Freedomland (2006) Movie Script
- Yo, run the ball, fool!
- Come on, now.
That's good. Good.
Do it.
Welcome to the WBGO Journal.
I'm Doug Doyle.
Welcome to the WBGO Journal.
I'm Doug Doyle.
- Hey, Vicky.
- How you doing, Miss Jenkins?
I'm good, girl.
- No.
- No, you can't do that.
It's the man, right here.
- Five-0 say freeze!
- All right.
- Good seeing you, man.
- What's up, guys?
- How you doing, baby?
- Not good as you, D.
How come nobody around here
ever calls me "baby"?
- How you doing, baby?
- I'm doing good.
So, ladies, you seen
your brother Rafik anywhere?
What did he do now?
- Hey, Big Daddy.
- Rev, you good, man?
When you gonna
install these refrigerators?
We had to lock two boneheads up
last night for breaking in these crates.
Yeah, besides, some kid tries to
play house, could end up suffocated.
The maintenance fellow is on strike.
What am I supposed to do?
Put them in myself?
Lorenzo, you know those laptops
we ordered for the Rainbow Club?
- They didn't come with power cords.
- Talk to your housing manager here.
- How we supposed to use them?
- Ladies, tell Rafik to find me...
...before I find him, all right?
- All right.
Lorenzo?
I need for you to have
a man-to-man with Billy.
About what?
He started hitting me.
Can you believe that?
You scared?
All right. I'll sit his dumb ass down
and talk to him, okay?
Thank you.
- Yo, Rev, I'm out, babe.
- All right, baby.
- Good seeing you, bro.
- All right, baby.
Oh, Rafik. Just the knucklehead
I was looking for.
Right here, son.
Come on down.
You know what this is?
- A warrant.
- No. It's a Gannon warrant.
You didn't show for your hearing.
Hearing for what,
driving while black?
- Can you talk to him tonight? Please.
- Okay, okay. I'm gonna do it, all right?
Did you or did you not get stopped
in that town at 2 a. M...
...got a nickel bag of weed on you?
- A nickel bag?
- What you doing...
...cruising through Gannon
in the middle of the night?
I was going home, son. Doing
the speed limit and everything. DWB.
You know how those rookies over
in Gannon are. They stop me.
- So you know.
- Hey, hey, hey. Don't try to relate.
First of all, lose the weed.
Now, they doing us a favor...
...letting us bring you in so your
booking will go smooth, feel me?
- I feel you.
- Jesus, I hate this fucking place.
I am not gonna take any shit
for hopping the fence this time either.
No, it's cool. I'll handle it.
Rev, Bobby. Big Daddy,
how you be?
Well, same old, same old.
What's up?
Thought you said you guys were
gonna grab Rafik Dotson for us.
I did. And we will.
Hey. He said we would do it.
Yeah, no, no. We're not here for him.
We're picking us up...
...a Calvin Joy.
You know, you guys are supposed
to contact the local officers...
...before you come in here.
Rev, I just did.
I'm gonna go up with them.
- Base to South Investigator 15.
- South 15, go.
South 15, respond
to Medical Center Emergency Room.
See female vic of
a possible carjack at that location.
On our way.
Where the hell did Rafik go?
All units. Wanted: A carjacking
in the south district.
Nineteen ninety-four Toyota Camry,
four-door, color beige...
...New Jersey reg
773 Victor-Bravo-Kappa.
Vehicle occupied by black male,
5- foot-8 to 5-foot- 10.
Last seen driving out
the Armstrong Houses.
Lorenzo.
Lorenzo.
- Y'all see anything out here?
- No.
No. No, I ain't seen nothing.
- Anybody see anything?
- No.
- Lorenzo.
- What?
- Don't forget.
- Forget what?
Bobby, I'm going to the hospital.
- I'll be back for you.
- Twenty received.
- Thanks for waiting.
- Yeah, I'm checking on my mother.
- She came in about an hour ago.
- Yes.
How you ladies doing?
Putting on some weight
there, Lorenzo.
Just more of me to love.
- Young man.
- Young man yourself.
How's my customer?
She good to talk?
Here you are, bay three.
I need you to put these in...
You say black. Black like
darker than him, lighter than him?
I don't know. It was night.
Five-eight, 5'10",
running about 150.
- You still feel that?
- Yeah.
Guys?
Brenda, this is Detective Council.
Detective Council,
this is Brenda Martin.
- How you doing, Brenda?
- Not good.
Detective Council's gonna
take it from here, okay?
- Can I get you anything?
- No.
Now, look.
I know you're upset and tired as hell,
but the sooner we go through this...
...the sooner we can make
something good happen, all right?
Look, Brenda, would you rather have
a female investigator in here?
Would that make you
more comfortable?
I wasn't raped,
if that's what you're driving at.
Oh, that's good.
I'm real glad to hear that.
Look, the other officers already,
you know...
...got the description of the car
and the actor.
And everybody's on the street
looking for this guy.
But if you'll just bear with me,
you know, kind of...
...take me through the story
one more time.
I was trying to get from the projects
back into Gannon. I live in Gannon.
You shut up! And shut up now!
I was on Hurley at
the bottom of the hill, you know...
...Martyrs Park, where the street ends?
And I had heard you could...
...cut through Martyrs
and come out in Gannon...
...but I'd never done it before.
So I'm, like, halfway in,
and it's, like, where's..?
And then there's no road.
So I was starting to back out...
...and this guy come from
behind a tree or something.
And I didn't wanna deal with him.
But before I...
I know it,
he comes up to the window.
And he opens my car door...
...and says, "Just... Just look.
Look where I'm pointing."
Like I should get out of the car.
And I know better.
Before I knew it, he yanks me
out of the car.
And he pulls me down so hard.
You don't know. I tried.
I tried to tell him.
Tried to tell him what, Brenda?
Okay, look. Now, I gotta ask.
And I want you to know,
it doesn't matter what your answer is...
...all I'm concerned with is trying
to find the guy who hurt you.
White girl from Gannon. What was I
doing there at night, copping rock?
You're strictly the victim.
I need to know who to hit on.
I'm clean almost five years.
I don't even think about it.
Okay.
- And my brother's on the job.
- Really? Where?
Gannon. He's a detective.
Danny Martin.
Danny Martin.
Yeah, okay. All right. Yeah, good.
What was I doing there
if I wasn't buying drugs?
Shut up! Shut up! Shut up!
I work in the Children's Center.
The Rainbow Club in Three Building.
Okay, good. That's good.
Now, excuse me.
- This is SI 15 to Base.
- Base. Go ahead.
I need a reach-out to Gannon,
a Detective Danny Martin.
Have him contact me
at the Dempsy MC.
- Received.
- Okay, Brenda.
I went home
and I couldn't find my glasses.
I thought I left them
at the Rainbow Club.
But I didn't, so I got
in the car...
...and I drove.
You drove, and?
I told you the rest.
You know, Brenda, I...
I can't help but think there's
something else still bothering you.
You sure you don't want
a female investigator here?
Do you know the guy
who did this to you, Brenda?
Hey, hey, hey.
Brenda, stop, stop, stop.
Do you know who this man is?
Listen, this is your lucky night.
I know everybody
in the Armstrong projects.
I own that place.
Ain't nobody I don't know.
Do you know who did this to you?
Who's the guy, Brenda?
I'm dying. I'm dying! I'm dying!
My son.
Your son? Your son what?
Is in the car.
No! No!
No! No!
No! No!
Brenda, your kid,
he's a boy, right?
- How old?
- Four.
- What's his name?
- Cody.
- Okay. Cody. Cody. How old is he?
- I just told you.
Oh, that's right. Slow down, Lorenzo,
slow down. Four years old.
- Okay. Is he in a car seat?
- No.
- Seat belt?
- No.
- Front or back?
- Of?
- The car!
- Oh. Oh, back.
Okay. Hold on, hold on.
Hold on one second.
This is Special Investigator 15 to Base.
Stand by for emergency transmission.
- Base, go.
- Carjack in the south district...
...notify all units that
there is a male child in the car.
A 4-year-old...
Is he Caucasian?
- Caucasian male, 4 years old,
in the back seat.
- Received.
- He was asleep.
- He was... He was sick. He was...
- Hold on, Brenda. Hold on.
Hold on, hold on.
The child is or was asleep...
...so he may or may not be
visible to pursuing officers.
- Stand by for further description.
- I tried to tell him.
What was he wearing, Brenda?
What's he wearing? Your son.
What is your son wearing?
He had a... He had a...
He had a white... White shirt on.
A white... A white shirt on.
- Light or dark?
- White!
- Hair.
- Short in front...
...and long in black...
Back!
- Pants or jeans?
- Pajama bottoms with stripes.
Pajama bottoms with stripes. Okay.
All right, hold on, hold on.
Shit! Special Investigator 15
to Base.
Child has black hair, white shirt
and pajama bottoms.
- Your kid's asleep, right, Brenda?
- He's asleep.
All right. Okay, now...
...listen to me. This knucklehead,
all he wants is your car.
If he wanted to hurt somebody,
he would have hurt you.
- No, he did hurt me.
- All right. Here, listen to me, Brenda.
He's gonna see that kid, pull over to
a corner and put him on the sidewalk.
He don't want no parts of that kid.
Shit! All right. Now listen,
I gotta ask you one more time.
- What were you doing there?
- No, I... I told you.
- Why were you there?
- I told you.
- Well, tell me again!
- I told you.
Told me what? Tell me what
you were doing! Tell me again!
I went to find my glasses.
You took your sick kid
out at 9 in the evening...
...for some fucking glasses?!
- I... I don't have a babysitter!
I can't afford one. What
are you trying to do, punish me?
- Sit. All right. Sit.
- Believe me, you don't have to.
I'm tight. I'm tight. All right?
- Oh, God.
- Oh, well, what if he wakes up?
He'll be so scared.
I'm never not there for him.
Listen, I know this is hard for you.
But we are going to find him, okay?
- I let him down.
- Nobody wants a kidnap tag.
He's my world, and I let him down.
He's worth 10 of anybody else.
He's worth 10 of me!
What..? What are you doing?
Adrenaline. Straight, no chaser.
Detective Council, there's a Detective
Martin from Gannon out here.
All right. Can you stay with her?
- Yeah, sure.
- Okay. Be back. Be right back.
Is that your daughter?
She's beautiful.
What happened?
Your sister got jacked
over in the Armstrong Houses.
She got a little roughed up.
And we think her son, Cody,
is still in the back seat of the car.
- Car? The guy's still out there?
- We got a crash alert going.
He won't get far.
- Where in Armstrong, high end or low?
- I know where you're coming from...
...but your sister needs to be
with family. Think you could stay?
- I'll ask you again. High end or low?
- It's not your jurisdiction, man.
But I give you my word, I will do...
Hey, Council. You at least got
a photo of who you're looking for?
Ain't that many pictures
of jackers in the book.
No. I mean him.
- SI 15 to SI 20. Go to six.
- Twenty on six.
She had to go to the john.
What part of "stay with her"
did you not understand?
What's happening, Big Daddy?
Big heads up.
The vic is Danny Martin's sister.
So you believe Gannon's gonna be
hopping the fence in force.
No shit. They're already here.
I'll be down as soon as I can.
No. No, don't come down here.
You'll only go batshit.
You'll make everything
Listen, just take her over to BCI,
all right? And I'll handle this, please.
Brenda?
Go to their supply cabinet and...
Ten-four. Ten-nine-two, eight-eight.
Armstrong residents,
this is a lockdown.
Do not cross the barricade.
Armstrong residents.
This is a lockdown.
For you to join the ranks
of these people, to continue...
...to oppress us like this!
We have had six homicides
in these homes in the last three years.
Three of them
children under 18 years of age.
And not once did we ever...
...have the police presence
we got here tonight...
...for one missing white child!
Can you explain that to me?
- Abductor, please approach
one of the officers.
If you have any information about
the whereabouts of Cody Martin...
...or his abductor, please...
Lorenzo. My mother
is having an angina attack.
- And they letting nobody out.
- What?
Now, I am gonna get her
to a hospital if I have to fucking...
Bea, it's all right.
You get your mother and her things.
I'll see she gets to the hospital.
I know what you're doing here.
And I'm telling you, you cannot
get involved with all this and help her.
Now get the hell out of here. Take her
over to BCI and do your job, man.
- Where the hell is she?
- Shit.
- Hey! Hey!
- Medic. Come on!
Hey!
- Make a path. Make a path.
- Move it!
- My bag.
- Forget it. Forget it.
Hey, what are you doing, huh?
Looking for a clue?
- It's a fucking freeway.
- Watch your mouth.
Yeah. And you,
are you out of your mind?
- What were you doing out here?
- Danny, please, I swear...
Hey. Your sister's suffering here.
I don't see no ax
sticking out her head.
He's my son, you fuck!
Let me tell you something, Council.
This shithead's in the wind,
and he ain't coming back.
But if it happened here,
the answer's here.
And we're gonna shut this place
down like East fucking Berlin...
...until somebody gives it up.
Now, all I want to know...
...is are you working Armstrong
or just protecting it?
The police are requesting
your help with any information...
Get him out of here.
Get all of them out of here.
Lorenzo, it's his nephew. Reverse the
situation, we'd be over there in a shot.
For an Armstrong kid?
I fucking doubt it.
Don't kill me!
- Oh, God!
- Don't do it, Calvin!
- Don't do it.
- Do it.
Coming through.
- Make way, people.
- Calvin! No, Calvin. No!
Yo, C! Come on, man!
No!
- They threw him out the window.
- They pushed him out the window.
- All right, stand back.
- Back up, y'all. Back up.
- Calvin Joy. Possession with intent.
- What did you do, huh?
- What did you do?
- We never got in the door.
Three knocks, this nitwit pulls
a Monte Cristo. Fuck you.
Fuck me? You son of a bitch!
I'll show you "fuck you"!
Son of a bitch! I'll kill you.
Fuck you! Fuck you!
- I'm taking you off this one.
- Don't.
- I'm taking you off!
- Don't, lieutenant, don't.
- Armstrong is mine.
- No, she's yours!
What's wrong with you,
bringing her back here?
Get her looking at mug shots yet?
- No.
- You sit her with a sketch artist?
She's yours!
- I love him so much.
- Come on, come on.
Come on, Big Daddy, chill out.
Come on.
- I love him so much.
- I know you do, Brenda. I know you do.
I wish... I wish...
I still wanna work here. I wanna...
I wanna work harder.
I have so much love in me.
I know you do, Brenda.
I know you do.
- What do I do? What do I do?
- Thanks, ladies. Let's go, Brenda.
All right. Everybody
make room, please.
- What's wrong with you?
- You are two heartbeats from a lockup.
You're gonna lock me up now?
Take me now, and lock me up.
Lock me up.
That's what you should do...
...you old hillbilly-ass cracker!
Can't you do something about this?
You can't lock people up
in their own neighborhood!
- Step behind the barricade.
- Fuck them!
- Take these barricades out!
- I'm not talking till you step back.
You're not talking to me?
Fine, I'll talk.
- Do you see him?
- Hey, look...
Just go and get him, take him upstairs
before he gets in trouble, all right?
- You know where she lives?
- Yeah, why?
Meet me over there, huh?
You step off!
No, this is my neighborhood!
These are my projects.
I'm not going nowhere.
No, I'm not going nowhere.
- Billy, come on!
- No!
- You think you is, man?
- Come on.
Go home!
Attention, Armstrong residents,
this is a lockdown.
Please remain behind the barriers...
...while police conduct
their investigation.
Detective, is that Cody's mom?
- Do you think it was deliberate?
- Get the hell out of here.
Come on, Detective Council.
Look over here.
This is a lockdown.
Please remain behind the barriers.
- I'm sorry, there's nothing I can do.
- We gotta go.
- No, please.
- All right, all right.
You know, I was thinking.
Once I said,
"Cody, do you love me?"
And you know what he said?
He's 4, right.
He said, "Of course I love you,
Mommy.
Why would you even ask me that?"
All right, I'll see if they'll post a
Gannon detective downstairs for you.
The sketch artist is on his way over.
He's gonna do the jacker.
I'll get Felicia to come stay with you.
Okay.
Get some sleep.
Okay.
Felicia.
You see him?
- You see him?
- Yeah.
Look, I promise I'll deal with it.
That sketch artist is on his way over.
As soon as he's done...
...make sure her head
is on a pillow. Okay?
Lorenzo.
I don't know anybody
in those houses...
...who would have laid a
hand on Brenda.
She was known.
She was respected.
All right.
- Thanks for this.
- Sure.
Say, partner, you good to drive?
- What?
- You good to drive?
Well, hell, yeah.
Tell you what,
why don't you take a power nap?
- I'll bring these back in an hour.
- Man, what the hell are you doing?
If you're trying to get
my attention, you got it.
How you doing, Detective Council?
- You're a reporter?
- Me? No.
Karen Collucci. Friends of Kent.
Friends of K..?
Oh, you those people go around
looking for missing children and such.
We find them.
Remember Corey Baker
over in Bayonne?
- And Nedra Davis in Jersey City?
- Yeah. They were killed.
I know. We found them.
Anyways, if you think it would help,
and if the mother agrees...
...we'd like to help you
find Cody Martin.
- No, I don't think so.
- Okay. No problem.
How about you take one of our cards
in case you change your mind?
You know, I'd bet everything
I have that...
...Tania Leeds...
...been dead from the jump.
Probably. But whoever did her
is still out there, right?
Anyways, it's the anniversary, so we're
hoping somebody'd step up, but...
You look half dead, Lorenzo.
Hope you can get some sleep.
Check it out.
Who the hell is that, now?
Buddha or some-fucking-body?
What? It's Tupac, man.
It's Pac.
Jas, man, come on.
This is your body,
not some billboard.
Well, I was about
to get Tiger Woods...
...but I figured that wouldn't go over
too well with the brothers in here.
I'm sorry, man. Time's up.
Finish up over here, folks.
Watch your back, all right?
You too, Pops.
This is ridiculous!
They have to go to school!
- You don't understand.
- Come on!
We're trying.
- The search for the missing child,
Cody Martin.
I'm tired of this.
Just give me a break, okay?
You gotta move back.
Tell me, how's this supposed
to help?
You're doing nothing but
harassing innocent people.
Three years ago,
Belmont Houses...
...maintenance man gets shot, 700
windows overlooking the scene.
We shut it down, what,
a day, day and a half...
...they brought us the actor
on a platter. That was my call.
Yeah, but what if nobody
around here knows nothing?
If this was anywhere
other than Armstrong...
If this was anywhere than Armstrong
Housing, I would have yanked you.
- Now, the mother. Is she a scumbag?
- No, I don't think so.
So if she's the actor,
will she hang tough?
- No, I don't.
- It's time to take a hard run at her.
You think?
Back it up, back it up.
He has no statement.
You know, Bobby,
if this woman is faking it...
...she's in the wrong line of work.
There is one thing that
keeps bugging me.
All right, so I go by the hospital
last night, right?
She says she got beat on by
a black man, 5'8", 150 pounds.
Now here comes me.
Black as a coal miner's ass...
...at midnight and twice that size.
I roll right up on her.
You know what she does?
She shakes my hand.
She should've taken a look at me
and jumped out of her skin.
But, no, she shakes
my motherfucking hand.
Lorenzo. You wanna do yourself
a big favor?
- Give her to me.
- You?
Yeah. Look, if she
don't give it up soon...
...with this going on, all these people,
they're gonna come down on you.
It's wrong.
- Call the Dempsy Police
at 201- 153...
- All right.
- Hey. Big Daddy!
- You gonna do anything about this?
- Yeah, what you gonna do, man?
I'm here at the Armstrong Houses on
the border of Gannon and Dempsy.
Tempers are beginning to flare.
This is day two of the search...
...for 4-year-old Gannon resident
Cody Martin.
Police suspect his abductor
is here in the Armstrong Houses.
We will continue our coverage
through the day...
...bringing you news as it breaks.
This is Victor Diaz reporting
to you from Channel 9.
- Danny.
- Brenda, listen to me.
- Leave me alone.
- Brenda, please.
- Why's it always gotta be like this?
- Stop, no.
Every time I see you, I put out a fire.
- Tell me what happened.
- Leave me alone.
Brenda, please.
Tell me what happened.
- I said, 50 times.
- Yeah, I know. Say it again.
Brenda. Please,
we are chasing ghosts out there.
Where's the kid? Where's the car?
We can't even find...
- Are you getting high again?
- No!
- You can tell me. I won't get angry.
- No!
"No, I'm not doing dope,"
or, "No, I won't tell you"?
No, leave me alone!
What the hell is wrong with you?
Can't you even raise a child?
Brenda, I'm sorry, but, please...
Brenda. I'm sorry, but...
Brenda, I'm your brother.
I love you. Just tell me
what happened.
Jesus Christ!
He came in here.
I didn't know what to do.
Did you find him?
No. No, not yet.
I'm gonna take you back
to Armstrong.
You can see the scene
during the daytime, okay?
- How's that look to you?
- Did they arrest anyone?
No, not yet.
Wait! Ms. Martin!
Have they found Cody?
Ms. Martin, please!
Yo, what's the deal, Zo?
What's the deal, huh?
- That your girl, Zo?
- Let her loose, man.
Let her loose, Zo.
Put your heavy away.
We ain't doing nothing.
Just keep on walking.
This place is locked down
and you know it.
We didn't do nothing!
- How's it look to you from up here?
- What are they doing?
Brenda. Show me.
Point out where you
tried to cut through the park.
Exactly where that guy
came on to you.
How can I tell? It was night.
Okay, Brenda,
I gotta ask you something.
If I don't, I wouldn't be doing my job.
Two-thirds of the kids missing,
the person that called it in...
...is usually the person
that made the kid go missing.
- So I gotta ask.
- What, did I kill my son?
I have... Since I've been little,
I have been nothing.
Less than nothing.
In... In my family, in... In the world...
...the only time anybody noticed me
was when I fucked something up.
Dropped out of college, lost a job,
lost an apartment, did drugs.
When I had to move back
into my childhood bedroom...
...because I didn't have
a penny to my name.
And when they did notice me, my
so-called people, my family?
The eyes, the smirks.
But you know when all that stopped?
For them? For me?
When I had my son.
When I had Cody.
As soon... As soon as I had him
in my arms, I became, like, more.
I became like...
Like, "Fuck you, fuck all of you!
You cannot touch this! You cannot be
this... This... This baby's mother, me!
I am that!"
So did I kill him?
He gave birth to me.
He made me.
I would slaughter myself
...before I would touch
a hair on his head.
Nothing you can
tell me that would help?
Can't you stop it?
I would if I could, Brenda...
...but it's got a life of its own now.
I tell you, 22 years of policing
in this city...
...things I see day in, day out...
...makes it very, very hard
to have faith in humanity.
But I do believe in God.
I believe that whatever happens to us,
the good things, the bad things...
...they all happen
because God wills it.
Like this thing with your son.
You know, looking for your son.
Now I know somewhere in the back
of your mind is the great, great fear...
...that things are gonna
turn out unhappy.
Well, me too, Brenda.
Me too.
But you got to take strength.
You gotta believe that if something,
you know, happened...
...if that's the case...
...it's because God
wanted that little boy...
...like he's gonna want
all of us one day.
And it ain't nobody's fault.
Wasn't nothing nobody could do.
But know this, Brenda.
I will not rest until I find your son.
And the person that...
The person that he was last with.
You know, the more we try to know,
the more mysterious life gets.
Sometimes there's nothing else
to do but just let go.
You just gotta let go...
...and let God.
Come here.
Look at that.
This place is ticking
like a time bomb.
Now, you know what that means
because you ain't no tourist.
In fact, from what I hear, you get
much love around here, right?
- I'm so tired.
- Brenda, Brenda.
Brenda, Brenda. Brenda...
...I want to find your son.
That's first.
But I wanna find him
before anybody gets hurt.
Now, we're banging our heads
against the wall on this thing.
We're doing all we can,
so if there's anything you can say...
...that would stop this,
now is the time.
Brenda, please.
Now, come on. Please.
I'm trying.
I'm trying. It's just so hard.
You have no idea.
Can I just see the kids?
- There she is.
- Ms. Martin!
Oh, my goodness.
- Hi. Hi, Brandon.
- Did they find Cody yet?
No, baby, they didn't.
I'm okay. I'm okay.
Hey, what are you making?
Show me.
Show me, let me see.
Oh, my goodness.
Here, can I share your seat?
- Oh, look at that.
- So where's Felicia?
Dealing with Billy.
Oh, that's beautiful.
Did Brenda come
to work yesterday?
- Yeah.
- How'd she seem to you?
- She seemed kind of out of it. But...
- She bring Cody with her?
No. She said he was sick.
- Do you wanna see my son?
- What?
Here.
You know, I think it was good for him
to be the only white kid here.
You know, it's important to know
what it feels like to be the only one.
You think it's okay
I borrow Cody's picture?
- Take mine!
- You can have ours, go ahead.
Oh, I love these pictures.
Thank you so much.
- Ms. Martin?
- Yes, sweetheart?
What happened to your hands?
I just got some cuts in them,
but see these bandages?
It's gonna make it all better.
I'm gonna be just fine.
Thank you, sweetheart.
Oh, Cassandra.
For the latest developments
in the search for Cody Martin...
...we take you now live
to Gannon, New Jersey...
...where local detective Daniel Martin,
uncle of the missing 4-year-old...
...is about to make a public appeal
to Cody's abductor.
No questions asked.
Just drop him off on any corner
in any city. Call 911 and go.
There'll be no retribution,
no follow-up, no pursuit.
We just want the boy back. Please.
Do the right thing.
That was Detective Daniel Martin
appealing for information...
...on the whereabouts of
Cody Martin.
The 4-year-old boy went missing
when his mother's vehicle...
...was carjacked in
Gannon, New Jersey.
Okay.
Thank you. "Jack Russell Terrier."
Drama.
- Come on, man, you deaf?
- What?
Candygram.
- Hey. Rafik!
- Get him!
Get the fuck off me!
Get the fuck off!
Get off me!
You son of a bitch!
If you can't afford me the respect,
if you can't treat me like a man...
...if you insist on emasculating me...
- Emasculating?
- Yeah!
- You emasculate yourself!
- Is that what I do?
- You mope around my apartment.
- Ain't looking for work.
- That's what the fuck I'm talking about.
You ain't a man.
You ain't supporting your family.
- I beg your pardon.
- Nobody is allowed out, all right?
- For what?
- He can go on out.
- But I don't know these kids.
- You don't need to know these kids.
- Let them through.
- But we...
- Whose side are you on?
- You know who I am.
You know what I'm about.
Nothing's changed.
What goddamn carjacker, huh?
Put some heat under your girlfriend,
you might find out what's going on.
- Do not tell me how to do my job.
- And do not tell me how to do mine.
- I know how to do mine.
- Let them through.
No. Not yet. Forget it.
Not yet. Come on.
- What the fuck you want?
- Salim!
- What the fuck is up now?
- No! No!
- Fuck.
- No!
Man, this is bullshit!
Fuck this bitch, man.
Make a hole, make a hole,
make a hole!
Hey, hey, hey.
- Get off me, man.
- Get in there!
You know you're wrong.
You're wrong. You're wrong.
- Yo, what's going on?
- What y'all doing?
Y'all better bring him back.
You better bring him back.
- Bobby!
- Who are you talking to?
- Hey, hey, hey.
- Felicia!
Felicia!
- Felicia!
- Felicia. Felicia, don't...
- Everyone's getting unruly.
- Felicia.
Do me a favor. Watch her.
Take her to your apartment.
I'll be back for her.
- Back up!
- Damn! Come on, y'all!
Hey, Lorraine, I just saw Cassandra.
She... She made me a drawing.
- What are you doing with her?
- Excuse me?
- What is she doing here?
- You don't know her?
I don't know nobody from Gannon.
And you stay away from my child.
What? What?
Fair-weather bitch.
Come on, Brenda.
Come on, Rafik.
Why don't you just cop to it?
- Leo.
- You can do better than that.
- We wanna know the truth.
- Something's going on.
- He bolted on us.
- Let's go!
- We're serious here, Rafik.
- Yo, yo, yo. Hey.
Hey, fellas.
- You got to go through me.
- Yeah, well, we got tired of waiting.
- Waiting for what?
- For you.
You said you'd pick him up for us.
You brought him
in on that bullshit car stop?
In this town, drugs is drugs.
- Lorenzo, they setting me up.
- Setting you up for what, brother?
Lorenzo, you know, me and Rafik,
we go way back, right?
I come up on my man with this, as
you just said, two-bit warrant today?
And all of a sudden he
goes all-out rabbit on me.
I don't get it. Unless there's
something you're worried about.
- Is there?
- Hey.
Hey.
This is you?
- This is you? Where's my nephew?
- Hey! Get him out!
- Get off!
- Get him out!
- Come on, come on.
- Come here!
Pull him off!
- Get him out of here!
- Where's my nephew, huh?
- Come on, get him off.
- Where is he?
- Come on!
- You mother...
- Oh, my God, stop!
- Danny!
- Stop!
- Come here!
- Danny!
- Come on, man, what are you doing?
- Hey, chill out.
- Hey, Rafik!
- Take it easy, man.
- Get the fuck off me!
- You know God?
- Keep on going.
Fuck God! There is no God!
I'm God!
It's just you and me, motherfucker!
You hear me? It's just you and me!
What the fuck are you doing?
- What, me?
- Lorenzo, take a hike.
I'm doing your job. You're supposed
to be king of the jungle over there?
How'd you miss this monkey?
- I think you better leave, brother.
- Kiss my ass, brotherfucker!
You are balling things up for
everybody, your sister included.
And if your peoples here had any
sense, they'd tell you the same thing.
Hey, Lorenzo.
What are you doing here, huh?
Protecting your own?
I don't know. But maybe I ought
to ask you the same question.
Because you know and I know
there ain't no fucking jacker.
- You calling my sister a child-killer?
- I know nothing about a dead child.
You know something about
a dead child?
I'm just saying your sister's a liar.
What's going on in there? Lorenzo!
- Lorenzo, open up this door!
- Lorenzo!
Come on, Lorenzo, open the door!
- You better talk to me.
- Open the door right now, Lorenzo.
- What is this?
- What the hell y'all doing to Rafik?
What is going on?
He didn't do nothing!
- Who let them in?
- Yo, you beat him for weed?
- Hey, get out of my face!
- Or what, you gonna beat on us too?
- Shut your hole and get out of here!
- Who are you to talk to us like that...
...you three-piece
Uncle Tom motherfucker?
Come on, look.
Just let me handle it.
Buzz us in. Buzz the...
Buzz us back in!
- He didn't take that kid.
- I know.
Why'd they do that to him?
He didn't take that bitch's kid.
- I know.
- What'd they do that for?
- Just go home.
- What'd they do that for?
I said, go home.
Let me handle it, okay?
Lorenzo.
I don't know who
you think you are...
...but I think you best
be sticking with them.
- Well, it's over.
- What?
The DA wants us to hand it over
to the feds.
Look, it's a good thing, Big Daddy.
Gets you off the hook.
No. No, no. No.
Come on. The kid's dead.
She did it. I mean, fuck her.
Hey, slow your roll there, Bobby. We
don't know either one of those things.
What I do know is...
...there's a whole hell of a lot
about that night that she ain't telling.
I'm not quitting
till I get to the bottom of it.
Do me a favor, Bobby.
Go back, buy me one more day.
We organize search parties.
We work with the families.
We work with the cops.
But most of all, we're just
a bunch of parents, you know?
Concerned parents. Because of
that, because of who we are...
...we get in tight with the moms in
a way that's different from the police.
- You know what I'm saying.
- You were in on that...
...Sandra Howard thing
in Bayonne, right?
- Am I remembering that right?
- Yeah, we helped.
The mother got locked up
on that one.
Like I said, we helped.
Well, I don't want you jumping
to conclusions about Brenda.
No. No, that wouldn't
serve anybody.
And I call the shots.
Yes. It goes without saying
that we'd cooperate...
No, no, no. I call the shots.
Now, I got something
in my head...
...that would play out better coming
from somebody other than me.
I'll let your people
do whatever it is they do...
...but with all due respect, you'll be
working for me and not with me.
If that's unacceptable,
all you do is...
You tell us where you wanna go,
and we will help you get there.
Yeah, all right. Okay, then.
We just want the boy back.
Have you or any of your people
ever been out to Freedomland?
You guys still hazing
your rookies there?
Yeah.
Detective Council here brought us up
to speed from the police point of view.
But we are not here as cops.
We're here as parents.
We're here because
we all have children too.
What happened to your son...
...could have happened
to any of our own children, okay?
Okay.
Now, this is Marie. And Lewis.
This is Elaine. This is Tina.
Elaine is her mom.
Who's Kent?
He's the first boy we ever
tried to find. Ten years ago.
We've been helping find kids
ever since.
- Did you find Kent?
- Brenda?
Would you like our help?
Okay.
Good. Good.
Okay, now, first off, what I need
is to hear from you what happened.
I can't. I can't say that.
I told the police everything.
- I told them...
- I know, I know, I know, I know.
It's just... Look, like I said, they
have their priorities and we have ours.
One more time, Brenda, and
I wouldn't put you through this...
No. No. I can't. I just...
No.
Okay.
Okay. I understand.
We'll just go with the police report
if you want.
Okay. Now first thing,
we come to the question head-on.
Where is your son?
Right? Where do we look?
Where do we look?
What is your gut feeling, Brenda?
- He took off in a car.
- Okay, well, let's say your son...
...woke up. Let's say the guy
realized he had a kid in the car...
...sooner rather than later.
So let's keep it within a mile.
But the fact of the matter is,
it's been almost 24 hours.
So the odds of him still
wandering the streets...
...not getting picked up by now
are not so good.
Now, we looked at the map
earlier today, and we came up...
...with four possibilities where a kid
could conceivably get lost...
...or hide out for a whole day
or night and not get noticed.
And then we drove around,
we eliminated three of them.
This is a golf course.
This is a cemetery.
This is a ball field.
There's no cover, no place
to hide, if that's what he's doing.
Which leaves us...
...Freedomland.
Freedomland?
It's an old state children's home
in the back of Cotter's Woods.
It was like a foundling asylum,
like some kind of a youth house.
- It's been shut since the '50s.
- It's not far from Armstrong.
- Cody could have...
- Yeah, okay. Okay.
So Freedomland?
I feel good about Freedomland
for this one.
- Okay.
- Okay.
Freedomland it is.
- You're coming too, right?
- Absolutely.
What the hell's all this?
- I just need to get her to Freedomland.
- And you will.
It's not gonna work if you
make a beeline for it. Trust me.
Meanwhile, we have a little problem.
Look, you're here,
you might as well get out.
Just let us open the door.
How about that?
Excuse me, ladies.
Hey, Brenda. How you doing?
Heavenly father, we ask for your
blessing and guiding hand today...
...as we send these volunteers down...
...to help the mother of Cody Martin
find her child...
...and safely bring him home.
And we ask for the courage
and fortitude...
...to see this task successfully done.
In the name of the Father,
and of the Son...
...and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Amen.
Cody!
- Cody!
- Cody!
- Cody!
- Cody!
- Cody!
- Cody!
- Cody!
- Cody!
So where's her bug bands?
Karen doesn't wear bug bands.
Jesus. Anything bit Karen,
it'd lose its mind.
Really? Why?
Because Karen's son was abducted.
Our first kid.
You mean, Kent?
Ten years ago.
Tina here was a baby.
We all knew each other
from the neighborhood.
- Karen got us together.
- Cody Martin!
We had no idea what the hell
we were doing...
...but we wound up combing
every goddamn forest...
...field, drainpipe, creek, culvert...
Oh, everywhere.
And you know, we...
We still post flyers.
Well, what can I say? We...
We got better at it with practice.
Karen knows who took him too.
The cops just can't prove it.
- We can't prove it.
- Yeah.
God.
Me and Kent went to school together.
So like...
...I know he's my own age and all.
When we find him, I'm still
expecting him to be 8 years old...
...like the last time I saw him.
Cody!
- Cody!
- Come on, Cody!
So why you all triple-teaming me...
...while Karen's got Brenda
by herself all up in her ear?
Why?
- Sympathy.
- Sympathy.
I never lost a child, Lorenzo.
Did you?
- Cody!
- Cody Martin!
Hey, Cody!
Cody Martin!
- Cody Martin!
- Cody!
Watch that.
Stay together.
Watch your step. I've got you.
- All right.
- Keep moving.
I'm so tired.
What do you want from me?
We're gonna have a look around.
It's a little dangerous. Half of these
floorboards can go at any minute.
So I want you to stay in here
and wait for us, okay?
What are you doing?
Just wait for us.
I can't be alone.
I swear to God,
I feel like they're still here.
I tell you, when...
When they finally padlocked
this place, it was...
It was like shutting down hell.
Do you have any idea
of the generations of children...
...who suffered in here?
Thousands.
Thousands who were neglected...
...and abused...
...forgotten.
Just...
Just wasted.
Even your own family turns on you
after a while.
You come downstairs,
the other kids are like:
"Mommy, are you gonna
be sad today?"
That's the only thing that can
bring you back to some...
...charade of normal life,
when it hits you...
...what you're doing to your
other kids, to your marriage.
But with me, I couldn't even
rally for that. I couldn't fake it.
This bastard, Jimmy,
he took away my life.
He took away my family.
My husband's like, you know,
"Come on, Karen...
...you gotta think about
the other kids. Think about me.
We gotta get on with
the business of living."
That's what he called it,
"the business of living."
See, men, they always cave in.
Talk to you about
the business of living...
...tell you to,
"Think about the others.
The rest of us." Them.
And then they leave.
Because they just don't
have the belly for it.
They just don't have the heart.
We...
We are the hunters, Brenda.
What can I say to my other kids?
They're with my husband now.
All I can tell them is the truth:
If it had happened to them
instead of their brother...
...I would be the same way for them.
I want them back, my family.
But until someone can tell me
that my son is gone...
...here I am.
And here I'll stay.
Sometimes I just wanna grab...
...that murderous, perverted
son of a bitch and say to him:
"Look, Jimmy, you took him.
I know it and you know it.
Now, don't say a word,
just nod your head.
Is he dead? Yes or no?
Do that for me,
I will never bother you again.
No one's gonna nail you
for nodding your head.
I swear I will go away.
You will never see me again.
Is he dead?
Just nod your head.
I need to know.
I need to know now, Jimmy.
Is he dead?
Sweet Christ in heaven...
...won't you please just tell me?
Just nod your head."
A nod of the head,
such a little thing.
And night becomes day.
Is he dead? Yes or no?
That's all I ask.
Yes or no?
Put my heart at rest.
Put my heart at rest, Brenda.
It's so hot.
I feel like I'm in hell.
When I said I just wanted to know...
...if my son was dead or alive,
that's not completely true.
I would like to give him
a proper burial in sanctified ground.
The thought of him
lying in some ditch...
...in some shallow grave in the forest
where the animals can...
Shit.
My boy wasn't like
those children in there.
- Okay.
- He was loved.
He was cherished.
Okay.
He's not here.
You're in the wrong park.
Thank you, God.
Thank you.
Is he dead?
- What?
- Yes.
- How?
- He drank a bottle of cough syrup.
- When was this?
- Two nights ago.
- The night you came to the hospital?
- The night before that.
- Did you see him drink the syrup?
- No, I wasn't there.
Was anybody else..?
He was all alone.
He was... He was all...
All alone.
Where is he, Brenda?
He's not here.
Brenda.
Where is he?
Oh, God, please.
Oh, God. Please.
- God, I can't find him.
- Just try to stay calm.
I can't find him.
I can't find him.
Come here.
I think we've got something.
Copy that. We're on our way.
This is subsoil.
It should be about two feet under.
And this formation here,
this is man-made.
- Is this it? Is this where he is?
- Yes.
- This is where you buried him?
- Yes.
- You dug this up?
- Yes.
- You dug this up?
- Yes.
- And then what'd you do?
- What?
- You pile all these rocks on here?
- Yes.
- All these stones.
- Yes.
Over here.
What are they doing?
- I can't be here. I...
- Hey. Hey. I don't wanna be here...
...any more than you.
- I'll tell you.
I don't want a lawyer.
Just please, just take me away.
Everything.
Yeah, I swear, but...
...just to you.
All right, come here.
We're gonna go, but I need you
to do one thing for me, okay?
- What?
- Show me how you carried the stones.
I need you to pick me up...
...that one right there.
Here. Just take it from me.
Come on. Take it.
Take it.
You know, Brenda,
when you tell me everything...
...I want you to start by telling me
who dug that grave.
And who carried those stones.
And please, please,
do not tell me it was you.
Because if you start with a lie...
...you will have lost the greatest ally
you've ever had in your life...
...and I won't even bother
to take your statement.
I will charge you and dump your ass
in the system.
You hear what I'm saying?
You hear me?
Please, just... I swear to God,
I'll tell you everything.
Just take me away, please.
- Page me when he's up.
- Right.
- Go.
- Y'all know who this is?
This is me.
This is you, and you, and you.
This is all of us and none of us.
This is the nigger in the woodpile.
This is, "A black man did it."
The hottest item in the store.
- But you know what?
- What?
We ain't buying it.
- You know what?
- What?
We ain't having it.
Gannon, heads up.
Hey, Dempsy, heads up.
Here's the point that you been missing
Armstrong ain't no locked-down prison
Hey, Gannon, heads up
Hey, Dempsy, heads up
Here's the point that you...
Hey.
- You charge her yet?
- I'm waiting on the body.
She kill him?
- I don't know.
- You gotta go with homicide.
- Okay.
- Otherwise, Armstrong...
- They'll raise the fucking roof tonight.
- Hey.
I tried to get you
to stop the blockade.
- Circumstances dictated...
- Circumstances?
You wanna talk circumstances?
The circumstances were,
it was Armstrong.
The circumstances were, they were a
bunch of mud-flat animals on welfare...
...that didn't deserve the consideration
or respect you give a dog.
Look, Lorenzo, the prosecutor...
...if he has a press conference
tonight to announce the arrest...
...he wants you by his side.
- Talk to people about keeping cool.
- Oh, he does, does he?
Well, you tell that prosecutor
he can kiss my black ass.
And when he's done,
you can get some too.
- Where is she?
- Interview room.
Does she at least have
a fucking lawyer?
Danny, wait. You can't...
So, Brenda,
let's talk about those stones.
He didn't wanna have anything
to do with it, but he did it for me.
- Who? Who did?
- I dug that grave with my hands.
I did. I told myself...
...I was making his bed one last time,
and that's how I got through it.
There was no way I could
bring my boy to that place...
...so I begged him to do it for me.
He had to do it, Billy.
I had no one else to turn to.
Billy? Billy who?
I told him he was responsible
for what had happened too...
...but it was all me. It was always me.
But he had to do it.
I had no one else to turn to.
Billy who?
Felicia's Billy.
I have spent all my life trying to
get distance from other people.
- My family, men, other kids...
- Hey, hey, hey, Brenda. Brenda.
Let's stick to what happened
three nights ago, all right?
No, no, you have to let me.
Ever since I met you...
...Ive been trying to think of a way
to really, really tell you this.
And now you just have to let me.
With my family, my brothers, it was
like, "Everybody just leave me be."
But with a child, when you
have a child, it's yours, it's safe.
It's finally safe. And...
And when I got pregnant,
it was an accident.
I mean, it never occurred to me
to have a baby.
I was my own baby.
But then I had this vision...
...of what it could be like.
The companionship,
the secret...
...companionship.
I never told the guy
who knocked me up.
And for four years with Cody,
it's like life is this cliff...
...but we carved out a ledge
together, you know? But...
But it wasn't enough,
just being with my son.
You can't...
You can't live like that.
Did Billy have anything to do
with what happened?
No, he barely even met Cody.
So Billy...
I had this thing that I did
at the Rainbow Club. I...
I brought in professionals,
teachers, lawyers, cops...
...to talk to the kids,
to show them another way to be.
So Billy comes in. I knew he was
unemployed and it was so sad...
...but he talked to the kids
so earnestly...
...about stocks and bonds
and investments...
...and it was way over their head,
but it was so...
So sweet, you know. And I looked over
at Felicia while he was talking...
...and she rolls her eyes
like she's had it with this loser.
But I understood him so well,
so fast, because it's like... Like...
...he was me.
And so after the talk,
I went over and I took his hand...
...and, yeah, he must have jumped
a mile, but it was on, you know.
The whole thing took, like,
After he came over
to my apartment that night...
...I knew I was in trouble...
...because I had finally lain down
with someone who was not a child...
...after all these years. I had...
...over-abstained, you see,
and I was in deep trouble.
Before Billy, I used to love
to lie down with Cody...
...or just watch movies with him
before he went to bed.
And now, it's like
I look at my son's face...
...in the TV light,
and it's like he's...
He's un-precious to me.
And it's, like, videos, you know?
I'm wasting critical minutes.
You know, Billy's downstairs.
I gotta get this kid down.
And you know, Cody takes...
Cody...
Cody took...
...an hour,
sometimes 30 minutes.
And I... I know he can feel my tension,
and it's keeping him awake.
Sometimes I would think
he was asleep...
...and I'd be halfway down the hall,
like tippy-toe, tippy-toe...
...and I'd hear, "Mommy. Mommy."
And I'd be like:
"Get to sleep!"
And how fast would you fall asleep...
...if you have this half-insane giant
hanging over you...
...who doesn't love you
or want you anymore?
Who used to treat you like
the sun, moon and stars...
...but no more, no more.
So I started giving him...
...cough syrup...
...to put him to sleep.
You know, not much.
Just whatever you give a kid
for a stuffed head.
And it worked.
It worked. And I told him it was
night vitamins.
And it became part
of our bedtime routine.
Look, Brenda,
I hear what you're saying...
...but we gotta get back to what
happened three nights ago.
- I need you to start telling me...
- He wouldn't go down, Cody.
You know, I had already dosed him
and he wouldn't go down.
And that night, you know,
I had to talk to Billy because...
...I knew that he was breaking it off
and going back to Felicia.
And the thing of it is,
I was kind of relieved...
...that Billy was dumping me
and putting me out of my misery...
...and it was probably the last night
I'd leave my son alone.
It was probably...
Probably the last,
but he wouldn't go down.
So I said to him:
"You be a good boy
and go to sleep."
And he was...
You know, he was furious.
He said, "I don't want you to go."
But like a man would say it, you know:
- "I don't want you to go."
- "I don't want you to go."
You know, standing there all punchy
with the cough syrup...
...and, you know, I wanna say to him,
"Tonight is the last night.
Just give me this one last..."
But I said, you know:
"You go to sleep.
I'll be back soon. I promise."
And he says, you know...
He says to me,
"If you go, you'll be sorry."
But like a jealous husband, you know.
"If you go, you'll be sorry."
And I almost, you know...
I almost didn't go.
You know, I'd never...
I never heard that tone from him.
If he'd only sounded like,
you know, more...
More babyish or more pathetic.
But, you know, it was so hard,
his voice...
...and it scared me. It, like,
drove me out of the house...
...and, you know, he was...
He was only 4 years old.
You know,
nobody has to tell me that.
So...
...I go downstairs...
...and sure enough...
...Billy says it's over.
And I'm yelling and I'm crying...
...but really I'm just going
through the motions because...
Because really, I'm kind of relieved.
And I go back upstairs and I...
I don't see him, Cody,
and I look for him in his bed.
And I'm... I...
I'm like, you know, "Oh, he's hiding,"
you know, "He's...
He's hiding. He's mad at me.
He's trying to scare me
or punish me or something.
But that's okay,
because I deserve it."
And I'm kind of lighthearted now,
you know...
...because it's all over and done with,
so I'm like, "Cody?
Cody?" Like, "Where are you?"
And then I see him, you know,
he's under the table. And he's asleep.
And I... And I crawl over there because
I'm gonna carry him back to bed.
And I put my hand
in something wet...
...and there's the smell...
The smell...
And that's when I saw
the empty bottle.
And I remembered,
"If you go, you'll be sorry.
If you go, you'll be sorry."
Well, was he still alive?
- How do you know?
- He was not alive.
- Did you try to revive him?
- He was not alive.
Tell me how you knew
he was not alive.
Because I'm his mom.
And us moms know these things.
He said, "If you go, you'll be sorry."
And he was right.
- He was right.
- Brenda.
- He didn't know what he was doing.
- He was right.
- He was right.
- Brenda, listen to me.
It was an accident. If what you
described is true, it was an accident.
- Don't you play me.
- What happened next?
No.
- Brenda, we gotta keep talking.
- No, I'm done. Just charge me.
Tell me, Brenda,
you wanna see Billy go to jail?
- For what?
- Well, if we stop now...
...I charge him with obstruction,
conspiracy.
If all he did was carry a body,
you need to take me to the end.
All I remember is putting my hand
in something wet.
I remember the smell
and then I was walking.
I was walking and thinking about...
...my son, thinking about...
...living without no...
Living every day with...
And I'm like,
"Just walk out into the road.
Just die." But...
...I couldn't do it.
And I'm in this fog, you know.
This fog. And I'm walking...
...and I wind up in that park, and
I'm clawing and I'm making his...
Then I had... I needed to go back
and to get him, and how could I?
And so I called Billy.
And what did he do, exactly?
I was not there, but...
...he must have gone back up
to my apartment and seen Cody...
...and put him in my car.
And I guess I must have told him
where to go because...
And the stones...
I guess he did that
to make it proper.
And then the next night...
...I... I must have known
what I was gonna do...
...but I don't remember
thinking about it.
I went to Martyrs Park
and I threw my bag in the dirt...
...and I just started
jamming my hands in the...
In the shit, just shoving them in.
I just wanted to get every fucking...
...broken, like, rusted... Like,
you know, all of it, like, in my skin.
And then I walked through
Armstrong, and I'm...
I guess I knew I was going
to the hospital...
...and I guess I knew what I was
gonna say, but I don't remember...
...knowing the story, you know, the lie,
before it came out of my mouth.
And I think of it now, I guess
I knew somewhere in my head...
...that Armstrong could take it.
And that nobody...
...no individual would really
be hurt by it...
...and that I could go on,
you know...
...with some kind of life, but...
...no, you can't.
You can't.
No.
- What?
- What?
What is it? They have Cody?
- Is he okay?
- What?
What..? What did I do?
Okay, Brenda.
At this point, I'm gonna have
to charge you with homicide.
Now, personally,
I have no reason to disbelieve...
...anything that you've said to me.
I wouldn't have always been able
to be there for him.
Well, because of all the
obstruction you put in our path...
...this is what's required of me.
You understand?
Now, once the forensics are in, the
charge will probably be downgraded.
This is Dempsy Detective
Lorenzo Council.
I'm in the interrogation room of
the Southern District Precinct House.
It is May 4th, 4:55 p.m.
I'm with Brenda Martin,
a 37-year-old white female...
...who resides at 16 Van Loon Street,
Gannon, New Jersey.
Phone number, 120-7210.
Social Security number,
- What have I done?
- Statement is in relation...
...to the death
of 4-year-old Cody Martin.
Brenda! Hey! Hey!
Stop it. Stop it.
Stop it! Stop it! Stop it!
Stop!
Can I get some help?
Somebody help me!
Can I get some help in here?
Calm down! Calm...
Calm down. Calm down.
Just take it easy, guys. Take it easy.
Don't hurt her.
- Okay. It's okay.
- Easy, easy.
Detective Council.
How bad was what I did?
I mean, look in your heart.
How bad was what I did?
Come on, Billy. Let's go. Come on.
Look, I don't care what you say.
- Don't touch me, man!
- No.
There's nothing you can do.
There's nothing you can do.
Oh, my goodness. Nothing I can do.
What do you want from me?
For heaven's sake.
All units, Code Three.
Code Three at Armstrong Houses.
This is car 12 responding
to Code Three.
Code Three at Armstrong Houses.
All units respond.
- At Armstrong Houses.
- Car 14, Code Six.
- At Armstrong Houses.
- Car 14, Code Six.
Potential riot disturbance
developing at Armstrong Houses.
- All units, Code Six.
- Reinforce Unit Three at Jackson.
All units respond, Code Three.
All units, Code Three.
Code Three at Armstrong Houses.
I got it! I got it!
Do it!
Help!
Get the hell out of here!
Everybody, please.
Go back to your homes!
Forget you, man!
See, you a punk!
You need to back off, please.
Everybody.
- What is it?
- What?!
Forget it. Don't...
Put your shit back on!
For your own sakes,
do not let this happen.
This is not gonna help!
Come on, SWAT.
- This is not gonna help!
- Forget it!
What's wrong with you?
This is yours.
This is for your family!
Yeah, I'm coming at you.
Forget y'all, man. Forget y'all!
Y'all know you ain't
supposed to be doing all this.
That's right. I wish y'all would move
so I could do something.
I should bust y'all in your face.
You. Forget y'all.
Get out of here.
Lorenzo! Lorenzo!
Why don't you come up
in here now, motherfucker?
I just saw that nigger
with that bitch's kid.
- Don't let him get away, now.
- That jacker's right under my bed.
- Y'all need a SWAT team.
- Y'all want them to come in here?
- Hell, yeah.
- No. No, you don't.
- Man, fuck you!
- Look, you see these cops?
They are just the tip of the iceberg.
Every cop in Dempsy and Gannon
is on alert.
There's a hell of a lot more of them
than there are tenants in here.
So if this shit jumps off...
...they gonna turn into
one big-ass police force...
...that's gonna be in here
kicking down our doors!
- "Our doors," huh?
- Please.
What you talking about, man?
You ain't one of us. Come on.
We ain't tolerating!
Leo?
Oh, so you all concerned
with city lines now and shit.
You take care of your town,
we'll take care of ours.
Just get them out of sight, all right?
You about to start the very thing
you supposed to be here preventing.
- When they step off, we'll step off.
- No, you step off, then they'll step off.
Just back them up.
I'll handle my end, all right?
Everybody play it cool.
Play it cool.
- Wanna piece of me?
- What the fuck you looking at?
You have a good night now,
you hear.
Rafik! Rafik!
- No!
- Can I help you with something?
No!
Hey!
- Come on, Rafik. Rafik!
- Don't do it.
Don't do it!
Get him out of here.
Miss Martin.
I have a charge here
of criminal negligence in the death...
...of Cody Martin
signed by Detective Lorenzo Council...
...of the Dempsy Police Department.
Do you understand
the charge as read to you?
Miss Martin?
How's your reception, counselor?
Can you see us?
Yes, we can, Your Honor.
Miss Martin?
Do you understand the charge?
Yes.
They gave us some deluxe
elbow room in here, huh?
So they got you
in protective custody, huh?
On suicide watch too.
It's just standard procedure.
You know, you aren't the only person
I got to visit in here today.
My son, Jason...
...he's over in the state wing
doing two to four for armed robbery.
No.
- Used my gun too.
- Oh, no.
Yeah.
All my friends say to me:
"Lorenzo, it ain't your fault
that boy landed where he did.
He got to take responsibility
for that his own self.
I ain't seen no pacifier in his mouth
the last 10 years."
Well, between you and me,
it is my fault.
I do feel responsible
because the kind of man he is...
...is the kind of man
I showed him how to be.
High all the time.
Selfish. Out of control.
I was never there
on a day-to-day basis.
And when I was,
I was fighting with his moms.
Yeah, well, that's who I was.
I'm so sorry.
Back then...
...I just didn't give a shit.
Now Jason's in prison...
...and he'll probably be in and out
of prison the rest of his life.
It's kind of late in the game...
...but all I wanna do now
is be there for him.
But with kids...
...no matter what you did or how bad
you think you messed up...
...God always finds a way
to give you another shot at it.
It might not be
with that particular child, but...
What I'm trying to say, Brenda...
...is that God's grace
is sort of, like, retroactive.
So every little kid out there
is Jason for me now.
And, no, they're not my blood,
but I can live with that.
And I'm happy. My life is good.
There's a lot of young women
in here, Brenda.
Some of them are good mothers,
some ain't. But they all need help.
On visitors' day, in the nursery,
even in prenatal.
And the warden in here
is an old running buddy of mine...
I love you.
What?
I love you for the way
you talk to me.
I've loved you
for the way you talk to me...
...ever since I first met you
in the hospital.
I wish I had your heart.
Look, I don't know if your lawyer
is gonna do a plea bargain...
...or whatever,
or if you're going to trial.
But you'll still be a young woman.
Lots of things that you can...
I'll... I'll...
I'll come see you.
Brenda...
...reach out to people in here,
all right?
Jas, how you doing?
Wasn't you just here
on Tuesday, man?
You want me to leave?
No, it's all good.
It's Christmas in July.
So like I said,
how you doing, kid?
You know, the Aryan Nation
was asking me to hook up...
...but I was a little bit nervous about
the whole initiation thing, you know?
Hey, Dad, you..? You okay?
Yeah.
Yeah, I'm good.
I'm real good.
- So, what you think?
- I was looking at that.
What's going on with you?
You know, out there
roughnecking.
- So you fell off your bed.
- Yeah, right...
I thought you should see this.
Hey.
You know that thing
with the carjacker?
I know I'm supposed to find it
in my heart to forgive.
But...
And her with Billy.
I mean, he wasn't getting none
from me, so...
But, Lorenzo, did he have anything
to do with hurting that child?
No. No, he didn't.
Thank you. Thank you.
"This child's life was not in vain.
He brought us together
in a common bond of sadness.
He reminded us
how human we are...
...and how hurt and pain
touches us all.
Go to God, little angel.
And thank you."
I really appreciate you bringing
me out here, Bobby.
I truly do.
- Come on, now.
That's good. Good.
Do it.
Welcome to the WBGO Journal.
I'm Doug Doyle.
Welcome to the WBGO Journal.
I'm Doug Doyle.
- Hey, Vicky.
- How you doing, Miss Jenkins?
I'm good, girl.
- No.
- No, you can't do that.
It's the man, right here.
- Five-0 say freeze!
- All right.
- Good seeing you, man.
- What's up, guys?
- How you doing, baby?
- Not good as you, D.
How come nobody around here
ever calls me "baby"?
- How you doing, baby?
- I'm doing good.
So, ladies, you seen
your brother Rafik anywhere?
What did he do now?
- Hey, Big Daddy.
- Rev, you good, man?
When you gonna
install these refrigerators?
We had to lock two boneheads up
last night for breaking in these crates.
Yeah, besides, some kid tries to
play house, could end up suffocated.
The maintenance fellow is on strike.
What am I supposed to do?
Put them in myself?
Lorenzo, you know those laptops
we ordered for the Rainbow Club?
- They didn't come with power cords.
- Talk to your housing manager here.
- How we supposed to use them?
- Ladies, tell Rafik to find me...
...before I find him, all right?
- All right.
Lorenzo?
I need for you to have
a man-to-man with Billy.
About what?
He started hitting me.
Can you believe that?
You scared?
All right. I'll sit his dumb ass down
and talk to him, okay?
Thank you.
- Yo, Rev, I'm out, babe.
- All right, baby.
- Good seeing you, bro.
- All right, baby.
Oh, Rafik. Just the knucklehead
I was looking for.
Right here, son.
Come on down.
You know what this is?
- A warrant.
- No. It's a Gannon warrant.
You didn't show for your hearing.
Hearing for what,
driving while black?
- Can you talk to him tonight? Please.
- Okay, okay. I'm gonna do it, all right?
Did you or did you not get stopped
in that town at 2 a. M...
...got a nickel bag of weed on you?
- A nickel bag?
- What you doing...
...cruising through Gannon
in the middle of the night?
I was going home, son. Doing
the speed limit and everything. DWB.
You know how those rookies over
in Gannon are. They stop me.
- So you know.
- Hey, hey, hey. Don't try to relate.
First of all, lose the weed.
Now, they doing us a favor...
...letting us bring you in so your
booking will go smooth, feel me?
- I feel you.
- Jesus, I hate this fucking place.
I am not gonna take any shit
for hopping the fence this time either.
No, it's cool. I'll handle it.
Rev, Bobby. Big Daddy,
how you be?
Well, same old, same old.
What's up?
Thought you said you guys were
gonna grab Rafik Dotson for us.
I did. And we will.
Hey. He said we would do it.
Yeah, no, no. We're not here for him.
We're picking us up...
...a Calvin Joy.
You know, you guys are supposed
to contact the local officers...
...before you come in here.
Rev, I just did.
I'm gonna go up with them.
- Base to South Investigator 15.
- South 15, go.
South 15, respond
to Medical Center Emergency Room.
See female vic of
a possible carjack at that location.
On our way.
Where the hell did Rafik go?
All units. Wanted: A carjacking
in the south district.
Nineteen ninety-four Toyota Camry,
four-door, color beige...
...New Jersey reg
773 Victor-Bravo-Kappa.
Vehicle occupied by black male,
5- foot-8 to 5-foot- 10.
Last seen driving out
the Armstrong Houses.
Lorenzo.
Lorenzo.
- Y'all see anything out here?
- No.
No. No, I ain't seen nothing.
- Anybody see anything?
- No.
- Lorenzo.
- What?
- Don't forget.
- Forget what?
Bobby, I'm going to the hospital.
- I'll be back for you.
- Twenty received.
- Thanks for waiting.
- Yeah, I'm checking on my mother.
- She came in about an hour ago.
- Yes.
How you ladies doing?
Putting on some weight
there, Lorenzo.
Just more of me to love.
- Young man.
- Young man yourself.
How's my customer?
She good to talk?
Here you are, bay three.
I need you to put these in...
You say black. Black like
darker than him, lighter than him?
I don't know. It was night.
Five-eight, 5'10",
running about 150.
- You still feel that?
- Yeah.
Guys?
Brenda, this is Detective Council.
Detective Council,
this is Brenda Martin.
- How you doing, Brenda?
- Not good.
Detective Council's gonna
take it from here, okay?
- Can I get you anything?
- No.
Now, look.
I know you're upset and tired as hell,
but the sooner we go through this...
...the sooner we can make
something good happen, all right?
Look, Brenda, would you rather have
a female investigator in here?
Would that make you
more comfortable?
I wasn't raped,
if that's what you're driving at.
Oh, that's good.
I'm real glad to hear that.
Look, the other officers already,
you know...
...got the description of the car
and the actor.
And everybody's on the street
looking for this guy.
But if you'll just bear with me,
you know, kind of...
...take me through the story
one more time.
I was trying to get from the projects
back into Gannon. I live in Gannon.
You shut up! And shut up now!
I was on Hurley at
the bottom of the hill, you know...
...Martyrs Park, where the street ends?
And I had heard you could...
...cut through Martyrs
and come out in Gannon...
...but I'd never done it before.
So I'm, like, halfway in,
and it's, like, where's..?
And then there's no road.
So I was starting to back out...
...and this guy come from
behind a tree or something.
And I didn't wanna deal with him.
But before I...
I know it,
he comes up to the window.
And he opens my car door...
...and says, "Just... Just look.
Look where I'm pointing."
Like I should get out of the car.
And I know better.
Before I knew it, he yanks me
out of the car.
And he pulls me down so hard.
You don't know. I tried.
I tried to tell him.
Tried to tell him what, Brenda?
Okay, look. Now, I gotta ask.
And I want you to know,
it doesn't matter what your answer is...
...all I'm concerned with is trying
to find the guy who hurt you.
White girl from Gannon. What was I
doing there at night, copping rock?
You're strictly the victim.
I need to know who to hit on.
I'm clean almost five years.
I don't even think about it.
Okay.
- And my brother's on the job.
- Really? Where?
Gannon. He's a detective.
Danny Martin.
Danny Martin.
Yeah, okay. All right. Yeah, good.
What was I doing there
if I wasn't buying drugs?
Shut up! Shut up! Shut up!
I work in the Children's Center.
The Rainbow Club in Three Building.
Okay, good. That's good.
Now, excuse me.
- This is SI 15 to Base.
- Base. Go ahead.
I need a reach-out to Gannon,
a Detective Danny Martin.
Have him contact me
at the Dempsy MC.
- Received.
- Okay, Brenda.
I went home
and I couldn't find my glasses.
I thought I left them
at the Rainbow Club.
But I didn't, so I got
in the car...
...and I drove.
You drove, and?
I told you the rest.
You know, Brenda, I...
I can't help but think there's
something else still bothering you.
You sure you don't want
a female investigator here?
Do you know the guy
who did this to you, Brenda?
Hey, hey, hey.
Brenda, stop, stop, stop.
Do you know who this man is?
Listen, this is your lucky night.
I know everybody
in the Armstrong projects.
I own that place.
Ain't nobody I don't know.
Do you know who did this to you?
Who's the guy, Brenda?
I'm dying. I'm dying! I'm dying!
My son.
Your son? Your son what?
Is in the car.
No! No!
No! No!
No! No!
Brenda, your kid,
he's a boy, right?
- How old?
- Four.
- What's his name?
- Cody.
- Okay. Cody. Cody. How old is he?
- I just told you.
Oh, that's right. Slow down, Lorenzo,
slow down. Four years old.
- Okay. Is he in a car seat?
- No.
- Seat belt?
- No.
- Front or back?
- Of?
- The car!
- Oh. Oh, back.
Okay. Hold on, hold on.
Hold on one second.
This is Special Investigator 15 to Base.
Stand by for emergency transmission.
- Base, go.
- Carjack in the south district...
...notify all units that
there is a male child in the car.
A 4-year-old...
Is he Caucasian?
- Caucasian male, 4 years old,
in the back seat.
- Received.
- He was asleep.
- He was... He was sick. He was...
- Hold on, Brenda. Hold on.
Hold on, hold on.
The child is or was asleep...
...so he may or may not be
visible to pursuing officers.
- Stand by for further description.
- I tried to tell him.
What was he wearing, Brenda?
What's he wearing? Your son.
What is your son wearing?
He had a... He had a...
He had a white... White shirt on.
A white... A white shirt on.
- Light or dark?
- White!
- Hair.
- Short in front...
...and long in black...
Back!
- Pants or jeans?
- Pajama bottoms with stripes.
Pajama bottoms with stripes. Okay.
All right, hold on, hold on.
Shit! Special Investigator 15
to Base.
Child has black hair, white shirt
and pajama bottoms.
- Your kid's asleep, right, Brenda?
- He's asleep.
All right. Okay, now...
...listen to me. This knucklehead,
all he wants is your car.
If he wanted to hurt somebody,
he would have hurt you.
- No, he did hurt me.
- All right. Here, listen to me, Brenda.
He's gonna see that kid, pull over to
a corner and put him on the sidewalk.
He don't want no parts of that kid.
Shit! All right. Now listen,
I gotta ask you one more time.
- What were you doing there?
- No, I... I told you.
- Why were you there?
- I told you.
- Well, tell me again!
- I told you.
Told me what? Tell me what
you were doing! Tell me again!
I went to find my glasses.
You took your sick kid
out at 9 in the evening...
...for some fucking glasses?!
- I... I don't have a babysitter!
I can't afford one. What
are you trying to do, punish me?
- Sit. All right. Sit.
- Believe me, you don't have to.
I'm tight. I'm tight. All right?
- Oh, God.
- Oh, well, what if he wakes up?
He'll be so scared.
I'm never not there for him.
Listen, I know this is hard for you.
But we are going to find him, okay?
- I let him down.
- Nobody wants a kidnap tag.
He's my world, and I let him down.
He's worth 10 of anybody else.
He's worth 10 of me!
What..? What are you doing?
Adrenaline. Straight, no chaser.
Detective Council, there's a Detective
Martin from Gannon out here.
All right. Can you stay with her?
- Yeah, sure.
- Okay. Be back. Be right back.
Is that your daughter?
She's beautiful.
What happened?
Your sister got jacked
over in the Armstrong Houses.
She got a little roughed up.
And we think her son, Cody,
is still in the back seat of the car.
- Car? The guy's still out there?
- We got a crash alert going.
He won't get far.
- Where in Armstrong, high end or low?
- I know where you're coming from...
...but your sister needs to be
with family. Think you could stay?
- I'll ask you again. High end or low?
- It's not your jurisdiction, man.
But I give you my word, I will do...
Hey, Council. You at least got
a photo of who you're looking for?
Ain't that many pictures
of jackers in the book.
No. I mean him.
- SI 15 to SI 20. Go to six.
- Twenty on six.
She had to go to the john.
What part of "stay with her"
did you not understand?
What's happening, Big Daddy?
Big heads up.
The vic is Danny Martin's sister.
So you believe Gannon's gonna be
hopping the fence in force.
No shit. They're already here.
I'll be down as soon as I can.
No. No, don't come down here.
You'll only go batshit.
You'll make everything
Listen, just take her over to BCI,
all right? And I'll handle this, please.
Brenda?
Go to their supply cabinet and...
Ten-four. Ten-nine-two, eight-eight.
Armstrong residents,
this is a lockdown.
Do not cross the barricade.
Armstrong residents.
This is a lockdown.
For you to join the ranks
of these people, to continue...
...to oppress us like this!
We have had six homicides
in these homes in the last three years.
Three of them
children under 18 years of age.
And not once did we ever...
...have the police presence
we got here tonight...
...for one missing white child!
Can you explain that to me?
- Abductor, please approach
one of the officers.
If you have any information about
the whereabouts of Cody Martin...
...or his abductor, please...
Lorenzo. My mother
is having an angina attack.
- And they letting nobody out.
- What?
Now, I am gonna get her
to a hospital if I have to fucking...
Bea, it's all right.
You get your mother and her things.
I'll see she gets to the hospital.
I know what you're doing here.
And I'm telling you, you cannot
get involved with all this and help her.
Now get the hell out of here. Take her
over to BCI and do your job, man.
- Where the hell is she?
- Shit.
- Hey! Hey!
- Medic. Come on!
Hey!
- Make a path. Make a path.
- Move it!
- My bag.
- Forget it. Forget it.
Hey, what are you doing, huh?
Looking for a clue?
- It's a fucking freeway.
- Watch your mouth.
Yeah. And you,
are you out of your mind?
- What were you doing out here?
- Danny, please, I swear...
Hey. Your sister's suffering here.
I don't see no ax
sticking out her head.
He's my son, you fuck!
Let me tell you something, Council.
This shithead's in the wind,
and he ain't coming back.
But if it happened here,
the answer's here.
And we're gonna shut this place
down like East fucking Berlin...
...until somebody gives it up.
Now, all I want to know...
...is are you working Armstrong
or just protecting it?
The police are requesting
your help with any information...
Get him out of here.
Get all of them out of here.
Lorenzo, it's his nephew. Reverse the
situation, we'd be over there in a shot.
For an Armstrong kid?
I fucking doubt it.
Don't kill me!
- Oh, God!
- Don't do it, Calvin!
- Don't do it.
- Do it.
Coming through.
- Make way, people.
- Calvin! No, Calvin. No!
Yo, C! Come on, man!
No!
- They threw him out the window.
- They pushed him out the window.
- All right, stand back.
- Back up, y'all. Back up.
- Calvin Joy. Possession with intent.
- What did you do, huh?
- What did you do?
- We never got in the door.
Three knocks, this nitwit pulls
a Monte Cristo. Fuck you.
Fuck me? You son of a bitch!
I'll show you "fuck you"!
Son of a bitch! I'll kill you.
Fuck you! Fuck you!
- I'm taking you off this one.
- Don't.
- I'm taking you off!
- Don't, lieutenant, don't.
- Armstrong is mine.
- No, she's yours!
What's wrong with you,
bringing her back here?
Get her looking at mug shots yet?
- No.
- You sit her with a sketch artist?
She's yours!
- I love him so much.
- Come on, come on.
Come on, Big Daddy, chill out.
Come on.
- I love him so much.
- I know you do, Brenda. I know you do.
I wish... I wish...
I still wanna work here. I wanna...
I wanna work harder.
I have so much love in me.
I know you do, Brenda.
I know you do.
- What do I do? What do I do?
- Thanks, ladies. Let's go, Brenda.
All right. Everybody
make room, please.
- What's wrong with you?
- You are two heartbeats from a lockup.
You're gonna lock me up now?
Take me now, and lock me up.
Lock me up.
That's what you should do...
...you old hillbilly-ass cracker!
Can't you do something about this?
You can't lock people up
in their own neighborhood!
- Step behind the barricade.
- Fuck them!
- Take these barricades out!
- I'm not talking till you step back.
You're not talking to me?
Fine, I'll talk.
- Do you see him?
- Hey, look...
Just go and get him, take him upstairs
before he gets in trouble, all right?
- You know where she lives?
- Yeah, why?
Meet me over there, huh?
You step off!
No, this is my neighborhood!
These are my projects.
I'm not going nowhere.
No, I'm not going nowhere.
- Billy, come on!
- No!
- You think you is, man?
- Come on.
Go home!
Attention, Armstrong residents,
this is a lockdown.
Please remain behind the barriers...
...while police conduct
their investigation.
Detective, is that Cody's mom?
- Do you think it was deliberate?
- Get the hell out of here.
Come on, Detective Council.
Look over here.
This is a lockdown.
Please remain behind the barriers.
- I'm sorry, there's nothing I can do.
- We gotta go.
- No, please.
- All right, all right.
You know, I was thinking.
Once I said,
"Cody, do you love me?"
And you know what he said?
He's 4, right.
He said, "Of course I love you,
Mommy.
Why would you even ask me that?"
All right, I'll see if they'll post a
Gannon detective downstairs for you.
The sketch artist is on his way over.
He's gonna do the jacker.
I'll get Felicia to come stay with you.
Okay.
Get some sleep.
Okay.
Felicia.
You see him?
- You see him?
- Yeah.
Look, I promise I'll deal with it.
That sketch artist is on his way over.
As soon as he's done...
...make sure her head
is on a pillow. Okay?
Lorenzo.
I don't know anybody
in those houses...
...who would have laid a
hand on Brenda.
She was known.
She was respected.
All right.
- Thanks for this.
- Sure.
Say, partner, you good to drive?
- What?
- You good to drive?
Well, hell, yeah.
Tell you what,
why don't you take a power nap?
- I'll bring these back in an hour.
- Man, what the hell are you doing?
If you're trying to get
my attention, you got it.
How you doing, Detective Council?
- You're a reporter?
- Me? No.
Karen Collucci. Friends of Kent.
Friends of K..?
Oh, you those people go around
looking for missing children and such.
We find them.
Remember Corey Baker
over in Bayonne?
- And Nedra Davis in Jersey City?
- Yeah. They were killed.
I know. We found them.
Anyways, if you think it would help,
and if the mother agrees...
...we'd like to help you
find Cody Martin.
- No, I don't think so.
- Okay. No problem.
How about you take one of our cards
in case you change your mind?
You know, I'd bet everything
I have that...
...Tania Leeds...
...been dead from the jump.
Probably. But whoever did her
is still out there, right?
Anyways, it's the anniversary, so we're
hoping somebody'd step up, but...
You look half dead, Lorenzo.
Hope you can get some sleep.
Check it out.
Who the hell is that, now?
Buddha or some-fucking-body?
What? It's Tupac, man.
It's Pac.
Jas, man, come on.
This is your body,
not some billboard.
Well, I was about
to get Tiger Woods...
...but I figured that wouldn't go over
too well with the brothers in here.
I'm sorry, man. Time's up.
Finish up over here, folks.
Watch your back, all right?
You too, Pops.
This is ridiculous!
They have to go to school!
- You don't understand.
- Come on!
We're trying.
- The search for the missing child,
Cody Martin.
I'm tired of this.
Just give me a break, okay?
You gotta move back.
Tell me, how's this supposed
to help?
You're doing nothing but
harassing innocent people.
Three years ago,
Belmont Houses...
...maintenance man gets shot, 700
windows overlooking the scene.
We shut it down, what,
a day, day and a half...
...they brought us the actor
on a platter. That was my call.
Yeah, but what if nobody
around here knows nothing?
If this was anywhere
other than Armstrong...
If this was anywhere than Armstrong
Housing, I would have yanked you.
- Now, the mother. Is she a scumbag?
- No, I don't think so.
So if she's the actor,
will she hang tough?
- No, I don't.
- It's time to take a hard run at her.
You think?
Back it up, back it up.
He has no statement.
You know, Bobby,
if this woman is faking it...
...she's in the wrong line of work.
There is one thing that
keeps bugging me.
All right, so I go by the hospital
last night, right?
She says she got beat on by
a black man, 5'8", 150 pounds.
Now here comes me.
Black as a coal miner's ass...
...at midnight and twice that size.
I roll right up on her.
You know what she does?
She shakes my hand.
She should've taken a look at me
and jumped out of her skin.
But, no, she shakes
my motherfucking hand.
Lorenzo. You wanna do yourself
a big favor?
- Give her to me.
- You?
Yeah. Look, if she
don't give it up soon...
...with this going on, all these people,
they're gonna come down on you.
It's wrong.
- Call the Dempsy Police
at 201- 153...
- All right.
- Hey. Big Daddy!
- You gonna do anything about this?
- Yeah, what you gonna do, man?
I'm here at the Armstrong Houses on
the border of Gannon and Dempsy.
Tempers are beginning to flare.
This is day two of the search...
...for 4-year-old Gannon resident
Cody Martin.
Police suspect his abductor
is here in the Armstrong Houses.
We will continue our coverage
through the day...
...bringing you news as it breaks.
This is Victor Diaz reporting
to you from Channel 9.
- Danny.
- Brenda, listen to me.
- Leave me alone.
- Brenda, please.
- Why's it always gotta be like this?
- Stop, no.
Every time I see you, I put out a fire.
- Tell me what happened.
- Leave me alone.
Brenda, please.
Tell me what happened.
- I said, 50 times.
- Yeah, I know. Say it again.
Brenda. Please,
we are chasing ghosts out there.
Where's the kid? Where's the car?
We can't even find...
- Are you getting high again?
- No!
- You can tell me. I won't get angry.
- No!
"No, I'm not doing dope,"
or, "No, I won't tell you"?
No, leave me alone!
What the hell is wrong with you?
Can't you even raise a child?
Brenda, I'm sorry, but, please...
Brenda. I'm sorry, but...
Brenda, I'm your brother.
I love you. Just tell me
what happened.
Jesus Christ!
He came in here.
I didn't know what to do.
Did you find him?
No. No, not yet.
I'm gonna take you back
to Armstrong.
You can see the scene
during the daytime, okay?
- How's that look to you?
- Did they arrest anyone?
No, not yet.
Wait! Ms. Martin!
Have they found Cody?
Ms. Martin, please!
Yo, what's the deal, Zo?
What's the deal, huh?
- That your girl, Zo?
- Let her loose, man.
Let her loose, Zo.
Put your heavy away.
We ain't doing nothing.
Just keep on walking.
This place is locked down
and you know it.
We didn't do nothing!
- How's it look to you from up here?
- What are they doing?
Brenda. Show me.
Point out where you
tried to cut through the park.
Exactly where that guy
came on to you.
How can I tell? It was night.
Okay, Brenda,
I gotta ask you something.
If I don't, I wouldn't be doing my job.
Two-thirds of the kids missing,
the person that called it in...
...is usually the person
that made the kid go missing.
- So I gotta ask.
- What, did I kill my son?
I have... Since I've been little,
I have been nothing.
Less than nothing.
In... In my family, in... In the world...
...the only time anybody noticed me
was when I fucked something up.
Dropped out of college, lost a job,
lost an apartment, did drugs.
When I had to move back
into my childhood bedroom...
...because I didn't have
a penny to my name.
And when they did notice me, my
so-called people, my family?
The eyes, the smirks.
But you know when all that stopped?
For them? For me?
When I had my son.
When I had Cody.
As soon... As soon as I had him
in my arms, I became, like, more.
I became like...
Like, "Fuck you, fuck all of you!
You cannot touch this! You cannot be
this... This... This baby's mother, me!
I am that!"
So did I kill him?
He gave birth to me.
He made me.
I would slaughter myself
...before I would touch
a hair on his head.
Nothing you can
tell me that would help?
Can't you stop it?
I would if I could, Brenda...
...but it's got a life of its own now.
I tell you, 22 years of policing
in this city...
...things I see day in, day out...
...makes it very, very hard
to have faith in humanity.
But I do believe in God.
I believe that whatever happens to us,
the good things, the bad things...
...they all happen
because God wills it.
Like this thing with your son.
You know, looking for your son.
Now I know somewhere in the back
of your mind is the great, great fear...
...that things are gonna
turn out unhappy.
Well, me too, Brenda.
Me too.
But you got to take strength.
You gotta believe that if something,
you know, happened...
...if that's the case...
...it's because God
wanted that little boy...
...like he's gonna want
all of us one day.
And it ain't nobody's fault.
Wasn't nothing nobody could do.
But know this, Brenda.
I will not rest until I find your son.
And the person that...
The person that he was last with.
You know, the more we try to know,
the more mysterious life gets.
Sometimes there's nothing else
to do but just let go.
You just gotta let go...
...and let God.
Come here.
Look at that.
This place is ticking
like a time bomb.
Now, you know what that means
because you ain't no tourist.
In fact, from what I hear, you get
much love around here, right?
- I'm so tired.
- Brenda, Brenda.
Brenda, Brenda. Brenda...
...I want to find your son.
That's first.
But I wanna find him
before anybody gets hurt.
Now, we're banging our heads
against the wall on this thing.
We're doing all we can,
so if there's anything you can say...
...that would stop this,
now is the time.
Brenda, please.
Now, come on. Please.
I'm trying.
I'm trying. It's just so hard.
You have no idea.
Can I just see the kids?
- There she is.
- Ms. Martin!
Oh, my goodness.
- Hi. Hi, Brandon.
- Did they find Cody yet?
No, baby, they didn't.
I'm okay. I'm okay.
Hey, what are you making?
Show me.
Show me, let me see.
Oh, my goodness.
Here, can I share your seat?
- Oh, look at that.
- So where's Felicia?
Dealing with Billy.
Oh, that's beautiful.
Did Brenda come
to work yesterday?
- Yeah.
- How'd she seem to you?
- She seemed kind of out of it. But...
- She bring Cody with her?
No. She said he was sick.
- Do you wanna see my son?
- What?
Here.
You know, I think it was good for him
to be the only white kid here.
You know, it's important to know
what it feels like to be the only one.
You think it's okay
I borrow Cody's picture?
- Take mine!
- You can have ours, go ahead.
Oh, I love these pictures.
Thank you so much.
- Ms. Martin?
- Yes, sweetheart?
What happened to your hands?
I just got some cuts in them,
but see these bandages?
It's gonna make it all better.
I'm gonna be just fine.
Thank you, sweetheart.
Oh, Cassandra.
For the latest developments
in the search for Cody Martin...
...we take you now live
to Gannon, New Jersey...
...where local detective Daniel Martin,
uncle of the missing 4-year-old...
...is about to make a public appeal
to Cody's abductor.
No questions asked.
Just drop him off on any corner
in any city. Call 911 and go.
There'll be no retribution,
no follow-up, no pursuit.
We just want the boy back. Please.
Do the right thing.
That was Detective Daniel Martin
appealing for information...
...on the whereabouts of
Cody Martin.
The 4-year-old boy went missing
when his mother's vehicle...
...was carjacked in
Gannon, New Jersey.
Okay.
Thank you. "Jack Russell Terrier."
Drama.
- Come on, man, you deaf?
- What?
Candygram.
- Hey. Rafik!
- Get him!
Get the fuck off me!
Get the fuck off!
Get off me!
You son of a bitch!
If you can't afford me the respect,
if you can't treat me like a man...
...if you insist on emasculating me...
- Emasculating?
- Yeah!
- You emasculate yourself!
- Is that what I do?
- You mope around my apartment.
- Ain't looking for work.
- That's what the fuck I'm talking about.
You ain't a man.
You ain't supporting your family.
- I beg your pardon.
- Nobody is allowed out, all right?
- For what?
- He can go on out.
- But I don't know these kids.
- You don't need to know these kids.
- Let them through.
- But we...
- Whose side are you on?
- You know who I am.
You know what I'm about.
Nothing's changed.
What goddamn carjacker, huh?
Put some heat under your girlfriend,
you might find out what's going on.
- Do not tell me how to do my job.
- And do not tell me how to do mine.
- I know how to do mine.
- Let them through.
No. Not yet. Forget it.
Not yet. Come on.
- What the fuck you want?
- Salim!
- What the fuck is up now?
- No! No!
- Fuck.
- No!
Man, this is bullshit!
Fuck this bitch, man.
Make a hole, make a hole,
make a hole!
Hey, hey, hey.
- Get off me, man.
- Get in there!
You know you're wrong.
You're wrong. You're wrong.
- Yo, what's going on?
- What y'all doing?
Y'all better bring him back.
You better bring him back.
- Bobby!
- Who are you talking to?
- Hey, hey, hey.
- Felicia!
Felicia!
- Felicia!
- Felicia. Felicia, don't...
- Everyone's getting unruly.
- Felicia.
Do me a favor. Watch her.
Take her to your apartment.
I'll be back for her.
- Back up!
- Damn! Come on, y'all!
Hey, Lorraine, I just saw Cassandra.
She... She made me a drawing.
- What are you doing with her?
- Excuse me?
- What is she doing here?
- You don't know her?
I don't know nobody from Gannon.
And you stay away from my child.
What? What?
Fair-weather bitch.
Come on, Brenda.
Come on, Rafik.
Why don't you just cop to it?
- Leo.
- You can do better than that.
- We wanna know the truth.
- Something's going on.
- He bolted on us.
- Let's go!
- We're serious here, Rafik.
- Yo, yo, yo. Hey.
Hey, fellas.
- You got to go through me.
- Yeah, well, we got tired of waiting.
- Waiting for what?
- For you.
You said you'd pick him up for us.
You brought him
in on that bullshit car stop?
In this town, drugs is drugs.
- Lorenzo, they setting me up.
- Setting you up for what, brother?
Lorenzo, you know, me and Rafik,
we go way back, right?
I come up on my man with this, as
you just said, two-bit warrant today?
And all of a sudden he
goes all-out rabbit on me.
I don't get it. Unless there's
something you're worried about.
- Is there?
- Hey.
Hey.
This is you?
- This is you? Where's my nephew?
- Hey! Get him out!
- Get off!
- Get him out!
- Come on, come on.
- Come here!
Pull him off!
- Get him out of here!
- Where's my nephew, huh?
- Come on, get him off.
- Where is he?
- Come on!
- You mother...
- Oh, my God, stop!
- Danny!
- Stop!
- Come here!
- Danny!
- Come on, man, what are you doing?
- Hey, chill out.
- Hey, Rafik!
- Take it easy, man.
- Get the fuck off me!
- You know God?
- Keep on going.
Fuck God! There is no God!
I'm God!
It's just you and me, motherfucker!
You hear me? It's just you and me!
What the fuck are you doing?
- What, me?
- Lorenzo, take a hike.
I'm doing your job. You're supposed
to be king of the jungle over there?
How'd you miss this monkey?
- I think you better leave, brother.
- Kiss my ass, brotherfucker!
You are balling things up for
everybody, your sister included.
And if your peoples here had any
sense, they'd tell you the same thing.
Hey, Lorenzo.
What are you doing here, huh?
Protecting your own?
I don't know. But maybe I ought
to ask you the same question.
Because you know and I know
there ain't no fucking jacker.
- You calling my sister a child-killer?
- I know nothing about a dead child.
You know something about
a dead child?
I'm just saying your sister's a liar.
What's going on in there? Lorenzo!
- Lorenzo, open up this door!
- Lorenzo!
Come on, Lorenzo, open the door!
- You better talk to me.
- Open the door right now, Lorenzo.
- What is this?
- What the hell y'all doing to Rafik?
What is going on?
He didn't do nothing!
- Who let them in?
- Yo, you beat him for weed?
- Hey, get out of my face!
- Or what, you gonna beat on us too?
- Shut your hole and get out of here!
- Who are you to talk to us like that...
...you three-piece
Uncle Tom motherfucker?
Come on, look.
Just let me handle it.
Buzz us in. Buzz the...
Buzz us back in!
- He didn't take that kid.
- I know.
Why'd they do that to him?
He didn't take that bitch's kid.
- I know.
- What'd they do that for?
- Just go home.
- What'd they do that for?
I said, go home.
Let me handle it, okay?
Lorenzo.
I don't know who
you think you are...
...but I think you best
be sticking with them.
- Well, it's over.
- What?
The DA wants us to hand it over
to the feds.
Look, it's a good thing, Big Daddy.
Gets you off the hook.
No. No, no. No.
Come on. The kid's dead.
She did it. I mean, fuck her.
Hey, slow your roll there, Bobby. We
don't know either one of those things.
What I do know is...
...there's a whole hell of a lot
about that night that she ain't telling.
I'm not quitting
till I get to the bottom of it.
Do me a favor, Bobby.
Go back, buy me one more day.
We organize search parties.
We work with the families.
We work with the cops.
But most of all, we're just
a bunch of parents, you know?
Concerned parents. Because of
that, because of who we are...
...we get in tight with the moms in
a way that's different from the police.
- You know what I'm saying.
- You were in on that...
...Sandra Howard thing
in Bayonne, right?
- Am I remembering that right?
- Yeah, we helped.
The mother got locked up
on that one.
Like I said, we helped.
Well, I don't want you jumping
to conclusions about Brenda.
No. No, that wouldn't
serve anybody.
And I call the shots.
Yes. It goes without saying
that we'd cooperate...
No, no, no. I call the shots.
Now, I got something
in my head...
...that would play out better coming
from somebody other than me.
I'll let your people
do whatever it is they do...
...but with all due respect, you'll be
working for me and not with me.
If that's unacceptable,
all you do is...
You tell us where you wanna go,
and we will help you get there.
Yeah, all right. Okay, then.
We just want the boy back.
Have you or any of your people
ever been out to Freedomland?
You guys still hazing
your rookies there?
Yeah.
Detective Council here brought us up
to speed from the police point of view.
But we are not here as cops.
We're here as parents.
We're here because
we all have children too.
What happened to your son...
...could have happened
to any of our own children, okay?
Okay.
Now, this is Marie. And Lewis.
This is Elaine. This is Tina.
Elaine is her mom.
Who's Kent?
He's the first boy we ever
tried to find. Ten years ago.
We've been helping find kids
ever since.
- Did you find Kent?
- Brenda?
Would you like our help?
Okay.
Good. Good.
Okay, now, first off, what I need
is to hear from you what happened.
I can't. I can't say that.
I told the police everything.
- I told them...
- I know, I know, I know, I know.
It's just... Look, like I said, they
have their priorities and we have ours.
One more time, Brenda, and
I wouldn't put you through this...
No. No. I can't. I just...
No.
Okay.
Okay. I understand.
We'll just go with the police report
if you want.
Okay. Now first thing,
we come to the question head-on.
Where is your son?
Right? Where do we look?
Where do we look?
What is your gut feeling, Brenda?
- He took off in a car.
- Okay, well, let's say your son...
...woke up. Let's say the guy
realized he had a kid in the car...
...sooner rather than later.
So let's keep it within a mile.
But the fact of the matter is,
it's been almost 24 hours.
So the odds of him still
wandering the streets...
...not getting picked up by now
are not so good.
Now, we looked at the map
earlier today, and we came up...
...with four possibilities where a kid
could conceivably get lost...
...or hide out for a whole day
or night and not get noticed.
And then we drove around,
we eliminated three of them.
This is a golf course.
This is a cemetery.
This is a ball field.
There's no cover, no place
to hide, if that's what he's doing.
Which leaves us...
...Freedomland.
Freedomland?
It's an old state children's home
in the back of Cotter's Woods.
It was like a foundling asylum,
like some kind of a youth house.
- It's been shut since the '50s.
- It's not far from Armstrong.
- Cody could have...
- Yeah, okay. Okay.
So Freedomland?
I feel good about Freedomland
for this one.
- Okay.
- Okay.
Freedomland it is.
- You're coming too, right?
- Absolutely.
What the hell's all this?
- I just need to get her to Freedomland.
- And you will.
It's not gonna work if you
make a beeline for it. Trust me.
Meanwhile, we have a little problem.
Look, you're here,
you might as well get out.
Just let us open the door.
How about that?
Excuse me, ladies.
Hey, Brenda. How you doing?
Heavenly father, we ask for your
blessing and guiding hand today...
...as we send these volunteers down...
...to help the mother of Cody Martin
find her child...
...and safely bring him home.
And we ask for the courage
and fortitude...
...to see this task successfully done.
In the name of the Father,
and of the Son...
...and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Amen.
Cody!
- Cody!
- Cody!
- Cody!
- Cody!
- Cody!
- Cody!
- Cody!
- Cody!
So where's her bug bands?
Karen doesn't wear bug bands.
Jesus. Anything bit Karen,
it'd lose its mind.
Really? Why?
Because Karen's son was abducted.
Our first kid.
You mean, Kent?
Ten years ago.
Tina here was a baby.
We all knew each other
from the neighborhood.
- Karen got us together.
- Cody Martin!
We had no idea what the hell
we were doing...
...but we wound up combing
every goddamn forest...
...field, drainpipe, creek, culvert...
Oh, everywhere.
And you know, we...
We still post flyers.
Well, what can I say? We...
We got better at it with practice.
Karen knows who took him too.
The cops just can't prove it.
- We can't prove it.
- Yeah.
God.
Me and Kent went to school together.
So like...
...I know he's my own age and all.
When we find him, I'm still
expecting him to be 8 years old...
...like the last time I saw him.
Cody!
- Cody!
- Come on, Cody!
So why you all triple-teaming me...
...while Karen's got Brenda
by herself all up in her ear?
Why?
- Sympathy.
- Sympathy.
I never lost a child, Lorenzo.
Did you?
- Cody!
- Cody Martin!
Hey, Cody!
Cody Martin!
- Cody Martin!
- Cody!
Watch that.
Stay together.
Watch your step. I've got you.
- All right.
- Keep moving.
I'm so tired.
What do you want from me?
We're gonna have a look around.
It's a little dangerous. Half of these
floorboards can go at any minute.
So I want you to stay in here
and wait for us, okay?
What are you doing?
Just wait for us.
I can't be alone.
I swear to God,
I feel like they're still here.
I tell you, when...
When they finally padlocked
this place, it was...
It was like shutting down hell.
Do you have any idea
of the generations of children...
...who suffered in here?
Thousands.
Thousands who were neglected...
...and abused...
...forgotten.
Just...
Just wasted.
Even your own family turns on you
after a while.
You come downstairs,
the other kids are like:
"Mommy, are you gonna
be sad today?"
That's the only thing that can
bring you back to some...
...charade of normal life,
when it hits you...
...what you're doing to your
other kids, to your marriage.
But with me, I couldn't even
rally for that. I couldn't fake it.
This bastard, Jimmy,
he took away my life.
He took away my family.
My husband's like, you know,
"Come on, Karen...
...you gotta think about
the other kids. Think about me.
We gotta get on with
the business of living."
That's what he called it,
"the business of living."
See, men, they always cave in.
Talk to you about
the business of living...
...tell you to,
"Think about the others.
The rest of us." Them.
And then they leave.
Because they just don't
have the belly for it.
They just don't have the heart.
We...
We are the hunters, Brenda.
What can I say to my other kids?
They're with my husband now.
All I can tell them is the truth:
If it had happened to them
instead of their brother...
...I would be the same way for them.
I want them back, my family.
But until someone can tell me
that my son is gone...
...here I am.
And here I'll stay.
Sometimes I just wanna grab...
...that murderous, perverted
son of a bitch and say to him:
"Look, Jimmy, you took him.
I know it and you know it.
Now, don't say a word,
just nod your head.
Is he dead? Yes or no?
Do that for me,
I will never bother you again.
No one's gonna nail you
for nodding your head.
I swear I will go away.
You will never see me again.
Is he dead?
Just nod your head.
I need to know.
I need to know now, Jimmy.
Is he dead?
Sweet Christ in heaven...
...won't you please just tell me?
Just nod your head."
A nod of the head,
such a little thing.
And night becomes day.
Is he dead? Yes or no?
That's all I ask.
Yes or no?
Put my heart at rest.
Put my heart at rest, Brenda.
It's so hot.
I feel like I'm in hell.
When I said I just wanted to know...
...if my son was dead or alive,
that's not completely true.
I would like to give him
a proper burial in sanctified ground.
The thought of him
lying in some ditch...
...in some shallow grave in the forest
where the animals can...
Shit.
My boy wasn't like
those children in there.
- Okay.
- He was loved.
He was cherished.
Okay.
He's not here.
You're in the wrong park.
Thank you, God.
Thank you.
Is he dead?
- What?
- Yes.
- How?
- He drank a bottle of cough syrup.
- When was this?
- Two nights ago.
- The night you came to the hospital?
- The night before that.
- Did you see him drink the syrup?
- No, I wasn't there.
Was anybody else..?
He was all alone.
He was... He was all...
All alone.
Where is he, Brenda?
He's not here.
Brenda.
Where is he?
Oh, God, please.
Oh, God. Please.
- God, I can't find him.
- Just try to stay calm.
I can't find him.
I can't find him.
Come here.
I think we've got something.
Copy that. We're on our way.
This is subsoil.
It should be about two feet under.
And this formation here,
this is man-made.
- Is this it? Is this where he is?
- Yes.
- This is where you buried him?
- Yes.
- You dug this up?
- Yes.
- You dug this up?
- Yes.
- And then what'd you do?
- What?
- You pile all these rocks on here?
- Yes.
- All these stones.
- Yes.
Over here.
What are they doing?
- I can't be here. I...
- Hey. Hey. I don't wanna be here...
...any more than you.
- I'll tell you.
I don't want a lawyer.
Just please, just take me away.
Everything.
Yeah, I swear, but...
...just to you.
All right, come here.
We're gonna go, but I need you
to do one thing for me, okay?
- What?
- Show me how you carried the stones.
I need you to pick me up...
...that one right there.
Here. Just take it from me.
Come on. Take it.
Take it.
You know, Brenda,
when you tell me everything...
...I want you to start by telling me
who dug that grave.
And who carried those stones.
And please, please,
do not tell me it was you.
Because if you start with a lie...
...you will have lost the greatest ally
you've ever had in your life...
...and I won't even bother
to take your statement.
I will charge you and dump your ass
in the system.
You hear what I'm saying?
You hear me?
Please, just... I swear to God,
I'll tell you everything.
Just take me away, please.
- Page me when he's up.
- Right.
- Go.
- Y'all know who this is?
This is me.
This is you, and you, and you.
This is all of us and none of us.
This is the nigger in the woodpile.
This is, "A black man did it."
The hottest item in the store.
- But you know what?
- What?
We ain't buying it.
- You know what?
- What?
We ain't having it.
Gannon, heads up.
Hey, Dempsy, heads up.
Here's the point that you been missing
Armstrong ain't no locked-down prison
Hey, Gannon, heads up
Hey, Dempsy, heads up
Here's the point that you...
Hey.
- You charge her yet?
- I'm waiting on the body.
She kill him?
- I don't know.
- You gotta go with homicide.
- Okay.
- Otherwise, Armstrong...
- They'll raise the fucking roof tonight.
- Hey.
I tried to get you
to stop the blockade.
- Circumstances dictated...
- Circumstances?
You wanna talk circumstances?
The circumstances were,
it was Armstrong.
The circumstances were, they were a
bunch of mud-flat animals on welfare...
...that didn't deserve the consideration
or respect you give a dog.
Look, Lorenzo, the prosecutor...
...if he has a press conference
tonight to announce the arrest...
...he wants you by his side.
- Talk to people about keeping cool.
- Oh, he does, does he?
Well, you tell that prosecutor
he can kiss my black ass.
And when he's done,
you can get some too.
- Where is she?
- Interview room.
Does she at least have
a fucking lawyer?
Danny, wait. You can't...
So, Brenda,
let's talk about those stones.
He didn't wanna have anything
to do with it, but he did it for me.
- Who? Who did?
- I dug that grave with my hands.
I did. I told myself...
...I was making his bed one last time,
and that's how I got through it.
There was no way I could
bring my boy to that place...
...so I begged him to do it for me.
He had to do it, Billy.
I had no one else to turn to.
Billy? Billy who?
I told him he was responsible
for what had happened too...
...but it was all me. It was always me.
But he had to do it.
I had no one else to turn to.
Billy who?
Felicia's Billy.
I have spent all my life trying to
get distance from other people.
- My family, men, other kids...
- Hey, hey, hey, Brenda. Brenda.
Let's stick to what happened
three nights ago, all right?
No, no, you have to let me.
Ever since I met you...
...Ive been trying to think of a way
to really, really tell you this.
And now you just have to let me.
With my family, my brothers, it was
like, "Everybody just leave me be."
But with a child, when you
have a child, it's yours, it's safe.
It's finally safe. And...
And when I got pregnant,
it was an accident.
I mean, it never occurred to me
to have a baby.
I was my own baby.
But then I had this vision...
...of what it could be like.
The companionship,
the secret...
...companionship.
I never told the guy
who knocked me up.
And for four years with Cody,
it's like life is this cliff...
...but we carved out a ledge
together, you know? But...
But it wasn't enough,
just being with my son.
You can't...
You can't live like that.
Did Billy have anything to do
with what happened?
No, he barely even met Cody.
So Billy...
I had this thing that I did
at the Rainbow Club. I...
I brought in professionals,
teachers, lawyers, cops...
...to talk to the kids,
to show them another way to be.
So Billy comes in. I knew he was
unemployed and it was so sad...
...but he talked to the kids
so earnestly...
...about stocks and bonds
and investments...
...and it was way over their head,
but it was so...
So sweet, you know. And I looked over
at Felicia while he was talking...
...and she rolls her eyes
like she's had it with this loser.
But I understood him so well,
so fast, because it's like... Like...
...he was me.
And so after the talk,
I went over and I took his hand...
...and, yeah, he must have jumped
a mile, but it was on, you know.
The whole thing took, like,
After he came over
to my apartment that night...
...I knew I was in trouble...
...because I had finally lain down
with someone who was not a child...
...after all these years. I had...
...over-abstained, you see,
and I was in deep trouble.
Before Billy, I used to love
to lie down with Cody...
...or just watch movies with him
before he went to bed.
And now, it's like
I look at my son's face...
...in the TV light,
and it's like he's...
He's un-precious to me.
And it's, like, videos, you know?
I'm wasting critical minutes.
You know, Billy's downstairs.
I gotta get this kid down.
And you know, Cody takes...
Cody...
Cody took...
...an hour,
sometimes 30 minutes.
And I... I know he can feel my tension,
and it's keeping him awake.
Sometimes I would think
he was asleep...
...and I'd be halfway down the hall,
like tippy-toe, tippy-toe...
...and I'd hear, "Mommy. Mommy."
And I'd be like:
"Get to sleep!"
And how fast would you fall asleep...
...if you have this half-insane giant
hanging over you...
...who doesn't love you
or want you anymore?
Who used to treat you like
the sun, moon and stars...
...but no more, no more.
So I started giving him...
...cough syrup...
...to put him to sleep.
You know, not much.
Just whatever you give a kid
for a stuffed head.
And it worked.
It worked. And I told him it was
night vitamins.
And it became part
of our bedtime routine.
Look, Brenda,
I hear what you're saying...
...but we gotta get back to what
happened three nights ago.
- I need you to start telling me...
- He wouldn't go down, Cody.
You know, I had already dosed him
and he wouldn't go down.
And that night, you know,
I had to talk to Billy because...
...I knew that he was breaking it off
and going back to Felicia.
And the thing of it is,
I was kind of relieved...
...that Billy was dumping me
and putting me out of my misery...
...and it was probably the last night
I'd leave my son alone.
It was probably...
Probably the last,
but he wouldn't go down.
So I said to him:
"You be a good boy
and go to sleep."
And he was...
You know, he was furious.
He said, "I don't want you to go."
But like a man would say it, you know:
- "I don't want you to go."
- "I don't want you to go."
You know, standing there all punchy
with the cough syrup...
...and, you know, I wanna say to him,
"Tonight is the last night.
Just give me this one last..."
But I said, you know:
"You go to sleep.
I'll be back soon. I promise."
And he says, you know...
He says to me,
"If you go, you'll be sorry."
But like a jealous husband, you know.
"If you go, you'll be sorry."
And I almost, you know...
I almost didn't go.
You know, I'd never...
I never heard that tone from him.
If he'd only sounded like,
you know, more...
More babyish or more pathetic.
But, you know, it was so hard,
his voice...
...and it scared me. It, like,
drove me out of the house...
...and, you know, he was...
He was only 4 years old.
You know,
nobody has to tell me that.
So...
...I go downstairs...
...and sure enough...
...Billy says it's over.
And I'm yelling and I'm crying...
...but really I'm just going
through the motions because...
Because really, I'm kind of relieved.
And I go back upstairs and I...
I don't see him, Cody,
and I look for him in his bed.
And I'm... I...
I'm like, you know, "Oh, he's hiding,"
you know, "He's...
He's hiding. He's mad at me.
He's trying to scare me
or punish me or something.
But that's okay,
because I deserve it."
And I'm kind of lighthearted now,
you know...
...because it's all over and done with,
so I'm like, "Cody?
Cody?" Like, "Where are you?"
And then I see him, you know,
he's under the table. And he's asleep.
And I... And I crawl over there because
I'm gonna carry him back to bed.
And I put my hand
in something wet...
...and there's the smell...
The smell...
And that's when I saw
the empty bottle.
And I remembered,
"If you go, you'll be sorry.
If you go, you'll be sorry."
Well, was he still alive?
- How do you know?
- He was not alive.
- Did you try to revive him?
- He was not alive.
Tell me how you knew
he was not alive.
Because I'm his mom.
And us moms know these things.
He said, "If you go, you'll be sorry."
And he was right.
- He was right.
- Brenda.
- He didn't know what he was doing.
- He was right.
- He was right.
- Brenda, listen to me.
It was an accident. If what you
described is true, it was an accident.
- Don't you play me.
- What happened next?
No.
- Brenda, we gotta keep talking.
- No, I'm done. Just charge me.
Tell me, Brenda,
you wanna see Billy go to jail?
- For what?
- Well, if we stop now...
...I charge him with obstruction,
conspiracy.
If all he did was carry a body,
you need to take me to the end.
All I remember is putting my hand
in something wet.
I remember the smell
and then I was walking.
I was walking and thinking about...
...my son, thinking about...
...living without no...
Living every day with...
And I'm like,
"Just walk out into the road.
Just die." But...
...I couldn't do it.
And I'm in this fog, you know.
This fog. And I'm walking...
...and I wind up in that park, and
I'm clawing and I'm making his...
Then I had... I needed to go back
and to get him, and how could I?
And so I called Billy.
And what did he do, exactly?
I was not there, but...
...he must have gone back up
to my apartment and seen Cody...
...and put him in my car.
And I guess I must have told him
where to go because...
And the stones...
I guess he did that
to make it proper.
And then the next night...
...I... I must have known
what I was gonna do...
...but I don't remember
thinking about it.
I went to Martyrs Park
and I threw my bag in the dirt...
...and I just started
jamming my hands in the...
In the shit, just shoving them in.
I just wanted to get every fucking...
...broken, like, rusted... Like,
you know, all of it, like, in my skin.
And then I walked through
Armstrong, and I'm...
I guess I knew I was going
to the hospital...
...and I guess I knew what I was
gonna say, but I don't remember...
...knowing the story, you know, the lie,
before it came out of my mouth.
And I think of it now, I guess
I knew somewhere in my head...
...that Armstrong could take it.
And that nobody...
...no individual would really
be hurt by it...
...and that I could go on,
you know...
...with some kind of life, but...
...no, you can't.
You can't.
No.
- What?
- What?
What is it? They have Cody?
- Is he okay?
- What?
What..? What did I do?
Okay, Brenda.
At this point, I'm gonna have
to charge you with homicide.
Now, personally,
I have no reason to disbelieve...
...anything that you've said to me.
I wouldn't have always been able
to be there for him.
Well, because of all the
obstruction you put in our path...
...this is what's required of me.
You understand?
Now, once the forensics are in, the
charge will probably be downgraded.
This is Dempsy Detective
Lorenzo Council.
I'm in the interrogation room of
the Southern District Precinct House.
It is May 4th, 4:55 p.m.
I'm with Brenda Martin,
a 37-year-old white female...
...who resides at 16 Van Loon Street,
Gannon, New Jersey.
Phone number, 120-7210.
Social Security number,
- What have I done?
- Statement is in relation...
...to the death
of 4-year-old Cody Martin.
Brenda! Hey! Hey!
Stop it. Stop it.
Stop it! Stop it! Stop it!
Stop!
Can I get some help?
Somebody help me!
Can I get some help in here?
Calm down! Calm...
Calm down. Calm down.
Just take it easy, guys. Take it easy.
Don't hurt her.
- Okay. It's okay.
- Easy, easy.
Detective Council.
How bad was what I did?
I mean, look in your heart.
How bad was what I did?
Come on, Billy. Let's go. Come on.
Look, I don't care what you say.
- Don't touch me, man!
- No.
There's nothing you can do.
There's nothing you can do.
Oh, my goodness. Nothing I can do.
What do you want from me?
For heaven's sake.
All units, Code Three.
Code Three at Armstrong Houses.
This is car 12 responding
to Code Three.
Code Three at Armstrong Houses.
All units respond.
- At Armstrong Houses.
- Car 14, Code Six.
- At Armstrong Houses.
- Car 14, Code Six.
Potential riot disturbance
developing at Armstrong Houses.
- All units, Code Six.
- Reinforce Unit Three at Jackson.
All units respond, Code Three.
All units, Code Three.
Code Three at Armstrong Houses.
I got it! I got it!
Do it!
Help!
Get the hell out of here!
Everybody, please.
Go back to your homes!
Forget you, man!
See, you a punk!
You need to back off, please.
Everybody.
- What is it?
- What?!
Forget it. Don't...
Put your shit back on!
For your own sakes,
do not let this happen.
This is not gonna help!
Come on, SWAT.
- This is not gonna help!
- Forget it!
What's wrong with you?
This is yours.
This is for your family!
Yeah, I'm coming at you.
Forget y'all, man. Forget y'all!
Y'all know you ain't
supposed to be doing all this.
That's right. I wish y'all would move
so I could do something.
I should bust y'all in your face.
You. Forget y'all.
Get out of here.
Lorenzo! Lorenzo!
Why don't you come up
in here now, motherfucker?
I just saw that nigger
with that bitch's kid.
- Don't let him get away, now.
- That jacker's right under my bed.
- Y'all need a SWAT team.
- Y'all want them to come in here?
- Hell, yeah.
- No. No, you don't.
- Man, fuck you!
- Look, you see these cops?
They are just the tip of the iceberg.
Every cop in Dempsy and Gannon
is on alert.
There's a hell of a lot more of them
than there are tenants in here.
So if this shit jumps off...
...they gonna turn into
one big-ass police force...
...that's gonna be in here
kicking down our doors!
- "Our doors," huh?
- Please.
What you talking about, man?
You ain't one of us. Come on.
We ain't tolerating!
Leo?
Oh, so you all concerned
with city lines now and shit.
You take care of your town,
we'll take care of ours.
Just get them out of sight, all right?
You about to start the very thing
you supposed to be here preventing.
- When they step off, we'll step off.
- No, you step off, then they'll step off.
Just back them up.
I'll handle my end, all right?
Everybody play it cool.
Play it cool.
- Wanna piece of me?
- What the fuck you looking at?
You have a good night now,
you hear.
Rafik! Rafik!
- No!
- Can I help you with something?
No!
Hey!
- Come on, Rafik. Rafik!
- Don't do it.
Don't do it!
Get him out of here.
Miss Martin.
I have a charge here
of criminal negligence in the death...
...of Cody Martin
signed by Detective Lorenzo Council...
...of the Dempsy Police Department.
Do you understand
the charge as read to you?
Miss Martin?
How's your reception, counselor?
Can you see us?
Yes, we can, Your Honor.
Miss Martin?
Do you understand the charge?
Yes.
They gave us some deluxe
elbow room in here, huh?
So they got you
in protective custody, huh?
On suicide watch too.
It's just standard procedure.
You know, you aren't the only person
I got to visit in here today.
My son, Jason...
...he's over in the state wing
doing two to four for armed robbery.
No.
- Used my gun too.
- Oh, no.
Yeah.
All my friends say to me:
"Lorenzo, it ain't your fault
that boy landed where he did.
He got to take responsibility
for that his own self.
I ain't seen no pacifier in his mouth
the last 10 years."
Well, between you and me,
it is my fault.
I do feel responsible
because the kind of man he is...
...is the kind of man
I showed him how to be.
High all the time.
Selfish. Out of control.
I was never there
on a day-to-day basis.
And when I was,
I was fighting with his moms.
Yeah, well, that's who I was.
I'm so sorry.
Back then...
...I just didn't give a shit.
Now Jason's in prison...
...and he'll probably be in and out
of prison the rest of his life.
It's kind of late in the game...
...but all I wanna do now
is be there for him.
But with kids...
...no matter what you did or how bad
you think you messed up...
...God always finds a way
to give you another shot at it.
It might not be
with that particular child, but...
What I'm trying to say, Brenda...
...is that God's grace
is sort of, like, retroactive.
So every little kid out there
is Jason for me now.
And, no, they're not my blood,
but I can live with that.
And I'm happy. My life is good.
There's a lot of young women
in here, Brenda.
Some of them are good mothers,
some ain't. But they all need help.
On visitors' day, in the nursery,
even in prenatal.
And the warden in here
is an old running buddy of mine...
I love you.
What?
I love you for the way
you talk to me.
I've loved you
for the way you talk to me...
...ever since I first met you
in the hospital.
I wish I had your heart.
Look, I don't know if your lawyer
is gonna do a plea bargain...
...or whatever,
or if you're going to trial.
But you'll still be a young woman.
Lots of things that you can...
I'll... I'll...
I'll come see you.
Brenda...
...reach out to people in here,
all right?
Jas, how you doing?
Wasn't you just here
on Tuesday, man?
You want me to leave?
No, it's all good.
It's Christmas in July.
So like I said,
how you doing, kid?
You know, the Aryan Nation
was asking me to hook up...
...but I was a little bit nervous about
the whole initiation thing, you know?
Hey, Dad, you..? You okay?
Yeah.
Yeah, I'm good.
I'm real good.
- So, what you think?
- I was looking at that.
What's going on with you?
You know, out there
roughnecking.
- So you fell off your bed.
- Yeah, right...
I thought you should see this.
Hey.
You know that thing
with the carjacker?
I know I'm supposed to find it
in my heart to forgive.
But...
And her with Billy.
I mean, he wasn't getting none
from me, so...
But, Lorenzo, did he have anything
to do with hurting that child?
No. No, he didn't.
Thank you. Thank you.
"This child's life was not in vain.
He brought us together
in a common bond of sadness.
He reminded us
how human we are...
...and how hurt and pain
touches us all.
Go to God, little angel.
And thank you."
I really appreciate you bringing
me out here, Bobby.
I truly do.