the defendant a pat on the back on the way out? Out ofline, Mr.
McCoy.
If you find evidence that Mr.
Keyes was involved in the murder of this witness, you can charge him for it.
And if that happens, Mr.
Keyes better pray that he doesn't draw me as his judge.
Charges are dismissed.
Dismissed? You gotta be kidding me.
We'll keep workin' on him.
Try him again.
Double jeopardy.
He can't be tried again for killing Bigboy.
He has a witness killed, and he gets off? We have to prove he's involved.
Then we can ring him up for the murder ofJimmy Gordon.
But he walks on Henry Ware.
Fraid so.
Makes me wanna accidentally discharge my weapon.
The only way we're gonna get Foster Keyes is to tie him to whoever shotJimmy Gordon.
Aside from the description of a "young black male" and the two.
38 slugs they dug out of Gordon's back, we got zip from the crime scene.
What about the death threat list? Keyes's friends and associates? Keyes did a stint in juvie, a year in Attica, had three narcotics arrests.
I gotta say, the list goes on and on.
Let's start with the sign-in sheet at Rikers.
See if Keyes had any visitors while he was in custody for Bigboy's murder.
Maybe that's how they arranged the hit on Jimmy Gordon.
Who would've thought so many guys named "Bernard"visit prisons? I've seen three already.
Keyes was in custody for four weeks, and all we have so far on visits are who again? Three from his mom, one from Grandma, one from his sister.
Right, but no known felons.
Wait a minute.
"December 7, 3:06 p.
m.
Inmate: Foster Keyes.
Visitor- "X"- They signed with an "X"? So the security guard checked the driver's license and it had an "X" on it? Yeah, that and a picture of Benjamin Franklin was all the I.
D.
he needed.
Hmm.
Sometimes I'm doin' three things at once.
Maybe I didn't look at his signature close enough.
All right, bro, maybe we didn't make this clear.
Keyes may have hired your Mr.
X to kill a witness in his trial.
At best, you screwed up big time.
Besides losing your job and your pension, you might be looking at a civil suit, wrongful death- I swear, if I remembered anything about the guy- Think.
Is there any other way we can track him down? No.
These are the only records in here.
You know, some of the inmates arrange to bump into somebody on the way to the courthouse.
Or in the courthouse.
I only worked the first couple days of the Keyes trial.
Appendicitis.
Okay.
Sometimes the judge allows courtroom visitors.
Come to think of it, Keyes did have some family in the gallery.
Judge allowed them to visit for a few minutes one day before they sent Keyes back to Rikers.
Anybody look suspicious? They all did.
I recognized one of'em.
He was a defendant in another case.
About your complexion, maybe a little lighter, built like a tank, jailhouse tattoos.
Did he have one on his neck? Cousin Helpful.
You're in a world of trouble now, Mr.
X.
Why? 'Cause I went to go visit my little cousin? Because the only witness in your little cousin's case took two bullets.
You didn't think that was going to come back on you, genius? You've been arrested twice for homicide and the only reason you ain't spending time in a 6-by-9 now is those witnesses happened to go away.
Hey, that's- that's cute, man.
What, that's supposed to make me confess or something? You can laugh all you want to, but we don't need a confession from you.
And we're gonna add witness intimidation to your case.
The jury's gonna eat that up.
Man, I ain't intimidate nobody.
And I definitely ain't killed this Gordon kid you talkin' about.
You got an alibi? When'd it go down? Between 8:00 and 10:00 last night.
Boom.
I was hanging out up at Ray's Famous up on 126th.
Matter of fact, I'll even chill with you down at the station while you check on that, long as I ain't under arrest.
All right.
Boom.
Get your ass in the car.
He was at Ray's from 8:00 to midnight.
The counter man, the owner and two regulars all remember him.
He made sure everybody got a good look at him.
We sure he's the one behind Jimmy Gordon's shooting? He's Keyes's cousin.
Homey plays the system like a Stradivarius.
Visits Rikers under the table, has his crew intimidate witnesses.
He's got the whole neighborhood under his thumb.
You know what his street name is? Slug.
And it ain't 'cause he moves slow.
We've been lookin'through his arrest reports.
Any luck? A couple of years ago Slug was picked up for an armed robbery with a guy named Calvin Jacob Rivers.
They knocked over a bar.
Allegedly.
- Let me guess.
- Yup.
Two dozen witnesses suddenly developed simultaneous amnesia.
This guy's a walking epidemic.
- Yeah, he's a public health menace.
- Go lean on this Rivers character and see if we can use him to get any leverage on Mr.
Slug.
What's goin'on? You don't mind if we come in, do you, Mr.
Rivers? Your P.
O.
told us you'd be crashing at your grandma's crib.
Yeah.
She ain't here right now.
You know, you haven't talked to your P.
O.
in quite a while.
That's a parole violation.
You ought to give him a call.
I've been busy.
Yeah, murder has a way of screwing up your whole schedule, doesn't it? Murder? What are you talkin' about? Hey, where's he going? Oh, wejust wanna make sure you don't have any illegal substances stashed on the premises.
That's a parole violation too, remember? I ain't done nothing wrong.
Look what I found under the mattress: a.
38 and a stack of 20s.
Cat got your tongue? That's okay, 'cause you have the right to remain silent.
Anything you do say can and will be used against you in a court of law.
We have your client's prints all over the gun.
I have no doubt that ballistics will identify it as the weapon that killed Jimmy Gordon.
Even if you prove it is the gun, you can't connect it to my client.
The police found the gun under the mattress.
In his grandmother's apartment, not his.
So what, Granny did it? - What's the deal? - Shooting a witness is a capital crime in New York.
You give us Ronald Duggan, and I'll knock it down to murder two, 20 to life.
Who's Duggan? Slug.
Look, I'll be candid.
My client has certain- Let me put it this way.
He might not fully understand the ramifications here.
Ronald Duggan, a.
k.
a.
Slug, hired your client, Calvin Rivers, to murderJimmy Gordon, a witness against Foster Keyes, Duggan's cousin.
No, he didn't.
He testifies against Mr.
Duggan- - I ain't gonna do that.
- Calvin, please don't say anything.
This was all about a pair of kicks.
That's it.
Are you saying you killed Jimmy Gordon over a pair of shoes? Not another word.
I think this meeting's over.
Come.
Remind me again.
Who are the bad guys? Slug masterminded the intimidation of witnesses and the murder ofJimmy Gordon, the star witness in the Foster Keyes case.
Rivers was the triggerman.
You got the goods on Rivers? Ballistics identified the gun we found in his grandmother's apartment as the one used to shoot Gordon.
Can you connect him back to Slug and Keyes? Without his testimony, our case is thin.
We know that Rivers and Slug were accomplices in an armed robbery once.
Other than that- And Rivers won't deal? Apparently, he's more afraid of Slug than he is of the State of New York.
Who was that other witness? You know, the one that got cold feet before we could get her before a grand jury.
Shayna Rosario.
If Slug threatened her, and we can convince her to testify, we might be able to establish him as the mastermind behind theJimmy Gordon murder.
I'll take another crack at her.
Look, I told you.
Nobody threatened me.
As soon as you give us a statement, we can arrest Slug.
Jail won't stop him.
You don't think I know what happened toJimmy? As long as I keep my mouth shut, I'll be safe.
Not necessarily.
Slug may reach out and try to silence you on the chance you might testify.
Yeah, now he might, somebody sees you here.
- If my father knew you were here right now- - We're going to protect you.
Like you protected Jimmy? We'll move you and your family outside the city.
Someplace safe.
Police! Open up! Yo, hold on.
Now! All right, drop the cards and get your hands up.
Come on, man, I got aces over eights.
That's a Hickok.
A what? A dead man's hand.
Detective.
Train ticket.
Oh, you going someplace, Slug? Yeah.
I was gonna go visit my aunt in Virginia.
No, you ain't.
You're under arrest for the murder ofJimmy Gordon.
You too, Foster.
Man, I'm getting tired of you.
Well, you might as well get used to it 'cause we're gonna keep doin' this till you get it right.
Docket ending 235.
People v.
Calvin Rivers, Foster Keyes, Ronald Duggan.
Charges are murder in the first degree, witness intimidation and bribing a witness.
Defendants, how do you plead? Mr.
Rivers pleads not guilty.
Mr.
Keyes pleads not guilty.
I thought Mr.
Wills was representing Mr.
Keyes? Not anymore.
I'm Mr.
Keyes's attorney now, Your Honor.
Mr.
Wills, I assume you're here for a reason.
I'm representing Mr.
Duggan, who pleads not guilty, Your Honor.
People on bail? The police found a duffel bag and a train ticket in Mr.
Duggan's apartment.
He was going to visit his aunt.
Not today.
Defendants are remanded.
Your Honor, because of the nature of these crimes, we're going to request a lockdown.
I need to make a sealed record before you in support of that.
Your Honor, is that really necessary? Apparently so, Miss Xiao.
I'll hear from the People, ex parte.
You will hear how these three defendants, Ronald Duggan, Foster Keyes and Calvin Rivers, murdered Jimmy Gordon.
You will hear how Ronald Duggan, known on the street as "Slug, " arranged to have the State's star witness in the murder trial of his cousin, Foster Keyes, killed.
In order to accomplish this, he enlisted the third defendant, Calvin Rivers, to pull the trigger.
Their plan worked.
Jimmy Gordon was murdered before he could finish testifying, and the charges against Foster Keyes were dismissed.
This is a crime, the murder of a witness, that threatens the foundation of our judicial process.
A crime so heinous it is punishable by death in the State of New York.
Make no mistake.
All three men are guilty of this crime, which tears at the very fabric of our civil society and our system of laws.
But Ronald Duggan- Slug- is the man behind this murder.
A man who cast a pall of fear and violence over an entire neighborhood.
You will hear how he has bribed witnesses, intimidated them and finally killed them in furtherance of his criminal activities.
It's up to you to end his reign of terror.
Ms.
Rosario, when were you first approached about the murder of Henry Ware? A few weeks before I was supposed to testify before the grand jury.
Against Foster Keyes? Yes.
Did you recognize the man who approached you? No.
I'd never seen him before.
What did he say? Said he had a message.
Said somebody was gonna come talk to me and give me some money.
Did that in fact happen? Yes.
Did you recognize this second person who approached you? - No.
- What did he say to you? He started asking me about Bigboy's shooting, asking me what I saw.
Did you tell him? I tried to, but every time I said something about seeing the shooter with the weird eye, he said I was wrong, said I must've made a mistake.
He said you were mistaken about your identification of the man who shot Henry Ware? Said I picked the wrong man out of the lineup.
He said I should tell the police I didn't see who did it.
Do you see the man who intimidated you in the courtroom? Objection, Your Honor.
I never heard the witness say she was intimidated.
Rephrase, Mr.
McCoy.
Do you see the man who talked to you about Bigboy's murder, the man who said you were mistaken when you identified Foster Keyes as the person who shot Henry Ware? Ms.
Rosario, do you see the person who approached you? I'm not sure.
My chambers.
Now.
Ms.
Rosario, can you identify one of the defendants as the man who approached you or not? This morning I got a call on my cell.
What kind of a call? A threat.
He said I was gonna die.
Shayna, why didn't you tell us? Because if I thought about it, I knew I couldn't go through with this.
And then when I saw Slug sitting next to Mr.
Wills, I just- I don't understand, Ms.
Rosario.
What has Mr.
Wills got to do with this? Mr.
Wills, please step back in the courtroom.
Your Honor- Now! Take your colleagues with you.
What's this about? Slug was the one who talked to me about Bigboy's murder.
Mr.
Duggan.
Right.
And the last time I saw him, he took me to see Mr.
Wills.
Let me see if I understand this.
Mr.
Duggan took you to see Mr.
Wills while Mr.
Wills was representing Mr.
Keyes for murder.
- Yes.
- Your Honor- Let's gojoin Mr.
Wills in the courtroom, Mr.
McCoy.
What do you say? I want this on the record.
So do I.
A witness came to me and recanted.
It happens.
Slug was sitting next to her, telling her what to say.
What did you think was going on? I don't know who I'm more appalled by right now, Mr.
Wills, you or your clients.
I know who I'm more appalled by.
He said he was a friend ofhers, supporting her while she came forward to say that she had made a mistake.
He was not intimidating her.
Mr.
Wills, if you were complicit in any sort of witness intimidation- Absolutely not, Your Honor.
! And I will stake my professional reputation of 22 years on it! Whatever that's worth! I intend to question Ms.
Rosario about this meeting and about why she didn't identify the defendant on the stand! Ifhe is talking about this morning's alleged threatening phone call, he can't prove that it came from any of the defendants.
In fact, seeing as they were in lockdown, it would be impossible! Let's not be naive! It's obvious where the call came from! I'll give you a day, Mr.
McCoy.
If you can prove that the call originated from the witnesses or anyone acting on their behalf, you can question the witness about it tomorrow on the stand.
If not- Let's just hope she isn't dead by then.
Excuse me? That's what I thought.
At least he didn't charge you with contempt.
He knows my contempt is for Wills and his clients, not the court.
What about the girl? Will she be ready to testify? I'm gonna meet with her in the morning and go over everything one last time.
And the phone call? The police traced it to a disposable cell phone.
Well, so much for lockdown.
And they bribed the guard? Probably.
Which means we can't prove the defendants made the call.
Not before tomorrow anyway.
The jury won't hear about the threat.
Even with Shayna's testimony, Slug's insulated himself from Rivers.
If we're not careful, Rivers will end up taking the load for Slug and Keyes.
I'm sure that's exactly what they have in mind.
You'll have to remind the jury that Slug's calling the shots.
Yesterday you started to tell us about a man who talked to you about the murder of Henry Ware.
Do you see him here today? That's him.
Slug.
The codefendant, Ronald Duggan.
Between the time you identified Foster Keyes as the shooter to the police and when you decided not to testify before the grand jury, how many times did Mr.
Duggan come to see you? Five, maybe six.
Yesterday you mentioned money.
It was always the same deal.
Slug would come up to me on the street, act all friendly.
He'd talk to me about Bigboy's shooting, and then he'd walk away.
And when I got home, there'd be money in the mailbox or under my door.
- How much money? - In all, almost $3,000.
Ms.
Rosario, yesterday you failed to identify Mr.
Duggan.
When I saw Slug sitting with Mr.
Wills, it startled me.
You know, took me back.
Why? I met Mr.
Wills before.
Under what circumstances? Slug took me to his office.
I told Mr.
Wills what Slug wanted me to say- that I didn't see who shot Bigboy and that I made a mistake when I picked his cousin out of the lineup.
Were you scared? I felt like I was trapped.
I didn't want to lie to Mr.
Wills, but Slug was sitting right there.
So yesterday when I asked you to identify the man who approached you- It was partly seeing them together.
But mostly it was the way Slug looked at me, like I was already dead.
I don't think anyone's ever accused me of being scary before, Ms.
Rosario.
Are you sure you were scared when you were in my office that day? You didn't seem scared.
I was scared of Slug.
Did Mr.
Duggan ever say he was going to hurt you? He didn't have to.
I knew what it meant when he asked me to change what I saw and then gave me money.
He gave you the money personally? No.
Then how do you know where it came from? I just knew.
It was obvious.
One time he said I was pretty, said pretty girls needed pretty things.
Another time he said he heard my uncle was in the hospital, and he knew that it would cost a lot of money.
He always said stuff like that.
And every time after I talked to him, somebody left me money.
Did you ever see who left the money? No, but I knew it was him because he was asking me all the time about Bigboy's shooting, telling me I didn't see what I saw.
Doesn't it make sense that he'd want to know why his cousin was being falsely accused? It wasn't false.
I saw Foster Keyes shoot Bigboy.
That is not what you told me in my office.
Slug wanted me to say that.
He was friendly.
He never harmed you or threatened to harm you? No, butJimmy Gordon's dead, isn't he? Yes.
But Calvin Rivers's fingerprints are on that gun, not Mr.
Duggan's.
Have you reached a verdict? We have, Your Honor.
On the first count of the indictment, murder in the first degree, as to the defendant, Calvin Jacob Rivers, how do you find? We find the defendant guilty.
On the first count of the indictment, murder in the first degree, as to the defendant, Foster Keyes, how do you find? We find the defendant not guilty.
On the first count of the indictment, murder in the first degree, as to the defendant Ronald Duggan, how do you find? We find the defendant not guilty.
On the counts of intimidating a witness and bribing a witness, as to the defendant, Ronald Duggan, how do you find? We find the defendant, Ronald Duggan, not guilty.