Law & Order (1990) s23e05 Episode Script
Last Dance
1
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 love seeing new people
out here at 5:00 a.m.
Tells me I'm not insane.
I mean, it's 20 degrees.
It's dark, but I can't
not do it, you know?
It's like a drug.
Like this dirty, shameful
secret I keep from everyone.
That's ridiculous.
Ex excuse me?
Don't be ashamed of who you are.
Yeah. I I'm not.
[CHUCKLES]
I was just kidding.
[EERIE MUSIC]
♪
[CAMERA SHUTTER CLICKS]
What do we got?
No wallet, no ID.
She either fell, or she was pushed.
But that's not why she's dead.
Bruising around the neck.
Petechial hemorrhaging.
She was strangled.
Any sign of sexual assault?
No.
So she came out for a morning jog,
and then someone attacked her.
- It looks that way.
- Not to me.
Who goes jogging in those?
Okay, so she came out
for a morning walk.
And then somebody attacked her. Better?
No.
But it's more accurate.
♪
[DRAMATIC MUSIC]
♪
I was on my second lap,
and I saw her body on the ground, so
I called 911.
And she was dead?
I think so.
I saw her earlier too. We
talked for a few seconds.
About what?
"It's so cold. It's so early."
She say anything specific or unusual?
No.
But she seemed distracted
- and very intense.
- How do you mean?
I was just blathering on
about how ridiculous it is
to run so early in the morning.
That it was my dirty secret.
And and she took it literally.
Said I-I shouldn't be
ashamed or keep secrets.
Did you happen to notice anybody else
on the jogging path near the body?
There there were a few other joggers.
And there was a guy standing over there.
Just standing there, not
not jogging or anything?
No, he he was just staring
at me and the dead woman.
Then he walked off toward the boathouse.
Do you remember what
this man looked like?
Average height.
And and he was wearing an
orange vest over his jacket.
[INDISTINCT RADIO CHATTER]
Orange vest? That could be our guy.
- All right.
- Yep.
Excuse me, sir.
I need to ask you a couple questions.
- Hey!
- [TENSE MUSIC]
Police, stop!
[GRUNTS]
Where did you get this, Miguel?
It was in your pocket, bro.
Where'd you get it?
[SPEAKING SPANISH]
I didn't kill that woman.
Then why'd you run?
I got nervous.
I don't like the police.
I didn't kill that lady.
What are you doing in the park so early?
I have a job here in the park.
I punch in at 6:00 every day.
See, that part makes sense.
What doesn't make sense
is that you have a woman's necklace
in your pocket.
She was dead,
and I took it.
- She was already dead, huh?
- Yes.
Anybody else near the body?
There was a white guy,
and he was wearing a black hat
or or brown?
And there was an orange letter on it.
That's all I remember.
That's it?
All right, maybe a trip
down to the precinct'll
help jog your memory. Let's go.
- Come on, man.
- Come on.
So Miguel's boss confirms
he clocks in every morning at 6:00 a.m.
And, for what it's worth,
says he's a good guy.
A good guy who steals
necklaces off of dead bodies.
All right, let's hold
Miguel on the stolen necklace
and see if we can find anything else
that connects him to the murder.
And there's an inscription
on the back of the necklace
VK Loba?
Is that a last name?
Loba's a dating app.
Dating app. Mm-hmm.
[KEYS CLACKING]
Yeah, dating app founded
by Veronica Knight.
There's our VK.
Yeah, that's definitely her.
Veronica's intention
was to empower women
in the dating process,
so she created an app
and a community where
females control the narrative
from start to finish.
All right, let's track down her family,
make the notification.
In the meantime, I'm gonna hold Miguel
on the necklace.
Once again, we can't
stress how sorry we are
about your sister.
From what I read, she
seemed like an amazing woman.
Thank you.
You said they found her
body in Central Park?
At 5:00 a.m.?
Why on earth would she be there?
We don't know.
Was she a jogger?
She works out sometimes, but, uh, no.
Was she dating anyone?
No.
No? You you're sure?
I mean, she's young,
attractive, wealthy
I get it. [LAUGHS SADLY]
Trust me, I set her up
with every handsome,
successful guy I met,
but she never hit it
off with any of them.
Drove me crazy.
Was there anything unusual going on?
Any threats or arguments?
Not that I was aware of.
But she found a new
psychiatrist a few months ago.
I asked if everything was okay,
but she didn't wanna talk about it.
I can't believe Veronica is dead.
It's hard to wrap my head around it,
to be honest.
How long were you two
working with each other?
Three months.
Did she ever reveal anything that
could be connected to her murder?
Like a aggressive
ex-boyfriend or a stalker?
I can't.
Our conversations are
privileged and confidential.
I understand where
you're coming from, Doc,
but she's dead.
Because somebody murdered
her. Likely somebody she knows.
I need to talk to my attorney.
[SIGHS]
Let us know.
I don't know, man. There's something
- she doesn't want us to know.
- Yeah.
[CELL PHONE RINGING]
Oh, it's Dixon.
- Hey, Lieu.
- Hey.
Remember Miguel in the
park saw a white guy
wearing a hat with an
orange letter on it?
We just found video of
a guy wearing a black hat
with an orange P on it exiting the park.
The video came from
an apartment building
on 76th and 5th.
Nice work, boss. Thanks.
Yeah.
I see this guy all the time.
He walks into the park around 4:45,
then pops back out around 5:30.
- Can you tell us what this guy looks like?
- Sure.
About 55?
Average height.
This got something to do with
that lady who got strangled?
- Could be.
- And you think this guy
- might be the one
- We're still investigating, so.
Tell you what I'm gonna do.
Next time I see him, I'm
gonna sneak over, and
No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no.
Promise me you're not
gonna do that, all right?
Leave the police work
to the police, okay?
- Suit yourself.
- You've been a big help, though.
- Thank you very much.
- All right.
All right.
So our guy jogs every morning,
even in the dead of winter.
Means he's dedicated, he's driven.
He probably lives around here,
one of the priciest
neighborhoods in the city.
Meaning?
Good chance that orange
P stands for Princeton.
[CLICKS TONGUE]
All the male Princeton alumni
between the ages of 45 and 60
who live between 65th and 80,
east of 5th, west of Lexington.
13 names in total.
Five Asian, three Black.
And out of the remaining
five, two moved to Miami,
one to Dallas, one to LA.
And so the only name left is
Scott Kelton.
The Itelex guy?
13th richest man alive.
And according to the article
I just read in "Forbes,"
guess who likes to take a run around
the Central Park Reservoir
every morning at 5:00 a.m.?
♪
Yeah, I go on a run every
morning, rain or shine.
Is this about Veronica Knight?
I-I read about what happened.
You happen to see Veronica that morning?
No, uh, but I-I did hear
someone scream, a woman.
Pulled out my earbuds and looked around,
but I didn't see anything.
Where'd you hear the scream?
Um, east of the boathouse,
around 76th, maybe?
So you heard a woman scream,
you took out your earbuds,
and then what?
Well, I called 911.
But the operator I spoke to
didn't seem overly concerned,
said I should call
back when I actually see
something illegal occur.
You guys have any suspects?
We're still investigating.
Well, let me know if you need anything.
I actually knew Veronica.
She worked for me, just out of college.
- Really?
- Yeah, I didn't know her real well,
but, uh, I was very fond of her.
Did you guys keep in touch?
We saw each other on occasion.
Exchanged texts every now and again.
She actually she reached
out to me a few weeks ago.
Did you respond?
No.
Um, it was nothing personal.
I just I get lots of texts.
Lots of invitations to catch
up and talk, have dinner.
Um, over time, I found the best way
to handle this is to not respond.
Fair enough.
So when is the last time
you actually saw her?
Um, it would have been at
the Milken Conference in LA
- about six months ago.
- Hmm.
Did you notice anybody else
in the park that morning?
You know, after I heard
the scream, I looked around,
and there was this man standing nearby.
He had a big red hat. Plaid, I think.
It kind of reminded me of
the one Holden Caulfield wore,
you know.
I've seen him around the park before.
I think he owns a vendor cart.
Anyway, I asked him
if he heard the scream,
and he just kind of
ignored me, walked away.
So Kelton's story checks out.
He called 911 at 5:08 a.m.
And we confirmed that Veronica
did work for him right after college.
- For how long?
- Three years.
- Any recent texts, emails?
- Several.
Most recent one was from ten days ago
sent from Veronica to Kelton, said,
"I wanna talk. When's
a good day and time?"
There was a couple of other ones,
one from a month ago, one six weeks ago,
almost the exact same.
"I wanna talk. Let me
know when you're available."
None of them returned.
Not even like, "I'm sorry, I'm busy"?
- That's how Kelton rolls.
- Okay.
Let's look into the man
that Kelton said he
saw at the reservoir.
And I'll get a tech to
start scrubbing videos
in the general area.
In the meantime, you
two hit the pavement
and see if you can find this vendor
with the Holden Caulfield hat.
Again with the Holden
Caulfield references.
That's, like, one of
my favorite characters.
It's crazy how much white
people love that guy.
Excuse me, sir.
Sir?
Gotta ask you some questions.
Where's your license?
It's right there.
I just got it renewed three weeks ago.
What time you open up in the morning?
Depends on the day.
How 'bout Tuesday?
Around 5:00 a.m.
Got a lot of hungry hotel employees
get out of work around then.
That's a good-looking scratch.
How'd you get that?
A cat scratched me.
You take a walk by the
reservoir in the morning?
No. I hate water.
You ever seen this lady?
No.
But she's cute. Why don't you
tell her to give me a call?
You're wasting your
time selling donuts, bro.
[CELL PHONE BEEPS] You
should be doing stand-up.
[OMINOUS MUSIC]
Hey.
♪
You know what? We're gonna
take this talk to the station, okay?
- Oh, come on.
- Come on. Let's go.
[SIGHS]
I told you before, we have an eyewitness
that puts you near
the dead woman's body!
And we know you like attacking women.
It says right there
felony sexual assault.
That sexual-assault
thing is a bunch of crap!
Okay, I was dating this
woman, and she got pissed off
that I dumped her, so she
she tried to shake me down!
We know that you were involved.
Yes, yes, we know. [KNOCKING AT DOOR]
So why don't you just
tell us what happened?
Guys.
Come on.
Veronica was sexually
assaulted six years ago.
And she was just
beginning to process it,
come to terms with it.
Was she gonna file a police report?
She was on the fence.
But she was definitely determined
to confront her assailant.
She thought it would
help reclaim her power.
Dignity.
You know the name of the
man who assaulted her?
[TENSE MUSIC]
♪
Detectives.
Excuse me.
Where are you
Scott Kelton?
Uh, hold on a minute, Mike.
I'm in the middle of a phone call he
Yeah, you're gonna
have to call him back.
You're under arrest for the
murder of Veronica Knight.
I wanna talk to my lawyer.
I'm here today to announce
that tech mogul Scott Kelton
has been charged in
connection with the murder
of Veronica Knight.
He was arrested last
evening by NYPD detectives.
He will be arraigned later this morning
by Deputy District Attorney Nolan Price.
- Mayor?
- Oh. Uh, thank you.
It's important for New Yorkers to know
that this was a targeted attack.
The brave men and women of
the New York Police Department
have been doing a fantastic job
to keep the city safe.
Mr. Mayor. Mr. Mayor!
Yes?
You have a long relationship
with Scott Kelton.
He donated lots of money
to your recent campaign.
Does that create any
sort of conflict for you?
I have tremendous confidence
in the district attorney.
Jack.
Mr. McCoy, you're up
for reelection this year.
What do you say to the accusation
that you charged Kelton
with murder because he's
the number one supporter
of your opponent?
I say that's preposterous.
Politics play absolutely
no role in this office.
Like anybody else,
Mr. Kelton is innocent
until proven guilty.
And this case will be
tried in a courtroom,
not at a press conference.
I invite the media to watch.
Thank you all for coming.
A word.
Thanks for coming, Mr. Mayor.
I hope you know what
the hell you're doing.
The man is a New York icon.
Second only to the
Statue of Liberty, for God's sakes.
He has given more money to charity,
brought in more tax dollars
He also killed a
defenseless young woman.
Mm-hmm.
Like I said, I hope you know
what the hell you're doing.
[TENSE MUSIC]
♪
The press is eating
up Kelton's nonsense.
Well, his lawyer,
Grassley, is really good.
She's quite adept at smearing
the district attorney's reputation
- and manipulating the narrative.
- Mm-hmm.
Sad part is, people are
starting to buy into it.
They actually believe
we're bringing this case
to punish Kelton for not
supporting Jack's campaign.
- [LAUGHS] What? That's ridiculous.
- Well, of course it is.
But if you have unlimited funds
Look, Nolan, our case is strong.
There's no smoking gun, I get it.
But we have a lot of good evidence.
Veronica's therapists
will give us motive.
Miguel Lopez will put
him at the crime scene.
And Kelton's own actions.
His 911 call and his attempt
to frame the coffee vendor
will establish consciousness of guilt.
We should call the vendor to the stand.
You wanna make Walsh
part of our case in chief?
Grassley obviously plans
to blame him for the murder
and use his prior convictions,
his proximity to the park,
to create reasonable doubt.
So let's get out in front of that,
present Walsh as an innocent victim
before the defense paints
him out to be a monster.
Sir, were you selling donuts and coffee
near the park on the morning
Veronica Knight was killed?
Yes, sir.
I sell other items as well.
Do you know the defendant?
Yeah, comes by the cart
every morning after his run.
Orders the same thing every time
coffee, black, yogurt with blueberries.
Did he come to your cart after his run
on the morning Miss Knight was killed?
- No, sir.
- And that was unusual?
Yeah.
I assumed he was out of town or sick.
Did you ever engage in
conversation with the defendant?
Sure. All the time.
What'd you talk about?
All sorts of things.
Stock market, football.
Did you ever tell him about
your past legal problems?
Yes, sir.
Really helped me out.
He gave me $10,000 for a lawyer.
So he knew about your criminal record?
- Yeah.
- So he knew
that you were always near
the park early in the morning.
And he knew that you
had a criminal past.
So he knew that you would
be a good person to frame.
- Objection.
- Sustained.
Nothing further.
Let's talk about your legal problems.
- You have two prior convictions?
- Yes.
You were convicted of assault in 2010?
Yes.
A guy stole food from
my cart, so I hit him.
And you were convicted
of sexually assaulting a woman in 2019?
Yeah. I took a plea.
The woman, my ex, she
made the whole thing up,
so it's not like it sounds.
Oh, no, no. It's exactly like it sounds.
You were convicted of sexual assault.
[SUSPENSEFUL MUSIC]
You were in the park on
the morning of the murder?
Yes, I was.
So you admit that you were in the park
at the time of the murder
and that you have a history of violence,
but you want this jury to believe
that you had nothing to do
with Veronica Knight's murder.
Objection. Mr. Walsh
is not on trial here.
Sustained.
Nothing further.
♪
The facts are the facts.
Witnesses with a shady past
can only be so effective,
even if they're innocent.
I suppose so, but at least
it was us who introduced him.
End of the day, this
case comes down to motive.
We need to let the jury know why Kelton,
one of the most philanthropic
men in the world,
chose to kill Veronica Knight
while on an early morning
run around Central Park.
Mm-hmm.
Well, I'll talk to Dr. Andrews.
Let her know what's coming,
if I can get her on the damn phone.
I want to help. I really do.
But I can't.
I'm going to assert
therapist-patient privilege.
I-I thought you already discussed this
with your lawyer and Veronica's sister?
I did, but this isn't a legal decision.
What is it then?
It's an ethical one.
Ethical?
Veronica Knight is dead.
You can help convict the man
who killed her and raped her!
I understand that, but I'm a therapist.
The idea of disclosing
my client's deepest
and darkest secrets
Veronica's sister has consented
no, she wants you to testify,
which means you're free
to say whatever you want.
Yes, I know.
But my patients are concerned.
They've been emailing me.
They're upset.
They're worried their
secrets aren't safe anymore,
that I might be called to
testify against them one day.
They just want to know,
with 100% certainty,
that their secrets are safe.
I'm sorry. I truly am.
But I can't help you.
[SOMBER MUSIC]
How did it go with the judge?
Not so good. He allowed Dr.
Andrews' motion to quash,
so she is not going to testify.
Can you prove motive without her?
[SIGHS] Ah, I'm not sure.
Not the answer I wanted to hear.
I think we should consider a plea.
Is that what's best for the case?
A reasonable offer, it's the right move.
- Based on what?
- On the evidence.
It's a circumstantial
case to begin with.
Without a clear motive,
it just won't make sense.
The jurors will have
a hard time believing
someone like Scott Kelton
would attack an innocent woman
for no reason.
I wanna nail the guy as badly as you do,
but we can't risk an acquittal.
Then go ahead and make the
son of a bitch an offer.
Man One. Ten years.
Nothing less.
Ms. Grassley has indicated
you are willing to make a proffer.
Mm, provided nothing
said during the course of
these negotiations can
be used against my client.
Unless you lie, in which case,
all bets are off.
Before we offer you a deal,
we wanna know your side of the events.
Go ahead.
Speak freely.
Okay, first of all, I
didn't rape Veronica.
But you had sexual relations?
Years ago.
And it was completely consensual.
On the day of her murder,
did she accuse you of raping her?
Yes. And I denied it,
but she kept demanding an apology.
And I-I refused.
I wasn't gonna apologize for
something that I didn't do.
And she she got upset,
and she said that she was
gonna go public with it.
Um, file a police report.
And I just lost it.
Then I-I grabbed her.
And then she hit me,
hard.
And then, uh,
everything just happened fast.
[DARK MUSIC]
We need more than that.
Tell them what happened, Scott.
I pushed her.
She fell and hit her head on something.
A a rock.
And she started to bleed.
And I knew in that moment that
my life was over,
that I couldn't take it back
and that no one was ever gonna
believe my side of the story.
♪
It it was it was me or her.
♪
So I choked her.
♪
We're prepared to
offer Man One, 15 years.
We are prepared to accept
Man Two, five years.
Ten.
Not a day less.
♪
Sorry, Nolan, no deal.
♪
At least we know Kelton's guilty.
[CHUCKLES] Yeah. Too
bad we can't tell anyone.
[SIGHS] Yeah, it would
make things a lot easier.
Since we can't, we
we need to somehow find a
replacement for Dr. Andrews.
Someone who can establish motive.
I have Dr. Andrews' notes
from her session with Veronica.
So we know the alleged
rape took place at a villa
in St. Barts during a business retreat.
Maybe someone on that
same retreat saw something.
Well, contact the staff at the villa.
And I'm sure Kelton flies private,
so look into the
flight manifest as well.
Let's find out who else
was on Kelton's plane.
We'd like to talk to
you about a trip you took
with Scott Kelton about six years ago.
I took a lot of trips with Scott.
My father did too.
He's a good friend of
your boss, I believe.
Uh, well, we're aware that
your father is the mayor.
So you're aware both he and I
think very highly of Scott Kelton?
I am.
[SIGHS]
Veronica Knight alleged
that Scott Kelton sexually assaulted her
on that trip.
[TENSE MUSIC]
♪
Did you see or hear anything
that could support
Veronica's allegations?
No comment.
We can subpoena you, Mr. Payne.
We are hoping that that
that won't be necessary.
- [DOOR SHUTS]
- Well, it will be.
- Everything okay, sweetie?
- Yeah.
Just finishing up something.
I'll be upstairs in a few minutes.
Come on, honey. Let's go upstairs.
Now, if you'll excuse me.
Jordan.
We know why you're reluctant
to talk about the trip.
We talked to the manager of the villa.
We know you were there with a woman.
Someone other than your wife.
What the hell are you trying to do?
Huh?
You walk into my house and
accuse Scott Kelton of rape,
then threaten me with all kinds
of salacious lies in my home?
We just wanna know what you
saw or heard on that trip.
I'm not testifying.
We are not looking to embarrass you
or ask questions about that woman
You think I'm stupid?
I'm a partner
at the most prestigious
law firm in New York.
It doesn't matter if you ask about her.
The defense will use it
to impeach my testimony,
they will paint me out to
be a liar, an adulterer,
and my private life
will be tabloid fodder
for the next month.
Now get the hell out.
♪
Nolan,
I just found an interesting text
on Veronica's phone,
one Jordan Payne sent the
day after the alleged rape.
- What's it say?
- "Just checking in.
You left in a hurry. Everything okay?"
That's pretty vague.
If we didn't know the
truth, but since we do,
it means Jordan Payne actually
suspected something happened,
that something went wrong.
And more importantly,
it means he's a helpful witness.
If he were willing to cooperate, yes,
but you saw how defiant he was.
The odds of him telling the
truth are not not great.
I get it, but
we need someone to
establish Kelton's motive.
Right now, Jordan Payne is
the only one who can do that.
[CELL PHONE BUZZING]
Hello?
You like poetry, Nolan?
Uh, not especially.
Well, there was a terrific
Scottish poet, Robert Burns.
- You ever hear of him?
- Yes.
I'm not that familiar with his work
He absolutely loved drinking scotch.
He wrote a damn poem about
it in 1785, "Scotch Drink."
It was an ode to whiskey
and the nature of happiness,
cooperation, and friendship.
So in the spirit of the
late great Mr. Burns,
I like to enjoy a scotch
with my new friends.
Mm, well, that's quite good.
I also enjoy a glass
of scotch when I'm upset
or under attack.
It keeps me calm,
and it keeps me from saying or doing
things I might regret.
Mayor Payne,
I understand your son is
in a difficult position,
but I-I really cannot take
that into consideration.
I'm simply trying to do my job.
My son is off limits.
So cut a deal with Kelton.
Five years, he'll say yes,
you have my word on it.
♪
I have an immense amount
of respect for Jack McCoy.
More than I could possibly describe.
But if you subpoena my
son, I will bury you.
♪
Sir, I know you have
I will pull my support for McCoy
and use my immense power
to make sure his opponent is elected.
And the very first official act
of this new district attorney
will be to fire you
in a very public and demeaning manner.
♪
It was nice to finally
meet you in person, Nolan.
♪
It's a close call, Jack.
He sent a concerned
text to Veronica Knight
shortly after she left St. Barts.
It's useful testimony.
Proves something unpleasant occurred.
I get it, but Jordan
doesn't wanna testify.
And he is good friends with Kelton.
So if he decides to lie,
he could torpedo the whole damn case.
I can't let the mayor's
office dictate how we proceed.
He called me right after your meeting.
Told me he was gonna
pull his endorsement
if you force his son to testify.
And?
I told him to go to hell.
That we intend to do
everything in our power
to convict Scott Kelton.
Okay, but like I said
I think you need to step aside, Nolan.
Excuse me?
You're off the case.
Off the case?
What do you
[SIGHS]
Who's gonna finish the trial?
[TENSE MUSIC]
♪
Mr. Payne, did you take a trip
to St. Barts with the defendant
about six years ago?
I can't recall at this time.
If I show you the flight manifest,
will that jog your memory?
Why are you so hell-bent
on convicting Scott Kelton?
Do you even care that
he's an innocent man?
Sir, this is a court of law.
You are not here to pontificate.
Your sole function is
to answer the questions.
- Can you do that?
- You've politicized the DA's office.
- It's despicable.
- I would ask Your Honor
to declare Mr. Payne a hostile witness.
You may proceed with leading questions.
You were in St. Barts with the defendant
and the victim, Veronica Knight.
Weren't you?
Answer the question, Mr. Payne.
- It's possible.
- It's more than possible.
It's a fact.
Your Honor, I'd ask
that the flight manifest from that trip
be entered as People's Exhibit 21.
A couple of days into that trip,
there was a night of drinking?
Possibly.
The next day, Miss
Knight was quite upset,
wasn't she?
It was a long time ago.
Then Veronica left the island?
I can't recall.
Then allow me to refresh
your recollection.
You sent a text.
[DRAMATIC MUSIC]
♪
"Just checking in.
"You left in a hurry.
Everything okay?"
♪
Remember that?
Doesn't mean Scott killed anyone.
Did you ask Scott Kelton
what happened
to Veronica Knight?
♪
May the witness be instructed
to answer the question.
Answer the question, sir.
♪
He told me
Veronica was an uptight bitch.
♪
Thank you.
Nothing further.
♪
You were in St. Barts
with a woman, weren't you?
A woman you were having an affair with?
Objection, what's the relevance?
Goes to bias, impeachment,
and ability to perceive.
Please answer.
Yes,
I was there with someone
who wasn't my wife.
So you lied to your family?
Yes.
How do we know you're
not lying to this jury?
- Objection, argumentative.
- Withdrawn.
Nothing further.
♪
The defendant is one of the
richest men in the world.
He donates billions of dollars
to various charities across the globe.
He's close friends
with foreign dignitaries
and movie stars,
the Mayor of New York.
By all accounts, he
is a decent person
most of the time.
But on the morning of
December 12th, he was not.
He was a killer.
And that's all that matters.
When I was elected district attorney,
I gave a pledge to the
citizens of New York
to act fairly and ethically,
without bias or favor,
to always act with integrity.
During my time as district attorney,
I've tried my best to
uphold that sacred oath
in the pursuit of justice.
And now, members of the jury,
it's your turn
to act fairly and ethically,
without bias
or favor,
and to find the defendant, Scott Kelton,
guilty of murder.
♪
Will the defendant please rise?
Members of the jury,
have you agreed upon a verdict?
We have, Your Honor.
[TENSE MUSIC]
♪
What say you, in the matter
of People versus Scott Kelton,
is the defendant guilty or not guilty?
We find the defendant
guilty of murder in the second degree.
Ladies and gentlemen of the jury,
thank you for your service.
- You are dismissed.
- [GAVEL BANGS]
♪
Congratulations, Jack.
You haven't lost a step.
I'm not so sure about that, but
I suppose it doesn't matter.
I tendered my resignation
20 minutes ago.
You you just got a conviction.
You can still win the election.
Who cares about the damn mayor?
Let the people decide.
I've been thinking
about this for a while.
[LIQUID POURING]
It's time.
It just is.
Look,
the mayor is a
vindictive son of a bitch.
He's gonna call in every chit he has
to make sure my opponent
wins the election,
and he'll succeed.
Then he's going to bury
everyone who wronged him,
including you, especially you.
- Jack
- If I step aside now,
the Governor will be able
to appoint someone new,
someone
with integrity.
[SOMBER MUSIC]
♪
It's been a hell of a ride.
[GLASSES CLINK]
♪
[DRAMATIC MUSIC]
♪
[WOLF HOWLS]
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 love seeing new people
out here at 5:00 a.m.
Tells me I'm not insane.
I mean, it's 20 degrees.
It's dark, but I can't
not do it, you know?
It's like a drug.
Like this dirty, shameful
secret I keep from everyone.
That's ridiculous.
Ex excuse me?
Don't be ashamed of who you are.
Yeah. I I'm not.
[CHUCKLES]
I was just kidding.
[EERIE MUSIC]
♪
[CAMERA SHUTTER CLICKS]
What do we got?
No wallet, no ID.
She either fell, or she was pushed.
But that's not why she's dead.
Bruising around the neck.
Petechial hemorrhaging.
She was strangled.
Any sign of sexual assault?
No.
So she came out for a morning jog,
and then someone attacked her.
- It looks that way.
- Not to me.
Who goes jogging in those?
Okay, so she came out
for a morning walk.
And then somebody attacked her. Better?
No.
But it's more accurate.
♪
[DRAMATIC MUSIC]
♪
I was on my second lap,
and I saw her body on the ground, so
I called 911.
And she was dead?
I think so.
I saw her earlier too. We
talked for a few seconds.
About what?
"It's so cold. It's so early."
She say anything specific or unusual?
No.
But she seemed distracted
- and very intense.
- How do you mean?
I was just blathering on
about how ridiculous it is
to run so early in the morning.
That it was my dirty secret.
And and she took it literally.
Said I-I shouldn't be
ashamed or keep secrets.
Did you happen to notice anybody else
on the jogging path near the body?
There there were a few other joggers.
And there was a guy standing over there.
Just standing there, not
not jogging or anything?
No, he he was just staring
at me and the dead woman.
Then he walked off toward the boathouse.
Do you remember what
this man looked like?
Average height.
And and he was wearing an
orange vest over his jacket.
[INDISTINCT RADIO CHATTER]
Orange vest? That could be our guy.
- All right.
- Yep.
Excuse me, sir.
I need to ask you a couple questions.
- Hey!
- [TENSE MUSIC]
Police, stop!
[GRUNTS]
Where did you get this, Miguel?
It was in your pocket, bro.
Where'd you get it?
[SPEAKING SPANISH]
I didn't kill that woman.
Then why'd you run?
I got nervous.
I don't like the police.
I didn't kill that lady.
What are you doing in the park so early?
I have a job here in the park.
I punch in at 6:00 every day.
See, that part makes sense.
What doesn't make sense
is that you have a woman's necklace
in your pocket.
She was dead,
and I took it.
- She was already dead, huh?
- Yes.
Anybody else near the body?
There was a white guy,
and he was wearing a black hat
or or brown?
And there was an orange letter on it.
That's all I remember.
That's it?
All right, maybe a trip
down to the precinct'll
help jog your memory. Let's go.
- Come on, man.
- Come on.
So Miguel's boss confirms
he clocks in every morning at 6:00 a.m.
And, for what it's worth,
says he's a good guy.
A good guy who steals
necklaces off of dead bodies.
All right, let's hold
Miguel on the stolen necklace
and see if we can find anything else
that connects him to the murder.
And there's an inscription
on the back of the necklace
VK Loba?
Is that a last name?
Loba's a dating app.
Dating app. Mm-hmm.
[KEYS CLACKING]
Yeah, dating app founded
by Veronica Knight.
There's our VK.
Yeah, that's definitely her.
Veronica's intention
was to empower women
in the dating process,
so she created an app
and a community where
females control the narrative
from start to finish.
All right, let's track down her family,
make the notification.
In the meantime, I'm gonna hold Miguel
on the necklace.
Once again, we can't
stress how sorry we are
about your sister.
From what I read, she
seemed like an amazing woman.
Thank you.
You said they found her
body in Central Park?
At 5:00 a.m.?
Why on earth would she be there?
We don't know.
Was she a jogger?
She works out sometimes, but, uh, no.
Was she dating anyone?
No.
No? You you're sure?
I mean, she's young,
attractive, wealthy
I get it. [LAUGHS SADLY]
Trust me, I set her up
with every handsome,
successful guy I met,
but she never hit it
off with any of them.
Drove me crazy.
Was there anything unusual going on?
Any threats or arguments?
Not that I was aware of.
But she found a new
psychiatrist a few months ago.
I asked if everything was okay,
but she didn't wanna talk about it.
I can't believe Veronica is dead.
It's hard to wrap my head around it,
to be honest.
How long were you two
working with each other?
Three months.
Did she ever reveal anything that
could be connected to her murder?
Like a aggressive
ex-boyfriend or a stalker?
I can't.
Our conversations are
privileged and confidential.
I understand where
you're coming from, Doc,
but she's dead.
Because somebody murdered
her. Likely somebody she knows.
I need to talk to my attorney.
[SIGHS]
Let us know.
I don't know, man. There's something
- she doesn't want us to know.
- Yeah.
[CELL PHONE RINGING]
Oh, it's Dixon.
- Hey, Lieu.
- Hey.
Remember Miguel in the
park saw a white guy
wearing a hat with an
orange letter on it?
We just found video of
a guy wearing a black hat
with an orange P on it exiting the park.
The video came from
an apartment building
on 76th and 5th.
Nice work, boss. Thanks.
Yeah.
I see this guy all the time.
He walks into the park around 4:45,
then pops back out around 5:30.
- Can you tell us what this guy looks like?
- Sure.
About 55?
Average height.
This got something to do with
that lady who got strangled?
- Could be.
- And you think this guy
- might be the one
- We're still investigating, so.
Tell you what I'm gonna do.
Next time I see him, I'm
gonna sneak over, and
No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no.
Promise me you're not
gonna do that, all right?
Leave the police work
to the police, okay?
- Suit yourself.
- You've been a big help, though.
- Thank you very much.
- All right.
All right.
So our guy jogs every morning,
even in the dead of winter.
Means he's dedicated, he's driven.
He probably lives around here,
one of the priciest
neighborhoods in the city.
Meaning?
Good chance that orange
P stands for Princeton.
[CLICKS TONGUE]
All the male Princeton alumni
between the ages of 45 and 60
who live between 65th and 80,
east of 5th, west of Lexington.
13 names in total.
Five Asian, three Black.
And out of the remaining
five, two moved to Miami,
one to Dallas, one to LA.
And so the only name left is
Scott Kelton.
The Itelex guy?
13th richest man alive.
And according to the article
I just read in "Forbes,"
guess who likes to take a run around
the Central Park Reservoir
every morning at 5:00 a.m.?
♪
Yeah, I go on a run every
morning, rain or shine.
Is this about Veronica Knight?
I-I read about what happened.
You happen to see Veronica that morning?
No, uh, but I-I did hear
someone scream, a woman.
Pulled out my earbuds and looked around,
but I didn't see anything.
Where'd you hear the scream?
Um, east of the boathouse,
around 76th, maybe?
So you heard a woman scream,
you took out your earbuds,
and then what?
Well, I called 911.
But the operator I spoke to
didn't seem overly concerned,
said I should call
back when I actually see
something illegal occur.
You guys have any suspects?
We're still investigating.
Well, let me know if you need anything.
I actually knew Veronica.
She worked for me, just out of college.
- Really?
- Yeah, I didn't know her real well,
but, uh, I was very fond of her.
Did you guys keep in touch?
We saw each other on occasion.
Exchanged texts every now and again.
She actually she reached
out to me a few weeks ago.
Did you respond?
No.
Um, it was nothing personal.
I just I get lots of texts.
Lots of invitations to catch
up and talk, have dinner.
Um, over time, I found the best way
to handle this is to not respond.
Fair enough.
So when is the last time
you actually saw her?
Um, it would have been at
the Milken Conference in LA
- about six months ago.
- Hmm.
Did you notice anybody else
in the park that morning?
You know, after I heard
the scream, I looked around,
and there was this man standing nearby.
He had a big red hat. Plaid, I think.
It kind of reminded me of
the one Holden Caulfield wore,
you know.
I've seen him around the park before.
I think he owns a vendor cart.
Anyway, I asked him
if he heard the scream,
and he just kind of
ignored me, walked away.
So Kelton's story checks out.
He called 911 at 5:08 a.m.
And we confirmed that Veronica
did work for him right after college.
- For how long?
- Three years.
- Any recent texts, emails?
- Several.
Most recent one was from ten days ago
sent from Veronica to Kelton, said,
"I wanna talk. When's
a good day and time?"
There was a couple of other ones,
one from a month ago, one six weeks ago,
almost the exact same.
"I wanna talk. Let me
know when you're available."
None of them returned.
Not even like, "I'm sorry, I'm busy"?
- That's how Kelton rolls.
- Okay.
Let's look into the man
that Kelton said he
saw at the reservoir.
And I'll get a tech to
start scrubbing videos
in the general area.
In the meantime, you
two hit the pavement
and see if you can find this vendor
with the Holden Caulfield hat.
Again with the Holden
Caulfield references.
That's, like, one of
my favorite characters.
It's crazy how much white
people love that guy.
Excuse me, sir.
Sir?
Gotta ask you some questions.
Where's your license?
It's right there.
I just got it renewed three weeks ago.
What time you open up in the morning?
Depends on the day.
How 'bout Tuesday?
Around 5:00 a.m.
Got a lot of hungry hotel employees
get out of work around then.
That's a good-looking scratch.
How'd you get that?
A cat scratched me.
You take a walk by the
reservoir in the morning?
No. I hate water.
You ever seen this lady?
No.
But she's cute. Why don't you
tell her to give me a call?
You're wasting your
time selling donuts, bro.
[CELL PHONE BEEPS] You
should be doing stand-up.
[OMINOUS MUSIC]
Hey.
♪
You know what? We're gonna
take this talk to the station, okay?
- Oh, come on.
- Come on. Let's go.
[SIGHS]
I told you before, we have an eyewitness
that puts you near
the dead woman's body!
And we know you like attacking women.
It says right there
felony sexual assault.
That sexual-assault
thing is a bunch of crap!
Okay, I was dating this
woman, and she got pissed off
that I dumped her, so she
she tried to shake me down!
We know that you were involved.
Yes, yes, we know. [KNOCKING AT DOOR]
So why don't you just
tell us what happened?
Guys.
Come on.
Veronica was sexually
assaulted six years ago.
And she was just
beginning to process it,
come to terms with it.
Was she gonna file a police report?
She was on the fence.
But she was definitely determined
to confront her assailant.
She thought it would
help reclaim her power.
Dignity.
You know the name of the
man who assaulted her?
[TENSE MUSIC]
♪
Detectives.
Excuse me.
Where are you
Scott Kelton?
Uh, hold on a minute, Mike.
I'm in the middle of a phone call he
Yeah, you're gonna
have to call him back.
You're under arrest for the
murder of Veronica Knight.
I wanna talk to my lawyer.
I'm here today to announce
that tech mogul Scott Kelton
has been charged in
connection with the murder
of Veronica Knight.
He was arrested last
evening by NYPD detectives.
He will be arraigned later this morning
by Deputy District Attorney Nolan Price.
- Mayor?
- Oh. Uh, thank you.
It's important for New Yorkers to know
that this was a targeted attack.
The brave men and women of
the New York Police Department
have been doing a fantastic job
to keep the city safe.
Mr. Mayor. Mr. Mayor!
Yes?
You have a long relationship
with Scott Kelton.
He donated lots of money
to your recent campaign.
Does that create any
sort of conflict for you?
I have tremendous confidence
in the district attorney.
Jack.
Mr. McCoy, you're up
for reelection this year.
What do you say to the accusation
that you charged Kelton
with murder because he's
the number one supporter
of your opponent?
I say that's preposterous.
Politics play absolutely
no role in this office.
Like anybody else,
Mr. Kelton is innocent
until proven guilty.
And this case will be
tried in a courtroom,
not at a press conference.
I invite the media to watch.
Thank you all for coming.
A word.
Thanks for coming, Mr. Mayor.
I hope you know what
the hell you're doing.
The man is a New York icon.
Second only to the
Statue of Liberty, for God's sakes.
He has given more money to charity,
brought in more tax dollars
He also killed a
defenseless young woman.
Mm-hmm.
Like I said, I hope you know
what the hell you're doing.
[TENSE MUSIC]
♪
The press is eating
up Kelton's nonsense.
Well, his lawyer,
Grassley, is really good.
She's quite adept at smearing
the district attorney's reputation
- and manipulating the narrative.
- Mm-hmm.
Sad part is, people are
starting to buy into it.
They actually believe
we're bringing this case
to punish Kelton for not
supporting Jack's campaign.
- [LAUGHS] What? That's ridiculous.
- Well, of course it is.
But if you have unlimited funds
Look, Nolan, our case is strong.
There's no smoking gun, I get it.
But we have a lot of good evidence.
Veronica's therapists
will give us motive.
Miguel Lopez will put
him at the crime scene.
And Kelton's own actions.
His 911 call and his attempt
to frame the coffee vendor
will establish consciousness of guilt.
We should call the vendor to the stand.
You wanna make Walsh
part of our case in chief?
Grassley obviously plans
to blame him for the murder
and use his prior convictions,
his proximity to the park,
to create reasonable doubt.
So let's get out in front of that,
present Walsh as an innocent victim
before the defense paints
him out to be a monster.
Sir, were you selling donuts and coffee
near the park on the morning
Veronica Knight was killed?
Yes, sir.
I sell other items as well.
Do you know the defendant?
Yeah, comes by the cart
every morning after his run.
Orders the same thing every time
coffee, black, yogurt with blueberries.
Did he come to your cart after his run
on the morning Miss Knight was killed?
- No, sir.
- And that was unusual?
Yeah.
I assumed he was out of town or sick.
Did you ever engage in
conversation with the defendant?
Sure. All the time.
What'd you talk about?
All sorts of things.
Stock market, football.
Did you ever tell him about
your past legal problems?
Yes, sir.
Really helped me out.
He gave me $10,000 for a lawyer.
So he knew about your criminal record?
- Yeah.
- So he knew
that you were always near
the park early in the morning.
And he knew that you
had a criminal past.
So he knew that you would
be a good person to frame.
- Objection.
- Sustained.
Nothing further.
Let's talk about your legal problems.
- You have two prior convictions?
- Yes.
You were convicted of assault in 2010?
Yes.
A guy stole food from
my cart, so I hit him.
And you were convicted
of sexually assaulting a woman in 2019?
Yeah. I took a plea.
The woman, my ex, she
made the whole thing up,
so it's not like it sounds.
Oh, no, no. It's exactly like it sounds.
You were convicted of sexual assault.
[SUSPENSEFUL MUSIC]
You were in the park on
the morning of the murder?
Yes, I was.
So you admit that you were in the park
at the time of the murder
and that you have a history of violence,
but you want this jury to believe
that you had nothing to do
with Veronica Knight's murder.
Objection. Mr. Walsh
is not on trial here.
Sustained.
Nothing further.
♪
The facts are the facts.
Witnesses with a shady past
can only be so effective,
even if they're innocent.
I suppose so, but at least
it was us who introduced him.
End of the day, this
case comes down to motive.
We need to let the jury know why Kelton,
one of the most philanthropic
men in the world,
chose to kill Veronica Knight
while on an early morning
run around Central Park.
Mm-hmm.
Well, I'll talk to Dr. Andrews.
Let her know what's coming,
if I can get her on the damn phone.
I want to help. I really do.
But I can't.
I'm going to assert
therapist-patient privilege.
I-I thought you already discussed this
with your lawyer and Veronica's sister?
I did, but this isn't a legal decision.
What is it then?
It's an ethical one.
Ethical?
Veronica Knight is dead.
You can help convict the man
who killed her and raped her!
I understand that, but I'm a therapist.
The idea of disclosing
my client's deepest
and darkest secrets
Veronica's sister has consented
no, she wants you to testify,
which means you're free
to say whatever you want.
Yes, I know.
But my patients are concerned.
They've been emailing me.
They're upset.
They're worried their
secrets aren't safe anymore,
that I might be called to
testify against them one day.
They just want to know,
with 100% certainty,
that their secrets are safe.
I'm sorry. I truly am.
But I can't help you.
[SOMBER MUSIC]
How did it go with the judge?
Not so good. He allowed Dr.
Andrews' motion to quash,
so she is not going to testify.
Can you prove motive without her?
[SIGHS] Ah, I'm not sure.
Not the answer I wanted to hear.
I think we should consider a plea.
Is that what's best for the case?
A reasonable offer, it's the right move.
- Based on what?
- On the evidence.
It's a circumstantial
case to begin with.
Without a clear motive,
it just won't make sense.
The jurors will have
a hard time believing
someone like Scott Kelton
would attack an innocent woman
for no reason.
I wanna nail the guy as badly as you do,
but we can't risk an acquittal.
Then go ahead and make the
son of a bitch an offer.
Man One. Ten years.
Nothing less.
Ms. Grassley has indicated
you are willing to make a proffer.
Mm, provided nothing
said during the course of
these negotiations can
be used against my client.
Unless you lie, in which case,
all bets are off.
Before we offer you a deal,
we wanna know your side of the events.
Go ahead.
Speak freely.
Okay, first of all, I
didn't rape Veronica.
But you had sexual relations?
Years ago.
And it was completely consensual.
On the day of her murder,
did she accuse you of raping her?
Yes. And I denied it,
but she kept demanding an apology.
And I-I refused.
I wasn't gonna apologize for
something that I didn't do.
And she she got upset,
and she said that she was
gonna go public with it.
Um, file a police report.
And I just lost it.
Then I-I grabbed her.
And then she hit me,
hard.
And then, uh,
everything just happened fast.
[DARK MUSIC]
We need more than that.
Tell them what happened, Scott.
I pushed her.
She fell and hit her head on something.
A a rock.
And she started to bleed.
And I knew in that moment that
my life was over,
that I couldn't take it back
and that no one was ever gonna
believe my side of the story.
♪
It it was it was me or her.
♪
So I choked her.
♪
We're prepared to
offer Man One, 15 years.
We are prepared to accept
Man Two, five years.
Ten.
Not a day less.
♪
Sorry, Nolan, no deal.
♪
At least we know Kelton's guilty.
[CHUCKLES] Yeah. Too
bad we can't tell anyone.
[SIGHS] Yeah, it would
make things a lot easier.
Since we can't, we
we need to somehow find a
replacement for Dr. Andrews.
Someone who can establish motive.
I have Dr. Andrews' notes
from her session with Veronica.
So we know the alleged
rape took place at a villa
in St. Barts during a business retreat.
Maybe someone on that
same retreat saw something.
Well, contact the staff at the villa.
And I'm sure Kelton flies private,
so look into the
flight manifest as well.
Let's find out who else
was on Kelton's plane.
We'd like to talk to
you about a trip you took
with Scott Kelton about six years ago.
I took a lot of trips with Scott.
My father did too.
He's a good friend of
your boss, I believe.
Uh, well, we're aware that
your father is the mayor.
So you're aware both he and I
think very highly of Scott Kelton?
I am.
[SIGHS]
Veronica Knight alleged
that Scott Kelton sexually assaulted her
on that trip.
[TENSE MUSIC]
♪
Did you see or hear anything
that could support
Veronica's allegations?
No comment.
We can subpoena you, Mr. Payne.
We are hoping that that
that won't be necessary.
- [DOOR SHUTS]
- Well, it will be.
- Everything okay, sweetie?
- Yeah.
Just finishing up something.
I'll be upstairs in a few minutes.
Come on, honey. Let's go upstairs.
Now, if you'll excuse me.
Jordan.
We know why you're reluctant
to talk about the trip.
We talked to the manager of the villa.
We know you were there with a woman.
Someone other than your wife.
What the hell are you trying to do?
Huh?
You walk into my house and
accuse Scott Kelton of rape,
then threaten me with all kinds
of salacious lies in my home?
We just wanna know what you
saw or heard on that trip.
I'm not testifying.
We are not looking to embarrass you
or ask questions about that woman
You think I'm stupid?
I'm a partner
at the most prestigious
law firm in New York.
It doesn't matter if you ask about her.
The defense will use it
to impeach my testimony,
they will paint me out to
be a liar, an adulterer,
and my private life
will be tabloid fodder
for the next month.
Now get the hell out.
♪
Nolan,
I just found an interesting text
on Veronica's phone,
one Jordan Payne sent the
day after the alleged rape.
- What's it say?
- "Just checking in.
You left in a hurry. Everything okay?"
That's pretty vague.
If we didn't know the
truth, but since we do,
it means Jordan Payne actually
suspected something happened,
that something went wrong.
And more importantly,
it means he's a helpful witness.
If he were willing to cooperate, yes,
but you saw how defiant he was.
The odds of him telling the
truth are not not great.
I get it, but
we need someone to
establish Kelton's motive.
Right now, Jordan Payne is
the only one who can do that.
[CELL PHONE BUZZING]
Hello?
You like poetry, Nolan?
Uh, not especially.
Well, there was a terrific
Scottish poet, Robert Burns.
- You ever hear of him?
- Yes.
I'm not that familiar with his work
He absolutely loved drinking scotch.
He wrote a damn poem about
it in 1785, "Scotch Drink."
It was an ode to whiskey
and the nature of happiness,
cooperation, and friendship.
So in the spirit of the
late great Mr. Burns,
I like to enjoy a scotch
with my new friends.
Mm, well, that's quite good.
I also enjoy a glass
of scotch when I'm upset
or under attack.
It keeps me calm,
and it keeps me from saying or doing
things I might regret.
Mayor Payne,
I understand your son is
in a difficult position,
but I-I really cannot take
that into consideration.
I'm simply trying to do my job.
My son is off limits.
So cut a deal with Kelton.
Five years, he'll say yes,
you have my word on it.
♪
I have an immense amount
of respect for Jack McCoy.
More than I could possibly describe.
But if you subpoena my
son, I will bury you.
♪
Sir, I know you have
I will pull my support for McCoy
and use my immense power
to make sure his opponent is elected.
And the very first official act
of this new district attorney
will be to fire you
in a very public and demeaning manner.
♪
It was nice to finally
meet you in person, Nolan.
♪
It's a close call, Jack.
He sent a concerned
text to Veronica Knight
shortly after she left St. Barts.
It's useful testimony.
Proves something unpleasant occurred.
I get it, but Jordan
doesn't wanna testify.
And he is good friends with Kelton.
So if he decides to lie,
he could torpedo the whole damn case.
I can't let the mayor's
office dictate how we proceed.
He called me right after your meeting.
Told me he was gonna
pull his endorsement
if you force his son to testify.
And?
I told him to go to hell.
That we intend to do
everything in our power
to convict Scott Kelton.
Okay, but like I said
I think you need to step aside, Nolan.
Excuse me?
You're off the case.
Off the case?
What do you
[SIGHS]
Who's gonna finish the trial?
[TENSE MUSIC]
♪
Mr. Payne, did you take a trip
to St. Barts with the defendant
about six years ago?
I can't recall at this time.
If I show you the flight manifest,
will that jog your memory?
Why are you so hell-bent
on convicting Scott Kelton?
Do you even care that
he's an innocent man?
Sir, this is a court of law.
You are not here to pontificate.
Your sole function is
to answer the questions.
- Can you do that?
- You've politicized the DA's office.
- It's despicable.
- I would ask Your Honor
to declare Mr. Payne a hostile witness.
You may proceed with leading questions.
You were in St. Barts with the defendant
and the victim, Veronica Knight.
Weren't you?
Answer the question, Mr. Payne.
- It's possible.
- It's more than possible.
It's a fact.
Your Honor, I'd ask
that the flight manifest from that trip
be entered as People's Exhibit 21.
A couple of days into that trip,
there was a night of drinking?
Possibly.
The next day, Miss
Knight was quite upset,
wasn't she?
It was a long time ago.
Then Veronica left the island?
I can't recall.
Then allow me to refresh
your recollection.
You sent a text.
[DRAMATIC MUSIC]
♪
"Just checking in.
"You left in a hurry.
Everything okay?"
♪
Remember that?
Doesn't mean Scott killed anyone.
Did you ask Scott Kelton
what happened
to Veronica Knight?
♪
May the witness be instructed
to answer the question.
Answer the question, sir.
♪
He told me
Veronica was an uptight bitch.
♪
Thank you.
Nothing further.
♪
You were in St. Barts
with a woman, weren't you?
A woman you were having an affair with?
Objection, what's the relevance?
Goes to bias, impeachment,
and ability to perceive.
Please answer.
Yes,
I was there with someone
who wasn't my wife.
So you lied to your family?
Yes.
How do we know you're
not lying to this jury?
- Objection, argumentative.
- Withdrawn.
Nothing further.
♪
The defendant is one of the
richest men in the world.
He donates billions of dollars
to various charities across the globe.
He's close friends
with foreign dignitaries
and movie stars,
the Mayor of New York.
By all accounts, he
is a decent person
most of the time.
But on the morning of
December 12th, he was not.
He was a killer.
And that's all that matters.
When I was elected district attorney,
I gave a pledge to the
citizens of New York
to act fairly and ethically,
without bias or favor,
to always act with integrity.
During my time as district attorney,
I've tried my best to
uphold that sacred oath
in the pursuit of justice.
And now, members of the jury,
it's your turn
to act fairly and ethically,
without bias
or favor,
and to find the defendant, Scott Kelton,
guilty of murder.
♪
Will the defendant please rise?
Members of the jury,
have you agreed upon a verdict?
We have, Your Honor.
[TENSE MUSIC]
♪
What say you, in the matter
of People versus Scott Kelton,
is the defendant guilty or not guilty?
We find the defendant
guilty of murder in the second degree.
Ladies and gentlemen of the jury,
thank you for your service.
- You are dismissed.
- [GAVEL BANGS]
♪
Congratulations, Jack.
You haven't lost a step.
I'm not so sure about that, but
I suppose it doesn't matter.
I tendered my resignation
20 minutes ago.
You you just got a conviction.
You can still win the election.
Who cares about the damn mayor?
Let the people decide.
I've been thinking
about this for a while.
[LIQUID POURING]
It's time.
It just is.
Look,
the mayor is a
vindictive son of a bitch.
He's gonna call in every chit he has
to make sure my opponent
wins the election,
and he'll succeed.
Then he's going to bury
everyone who wronged him,
including you, especially you.
- Jack
- If I step aside now,
the Governor will be able
to appoint someone new,
someone
with integrity.
[SOMBER MUSIC]
♪
It's been a hell of a ride.
[GLASSES CLINK]
♪
[DRAMATIC MUSIC]
♪
[WOLF HOWLS]