Law & Order: Los Angeles (2010) s01e09 Episode Script

NARRATOR: In the city of Los Angeles, 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.
The cow manure's in the garage.
Irfan says it will burn the pansies.
Irfan? Irfan doesn't have an MFA in landscape design from Otis.
Oh.
I forgot to tell you, the Alcazars are having a party.
Oh.
Nice of them to invite us.
It's not that kind of party.
It's for their daughter.
Some kind of family thing.
(LATIN MUSIC PLAYING) (PEOPLE SCREAMING) (CHATTER ON POLICE RADIO) Family named Alcazar was having a birthday party for their A quinceañera? Yeah.
Two SUVs pulled into the front.
Shooters came into the backyard.
How many? Four.
Latino males.
Young guys.
Bandanas over their faces.
Any plate numbers on the vehicles? No.
There was a dark-colored SUV and a light one.
White or gray.
Check out the ordnance.
.
762,.
556.
Assault rifles.
There's got to be over a hundred rounds.
That's Mr.
Alcazar.
His wife and daughter are okay.
Nine dead in all.
Including three kids.
Easy pickings.
Well, let's get to work.
(SOBBING) My husband, dead for no reason.
(SPEAKING SPANISH) But if you can just tell us how it happened.
They came down the driveway with machine guns.
Four of them.
They shot everybody, and they walked back to their cars.
What kind of cars? A black 4runner and a white Cherokee with a roof rack.
I didn't see the license plates.
Mr.
Alcazar.
What did he do for work? He was a developer.
He built houses.
He was a good man.
Señora Alcazar, did you notice anything unusual in the last few days? He looked worried, and he said that there was some trouble at work.
What kind of trouble? He didn't say.
I thought that it was the money for the party.
Because Hernando, he wanted Liana to have the most beautiful quinceañera.
(CRYING) Mommy, why? Why did I have this stupid party? Why? (SIGHS) NEWSCASTER: Four masked gunmen rained automatic weapons fire into the family's quinceañera party, and fled in two sports utility vehicles.
The police have no suspects and no motive.
REX: The D.
A.
will have papers on Alcazar's bank and accountant first thing in the morning.
I hear you, partner.
I'd hit them tonight if we could.
All right.
Hey.
Hey.
I'll tuck the kids in.
I put them to bed about two hours ago.
From the news, it sounds like a bad one.
Yeah.
It's pretty bad.
I promise I won't wake them.
Hernando and I worked on a tear-down in Los Feliz a few years ago, decided to share space.
He was a good guy.
That's his desk.
His wife said he was worried, nervous.
Any idea why? I think he had a big project fall through.
He'd found the perfect spot for a new development.
He was so excited, he was waving around photos of the place.
What happened? Nothing.
I asked him about it last week.
He said forget it.
It didn't pan out.
Are these the pictures? Yeah, that's them.
Some old housing tract up in the canyons somewhere.
Looks like they were taken with a cell phone about a week and half before the shooting, on a Friday.
Right around the time his wife said he started acting nervous.
GPS lost him right around here.
He went off the grid for 35 minutes.
No cell reception here, either.
It looks like Alcazar's pictures.
Do you smell that? Yeah.
Smell like someone cooking? I think I see something blue in the brush past the houses over there.
Looks like a tent.
Hey.
Hello? Police REX: There's food and water.
And Spanish comic books.
TJ: Ammo for a.
38 special.
Winters.
Over here.
(EXCLAIMS) Must be a hundred acres of pot.
Almost ready for harvest.
The guy's guarding the crop.
Alcazar must have seen this, had a run-in with him.
Now, whoever this belongs to probably had Alcazar killed.
We find the guard, we're halfway home.
Well, we won't be able to track him in these canyons on our own.
Come on.
(GUN COCKS) OFFICER: Gun! Gun! Gun! Police.
Police.
Drop your weapon.
(SPEAKING SPANISH) You call it, partner.
(SPEAKING SPANISH) Okay.
(SHOUTING IN SPANISH) Calm down.
Calm down.
Calm down.
(CRYING) I got what you ordered.
(SPEAKING SPANISH) REX: From the looks of him and the symbols he drew on the rocks, I'd say he was either Yaqui Indian or Opata, probably from Sonora.
(THANKING IN SPANISH) (ALL SPEAKING SPANISH) Los Angeles.
Three months, he didn't know where he was? Fernando.
The fire? No.
No talk.
No talk.
If he won't tell you his family name or even what town he's from, there's not much our consulate can do to help you.
I'm sure his parents filed a missing persons report.
We can give you photos, fingerprints.
Maybe he'd be more forthcoming if he were returned to Mexico and placed in our social service system.
EVELYN: We're not releasing him.
He was arrested guarding a marijuana field with a gun, and he's a material witness in the murder of nine people.
You can't be serious.
He's a child.
You can't put him in prison.
He's being held in the Eastlake Juvenile Facility under a pseudonym for his own protection.
Very well.
We'll be in touch with our embassy in Washington.
And they'll be in touch with your State Department.
Good day.
Good day.
Tell me I didn't over-hype it.
This boy is our only link to the murderers.
Alcazar saw the pot field.
If Fernando made him, he would have told his boss, this Snake Foot.
Next thing you know, four guys show up to make sure Alcazar keeps his mouth shut.
Well, look.
While we wait for Fernando to make up his mind to cooperate, find out who owns the land under the dope farm.
The development burned down before we could finish it.
Then, after the County closed the road and condemned the entire area as a fire risk, well, that sealed it.
But you still own the land.
It's still on our books.
As a loss.
Then, you care to explain why you paid the County to turn the water back on five months ago? An individual leased the land to grow avocados.
Oh.
Does that look like avocados to you? Because that is 100 acres of pure California sinsemilla.
Now, what's the name of this individual? Uh Cesar.
What's my company's liability here? Your lawyer can answer that.
Then, I need to call him.
Excuse me.
This Cesar must have scouted the land up in Zuma and found Ralston the same way we did.
A title search.
That would leave a paper trail.
We're a title company.
We do title searches all the time.
It's nothing unusual.
Well, if it wasn't unusual, we wouldn't be here.
Who hired you to do the search? It was my cousin, Ray.
Ray Mota.
He asked me to search the titles for five properties.
They were all undeveloped land.
He said he had an idea for a business opportunity.
(SIGHS) He was doing something wrong, wasn't he? Now, what makes you say that? He was in trouble before.
With a gang.
I thought maybe he was turning his life around.
Now, did Ray ever mention anyone named Cesar in connection with these properties? He drove up to my place two weeks ago.
I think he had a friend named Cesar in the car.
What kind of car does your cousin drive? A Cherokee.
Describe it.
It's white with a roof rack.
(SPANISH HIP-HOP MUSIC PLAYING) REX: Good afternoon.
Hey.
We're looking for Ray Mota.
Yeah, I'm Ray Mota.
What's this about? We don't want to spoil your party.
Want to step inside? Oh, he's the cook.
He's got to watch the corn.
Where's your Cherokee? We didn't see it out front.
It got stolen last week.
You have the police report number? Nah.
Didn't report it.
You guys never find nothing, anyway.
(ALL LAUGHING) Which one of you is Cesar? Yo, I didn't take his truck.
What's your last name, Cesar? Torres.
You got some ID? RAY: You got some warrant? He's a guest in my backyard.
He ain't got to show you dick.
Corn's burning.
Have a nice day.
(GIRL LAUGHING) You You're Cesar.
Oh, I think you're confused.
Yeah? I think you're a liar.
Your boots, they snake skin? Yes, they're python.
Snake's feet.
What's your problem, Cesar? You have your friends take the heat for you? Ah, it's okay.
We know who you are.
Now get on the wall.
(SPEAKING SPANISH) Cesar Vargas, Sonora, Mexico.
You here on a tourist visa, Cesar? Visiting my cousins.
Cesar? Smile.
Hasta luego, Cesar.
We need your cerveza for our can drive.
(ALL SPEAKING SPANISH) You're wrong, Fernando.
You're stronger than him.
I see it.
(SPEAKING SPANISH) Do you understand? ARLEEN: Well, you can't blame the kid.
Cesar knows where his family lives.
Did you get Cesar's prints off the can? He's got nothing local.
We sent them to our friends south of the border.
We're waiting to hear back.
Assuming Fernando told Cesar about Mr.
Alcazar, Cesar would have had to get Alcazar's address.
Right, off Alcazar's license plate.
So first thing tomorrow, check with the DMV about any unauthorized searches on the database.
Good idea.
CASEY: Lily, honey, would you please sit down and finish the rest of your broccoli.
No broccoli, no pie.
Daddy didn't eat his.
(LAUGHS) Touché.
Oh, yeah? Mmm.
(LAUGHING) So good.
Get down! Oh, my God! Baby? Lily! Mommy, Daddy's hurt.
What, honey? Daddy's hurt! It's okay, sweetheart.
(CRYING) Look, Daddy's right here.
Honey Are you okay? Oh, God! Daddy.
No, no, no.
Shh.
It's okay, sweetheart.
Mommy's gonna call for help, all right? It's gonna be fine.
Daddy's gonna be fine.
I'm right here.
Mommy's right here.
Shh, honey.
Yes, please.
My husband has been shot.
Please send a rescue ambulance to 3318 Vicksburg Road.
Mommy! Yes, it was a drive-by shooting with automatic weapons.
Please hurry.
My husband is a police officer.
Oh, God, no.
No.
No.
Daddy! Breathe, honey.
Breathe.
It's gonna be okay, sweetheart.
Please, honey.
(PHONE RINGING) Baby.
REX: Hi, you've reached the Winters family.
Leave a message.
We'll call you back.
LILY: Bye.
CESAR: Now you know who I am, chota.
No! No! No! Oh, Casey.
I'm so sorry.
Mrs.
Winters, we're very sorry.
He called the house.
The suspect that Rex told me about, Cesar.
He called right after to To let Rex know that it was him.
Whatever it takes, Casey.
We'll get him.
I know.
By now, Vargas is probably making his way to the border.
We've already notified Homeland Security.
They'll be waiting for him.
Ray Mota's house, we can start there.
I'll get a warrant.
There's no time for that.
Do what you have to do.
I don't know where Cesar is.
He split after the barbecue.
Maybe you guys spooked him.
How about you? Where were you five hours ago? Huh.
I was tapping my chica all night long, homes.
TJ: You're lying.
You were at my partner's house.
Uh-uh.
Not me, man.
I don't care.
My partner's dead.
You give me Cesar, or you're taking the whole weight.
In your dreams, homes.
Get me a lawyer.
I want you to look at and see what Ray is responsible for.
I don't believe it.
Ray had nothing to do with that.
Believe what you want, but the D.
A.
is going after Ray and his friends.
And that includes whoever he's sleeping with.
I could go to jail? Yolanda, you're in big trouble.
And if you want our help, you have to start talking to us about Ray and Cesar Vargas.
You're just trying to scare me.
You recognize this? This is Ray's cell phone.
I was seeing if Cesar sent him a text.
Check out what I found.
This is from a It's an Orange County number? Mmm-hmm.
"You are so damn fine.
"Hook up tomorrow.
Tell me where.
" That didn't come from you, did it? Your boyfriend's a real player.
This is from a 646 number.
"See you this weekend.
Bring your tongue, chico.
" What? This guy's been running around on you.
You want to go to jail for him? Come on, Yolanda, you're smarter than that! Okay.
Last night, Ray got a call around 2:00.
I don't know if it was Cesar, but it did sound real serious.
What'd you hear? Something about a change in plans 'cause the border was hot.
And then ray asked about el chamaco del rancho.
"The farm boy.
" Yeah.
Ray said if the farm boy was still at Eastlake, maybe they could go find somebody to visit him.
Fernando, the farm boy, sounds like they want to put a hit on him.
Even worse, they know we have him stashed at Eastlake.
He's there under a pseudonym.
I assure you, I spoke to no one about the boy.
Strange that half the gangbangers in Los Angeles seem to know where he is.
What are you saying, Mr.
Morales? That we Mexicans are all corrupt? Not all Mexicans, just certain people in this building.
I find that offensive.
Oh, you find that offensive? Wait till I slap a murder-conspiracy charge against you.
Conspiracy? You traded information with the suspect in the Hancock Park Murders, with Cesar Vargas.
I've had no such dealings with señor Vargas.
Oh, señor Vargas? So, you know who he is.
What's the nature of your relationship with Mr.
Vargas? I don't have to answer your questions.
You know, my mind is going to a very dark place right now, señor Ortega.
Mr.
Vargas is responsible for the killing of a police officer last night.
You might want to remember that when you're driving home tonight and you see a police car in your rearview mirror.
Now, about Mr.
Vargas? My relationship with Mr.
Vargas is as a consular officer.
He presented himself here this morning, seeking refuge and asking to be repatriated.
He's here, in this building? He has been given sanctuary as a Mexican national.
How much did he pay for this sanctuary? This building is sovereign territory.
I demand you leave immediately.
It breaks my heart when I think what the drug cartels have done to the country of my grandfathers.
And it makes my blood boil that it was done with the happy cooperation of corrupt cerdos like you.
Hey, have you lost your marbles? I've gotten a dozen phone calls this morning from the State Department, Attorney General's office! Since when is it up to you to declare war on the Mexican government? Their consulate is harboring a cop killer.
Our government should send in federal agents to arrest him.
That is never going to happen.
I've been reminded a dozen times this morning that Mexico is our ally in the war on drugs.
Well, somebody forgot to inform their consulate.
We have a valid arrest warrant.
If Vargas was in Mexico, our extradition treaty would kick in Wait till he's back in Mexico.
I'll file a formal extradition demand.
Oh, fat lot of good that'll do.
He's ten blocks away now.
What are our chances gonna be when he's back over the border? If Vargas slips through our fingers, there'll be hell to pay, and you know that.
There's a Mexican prosecutor I met a couple years ago at a conference.
She's now a big deal in the department ofjustice there.
We are not surrendering Cesar Vargas.
Never mind what he did in Los Angeles.
Do you want this animal loose in your own country? He's presumed innocent under your legal system.
Mr.
Morales lost sight of this principle.
He owes my deputy an apology.
Lo siento.
I tend to behave badly when someone lies to my face.
These three women are Mexican citizens.
They're currently incarcerated in California.
Your Attorney General has requested that I recommend repatriation so they can finish their sentences in Mexico, closer to their families.
I know these cases.
You've always refused.
Now I'm offering you a trade, three for one.
Now I am the one who is refusing.
Did you hear that, Marisela? MARISELA ON INTERCOM: Yes, I did, Jerry.
I think someone's not using their head.
This is my old friend Marisela Diaz, recently been appointed Deputy Assistant Attorney General of Mexico.
MARISELA: Pick up the phone, Señor Contreras.
(SPEAKING SPANISH) (SPEAKING SPANISH) (SPEAKING SPANISH) (TIRES SCREECHING) (POLICE SIREN WAILING) Out! (GROANS) You're under arrest for ten counts of murder.
Now you know who we are.
You're the ones who should be going to jail.
You kidnapped me.
You tried that at arraignment, Mr.
Vargas.
It's getting old.
My client understands that he has to stay in Los Angeles to face your charges.
I'm asking that you consent to some bail, or at the very least, release him from 24-hour lockdown.
How about a candlelight dinner with JLo? ROBLES: You can be as glib as you want, Mr.
Morales.
Your lab can't match my client's voice to the detective's answering machine.
And Mr.
Vargas here has alibis for the times of the shooting.
He pulled the strings, not the triggers.
Do you have witnesses to that effect? Or is that little boy you have locked up cooperating? I didn't see his statement in your arraignment papers.
Miss, did you misplace it? We didn't come here to give you a preview of our case.
You'll get to see it in ten days at the prelim.
They know Fernando isn't talking.
(BOTH SPEAKING SPANISH) (LAUGHS) You promised him what? That we'd get his family up here from Mexico immediately, set them up.
If we do that, Fernando said he'd testify.
WASHBURN: The only way to resettle a Mexican family here is by granting them political asylum, and you had no authority from the State Department to make that offer.
Mr.
Washburn, without Fernando's testimony, Vargas walks.
Once he's out, Fernando and his family's lives aren't worth a nickel.
You realize, by granting them asylum, the US government would be, in effect, saying Mexico can't protect its own citizens.
I have relatives in Mexico who would agree with that.
Personal anecdotes aside, we understand this puts the State Department in a difficult situation.
I really don't care about the geopolitical message here.
WASHBURN: We do.
We're not in the business of antagonizing our allies.
Your request is denied.
I thought it was worth a try.
Thank you for coming in, Bo.
Oh, one more thing.
See you in Federal Court tomorrow.
This is an emergency petition to compel the State Department to grant political asylum to three citizens of Mexico, Flora, Jorge, and Graciela Ramirez.
The government realizes Mr.
Morales has his hands full, but the State Department doesn't consider Mexico a repressive regime.
By definition, there can be no grant of asylum.
Mexico is in a state of war with the drug cartels.
Corruption is rampant.
The innocent have no place to hide.
WASHBURN: The cartels are out of control, but we can't open the floodgates and give asylum to every frightened Mexican national.
I have amicus briefs from senators and governors who oppose granting asylum to Mexican citizens.
There's no time for that, Your Honor.
The defendant in this criminal case will be freed unless we can place our key witness on the stand on Tuesday.
Mr.
Morales, I'm concerned about setting a dangerous precedent here.
The danger here, Your Honor, is refusing this request.
An 11-year-old Mexican boy is ready to stand up to a brutal narco-trafficker in open court and do this community a service.
He's willing to testify despite the clear and imminent threat, both to himself and his family.
And if we're too timid to match this young boy's courage, the Mexican drug lords will know that we are a nation of straw men, and here is a land of opportunity waiting for them.
Ma! Ma.
(ALL SPEAKING SPANISH) (THANKING IN SPANISH) Thank you for finding our son.
Now he'll have to testify in court.
There will be danger for him.
We'll find you a new home far away from Los Angeles, give you new names.
(SPEAKING SPANISH) We will stand with our son.
Thank you.
(THANKING IN SPANISH) I'm gonna check on our witness.
(DOOR BUZZING OPEN) (BOTH SPEAKING SPANISH) (EXHALES) I'm the interpreter assigned to the witness.
I just need to prepare with him.
BAILIFF: All rise.
Be seated.
RICARDO: On the date in question, gunmen working for Cesar Vargas opened fire on a party in the backyard of Hernando and Maria Alcazar.
Nine people were killed, and seven were wounded.
The People will present sufficient evidence to hold Mr.
Vargas to answer these capital charges in a trial by jury.
Call your first witness, Mr.
Morales.
The people call Fernando Ramirez.
(PHONE RINGING) Yes? I came back to get the kid out, and Who was back here? Just the interpreter.
She was talking to him.
Where is she? She must have left through the judge's corridor.
Lock down the building.
Start a search.
RICARDO: Our witness was murdered in the holding cell by a woman posing as a court interpreter.
There's a statewide manhunt in progress.
Under the circumstances, I can't imagine you're prepared to go forward.
We're asking for a continuance.
Your Honor, with all due respect, this is the tenth day.
If Mr.
Morales doesn't have a case to present, my client must be set free.
RICARDO: Fernando Ramirez was murdered on orders from this defendant.
On behalf of the people of the State of California, I implore this court, do not release this man.
The law stipulates that Don't you dare lecture me about the law! This piece of dirt has the blood of four children on his hands! Mr.
Morales.
Mr.
Morales, I have to follow the law.
The complaint is dismissed.
The defendant is released.
We're adjourned.
(BOTH CRYING) (GASPS) (SHOUTING IN SPANISH) You killed my son! (CONTINUES SHOUTING) The feds? What are you talking about? I can't re-file murder charges against Vargas.
All we have left is a Federal Civil Rights violation case.
You make a request to the US Attorney.
The FBI and the DEA get involved.
Five minutes ago, you told me there were no witnesses and no forensics.
The Feds have resources we don't.
Once they file charges, they can squeeze the Mexicans to extradite Vargas.
Yeah, and the US Cavalry comes in and saves our bacon! Is that what you want to humiliate this office? I want justice done.
I reached out to Mexico City, to the State Department.
I called in a lot of chits on your behalf.
On my behalf? I thought we spoke for the victims.
I quit the police department because I thought here, in this office, I might make a real difference.
But if it's all politics and posturing Don't kid yourself! You love the politics.
Yes, I did, until I saw where it led.
Oh, you want humiliation, Jerry? How about a prosecutor quitting his office and rejoining the police force because his boss is too vain to ask for help in bringing a cop killer to justice? That's your spin? Okay, here's mine.
Deputy District Attorney Ricardo Morales resigns after being replaced as riding prosecutor in the Cesar Vargas case.
I will tell them the case needed a fresh pair of eyes.
I will tell them that if it takes us ten years, we will bring Vargas to justice.
It's your move.
(EXHALES) NARRATOR: In the city of Los Angeles, 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.
All right.
(SIGHS) Just sit right here, and I'll make you some tea and honey, okay? Back so soon? He threw up three times from Big Bear to here.
Oh.
Sweetie, you're burning.
Go upstairs and take a warm bath.
I'll be right up.
Make him some toast.
DON: Don't worry, sport.
We'll go fishing next week.
I'm gonna go help him.
(KATHY SCREAMING) KATHY: Oh, God! (GRUNTING) (MUFFLED SCREAMING) (PEOPLE CHATTERING) (PANTING) (SHATTERING) Don? Don, what's going on? Kathy and Bobby Call 911.
Call them! (CHATTER ON POLICE RADIO) (CAMERA CLICKS) Blunt-force hits over his face and neck, damage to the cervical vertebrae.
Could be a broken neck.
His knuckles are badly bruised.
The boy put up a fight.
Protecting his mom.
Brave kid.
(CAMERA CLICKING) M.
E: Victim has vaginal and rectal bleeding, bruising along the torso, the thighs, severe blunt-force trauma to the back of the head.
The boy killed, the wife raped and beaten to death while the man of the house was locked inside his bathroom.
TJ: So you were on a fishing trip? Uh, to Big Bear.
We were We were supposed to stay overnight, but Bobby got sick.
We decided to come back.
You notice anything unusual when you got home? No.
But I heard something in the laundry room.
We put Bobby to bed at 10:00, and I came downstairs and got some water, and I felt somebody was there, and then I got hit.
Did you get a look at him? I wasn't wearing my glasses.
It was dark.
He was white.
I'm sure of that.
And (STAMMERS) You're You're gonna think this is crazy.
Try us.
He was naked.
When I came to, he had taped me up, and he was dragging me to the bathroom.
And I swear, he He wasn't wearing any clothes.
Did you notice anything on his body? Tattoos, a birthmark? On his left leg, maybe a smudge.
I could hear Kathy upstairs.
I tried to look under the door.
I saw these, like, flashes of light coming from upstairs.
Flashes, like a camera flash? Maybe.
(CRYING) RICARDO: This lamp's been moved.
Maybe the suspect moved it toward the bed to throw more light on it for his photographs.
Some of these are bloody.
Some have been torn.
Maybe he had her try them on while he was assaulting her.
A lingerie show.
RICARDO: We have footprints.
Took his shoes off in here, maybe the rest of his clothes.
He was in here a while, sorting through their dirty laundry, getting himself all hot and bothered.
So this guy broke into a house full of people, undressed, and hid in a laundry room? Mrs.
Alvin was supposed to be home alone, but the husband said he heard a noise from the laundry room when he came home with the boy.
The suspect was probably in the house already.
He broke in expecting to have the wife all to himself.
He was determined to claim his prize.
The stripping naked, the underwear, the photographs.
It's like a plan he'd rehearsed before.
Right? Right.
I'll check break-ins in the area for a similar MO.
Well? Well, it's like riding a bike, except I don't remember all this paperwork.
(LAUGHS) Lieutenant, thanks for pulling the strings to get me here.
Hey, how's he doing? He's still got the chops.
And how are you doing? Don't worry about me.
The one to worry about is Casey.
I'll stop in on my way home.
LOUISE: Six months ago, right, Joe? We came back from dinner out, and our daughter found that photo on her computer.
She freaked out.
We freaked out.
A stranger in our baby's room.
TJ: Anything else taken? LOUISE: Just some of our daughter's underwear.
JOE: The cops couldn't figure out how the guy got in.
I tell you, I put in a new alarm after that.
Is this a new sound system? Uh, seven months ago.
The music follows us around the house.
The Alvins have one just like it.
Could we have the name of your tech? JIM: Yeah, I remember that job.
They wanted the music to follow them around the house, even into the john.
Hell, it's their money.
What about the Alvins, in Silver Lake? Yeah, with a little boy, right? (LAUGHS) That kid was whip-smart.
Knew more about electronics than half the guys in the trade.
Does anybody work for you? A helper? Nope.
Do all the work myself.
That's how I keep my prices low.
Those two jobs you mentioned? I beat out six other estimates.
And when you do an estimate, you come to the house, you look around? From the crawl space up to the rafters.
You don't want any surprises later on.
Nine homes burglarized with similar MOs.
All of them either got AV systems installed or got estimates.
Some of the tech visited all the houses, but one name pops out, Nolen Sound.
He bid on every job, but each time he priced himself out of the running by at least 20%.
Just a pretext to case the house.
We're gonna smoke him out.
He might respond better to a woman's voice.
I want the TV in the den connected to the TV in there, and music in every room, including the laundry room.
I cannot get enough of Andrea Bocelli.
(LAUGHS) Whatever floats your boat.
Oh, and another thing, um, my husband is gonna be away for business in two weeks, and, um, I wanted to surprise him.
Okay.
Is that a problem? No, I just need to see the scope of the job.
Could I see your business card? You need it now? You do work for Nolen Sound, right? Uh I think there's been a misunderstanding.
RICARDO: Police.
Don't move.
Uh, I think I'm in the wrong house.
No, you're in the right house.
Come on.
Dudes, I swear I'm not the one you're looking for.
Steve Inman, AV installations.
What's your relationship with Nolen Sound? Nothing.
I don't know those guys.
So explain how we called Nolen Sound and you showed up? I got punked.
This guy calls me up, says his wife's gonna show me a job.
I get down here to make an estimate, and she's like, "It's a surprise for him.
" No TJ: Palm Springs PD just confirmed.
Mr.
Inman was there on a golf weekend with his in-laws the night the Alvins were attacked.
The state does have a contractor's license on file for Greg Nolen, with a legit Social Security number, except that Greg Nolen has been dead for five years.
The phone number for Nolen Sound, it's a no-name cell.
And the e-mail address was set up behind half a dozen proxies.
Bottom line, a false identity created by an expert.
So we got punked, too.
The suspect saw through our little sting, sent the sucker instead.
Dangerous, twisted, and smart.
That could be the guy who came to the house last month.
Nolen Sound, right? I wish I'd paid more attention.
I was already late for work Can you remember what he said? Just the usual questions.
He was very polite.
"Yes, sir.
No, sir.
" I thought maybe he'd been in the service.
Are you okay, Mr.
Alvin? He asked me when would be a good time to do the job.
I said, any weekend, except the last one, because I was going away with Bobby.
He knew Kathy would be alone because I told him.
Thank you for coming in, Mr.
Alvin.
This has been very helpful.
Hmm.
That makes 11 people so far, all the same story.
Bland-Iooking guy, baseball cap, tinted glasses, polite, formal, just this side of a drill sergeant.
And up until last week, he was just breaking into empty houses and stealing underwear.
It's a big jump to rape and murder.
There are steps missing.
We pulled the record from Nolen Sound's cell phone.
He made and received calls from Long Beach, Riverside, Anaheim.
All right, well, check with those jurisdictions, see what they have that fits our MO, and maybe we'll find the missing steps.
ANNETTE: I woke up with a pillowcase over my head and a voice saying my baby wouldn't get hurt if I kept quiet.
He tied my hands behind my back, put his hand on my throat, and took me into the bedroom.
And what happened then? He was posing me, made me put on different underwear.
And he took photos the whole time.
Did he call you by your name? No, but I remember when he (CRYING) When he was behind me, raping me, um, my arm was against his leg.
I felt this kind of scar.
Which leg? His left leg.
It was, um, like a straight line, maybe a couple of inches long.
RICARDO: Anything else you remember? No.
No.
He started getting rough with me.
And I thought I thought he was gonna kill me.
And I just kept saying, "Why are you doing this?" And then I just blurted out, "You don't seem like the type.
" What did he do? He just stopped.
He said he was sorry, and Then he was gone.
He just left me there, tied up.
Have you had any contact with a company called Nolen Sound? No.
Has anyone called you, asking you for personal information? No.
I'm very careful about that kind of thing.
I work in the billing department at a hospital, so I know what can go wrong.
What do you mean? Four months ago, our computer systems were hacked, and 5,000 credit card numbers were stolen.
There was a whole investigation.
Even I was a suspect.
Who did the investigating? The Secret Service.
I didn't know they were identity theft experts.
HSU: I hadn't heard about the attack.
It's awful.
Annette was very helpful to us.
We think her attack may be related to some cases in LA.
Matter of fact, they involve identity theft.
That's your area, isn't it? Right.
The Digital Crimes Unit.
Anything we can do to help.
Well, we'd like to talk to your team.
Annette said there were three of you.
Agent Canton, she's out with the flu, and our supervisor, Raymond Garson.
Garson? Oh, I think we worked with him in the past.
Blond hair, glasses? Brown hair, no glasses.
(LAUGHS) That's him next to me at a dinner last year.
Marine Corps Marathon? Yeah, a bunch of us run it every year.
RICARDO: Ah, and that's Garson next to you? What's that thing on his leg? Oh, his, uh, red badge of courage.
He got wounded in a raid in a counterfeit operation 20 years ago.
He around today, so we can check in? He's in D.
C.
until tomorrow.
He is number two in this office, you know.
This agent protected two presidents and 14 visiting heads of state.
Yeah.
We tried to check his whereabouts the last six months, but it's hard without asking for his schedule.
We do know that he was in and out of Long Beach the week Annette Kay got raped, and he was here when the Alvins were attacked.
He had one more out-of-town assignment.
(CELL PHONE CHIMES) Ventura, six weeks ago.
Running a big fraud investigation.
You check with Ventura PD for crimes with similar MOs? We did.
They just got back to us.
Do you mind? ARLEEN: No.
(TYPING) TJ: Joanne Dickson, She went missing seven weeks ago in Ventura.
FEMALE OFFICER: Joanne finished her shift at 6:00 Thursday night.
She left alone, didn't show up for work the next day.
Anybody hear from her in between? She called a friend from her house at 9:15.
Otherwise, nothing.
No prints or DNA from her house.
We found this in her driveway.
The tracks are from heavy-duty, all-weather blackwalls from an SUV.
No one Joanne knew has treads that match.
RICARDO: Is this the restaurant where she worked? On east Thompson, right off the 101.
There's a motel across the street.
TJ: That's Garson in the motel parking lot, getting into an SUV the same night Joanne Dickson disappeared.
Where's the picture of him coming back? We don't have that photo.
What we have is Garson entering the motel lobby at 4:00 a.
m.
The minute we grab the SUV, Garson'll know, and any evidence he has, photos, documents, he'll get rid of.
Best thing is to get him in a room.
Why don't we just ask him to come in today, talk about Annette Kay and identity theft? Twenty years in the Secret Service, protecting presidents, this man understands the chain of command.
He respects it.
He'll follow orders.
He knows if he turns us down, he'll be tipping his hand.
Give it a shot.
Bingo.
Lab got a match between the tracks found in Joanne's driveway and the SUV Garson was driving.
(CRACKING KNUCKLES) He'll show.
Everything okay? Sure.
You know, TJ, if I'm doing anything wrong, I hope you'll tell me.
You're doing fine.
It's tough losing a partner.
I know.
I've lost two.
One in the line of duty and one to cancer.
(PHONE RINGS) Morales.
Send him up.
(ELEVATOR BELL DINGS) Raymond Garson, to see Detective Morales.
Right this way.
Now, this should be interesting.
Robbery homicide, 10th floor? (DOOR OPENS) GARSON: Thanks.
Agent Garson.
Detective Ricardo Morales.
Thank you for coming in.
Oh, we're just up the street.
I walked over.
Who walks in LA, right? Only the brave.
So.
How can I help you, Detective? Well, as you might know, we're investigating an attack on Miss Annette Kay.
Yeah.
Agent Hsu told me.
It's a terrible shame, what happened to her.
Yes, it is.
Well, here's the situation.
Uh, there's evidence that the man who attacked Annette is also responsible for at least 14 burglaries in the last eight months.
Okay.
This suspect uses the identity of a audio-visual technician to gain access and to case the houses.
There's also evidence that he killed two members of a family in Silver Lake.
Now, here's the thing, Ray.
The identity this person uses belongs to a Greg Nolen, who passed away five years ago.
Mr.
Nolen was a witness in a fraud case that your office investigated back in 2002.
Here's his name on the witness list.
Yeah, I remember this case.
Right.
Well, here's where we run into a little problem.
Uh, this is the statement from Annette Kay.
Lines 16 through 25 are highlighted.
It's where she says she felt a scar on the left thigh of the man who attacked her.
A straight-line scar.
Mmm-hmm.
This is a statement from Mr.
Don Alvin.
He's the husband of the family that were attacked in Silver Lake, also highlighted, where he describes seeing a mark on the left leg of the man who assaulted him.
Do you see that, Ray? Calls it a "smudge.
" Ray, we saw a photograph of you at the Marine Corps Marathon in shorts.
There was a scar visible on your left leg.
Would you like me to continue? Okay.
We're both grown-ups here.
We know what we're talking about today.
You came in voluntarily.
And as a law enforcement officer, you know you're free to leave anytime you want.
Mmm-hmm.
Note it.
Suspect acknowledges it's noncustodial questioning.
Miranda doesn't attach.
Really? That wouldn't hold up in New York.
RICARDO: There's another case I've been asked to talk to you about.
Up in Ventura, a missing persons.
Joanne Dickson.
She disappeared from her home seven weeks ago.
She worked across the street from the hotel where you stayed when you were working on a case up there.
So here we We run into another little problem.
At 9:07, the night she disappeared, the security cameras in the motel parking lot took this photo of you getting into an SUV.
The next time you appear in the motel's cameras is at 4:12 a.
m.
, when you're entering the lobby.
The police in Ventura took a tire print from Joanne Dickson's driveway.
Our lab compared that print to a tire print taken from the SUV you were driving.
Here's a photocopy of both prints.
(CHUCKLES) I don't really know anything about tire impressions.
I leave it up to the experts, but they tell me those tire prints are identical.
You need to explain this, Ray.
I don't know.
I just don't know.
Ray, you should be aware that, based on these tire prints, search warrants are being issued to your home and your computer.
(STAMMERS) It's not me making the decision.
But whatever is there, DNA, blood, hair, our experts will find it.
Damn brick wall.
RICARDO: Ray, what are we gonna do? I know your mind is racing right now.
I've had a lot of people sit where you're sitting.
I know how this goes.
If you want to maintain your credibility, you have to give us some honesty right now.
That's how this works.
Because when the telephone rings, or there's a knock on the door, it's over.
It's getting out of control fast, Ray.
It's getting beyond my control.
What are we gonna do, Ray? You have to get in front of this.
If you wait until the evidence comes in, or until you have no choice, people are just gonna think, "Oh, he's just some kind of psychopath.
" I don't think that's what you want.
After 20 years of distinguished service, of having presidents and heads of state trust you with their lives.
Or maybe I'm wrong.
In any event, Ray, it could well be out of our hands.
We'll just wait and see what they find in your house.
Call me Raymond.
Raymond.
Raymond.
(EXHALES SHARPLY) I see you're still struggling with something.
What is it? What if it was consensual, actually? With Annette? You were there with her that night? Yes.
But it was consensual.
That's one.
RICARDO: And how about the waitress in Ventura, Joanne? Was that consensual as well? (EXHALES) (STAMMERS) I went to visit her.
Can you tell me where she is now? Is she near her house? Yeah.
Is she outside? Can she see the sky? No.
Can you show me where she is on this? Raymond I I think I'd like to talk to a lawyer now.
RICARDO: That's your choice.
And everything that I said would happen will happen.
People will make up their own minds about you.
Raymond, can you tell me where Joanne is? I think I've said enough.
I want to talk to my lawyer.
He buried her near her house.
It's not enough to get the death penalty.
We needed him to take us to the body.
This could be moot.
Our team just got to his house, and if they find DNA or photos Well, unless Garson's posed next to a corpse, it may not matter.
She's right.
He's already set up his defense for his assault on Annette Kay.
Consensual sex, he said, she said.
We really needed him to take us to that body.
SID's report on the SUV Garson was driving in Ventura.
He did some off-roading.
They found mud and onion skins in the undercarriage.
Onion skins? There are onion fields all around Ventura.
You can smell them when you drive in.
There's an onion field right by Joanne Dickson's house.
Well, that must be at least 1,000 acres.
It would take months to search all that.
You think you can get Ventura to send out search teams by 5:00 a.
m? RICARDO: Raymond, there's something I want you to see.
Detective, could you pull over here? The experts found onion skins all over the truck you were driving that night.
They know Joanne's out there.
(DOG BARKING) A lot of people looking for her.
Eventually they'll find her.
TJ: His computer was full of these.
It looks like it was taken in the houses he broke into.
And then there were these.
The women are all alive in these photos.
CONNIE: It's incredible.
This guy was protecting presidents.
How did he ever pass the psychological screening? Well, we don't know about the cross-dressing, but the burglaries and assaults started only in the last 12 months.
Yeah, well, he can exercise his freak in prison.
Long Beach and Ventura have both signed off on an offer of life without parole for the whole package.
Why offer anything? You have a bona fide death penalty case here.
JONAH: And two traumatized victims.
If I can avoid putting Don Alvin and Annette Kay through a trial, it'll be a good thing.
GARFIELD: We're not scared of a trial.
My client's been shot in the line of duty.
He's devoted his life to public service.
That's gonna mean something to a jury.
Yeah, until they see those pictures of him prancing around in Hello Kitty panties.
Not to mention the photos of him torturing Annette Kay, Kathy Alvin.
Souvenirs of consensual encounters.
Really? Did Joanne Dickson consent to being buried in an onion field? Who cares? The jury's never gonna hear that.
GARFIELD: My client had invoked his right to counsel when the police drove by a field where a search was under way and resumed questioning in violation of his rights.
The discovery of Miss Dickson's body resulted from that questioning and should be excluded.
There was no questioning.
Mr.
Garson volunteered to show the police where he buried Miss Dickson.
In any case, Your Honor, the police would've found her body as a matter of inevitable discovery.
Well, then they should have been more patient.
If Detective Morales hadn't spoken to my client Wait.
This was Detective Morales' idea? He was driving Mr.
Garson to Ventura.
Mr.
Dekker, if this were an ordinary cop, I'd allow the evidence in under the good-faith exception.
But a former prosecutor pulling this stunt? Your Honor, you cannot allow an officer's background to influence your I can.
And I am.
The body's out.
That's one down.
Here's two.
Without a body, there's no murder case.
Damn.
(SIGHS) Call her.
Go see her today.
ANNETTE: Oh, my God.
I can't believe this.
That is you in these photos? Yes, three years ago with my ex.
We were newlyweds, we were experimenting.
Where did you get these? From Raymond Garson's lawyer.
He got them from your ex.
That creep.
Why would they want these? Garson's claiming that you consented to have rough sex with him.
What he did to me wasn't rough sex.
It was torture.
It was rape.
I know.
Can't you stop them from using these? We'll try, but the law is on their side.
They're entitled to question your credibility.
So that monster gets to use these photos to humiliate me in public, (CRYING) to rape me all over again? (STAMMERS) No.
No, I won't do it.
I won't testify.
Annette, we'll do everything we can You have all that other evidence.
You don't need me.
I'm sorry.
I need to pick up my daughter from the sitter's.
She won't testify? JONAH: No.
And forcing her will only backfire.
So we're dropping the rape charge.
We're also dropping the murder charge from Ventura.
The judge excluded the evidence.
So what does that leave? The murder of your wife and son.
Of course, the The burglaries.
There's enough there to get the death penalty.
Mr.
Alvin? I used to be like that.
Happy.
How can someone call himself a good man if he doesn't protect his family? You tried, Mr.
Alvin.
That's what people say, but I know what they're really thinking.
DON: When I came to, I was being dragged.
My legs and my hands were taped up, and my mouth was taped shut.
I tried to shake loose, but I couldn't.
Mr.
Alvin, while you were being dragged, what, if anything, did you see? Well, before I was knocked out, I fought back.
You know, I landed a couple of punches, but he had the drop on me, and he hit me with something.
Mr.
Alvin, will you please limit your answers to the questions I ask you? While you were being dragged, what did you see? There was a mark on the man's left leg.
People's 34.
Mr.
Alvin, is that the scar you saw? I wasn't wearing my glasses, but that's it.
Then what happened? I was locked in the bathroom.
I could hear Kathy upstairs, being attacked.
There were flashes of light under the door.
I tried to get loose.
It took me forever.
When I finally got out, I found my wife dead, and my son murdered by that man.
JONAH: Thank you, Mr.
Alvin.
Mr.
Alvin, you said you put up a fight, that you punched your assailant.
There was a struggle, and you hit him and he hit you.
Yes.
You were defending your family.
Exactly.
But, Mr.
Alvin, you never mentioned this fight to the police, did you? DON: I don't know.
But I hit him.
Well, can you explain why you had no bruises on your hands? That doesn't mean I didn't fight back.
No, your son fought back, and he had the bruises on his knuckles to prove it.
How does it happen you had no bruises? I don't know.
In fact, except for the wound on your head, there wasn't a single mark on your body that indicated there was a struggle, was there? I don't know.
And the scar that you claim that you saw, you told the police it was a smudge.
It was blurry.
I wasn't wearing my glasses.
You're making this up, aren't you? No.
In fact, you made the whole thing up.
Isn't it true that you came home Saturday night and you discovered that your wife had a sexual encounter with my client in your house while you were away? What? No! Not my Kathy.
And you became so enraged that you attacked your wife, you raped her, and you beat her to death.
That's not true.
And then you killed your son when he tried to stop you.
No! That's a lie! You inflicted that wound on yourself and concocted this lie about an intruder.
(CRYING) That's a lie.
He murdered them.
He killed them.
I was protecting them.
I have no more questions.
I was protecting them.
(SOBBING) How can he say those things about my wife? How can he get away with that? It doesn't matter what he said.
It's your credibility that's in trouble.
Mr.
Alvin, why did you make up this story about fighting back? What were you trying to accomplish? They keep saying I could've done more.
They say I was a coward.
Who says? They keep sending me e-mails.
I don't know who they are.
Show us.
"You call yourself a man? "A real man would have died protecting his family.
" CONNIE: (READING) "How can you live with yourself "when everyone knows you hid in the bathroom "while your family was being killed?" "Your son puked his guts out all the way back from Big Bear, "but he still had more guts left than you.
" That's the worst, from three days ago.
That wasn't in the media, about his son being sick on the way back from Big Bear.
Did you tell anyone? No.
I remember telling Kathy when we got home.
We were in the kitchen.
JONAH: Check the books.
A smart phone.
Garson probably paid somebody to smuggle it in.
Don't confiscate it.
Put it back.
We'll put a tap on it.
GARSON: My wife found out she was pregnant with twins.
It was a big financial burden.
I needed extra income.
I used to install stereos when I was in college.
But the Secret Service has regulations about side jobs, so I used the identity of a deceased AV technician and worked on my days off.
And what, if anything, happened during the course of this work? Like a lot of men, I found it hard to be intimate with my wife when she became pregnant.
I often found myself alone with women in the houses I worked in.
Some of them were lonely and interested in the same kind of fantasy sex play.
All of those encounters were consensual.
I never did anything those women didn't want.
I never hurt them.
And what about the burglaries and the stolen panties that Mr.
Dekker mentioned? That was stupid.
It was just Sexual curiosity.
GARFIELD: Now tell us about Kathy Alvin.
I met her when I went to her house to do an estimate.
She asked me to come back when her husband was gone.
I went there Saturday afternoon.
We had sex.
It was rough sex.
The kind she wanted.
When I left a few hours later, Mrs.
Alvin was alive and well.
I'm not I'm not proud of my behavior.
I betrayed my wife.
I dishonored the Secret Service.
They deserve better.
You referenced your work with the Secret Service.
How many investigations have you been involved in? GARSON: Ballpark, just over 100.
So, you've interrogated a great many suspects.
Is that right? Yes.
And if a suspect revealed that he had knowledge of details of a crime that could only be known by the offender, what would that tell you? That he's guilty.
Guilty.
At the time of your encounter with Mrs.
Alvin, did you know that Mr.
Alvin had cut short his fishing trip because his son had fallen ill? GARSON: No.
And what do you know about it today? Just that they had to come home early from fishing because the boy was sick.
That's it? He was sick? Yes.
You didn't hear Mr.
Alvin tell his wife that their son had vomited three times on the way back from Big Bear Lake? No.
Objection! Asked and answered.
JONAH: You didn't hear him from your hiding place in the laundry room? No.
I wasn't there.
People's 35.
"Your son puked his guts out all the way back from Big Bear, "but he still had more guts left than you.
" An e-mail received by Mr.
Alvin four days ago.
GARFIELD: Objection, Your Honor.
We weren't given this evidence beforehand.
Sidebar, Your Honor.
Your Honor, this impeachment evidence came to us in the last 24 hours.
More than a dozen e-mails sent to Mr.
Alvin over the last 30 days.
"Now everyone knows you're a liar and a coward.
"Did you ever think that when she was being raped and killed, "your wife was praying that you'd come save her?" We have other evidence, Your Honor.
This is from the warden at the county jail, reporting the discovery of a cell phone with that number found during a search of the defendant's cell.
And this forensic analysis of the cell phone proves that it was used to send those e-mails, including that one, to Mr.
Alvin, revealing details that would only be known to the killer of Mr.
Alvin's family.
JUDGE: Mr.
Dekker, the defense will have 48 hours to examine this evidence before I'll admit it in trial.
They can take all the time they need.
Two life sentences without parole.
I hope you approve.
Buy you a drink, Mr.
Alvin? You have a family? Then go home.